Divisional Series, Game 2

MMD - 2   ZSY - 1   F
Best-of-five series tied 1-1
W - Rodgers (1-0)   L - Hernandez (0-1)  S - Biddle (1)
MMD: Rodgers: 7 IP, ER, QS (1)
ZSY: Hernandez: 6 IP, 2 ER, QS (1)
MMD: Freel: 3-4, RBI (1)
MMD: Zaun: 1-4, 2B, RBI (1)
ZSY: Pujols: 2-3, 2B, RBI (3)
MMD: Biddle: 2 IP, 0 ER, S (1)

During the regular season, Runelvys Hernandez was one of the most steadfast pitchers in the league, racking up an astounding six quality starts. But out of the gate, Hernandez struggled in a very ugly first inning in which he was lucky to escape with only giving up one run. The Z-Slayer offense didn't take that lying down, with Albert Pujols tying up the game in the bottom of the first with an RBI double. With both teams scoring in the first, the fans buckled in for a wild ride...that never actually happened. Hernandez struggled the rest of the night, but always managed to sneak out of trouble. He surrendered an RBI double to MMD All Star catcher Gregg Zaun, but besides that finished out the sixth and earned a quality start. The real story in this game, however, was that of MMD starter Kenny Rodgers who settled down after his rough first inning and absolutely manhandled the Z-Slayers offensive attack. He was at times unhittable, surrendering the odd walk or so, and produced crucial double play balls when he needed them. As a free agent, it will indeed be interesting to see where he ends up in the offseason. His wonderful performance was capped off by a two inning save from reliever/closer Rocky Biddle, evening up the series at one win apiece, and moving the series into Game 3, where MMD will enjoy home field advantage.
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MAX - 5   RED - 3   F
MAX leads best-of-five series 2-0
W - Franklin (1-0)   L - Fogg (0-1)   S - Rivera (1)
MAX: Franklin: 6 1/3 IP, 2 ER, QS (1)
RED: Fogg: 4 1/3 IP, 5 ER
MAX: Jeter: 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI (2)
MAX: Ashburn: 2-3, 2 BB, 2 R, 2 SB (3)
RED: Tejada: 2-4, HR (1), RBI (1)

Much like Game 2 of the Division 1 Series, Game 2 of the Division 2 Series saw both offenses get started in the first inning. Red Clay starter Josh Fogg was under siege the entire evening, never settling down and eventually surrendering more runs than innings pitched. In the first inning, the Maxions rallied for two runs, thanks to RBI singles from second baseman Jeff Kent and first baseman Tony Clark. In the bottom of the inning the Red Clay offense answered with a Miguel Tejada solo shot. Fogg stumbled again in the second inning; smart base running and a stolen base from Richie Ashburn set up a Hideki Matsui RBI single that extended the Bomber lead to 3-1. Although fraught with danger, the third and fourth innings passed without any bloodshed. However the pressure could not be contained, and the Bombers put together another rally in the fifth, with the big hit being a bases loaded double by Derek Jeter. That was the end of the night for Fogg, a second straight major disappointment for Red Clay starters. He was relieved by Paul Quantril, who got out of the fifth inning jam thanks to a crucial double play. On the other side of the mound, Maxion starter Ryan Franklin  was ok, but appeared shaky at times. Thanks to good defense and some mistakes in the batter's box on the part of the Aces, Franklin went out to the mound in the bottom of the seventh with a 5-1 lead. He gave up a solo home run to Paul Konerko, and then proceeded to walk the next two batters. Sean Lowe came in on relief and managed to end the inning as well as pitch a scoreless eighth. For the Aces, credit must be due to reliever Mike Myers, who appeared in his second straight game and went three innings of relief, giving a rest to his team's already beleaguered bullpen. Moving along to the bottom of the ninth, there was still some drama to be had. The Maxions brought in closer Mariano Rivera in a save situation. His very first pitch of the evening was a mistake, sent over the left field wall by a Keith Ginter solo homerun. After a Jose Cruz walk and a Tom Goodwin single, the Aces now had the tying run on base, the heart of their lineup approaching, and still nobody out. Stepping up to the plate next was the very dangerous Miguel Tejada, who had homered earlier in the game. Rivera threw his infamous cutter fastball which jammed Tejada's swing, resulting in a ground ball. It very easily could have been a double play, but Bomber third baseman Corey Koskie bobbled the play, resulting in Tejada to reach first on a fielder's choice. The next batter was three hitter and All Star Alfonso Soriano, who crushed a Rivera fastball to deep center field, but not deep enough to avoid being called out on a fly ball. Next up was clean up hitter Paul Konerko, who also had homered earlier in the game. With a full count, Konerko had the discipline to not bite on an errant Rivera cutter and ball four was called to load the bases. With two outs, bases loaded, and the tying run in scoring position, Jason Giambi stepped to the plate. Every Red Clay fan was on their feet as the fate of Game 2 hung in the balance. Control five Rivera got the sign from the catcher...winded up...and dealt a roll of a seven against Giambi's on-base rating of thirteen. With the crowd at a complete fever pitch, Giambi's roll was...a three! A harmless ground ball fielded by Rivera himself, who threw out Giambi at first to end the game. An absolutely thrilling finish to Game 2, which sets up a dramatic Game 3 in which the Bombers will go for the sweep on their home field. At this point the Aces are hoping to repeat the outcome of their Season 4 Divisional Series against the Bombers, in which they won in five games. For Game 3, the Maxions send former ace Roy Halladay to the mound, who showed marked improvement in his pitching in the second half of the year. In five career postseason appearances, his record is 2-1, with that loss coming at the hands of the Red Clay Aces in Game 3 of the Season 4 Divisional series. For the Aces, they probably could trust no man more with the season on the line than starter Ben Sheets, who will try to initiate a renaissance in terms of his team's pitching. A Red Clay stalwart, Sheets is a veteran who has been on the team since it's inception and also served as the team's ace for several seasons. He's pitched quality starts in all five appearances this year; he is no stranger to playoff baseball either, with a career record of 2-2 with five appearances.

DIVISIONAL SERIES! First Games of the Playoffs

MAX - 8   RED - 0   F
MAX leads best-of-five series 1-0
W - Pettitte (1-0)   L - Buehrle (0-1)
MAX: Pettitte: 7 IP, 0 ER, QS (1)
RED: Buehrle: 3 1/3 IP, 6 ER
MAX: Koskie: HR (1), 2B, 3 RBI (3)
MAX: Ashburn: 3B (1), SB (1), 2 RBI (2)
MAX: Kent: HR (1), 2 2B, 2 RBI (2)

This game was nothing like that the two teams played against each other in the last two games of the season. While those were edge of your seat nail-biters, this one turned into an ugly blowout. At first it seemed as if the Aces were going to strike first, loading the bases with only one out in the bottom of the second. However, Maxion starter and former Cy Young Andy Pettitte got a crucial double play ball from Keith Ginter to put the kibosh on that. It was the fourth inning in which things unraveled for Red Clay starter Mark Buerhle. It started off innocently enough with a Jeff Kent two run homer; ok, Bombers up 2-0. But that was followed by a Tony Clark single, which was followed by a Derek Jeter double which was followed by a Bengie "Don't Make Fun of My Speed" Moline RBI single. Richie Ashburn then struck the real heavy blow with a bases clearing triple, bringing the Bomber lead to 5-0. Buerhle was yanked at that point, but his successor, Travis Harper, couldn't prevent Corey Koskie from bringing home Riche Ashburn with yet another RBI single. When all was said and done, the Bombers had batted around their lineup in the fourth and produced six runs. Harper was beaten again by Koskie in the sixth, when he smashed a home run again bringing home an on base Richie Ashburn. Eight runs was more than enough for Pettitte, although he did struggle somewhat in the sixth and seventh. Credit must be given to the Aces relievers Harper and Myers, who managed to finished the rest of the game and keep the rest of their bullpen available for series to come. An honorable mention to Maxion reliever Shigetohsi Hasegawa, who despite having a rather crummy season, pitched two strong innings of relief to complement Pettitte's scoreless effort. In the aftermath of the loss, immediate criticism was hurled at Red Clay GM Ishmael von Corrin for his choice of Buerhle to start Game 1. In response to the criticism, von Corrin had the following to say: "Obviously Mark has had some rather awful starts during the regular season, but he had been improving as late. My idea was that I would rather play Mark now while he is hot, rather than in a higher pressure Game 3 or 4 situation. Obviously this wasn't the start that any of us envisioned." When reporter Al Leiter pointed out that this meant that Buerhle would have to start a Game 5 if it arose, von Corrin paused a moment before saying "One step at a time." Game 2 will most likely feature the pitching matchup of Ryan Franklin vs. Josh Fogg.
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MMD - 3   ZSY - 7   F
ZSY leads best-of-five series 1-0
W - Rincon (1-0)   L - Hammond (0-1)
ZSY: Wells: 6 IP, 3 ER, QS (1)
MMD: Ortiz: 6 IP, 3 ER, QS (1)
ZSY: Pujols: 3-5, 2 RBI
ZSY: Kiner: HR (1), 2 RBI
MMD: Chavez: HR (1), 3 RBI

With the specter of a very emotional murder investigation haunting the background of this game, two Division 1 powerhouses went to battle in what looked to be an epic series. The potent Z-Slayers offense was relentless from the get-go in this one. After a stolen base from leadoff man Carl Crawford, Albert Pujols drew first blood for the Z-Slayers, bringing him home with a base hit. Meow Meow Dui answered right away with a two run shot from their home run king Eric Chavez in the top of the second. The lead didn't last long however, with the Z-Slayers tying it up at 2 in the third, thanks again to good base running from Juan Pierre and another RBI single from Albert Pujols. The lead lurched back in favor of Meow Meow Dui in the top of the fifth, thanks to an Eric Chavez notching his third RBI of the game with a single, but this lead was too short lived, with the Z-Slayers coming up with a Jason Larue single in the bottom of the inning. Nevertheless, it was a disappointing inning for the Z-Slayer offense, who managed to only score one run from a bases loaded and no outs situation. Both starters had an identical by line, going six innings and allowing three runs, just barely squeezing out a quality start. The battle of bullpens thus commenced in the seventh, with Chris Hammonds taking the mound for MMD and Ricardo Rincon stepping up for the Z-Slayers. The Z-Slayers bats welcomed Hammonds to the game with artillery; MVP candidate Ralph Kiner smashed a two run shot, which was followed in the next at bat with a Ken Harvey solo shot. Things went much differently for Rincon, who pitched three shutout innings where the MMD offense never really threatened. The Z-Slayers added another run in the bottom of the eighth off MMD reliver Dan Miceli, thanks to a solo homerun from leadoff man Carl Crawford. After the game, ZSY GM Lord Sinister was quite pleased with the result, but appeared quite irate when asked about the ongoing Taklamente murder investigation, to which he replied by banning the reporter in question from attending games in Tuldaria. Game 2 will feature the pitching matchup of Runelvys Hernandez, season leader in quality starts, against MMD Kenny Rodgers, also taking place at Sinister Industries Stadium.