Introducing the Palisades WBL to Patch

Hello Patchers! I'm Matt Riegler: player, scribe, photographer and general media correspondent for the Palisades WBL (Wiffleball League). In case you haven't heard of us, we're your best source for pro wiffleball located at beautiful Cottage Lane in Blauvelt, NY. 

Not familiar with pro wiff?

Whether you're done with all of that or going back to it later, we here at Palisades WBL want to thank you for your attention but also want to tell you that there's a season for you to catch up on!

We're a full week deep into our 11-week season spread between April 28th to Sept. 7th, and already we're having one hell of a season!

Here's an exerpt from our primary news outlet, TheWiffHotStove.wordpress.com:

Week One of the 2013 season couldn’t have gotten off to a better start, sorry Marlins and Angels I’m taking a big-picture look here. Smiles, hopes and testosterone levels were all high in the sky as everyone was drinking from the elixir of THIS is OUR year on a warm sunny Sunday in Blauvelt, NY. A little bit of everything happened, Ryan McElrath began the defense of his Cy Young with a No-Hitter, Brett Bevelacqua threw a shutout and hit a grandslam, the Mariners hit a walk-off, and this year’s crop of rookies are showing promise.

But you didn’t come here to read my vaguely specific prose, so get comfy here comes your Week One Power Rankings!

1) The Mariners may be a surprise pick atop the rankings but hear me out, they sit tied for first at 2-0 and they got there in two distinct ways: the big comeback, and the dominant start-to-finish game.Game One saw the sophomore M’s fall behind by a touchdown plus the extra point by mid-game, and then it started. Two runs in the bottom of the third, then another pair in the fourth including a homer by Chris Schneider, and then like a scene out of The Natural it happened! Matt Fliesser, who had come in to pitch for the struggling Matt Vanagas in the fourth completed the comeback with a two-out walk-off grandslam. Just like that, the M’s were 1-0.

Game Two picked up as they batted around enough times to score Vanagas twice as the #3 hitter in a five-man lineup. John Istorico threw three innings of solid ball himself before letting Matt Fliesser come in for the two-inning save over the rookie Diamondbacks.

Next week the gang faces the 2-0 Giants and then the 0-2 Angels, if they cut down on the free bases they’ll give the Giants trouble but they can’t sleep on the Angels either. Simply said they didn’t have it Sunday, and they should expect los Halos ready to battle as they try to find their way.

2) 39:54, that’s the ratio of batters faced by the Giants’ pitchers and total plate appearances by Giants batters. 11:39, that’s the ratio of total bases allowed versus total bases gained for the Giants. 0:13 that’s the run differential for the Giants. 2:0 W:L record. What does all of this mean? They had a solid Opening Day, but let’s take a look inside.

Game One saw reigning Cy Young Ryan McElrath pick up right where he left off, with a No-Hitter of the Angels. With a dozen strikeouts and some excellent help in the field from his brother Tim, the Giants were able to remain patient at the plate and bring home half a dozen runs.

Game Two was more of the same as Sean Ryan took over. A complete game one-hit shutout on the carpet, and 4-6 with a two-run homer, RBI doubles at the dish, all with Mama Ryan in attendance, made for a very happy stud.

Next week the boys face the 1-1 Diamondbacks then the also undefeated Mariners.

3) As I’ve already written, much is expected of the Dodgers this season. Such is the fate of all teams with the likes of reigning MVP Rich Guillod and Master of Thine Domain Brett Bevelacqua on them.

Game One was a classic pitcher’s duel between Guillod and Anthony Bevilacqua as the two traded strikeouts most of the game until Bevelacqua roped a triple to straight away center driving home Kris Dooly with the only run of the game.

Like the great player he is, Brett was able to carry the team to victory on the arm of 10 K’s and a grandslam off Oriole’s rookie Nick Santana in Game Two. Guillod also had a homer, in fact he lead off with it.

With the 1-1 Pirates and 0-2 Marlins coming up next week, the Dodgers have perhaps the best chance of remaining undefeated.

4) Many were surprised by both the union and the draft of the Tigers coming into the season. While their pitching is not questioned, their hitting is. Anthony Bevilacqua has proven to be a complete player, but Billy Murphy’s bat hasn’t quite come around yet. Throw in the little known Dan Dubee and mysterious Mike Frezza, people were scratching their heads.

Lo and behold the Tigers got to face some of the best and some of the worst of what Palisades has to offer this season. Starting with the latter, the Tigers began their season by walloping the Marlins 11-0 in Game One. Billy Murphy led the way with 10 K’s and no free passes while on the carpet, and with six hits, including a homer and five RBI. A-Bev also chipped in with a homer, five RBI and hits. Say what you will about the competition, that’s what you’re supposed to do it.

Game Two saw A-Bev take the carpet against Guillod and the Dodgers. You know how it turned out, but here’s what else happened for the Tigers: A-Bev chipped along with 10 punchouts himself with another four hits, and leads the league with nine. Murphy had another trio, and has eight on the season. These two rank 1-2 in hits, the next closest is a few guys with four.

Next week the Tigers take on the 0-2 Orioles and then the 1-1 Pirates. We know what the studs can do on each team, but can Dubee turn it around? If so, watch out Palisades.

5) The Pirates may be the most interesting team to watch in all of Palisades. Their pitching and hitting potential are something records can be made from. Daly is a future hall of famer, Robles seems likely, as does Joe Gallo, but their roster also contains rookie Steve Gitlitz and comeback kid James Lampone. Many are pegging these guys as the “funnest team in the game”, which may be true, but it’s the W’s that count.

Game One saw Bobby Daly reach out and manhandle his Marlin prey. Along with a Robles dinger, a complete game shutout with 10 strikeouts as well as two doubles and a RBI made for a swift opening victory.

Game Two saw Daly continue to defeat small animals as he went another three innings, albeit not with the same force as against the Marlins. Six K’s were accompanied by five walks and two hits as he gave way to Robles who wiffed all six of his outs. Unfortunately, they lost to the Orioles 11-7 on Total Bases.

Next week the Pirates see the 1-1 Tigers and the 2-0 Dodgers, and seem poised to see both team’s aces. Assuming Lampone can get his bat going, guy has five homers in 15 career games, the Pirates should be just fine.

6) The rookie Diamondbacks are lead by perhaps what will be the most improved player from last year, Garret Torres. Though perhaps his career numbers don’t quite bear it, the intelligence and dedication to his craft as a duel pitcher-hitter threat will vault him to the elite player status, eventually. But that may not be this year. As the old adage goes, one game at a time.

Game One sent the D’Backs they were hoping for. A dominant 11-strikeout, two-hit start by Torres, but also a homer, five RBI and five times reaching base by Torres. However, he did all this from the #4 of 4 hole in the lineup. Kenny Stengel drove in a quartet as well, along with a homer and a couple of hits against the Angels.

Game Two  wasn’t quite as good a game. Stengel only lasted two outs as he gave up all seven of the Mariners runs in the top of the first. He also reached base just once in seven tries. Torres came in for the final 13 outs and struckout a dozen, while allowing only four batters to get on base without any scoring.

Torres leads the league with 23 strikeouts and 8.1 innings pitched. There’s a lot to believe in with this squad, but they need to pick up victories against the 2-0 Giants and 0-2 Brewers next week if they want to stave off having to dig out of a hole.

7) The Brewers made headlines by poaching Andy Blickley from his brother’s lure at the draft, but also were notable for their having one of the best drafts overall. However there are still plenty of questions that need answering, like how much can Andy and Bo Muschinsky give you from the carpet? Is Molfetas ready to be an Ace, and which hitter are they going to get? How many times can Maniscalco run headlong into the fence and still get back up?

Game One tried to answer a couple of those questions. Blickley gave four innings of solid pitching after his first inning jitters where he gave up three runs to the Giants. The scoreboard says he gave up four more in the fifth, but Maniscalco flubbed two plays, including one where he thought he was up against the fence robbing a homer. If we kept track of errors, none of the runs would be earned. Either way, the Crew lost 7-0 with just a one hit, a double against a wild Sean Ryan.

Game Two was a very different game, even if it still yielded a loss. The bats came alive to the tune of five dingers, including two Bo, and built up a 7-0 lead going into the bottom of the third, but it wasn’t enough as Molfetas fell apart. You know the rest if you read the Mariners’ brief before.

The Crew are a team to fear. They’re fully capable of winning any game at any time, which is good news as they’ll face the 1-1 Diamondbacks and then the 0-2 Angels next week.

8) It’s tough to gauge just what the Orioles will be this year. We know that Nick Santana and Oliver Avallone are quality rookies, but we don’t know how easily they will be intimidated by the grizzly vets mulling around the fields.

Game One went exactly how many think the Orioles are going to win games against “superior” talent, going six and probably winning on Total Bases. Which is exactly how they beat the Pirates, Trenary recorded all 18 outs via the strikeout, and had five, a double and three walks, of the 11 total bases for his team and winning 11-7. Santana and Avallone combined for the rest.

Game Two wasn’t as pleasant a game as the O’s lost 6-0, though Santana did pitch well for making a debut against the Dodgers. Six punchouts, and only five  hits as well, with three of his own at the dish, makes for a successful debut in any book.

Next week the O’s faceoff against the Tigers and Marlins, two teams they can have plenty of success against.

9-10)  I know this looks like a copout combining two teams together, but when you get No-Hit in your first game and end Opening Day with a 0:17 run ratio, and the other has a 0:14 run ratio with only one legit pro wiffler in the lineup and Kyle Vonschleusingen, things aren’t looking too good.

The good news for the Halos is that they’re not this terrible, in fact, I think they’re a playoff team this year. The Marlins, we’ll cast back into the sea and see what we catch next week before saying anything else. Save for this, Kyle Von’s ball was exploding out of his hand, and if you’re reading this buddy, you take care of your arm, shoulder and scapula so you can keep doing it when you’re my age in ten years.

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I won't copy and paste from the Hot Stove to Palisades Patch with any frequency, but to get you caught up I thought that this was sufficient. 

Alright it's a 16:30 here on this gorgeous day and my run can't be delayed any longer. Please be sure to check back here daily for updates on both what the league's about and its latest news, highlights, stats, pics and more, as well as at the Hot Stove linked to above!