ibllogo (4K)INTELLIVISION BASEBALL LEAGUE


Season 9 has been historic!  Let's recap:

Smash

After many years of struggling, they finally put together a super team and dominated the Action Network.  They won seven out of their first eight games, a team record, and outscored their opponents 16-4 in that stretch.  Being a perfect 5-0 at home also contributed to their success.  Their final two games of the season were a return to the Smash days of old: being out scored 9-1 and losing both.  However, they had already won enough games to clinch the Action Network by that point in the season.   Offense, pitching and defense were some of the best in the league overall.

They went on to play in their first league championship series against the 2021 league champions Armada.  They won the first game, lost game two, and fought to the end in game three but fell short in the 10th inning.  Even without a league championship, it was still the best season in their history.

Upmonsters

The 2021 Action Network Champions had a slow start this season, only winning two of their first four games and being outscored 9-2.  However, they pulled it together around mid-season to win five out of their last six and fell a game short of their second Action Network title.   Offense, pitching and defense were around the league averages.  

Ghosts

They got off to a decent 3-2 start, but hit a three game losing streak after that which basically killed their season.  Their offense was inconsistent until the end of the season when they scored 10 runs in their last two games!   Pitching and defense were strong except for a few games where they struggled.

Beamriders

Very inconsistent this season, scoring one run or less in most of their games, then scoring at least four runs in a few others.  Pitching and defense had four shutouts, but also had a few bad games.  They were also a perfect 4-0 at home, but a dismal 0-6 in road games.  The last team who was winless on the road was the Mutants in 2017.

Mutants

They also had a good 4-2 start with some high scoring games, but then ended the season with a four game losing streak and was outscored 9-1.  They scored only one run or less in most of their games.  Pitching and defense were solid except for a couple of bad games near the end of the season.

Armada

The defending league champs had a decent 3-2 start, then blasted off in the second half winning four of their last five games and scoring at least two runs per game.  They ended the season with one of the best offenses and the 2nd best defense in the league.  Their explosive 2nd half offense was just what they needed to win their second straight Battle Network title on a tiebreaker.  

They battled the Smash in a tight league championship series, winning their second straight league title on a walk off single in the 10th inning of game 3.  They are the first back-to-back league champions since the Beamriders in 2015-2016.  We could see a new dynasty starting here.

River Raiders

They also had a solid season, starting 4-1 and finishing in a first place tie only a few runs short of winning their first Battle Network title since 2019.  They managed to stay in first place most of the season despite having an average offense and defense.  Except for a couple of bad losses, they kept their games close.  They were a perfect 5-0 at home but struggled on the road.    

Bombers

They had the best pitching and defense in the league, which is their strength, but lacked firepower offensively.  They only scored two runs or less during most of the season and were shut out four times.  

Spartans

They were great offensively but pitching and defense were one of the worst.  They hit a four game losing streak starting in week 3, which killed their hopes for a championship early.  They also could not win on the road.

Deadly Dogs

These weenies have gone ice cold since being in the 2020 championship series.  Five runs scored in 10 games.  That's the worst offensive performance since 2017 when runs were tracked, and they had the worst season record since the 2-8 Beamriders in 2018.  

 

This season, the league had three teams undefeated at home, and three teams winless on the road.  A first for the league.