Anchorage AK (AP) - The Anchorage Abominations won the Enterprise League
pennant today by defeating the Mississauga Maple Dogs 4-2 in the best-of-
seven series. Behind heart-felt effort by pitcher Willie VanLandingham and
a crushing home-run by Jose Canseco, Anchorage defeated pitcher Curt
Schilling and the hard-nosed Maple Dogs 1-0.
After a tough loss in Game 5, Anchorage managed just three hits off the
Mississauga ace. "I only made one mistake up there all day. Unfortunately
their best homerun hitter had to be up there when I did." said a distraut
Schilling. "I was waiting on the breaking pitch. That was the one that he
got me with earlier. This time is was hanging there a little bit. I was
able to get the bat on it and the rest is history." said Canseco, who's
438 home run to dead center was the game's only scoring.
Anchorage manager/owner Nick Tulach was torn on who he wanted to start for
Game 6. "Jones wasn't really ready. He wanted to pitch Game 7. But I didn't
want it to get to that point. Buddy was ready to go and so was Bot
(Bottenfield), but I felt that VL (VanLandingham) was the guy I could count on
for this one." said Tulach. "He was masterful. I hope that he has earned the
respect of the league that he deserves finally."
The Abominations will now play host for the Sacramento River Otters, who
are a very similar team. "When you look at their lineup, it is very similar.
They rely heavily on their pitching staff, particularly their starters." said
Tulach. Here is an over-view of the matchups:
Catcher:
Mike Lieberthal: second in the league in homeruns from the catcher position,
has really played well in the playoffs. An under-rated portion of this
team.
Javy Lopez: one of the best catchers in the game. Hits well for averave and
power.
Advantage: even
Firstbase:
John Jaha: played DH all year until Mark Grace went down with injury. Had
a bit of an off year production-wise, but still very good. Average
defensively.
Andres Galarraga: had a seriously bad season this year, only batted .247 with
just 13 HRs in 576 at-bats.
Advantage: Anchorage
Secondbase:
Miguel Cairo: an under-achiever. Has great speed and has played much better
in the post-season. Anchorage has bet the farm on this youngster.
Michael Tucker: a converted outfielder, Tucker is a great all-around player.
A spark-plug for this team's offense.
Advantage: Sacramento
Thirdbase:
Jeff Cirillo: had a horrible start to the season, but an unbelievable second
half. Really needs to step up in the World Series and drive in runs.
Devon White: another outfielder playing out of position, White was not
very productive from the plate. On this offense, he was adequete,
though.
Advantage: Anchorage
Shortstop:
Gary DiSarcina/Mark Grudzielanek: Grudz lost the starting job after a dismal
year. He's been in and out of the lineup ever since. Tulach just
doesn't seem to want to give up on him. Luckily he has DiSarcina to
back him up. He has had a magical year.
Barry Larkin: a former Bearcat, Larkin is one of the best at his position.
Advantage: Sacramento
Rightfield:
Brian Jordan: a late season addition from the former DL champion Bums, Jordan
has been steady in the field and questionable at the plate.
J.D. Drew: rookie of the year candidate. Had a outstanding rookie season.
Solid all the way around.
Advantage: Sacramento
Centerfield:
Marquis Grissom: another of the former Bums, Marquis is a veteran with good
speed and great defensive skills.
Deion Sanders: former Hamster, Deion has great speed but questionable
defense.
Advantage: Anchorage
Leftfield:
Lance Johnson: the premier leadoff hitter in the game, Lance is a serious
MVP candidate.
Tim Salmon: a great power hitter, Salmon is the Otters' offense.
Advantage: even
Designated hitter:
Jose Canseco: the hero of the LCS, Jose was his usual power hitting self.
Typical DH.
Sean Berry: a part-time player who splits time with Galarraga at DH,
Berry provides some power at this power position.
Advantage: Anchorage
Starting pitching:
Anchorage: with 4 of 5 starters under 4.00 ERA, and the fifth pitching
awesome to finish out the season, Anchorage's rotation is as solid
as they come.
Sacramento: with 3 out of 5 starters under 2.50 ERA, Sacramento is possibly
the only team with a better starting five then Anchorage
Advantage: Sacramento
Relief pitching:
Anchorage: with the league leader in saves and the least amount of inherited
runners scored, this is the premier bullpen in the league.
Sacramento: only really three guys in the pen, those three are really good
though.
Advantage: Anchorage
