Mister Baseball

The top teams in both the north and the south divisions find themselves in competition this weekend, in what will shake up the current standings more than just a little. Paderborn and Bonn face off as the teams atop the north, and though the Capitals won’t be able to take over first place even with a sweep, if they come out on the wrong side then they’ll have to worry about Solingen’s results in Hamburg. In the south, first meets third and second meets fourth. Regensburg gets Haar at home starting Friday night under the lights, while Heidenheim travels to Mainz with a shot to leap up the standings.

North:

Pulheim Gophers vs.Dohren Wild Farmers

The Gophers were throttled at the hands of Bonn last weekend, while the Farmers were able to stay out of last place while playing Berlin. Pulheim had hoped to be in better position than 6^th place, but a 9 game losing streak hurt their playoff dreams. This weekendDohren can jump out of 7^th with a couple wins at home by leapfrogging over the Gophers. The Playoffs aren’t out of the picture for the guests, but losing this weekend will have them 4+ games back with just half a season to go. A split won’t help them though; look for Dohren to keep competing to stay out of a relegation spot.

Solingen Alligators vs. HSV Stealers

Although they had played their way back into second, the Solingen front office wasn’t happy with their coach and his import players, cutting them lose. The team followed that with a split against Dortmund over the weekend, sliding behind Bonn in the standings, and putting real pressure on the team to get back into contention. Hamburg, on the other hand, is a tough book to read. They picked up a couple sweeps and then lost two to Paderborn. Next up, they have a chance to make amove into third, and possibly into second if they keep their foot down on the gas pedal for more than a week. With the benefit of being at home, they’ll split against Solingen, and keep themselves ahead of the teams chasing for the final playoff spot.

Dortmund Wanderersvs. Berlin Sluggers

Dortmund earned a split last weekend against a motivated Solingen team, which could be a sign of life for the Wanderers as they try to narrow the gap between themselves and Hamburg. With the trip to Berlin and Hamburg’s tough matchup, they’ll have a good chance to win both and come home to play HSV the following weekend and potentially move into 4^th.Matt Kemp threw another gem, which seems to be standard. On the other hand, its necessary, as the Wanderer offense doesn’t give the staff much help. This weekend it won’t matter, as they will come home from the east with two wins.

Untouchables Paderborn vs. Bonn Capitals

The highlight of the weekend is the clash between first place Paderborn and second place Bonn. The Untouchables have strung together 11 straight in the left hand column, winning by an average of more than 8 runs. The Capitals have won 9 straight, allowing just 6 runs over the last 6 games. They can get it done on offense too, with a deep lineup that ranks second in most categories. It might be too early to say that either is a serious contender for the championship, but odds are that one of these teams will win the division. Entering the second half, the team that comes out of this matchup on top will have the momentum. Bonn has been tough at home, and look for them to earn at least a split. Although any other team would be happy with a split on the road against the second place team, Paderborn wants to protect their perfect record. If they should lose, they’ll need to regroup quickly to stay out in front of Bonn.

South:

Haar Disciples vs. Regensburg Legionaere

On Friday night, the Disciples will take a short trip up the Bavarian autobahn to play the Legionaere, who clinched the first half crown by sweeping the Hornets last weekend. Haar will make some changes in the field, as 1B and key hitter Michael Stephan sits with an injury. Returning to Germany after college ball, and filling in Stephan’s spot, will be Tony Younis, who last year was clutch at bat and in the field in Haar’s defeat of Regensburg to clinch a playoff birth. The Munich team will be happy with a win to keep ahead of the competition in the playoff race, and Regensburg has been shaky at home. Both teams will be happy with a split, which is the likely result.

Heidenheim Heidekoepfe vs. Mainz Athletics

Mainz went into last weekend short handed and still blew out Gauting. This weekend they open their new ballpark in outstanding fashion: a chance to sweep one of the top teams in Europe and put themselves one step closer to a playoff spot. Heidenheim hasn’t lived up to the high expectations set by last year’s squad that went to the German Championship as well as the European Cup Championship. The team has usually dominated all aspects of the game, from fielding to hitting to pitching. This year, they’ve suffered from a puzzling power outage at the plate, and coupled with weaker than normal fielding and injuries on the mound, they find themselves in 4^th going into the second half. They need two wins in Mainz to jump back into second, but they won’t be able to rain on Mainz’ party. The A’s celebrate two wins and a beautiful new home field.

Mannheim Tornados vs. Bad Homburg Hornets

Mannheim travels down the road to face the Hornets and start the second half of the regular season for both teams. While Mannheim was hot out of the gate, starting 4-2 while tied for first, they’ve slipped to .500 and will need to perform better on the road if they want to stay in contention. The Hornets haven’t been able to hang with the top league in thistheir first year in the Bundesliga. Their wins came in an upset against Mainz to open the season, and against fellow cellar dweller Gauting. They have a chance to make themselves relevant in the playoff hunt, however, by killing the dreams of their opposition. Whether they’ll be up for the first task against Mannheim is doubtful, and the Tornadoes will sweep through with two wins.

Time	Div.	Home	Visitor	Field
Dates and Times are subject to change! In case of doubt check with the responsible national federation!
Friday, May 27 2011
19:00	South	Buchbinder Legionäre	Haar Disciples	Armin-Wolf-Aren...
Saturday, May 28 2011
13:00	North	HSV Stealers	Solingen Alligators	Langenhorst Ham...
13:00	North	Dohren Wild Farmers	Pulheim Gophers	Sportanlage SV ...
13:00	North	Berlin Sluggers	Dortmund Wanderers	Paul-Rusch-Stadion
13:00	South	Mainz Athletics	Heidenheim Heideköpfe	Ballpark HartmÃ...
13:00	South	Bad Homburg Hornets	Mannheim Tornados	Hornets Ballpark
14:00	South	Buchbinder Legionäre	Haar Disciples	Armin-Wolf-Aren...
Sunday, May 29 2011
13:00	North	Bonn Capitals	Paderborn Untouchables	Stadion Rheinau...

Standings North

Standings South

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