by Chris Byrnes
While the European Baseball Championship is taking place in Zurich the Swiss NLA teams are taking a two-week break from the schedule. The first half of the season has been very interesting with five teams fighting for the top four playoff spots and home field advantage in the playoffs.
No surprise at the top of the standings as the Cardinals and Flyers are tied for first in the loss column with only two losses. They will fight it out for the top two spots and home field advantage. The Zurich Challengers are only three games back and can slide into the top two as they face both the Flyers and Cardinals.
The Mustangs have moved into the forth playoff spot ahead of the Zurich Barracudas. It was the Zurich Barracudas who jumped out and took a quick lead with an 8-0 start but have dropped eight of the last twelve games and now find themselves on the playoff bubble with a very difficult schedule the rest of the season. They play eight games versus the top four teams. The Barracudas will have to rise to the occasion and win five of the eight games or the playoffs will not be possible.
Therwil Flyers
The Flyers under coach Andy Fleischacker have played a more aggressive style of baseball in the first half and they mean business in 2013. The Flyers simply get on base and score runs. They lead the league in runs scored and have an incredible .417 on base percentage. They have already swiped 60 bases this year and that represent more than they stole in the entire 2012 seasons with twelve games remaining. Josh Tamba has been nothing less than spectacular at the top of the order. Tamba is hitting over .500 and sports a .582 on base percentage. And if that is not enough, he has five jacks and 19 runs batted in. Behind Tamba, the flyers have also received great play from the Oshima brothers. Hide leads the team in runs batted in with 22 and has really matured as a hitter and is becoming one of the best hitters in the league. Taka is hitting over .400 with 8 doubles and 17 runs batted in.
Pitching wise, the Flyers have also been very dominant with a 2.09 earned run average. Josh Tamba, Daniel Levine both have earned run averages under 1.00 and Lukas Croton has a 2.00. These guys are doing the job on the opponents. The Flyers have a very strong pitching staff and pitching wins games.
Flyers are on track with all aspects of their game to take the Championship in 2013. They will be the team to beat.
Bern Cardinals
The defending Champs keep on rolling. After the departure of Baum, Waite and Suplin the Cards are still at the top and fighting for another championship. The one thing the Cards can do is hit and they lead the league in team batting with a .334 mark. They are led by a solid group of experienced hitters but Johnny Perigos has been the main offensive weapon leading the team in hitting .537 with 25 runs batted in and 10 extra base hits. Sammy Paulino and Marc Oboussier have also hit over .400 at the break and with Tobi imboden, Patrick Lawson and Rafael Hanzi are all hitting over .300. You can see why opposing pitchers struggle with this lineup.
The Cards have relied on a trio of pitchers that have combined for a league low earned run average of 1.88. Patrick Lawson with 52 innings pitched is carrying a 1.21 era. Ryan Byrne has pitched strong throughout the first half and owns a 1.93 era. Tobi Imboden has pitched effectively over his 31 innings and carries a respectful 2.30 era.
The Cards are also on a good way and will need both Lawson and Byrne to pitch deep in the games to keep the playoff contenders at bay and let their offense go to work. Unfortunately, the Cards will miss Angelo Rodriguez a mainstay for the Cards the last 15 years as he has decided to retire after the European Championships.
Zurich Challengers
Coach Chris Palentinus has the Challengers playing with confidence and are only 3 games out of first place with 10 to play. They swept the Flyers early in the season to let everyone know they are coming to the dance in 2013. They are hitting over .300 as a team, third best in the league and their pitching staff have a great earned run average of 2.14. They are getting great efforts from more than a few players this year and that is the difference.
Offensively they are paced by the captain Toby Siegrist who is hitting just under .400 with 28 hits. Rob Sedin is having another solid season hitting over .300 and swiping 10 bases. Chico Colindres has been a great pickup for the Challengers as he is a legitimate contact hitter who is batting .354 at the break. Perhaps the two guys that have picked up the slack offensively are Robelt Reyes and Bryan Shemley. Reyes is hitting like Rod Carew with a .486 batting average and leads the team with 18 runs batted in. He has made a big difference in this line-up. Shemley has added four doubles and 12 runs batted in hitting mostly in the eight spot- He has been on a tear going into the break raising his average from under the Mendoza line .200 to .385. When you add James Sanders into the mix you have a more potent offense then they had last season.
The Challengers pitching staff goes six deep with Andrea Girasole, Toby Siegrist, Rob Sedin, James Sanders, Harold Bregy and Thomas Burger. All are sporting low 2.00 earned run averages and this type of depth is going to help them in the playoffs.
Embrach Mustangs
The Embrach Mustangs after a sluggish start have kept pace and with a 14-7 record and find themselves in fourth place. The Mustangs are hitting only .258 as a team, which is about 20 points lower than they finished last season. However, the Mustangs lead the league in stolen bases (60), extra base hits (54),walks (101) and are second in runs batted in with 130. Coach Byrnes has worked on approach with the Mustangs and it has paid off. The Mustangs have done a better job scoring runs this year with a 48% of base runners scoring compared to last season 41%.
Offensively the Mustangs are paced by their shortstop Josh Crouse who is having an MVP year hitting .406 and sporting a .500 on base average. Throw in a league leading extra base hit total of 14 along with 19 runs batted in and you have one of the best players in the league. Crouse is only one weapon in the Mustang arsenal, the Mustangs have the premier leadoff hitter in Harry Wischnewski . Harry can single handily change the outcome of the game with his speed and defense. The offense has come to life with the return of Bruno Albrecht who missed four weeks of the season. Albrecht is hitting .340 and provides consistent contact. Tommy Fasching also providing some pop in the lineup he is hitting .305 and the veteran Chris Byrnes is hitting .295. Tim Jones after a slow start is heating up and homered in his last game before the break.
Roger Savoldelli and Tim Jones have thrown 90% of the innings for the Mustangs. Both have five wins thus far and sport low 2.30 era’s. Jones leads the league in strikeouts with 110.
The Mustangs have to battle the Zurich Barracudas to keep the last playoff spot. The Mustangs have an easier schedule playing the Cards, Devils and they will play the Barracudas at home. The Barracudas are going to play eight games versus playoff teams. The mustangs must beat the Barracudas at home to secure a playoff spot.
All Star Selections
Swiss Post – All Bus Driver Team
In the major leagues they call their franchise player the bus driver as they are the ones that are driving in the runs and leading the team offensively. Here are the bus drivers in the Swiss NLA at the break.
Home Depo – All Chainsaw Team
The pitching in the NLA has been spectacular with many strike out pitchers. Umpires like to get behind the plate when these guys are pitching as they get some chainsaw action.
Swiss Life – I got your back Team
These are the best defensive players this year in the Swiss NLA.
- Harry Wischnewski – Embrach Mustangs – the secretary of defense, has more range than an airplane. He gets to balls behind him just as good as the ones in front. He gets excellent reads and takes correct paths to the ball and is not afraid to layout for a ball making diving catches almost every week.
- Rob Sedin – Zurich Challengers – another outfielder who makes all the plays and makes the right reads. He has a great arm to throw out runners.
- Bruno Albrecht – Embrach Mustangs – Has great range and a cannon for an arm, he gets to balls down the left field line better than anyone and can throw to the plate on a fly from anywhere on the field
- Marco Limacher- Luzern Eagles – great defensive catcher, keeps balls in front and respected for his arm. He is young and can be the best catcher in Switzerland in the coming years
- Hide Oshima – Therwil Flyers – has been playing 1st base more regularly this season and has great hands around the base. He is still learning the position and is going to be the best at this position in the coming years.
- Sebastian Zwyer – Therwil Flyers – nothing spectacular but solid and can make all routine plays in the infield making him valuable to his team. Can play second and third base.
- Josh Tamba – Therwil Flyers – has played all the infield positions when not pitching and has been very impressive making many difficult plays look easy this season.
| Disclaimer – These are my personal thoughts as a Baseball Analyst and are independent from any baseball verein or the SBSF.
Stats provided by Easyscore |