We're back with the second run through the teams, as the season starts to stabilize. As a programming note, the intended purpose of the Showcase games are to give players who may be cut a chance to redeem themselves in a competitive field. Originally, there would be one game a week, but with the anticipated end of the pool tournament around mid-summer, this had to be changed to two a week, so that the full slate will be done before the UPCL Expansion Draft in late July or early August. With this, the last Showcase game will feature a team of SCL All-Stars against the UPCL side. There will be more about the draft once the postseason events are done for the UPCL. Now, we begin this matinee slate with...
The American Rebels hosting the Brussels Chocolatiers. Patrido Salazar struggled in leading off for Brussels, hitting only 39. Axel Cools did not fare much better for American against his country's team, taking just 52. Florent Claes put up 160 for the Chocolatiers, giving them a small lead. Louvel Lefevre answered with 374 for the Rebels, pacing their early attack. Dobromil Zeman scooped 108 for Brussels, failing to cover the deficit. Sander Lambert answered with 196 against the team from his home country. Rodas Cazares chipped 432 for the Chocolatiers, hauling them back into the game. Irsyad Sudjana slapped 921 for the Rebels, giving them a safer lead. Eric Zaragoza batted 274 for Brussels, a respectable total. Sabino Chacon railed off 632 for American to pad their lead. The Chocolatiers lost with 1052 after Jaturun Choen managed only 39 points in his turn. Cisco Solorio crushed 1250 to give the Rebels 3425 in another big win. American is 2-0 while Brussels is 0-2.
To the east, we have the Amsterdam Hotstove welcoming the Toronto Mounties. Cyril Hendrickx pulled 141 for Toronto to begin. His frequent double play partner, Jerry Burke, ripped 711 for Amsterdam to take a commanding lead. Curro Garza answered with 619 for the Mounties, putting them right back in the fight. Yaozu Miao shot back with 663 for the Hotstove. Toronto answered strong with 689 from Axel Maes. Carlos Barajas let the game get close by hitting only 263 for Amsterdam. Tabor Laureano faltered with 90 for the Mounties, leaving them a little behind. Veto Casas stumbled with 72 points for the Hotstove, keeping the game close. Jax Puente had only 199 for Toronto. Andrew Reynolds left Amsterdam vulnerable after his misplay resulted in him scoring only 7 points. Antoine Hendrickx slugged 481 for the Mounties, giving them a total of 2219. Manolito Avalos managed 112 for the Hotstove, resulting in a loss with a final score of 1828. Toronto improves to 3-0 while bumping Amsterdam behind them at 2-1.
Next up, the Bangkok Sixes bring in the Toronto Mounties, who have the misfortune of playing three of the last four league games. Cyril Hendrickx slipped to 108 for Toronto as fatigue sets in on the team. Firdoze Uns batter 362 for Bangkok, giving them a reasonable lead. Curro Garza slipped with 57 for the Mounties. Gilbert Berry slugged 975 for the Sixes, which isn't quite the grand slam he's known for but it serves the same purpose. Axel Maes hit a crisp 411 to keep Toronto alive. Aleix Nieto had only 97 for Bangkok, tightening the game up a bit. Tabor Laureano's rough season continued with a meager 20 points for the Mounties. Zuri Okafor supplied 209 for the Sixes, giving them more breathing room. Jax Puente posted 256 for Toronto, doing a little bit to shrink a large gap. Rodas Nunez lined 281 for Bangkok. Antoine Hendrickx rallied furiously for the Mounties, blasting 832 to give them 1684, but they still ended up losing. Luis Godinez ripped 416 to give the Sixes a final of 2340 in the win. Bangkok moves to 3-0 while bumping Toronto down to 3-1.
Back in Europe, the Brussels Chocolatiers return home to host the Johannesburg Lions. Wiebe Becker opened with 101 for Johannesburg. Patrido Salazar again failed, hitting a measly 12 points for Brussels. Normando Alonso lifted 128 for the Lions, leaving them far from safe this early in the game. Florent Claes flourished with 823 for the Chocolatiers, giving them a strong lead. Ken Howard had only 55 points after failing to complete a forehand-backhand trick for Johannesburg, hurting them more than helping. Dobromil Zeman popped 736 for Brussels, extending their lead to a sufficient distance. Lucio Adame ripped 783 to keep things interesting for the Lions. Rodas Cazares chipped 218 for the Chocolatiers, keeping them ahead by a wide margin. Oshri Aharonov practically got it all back with 216 for Johannesburg, although it appears his luck-fueled Hipsters career is not transferring to the SCL at all. Eric Zaragoza tallied 239 for Brussels, maintaining the current pace. Despite the solid 553-point effort by Pieter Hendrickx, the Lions couldn't pull even and lost with 1836. Jaturun Choen capped the Chocolatiers win with 231, giving them a total of 2259. Brussels moves to 1-2 while Johannesburg drops to 1-3.
Southwest to Venezuela, as the Caracas Hitmen welcome the Melbourne Renegades. Melbourne started off slowly, with Charlie Thompson getting toppled at 110. Vitaya Grichson had troubles getting set for Caracas, and posted just 64 for them. Theodore managed to post 321 for the Renegades, getting them jump-started with his effort. Barasa Contee answered with 548 for the Hitmen, pacing them to a lead. Sancho Ramos shot back with 511 for Melbourne. Noppadon Gruemor had just 32 for Caracas, putting them at a deficit again. Rana Naqvi had only 99 for the Renegades, doing little to gain separation. Trevor Watson chipped 160 for the Hitmen against his native country's team. Sikke Eichel flipped 227 for Melbourne. Maynard Cabagnot had only 176 for Caracas, as he couldn't keep up with the opponent. Stanley Watts tacked on 169 to give the Renegades a final of 1437. Bojing Luo couldn't maintain control, hitting 138 to leave the Hitmen short at 1118 in another loss. Melbourne sneaks away with a 3-0 record, while Caracas again is left shaking their collective heads at 0-5.
Finally, the Guatemala Conquistadors bring in the American Rebels to end the matinee session. Axel Cools posted 264 for American to lead off the game. Frisco Romero sliced 272 for Guatemala, keeping the score close early on. Louvel "The Clock" Lefevre shot back with a timely 739 for the Rebels, giving them a nice lead. Eustacio Zarraga got 361 back for the Conquistadors. Sander Lambert grabbed 272 for American, keeping them at a good distance ahead of their hosts. Kenzo Hashimoto faltered with 69 for Guatemala. Irsyad Sudjana tapped 185 for the Rebels, regressing from lofty height set at home. Curtis Caldwell poked 112 for the Conquistadors, leaving them even farther behind in the game as they watch it slowly slip away. Sabino Chacon tallied a modest 199 for American. Azul "Blue Lightning" Mora scored 184 for Guatemala. Cisco Solorio grabbed 160 for the Rebels, putting them at 1819 total. Adrien Laurent scored 416 after earning a voluntary replay for the Conquistadors, but this left them at 1414 in the loss. American is now 3-0 while Guatemela is 1-1.
I don't yet know when the next set of games will be. Expect two four-game posts later this week, with the second of those having Week 2's Showcase games.
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