The Franchise vs The Phenom

H'ville, Tn - Hville losing "Slump" doesn't get any easier this sim as they have back-2-back series vs VBL's top 2 teams.  The Trillian League's best the Pittsburgh Pirates (63-42, .600) have 2 more games left in their 3 game series.  The Hitmen took game 1 5-4 as Walter "The Claw" Bamber improved to a VBL6 best 17-2.
Art Ellis (9-7, 4.48 ERA) gets the start in game 2 and looks to continue his rebound from a horrible start as he as only allowed 03 ER or less in 8 of 9 starts.   Game 3 features the return of  SP Carlos Arévalo (4-11, 6.50 ERA) as he gets his first start as a Hitman since returning.

The schedule doesn't get any easier as the ML's best team the Boston Rebels (63-41, .606) come to Hendersonville for a 3-game series.  H'ville's Owner/GM Travis Hays was the only person to predict Boston's 1st place run.  As early as the off-season (pre-Rosa and Cooling signings) Hays was touting Boston as a legit front runner to many other GM's around the league.  In his pre-season predictions he picked them to win the division and but even he might have under sold them as he had them only winning 91 games and they are on pace to reach the 100-win mark easily!

Fans don't have to wait long as the marque match up happens in Game 1 as Scott "The Franchise" Hill and José "Grits" Lara square off.  Hill enters as the back-2-back Cy Young (Boardman?) winner and VBL6 most dominate SP since it's creation, but Lara looks to dethrone Hill and has the stuff to back it up.

Hill is having a "down" year by his standards, but is still 2nd in VBL6 in wins (15), K's (159), WHIP (1.01) and 3rd in ERA (2.54) while boasting an amazing 9.94 K/BB (1st) and 9.7 K/9 (3rd).  Hill might be the only SP to have his offense be shutout in 4 of his starts and have only scored 1 total run in 5 of his career high 6 losses. 

Lara's stats would be on the leader board if he hadn't got hurt in his 3rd start (had 7 K's in 3.2 innings), but since his return he is 4-2 with a 2.63 ERA (including a 5 ER game), 0.96 WHIP, 54 K's, 18 BB's and has pitched into the 8th in every start.

Both SP are red hot as Lara is 2-1 with a 1.13 ERA, 27 K's and 0.92 WHIP while Hill is 2-1 with a 1.25 ERA, 18 K's and 0.80 WHIP.

Hays added, "These are the top 2 guys in all of VBL6 that I would pay money to go see pitch.  Hill's is the standard of perfection in this league, but Lara is only 21 and a phenom!  If he can stay healthy, when his career is over he will be the greatest SP off all-time in VBL6."