2015 Cubs Make it Six Straight American Division 28+ Titles in Twin Cities

Twin Cities MABL 28+ Division

‘Cubs Post Sixth Straight Division Title’

Submitted by Bob Janoski, Cubs manager

The Minneapolis Cubs captured their sixth straight TCMABL 28+ Division title with an impressive 11-2 record this year. After stumbling out of the gate with a 1-2 record to begin the season, the Cubs reeled off a ten game regular season winning streak. Along the way, our veteran club upset three of the most talented younger teams (Braves, Rebyls, and NLB) in consecutive games to conclude the regular season.

Co-Captains Dan Casazza and Jeff Kaczmarczyk had two of their best years ever at the plate. Dan set a team record with a .522 BA for the season and Jeff assembled an amazing .643 OBP during the playoffs.

Burnie Rossum and John Barbella, two of the winningest pitchers in the TCMABL’s 18+ Division during the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, provided a dominant one-two punch on the mound for the Cubs throughout 2015. Now in their 40’s, these two aces are tougher than ever and truly carried our ball club on their shoulders all season long.

Paul O’Gara had another great year out of the bullpen, posting a 2.87 ERA, with a win and two saves in his 18th TCMABL season. With his team short-handed, Bob Janoski stepped in and threw a late season complete game shutout against the defending league champion Rebyls, thanks to an amazing effort by the Cubs defense.

On defense Brian Blake, Brett Hughes, Chris Boline, Rick Hillard, and Ben Rossum assembled gold glove seasons, making the spectacular plays look routine in an all-star packed infield. Brett Hughes demonstrated his versatility by playing all nine positions in a game this year. Mike Meyer had a break out year, smashing a .489 BA with a .515 OBP. It was a summer of milestones as Steve Bubb collected his team record 250th career hit for the Cubs and Rick Hillard crushed his team record 25th home run for our club, on the way to his 200th career hit for the Cubs. Rookie Nash Simet joined us mid-season, providing a much needed spark scoring 22 runs and driving in seven more runs in just a dozen games.

Dan Casazza and Chris Boline were elected to the 2015 TCMABL 28+ all-star team, representing the Cubs. Another winning season earned Bob Janoski an opportunity to manage the all-star squad once again.

The TCMABL 28+ Division continues to get stronger and stronger each year. It was another great year of baseball for the Cubs, with a 13-3 record in league play (regular season and playoffs) and a 19-3 record overall. Building a winning tradition, our club has assembled an 85-13-1 record (.864 winning percentage) in league play during the past six seasons.

Congratulations to the new league champion Brewers, led by former Cubs all-star pitcher/infielder Ryan Lutzka. They may be the Twin Cities team to beat for many years to come in Minnesota!