Neither the Brooklyn Knights nor the Key West Corals won as many regular season games in 2016 as they had the year before. However, both teams made it to the NALB World Championship Series to play each other for the second straight year. With ten previous World Championships, this was familiar territory for the Knights. The Corals were on the verge of building their own dynasty. A victory in the 2016 WCS would give Key West three titles in four years.

This was a back and forth series with each team alternating wins over the first six games. For the fourth straight year, the World Championship was decided by a seventh game. Game 7 will certainly be remembered as one of the all-time great playoff games, a true classic. It was a marathon 17 inning contest that lasted 7 hours and 39 minutes. Thirteen pitchers were called upon. Alberto Pescador finally gave the Brooklyn Knights another title when he ended the game with a walk-off home run.

Game 1: Key West 7, Brooklyn 3
Game 2: Brooklyn 7, Key West 0
Game 3: Key West 2, Brooklyn 1
Game 4: Brooklyn 7, Key West 3
Game 5: Key West 8, Brooklyn 7
Game 6: Brooklyn 3, Key West 1
Game 7: Brooklyn 5, Key West 3

Series MVP: LF Ángel Santago (Brooklyn Knights)

Click the image for the NALB 2016 World Championship roster

In a back and forth World Championship Series, Game 7 was much anticipated by NALB fans. The starters from Game 3, Jesús Martínez (12-8, 3.71 ERA) and Darius Luxton (20-6, 3.31 ERA), were back on the mound for this decisive game. In the previous matchup, Martínez out-dueled Luxton and the Corals prevailed 2-1.

The first runs of the game came in the top of the second. Álex Rodríguez, the hero of Game 5 with his walk off double, was at it again. He drove in two runs to put the Corals out in front. In the fourth inning, Rodríguez came through with another clutch hit for his third RBI of the game. The Knights struck back in the bottom half of the inning, scoring their first run off of a single by Alvino Flores. Brooklyn pulled to within one run when Roberto Hernández delivered an RBI single in the sixth. With a 3-2 lead in the ninth, the Corals looked to Berto Sarzosa to close out the game. With one man out, Lariel Gómez reached base on an error by Corals’ shortstop Senichi Fujimaki. Hsiao-lou Yeh followed with a double to bring Gómez home and tie the game.

Game 7 went into extra innings and both bullpens kept putting up zeros on the scoreboard. Brooklyn’s Ken Hannah was a particular standout. He pitched 3 ⅔ innings without giving up a hit and struck out 8. With the game still tied 3-3 in the bottom of the 17th inning, Syman Lowery led off the inning with a single. Maurílio Godim placed a sacrifice bunt down to move Lowery to second base. Third baseman Alberto Pescador ended the game when he smashed a fastball from Jonathon Everitt over the right field wall. It was a walk off home run and a 5-3 victory for the Brooklyn Knights, the 2016 NALB World Champions!

Final score: Brooklyn 5, Key West 3

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17   R  H  E
Key West     0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0   3 11  1
Brooklyn     0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  2   5 17  1

W: B. Clark
L: J. Everitt

The World Championship Series returned to Brooklyn for Game 6. For the second time in the series, it was a showdown between starters Ronaldo Mijangos (14-5, 3.18 ERA) and Tony Tamayo (17-6, 3.57 ERA). The Brooklyn Knights and the Key West Corals will take the World Championship to a decisive 7th game. In a must-win situation today, the Knights beat the Corals 3-1 to force the series into what will essentially be a one-game playoff.

The game was widely expected to be a pitching duel and the two starters did not disappoint. Tamayo in particular was brilliant. He struck out the first six batters he faced. Through four innings, he had struck out eight. Unfortunately, he left the game in the fifth with an injury that is still awaiting a diagnosis. Brooklyn designated hitter Alexis Schmidt delivered in the bottom of the third inning for Brooklyn. With a runner on 1st in a scoreless game, the designated hitter hit a 2-run home run to left. The only other scoring came in the fifth inning. Álex Rodríguez drove in a run to bring the Corals to within a run of the Knights. In the bottom half of the inning, however, Brooklyn center fielder Romeo Usquiano drilled a line drive homer into the right field stands to give the Knights some breathing room. The Knights’ bullpen took care of the rest, refusing to give up any runs down the stretch.

Alexis Schmidt was named player of the game in the win after he went 1 for 2 with a home run and 2 walks, while adding 2 RBI and scoring once.

Final score: Brooklyn 3, Key West 1

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R  H  E
Key West     0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0   1  5  0
Brooklyn     0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0   3  7  0

W: R. Kiyomizu
L: R. Mijangos
S: J. Guillén

Game 5 is usually pivotal in a 7 game series. Key West’s last home game of the season was a pitching rematch of Game 1—Whitney Sanders (16-10, 3.35 ERA) vs. Aaron Patterson (13-15, 4.41 ERA). The Key West Corals needed some last-minute heroics to do it, but ultimately emerged one game away from another World Championship. The Corals got the 8-7 win against the Brooklyn Knights in a walk-off double by Álex Rodríguez. Key West right fielder Darwin Soto was named player of the game after he was 2 for 3 with 2 singles, a walk, and was hit by a pitch, while scoring 2 runs. The win gives the Corals a 3-2 advantage in the best-of-7 World Championship.

The Corals thrilled the hometown fans by scoring quickly. Matthew Loy got the first of four consecutive singles as the Corals posted a 2-0 lead in the first. Brooklyn catcher Alvino Flores hit a solo home run in the third. Key West added another run in the bottom half of the inning, courtesy of a Darwin Soto RBI single. The Knights appeared to take control of the game by scoring five runs in the fifth, putting them ahead 6-3. Soto and Rodríguez scored in the sixth inning and the Brooklyn lead was down to one run. A pinch hit single from Alexis Schmidt extended the Knights’ lead in the eighth. Closer Ken Hannah entered the game in the ninth with a 7-5 lead to try and secure the win for the Knights. The Corals were down to their last out in the bottom of the ninth when shortstop Álex Rodríguez turned a 3-1 fastball from Ken Hannah into a 2-run double. The walk-off double sent a roar through the crowd and gave Key West a thrilling 8-7 win.

Final score: Key West 8, Brooklyn 7

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R  H  E
Brooklyn     0 0 1 0 5 0 0 1 0   7  8  2
Key West     2 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 3   8 15  0

W: D. Doble
L: K. Hannah

On the road and down 2-1 in the series, the Brooklyn Knights needed a win. They pinned their hopes on rookie starter Alex Mobley (14-7, 4.97 ERA), a right-hander with a hard cutter in his pitching arsenal. 30 year old Venezuelan Marcos Amaya (8-9, 3.63 ERA) was named the Game 4 starter for Key West. Amaya began the season with the Dayton Grizzlies but was traded to the Corals on July 26 for shortstop Martin Swader.

Brooklyn batters were more aggressive at the plate than they were in Game 3. After Romeo Usquiano led off with a double to start the game, Lariel Gómez hit a home run to put the Knights on top 2-0. In the bottom of the inning, the Corals cut that lead in half when a sacrifice fly from Rene Hounsell scored a run. The key to the game came in the top of the fifth, however. The Knights scored five runs thanks to a walk and four straight hits. The last two hits did the most damage as Ángel Santago hit a three run homer and Hooks Goetz followed with a solo blast to left.

The Brooklyn Knights went on to defeat the Key West Corals, 7-3. Earning player of the game honors was left fielder Ángel Santago, who went 3 for 4 with a home run and 2 singles. He drove in 3 runs and scored once. The win moves Brooklyn into a 2-2 tie with Key West in the series.

Final score: Brooklyn 7, Key West 3

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R  H  E
Brooklyn     2 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0   7  9  1
Key West     1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0   3  9  0

W: R. Kiyomizu
L: M. Amaya

The Corals looked forward to playing Game 3 in Key West. At home, they had starter Jesús Martínez (12-8, 3.71 ERA) on the mound. The Knights elected to start Darius Luxton (20-6, 3.31 ERA), the league leader in pitching wins. Jesús Martínez pitched a gem to help the Key West Corals escape with a tight 2-1 victory over the Brooklyn Knights in a low-scoring World Championship contest. The right-handed Martínez threw 7 innings of shutout ball in the win, just enough for the Corals on a day when their offense dried up. Key West now leads the best-of-7 series 2-1.

Martínez was in the zone all game. He frustrated Brooklyn hitters while giving the Corals 7 innings of quality work. Martínez threw 106 pitches, allowing 2 hits and getting 5 punchouts.

Final score: Key West 2, Brooklyn 1

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R  H  E
Brooklyn     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0   1  3  0
Key West     0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0   2  5  1

W: J. Martínez
L: D. Luxton
S: J. Everitt

Former Knights pitcher Ronaldo Mijangos (14-5, 3.18 ERA) was on the mound for the Corals. Mijangos had quite a successful streak going, as he hadn’t lost a game since June 21. That streak ended today, however. The Brooklyn Knights knotted up the World Championship Series at home, thanks in large part to starter Tony Tamayo (17-6, 3.57 ERA). Tamayo quieted the Key West Corals, enabling Brooklyn to grab the 7-0 win and move into a 1-1 tie in the best-of-7 series. Tamayo was in the zone all game. He frustrated Key West hitters while giving the Knights 7 innings of quality work. Tamayo threw 97 pitches, allowing 2 hits and getting 9 punchouts.

Four singles gave the Knights an early 1-0 lead in the first inning. In was in the fifth inning, however, when most of the damage was done. A pair of intentional walks were accompanied by doubles from Hsiao-lou Yeh and Ángel Santago. A bases clearing triple followed from Roberto Hernández. Finally, it was Brooklyn third baseman Alberto Pescador delivering an inside the park home run to complete a six-run inning for the Knights.

Almost everything went the Knights’ way in Game 2 with one notable exception. In the bottom of the second, Mijangos hit Brooklyn’s second baseman, Flavio Marquez, with a pitch. Marquez had to leave the game with what was later diagnosed as a fractured foot. He will be unable to play the remainder of the 2016 NALB WCS.

Final score: Brooklyn 7, Key West 0

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R  H  E
Key West     0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   0  3  0
Brooklyn     1 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 0   7 13  0

W: T. Tamayo
L: R. Mijangos

For the second consecutive year, the Key West Corals (89-73) face the Brooklyn Knights (105-57) in the NALB World Championship Series. In 2015, the Corals defeated the Knights in an exciting hard-fought seven game series. Key West is attempting to win its third NALB championship in four years. Brooklyn hopes to add to its league leading eleven titles.

The Corals’ starter for Game 1 was Whitney Sanders (16-10, 3.35 ERA). The Knights started hard throwing Aaron Patterson (13-15, 4.41 ERA). Key West was not intimated playing the opener in Brooklyn. They won the road by a score of 7-3 to take an early 1-0 lead in the best-of-7 series. Corals center fielder Tad Burridge was named player of the game after he went 3 for 5 with 2 home runs, while scoring 3 times and driving in 3.

In the bottom of the eighth, Hsiao-lou Yeh stood in the box, looking for a pitch to hammer. The Knights were trailing 5-2, but had runners on 1st and 2nd. That's when Tim Sanders made a terrific pitch and Yeh struck out. In the ninth inning, the Corals solidified their lead thanks to back to back homers from Adelmo Porcayo and Tad Burridge. Gone was the dream of a Brooklyn comeback. Ángel Santago hit a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth but that was all the Knights could manage.

Final score: Key West 7, Brooklyn 3

             1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R  H  E
Key West     1 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 2   7 13  1
Brooklyn     0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1   3  5  1

W: W. Sanders
L: A. Patterson
S: T. Sanders

2016 League 2 Series - Key West Corals (89-73) vs. Vancouver Wild (92-70)

Game 1: Key West 6, Vancouver 2
Game 2: Key West 5, Vancouver 4
Game 3: Key West 4, Vancouver 3
Game 4: Key West 4, Vancouver 3

Even with an injury filled season, the defending champion Key West Corals made the playoffs for the fourth time in the last five years. Unlike 2015, however, the Corals are the underdogs. The road to a possible 2016 championship will start in Vancouver.

The Key West Corals opened the League Series with a 6-2 road win behind a strong effort by starter Whitney Sanders. Sanders pitched 7 ⅔ innings, allowing only two runs. Cather Matthew Loy led the offensive charge with a single, two home runs, and 6 RBI.

The Corals got another fine pitching performance in Game 2. This time it was starter Ronaldo Mijangos, who only surrendered one unearned run across seven innings. Down 5-0, the Wild staged a furious comeback. Vancouver scored 4 runs in the eighth inning but Key West’s closer, Thornton Peters, secured the 5-4 win in the ninth.

Game 3 once again showed the importance of starting pitching in the playoffs. The Corals’ starter, Jesús Martinez, was just a bit better than the Wild’s Lewis McGrew. Both pitched five innings. McGrew gave up three runs while Martinez gave up only two. Despite outhitting the opposition 11 to 7, Vancouver fell to Key West by the score of 4-3.

The Key West Corals proved to be too much to handle for the Vancouver Wild in the League Series and a sweep was the end result. Key West punched its ticket to the World Championship on the strength of a 4-3 win in the deciding game, which wrapped up the series 4-0. Key West catcher Matthew Loy, named series MVP, was instrumental in the sweep, as he mashed Vancouver pitching to the tune of a .353 average, with a .389 on-base percentage. He had 3 home runs, drove in 7 RBI and scored 4 runs.

Series MVP: C Matthew Loy (Key West Corals)

2016 League 1 Series - Nashville Firecats (88-74) vs. Brooklyn Knights (105-57)

Game 1: Nashville 8, Brooklyn 5
Game 2: Brooklyn 3, Nashville 2
Game 3: Brooklyn 11, Nashville 6
Game 4: Brooklyn 8, Nashville 5
Game 5: Brooklyn 4, Nashville 3

Last year, these same two teams competed for the League 1 title. The Firecats won the first three games but the Knights came roaring back to win four straight games and take the series. This season, the teams were quite evenly matched. Out of 23 regular season match ups, Brooklyn won 12 and Nashville won 11.

The Nashville Firecats started the League Series in style, winning on the road against the Brooklyn Knights by a score of 8-5 to take an early 1-0 lead in the best-of-7 series. Firecats right fielder Chris Lee was named player of the game after he went 3-5 with a home run and 2 singles, while adding 6 RBI and scoring once. The Firecats took a 8-5 lead in the top of the eighth inning. Facing Brooklyn hurler Cristófor De Jesús with two outs, Lee hit a 2-run single.

In game two, the Brooklyn Knights topped the Nashville Firecats by the score of 3-2 and moved into a 1-1 tie in the League Series. The largest share of the credit went to player of the game and Brooklyn starter Aaron Patterson, who threw 7 innings of 3-hit ball in the win. Catcher Andrew Strain aided the Brooklyn cause with a run-scoring sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth. His pinch hit RBI was the game’s deciding run.

Riding the 3-hit performance of right fielder Maurílio Godim, the Brooklyn Knights got a road win against the Nashville Firecats, 11-6, in Game 3 of the League Series. Godim slugged 2 home runs, while scoring 3 runs and driving in 5 for the Knights, who took a series lead of 2 games to 1. Godim had a big at-bat with runners on 2nd and 3rd in the top of the third inning, when he hit a 3-run home run. Leading 9-2 after five innings, the Knights held off some late scoring by the Firecats to secure the win.

With shortstop Lariel Gómez leading the charge, the Brooklyn Knights got past the Nashville Firecats, 8-5, in extra innings in Game 4 of the League Series today. Gómez went 3 for 6 with 2 home runs, while adding 3 RBI and scoring twice at Neutral Fields as Brooklyn managed to take to a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series. The most crucial at-bat for Brooklyn came in the top of the 12th inning. That's when Gómez stroked a 3-1 splitter to left for a 2-run home run, putting Brooklyn up, 4-2.

The Brooklyn Knights have beaten the Nashville Firecats and will advance to the World Championship. Brooklyn won the final game by a 4-3 count to take the series 4-1. The Knights triumph was no doubt in large part because of the performance of shortstop Lariel Gómez, who was named MVP of the series. Gómez hit a solo homer in the first inning. It was his fourth home run in the League 1 Series.

Series MVP: SS Lariel Gómez (Brooklyn Knights)

The Brooklyn Knights easily won their division. The other division races were much more competitive and most went down to the wire. The Firecats held off the Beasts to secure another division crown. The Corals didn’t clinch a division title until the last day of the regular season. After eliminating the Washington Allies, they will face the Vancouver Wild for the League 2 championship.

The League Series match-ups:
Nashville Firecats (88-74) vs. Brooklyn Knights (105-57)
Key West Corals (89-73) vs. Vancouver Wild (92-70)

Head to head:
The Knights were 12-11 against the Firecats this season.
The Corals were 13-10 against the Wild this season.

Playoff injury report:
As happened last year, the Knights enter the playoffs with a starting rotation devastated by injuries. During the season, José Arisa and Porfírio Portio suffered UCL injuries while Juan Fuentes was sent to the disabled list with elbow strain. Outfielder Blas Ramos injured his knee on September 29. It was diagnosed as a torn meniscus, which ended his season. Brooklyn will miss his valuable bat as he hit .315 this year. The Firecats have two big veteran bats on the disabled list—1B Paul Lyons and CF Jim Stoneman. They also have three pitchers on the DL: SP Tremeur Rusch, RP Cordero Decena, and RP Rico Lagumbay. Key West was plagued by injuries this season. Key losses were fielders 1B Yuan Li, LF Alonso Martucci, and LF Cipriano Delgudo. The Corals’ pitching staff was hit equally as hard by losing SP Mario Torralbo, SP Steve Curtis, RP Ray White, and CL Almandeto Trillio. The Vancouver Wild are in somewhat better shape. However, they are without SP Omar Cambra, LF Ángelo Falla, and 2B Fernando Chira. If Vancouver survives the League Championship Series, there is a chance Chira could return for the World Championship Series.

September 2016 awards:

League 1
Batter of the Month: Lariel Gómez (Brooklyn Knights)
Pitcher of the Month: Darius Luxton (Brooklyn Knights)
Rookie of the Month: Jorge Morales (Las Vegas Luck)

League 2
Batter of the Month: Chris Bowmer (Phoenix Rattlers)
Pitcher of the Month: Whitney Sanders (Key West Corals)
Rookie of the Month: Luís Oliuares (Vancouver Wild)

The Knights appear to be on track for another division title after going 19-10 in August. The Otters lost 13 of their last 16 games and plummeted in the standing. The Firecats went 22-6 in August and soared past the Otters and Beasts into first place. In League 2, the Allies extended their lead over the Corals to 6 games. The Wild got hot over the last month and took over the League 2 Division 2 lead from the Crusaders.

August 2016 awards:

League 1
Batter of the Month: Pete Chavez (Luisville Beasts)
Pitcher of the Month: Alex Mobley (Brooklyn Knights)
Rookie of the Month: Alex Mobley (Brooklyn Knights)

League 2
Batter of the Month: Adelmo Porcayo (Key West Corals)
Pitcher of the Month: Lewis Mcgrew (Vancouver Wild)
Rookie of the Month: Sam McGowen (St. James Crusaders)