Semi-Final Preview #2

#2 Italeri Bologna (27-15) vs. #3 Grosetto Orioles (26-16)

 Contender A: Bologna is the second seed have won seven out of eight contests heading into the playoffs.

Players to Watch: Lino CONNELL .394, Francis ALVAREZ .340, Claudio LIVERZIANI .312, Jesus Matos 10-3, Matteo D’ ANGELO 7-2.

Scouting Report: Bologna boasts one of the leagues top pitching tandems in MATOS and D’ ANGELO. Pitching staff has 2.58 ERA with league-leading 321 strikeouts. ALVAREZ has scored 32 runs on 53 hits with four homers. CONNELL has scored 27 runs and knocked in 29 RBI’s.

Contender B: Grosseto is the No. 3 seed and is 5-4 in their past nine games.

Players to Watch: David DALLOSPEDALE .333, Raul MARVAL .319, Junior OBERTO 7-2, Lincoln MIKKELSEN 7-4.

Scouting Report: Grosseto enters the playoffs with a league-low 2.49 ERA with 293 strikeouts. Has struggled offensively ad scored only six runs in two games against Godo last week. DALLOSPEDALE has scored 27 runs and MARVAL is biggest offensive threat with 14 doubles and 29 RBI’s. MIKKELSEN has fanned 84 in 103 inings while OBERTO has registered 77 strikeouts in 100 innings.

Past Meetings: Grosseto won four of six games from Bologna during the regular season with MIKKELSEN and OBERTO picking up two wins apiece. Bologna’s Matteo D’ ANGELO is 2-0 against Grosseto while teammate Jesus MATOS is 0-2.

Prediction: A matchup of two similar teams featuring a pair of the league’s top pitching staffs. The heavy workload of Grosseto’s top hurlers is worrisome but Bologna has struggled offensively this past season. An evenly matched series that should go the distance. Grosseto wins series 4-3.