1995 CFOD PLAYOFF PREVIEW:


RESERVOIR DOGS (106-56)(HFA) vs. HILLSBOROUGH REGULATORS (91-71).  The
Dogs have quickly shed their expansion-team label and have developed into
a perrenial contender.  Tony Phillips and John Valentin are superior 
setup men, each scoring over 100 runs during the season (and each smacking
30 homers!).  Shawn Green, Sean Brery, Harold Baines and Rickey Henderson
also provided cruicial pop vs. the righties this year.  Blue chip prospect
Chipper Jones will probably see limited action.  On the pitching side,
Kevin Ritz won 21 games, Steve Reed saved 27 games, and Mark Petkovsek
threw a perfect game.  The Dogs have killer lineups for all types of
pitchers, and will be no pushover.
  
The Regulators got to the post-season on a team quality basis.  Only
Tim Naehring scored in triple digits, but a lot of part time players
played big (John Jaha had 72 RBI in 351 AB, Micky Morandini had 75 runs
in 484 AB).  Denny Neagle was the star of the Regs' staff, pitching 200+
innings with a 3.38 ERA and 18 wins.  Greg Myers and Jose Mesa combined
for 39 saves, and the 4th best starter of the bunch only had a 4.17 ERA.

The Dogs won the season series 6-3, but all the Regs need is a couple of
quick wins to make things interesting.


SOMMERVILLE SLUGGERS (104-58)(HFA) vs. MECHAN SYNDICATE (96-66).  The
Sluggers set several team records in offense this year, most notably
team average (.301) and hits (1721), and were not that far behind in
slugging average (.482).  Chuck Knoblauch led the league in runs (by 20!)
and Gary Gaetti led the league in RBI.  Mark Grace, Barry Larkin and Ron
Gant had triple figures in both runs and RBI.  In other words, the '95
Sluggers got plenty of exercise around the bases.

The Syndicate were constant contenders, led behind a very strong
nucleus.  Tony Gwynn, Reggie Sanderson and Barry Bonds make up the best
outfield in the MK conference, and Rafael Palmiero and Roberto Alomar were
among the best at their position.  Particularly impressive was the performance
of shortstop Mike Lansing, who came out of nowhere to slug out 28 homers
and 91 RBI.  This year the Syndicate also had a little bit of pitching, led
by staff ace Pete Schourek (18-7, 3.08 ERA).  Dave Burba and Sid Fernandez
should match up well against the rival Slugger pitchers.

The Sluggers won the season series against the Syndicate 5-4.  With the
top-notch hitting and a few shaky starters on each team, expect this series
to have a lot of runs being produced.

CALIFORNIA CONEHEADS (109-53)(HFA) vs. MORRISTOWN MAYHEM (86-76).  The
Coneheads seem to get better every year, and this year was no exception.
The Coneheads set new records in wins (109) and team slugging (.484).  
The Coneheads have arguably the best player at each infield position.
1B Frank Thomas (48 HR, 133 runs, 123 RBI), 2B Craig Biggio (109 runs, 39 SB),
SS Vinny Castilla (24 homers, 103 RBI), 3B Jim Thome (33 homers, 118 Runs),
and catcher Mike Piazza (44 homers, 115 RBI).  Outfielders Jim Everett,
Paul O'Neill, Mark Carreon, and a multitude of others probably average out
to 100 runs & 100 RBI for each slot.  And hitting isn't all the Coneheads
have.  John Smoltz (3.18 ERA, 18 wins) and Tom Glavine (3.33 ERA, 22 wins)
lead a potent staff, with Alex Fernandez (200 IP, 12 wins) and Jamie
Moyer rounding out the staff.  The only downside to this team is, after
winning the CFOD champsionship for 4 times in a row, anything less is viewed
as falling short.
                                
The Mayhem, meanwhile, have not seen the post-season since they won the
division back in '91, and had to survive a particularly tight wildcard
race to get  to this point.  Dante Bichette is the Mayhem man, hitting
.340 with 41 homers, 120 runs and 125 RBI.  Jose Canseco contributed
with 34 homers and 91 runs in only 124 games.  Kevin Seitzer and Greg
Colbrunn were also cruicial to the Mayhem, nearly scoring 100 runs and
RBI's respectively.  On the pitching side, Tim Wakefield can go toe-to-toe
with any pitcher, and he proved that by going 17-7 with a 2.62 ERA in
the regular season.  The other starters (Wilson Alvarez, Pat Rapp,
Bill Vanlandingham and Jason Isringhaeusen) were a little shaky, only
averaging about 9 wins apiece.  

The Coneheads dominated the season series 7-3, and their past history
suggests that the Mayhem's chances of surviving the series involves
airborne pigs and hot places becoming cold.  But the Coneheads have had
troubles with underdogs in the past (anyone remember Kings-Coneheads in '94?).

SAN FRANCISCO PIAZZAS (100-62) (HFA) vs. SEATTLE MOSHERS (88-74).  After
several years of floundering, the San Francisco Piazzas finally hit paydirt
in '95, winning their first pennant under current management.  Raul Mondesi
smacked 37 homers and drove in 118 runs, while Troy O'Leary and Bret Boone
both scored over 90 runs.  Javy Lopez was a big RBI man, driving in 86 in
only 394 at bats.  Chuck Finley was the staff ace, going 16-6 with a 3.58
ERA.  The key for this Piazza staff was its releivers, who won quite a few
games.  Birkbeck won 6, Aguilera 7, and Rheal Cormier 11.  The Piazzas will
have a few quality starters to pick from for the playoffs.  Along with
Finley, thy have Chris Hammond (3.48 ERA w/team), Frank Castillo (4.09 ERA),
Pete Harnisch (3.97 ERA), and Andy Ashby (5.21 ERA w/team, but should have
been much, much better).

The Moshers were a rather perplexing team in '95.  The Moshers boasted
a multitude of franchise players, yet they only won 88 games.  The Moshers
set a new league record for team homers (277), and also set the dubious
record of 1280 team strikeouts, shattering the only record by over 100.  
Albert Belle, Jay Buhner and Ray Lankford (54, 58 and 28 homers respectively)
make up the league's best outfield, while Robin Ventura (34 homers, 98
runs, 96 RBI) anchors an inconsistent infield.  Durham has been more 
promise than performance, and late-season acquisition Tony Fernandez
(.314 OBA, 23 runs in 34 games) has been downright mediocre.  Cecil Fielder
(.228 avg, 23 homers in 439 AB) had a slumping season, as did Terry
Steinbach (.219 avg, .359 slg).  If you can get past the upper half of the
Mosher's batting order, you should be fine.  Greg Maddux (2.45 ERA, 15 wins)
anchors the usually solid Mosher staff.  Kent Mercker (3.43 ERA, 12 wins)
and Kevin Appier (15 wins, 3.62 ERA) also gave good performances.  

The Piazzas scored a few more runs than the Moshers, while the Moshers
allowed a few less runs than the Piazzas.  But the Moshers had the Piazzas'
number in '95, winning the season series by a whopping 9-3 margin.  Still,
the Piazzas have home field advantage, and it takes more skill than luck
to win 100 games.