poty08

THE 2008 JIM VARNEY TROPHY FINALISTS: SBL PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Terry Shernisky, the laser cats
20 GP, 35 HR, .633 AVG., 119 RBI, 10 AST, 84 DP, 2 PSY, 2 DUMB
in only a few seasons, terry shernisky has gone from hated rookie to perrenial player of the year finalist. sherry failed to match his gaudy numbers from last season, but seeing that this was the first year he wasn't the undisputed superstar on his team, that's not surprising. besides, can anyone really claim that they improved on their 2007 numbers this season?
shernisky put up personal best in double plays (84) and assists (15) this year, both good for tops in the league. in the other stategories, shernisky placed no lower than fourth (assuming you eliminate biddle and arica christman from average, as they played in only one week each), making him one of only two players who can make that claim. in addition, shernisky's laser cats finished with a league best 18-2 record en route to the regular season crown.

Mike Moroco, the kyoto kamikazees
20 GP, 40 HR, .520 AVG., 99 RBI, 3 AST, 45 DP, 25 PSY, 5 DUMB
mike moroco absolutely made psyche-outs his world this season, shattering the previous mark of 18 with a record 25. in addition to making people forget about past psyche-out masters such as lepak, crist and lackey, moroco put up personal bests in homeruns (which he finished second in the league in) and runs batted in. furthermore, moroco has become perhaps the most exciting player to watch in every facet of the game, from hitting untimely grand slams to talking up right singles to tipping in acrobatic double plays.
moroco did all this while often being the only threat on his squad, a team which finished last in the league and likely wouldn't have won a single game without him. this is mike's first player of the year finalist, and if he continues to improve at the rate he has over the years, its not a matter of if, but only when, he'll get his first jim varney memorial trophy.

Bryan Frankovich, the queens of the rest stop reacharound
20 GP, 24 HR, .502 AVG, 131 RBI, 7 AST, 65 DP, 1 PSY, 13 DUMB
b.frank has become a fixture in the player of the year finalist talks, but as of yet has failed to achieve what is possibly the last thing in the sbl for him to conquer. after winning his first world championship last year, b.frank kept the momentum going right into 2008, captaining the queens to a third-best finish in the league, all while putting up a personal best in runs batted in (131) and finishing in the top five in every stategory except batting average. (he was still over .500 though)
what one must consider when weighing frannkovich's numbers against the rest of the finalists is how he reached them. nobody in the league had to work harder for every hit, every rbi, every double play, as the dictator who runs the SBL continued his personal vendetta against frankovich, frequently sending him to the penalty box for silly offenses or running out his minions to further hinder bryan's efforts. whether or not this is the year bryan finally gets his last piece of hardware is yet to be seen, but he certainly deserves recognition for taking everything that has been thrown at him with a grain of salt, and continually coming up on top in spite of the best efforts of his oppressors.

Nate Tomko, the laser cats
20 GP, 65 HR, .673 AVG., 165 RBI, 4 AST, 49 DP, 19 PSY, 4 DUMB
tomko has won the jim varney trophy as the league's best player six times in eight seasons and three straight times since 2005. but statistically, this may be his best season ever.
tomko drained a new-league record 65 homeruns this year, and also finished atop the sbl in batting average and runs batted in. had moroco not made the psyche-out category his bitch this season, tomko would have won that one, too, coercing 19 from his opponents in 2008, a personal best. he also finished near the top of the sbl in assists and double plays, making him one of only two players to sit in the top four of every stategory.
for the first time in his career, tomko may not have been the best player on his team, as terry shernisky put up equally impressive numbers, especially considering he spent much of the season batting behing nate. will that sway the voters, and will an increasingly sick-of-nate league just want to see someone else hoist its most coveted individual award?

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