The 2011 EWL Field Masters
Luke of Pumice on Slow!, Blose and Vassallo of the Fish Sticks, and Morrison of the Caucasians Vaginas have been named the 2011 EWL Field Masters, an award that recognizes the best defensive players throughout the EWL regular season. These four players played top-notch defense consistently throughout the season, racked up the top four put-out totals, and made the biggest impact for their team in the field.
Luke of Pumice on Slow! was the top vote-getter among Field Masters
Luke was the top vote-getter, finishing 2nd place in league voting by a single vote, and moving to first in overall voting after the commissioner vote. Luke tied for the most first-place votes, and his combination of 7 first and second place votes was the most in the league. Luke finished fourth among fielders in put-outs with 70, averaging 4.3 put-outs per game. He was typically deployed in leftfield for Pumice!, and has the single game league record of 12 put-outs in one game. He routinely made catches out of the tree, scarfed up ground balls, and made difficult fly ball catches in fair and foul territory. He played the ball off the fence incredibly well, and could get to balls quickly enough to retire even the fastest base runners. He was the bright spot on an often shaky Pumice! defense.
Blose of the Fish Sticks led the EWL in put-outs and spectacular plays
Blose led league voting by one vote, and 2nd in overall voting after the commission vote. He tied Luke for most first-place votes and also tied for most overall league votes. Blose led the league in put-outs, setting a single-season record with 96, averaging 4.8 put-outs per game. He often played centerfield for the Fish Sticks, where he captained the Sticks defensive unit. He alone made 3 or 4 of the top 5 defensive plays of the year throughout the league. He showed great range, running to catch fly balls in left, center, right, or the infield, and backed up his teammates, occasionally catching balls they attempted to catch or had missed. He snatched balls off the fence for outs, made one-handed snags of line drives, and was a constant reassurance for the Fish Sticks pitching staff.
Morrison of the Caucasian Vaginas helped lead his team to the fewest RA and lowest ERA
Morrison finished 3rd in league voting and also 3rd after the commissioner vote. Morrison had the most 2nd and 5th place votes, and tied Blose for most overall league votes. Morrison finished second in put-outs with 91, and tied Blose for second in the league by averaging 4.8 put-outs per game. He and Blose went neck-and-neck for the league lead in put-outs throughout the season. Morrison played leftfield for the Caucasians, and was the anchor of the Caucasian defense. He directed where the fielders would be positioned, and regularly called off his teammates on fly balls, sure that he would make the snag. He made difficult catches look easy, and could read the flight of the ball better than any other player in the EWL. If errors and fielding % were stats in the EWL, he would have led the league, as he rarely misplayed or mishandled a ball. He helped lead the Caucasians to the lowest runs-allowed and team ERA thanks to his consistency in the field.
Vassallo of the Fish Sticks had the highest put-outs per game average in the EWL
Vassallo finished 4th in league voting and also 4th after the commissioner vote. He finished with the most third place votes, and second among first-place vote-getters. Vassallo finished third in put-outs with 80, leading the league with an average of 5.0 put-outs per game. He started every game he played in leftfield for the Fish Sticks, and likely would have led the league in put-outs if not for missing several games. He read the ball off the fence, whether in the air or on the ground, better than any player in the league, and he caught balls out of the tree with ease. His range extended far into foul territory, as he tracked and ran down fly balls that most players in the league couldn’t get to. No balls got beyond him, and on the few balls he had trouble with, he kept them in front of him, limiting extra-base hits. He was smart and conservative with the ball, often running it in to the pitcher, preventing the opponent from taking bases.
The league and commissioner voting coincided to select four Field Masters that clearly had more votes than any of the other candidates. Les of the Caucasian Vaginas and Marr of 4 out of 5 Dentists (who received the 5th place commissioner vote) were in a second tier of candidates that separated themselves from the pack in terms of voting. Six candidates finished with 11 votes or less. 4 out of 5 Dentists was the only team not represented by the Field Masters, despite having 4 players finish in the top 12 in voting.
