[NWLA Tournament] MAW Mafia at the NWLA Tournament

Paul Cooke

The question that we were asked the most before, during, and after the NWLA Tournament was some variation of “what makes you travel a significant distance to play in a tournament with no cash prize that uses almost completely different rules from what you usually play?”

The answer differed depending on which player the question was directed towards. From a general MAW organization perspective, however, the answer was simple – because the players wanted to go. All seven guys that we were fortunate enough to have suit up for the Mafia in Morenci followed the tournament for years and wanted to compete against the teams there. All seven players are super competitive and while they certainly have their preferences, a few different rules are never going to stop them from competing. There was no need to recruit players for the event. From both a player interest and competitive standpoint, MAW could have entered at least two teams without much of an issue. We are lucky enough to have some of the very best in our little sport competing in MAW on a regular basis and all of those guys are constantly hungry to prove how good they are, even if that means driving 10 hours or hopping on a plane to play in the Midwest under unfamiliar rules for no money.

That desire to compete in the tournament wasn’t limited to the seven that went to Michigan. There were many players left back “home” that wanted MAW to send a team, whether or not they were on it. MAW is a tournament organization and draws from a wider geographic area than most traditional leagues, but there is still a bond and sense of community between all the players. The support from those that didn’t go was felt and appreciated by everyone on the team in Michigan.

Speaking for the entire team on Wiffle Now’s 18 in 18 podcast, Connor [Young] said that anything less than first place would be considered a disappointment. That was the truth but also not meant as a brag. That is just how these guys are wired. Jordan Robles could have a 110 degree fever and his right arm chopped off, and he’d still walk away unsatisfied after a loss. So to that end, the team’s fourth place finish is a disappointment. Everyone wanted to win and believes that the team had what it takes to win the tournament.

However, these are also veteran wifflers who know that you cannot and will not win every time out no matter who you are. They know there are good players to be found in all different places. We ran into A LOT of them over the weekend. Some of those players the team was able to handle, some they weren’t. In the end, the Mafia was eliminated by our good friends from Ridley Park and the league that – for my money – is the deepest and most talented traditional league in the country. There is no shame in that outcome, even if there is the usual disappointment that accompanies losing.

Most of all, the team got to do battle with some truly excellent players and squads that we most likely otherwise would not get a chance to compete against. Chris Roeder is as tough on the carpet as they come. I pride myself on knowing players from all over, but prior to Saturday I couldn’t have picked Lee VanStreain out of a lineup. That was before he went 4-7 with two homers off Red while allowing just one run in our pool play game with KWL. HRL had a seemingly endless supply of capable pitchers and quality hitters. Caleb Jonkman is every bit as legit of a player and person as we heard he was. And while we already knew this, Tommy Loftus is a generational talent and Austin Bleacher is a bad man when he has a bat in his hands. The team wanted to compete against quality players and there’s no doubt we got to do that. We would have taken one or two give-me games, but the way it played out was fine also. The entire team knows we have what it takes to win in this environment, it just didn’t happen this year. You won’t hear any excuses from a single player on the Mafia. It is not in these guys’ DNA.

Of course, congratulations to AWAA on their victory. Some of the team has known Jimmy Cole for years and everyone in MAW has gotten to know him well this year when he and the NY Meats have competed in MAW tournaments. It is clear he came to Morenci this year with one goal and I think I speak for everyone in MAW that he and his team are very deserving of the title. Some members of the Mafia said they felt like proud parents watching Kyle VonSchleusigen take home MVP honors after first watching him play as a little 13 year-old kid a half-dozen years ago. Anthony, Tom, Vin, Nate, Brett, and Mike are also all great guys and players who we’ve gotten to know over the years and are happy to see win.

Thanks to everyone on the organizing committee and all the players and teams who made us feel welcomed. Good luck to Trent Steffes in his retirement from the NLWA tournament. This was our first time meeting Trent but he as much as anyone made us feel right at home at the tournament.

MAW Mafia & General Tournament Notes

Tim McElrath got the weekend off on the right foot by winning Friday evening’s home run derby contest. Tim snuck into the final eight with nine home runs in the qualifying round (tied with his teammate, Red). In the round of eight, Tim belted 13 home runs to advance to the final three. In the finals, Tim and Jared Jonkman tied with 11, leading to a swing-off.  In the swing off, Tim put three out of the five balls over the fence and watched as Jonkman managed only two of five in his round.

Later that same evening Dan Potter – who has not pitched in MAW sine working 2/3’s of an inning back on August 4, 2018 and finished the 2018 season with a ghastly 15.00 ERA – surprisingly started the All-Star game on the carpet for the Tyler Walk-managed team. “Pitching to contact” – as Mafia manager Tim Cooke positively spun Potter’s lack of swing & miss stuff – Potter threw a clean inning. He later added a home run to put his team up by a score of 7-4.

The HRL All-Stars’ Evan Sibbet drew a walk with one out and nobody on in the top of the first inning against Jordan Robles in Jordan’s first game of the tournament Saturday evening. The reason that walk is notable is because it was the first and only walk that Jordan would allow in 17+ innings pitched on Saturday and Sunday. Following the walk to Sibbet, Jordan went 16 2/3 innings – sixty total batters – without allowing another free pass. One walk in 62 batters is good enough for a microscopic 1.6% walk rate. His 0.35 BB/6 IP was the lowest among pitchers who threw more than six innings (one game) during the tournament. In MAW this season, Jordan has issued walks to just four of the 96 batters he has faced (4.2% walk rate).

Counting OCWA twice to account for both games played against them, the Mafia’s opponents had a combined 28-16-1 record in pool playing and double elimination. That is good enough for a .622 opponent’s winning percentage. Five of the six unique teams that the Mafia played had winning records. The one team that didn’t – the 0-4 BWBL Breaker Boys – won the Dangerfield Bracket.

Ryan McElrath threw 16 innings during the tournament without allowing a single run. Only Gus Skibbe (SWBL Cardinals, 17 innings) and Erik Detmar (GBL Legends, 14 innings) joined Ryan in throwing the equivalent of two or more games (12 innings) without giving up a run.

There are four main differences between the NWLA Tournament style of play and the style utilized in MAW – clean balls versus cut, yellow bats versus bigger barreled bats, base running, and fielding. The balls were not an issue as Mafia pitchers finished third in WHIP (0.88), third in strikeouts per 6 IP (14.31), second in walks per 6 innings pitched (2.31), and first in strikeouts (124). The Mafia escaped Morenci without being issued a warning for illegally leaving the base (though there was a close call or two) and didn’t have any runners pegged or tagged out on the base paths. Defensively, the team finished with the highest fielding percentage (.974) and more importantly, made a bunch of run-saving plays. Both McElraths, Robles, Adam Milsted, and of course Potter were great on defense all tournament long. The one area where the team had difficulty adjusting to were the yellow bats and the team’s inability to consistently square up on pitches proved to be its downfall.

Speaking of the hitting woes, the Mafia struck out in 51.7% of our total plate appearances. The tournament wide strikeout rate was 45.0%. While some of that variance is almost certainly due to strength of schedule, it is clear that the inability to consistently put the ball in play with the yellow bat proved costly.

On a tournament wide note, it was clear that the quality of pitching was much improved this year over last. Strikeout rate went from 31.8% in 2018 to 45.0% this year, which is clearly a huge leap. Walk rate decreased a little bit as well, going from 24.2% in 2018 to 20.6% in 2019. Not a single game in 2018 went extra innings. There were six extra-inning games this tournament (you can thank/blame the Mafia for three of those). Given that all six were essentially pitcher’s duels, you can chalk that up as more evidence that the quality of pitching took a huge leap forward this year.

When MAW played OCWA on Sunday morning, it was hard to tell who anybody was rooting for you if you just listened for first names. Both teams had a Chris, Tim, and Ryan in their four-man batting lineups. Jordan [Robles] and John [Suhre] couldn’t quite match up.

Up Next

It is hard to believe but the final MAW regular season tournament of 2019 is already here! MAW returns to York, PA on August 10th for Backyard Brawl. The tournament is on pace to be the largest by number of teams in MAW regular season history. With 3 1/2 points separating the top four teams in the point standings and only three first-weekend byes available, there will be a lot on the line at Backyard Brawl. Not to mention, word as it the man pictured above will be making his Mid Atlantic (and big barrel bat/scuffed ball allowed) debut as a member of the NY meats at that tournament. Stay tuned!