Border Baseball League 2024 Playoff Preview

An editorial preview of the upcoming Championship Series

CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Best of 5

(1 - West) Cartwright Twins vs (1 - East) Altona Bisons

In 2022 the Cartwright Twins ended a 20 year drought, winning the title for the first time since 2002.  In 2024, the Altona Bisons will be looking to put their name on the trophy for the first time. They were the top teams in their respective divisions during the regular season and now the Best in the West will face off with the Beasts from the East with the Gerry Coulthard Trophy on the line. They split the season series, although it is tough to put any stock in those results as the two games were played as part of a double header on the first weekend in June. But the playoff paths have been very similar. Neither team has swept a series, but neither have them have trailed in a series either.  And when push comes to shove, the big boys step forward and leave little doubt about who the best team is.  So now something has to change starting with Game 1.  Which side faces a series deficit for the first time? Whether it is a low scoring, 1 run game or a shootout under the lights, both teams have shown the ability to win any way you shape it.  The best idea would be get out to the ballpark, because like a good movie, you have no idea what’s about to happen next!

Strengths

Cartwright – Hello offence! The Twins have played 8 playoff games and have scored 76 runs, including averaging over 11 runs per game since game 3 of their first round series. The bats are hot, so when you can swing your way out of trouble, no game is over.
Altona – Hi Runs! Not to be outdone, the Bisons also found their offensive groove in Game 3 of the first round and have been held under 4 runs just once since then….and they won that game.  The Bisons scored runs in almost 50% of the innings they played in the East Division Final.  So like the Twins, if you have them down, don’t count them out.

Keys to Series Victory

Cartwright – Rinse and Repeat – Game 1 win, a tight loss in game 2, followed by resounding wins in games 3 & 4. That has been the recipe for the Twins. They know how to bounce back from a loss so getting out in front in this series could be a BIG factor and that home field advantage won’t hurt that factor one bit.
Altona – Avoid the Big Inning - The Achilles Heel for the Bisons in the East Division Final was the big inning. They gave up innings of 6, 7 & 9 runs.  When they don’t give up a big inning, the likelihood of a win multiplies exponentially.  It’s that simple.