Superpesis roundup

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays In many ways it feels like only yesterday that I was writing my first Christmas message for the blog, but that was exactly a year ago. A lot has happened this year and it is hard to comprehend the changes we have seen. But even in the darkest hours and toughest times I have found some very good friends and helped to spread the word of Pesäpallo in English even more. This year saw me co-create the first ever Pesis podcast in English with my co-hosts Mikko Pirhonen and Ron Bronson. I have interviewed some of the sports big names including the legendary Juha Puhtimäki! For all these things, I am truly grateful and I have great hopes for the future of this sport.  So this leads me to say once more, it has been an absolute pleasure to produce this blog this year and bring commentary and interest to such a fantastic sport. I want to thank everyone who has viewed our posts and hope to bring much more content for the future. I want to take this opport

Santa pays a visit to the Sotkamo training session As the nights grow longer and there is a distinct chill in the air (well in the northern hemisphere anyway) it is nearly that time of year again for people to exchange gifts. So the question most often asked is usually what people are hoping to get for Christmas. As everyone knows, Santa lives in Finland, therefore he will be paying a close eye on which Pesis teams are on the naughty or nice lists and checking what they want for Christmas. So what do the teams want? Sotkamon Jymy Despite the difficulties in the locker room regarding their starting pitcher choices, Sotkamo makes the nice list this year. They delivered a championship win and played some incredible games as well, bringing joy to the Jymy nation. So what do Sotkamo want for Christmas? Perhaps less drama off the pitch? But above all it is probably more consistency in their outfield. To be honest the question really is “what do you get for the team that already has everyt

Hyvinkää were thankful that Juha Korhonen’s bat was able to overcome the team’s leaky defence As someone growing up in the UK I never had much knowledge about thanksgiving other than reference to sitcoms or movies. But the one thing that I have always admired is the central message of the holiday - reflecting on things to be grateful for and showing thank and appreciation to others. Despite the historical or political contexts that often overshadow Thanksgiving, or NFL games for that matter, the central message is one I believe is of benefit to all. This year has been a terrible one for many people around the world and many people have suffered in a number of years; perhaps this year more than eve, it is important to reflect on what we are thankful for and highlight the positives that we still cling to in our darkest times. For me, I am truly thankful for being welcomed into the Pesis community and getting to talk to some amazing ad insightful people about a sport I love so much. B

SiiPe’s best was entertaining, but not enough to avoid bottom of the table Places 10-14 At the bottom of the table there was a chance even the last placed team could have reached the playoffs until late in the season. The fact that there was no relegation this season gave the teams flexibility to play without consequences. This post focuses on places 10 to 14 as they finished in the regular season. Some general observations for 10th to 14th place: Kempele started the season with a bang, beating Sotkamo away in the season opener. Despite some flashes of brilliance at bat, the game plan was very much - score as many runs as they could, because defensively Kempele would also concede a lot. Whilst defensively Kempele did tighten up as the season went on, they slipped out of contention for a playoff spot given the level of competition they faced for a top 8 finish. Just before the start of the season Kempele lost their game manager and several players, which looked like it would be fata

Will Manse PP’s spending spree reap the rewards they seek? The transfer market in pesis is usually a fairly simple task, with players changing clubs for various reasons rather than cold hard cash... that’s not to say it doesn’t happen, but its not the main driving force. In this offseason however there have been some signings that look set to completely shake up the competition for 2021 thanks to Manse PP scrambling to sign as many stars at any cost. Think Mr Burns in the Simpsons episode “Homer at bat”. In fact, some comments from former players and coaches linked to the team have noted that the entire team is completely different for 2021 compared to the lineup that dominated Ykköspesis in 2019. Maybe my analogy with the Simpsons episode is closer to the truth than it first sounds. Who has signed for Manse Towards the end of the regular season there were whispers amongst the pesis community about Manse looking to sign some big names and top of their shopping list was the leagu

If Rantakenttä was the field of dreams, Pihkala felt like the stuff of nightmares for Tahko’s poor defence Places 6-9 At the lower end of the top 8 there was a real scramble for the final playoff spots. This post  focuses on places 6 to 9 as they finished in the regular season and considers how 6th to 8th place performed in the postseason. Some general observations for 6th to 9th place: Hyvinkää had a wild ride this season, with moments that looked like they would be firmly out of the top 8 and talks of being a potential top 4 team. If there was one word that gave any Tahko fan a cold chill it was “defence”. In a park that has such wide open spaces beyond the outfield, Pihkala can become your own worst enemy if you have a leaky defence. The signs were there from the very build up to the season, with training games against KPL and Manse showing some fundamental flaws. But Hyvinkää have a pretty resilient batting lineup and with veteran Juha Korhonen leading the charge, they could ke

Sotkamo were top of the class this year, but their performance wasn’t all plain sailing Places 1-5 Now that the season has finished, it is take to take a look back at how the teams performed in 2020. This first post focuses on the top 5 as they finished in the regular season and considers how they performed in the postseason. Some general observations for the top 5: Joensuu had the world at their feet coming into the postseason, and they feared no opponents. With a winning streak that went to 23 games in total, they looked almost unstoppable, only their local rivals (Kitee) proved to be a challenge. But the bubble burst with a short series against KPL who unlocked Joensuu’s defence at Kerubi in game 1 and Joensuu imploded, losing to KPL and the bronze series to Vimpeli. There was clearly a lot of expectation in the Joensuu ranks, as there had been all year, but a spirited KPL were determined to seize the moment. The moment however may never have been, if Kitee had clinched the se

I tend not to write purely to thank people, but this year has been a very different year indeed. From the early signs of Coronavirus spreading across Finland and in deed the rest of the world, it looked to be a very dark and sad year for many. The restrictions that many countries put in place to protect their citizens and their health care systems meant that certain activities could no longer take place, sport around the world had to find a way of adapting. By April and May 2020 the situation in respect of a Superpesis season this year looked very bleak and a number of teams (if not all of them) started to consider how they could survive financially if the season was cancelled. With reducing infection numbers and some sacrifices from everyone in Finland, the prospects of a season started to emerge and by June 2020 the league had put together a plan with agreement of the teams. Superpesis 2020 would go ahead, but there would need to be a cautious approach to games, with limits on

Sotkamo celebrate their first championship in 5 years Sotkamon Jymy (2) v Kouvolan Pallonlyöjat (4) Review: Despite a shock home loss to open the series, Sotkamo stunned KPL at KSS before putting on a powerful performance to win their first title in 5 years. The series was exciting and dynamic, but in the end Sotkamo blew their opponents away. Game 1 saw both teams testing the waters and trying to figure each other out, as (for the first time ever) the 2 teams had never met in the regular season. A slender 1-0 lead from Sotkamo was extinguished in the 3rd inning of the first jakso before Jere Dahlström gave KPL the go-ahead runs in the 4th inning. Sotkamo came back from the break looking more composed and put 5 runs on the board before KPL could score. It was Jere Dahlström again who flexed his bat and started to turn the tide with 2 RBIs in the bottom of the 2nd inning. By the 4th inning, Sotkamo’s lead was crumbling fast and saw KPL level the score and with the game thanks to a 2