Can They 3Peat?!
A Look Back At 2019:
What can be said about Hit Squad? They have Solyman with the ultimate scouting on all players/teams. The defense was good, the offense was good. They were the underdogs in 2019, even though they came in as the defending 2018 champs. The 3rd seed in the playoffs. 5 players over .800 in slugging, 9 with BA over .500, 12 with OBP over .500. They had consistent production up and down the line up including the bench bats.
It seemed like they used the regular season as a warmup before the “real” season started in playoffs. In the first round of the playoffs, they were pitted against Bats. These two teams always play hard and this was no different. In a 3 game thriller, Hit Squad pulled it out. In the Semis, they faced one of the favorites in Shooter McGavins. After losing game 1, they dug deep and pulled out the next two with their trademark clutch hits and solid defense.
In the Finals of the NL, they faced off against the number 1 seed in Scoobies Force. All morning Wahid frustrated the Force offense and they got big time play from Finals MVP Ankit Ramchandani, as well as stars Amhad Halimi, Tim Alicea, Ramin Rasuli etc. Now they were BACK TO BACK CHAMPS!
A Look Ahead At 2020:
3peat, three peat. The 2020 roster has rounded out and most of the usual suspects have returned. Captains Ali Najimi and Ammad Sheikh have done a fantastic job of retooling to keep up with the rest of the league. First they were able to bring back most of their core in Wahid, Ahmad Halimi, Ankit, Binu, Ramin, Yaqub, Hakim etc.
Next they went out and grabbed Ramy Abdelhamid, former MVP, to an already potent core Ramy should be anchoring the lineup this year for them and this was a huge addition. They were also able to sign Bilal Latif from HH. Bilal should provide excellent versatile defense on the field and an emerging bat.
To sign Ramy and Bilal, they did lose long time veterans Tim Alicea and Khaled Ahmedy. While they will be missed, we can assuredly say Hit Squad are vastly improved from their 2019 championship winning team.
Our Prediction:
Now with one league this year, competition has gotten real tough with at least 8 teams in heavy contention. Once again Hit Squad will finish at 16-6. We predict the Champs will end their mission for the 3peat just a little short this year in the Semifinal round.
Best Players:
Wahid Omarzai is the most important player on this team. His pitching annoys other teams, like a gnat in your ear as you bat. A good bat to get you a man on 1st with the occasional double, which in his younger days would be triples. Ankit, the 2019 Finals MVP leads the team with an OPS of .1700……enough said. But the two BEST players on the team are perennial all stars Ramy Abdelhamid and Ahmad Halimi.
Players To a Watch:
Bilal Latif as the new edition with his canon arm, superb defense, will solidify the infield. We will wait to see if his bat catches up to his Defense. Wahid, WAHID, WAHIIIIIID OMARZAIIIIIIII!!!! pitcher, batter, the heart and soul of this team. watch video on this man if you want to hit. Yaqub has slowly progressed since he joined the league as a young teenager. Will he take another big step forward?
Hear It From The Captain: Ali Najimi
1. What do you enjoy most about your role as team captain?
—Writing up the lineup and adjusting the defensive positioning versus each batter.
2. Who do you think will be your toughest competition this season?
—The North. With their new team logo and with the extra 2 cap points I wouldn’t be surprised if Anwar added another unknown superstar to his already stacked team.
3. What do you think are your team’s strong points? Weak points?
—Our strengths are our deep roster, good team chemistry and having good back ups at every starting position. Our challenge this year will be making sure our young superstars show up to the 8:30 games.
4. How do you see your teams season play out this season?
—Our goal every year is a Championship and this year it won’t be any different.
