Previous Story
Celis looks for return to SML record books
|
Posted on May 24 2005
With only a handful of games remaining in the Saipan Major League regular season, Tony Celis of the Miller Lite Brewers is on track to take his second consecutive batting title—something that has only been done twice.
Currently the Brewers’ third baseman has gone 23-for-46 at the plate for an even .500 batting average, and is joined at the top of the standings by Mike Palacios of the San Antonio Metropolitans who reached the mark by hitting 14-28.
If Celis can hold on, he will join Reno Celis and James Soback as the only hitters to achieve the feat, and with three games left it is definitely possible
The Brewers have experienced success against each of their final three remaining opponents, as their remaining matches pit them against the first place Ford Rangers (6-1), the Freedom Air Masters (2-7), and the Budweiser Kings (4-3).
Celis currently lead the league with the most doubles (6), is tied with three others for the lead triples with two, and his league leading 22 runs batted in are twice that of his closest rival—teammate Manny Sablan (11).
All that the slugger needs is a homerun to have a shot at winning the Triple Crown—given to the player who leads or ties for the most homeruns, hits, and the highest batting average.
Reno Celis and Greg Camacho are the only players in SML history to earn the titles, but the achievement is rare in every level of the game, as only 16 professional players in Major League Baseball have accomplished the mark. Paul Hines of Providence was the first in 1878 with a batting average of .358, four homeruns, and, 50 runs batted in, and Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox was the most recent in 1967 when he hit .326 44 with 44 homeruns and drove in 121 runs.
