THE Pirates retained the SBL Masters League crown by sweeping the Brewers in a best-of-three championship series at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field on Wednesday, Feb 26.
What made their victory even sweeter was that their players took home half of the individual awards.
Third baseman Pete Tomokane was one of the Pirates’ key contributors throughout the championship series, particularly in Game 2, where he went five for seven at the plate with six runs, three doubles, and nine RBIs. He was named the Championship Game MVP.
Tomokane was just as impactful on the field, earning the Golden Glove Infield Award for his defensive excellence.
Center fielder Derek Sasamoto shared the spotlight as the Regular Season MVP, showcasing remarkable consistency on offense throughout the season. In Game 2 of the championship series, he recorded five runs, two doubles, and two RBIs.
Sasamoto wasn’t done yet, as his season performance earned him the RBI Champ Award (16) and the Batting Champ Award (AB: 25, H: 17, Avg: .680).
Joining the spotlight were Pirates Audie Maratita, who claimed the Runs Scored Champ Award (19), and Peter “Dung” Tenorio, who was named the Pitcher Leader (Games: 6; Inn:18.1; ER:4, Hits: 25; W/L 3-0; ERA:1.55).
Also on the list of awardees were Derek Aguon as the Doubles Champ (4), Geoffrey “Jeff” Cruz as the Triples Champ (3), Golden Glove Outfield awardee, and a shared Homerun Champ Award with Angel Reyes, each hitting one homerun. For his part, Kevin Kapileo won the Strikeout Champ Award (35).
Correction: In an earlier version of this sports story, the captions for the photos of Pete Tomokane and Derek Sasamoto were inadvertently switched. We regret the error.
Pete Tomokane poses with the Regular Season MVP Award during the awards ceremony of the 2024 SBL Masters League at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field on Wednesday, Feb 26.
Photo by James F. Sablan Jr.
Derek Sasamoto poses with the Championship Game MVP Award during the awards ceremony of the 2024 SBL Masters League at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field on Wednesday, Feb 26.
Audie Maratita poses with the Runs Scored Champ award during the awards ceremony of the 2024 SBL Masters League at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field on Wednesday, Feb 26.
