The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN players in independent baseball are making a second-half playoff push with their respective clubs.

Anfernee Seymour and his Charleston Dirty Birds have moved into sole possession of second place in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball’s (ALPB) South Division.

A five-game win streak has improved Charleston’s second-half record to 9-9, trailing only the 14-3 Gastonia Honey Hunters.

At the halfway point of the 132- game schedule earlier this month, the teams with the best records in the league’s North (Southern Maryland Blue Crabs) and South (Honey Hunters) Divisions clinched playoff berths.

The Dirty Birds finished fourth in the division in the first half of the season at just 26-40.

In the second half, the league division standings reset and clubs will compete for second-half titles and the final two playoff berths.

The ALPB is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid- Atlantic and Southeastern United States.

In his debut season with the Dirty Birds, Seymour leads the club with 17 stolen bases and 15 doubles.

He also ranks second on the team with 41 runs scored and has a .251 batting average, 58 hits, slugging .372 with a .308 OBP. He also has a .680 OPS with three home runs and 25 RBI.

Seymour opened his 2022 season on a high note with a solo home run in his Dirty Birds debut. “This will be our most exciting season to date,” said Atlantic League president Rick White.

“We will field our largest number of clubs, welcome a team in New York City, and have two teams sharing a ballpark in Kentucky.

“But perhaps one of the things we are most excited about is a return to our traditional season timeframe.”

Todd Isaacs Jr and the New Jersey Jackals also hope to reverse their fortunes in the East Divison of the Frontier League.

After winning two of three against the Windy City Thunderbolts, the Jackals improved to 29-40, 3.5 games out of the final playoff spot in the division (Sussex County Miners at 33-27)

The top three teams in both the East and West divisions will qualify for the playoffs.

Isaacs Jr is in his second season with the Jackals.

Isaacs Jr leads the club and ranks fourth in the league with 22 stolen bases and is 10th in the league with a 337 batting average.

Through 48 games he has 69 hits, including nine home runs, 34 RBI, scored 44 runs, and is slugging .517 with a .370 OBP.

Like Seymour, Isaacs also got off to a quick start to the season when he finished with three hits, one home run, and four RBI as the Jackals took 2-3 games over the Evansville Otters in Evansville, Indiana on opening weekend.

The Frontier League is the largest league in all of independent professional baseball. It includes teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada.

Last year it merged with the American Association and the Atlantic League to become an official MLB Partner League.