NORTH DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP (Best of 5)
These two rivals, separated by just 26 miles and the Susquehanna River, will meet in the North Division Championship Series for the second consecutive year. York took last year’s NDCS 3 games to 1 and went on to win the Atlantic League Championship by sweeping Charleston. This season, York held a 13-8 advantage in the War of the Roses and the Revs have won two of the previous postseason meetings, taking the 2011 Freedom Division series 3-2 before the Stormers won in a sweep in 2012. York and Lancaster have a stranglehold on the ALPB Championship with the Revs winning in 2024 and Lancaster winning back-to-back in 2022 and 2023. Which team will win the right to keep the championship in Pennsylvania and win a fifth ALPB title.
Schedule:
Saturday, September 20: Lancaster Stormers at York Revolution, 6:30 pm
Sunday, September 21: Lancaster Stormers at York Revolution, 4:00
Tuesday, September 23: York Revolution at Lancaster Stormers, 6:45 pm
Wednesday, September 24: York Revolution at Lancaster Stormers, 6:45 pm (if necessary)
Thursday, September 25: York Revolution at Lancaster Stormers, 6:45 pm (if necessary)
YORK REVOLUTION
Manager: Rick Forney
Full Season Record: 74-52
ALPB Playoff Appearances: 9
Record (series): 8-5
Record (games): 27-21
Qualification: North Division first half champion
Division Championship record (series): 4-5
Division Championship record (games): 15-20
League Championships (years): 4 (2010, 2011, 2017, 2024)
League Championship record (series): 4-0
League Championship record (games): 12-1
Key Position Players: 1B Frankie Tostado (.337) has the highest average of any player in the playoffs and led the league with 47 doubles but has been hampered by an injury and will not be available in the NDCS . . . 2B Jalen Miller (.297) tied for the league lead with 60 stolen bases, finished second in the ALPB with 113 runs scoredwhile adding 19 homers and 80 RBI . . . OF Shayne Fontana enters the postseason on a tear, hitting .464 with 18 RBI in 15 September games.
Key Pitchers: RHP Cam Robinson (5-4, 0.61) finished second in the league with 16 saves . . . RHP starters Chris Vallimont (9-4, 4.98) has made 16 starts and mid-season acquisition LHP Mike Kickham (7-0, 3.94 with York) has won his last seven starts, save for a rotation-adjuster on Sept. 17, since being acquired from Hagerstown . . . Vallimont won last year’s NDCS opener over the Stormers 4-3.
2025 Series record vs. Lancaster: York leads 13-8
Notes: The Revs are the defending Atlantic League champions, having swept Charleston in three games in 2024 . . . York led the league in batting average this season (.283) and posted a league-best 284 doubles while averaging 6.5 runs per game . . . The York pitching staff had a league-high 1,146 strikeouts (9.1 per game) while issuing the third-fewest walks (3.6 per game) . . . The Revs also posted the league’s best road record at 39-24.
LANCASTER STORMERS
Manager: Ross Peeples
Full Season: 71-55
ALPB Playoff Appearances: 9
Record (playoff series): 9-5
Record (playoff games): 34-21
Qualification: South Division second half champion
Division Championship record (series): 5-4
Division Championship record (games): 20-16
League Championships (years): 4 (2006, 2014, 2022, 2023
League Championship record (series): 4-1
League Championship record (games): 14-5
Key Position Players: 1B Mason Martin led the Atlantic League with 35 home runs while adding a .291 average, 92 RBI and 98 runs scored; Nick Ward (.329) snuck into the 20-20 club with an even 20 homers and 20 stolen bases but will be with Great Britain in the European Baseball Championship in Rotterdam at least through the first round . . . The versatile Nick Lucky (.293, 17, 87) has played center, left, short and second as a glue stick for the ’25 Stormers.
Key Pitchers: RHP Noah Skirrow (15-3) won 15 games this year, the most of any ALPB pitcher not named Daryl Thompson, since 2016 . . . Skirrow finished second in the league with a 3.98 ERA and second with 143 strikeouts . . . Noah Bremer (10-4, 5.60) is another quality starter who has gone 6-3 in the second half and helped spur the Stormers’ resurgence . . . Lancaster is the only ALPB team with three relievers to appear in 50 or more games led by Scott Engler (58 apps, 6-2, 6 saves, 1.90), Phillip Diehl (52 apps, 3-4, 7 saves, 3.74) and RHP Jackson Rees (52 apps, 5-3, 2 saves, 2.89).
2025 Series record vs. York: York leads 13-8
Notes: Among the four playoff teams, Lancaster had the lowest scoring output at 5.9 runs per game, the second-lowest batting average at .267 and the fewest home runs (145) . . . But Stormer pitchers issued the fewest walks (3.4 per game) and the second-most strikeouts (8.97 per game) . . . The second half championship made Lancaster the first club in league history to win four straight second half titles and gives the Stormers the longest active streak of playoff appearances at four, along with Gastonia . . . The Stormers haven’t forgotten their 3-1 NDCS loss in 2024 and will look to even their all-time postseason record vs. York as they trail 2-1.
SOUTH DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP (Best of 5)
Another set of close proximity rivals, Gastonia, near the South Carolina border, is just 95 miles from High Point, located in the central North portion of the Old North State. Over the the last four seasons, the series is deadlocked at 54-54 with High Point claiming a 17-10 advantage in 2025. The two prior postseason series have each gone five games with High Point winning in 2022 and Gastonia in 2023. Which team will get the opportunity to wrest the ALPB championship banner out of Pennsylvania and be the first to hoist in North Carolina?
Schedule:
Saturday, September 20: High Point Rockers at Gastonia Ghost Peppers, 7:00 pm
Sunday, September 21: High Point Rockers at Gastonia Ghost Peppers, 4:00 pm
Tuesday, September 23: Gastonia Ghost Peppers at High Point Rockers, 7:00 pm
Wednesday, September 24: Gastonia Ghost Peppers at High Point Rockers, 7:00 pm (if necessary)
Thursday, September 25: Gastonia Ghost Peppers at High Point Rockers, 7:00 pm (if necessary)
Gastonia Ghost Peppers
Manager: Mauro “Goose” Gozzo
Full Season: 68-58
ALPB Playoff Appearances: 3
Record (series): 1-3
Record (games): 8-11
Qualification: South Division second half champion
Division Championship record (series): 1-2
Division Championship record (games): 6-8
League Championships (years): 0
League Championship record (series): 0-1
League Championship record (games): 2-3
Key Position Players: 2B Justin Wylie led the ALPB with 101 RBI and 125 runs scored, the second-best in league history . . . OF Eric De La Rosa (.282, 26, 78) had 50 stolen bases; OF Cole Roederer (.258, 22, 78) added 26 thefts and 3B Dalton Guthrie (.325, 18, 88) had an outstanding campaign, giving opponents four potent bats to contend with on a nightly basis . . . And don’t write off veteran SS Jack Reinheimer (.246, 12, 64) who always rises to the occasion in the postseason.
Key Pitchers: The Ghost Peppers posted a 5.41 ERA in the first half but cut that down to 4.94 in the second half . . . For the postseason, RHP Matt Hartman (5-1, 3.42) and RHP Connor Grey (1-3, 4.46) will lead the rotation . . . RHP Bryan Blanton (2-5, 3 saves, 5.49) and RHP Cory Thompson (3-2, 3 saves, 3.27) are both critical pieces out of the bullpen as is LHP Nick Horvath (55 games, 2-5, 3 saves, 5.14)
2025 Series record vs. High Point: High Point leads 17-10
Notes: The Ghost Peppers went from the worst South Division first half record (28-35) to winning the second half title by seven games . . . Gastonia led the ALPB in home runs for the third straight year and became the only club in league history with three 200-homer seasons . . . Gastonia’s 6.83 runs per game not only led the ALPB but is the fourth-highest season scoring rate in the history of the ALPB . . . The Ghost Peppers put up league-best numbers in slugging percentage (.490), on-base percentage (.370) and OPS (.860) . . . Both previous Gastonia-High Point Division Championship Series have come down to Game 5 with High Point prevailing in 2022 and the Ghost Peppers (nee Honey Hunters) in 2023.
High Point Rockers
Manager: Jamie Keefe
Full Season: 74-52
ALPB Playoff Appearances: 3
Record (series): 1-3
Record (games): 5-11
Qualification: South Division first half champion
Division Championship record (series): 1-2
Division Championship record (games): 5-8
League Championships (years): 0
League Championship record (series): 0-1
League Championship record (games): 0-3
Key Position Players: OF Ben Aklinski, a five-year ALPB veteran, joined the 30-30 club this year with 32 homers and 31 stolen bases; 3B Drew Mendoza was third in the ALPB with 96 RBI; OF Luis Gonzalez finished fourth in the ALPB with 110 runs scored and teamed with Aklinski to score 222 runs on the year.
2025 Series record vs. Gastonia: High Point leads 17-10
Key Pitchers: Three pitchers that went 18-3 (Matt Solter 7-2, Kent Emanuel 6-1 and Kyle Barraclough 5-0) all had their contracts purchased after helping the Rockers to a 35-12 start and the first half title . . . MLB veteran RHP Erich Uelmen (6-4, 3.83) and Fin Del Bonta-Smith (2-3, 3.77) will anchor the rotation with late addition LHP Josh Hendrickson (0-0, 0.00) yet to allow a hit after a five inning debut last week . . . Jameson McGrane (1-2, 2.63) was second in the league in saves with 16 and has prior ALPB postseason experience to lean on.
Notes: Among the four playoff teams, High Point’s pitching staff posted the top ERA at 4.91 and allowed the fewest hits (8.4) per game . . . Offensively, the three-headed monster of OF Luis Gonzalez, OF Ben Aklinski and 3B Drew Mendoza drives the Rockers offense . . . In fact, those three accounted for 40 percent of High Point’s runs scored this year, the highest concentration among the top three run scorers of any playoff team . . . The Rockers hope to use the home field advantage (three games at home) to avenge their 3-2 series loss to Gastonia in 2023.