HP PhoeGnomes (2-1) vs. RK Possums (0-2-1)

The Possums entered their contest with the PhoeGnomes as heavy underdogs.  However, Rick was able to put together a solid overall performance and challenge for the victory.  On offense, he enjoyed a trio of two-home run weeks from Josh Donaldson, Michael Conforto, and Albert Pujols.  However, Heather was able to counter with a massive four-home run week from Nolan Arenado.  For the Possums, Xander Bogaerts contributed three steals, giving Rick and easy category win.  However, three other categories fell to the PhoeGnomes thanks to Arenado.  Rick was able to win SLG, but faced a 3-2 deficit.

Heather gained further separation on pitching.  Her staff threw just two more innings than the Possums but recorded 12 more strikeouts.  Four PhoeGnomes pitchers threw more than 10 strikeouts, including a monster week from Madison Bumgarner.  Noah Syndergaard was also effective, despite giving up seven earned runs in 12.1 IP.  Max Scherzer was a bright spot for the Possums, with 16 strikeouts over 13 IP.  However, Ricky Nolasco gave up nine earned runs in 13 IP, which gave Heather an easy win in ERA.  The Possums were able to take WHIP and tie saves, but the damage was done and Heather secured a 6-3-1 win.  The PhoeGnomes were able to bounce back after a difficult week versus the Lannisters.  The Possums are left searching for their first victory.

JK Lannisters (3-0) vs. CM Happy Hollidays (1-2)

Coming off three consecutive wins, the Lannisters faced off against the Happy Hollidays.  Chris M. hoped to get back on track against the league’s early leader.  Unfortunately, Jeff’s pitching staff had other ideas.  After several seasons of relying on their offense, the Lannisters have instead leaned on pitching early in the season.  Tanner Roark continued his early dominance, allowing how runs and just two hits over seven innings.  Five other Lannister starters allowed two earned runs or fewer in their starts.  Jon Lester and Stephen Strasburg combined to strike out 13.  These performances gave the Lannisters comfortable margins in strikeouts, wins, ERA, and WHIP.  The Happy Hollidays weren’t able to mount a challenge for saves, either, and Jeff recorded a comfortable 5-0 sweep.

On offense, Chris M. had some room to maneuver as the Lannisters suffered a down week.  However, the Hollidays suffered the lowest OBP and SLG in the league.  They were next-to-last in RBI and home runs as well.  The Lannisters fared slightly better, with eight home runs.  However, they barely cleared .400 SLG and had RBI and OBP problems.  Neither team was able to gain much momentum on offense, but the Lannisters were bailed out by David Ortiz, who had a fantastic week.  Mike Trout added seven RBI and two homers.  The Cardinals-heavy Hollidays squad struggled outside of Stephen Piscotty, and dropped another five categories.  The Lannisters earned a 10-0 sweep, though the component stats were not high enough to merit much celebration.  Still, the workmanlike victory is the kind the Lannisters will need if they hope to challenge for the title again.

KK Thunderwolves (0-2-1) vs. CP Legion (2-1-1)

The week’s most bizarre stats belonged to the Thunderwolves and Legion.  Despite hitting just one home run, the Thunderwolves were almost able to knock off the Legion.  Kyle lacked any real power with just the single homer and a sub-.400 SLG.  However, five players tallied steals, and Kyle took OBP after a sub-part Legion effort.  Somehow, Kyle managed to lead the league in RBI despite the single home run.  Twelve Thunderwolves players had at least one RBI, while players like Ryan Braun, Addison Russell, and Mitch Moreland had at least four each.  Despite showing almost now power, the Thunderwolves were only down 2-3 thanks to their inexplicable RBI count.

Unfortunately for Kyle, much of his work on offense was undone by a terrible week for Zach Greinke.  The Diamondbacks’ ace gave up nine earned runs and 19 hits in 13.2 IP.  Edison Volquez was even worse, allowing eight earned runs in just five innings pitched.  Similar efforts from Yordano Ventura and Chase Anderson gave Chris easy wins in ERA and WHIP.  The Legion also had several two-start pitchers who performed well and piled up strikeouts.  This gave Chris secure wins in four categories, and earned him a 6-4 victory.  The win was another needed step for the Legion, who hope to compete despite a depleted roster.  Kyle has to be frustrated with his team’s start, given the effort he put forth in the off-season.  The offense continues to struggle, and the team’s pitching core has not performed well thus far.

LK Armadillos (2-0-1) vs. KG Goofballs (1-2)

The most competitive match of the week saw the Armadillos edge the Goofballs.  Kevin came up just a home run or two short of pulling off the upset of the 2014 champs.  Both teams performed remarkable well on pitching.  The Armadillos’ WHP was below 0.90 (best in the league) and the Goofballs were right behind them.  Larry had the second-lowest ERA to the Lannisters, and Kevin was in the mix as well.  The Armadillos took saves, but the Goofballs were able to easily pace the league in strikeouts.  Kevin’s 86 were the best in the league and more than double the total of the Happy Hollidays.  David Price, in particular, was phenomenal with 17 strikeouts in 15 IP.  The staff threw a lot of innings and enjoyed a corresponding number of wins.  This gave Kevin two categories to Larry’s three before accounting for hitting.

The clubs had the highest two SLG in the league.  Kevin took the category by a narrow margin, but a huge week from Giancarlo Stanton gave Larry the edge in OBP.  This meant that HR, RBI, and steals would decide the week.  Thanks to Stanton, Larry had a strong home run base, but Kevin answered with a distributed attack from Freddie Freeman, Gerardo Parra, and Logan Forsythe.  The two teams tied, with Larry taking a slim lead in steals and RBI.  This was enough to secure a 6-3-1 victory for the week for the Armadillos.  However, Kevin would have won with another home run and three RBI.  Kevin left a few home runs on the bench for the week, but none on Sunday.  He can take some consolation that the Armadillos left four home runs and 11 RBIs on the bench on Sunday alone.  The Armadillos remained unbeaten, and the Goofballs are left searching for better luck.

Upcoming Games

This week, the Armadillos hope to keep their momentum going against the Lannisters.  Jeff’s squad has struggled on offense and sometimes struggles against Larry’s high strikeout totals.  This week is the first of many battles between two teams expected to contend for the title.

After a nice bounce-back win, Heather hopes to keep things rolling against the Happy Hollidays.  Chris M. hasn’t been able to recapture his Week 01 magic, and will need better offense against the PhoeGnomes.  Heather remains a threat on both offense and pitching.

The Thunderwolves look for their first win against the Goofballs.  Kevin is likely frustrated with his luck thus far, and hopes that Kyle’s bats stay cool.  Meanwhile, the Possums want to pick up their first win against the Legion.  Chris P. hopes to build momentum and keep the Possums down.