LK Armadillos (3-0) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (2-1)

Week 04’s premier match featured the Armadillos and Goofballs.  After a hot 3-0 start, Larry faced a series of major injuries.  The Goofballs hoped to take advantage, but were ultimately denied.  The Armadillos leaned on their offense early.  Eric Thames continued to be the biggest story early in the season.  He added three more home runs.  Daniel Murphy accumulated 12 RBIs for the Nationals.  Kevin was unable to keep pace despite a big week from Freddie Freeman and an incredible seven steals from AJ Pollock.  Kevin took that category, but lost the other four.

The Armadillos finished the job on pitching.  Mike Foltynewicz was strong and earned an immediate re-hiring after what was supposed to be only an emergency start.  Dallas Keuchel was again dominant, throwing 16.2 innings pitched and allowing just three earned runs.  The Armadillos swept all five categories and cruised to a dominant 9-1 win.  However, the team’s overall strength took a huge hit when Noah Syndergaard was lost for several months with a lat injury.  Adam Eaton also fell, and will likely miss the rest of the year.  The Armadillos have nine players on the disabled list (including the suspended Starling Marte).  This puts even more pressure on Clayton Kershaw and the rest of the pitching staff.  Depth will be a problem for the foreseeable future.  This could spell trouble on lightly scheduled days against deep offensive teams like the Lannisters and Possums.

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

The league’s closest match was between the Legion and Thunderwolves.  Chris P. finally got a strong offensive performance, but Kyle countered with excellent pitching.  Chris led the league in RBI and was second in OBP and SLG.  Ryan Zimmerman had five home runs and 13 RBI while Trea Turner added 11 RBI and three homers of his own.  Kyle had a big week from Wil Myers, but it was far from enough.  The Thunderwolves had the lowest OBP, SLG, and home run totals in the league.  Chris locked down five categories and was never in danger.

The opposite scenario played out on the pitching side.  Kyle put up league-leading numbers in strikeouts, saves, ERA, and WHIP.  Bud Norris and Cody Allen each had three saves for the Thunderwolves.  Norris is the kind of pick-up that Kyle needs to make in order to be competitive.  He used a series of pitching injuries to speculate on a closer, and the gamble paid off.  James Paxton was also strong, as was Zach Greinke.  The Legion never found the footing.  The used an incredible 13 pitchers for the week, but most of their experiments didn’t work out.  Danny Duffy struggled, as did Roberto Osuna.  The two teams deadlocked for the week after each dominating one side of the ledger.  The Legion hope that the reacquisition of Paul Goldschmidt will help their offense continue to perform going forward.

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

The Possums and PhoeGnomes engaged in an interesting, close battle for the week.  Rick led the league in home runs and was second in RBI and steals.  He also had a strong slugging thanks to Chris Owings and Khris Davis each having two home runs.  However, despite the power surge, the team struggled to get on base.  This gave Heather an opening to take the category and prevent a sweep.  Although Rick had the better overall numbers, the PhoeGnomes had a good offensive week, too.  Aaron Judge had four home runs and Heather got production from a number of other players up and down the lineup.

On pitching, Heather enjoyed a massive start from Ivan Nova.  He threw a complete game, allowed just three hits, and no walks.  Wade Miley was sharp over 12 innings, and Chris Sale was good in limited use.  The Possums struggled, as players like Miguel Gonzalez allowed far too many hits (14 over six innings) to be competitive in WHIP.  Heather’s overall quality was enough to earn a five category sweep and claim a victory for the week.  The bullpen has to be an area of concern for the Possums – they recorded only a single save.

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

The week’s final match featured the Lannisters and Happy Hollidays.  The Lannisters continued their offensive onslaught and led the league in OBP and SLG.  Five players hit two home runs and no Lannister with more than 20 at-bats and a SLG below 0.400.  Despite this success, Chris M. had an excellent offensive showing.  He was near the top in SLG and RBI.  Matt Kemp had three home runs and 10 RBI.  This is likely a welcome change for the Hollidays, who have needed some offensive support.

On pitching, the Lannisters were moderately effective.  They led the league in wins and had a strong saves number.  They took ERA and WHIP, but mostly by default as the Hollidays struggled immensely.  Jeff was able to cruise to victory after several close weeks.

Next Week

The premier match in Week 05 has the Armadillos meeting the Lannisters.  The Armadillos are struggling with injuries, but the Lannisters’ pitching situation is shaky at best.  It’s rare that the Lannisters have support from outside the organization, but even Chris P. has expressed his hope that they will end the Armadillos’ winning streak.  The Legion and Possums pair off in an intriguing match-up.  Rick will need better pitching if he wants to move closer to 0.500 after a disappointing start.  The Goofballs will try to rebound against the Thunderwolves.  Finally, the Hollidays hope they can catch a break and pick up their first win against the PhoeGnomes.