RK Possums (10-6-6) vs.  JK Lannisters (15-6-1)

The Possums met the Lannisters in the most important match of the week.  With a win, Jeff could have eliminated Rick, Kevin, and Chris.  However, the Possums were able to pull off the victory and assure themselves of at least one more week in contention.

Rick’s best production came from Justin Verlander and Corey Kluber.  The pair threw 31 innings, struck out 36 and allowed just a single earned run between them.  In fact, the pair allowed just 16 total baserunners for the week.  The Possums won strikeouts and wins without much of challenge.  However, their overall ERA was just the third best in the league despite the pair’s effort.  This gave the Lannisters a small opening.  They deployed several different starters and got good numbers from everyone except Gerrit Cole.  He was the only Lannisters’ starter with an ERA over 3.20.  The bullpen was especially good, and recorded the most saves in the league without allowing a run.  Rick took WHIP, though, leaving ERA as the only other category in play.  Stephen Strasburg was on pace to win the category for the Lannisters, but he was lifted from the game one inning too soon to put Jeff ahead.  After pulling his bullpen for fear of allowing unnecessary runs, the Lannisters were left just a fraction of a decimal away from the win, and eliminating the other teams.  The corollary applies to the Possums, who would have lost the week without every single valuable inning from the Verlander/Kluber duo.

Though the week was decided by pitching, the Lannisters and Possums put up massive offensive numbers.  The Lannisters were second in the league in home runs, tied for second in RBI, and third in SLG.  Rick was close in SLG and homers, and took OBP.  Josh Donaldson was excellent, with five home runs.  The Lannisters countered with three home runs each from Justin Upton and Mookie Betts.  The forgotten Byron Buxton added two home runs and a steal.  The 2016 second round pick went unfrozen and undrafted after a miserable year last year.  His resurgence after the All-Star game have provided the Lannisters with a needed spark.  The Lannisters took three categories but didn’t get a steal Sunday.  This kept the category a tie and saved the win for Rick.

The result leaves the door open for the Possums and Goofballs.  Both still need to win out and the Lannisters to lose both of their final games.  Chris is in a similar position but could withstand a Lannister tie with two victories, winning in a tiebreaker.  The Armadillos are just a half game back but lack a tiebreaker.  They can only sustain a loss if the Lannisters do as well.  The race is still tight with just two weeks left and an incredible five teams in the mix.

KK Thunderwolves (4-15-3) vs.  LK Armadillos (12-6-4)

The next most important match of the week saw the Armadillos sneak by the Thunderwolves.  Larry needed a win to maintain a realistic shot at the title, but Kyle refused to give up.  The Armadillos dominated on offense.  They posted the highest home run and SLG numbers in the league.  They were second in RBI and tied for first in steals.  J.D. Martinez stayed red hot with three more home runs, and Kyle Seager added three as well.  Tim Anderson stole three bases.  Kyle lacked power but had three steals from Whit Merrifield.  This was enough to at least tie the category.

Kyle’s best chance came from pitching.  This starters had a great week.  Led by 15.0 inning from Zack Greinke, the Thunderwolves had the second best ERA in the league.  They also led the league in wins.  The Armadillos had a good pitching week as well, but couldn’t compete for WHIP or ERA.  However, Kyle’s bullpen let him down and recorded just two saves.  The Armadillos weren’t much better but managed to post three.  Cody Allen did his best, but Kyle left Blake Treinen on the bench on Sunday.  His save and strikeout would have secured the tie for the week.  This, when paired with a disaster start from James Paxton, gave the Armadillos just enough room for the victory. The Armadillos remain the team with the best chance to catch the Lannisters.

HP PhoeGnomes (10-11-1) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (12-8-2)

Kevin needed a win to stay in the race, and he responded with a workmanlike win against the PhoeGnomes.  Kevin rebounded from some rough pitching outings to post the league’s best ERA in a week with lots of good pitching.  No one pitcher stood out, but Kevin got solid execution in limited innings from Luke Weaver, Blake Snell, and Jose Berrios.  Heather struggled to amass good pitching numbers after two bullpen meltdowns.  Kevin swept all five categories with ease.

On offense, Kevin had good numbers.  Brian Dozier, Freddie Freeman, Kevin Keirmaier, and Rhys Hoskins had at least two home runs each.  This washed out good weeks from the PhoeGnomes’ Andrew McCutchen and Nolan Arenado.  The PhoeGnomes managed to win steals, but it was their only category.  Kevin won the battle and remained in the hunt.

CP Legion (11-7-4) vs.  SM Lasershow (2-17-3)

Like the Goofballs, the Legion needed a win (or at least a tie) to stay in the hunt.   The team responded with a great, complete week on both sides of the ball.  Jose Ramirez and Aaron Judge provided good power.  Several different players added steals.  No Lasershow player had more than one home run.  The Legion had nine players with at least one homer.  This was enough to score the most RBI in the league.  The team swept the rest of the offensive categories, too.

On pitching, Chris provided more good numbers.  Luis Severino continued to provide results in an excellent start.  Parker Bridwell didn’t allow a run.  The Lasershow had a rare win in strikeouts (in roughly the same number of innings pitched), but this was the only category where they had a shot.  Chris won the week comfortably and stayed in contention for the title.

Next Week

The key matchup again features the Lannisters attempting to eliminate their stubborn competition.  The PhoeGnomes must now try to pull off the upset to keep other teams in the race.  The Goofballs and Possums must win against the Thunderwolves and Lasershow, respectively.  Finally, the Armadillos and Legion meet in yet another crucial battle.  Both teams could possibly survive a tie with a Lannister loss, but both know a win is almost essential.