JK Lannisters (4-1-2) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (1-3-3)

The second cycle of the season began with an interesting match between the Goofballs and Lannisters.  Kevin’s team has struggled all year despite having good season totals in a number of categories.  On offense, the Goofballs are third in home runs and second in RBI, steals, OBP and SLG for the season.  This success hasn’t translated into many wins because the pitching staff has been near the bottom of the league in ERA, WHIP, and other metrics.  The pattern continued against the Lannisters.

The Goofballs enjoyed good offensive numbers.  The team deployed an astonishing 23 players in an effort to gain matchup advantages.  This generated a league-leading OBP total.  However, the team’s power wasn’t able to match the Lannisters.  The Goofballs had seven players with a home run, but the Lannisters had nine.  Mike Trout and Bryce Harper had three each, and Mookie Betts added two steals and two home runs.  The Lannisters led the league in home runs, RBI, and SLG.  This put Kevin at a 4-1 disadvantage.

On pitching, Kevin started the week with good numbers but faded just enough down the stretch to allow the Lannisters to pull away.  The Goofballs must be devastated to see such a good performance not equal a win.  Kevin’s stars were Jose Berrios and Dylan Bundy.  The pair had 24.1 innings pitched and struck out 31.  This gave Kevin a win in strikeouts (and the best total in the league).  Unfortunately the pair allowed 7 earned runs.  This was a good total, but not quite elite.  A Sean Manaea disaster further hurt the team’s ERA and WHIP when the pitcher allowed six earned runs in 3.2 innings.  This gave the Lannisters just enough room to sneak into the lead.  The leader was Walker Buehler.  The rookie threw 14.0 innings pitched and struck out 14.  He had a 1.29 ERA and 0.43 WHIP.  The bullpen didn’t allow an earned run and tallied 6 saves.  Kevin managed to take the saves category, but the volume of Lannisters’ work was enough to keep ERA and WHIP under control.  The Lannisters led the league in both ERA and WHIP.  They were second in wins.  This added up to a 7-3 win.  The Lannisters moved back into first place with the victory, and the Goofballs are left to ponder what they have to do to get a victory.  Kevin would have easily beaten every other team in the league.

LK Armadillos (5-1-1) vs.  RK Possums (4-2-1)

The most important match relative to the standings paired the Armadillos and Possums.  Rick’s victory in week one was the only loss the Armadillos suffered so far before this match.  The Possums continued their ability to frustrate top teams with a second win in Week 08.  However, the underlying numbers in the match give both teams reason to be concerned going forward.

On offense, neither team offered much of note.  They tied for last in home runs, were the bottom two in RBI and SLG, and only the Thunderwolves had a worse OBP.  Rick was able to make the most of the bad situation, though.  He had the better RBI, OBP, and SLG numbers.  Eugenio Suarez was a hero with two home runs and seven RBI to lead the team.  Nomar Mazara had a bizarre 0.400 OBP and 0.182 SLG line.  Cesar Hernandez dragged the Possums down with just four hits in 24 at-bats.  The Armadillos countered with a good week from Austin Meadows, who had two home runs and two steals.  His work was undone by a nightmare week from Trevor Story.  He went three for 23 with a SLG of 0.130.  Only three Armadillos’ regulars had a SLG above 0.280.  However, the team won steals, so Rick only held a 3-1-1 lead before pitching.

Both teams were substantially better on the mound.  The Lannisters had the best pitching stats for the week, but the Possums and Armadillos were right behind them.  Larry had an incredible nine saves for the week.  Mike Foltynewicz was great in two starts, striking out 12 with a 1.38 ERA.  Carlos Carrasco and Jake Odorizzi struggled somewhat, but the team had great numbers across the board.  Rick’s pitchers started the week great, but then faded on Sunday.  Miles Mikolas and Trevor Bauer allowed eight earned runs.  This gave the ERA edge to the Armadillos.  However, Bauer’s Sunday outing featured 13 strikeouts in just 7.1 innings pitched.  This was enough to flip the category despite Foltynewicz’s good game.  Larry kept the ERA category but Rick held on to WHIP.  This gave him three categories and a narrow win for the week.  The closeness of the WHIP and strikeout categories means this week could have gone in either direction.  However, the Possums’ staff was just a little bit more efficient in strikeouts and WHIP.  The loss drops the Armadillos out of first place.  The Possums, Lannisters, and Armadillos are now essentially equal.  The second victory also means the Possums cannot lose a late season tie-breaker with the Armadillos.  However, both teams will need to address their offensive performance to keep pace going forward.

HP PhoeGnomes (1-5-1) vs.  SM Lasershow (2-4-1)

The PhoeGnomes and Lasershow had an interesting match that featured a great offensive showing from Sean’s team.  However, their pitching was as bad as the hitting was good, and the final result was a needed win for Heather’s beleaguered squad.  The Lasershow were red-hot offensively.  They put up numbers on par with the Goofballs and Lannisters.  Travis Shaw had three home runs and 10 RBI.  Salvador Perez was right behind him with three homers and eight RBI.  Mitch Moreland had a pair of home runs.  The Moreland story continues to evolve for the Lasershow – no one in the league would have expected him to be a viable fantasy option before the season.  Heather had a nice week from Jose Altuve, who had three steals and a home run.   However, her general power numbers were low and she only managed to win one category.  Normally this would be a problem, but the pitching side of the match would tell a different story.

Heather’s team posted a solid five saves and had a nice start from Ross Stripling.  However, Chris Sale had a rare down week in two starts.  He had a 5.25 ERA.  Jhoulys Chacin also failed to deliver much value in his one start.  In total, the PhoeGnomes didn’t post abhorrent numbers but they would struggle to compete against most teams on most weeks.  Fortunately for Heather, the Lasershow suffered a complete collapse.  Sean’s team failed to record either a win or a save.  Andrew Miller went on the DL after posting a 40.50 ERA.  Zack Godley and Drew Pomeranz were shelled for 11 earned runs in 6.2 innings pitched.  Jameson Taillon struck out 14 over 12.1 innings pitched but also gave up nine runs.  This end result was a historically bad team ERA and WHIP.  The short starts also resulted in few strikeouts.  Heather earned a clean sweep and scored a much-needed win.  The Lasershow can take comfort in knowing that their offense was good enough to compete with any team in the league.  The starts who imploded weren’t bad pitchers, so there is definitely hope for better results in the future.

CP Legion (1-2-4) vs.  KK Thunderwolves (3-3-1)

The week’s final match paired the Thunderwolves and the Legion.  Chris continued his streak of close calls, but ultimately earned a 5-4-1 win.  All five of Chris’s category wins came on offense.  Jose Ramirez stayed red-hot with two home runs.  Aaron Judge added three more, and a total of nine Legion batters had at least one.  The only Legion player who struggled to contribute was Jorge Soler, who managed a dismal 0-13 line.  Judge had a rare steal, which turned out to be crucial.  The Thunderwolves only had one steal, so this gave Chris the category win rather than a tie.  Had Judge not gotten his steal, Kyle would have tied the category and the week.  The Thunderwolves offense regressed, and was uncompetitive in the four other categories.

On pitching the battle was more even.  Kyle had a great bullpen week with seven saves from four relievers.  His other pitchers were more mediocre.  They all seemed to hover around the 4.50-6.80 ERA level except for Aaron Nola and James Paxton, who had nice starts.  Chris had the same problem and was sown in ERA and WHIP after another Land McCullers Jr. disaster start.  Nick Pivetta was good during two starts, and earned a win.  Kyle had a chance to tie for the week but Chase Anderson couldn’t get a Sunday win despite and good start.  This left Chris with a narrow victory.

Next Week

Cycle two continues with a series of interesting matches.  The Armadillos will try to get back on track against the Goofballs.  Kevin needs win, and win now, to stay competitive.  The Lannisters face the Lasershow in what has traditionally been a one-sided affair.  Sean will need his offense to come through, and the Lannisters have almost ten players injured, so anything can happen.  The Possums will take the fight to the Thunderwolves, and the Legion meet the PhoeGnomes.

The first seven week cycle of the season concluded last week.  The Armadillos managed a close win against the Legion.  The Thunderwolves moved back to 0.500 with a win against Heather.  The Lasershow earned their second victory in an upset of the goofballs.  Finally the Possums and Lannisters finished with a draw.

LK Armadillos (4-1-1) vs.  Legion (1-1-4)

The Legion and Armadillos typically have classic battles.  This week the Armadillos won after Chris suffered a down week for his offense.  The match was close, and Chris was within one steal of earning a tie.  However, both teams’ relative dominance of their respective categories drained the match of much of its drama.

J.D. Martinez had a monster week for the Armadillos with five home runs and eight RBI.  Gary Sanchez added two more.  Billy Hamilton struggled with just two hits for the week and a 0.071 OBP and SLG.  However, the rest of the team rallied and put up good numbers.  Carlos Santana came through in light duty and the team recorded three critical steals.  The Legion were unable to mount much of a challenge.  Jose Ramirez had a good week, but Jorge Soler’s SLG matched Hamilton’s abysmal 0.071 number.  The Legion were last in two offensive categories, tied for last in one, and next-to-last in the remaining two.  Larry won a 4-0-1 advantage and put tremendous pressure on the Legion’s pitchers.

Chris responded with a spirited effort.  Lance McCullers Jr. did the best over two starts.  He struck out 14 in 13.0 innings pitched.  His WHIP was a tiny 0.69.  Ken Giles had three saves, and Trevor Bauer was dominant in his one start.  The Armadillos didn’t have any answers to the Legion’s starters.  Noah Syndergaard was solid but other starters like Carlos Carrasco and Patrick Corbin were mediocre.  Chris won wins, strikeouts, ERA, and WHIP with ease.  However, the Armadillos’ bullpen recorded an astounding nine saves.  Brad Hand had three and then three other relievers scored two each.  This was enough to win the category and the week overall.

Neither team is likely to be happy with their showing this week.  The Legion remain inconsistent at the plate and the Armadillos were probably lucky to have been relatively unchallenged on offense.  A single steal could have changed the result, and steals are normally one of the Armadillos’ best categories.  It was another hard fought week, and both teams will look toward the rematch later in the season.

KK Thunderwolves (2-3-1) vs.  HP PhoeGnomes (1-4-1)

The Thunderwolves have surprised some owners with the strong start to the season.   The PhoeGnomes have elicited the equal but opposite reaction since they have struggled.  Kyle found a way to do enough to move back to 0.500 for the season.  The key was strong pitching.  Kyle had two good starts from Alex Wood and a lot of good bullpen work.  James Paxton recorded another strong outing, and Yu Darvish picked up his first win.  The PhoeGnomes suffered a nightmare start from Kevin Gausman and a weak effort from Joey Lucchesi.  Other starters like Gio Gonzalez and Chris Sale fared better, but it wasn’t enough to challenge the Thunderwolves.  Kyle had the best WHIP in the league and was near the top in the other categories.

Neither team had strong offensive numbers, but Kyle was able to do enough to stay competitive.  Seven Thunderwolves had a home run, and It was enough to tie the category.  Whit Merrifield continued to steal basses and Eric Hosmer added a surprising two of his own.  This was enough to dominate the category and secure the win, even though the team’s SLG and OBP were not good.  Heather won those categories with ease thanks to a great week from Ian Happ.  He had two home runs and a 1.067 SLG.  Heather needed a five category sweep to get a tie for the week, though, and the Thunderwolves did enough to get back to 0.500 and the upper half of the league.

The start continues the baffling struggles for the PhoeGnomes.  After a successful draft, many felt Heather had a chance to compete for the title.  The first cycle hasn’t been kind to the team, and Heather needs to find answers quickly because the season risks falling into a tailspin.

SM Lasershow (1-4-1) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (1-2-3)

After a win in Week 01, The Lasershow have struggled to find much success, managing only a tie and four losses.  They got back on track against the Goofballs, but the win was ugly.  Sean had respectable power numbers and got two home runs from Christian Yelich and Yasiel Puig.  Yangervis Solarte had a nice week in part-time play.  Unfortunately the team had the lowest OBP in the league.  The Goofballs weren’t any better, though.  They had the lowest SLG in the league and were near the bottom in home runs and RBI.  Each team won two categories by default, and tied in steals.

The poor offensive showing meant that pitching would decide the match.  The Goofballs showed more inconsistency again, struggling to get saves and keep their ERA in control.  Jon Gray suffered a meltdown and Julio Teheran was ineffective.  Sean had a good week from Eduardo Rodriguez and Trevor Williams.  The Lasershow weren’t at the top of the league in any categories but they were solid all around and had a good wins total.  They edged by in the strikeouts category and did enough to sweep all five categories and secure the win.  Hopefully this win will help the Lasershow get on track and start to make progress in the standings.  The loss continues the baffling, inconsistent start for the Goofballs.  They are now in seventh place ahead of only the PhoeGnomes.  On the positive side, Kevin is just three games back from the lead early on.  It’s possible for him to make progress, but like the PhoeGnomes, they need to make a change soon.

RK Possums (4-2) vs.  Lannisters (4-1-1)

The week’s final match was an odd encounter between the Possums and Lannisters.  Rick posted great offensive numbers early in the week.  He had five players with two home runs, and players like Andrew Benintendi and Xander Bogaerts piled up RBI.  Brandon Belt had a good week, and Josh Donaldson had a critical steal that offset his poor OBP and SLG numbers.  The Lannisters didn’t have the same level of power, but Mookie Betts had a fantastic week with two home runs and four steals.  Mike Trout added two steals and two home runs.  This wasn’t enough to challenge in home runs or RBI, but the Lannisters locked down steals and OBP.  SLG was close until the end, but the Lannisters were foiled by their part time players.  The six players with the fewest at bats had just two hits between them.  Rick had better production from his spot starters and took a valuable third category.

The Lannisters took control of the pitching rate stats early.  Jose Quintana and Charlie Morton led the way with good starts.  However, the bullpen fell apart and had only four saves.  An early double-header cost Jeff a chance to start Kenley Janson, who recorded two saves on the bench.  This gave Rick an opening.  Rick Porcello struggled but he piled up strikeouts over his two starts.  Max Scherzer was good, and Tanner Roark was strong in spot start duty.  This was enough for Rick to take strikeouts and tie in wins.  The end result was a locked-down 4-4-2 tie.  There were missed opportunities on both sides, and the Possums are probably unhappy that they were not able to capitalize on their big offensive showing.  Alternatively, the Lannisters can take comfort in weathering the storm, but know that a win was just a win, save, or 0.0099 SLG away.

Next Week

The second cycle of the season begins with Week 01 rematches.  The Goofballs will try to find something to work against the Lannisters.  The Lasershow will try to keep rolling against the PhoeGnomes.  The Legion and Thunderwolves meet again and Kyle will try to get above 0.500.  The Legion will try to get moving with a victory.  Finally, the Possums face the Armadillos in a match that could have early implications for the final standings.

CP Legion (1-1-3) vs.  JK Lannisters (4-1)

The Lannisters and Legion renewed their bitter rivalry in the week’s closest match.  Chris dominated on offense but the Lannisters used timely pitching to stay in the hunt.  The end of the week provided an exciting back-and-forth finish that ended in a draw.

Chris started the week with an offensive barrage.  Eleven Legion players had a home run including three each from Jose Ramirez, Aaron Judge, and Odubel  Herrera.  Judge added eleven RBI and Ramirez collected the team’s three steals for the week.  Chris led the league in home runs, RBI, and SLG by a large margin.  They were second in OBP to the Goofballs.  The Lannisters didn’t have bad stats, but they weren’t enough to keep pace with Chris’s output.  However, the team did manage four steals (two each from Mookie Betts and Mike Trout).  This was enough to swing the category and prevent the Legion from achieving the offensive sweep.

On pitching, both teams had excellent numbers.  The Lannisters led the league in WHIP and wins.  They were second in strikeouts and ERA.  The Legion were near the top in these critical categories, but the Lannisters maintained a slim lead.  The Legion earned four saves.  This prevented a sweep for the Lannsiters.  Luis Severino and Sean Newcomb were great in two starts.  They combined for 24.0 innings pitched, three earned runs, and 30 strikeouts.  The Lannisters relied on a 14 strikeout start from Charlie Morton against the Rangers, and another great outing from rookie Walker Buehler.

By the last day of the week, the two categories in play for OBP and ERA.  The Legion opened the week with a lead but the Lannisters rallied behind good pitching to aim for a tie.  There was a slim chance that the Legion could lose control of OBP and possibly the week, despite their power numbers.  Going into Sunday, both teams emptied their lineups.  Chris deployed two players to try to get steals.  The Lannisters hoped these two would fail, and drop the Legion’s OBP.  Instead, both hit home runs!  This forced the Lannisters to put more players in the lineup.  The Legion did the same.  The Lannisters took the category briefly, but fell just one hit short.  It was too late to insert Mookie Betts into the lineup by the time the Legion had dropped in OBP, but this decision still cost the Lannisters.

Though Chris held on to OBP, the ERA category was equally important.  The Legion had three pitchers start, but a rain delay forced Luis Severino into the game later than expected.  This, along with a Blake Snell injury, reduced the Legion’s strikeout potential.  The Lannisters still had to deploy Luis Castillo, because it was possible that Severino could strike out enough players to shift the category!  This put ERA at risk for the Lannisters.  Ultimately Severino had a good outing, but only struck out seven.  Castillo paired with a Kenley Jansen garbage time inning to maintain ERA and strikeouts.  After so many moves, the match ended in a fitting tie.

The tie is somewhat bitter for the Legion.  They would have beaten any other team in the league.  The Lannisters would have beaten three other teams.  Still, when category margins are this small, both teams would gladly take the tie over the loss.  A handful of at bats and innings pitched could have turned the score for either team.

HP PhoeGnomes (1-3-1) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (0-2-3)

The week’s second biggest match saw the Goofballs pick up their first win of the season against the Thunderwolves.  After weeks of inconsistency, Kevin finally got a complete week with both good hitting and pitching.  The team tied for the lead in steals and had the second best SLG and best OBP.  Ten different players had a home run, but the best of the week was Freddie Freeman.  He had three home runs and six RBI.  Javier Baez added a home run and two steals.  However, Kevin’s depth was the real story.  Ten Goofballs had OBP above 0.350 and only three regulars slugged below 0.450.  The PhoeGnomes were solid as well.  Wilson Contreras had a monster week with three home runs, 12 RBI, and a steal.  His OBP was 0.500 and his SLG was 1.174.  George Springer had a SLG of 1.000.  Heather had some great numbers, but the Goofballs were just a little bit better across the board.  The teams tied in steals, but Kevin held a 4-0-1 advantage.

The PhoeGnomes had good pitching, but couldn’t do enough to overcome the Goofball’s lead.  Heather had good strikeout, ERA, and saves numbers.  However, her team didn’t pick up a win.  The Goofballs had three, and also took WHIP.  Both teams threw minimal innings.  The PhoeGnomes were more effective in ERA and strikeouts, but Kevin got nice starts from Julio Teheran and Kyle Hendricks.  Good bullpen work didn’t win saves, but the strong strikeout totals from Hunter Strickland and Corey Knebel reduced the team’s WHIP.  Kevin claimed his first win, and hopes to keep his momentum going.

LK Armadillos (3-1-1) vs.  KK Thunderwolves (2-2-1)

The third close battle of the week saw the Armadillos defeat the Thunderwolves.  The final 6-2-2 score is not indicative of how close this match was.  Kyle’s best chance was through pitching.  Despite a series of injuries, he put together the best ERA in the league and the second best WHIP.  The two leaders were Aaron Nola and James Paxton.  Paxton threw a no hitter, and the two pitchers combined for 18.0 innings pitched, five earned runs, and 27 strikeouts.  Ivan Nova was the only Thunderwolf to have an ERA over 1.80.  The Armadillos threw fewer innings but had more strikeouts thanks to Carlos Carrasco.  Brand Hand and Craig Kimbrel also secured saves.  Despite such good rate stats, Kyle wasn’t able to get enough wins or saves to claim either category.  This would be all the Armadillos needed to take advantage of better offense.

Kyle’s injury woes on offense are a known problem.  This week saw the Thunderwolves struggle to generate power beyond a decent home run total.  Kyle Seager had three for the team, but only five other players had at least one homer.  Larry had seven players with a home run, including three from Giancarlo Stanton.  Trevor Story had three of his own and 11 RBI.  This was enough for the Armadillos to sweep the offensive categories and earn a close 6-2-2 win.  Kyle needs to find an answer to help his offense.  Meanwhile, the Armadillos are now in first place via tiebreaker over the Lannsiters.  However, the Armadillos have injury issues of their own.  The team’s pitching staff has resorted to stream-quality pickups just to get innings.  The Lannisters have also suffered three season-ending injuries (and suspensions) to good players.  This demonstrates how deep and challenging the competition for first is this year.

RK Possums (3-2) vs.  SM Lasershow (1-3-1)

The week’s final match saw the Possums barely beat the Lasershow.  Sean must be disappointed after his team turned in the second best offensive week in the league.  Like the Legion, they lost steals and then fell victim to slightly better pitching by their opponent.  Sean had a great week from Salvador Perez.  He had three home runs and 10 RBI.  Travis Shaw also had three home runs, and four Lasershow members had two.  Rick’s offense was listless, and at the bottom of the league in home runs, RBI, OBP, and SLG.  However, they did manage five steals.  This was a crucial category win.

Sean’s pitching wasn’t terrible, but it was at the bottom of ERA, WHIP, and saves.  Rick dominated the relief battle by a 7-1 margin.  He also got a great Max Scherzer start and two good outings for Corey Kluber.  This gave Rick enough momentum to claim all five categories and score the win.  The Possums are now just a half-game back of first place.

Next Week

The Possums have a chance to prove they are a true contender with a match against the Lannisters.  Rick’s team has caused the Lannisters problems over the years, and he will hope to again frustrate the defending champs with his power and pitching.  The Goofballs will try to keep moving against the Lasershow.  The PhoeGnomes and Thunderwolves meet at a difficult time for both teams.  Still, this is an opportunity for both teams to try to turn their seasons around.

Finally, the Legion and Armadillos have their first match of the season.  No other rivalry in the league is as bitter as this one.  Almost ten years of trades, near-misses, and fierce competition will be renewed.  As the Lannisters/Legion match showed, weeks can turn on just one steal or at bat.

KG Capital City Goofballs (0-1-3) vs.  RK Possums (2-2)

Week 05 featured several close contests.  The Goofballs/Possums encounter was especially important for both teams.  Rick needed a win to move back above 0.500 and stay close to the Lannisters and Armadillos.  Kevin was desperate to earn a victory and try to gain momentum.  The two teams had roughly similar offensive numbers, but Rick relied on strong pitching to secure the week.

On offense, both teams had a respectable 14 home runs.  Kevin had the edge in SLG but Rick took OBP.  The teams tied in steals and Kevin won RBI.  AJ Pollock was the Goofballs’ best performer.  He had four home runs, eight RBI, and two steals.  Anthony Rizzo contributed three home runs and nine RBI.  Eddie Rosario tied for the team lead with eight RBI in part-time duty.  The Possums had a more balanced offensive week.  Nine Possums’ players had home runs, including three from Joey Gallo.  Khris Davis, Charlie Blackmon, and Josh Donaldson had two each.  Blackmon drew seven walks and was a key contributor in Rick winning OBP.  Kevin held a slim 2-1-2 lead before pitching.

Rick posted solid pitching stats.  His team had the most strikeouts in the league, the second best ERA, third best WHIP, and second most wins.  Rick enjoyed two starts from Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander.  The two combined to pitch 26.2 innings and strike out an incredible 45 batters.  The duo allowed just four runs.  Rick’s other pitchers had worse numbers but the quantity and quality of Verlander and Scherzer’s work evened out the stats and produced great team numbers.

Kevin suffered another series of meltdowns.  The bullpen was especially vulnerable.  Hunter Strickland, Keone Kela, and Dellin Betances allowed 11 earned runs in just five innings pitched.  The starters were mediocre beyond Chris Archer.  He had a good week over two starts, but his work was undone by the nightmarish bullpen performance.  Josh Hader had a good week for strikeouts – he struck out 12 in just 4.2 innings pitched.  It wasn’t enough to save the team, and Rick won all five categories.  The Possums cruised to a win and remain near the top of the league.  Kevin is left searching for answers yet again.

KK Thunderwolves (2-1-1) vs.  JK Lannisters (3-1)

The week’s second most important match paired the Lannisters with the Thunderwolves.  Jeff’s team often frustrates the Thunderwolves because Kyle doesn’t match up well offensively with the Lannisters.   Kyle dedicated himself to building a solid offensive showing despite having 10 of his 26 offensive players on the DL or day-to-day.  He came close to matching the Lannisters, but it wasn’t quite enough to earn the victory.

The Lannisters led the league in RBI and SLG.  They were second in OBP and home runs.  Kyle as close – the Thunderwolves lost OBP by 0.0043.  They posted the second best SLG and RBI numbers in the league, and were tied for third in home runs.  They easily led the league in steals.  Kyle had three home runs each from Eduardo Escobar, Corey Dickerson, and Eric Hosmer.  Whit Merrifield continued to provide value with three steals.  Tim Anderson had two home runs in just eight at-bats.  In many other weeks this would be enough for a victory.  The Lannisters had just a bit more firepower available, though.  Mookie Betts had a three home run game and five for the week.  Bryce Harper added four of his own, and Mke Trout had 12 hits and eight walks.  Trough had an absurd 0.667 OBP and 1.136 SLG for the week.  This was too much for the Thunderwolves, and the Lannisters won four of five categories.  The Thunderwolves would have one four categories against the Lasershow, Goofballs, Possums, and Armadillos.  They would have swept the Legion and PhoeGnomes.

On pitching, the Lannisters’ bizarre inconsistency continued.  This time, it was on the positive side.  After posting an ERA over 5.50 last week, the same Lannisters crew improved to deliver an unthinkable 0.894 ERA for the week.  This ERA paired with the most wins in the league and the second best WHIP.  This may be the first time that a team has produced an ERA that was lower than the team’s WHIP.  Before this week, the lowest ERA for 2018 was the Legion’s 1.328 number in Week 03.  Chris’s WHIP was 0.934 (slightly better than the Lannisters’ 0.954).  Steen Strasburg was the only Lannisters’ starter to allow a run.  Gerrit Cole added a complete game, 16-strikeout win.  Even newcomer Walker Buehler took a no hitter through six innings before being removed for pitch-count reasons.  Kyle suffered a few bullpen meltdowns and generated poor overall numbers.  The Lannisters earned a hard fought victory.

The loss is a sad one for the Thunderwolves.  They would have beaten any other team this week expect for the Possums, whom they would have tied.  For now Kyle is back to 0.500 and will hope to have better luck against his next opponent.

HP PhoeGnomes (1-2-1) vs.  LK Armadillos (2-1-1)

The Armadillos had the best win of the week at 9-1 against the PhoeGnomes.  Heather’s team suffered a down week on all fronts, winning only the wins pitching category.  Larry set the tone for the week with great offensive numbers.  He led the league in home runs and was near the top in RBI and SLG.  Edwin Encarnacion abused Rangers’ pitching with a three home run day and 10 RBI for the week.  J.D. Martinez added three home runs of his own (some off the Rangers, too).  Twelve Armadillos players had a home run compared to just five for the PhoeGnomes.  Nolan Arenado had a four home run week, but it wasn’t enough to lift the whole team.  The PhoeGnomes were at the bottom of several offensive categories alongside the Legion.  The Armadillos earned a 5-0 sweep.

Neither team offered stellar pitching.  The Armadillos tied for the league lead in saves, but had a pedestrian ERA and WHIP.  Heather earned four wins, but two of them were from relievers.  Injuries caused havoc as well, with Hyun-Jin Ryu going down after just 1.1 innings pitched.  Chris Sale was good but it wasn’t enough to offset a disasterous outing for Jake Arrieta.  The Armadillos had a nice week from Noah Syndergaard but endured dud starts from Carlos Carrasco and Mike Foltynewicz.  Overall the pitching was pedestrian on both sides, but the Armadillos claimed four categories with ease and cruised to a win.

SM Lasershow (1-3) vs.  CP Legion (1-1-2)

The final match of the week saw the Lasershow battle the Legion.  The match was unusual because Sean dominated the offense while Chris enjoyed great pitching.  This caused a rare 5-5 tie where each team swept all of the categories on one side.

Offensively, the Lasershow relied on a great week from Francisco Lindor.  He had four home runs and 10 RBI to go with 17 hits.  Andrelton Simmons had a nice week with 12 hits and six RBI.  Yangervis Solarte had two home runs, 10 hits, and seven RBI.  The Lasershow led the league in OBP and were near the top in SLG, home runs, and RBI.  Chris wasn’t able to compete and finished with the worst home run, OBP, and SLG numbers in the league.

The opposite phenomenon occurred on pitching.  Chris had great stats across the board and Sean wasn’t able to keep up.  Luis Severino had a dominant outing with 10 strikeouts in a complete game.  Trevor Bauer was good in two starts and Roberto Osuna tallied three saves.  Ken Giles continued to struggle but the team’s overall numbers were strong.  The Lasershow had a bizarre week from Eduardo Rodriguez.  He pitched 10.0 innings and stuck out 16 but allowed 10 earned runs.  This doomed the Lasershow’s chances.  Chris easily took all five categories and the match ended in a draw.  Each team’s relative dominance made for an anticlimactic finish to the week,  and both teams have some work to do to put together more complete stats.

Next Week

Next week features a huge battle between the Legion and Lannisters.  Jeff’s team has been inconsistent on pitching, but dominant on offense.  Chris will have to find better luck with his hitters to climb back into the race.  Things don’t get easier for the Thunderwolves as the face the red-hot Armadillos.  The Possums will take on the Lasershow, and the Goofballs will try to win their first match against the PhoeGnomes.