KK Thunderwolves (3 – 2 – 1) vs.  CP Legion (5 – 1)

The week’s closest match paired the Legion and Thunderwolves.  Both teams are experiencing unexpected success early in the season.  Kyle won this meeting behind strong power and pitching.  The two teams easily led the league in home runs with 15.  Kyle posted the best SLG in the league and had the most RBI.  Josh Bell and Vladimir Guerrero Jr each had four home runs for the Thunderwolves.  Eduardo Escobar and Gleyber Torres each had three.  Nick Senzel won the steals category on his own with four for the week.  Chis had a three home run week from Kris Bryant and Cody Bellinger.  Ten total Legion players hit home runs.  Despite this heroic effort, Chris was unable to win any offensive categories.  The Thunderwolves had a slight edge across the board.

In a week where several teams had good pitching numbers, Kyle and Chris both had their strong points.  Mike Soroka had a good start for the Legion, but the rest of Chris’s pitchers failed to work deep into games.  Chris had good ERA and WHIP numbers, but Kyle was able to get more quality starts.  The teams were even in strikeouts and Kyle earned one more save.  The teams split pitching 2-2-1, which cemented Kyle’s victory.  The loss is a frustrating one for the Legion.  The win moves Kyle into second place at the end of the first cycle.  After years of offensive struggles, it’s possible that Kyle has found some answers.  The Thunderwolves are third in the league in home runs and second in SLG just behind the Legion.

RK Possums (3 – 3) vs.  LK Armadillos (2 – 2 – 2)

The defending champion Armadillos continued to struggle and the Possums took some small revenge to close the first cycle of play. Rick enjoyed power up and down his lineup.  Nine players had at least one home run.  Ronald Acuna had six RBI and two steals.  Joey Gallo stayed hot with a 0.481 OBP.  The Armadillos struggled to find power, though three players hit two home runs.  Alex Gordon made his presence known with two steals, but this was all the team could produce.  Both teams struggled with RBI and tied the category.  However, Rick swept the other four.  The Armadillos are still struggling to get on base and hit for consistent power.

The battle for pitching was close.  The Armadillos put up an excellent week and led the league in ERA, WHIP, and quality starts.  Patrick Corbin was especially good in his start – he struck out 11 over eight innings.  The team as a whole recorded an impressive seven quality starts out of a possible eight.  The Possums were almost as good – their ERA and WHIP were the second best in the league!  The team had six quality starts and managed to record more strikeouts than the Armadillos.  Besides Trevor Bauer, no player allowed more than three earned runs for the week.  Rick won just enough categories to pick up a 6-3-1 victory.  The loss pushes the Possums to back above 0.500 and the champs are now near the bottom of the pack.  This win won’t ease the pain of last season, but Rick has to be happy with an early victory.

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

The Goofballs and Lannisters tend to have exciting matches and this was no exception.  Kevin earned a victory behind a dominant offensive showing.  Two former Lannisters were the main culprits.  Freddie Freeman had four home runs and Byron Buxton added three more along with 10 RBI.  The Goofballs had the third most home runs in the league, were second in RBI and SLG, and had the best OBP.  The Lannisters suffered a down week and had the second fewest home runs and were near the bottom in each of the other statistical categories.  Bryce Harper led the team with just two home runs, and no other player had more than one.

The Lannisters were more competitive on pitching, but still failed to pick up many categories.  Only three pitchers had a quality start compared to just two for Kevin.  Jacob deGrom was inconsistent and Jon Lester imploded.  The Goofballs had fewer strikeouts and quality starts, but managed a solid ERA with relatively few innings pitched.  Outside of a disastrous Jose Berrios effort, no Goofball pitcher allowed more than three earned runs for the week.  The combined offensive and pitching numbers gave the Goofballs a relatively easy win.  This pushes the Goofballs higher in the standings.  Meanwhile, the Lannisters are left to wonder where the team’s power has gone.  Before the start of games today, the Lannisters were tied with the PhoeGnomes for the second fewest home runs in the league.

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

Speaking of the PhoeGnomes – Heather’s squad won again, despite some peculiar numbers against the Lasershow.  The PhoeGnomes had 11 home runs but somehow managed to have the second lowest SLG in the league.  Mitch Haniger had three home runs to pace the team.  Six other players had at least one, but for whatever reason the team didn’t have strong power elsewhere.  Christian Yelich tried to carry the Lasershow with an impressive three home run week.  His two steals, along with another pair from Francisco Lindor, helped him win the category.  The rest of the team struggled, though, and Heather built an early lead.

Heather sealed the win with a good pitching showing.  They led the league in strikeouts thanks to an absurd total of 27 from Chris Sale in just 12.1 IP.  Sale’s total equaled the Lasershow’s team total!  Several members of the Lasershow struggled.  Zack Wheeler and Marco Gonzales each had 9.00 ERAs.  This made it almost impossible to win any rate stats, and Heather was able to cruise to a smooth victory.  The loss drops the Lasershow into last place.  The PhoeGnomes are now beginning to move up the standings after a few solid weeks in a row.

Next Week

The first cycle is over so now teams are going back to their Week 01 matches.  The Possums and Lannisters meet again and Rick hopes to avenge his early loss.  The most interesting match features the Goofballs and Thunderwolves.  Kyle is tied for the fewest losses in the league and needs to keep winning.  Kevin is looking to get back over 0.500.  The Legion face the Lasershow – Sean is desperate for a win, and the Legion want to stay in first.  Finally, the PhoeGnomes meet the slumping Armadillos.  Heather will want to keep up her hot streak while the Armadillos are desperate to not fall too far behind early in the season.