Week #05 offered a slew of surprises for the Dirt Mountain League. The Skyline Sluggers and Hares put together solid weeks to capture upset wins over superior opponents. The Armadillos and Possums managed to scratch out ugly wins despite meager overall statistics.

CM Skyline Sluggers (1-3) vs. KG Capital City Goofballs (2-2)

The Skyline Sluggers versus the Goofballs was one of the most exciting match-ups of the week. Both Charlie and Kevin have suffered through some bad luck to start the year, and each team needed a win. Both teams produced great stats, but the Skyline Sluggers earned a narrow victory thanks to phenomenal pitching. Not only did Charlie sweep all five categories versus Kevin, but he had the best stats in each category across the entire league! This is almost unheard of, and several of the categories weren’t even close.

Charlie doubled-up Kevin’s strikeout totals with a total of 70 in just 58.2 IP. The Skyline Sluggers had the most saves, and their rate stats were also the best in class. Blake Snell and Shohei Ohtani combined for 26 strikeouts in three starts. Nathan Eovaldi, Yu Darvish, and Alex Cobb didn’t allow an earned run in their three starts. Jason Adam contributed three saves. Kevin’s staff had a good week, too, but couldn’t produce at the level of the Sluggers.

On offense, the Goofballs were better. Their middle infield was excellent with Ozzie Albies and Bo Bichette combining for an OPS over 1.000 across 64 at bats with 3 home runs.Randy Arozarena and Daulton Varsho were also strong, with 4 home runs, 8 RBI, 2 steals, and OPS over 1.110. It looked like Kevin might be able to earn a tie thanks to the strong offensive numbers. However, the Sluggers were able to swing the RBI category thanks to a great week from Sean Murphy. He had 12 RBI by himself, and paired with a huge weekend from Rafael Devers against the Phillies. This was enough for the Skyline Sluggers to secure a hard-fought win.

The Sluggers are now in the middle of the league standings alongside the Goofballs. These two teams were clearly the league’s top two performers, and Kevin will have to hope for better luck in the future.

JK Hares (2-2) vs. KK Wolf Spiders (3-1)

After the Sluggers and Goofballs, the Hares and Wolf Spiders were the next best teams in the league by a wide margin. The defending champs entered the match as a heavy favorite, but the Hares have been competitive after an offensive revamp. Both teams had solid offensive numbers. The Hares led the league in runs and was second in OPS. Will Smith put up solid numbers, and nine different players had a home run. Most surprising was the Hares’ steals total. Smith added as teal, and Wander Franco maanged 2. Franco and Michael Harris each had a critical stal on Sunday to tie the category. However, Kyle was strong on offense as well. The team led the league in home runs and also took RBI. Ronald Acuna Jr. continued to stay red hot. This led to a 2-2-1 tie before pitching.

Both the Hares and Wolf Spiders had good pitching stats. Neither team’s relief pitchers gained an edge, but the Wolf Spiders had excellent strikeout totals. Gerrit Cole and Joe Ryan managed 25 in four starts. The Hares countered with two Spencer Strider starts, and he managed 18 strikeouts on his own. It looked as though the Hares and Wolf Spiders would tie, but then there was drama on Sunday. Gerrit Cole had a mediocre start, and the Hares were able to flip ERA thanks to a shocking Yusei Kikuchi start. The PhoeGnomes had dropped Kikuchi the night before, and there will be more on this later. The Hares won 3-2, and earned a narrow 5-3-2 win for the week.

The shocking result on Sunday put the Hares over 0.500 and drop the Wolf Spiders to the middle of the pack. Kyle’s team would have defeated most other squads, so like the Goofballs, he will have to hope his luck turns around next week. The Hares can rejoice in the win, and know that their luck is level after a rough non-tie last week.

LK Armadillos (3-1) vs. HP PhoeGnomes (2-2)

None of the remaining four teams had weeks they can be proud of. One of the most bizarre results was the Armadillos “win” over the PhoeGnomes. Despite being close for most of the week, the pitching side got away from the PhoeGnomes on Sunday. After deploying a shocking phalanx of five pitchers on Sunday, Heather’s starters doomed the team for the week. Graham Ashcraft had one of the worst starts of the season and allowed 8 earned runs in just 1.2 IP. Trevor Williams and Ryan Feltner were also dreadful, and the Armadillos were able to win ERA and WHIP with ease. The PhoeGnomes let Yusiel Kikuchi go, and his curse sealed their fate. Larry easily won strikeouts and IP thanks to the short starts.

Neither team had good offensive numbers. The teams’ OPS numbers were the second and third worst in the league. Mookie Betts made the difference for the Armadillos with a 2 home run, 8 RBI week. Overall, neither team has a lot to be proud of this week. Having said that – the Armadillos managed another close win to move to the top of the standings. In the end, that is what counts.

RK Possums (2-2) vs. CP Legion (1-3)

The week’s final match saw the Possums defeat the Legion. Like the prior two teams, neither squand had impressive numbers. The lone bright spot for each team was steals – they both tied for the league lead with 7. Cody Bellinger had 5 for the Legion, while Byron Buxton and Francisco Lindor contributed the majority for the Possums. Luis Robert had a very nice week in limited duty for Rick, too. He had a 1.944 OPS with 6 runs and 4 RBI in just three games. Ryan Mountcastle stayed hot as well. This gave Rick four of the five categories and a commanding lead.

Neither team had good pitching. The Legion threw more innings, but, as usual, struggled with saves. Rick won the category with just two, and somehow held on to WHIP. The less said about the pitching side for this match-up the better… Rick picked up a win, and the Legion are back to losing once again.

Player of the Week

The most important player this week goes to Nathan Eovaldi. His strong start gave Charlie the edge he needed in both ERA and WHIP. These two categories made the difference between a win and a loss for the Skyline Sluggers.

Next Week

After numerous shocking results, the sixth match-up of the season promises more of the same. The Wolf Spiders and PhoeGnomes are both coming off losses and desperately need a win. The Goofballs also need a win to keep close to the struggling (but winning) Armadillos.

The most interesting match may be the Possums versus the hot Skyline Sluggers. Charlie can move back to 0.500 with a win, but the Possums are looking to rebound. Finally, the Legion meet the Hares. With Chris’s team struggling, the Hares hope to continue winning. However, Chris is desperate for a win, yet again, and will do anything he can to triumph.