This week we have a guest author as The Commissioner continues his move to London! Thank you so much to Chris for the phenomenal write-up! We will be back on track with the normal programming next week.

Week 9 – The Legion and the rest…

LK v CP

After the best all round week in week 8, the Legion looked to carry it on against the league leading Armadillos to show that they still had a chance to make a run for the title. On the flip side, the Armadillos have barely been challenged since a week one loss. They cruised into the week looking to stomp the trash-talking Legion and put them in their place… last.

Last week’s dominant SP for the Legion started the week with the two highest-rated pitching match-ups per ESPN, B Miller(Sea) and B Miller(LAD), plus a red hot Kopech on Monday. Expectations were high. Before either of them took the mound, the Legion watched Stroman pitch a CG 1H shutout, against Tampa, while sitting on the Legion bench. Miller, Miller, and Kopech had no such luck. They combined for a disappointing 7.87 ERA and 1.53 WHIP. This gave the Armadillos a huge advantage out of the gate on the pitching side before they ever threw an inning, but the Armadillos watched in frustration as Gilbert had his worst start of the year on Tuesday. Needless to say, the trash-talking Legion took note.

Neither team had huge offensive numbers early in the week. After the first couple of days, both teams owned a couple of categories with mediocre numbers.

The Armadillos did not stay on the mediocre side for long. A savvy pickup of an old mainstay, Gary Sanchez (Sanchez?), sparked the team. Betts had a great day on Friday with 2HR and a SB to give Larry a comfortable 9-1 lead going into the weekend with multiple categories looking out of reach for the Legion.

The Armadillos’ worst nightmare seem to unfold as the Legion had a miracle weekend to come back and pull off a massive upset against the league-leading Armadillos!

It was a great dream…

The reality is that the Legion could do nothing to even make the week close. The Armadillos put up average stats across the board (except for SB) and still managed to dominate without losing a category.

Larry is no doubt happy but relieved to have a down week out of the way before he has to go head-to-head with Rick next week in a battle of 1st and 2nd. Armadillos MVP: JD Martinez- 1.167 OPS 4R, 3HR, 7RBI.

CM v KK

The defending champions Wolf Spiders who started off the season in a dominating 3-0 fashion found themselves somehow sitting at .500 going into week 9 vs the Sluggers. They badly needed to get back on track. Meanwhile, the Sluggers found themselves wondering how they could possibly be 2-6. Each week they are competitive in every category and somehow find a way to fall short. This week the Sluggers started off much like most weeks. They had a good not great first couple of days. They did enough to be close in every offensive category.

The Wolf Spiders came out throwing. On Tuesday, they started 5 SP and put some serious pressure on the Sluggers. Those arms combined for a crazy 1.89 ERA and 1.11 WHIP while racking up 32 Ks over 33.1 IP.

The Sluggers had an uphill battle. Ohtani looked up the hill and said, “Get on my back.” The superstar launched … HR including his first multi-HR game of the year. The rest of the team did just enough to keep the offensive categories close going into the weekend. As for the pitching, the Sluggers quietly made multiple solid starts and looked like they could challenge those lofty numbers set by the Wolf Spiders early on.

Shockingly, Ohtani did not play a role on the pitching side. Charlie wisely left Ohtani on the bench against the Astros when they blasted him for 10 base runners and 5ER. Charlie’s lone pitching disappointment leading up to the weekend came not as a performance but as the inevitable injury of Sale. So many other league managers have experienced the euphoria/frustration that is Sale. The Wolf Spiders rode those early numbers into the weekend with a 7-3 lead.

Then, came Saturday. The Sluggers combined for 19 for 46 and a 1.164 OPS. Arraez led the way with a 5/5 performance and 5RBI.

It was anyone’s match as late as 6:30 on Sunday. The Sluggers were sitting one HR or RBI away from a win for the week. Alas, it was not meant to be.

The Wolf Spiders had the Sluggers trapped in their web. There would be no more counting numbers added to their weekly stats, and for good measure, the Wolf Spiders’ Seager and Jung tallied a couple more RBI to make the week slant more in their favor and end at 5-3-2. The Wolf Spiders had an excellent overall week and were near the league leaders in almost every category.

The continue to linger just out of reach of the Possums and Armadillos. They will look forward to a match up with the Legion next week.

Wolf Spiders’ MVP: Seager 7R, 2HR, 10RBI, 1.169 OPS (Mikolas was a close 2nd with 8IP 0ER 10K and 0.50WHIP)

HP v JK

The star-studded yet inconsistent PhoeGnomes, who have been hit harder than anyone by injuries this year, welcomed back their emotional leader Jose Altuve to start the week against the Hares.

The Hares, who already had one heartbreaking loss to the PhoeGnomes this year were looking to get a little revenge as they continued their climb toward the league lead.

Early on the PhoeGnomes looked like they were on a mission. Altuve blasted his first HR of the year and Judge had three HR in two days. All told, the PhoeGnomes had 5 HR and 2 SB at the end of day two.

The Hares’ phoned in Memorial Day and started the week with a pedestrian .468 OPS. Coupled with a blown save from their stud RP, Presley, the Hares looked like they were in deep trouble. As the week progressed, Trout and the gang gave us all a little reminder that Jeff is a perennial contender for a reason. One day can close the gap in almost any offensive category. By the end of Wednesday only OPS seemed out of reach on the offensive side. However, the PhoeGnomes put up consistent numbers each day with Castellanos launching two HR on Friday and Kershaw and Valdez pitching like the aces they are supposed to be to give the PhoeGnomes a comfortable 9-1 lead going into the weekend.

The news headlines didn’t look good for Heather as both Altuve and Judge reported lingering injuries that had them in street clothes as the weekend ended. Pair that with a couple of mediocre starts from the PhoeGnomes’ staff to end the week and ….. well, it didn’t matter.

Jeff was more than outmatched this week. The Hares would have only been competitive with the Legion (a phrase no owner wants to hear/read)

PhoeGnomes MVP: Judge 6R, 4HR, 5RBI, and 1.513 OPS.

RK v KG

The last match of the week was a tale of polar opposites. The Possums came into the week rolling over opponent after opponent and sat at a stellar 6-2. The Goofballs on the other hand have been seen at minor league parks scouting for help as the have struggled to a 2-6 record.

Although the Goofballs seem to be at an all-time low, they can never be considered an easy week as long as Kevin (arguably the best waiver wire scout in the league) is making the managerial decisions.

Both teams started the week with mediocre stats starting in their lineup. The Goodballs’ bench had the advantage over the Possums’ bench as they went 11/21 and wracked up two early HR. As for the stats that counted, the Goofballs had a 1 HR edge, and each team had a couple of steals and a save after the first two days of games. This kind of close week has historically made the Goofballs the favorite, yet Rick had to be concerned but confident early on after seeing the Goofballs’ missed opportunities.

The Goofballs’ had to be running out of desks to flip over back in the office after SP Steele left after three perfect innings on Wednesday with what looks like (a season ending) elbow soreness, but it did seem to spark the offense.

Carroll and Freeman both had huge days with a HR each and two steals, but the real story prior to the weekend was the Possums pitching. Every pitcher, starter and reliever, hung zeros and Ks inning after inning. They entered the weekend with a 1.88 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, and 46 Ks. The two teams were locked into a fight with a 5-4-1 split going into Saturday. As the weekend started, rumors swirled that the Goofballs were looking at property in Vegas. Pictures started circulating showing multiple tables not flipped over in Vegas.

Kyle Schwarber was asked about his thoughts on his owners actions. His response was elegant, “I really don’t give a s—-, nope. Move on!”

He then went out and had a monster Sunday with a 2HR, 6RBI, and 2R. The Possums had a good day in their own right but could not do enough. The Goofballs pulled away with a 6-3-1 victory.

After an embarrassing loss last week to the Legion that thrust them into last place (Go Legion), the Goofballs claw back out of the trenches. Next week they will look to keep it going against the struggling Hares.

Goofballs’ MVP: Devin Williams (RP) 3IP, 1H, 4K, and 2Saves. Ok, fine! The MVP was Schwarber based on timing. Rookie Corbin Carrol had a great week as well with 2HR, 2SB, 6R, 6RBI, 1.068OPS and a diving catch.

Overall MVP: Commissioner Jeff Kramer – thanks for all you do between your busy RL schedule. I speak for the whole league when I say, ‘We look forward to having you write the wrap up next week.’ 2nd place MVP: Cory Seager!! The Wolf Spiders could not have won without him this week.

Commissioner’s note: Thank you Chris! I really appreciate it and I’m looking forwad to getting back at it next week. 🙂 This was a great write-up and I think everyone will enjoy it!