League Summary

The beginning of the second cycle of games this week provided a bit of breathing room for the two co-leaders, as the Spiders and Armadillos carved out victories over the Hares and Possums to widen the gap over the other challengers.  In fact, when the week ended, only one other team even remained above .500 for the year.  That was the Goofballs, who came away with their third tie of the season, this time against the Kraken, and they probably felt fortunate to do so.  The PhoeGnomes drubbed the previously hot Skyline Sluggers.  And the bottom five clubs ended bunched up within 2.5 games of one another.  Which of those teams will break out and make a move for the top half?  And will the defending champions be able to withstand the devastating loss of Ronald Acuna?  The number of injuries this season are astounding, and every team has felt the effects.

KK Wolf Spiders (6-1-1) vs JK Hares (2-6)

The long-awaited resurgence of Corey Seager led a monster offensive performance by Kyle’s squad.  Seagar hit .350 for the week with 6 runs, 5 homers, and 7 RBI.  Wilyer Abreu (a real household name for most of us ?) hit .368 with 3 runs and 4 RBI.  Ryan McMahon somehow escaped from the Goofballs clubhouse and had a 5 run, 3 HR, 7 RBI week for the Spiders.  Michael Massey turned in a solid performance as well.  Overall, the Spiders led the league with 17 HR, 44 runs, and a .925 OPS and they took 4 of the hitting categories.  Their pitching was not as strong, and 39 K’s and an ERA of 5.33 would not normally win a category.   But they were fortunate that the pitching rich Hares had a dreadful week on the mound and weren’t able to capitalize on their usual hurling stats.  The Hares got good production from Dalton Varsho who had 6-3-9-2-0 line on only 5 hits for the week.  The only other homers were contributed by Bryan Reynolds (2) and Marcell Ozuna (3).  Elly was held to only one steal.  And R. Greene and R. Jeffers were a combined 4/39 to help sink the Hares offensively.  So Kyle took the win with a nice showing, but it must be a little bittersweet as he mulls the season ending loss of his superstar.  How will he compensate?  Meanwhile, Jeff has to get his formidable pitching staff back on track if he is going to make a run.

CM Skyline Sluggers (4-4-0) vs HP PhoeGnomes (3-5-0)

Charlie came into this series with his best record ever.  He left soundly defeated, as Heather’s team rolled to an unexpectedly easy 9-0-1 victory.  The Sluggers managed a tie in Saves, but couldn’t get much else going.  Heather led the league in RBI and was second in runs, SB, and OPS.  Bobby Witt was on fire as he went 10/26 with a line of 6-4-11-3-1 and a 1.356 OPS!  The Judge ruled with a 9/24 performance and a line 9-4-7-5-0 and a 1.467 OPS!!  Wow – and the pitching was almost as good.  Chris Sale went 14 inn allowing 1 run and striking out 17.  T. Houck, G. Crochet, and Y. Kikuchi turned in nice games that helped overcome a blowup by F. Valdez.  The Sluggers batted only .237 for the week and Ohtani and Semien had tough weeks. Charlie did get some solid pitching from M. Stroman, B. Pfaadt, and Y. Yamamoto.  But he too suffered blowups – his from A. Heaney and B. Snell.  Overall, it was an easy win for Heather.  The Sluggers will look to re-set next week.

KG Capital City Goofballs (3-2-3) vs CP Kraken ( 3-4-1)

These two trash talking rivals squared off for verbal bragging rights in the early going.  They tied – now we will have to listen to both of them 😊.  The Goofballs weren’t terrible on offense.  The Goofballs had middle of the pack stats, but oddly got all 7 of their HR from infielders.  The outfield was AWOL.  Bryce Harper was the leading hitter for Kevin and had 3 homers.  But Chris had three players with 3 homers (Soto, Olsen, and Tucker) and he took the HR column 12-7. Even though the Kraken won 4 offensive categories, most of them were close.  And the teams tied with 31 RBI – thanks to a Soto walk when he had an RBI opportunity on Sunday. 

T. O’Neill, J. Westburg, and J. Meyers went 3/41 for CP.  While Arozarena, Carroll, and Abrams went 8/55 for KG.  On the pitching side , the Goofballs had the league best ERA of 1.98 and WHIP .951.  All the starting pitchers were very good for Kevin.  On the other hand, Chris got a great 6 inn, one hit, 12 K game from Cole Ragans, plus several other nice efforts from his starters.  However, he had two tough outings, from K. Crawford and C. Javier that cost him.  The two teams tied in saves with A. Diaz (CP) and R. Suarez (KG) turning in 3 each.  Overall, it was not what either team wanted, but they have another chance to face off son enough.

RK Possums (2-6) vs LK Armadillos (6-1-1)

This was the latest iteration of a classic Dirt Mountain rivalry.  These matchups always seem to be close, and Rick’s team has typically given the Armadillos problems.  This time was no different.  Neither team hit well.  The two lineups combined for the lowest number of runs and RBI.  The Armadillos swept the offensive categories, but with pedestrian numbers – except for a league leading 11 steals (including 5 by B. Doyle in a 4/16 week).  G. Henderson put up solid stats and J. Ramirez sizzled with 7 R, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 1 SB, and a 1.380 OPS for Larry.  Rick got decent offense from C. Walker 4 runs, 2 HR, and 4 RBI.  F. Tatis and M. Machado also put up good numbers for the Possums.  But B. Stott, J. Naylor, and A. Garcia disappointed with a combined 7/62 (.112).  Rick’s only shot was to win all the pitching columns.  M. Fried threw a one hit shutout with 9 K’s.  Other Possum starters were good, but fell a bit short with 3 categories won.  The Armadillos countered with Ranger Suarez who struck out 19 in 13 inn and got another great start from L. Gil with 8 K’s.  E. Clase (4 saves) and M. Miller (2 saves) won the column for Larry (who managed to survive the stunning demotion of E. Diaz from his closer role).  LK was able to keep pace with the Spider Wolves, but it wasn’t easy.

Player and Pitcher of the Week 

There will be co Players of the Week for this round – two proud PhoeGnomes win the honor – Aaron Judge and Bobby Witt, Jr.

And we have co Pitchers of the Week – Chris Sale – another PhoeGnome all the way back from the scrap pile! and Emmanual Clase from the Armadillos.

Next Week

The Kraken and the red hot PhoeGnomes will have an intra-home skirmish.  The Hares will try to shutdown the Sluggers.  The Possums will hope to knock the Wolves off their perch.  And the Goofballs and Armadillos will pull out all the stops to try to win the week.

Special Note

Please send your thought and prayers to Heather for the tragic loss of her sister.

And please do the same for Bernie Humpert.  He is Jeff’s cousin, Dyann and Larry’s nephew.  Bernie (age 33) was diagnosed a few days ago with a very aggressive esophageal cancer that has already spread to other parts of his body.

League Summary

This week saw the last undefeated team fall, providing a needed window for mid-tier teams to gain ground on the league leader. Meanwhile, both the Kraken and PhoeGnomes were able to secure much-needed victories. With offensive numbers down for yet another week, pitching led the way for many teams. The week also represents the end of the first cycle of the season, as each team has now faced all other teams one time. With the second cycle beginning, there are two clear powers that are at the top of the league. However, everyone is still in contention and there are sure to be some surprises as the second cycle begins.

LK Armadillos (4-1-1) vs. KK Wolf Spiders (5-0-1)

This week’s most important match saw the Armadillos take down the Wolf Spiders to earn a share of first place. The Wolf Spiders suffered their first defeat of the year, and Larry cemented his status as the biggest threat to Kyle’s reign. Both teams has solid pitching and split the five categories 2-2-1. The Armadillos relied on dominance in the rate stats whereas Kyle shined in counting totals. The Armadillos’ win is especially surprising considering Michael King and Zach Efflin allowed 13 runs in 3 starts. However, Luis Gil was incredible with 14 strikeouts in just 6.0 IP with 1 earned run. Kyle go great starts from Seth Lugo and Zac Gallen, who combined for 20 strikeouts. However, his pitchers generally allowed 3-4 runs per start. This was just high enough for the team’s ERA to drift over 3.00 and lose WHIP. The teams split saves, so the week would be decided by offense.

Larry’s hitters rose to the occasion. The Armadillos led the league in home runs with 10. They were tied for second in steals and posted respectable run and RBI numbers. Gunnar Henderson led the charge with 3 home runs and a steal. Jose Ramirez and Mookie Betts each added 2 home runs to the cause. Ramirez was especially strong with 8 RBI. The Wolf Spiders tried to keep up, but their offense finally let them down despite a decent showing from Corey Seager and Ryan McMahon with 2 home runs each. No player had a steal and the team presented generally depressed numbers. The loss is the first for the defending champs, and the win is a crucial step forward for the Armadillos. Kyle’s defeat end an impressive unbeaten streak. For Larry, the win puts him into a tie for first place, and also a big tiebreaker advantage early. Which team is the favorite the rest of the way?

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

The week’s most hotly contested battle featured two teams who are each on the cusp of serious contention. In the end, the Skyline Sluggers continued to show that they are for real, and no team should take them for granted. The teams were relatively even on offense. Kevin was able to secure OPS and runs. His runs total of 41 was second only to the Possums’ impressive 42. Rick’s OPS was also a shade above Charlie’s, thus securing two categories. Rafael Devers and Freddie Freeman led the Possums with 8 and 9 runs each. Interestingly, though each player had only 6 and 8 hits! This means that both players contributed some walks and got a lot of help from their teammates to score in so few opportunities! Charlie countered with wins in RBI and steals. Four Sluggers had at least one steal, and William Contreras contributed 7 RBI and 2 home runs. Charlie took these two counting categories, and the teams tied with 8 home runs. The Goofballs can at least take comfort that they did not leave many home runs on the bench – they had only two for the week, on Monday and Wednesday.

The split decision meant that everything hinged on pitching. Neither team has posted the elite pitching stats that the Hares and Wolf Spiders have, but neither team is truly weak on the mound. The Sluggers were able to take both ERA and WHIP thanks to a few strong starts and a controlled effort from the bullpen. Brandon Pfaadt was the star for the week with a strong 9 strikeout performance over 7.0 IP and just allowing just 2 earned runs. Reed Garrett and Ryan Helsley each added a critical save to secure this vital category. The Goofballs tried to counter with an excellent week from Mithc Keller who had 12.0 over two starts with just 2 earned runs and 10 strikeouts. However this was offset by a rough week for Jordan Mongomery, who allowed 7 earned runs in just 11.1 IP. The end result was a 3-2 category split for the Skyline Sluggers, who improved to 4-3. The goofballs fell to 3-2-2. This is am important milestone for the Skyline Sluggers as they are now above 0.500 after the first series for the first time in franchise history. If the team can continue their current pace, they could challenge the league leaders and certainly rank in the top division for the league.

CP Kraken (3-3) vs. RK Possums (2-4)

The week’s next closest battle saw the Kraken return to form with a win over the Possums. The Kraken earned the win through a strong combination of pitching and offense. They were second in home runs and OPS and third in runs. A trio of Kraken had 2 home runs, including Kyle Tucker, Tyler O’Neill, and Juan Soto. The team’s OBP translated into good runs totals with Soto and O’Neill each adding 6 apiece. The Possums weren’t able to compete in OPS despite having a respectable home run total. The Possums were able to win runs with a great showing of 9 from Bryson Stott. He and Francisco Lindor each had 2 steals, easily securing the category. Chris left hitting with a narrow 3-2 lead.

Neither side had great pitching, but the Kraken were able to do enough to secure the overall win thanks to superior volume and a disastrous ERA for the Possums. On the positive side, Chris had a nice week from Shota Imanaga, who threw 12.0 IP and struck out 15 while not allowing an earned run! He was joined by four starts between Brady Singer and Kutter Crawford. This duo combined to eat innings and record 26 strikeouts, but didn’t have great earned run totals. This left the Kraken potentially vulnerable. Unfortunately, Rick wasn’t able to capitalize on this opportunity. The squad suffered a series of nightmare starts from normally reliable pitchers. Max Fried had a rough game with 4.1 IP, 9 hits, 3 earned runs, and just 2 strikeouts. Tyler Glasnow and Sonny Gray also struggled to put together quality or quantity. The Possums’ pitchers fell into a pattern of throwing around 4-6 IP but allowing 4-5 earned runs. They won saves and WHIP, but these numbers weren’t enough to swing the counting stats or secure ERA. This was enough for the Kraken to take a 3-2 lead and secure the week. The win is an important one for the Kraken, who still believe they are contenders for title. The loss is also a small setback for the Possums, and they were trying to build momentum. Rick will have to continue to look for answers, while the Kraken look for that final piece of the pitching puzzle to tie everything together.

JK Hares (2-4) vs. HP PhoeGnomes (1-5)

The week’s final match saw the PhoeGnomes take down the Hares in a close battle the featured excellent pitching on both sides. Heather, though, led the league in strikeouts and ERA, was second in WHIP, and tied for second in IP. Leading the way was Aaron Nola, who had 13 striekouts over 16.0 IP with just 2 earned runs. Not far behind him were Chris Sale and Framber Valdez with 14.0 IP, 17 strikeouts, and no earned runs. In fact, no starter allowed more than 2 earned runs for the week. The Hares tried to keep pace with good weeks from Corbin Burnes and Hunter Greene. The team somehow won IP and took saves behind the motley duo of Kyle Finnegan and James McArthur. However, Heather’s dominance led to a commanding 3-2 lead.

On offense, the Hares fell apart with the lowest OPS in the league. However, the somehow won home runs when 7 players each contributed 1 apiece! The Hares also continued to dominate in steals thanks to Elly De La Cruz and, strangely enough, Bryan Reynolds. The Hares easily led the league in the category and continue to dominate on the base paths. However, this wouldn’t be enough as the PhoeGnomes managed the top OPS in the league, along with solid runs and RBI totals. Aaron Judge was the player of the week with 10 hits, 3 home runs, and 7 runs and RBI. He had a mammoth 1.830 OPS and willed the team to the win. The loss is yet another in string of tough defeats for the Hares, who continue to put up good numbers but lose. For the PhoeGnomes, the win was a welcome one and a way to keep pace with the other mid-tier teams and try to build some momentum.

Next Week

The second cycle of the season begins, as bot the Wolf Spiders and Armadillos face teams who want to take them down, namely the Hares and the Possums. While these two teams are at the bottom of the league right now, both have proven they can compete. The Kraken and Goofballs meet in another major match to build momentum. Finally, the Skyline Sluggers will face a fresh test against the PhoeGnomes!

Greetings fellow Dirt Mountainers!

This week’s recap is being guest written by your 2021 League Champion, otherwise known as the last owner to win a championship prior to Kyle’s reign of terror atop the league.

Before I get on to the results of Week 6, I’d like to do a couple special ‘shout-outs!’

First shout-out goes to Heather and Dyann, two mothers who I hope had a wonderful Mother’s Day. Heather, of course is the owner of the PhoeGnomes, and in addition to having her own offspring, is also married to Chris, who I think might qualify as an adult child a lot of the time.

Dyann of course has shared a household with multiple Dirt Mountainers and I’m sure has been party to a LOT of tedious Dirt Mountain waiver talk/trade talk/draft talk over the years, most of it I’m sure entirely boring to someone not actually in the league. But she is there every year for us on Draft Day helping record the goings on of the day. I salute her for her dedication and support to the league.

Second shout out this week goes to Owner of the Skyline Sluggers, Charlie McBride. I think that most of us can agree that the expansion franchise that came into the league with me in 2015 has seemed mostly to be like a rudderless ship with a comatose captain behind the wheel. Charlie, since taking over the franchise,  has been an excellent steward of his team, and has built up the Skyline Sluggers into arguably the best offensive team in the league. His cumulative numbers this year on the offensive side are eye-popping! So, keep up the good work Charlie, though feel free to go a little easy on me this week

Alright, let’s get to the business of recapping this past week, shall we?

This week’s results are similar to our season long results as a whole, with the Armadillos and Wolf Spiders proving to be the cream of the crop. On the flip side of the coin, the Preston family’s struggles continue, while the Possums look to be warming up.

Armadillos (3-1-1) vs. Kraken (2-3)

Armadillos vs. Kraken is always one of my favorite league rivalries to observe. It seems like no matter what the records are going into the week, Larry and Chris always seem to have tough battles that go down to the wire.

This week was no exception. The only categories that really weren’t in play going into Sunday were ERA and WHIP, as Larry built up strong leads there due to strong starts during the week from Ranger Suarez and Tarik Skubal, two southpaws who’ve both been nothing short of dominant this season. 

Reynaldo Lopez and Zac Eflin pitched in strong starts for the ‘Dillos as well.  Chris’ top pitchers let him down this week with Cole Ragans and Logan Gilbert getting touched up for 17 ER in only 16.1 IP over 3 starts. Despite being uncompetitive in the rate stats, Chris went into Sunday with saves clinched and Larry trailing by not insignificant margins in both k’s and innings. Larry got 13 k’s and 11.2 IP out of Luis Gil and Dean Kremer, which gave him the innings category by 0.2 IP, though he did fall 1 short of Chris in strikeouts. Armadillos take the pitching categories 3-2.

With regard to hitting, Larry held a strong 5 run lead going into Sunday, with Chris having a significant advantage in OPS.  Jose Ramirez and Brent Rooker were the heavy lifters for the Armadillos posting 5 HR 13 RBI and a steal between the two of them. The Kraken got strong weekly performances from O’Neil Cruz and Kyle Tucker who had a total of 6 HR and 10 RBI with a steal.

SB and HR were both tied going into Sunday, with Larry holding a narrow 4 RBI lead. Both teams hit 2 HR and didn’t steal a base Sunday, so those categories remained deadlocked. Chris needed to swing RBI to his column to earn a tie, and despite getting within shouting distance of Larry early in the day, the Kraken weren’t able to make up the margin as the ‘Dillos took RBI to win the hitting categories 2-1-2 and the week 5-3-2. The Armadillos right the ship after a tough loss last week and the Kraken lose their 4^th week in a row.

Wolf Spiders (4-0-1) vs. PhoeGnomes (1-4)

Kyle went into Week 6 as the lone undefeated team and Heather came into the week trying to build some momentum after a sluggish start to the season.

The pitching categories in this matchup were extremely tight this week. Kyle’s bullpen, led by Kirby Yates and Clay Holmes, gave him a two save lead going into Sunday. Strong starts from Zach Gallen, Yu Darvish, Seth Lugo, and Jon Gray gave the Wolf Spiders a significant advantage in ERA heading to the weekend. Despite the strong ERA showing, Kyle found himself clinging to a tight lead in WHIP and chasing Heather in Innings and K’s as the week entered the latter stages.

Heather got strong starts from Yusei Kikuchi, Framber Valdez, Tanner Houck, and Chris Sale. Those 4 combined to average 7 innings a start while notching 21 K’s. Jhoan Duran returned from the IL and gave Heather 4 scoreless IP while notching the team’s only save for the week.  

Luis Castillo and Kyle Harrison gave the Wolf Spiders 11 IP and 13 K on Sunday, but fell short of the PhoeGnomes by 1/3 of an inning and 1 K for the week. The Wolf Spiders did however hold on to their margins in the rate stats and saves, giving them a 3-2 lead on the pitching side.

On the hitting side, it was a case of too little too late for the PhoeGnomes.  Kyle’s Wolf Spiders built up strong margins during the week in R, HR, RBI, and OPS. Teoscar Hernandez, who’s proven to be one of the best picks of Kyle’s draft, posted 4 runs, 3 HR, 8 RBI and a .986 OPS. Corey Seager also chipped in a pair of homers and 5 RBI while 3 other players knocked in at least 5 runs to give the Wolf Spiders a league high 46 RBI for the week.

Heather’s squad posted strong Sunday numbers with 6 runs, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 2 steals and a .940 OPS, but her early week struggles doomed her on the power side, as the first 6 days of the week she tallied only 17 runs, 6 HR, and 21 RBI with a sub .650 OPS.  Her 3 homers Sunday earned her a tie, but the only other offensive category she took was SB behind Bobby Witt Jr’s 4 thefts. Kyle takes the hitting categories 3-1-1 and the week by a margin of 6-3-1

Skyline Sluggers (3-2) vs. Possums (1-4)

The Skyline Sluggers and Possums had an interesting matchup in Week 6. When all was said and done, Rick’s squad leaned on an old vet to grab a needed victory despite being thoroughly dominated on the offensive side for the week.

The Skyline Sluggers absolutely crushed in the power and run scoring department. They scored an AMAZING 47 runs for the week, which is a league high for ANY team this season. Next highest total was 42 runs scored by the Armadillos earlier this year. Six different players had an OPS over 1.000 for Charlie.

Marcus Semien and William Contreras each had 8 runs scored while finishing with OPS’s for the week of 1.181 and 1.076 respectively. Semien also had 2 HR’s and 7 RBI to match Slugger teammate Rhys Hoskins who also tallied two dingers and seven knocked in. 

All told, Charlie’s group finished with 10 HR 39 RBI and a .907 OPS. All were league highs for the week, save RBI, where the Sluggers were 2^nd overall.

The Possums never got it going on the power side, though Josh Naylor did contribute 3 HR for the week. Despite being uncompetitive in the power department, they had a trio of players steal 2 bases, which gave them a victory in SB on the hitting side.

In what seems to be a common theme for the league as a whole this week, the pitching side of things came down to Sunday’s action. Rick’s Possums could not afford to lose a single pitching category if they wanted to win the week.

Andrew Heaney lead the Sluggers rotation with two strong starts contributing to 11 IP and 13 K. Yoshi Yamamoto contributing with a solid 8 IP outing and Charlie Morton went 7 strong. The Sluggers bullpen let Charlie down however, with Ryan Helsley getting an essentially meaningless save on Sunday after the Possums had already clinched the category.

The Possums stayed tight with the Sluggers on the rate stats and in innings during the week, with Tyler Glasnow, Max Fried, Jared Jones, and Joe Ryan all throwing at least 6 innings and allowing fewer than 2 runs. Those strong starts helped offset disappointing ones from veterans Justin Verlander and Sonny Gray.  Despite those uneven performances Rick had clinched a victories in K’s and saves going into Sunday’s action. The Possums had one arrow left to shoot if they wanted to take the week.

It was a bullseye. The apparently ageless Justin Verlander fired 7 scoreless innings while giving up only 2 H and 2 BB. His performance clinched the remaining three pitching categories for the Possums (including a very narrow ERA victory of 3.64 to 3.68) giving them a sweep on that side and a 6-4 victory for the week. Rick denies Charlie his first ever 3 week winning streak while winning his second matchup in a row.

Goofballs (2-1-2) vs. Hares (2-3)

The last matchup of the week featured my Goofballs against Jeff’s Hares.

The Goofballs got off to a blistering offensive start in this matchup, posting 14 runs scored, 7 HR and 19 RBI on Monday and Tuesday. Bryce Harper had 2 HR and 7 RBI over those two days.

Jeff’s team spent the rest of the week chipping away on offense, and by the time Sunday rolled around, he’d made HR’s and Runs competitive while building a big lead in SB thanks to 6 from Elly De La Cruz.  Former Goofball  Ryan Jeffers spent the week taking out his anger on his former team, hitting 3 HR and knocking in 7, while Marcell Ozuna also had 2 round trippers and 7 RBI.  

The Hares used two late homers from Connor Joe and Jake Cronenworth to earn a tie for the week in HR. They came up one short of the Goofballs on runs however, and weren’t able to make enough gains in RBI or OPS to seriously challenge the Goofballs in those categories. Goofballs take the hitting side 3-1-1

Both teams got off to strong starts on the pitching side. The Goofballs got 15 IP and 3 ER over two Monday starts from Jack Flaherty and Mitch Keller, while the Hares’ Zack Wheeler threw 7 shutout innings striking out 11 on that same day.

The Hares also got a few strong performances from Bryce Miller, Dylan Cease, and Pablo Lopez who combined for 31 K over 19.1 IP. This gave the Hares a relatively insurmountable lead in the K category.

In the battle of the bullpens, the Goofballs got the better of it notching 3 saves while the Hares only had one.

The Goofballs needed to flip one category between IP and the rate stats on Sunday if they wanted to win the week. They were done a huge solid by the Marlins. 

The aforementioned Zack Wheeler was knocked around by Miami to the tune of 6 ER over 4 IP while giving up 6 hits and walking 3. This gave the Goofballs the opening they needed to flip ERA and IP to take the pitching categories 3-2 and the week 6-3-1. The Hares drop to 2-4 overall while the Goofballs improve to 3-1-2.

Week 7 Preview

Every team is matched up with their standings neighbor this week! 

1^st place Wolf Spiders vs. 2^nd place Armadillos

3^rd place Goofballs vs. 4^th place Skyline Sluggers

5^th place Kraken vs. 6^th place Possums

7^th place Hares vs. 8^th place PhoeGnomes

I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m at least happy to know for sure that Kyle and Larry can’t both win this week!! 

Good luck to everyone!!

Weekly Summary
This week saw a pair of upsets that left only one team undefeated an in sole possession of first place, the Wolf Spiders! After struggling to start the year, the Possums were able to defeat the Hares and earn their first victory. Meanwhile, the Armadillos were upset by the Skyline Sluggers, who join only three other teams with winning records.

RK Possums (0-4) vs JK Hares (2-2)

The Possums have struggled to open the season, but this week they found a way to win behind excellent pitching and strong offensive numbers. The results have been a bit surprising, as the Possums are in the middle of almost all season stats across the league. The only area where they are at the bottom is OPS, but they are near the very top in strikeouts. These numbers don’t indicate a team that should be 0-4, and it was finally the week for the team to break through.

Rick led the league in RBI and was second in steal, runs, and home runs. Christian Walker led the way with 2 home runs, 6 RBI, and an OPS of 1.157. Jose Caballero added 4 steals, including 3 on Sunday. The Hares managed 8 home runs as well to tie the category, but Rick’s overall production was much better, and he took 4 categories.

On pitching, both teams were exceptional. The Hares had great outings from Dylan Cease and Zack Wheeler. However, the Possums were just as strong, with excellent performances from Max Fried, Jared Jones, and Tyler Glasnow. The trio combined for 34 strikeouts in 4 starts. While the Hares won in rate stats and saves, they were unable to keep pace with the volume of strikeouts and innings the Possums totaled. This gave Rick the edge, and he was able to pick up a well-earned first win of the season.

CM Skyline Sluggers (2-2) vs. LK Armadillos (3-0-1)

Entering the week, the Armadillos were one of two undefeated teams along with the Wolf Spiders. This week they fell victim to the Skyline Sluggers, who put up solid numbers across the board. The Armadillos were off all week and posted some of the worst offensive stats in the history of the league. At one point during the week, the Armadillos were 3-55 with no home runs and 1 RBI. The worst offender was Pete Alonso who managed a shocking, atrocious 1 for 26 week with a 0.210 OPS. He did have 1 steal. The squad was last in every offensive category except for steals. Charlie enjoyed a great week from Shohei Ohtani who had 3 home runs, 7 RBI, and 2 steals with a 1.536 OPS. There was no competition, and the Skyline Sluggers took a 5-0 lead.

On pitching, Charlie was also in strong form. He posted solid results on great starts from Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Nathan Eovaldi. The Armadillos struggled here, with disaster form Casey Mize and Carlos Rodon. Ryan Pepiot had the best start for either team with 8.0 IP and 10 strikeouts, but it wasn’t enough. Charlie easily won two categories and secured a win for the week. The victory brings the Skyline Sluggers to above 0.500 and in the top half of the standings! The loss is the first for the Armadillos, who now trail the Wolf Spiders. The early-season favorites are likely to bounce back from this horror show. Having said that, the continued volatility from every team has made the start of the season a chaotic one.

CP Kraken (2-2) vs. KK Wolf Spiders (3-0-1)

After a tie last week, the Wolf Spiders emerged looking strong against the Kraken. Kyle posted solid numbers on both the offensive and pitching sides of the ledger. Kyle deployed a whopping 19 players on offense in pursuit of platoon advantages. They generated only 4 home runs, but they managed to pile up runs and RBIs. Ronald Acuna Jr. was the leader with 3 steals, a single home run, and an 0.826 OPS. Steven Kwan had a more powerful showing going 7 for 15 with a 1.419 OPS. Chris managed to win home runs, thanks to 2 from Kyle Tucker, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the Wolf Spiders, who won 4 categories.

On pitching, Kyle had the best ERA and second best WHIP in the league. Jon Gray was strong over two starts, and Seth Lugo had a good outing. The bullpen came through with 5.1 scoreless innings. The Kraken were able to take IP and strikeouts by a small margin. Shota Imanaga was the best of the week with a 7.0, 7 strikeout, and 0 earned run performance. This wasn’t enough to overcome Kyle’s quality rate stats, and the defending champs managed to remain unbeaten for one more week. The loss prompted the Legion to attempt to shake things up by trading Tyler O’Neill to the Hares for pitching help. However, the deal was scuttled just before completion as the targeted pitcher was injured.

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

The Goofballs entered the week with what may be a league first – more ties than either wins or losses. This changed as Kevin took care of business against the struggling PhoeGnomes. Both teams had great offense, and the top two OPS in the league by a wide margin. The Goofballs led the league in runs and RBI, and the PhoeGnomes led the league in steals. This led to a 3-2 advantage for the Goofballs, and it must be frustrating for Heather to put up such strong numbers and not win more than 2 categories. Jurickson Profar was the PhoeGnomes’ best performer with 2 home runs, 5 runs and RBI, 1 steal, and an OPS of 1.368! The Goofballs got great work from Christopher Morel, who had 3 home runs, 7 RBI, and a steal. Bryce Harper added 10 RBI.

Heather had a good chance to even the score or possibly win with her strong pitching. Chris Sale, Yusei Kikuchi, Garrett Crochet, and Keving Gausman all had great starts. Heather easily won ERA. However, the PhoeGnomes lost both IP and strikeouts by small margins (2.0 IP and 5 K’s). Aaron Nola and MacKenzie Gore both had shortened starts that would have likely made the difference in these two categories. With even mediocre numbers for the two, Heather would have flipped two categories and the week overall. Instead, Kevin earned the win and joined the handful of teams with 2 wins on the year. Heather has to look back on another unlucky week, and hope things improve. She is now tied with the Possums at the bottom of the standings.

Next Week

The week’s most interesting match pairs the Possums with the Skyline Sluggers. Rick’s team had a great showing this week, but Charlie’s squad was equally hot against the Armadillos. Larry will try to turn it around against his arch-rivals, the Kraken. The Wolf Spiders will challenge the PhoeGnomes, who hope their luck turns around. Finally, the inconsistent Hares meet the equally up-and-down Goofballs.