2024 Week #25 Year End Update

The season has come to an and, and the official league title has returned to the Armadillos!  Larry’s squad clinched three weeks ago, leaving the end of the year with little drama at the top.  The only question left to answer is where the team stands in the league’s pantheon of legendary teams.  More on this in a moment!

Although the Armadillos were dominant to end the season, there were still other battles to fight.  Incredibly, only two other teams had winning records – the Kraken and Possums.  These two teams battled it out for second place over the final few weeks.  The Kraken pulled away and finished the season with a strong 15 win total and 0.667 winning percentage.  In the latter half of the season the Kraken were the only team with a chance to keep pace with the leaders.  They did an admirable job and finished just 2 wins behind the Armadillos.  Their silver medal finish was well-deserved.

The Possums started the year slow, but rallied and improved in the second half.  They emerged as the clear third-best team and in the league and took the bronze medal with an impressive 14 wins.

The two-time defending champions finished in 4^th place after enduring a horde of injuries.  This marks the end of their question to equal the Lannisters’ incredible three-peat from 2015-2017.  However, they remain only the second team to every win two consecutive championships.  In any dynasty league, it’s hard to stay on top forever, and the Wolf Spiders will look to rebuild going into next season.

The battle for 5^th place was close, with the Goofballs, Hares, and PhoeGnomes all in the mix.  Kevin ended up taking the highest place in the second division after an up-and-down year.  The Goofballs managed to tie every team save the PhoeGnomes.  This gave them a high finish, despite having the second-fewest wins in the league.

The Hares snuck by the PhoeGnomes to finish the year in 6^th place and a higher slot in the draft lottery.  Jeff’s team was bedeviled by injuries but did manage to find a few critical pieces.  The team continues to summon pitching talent seemingly on demand, and will remain focused on finding star offensive players.  A first or second draft slot would go a long way to achieving this end.

The PhoeGnomes ended the year in 7^th place, but actually had the 5^th most wins in the league.  Heather’s squad was also inconsistent this year, but did manage to clutch out a few wins against good opponents.  The team will need to rely on the pitchers acquired from the Kraken to make moves next year.

Finally, the Skyline Sluggers ended the season in 8^th place.  This comes as some of a surprise since Charlie’s team started the year on a hot streak.  However, once things cooled down, the team struggled to find consistent offensive and pitching performance on the same week.  However, the team did show solid improvement and pushed even the better teams to the brink on multiple occasions.  Shohei Ohtani’s unprecedented 50/50 year was an all-time standout showing from a player.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this an incredible season.  Although the outcome was never in doubt for seemingly the who last half of the year, everyone fought to the end and worked on improving their clubs.  Next season promises even more drama, shocking trades, and incredible performances.

Where do the Armadillos Rank?

After dominating for nearly the entire season, the only question left is this – where do the 2024 Armadillos (17-4-3, 0.771) rank in the pantheon of great champions?  Just how good were the Armadillos?

The best way to answer this question is to look at how the team fared across all categories for the season. 

To be in the conversation, a team needs to have won at least 17 or 18 games in their season as champion.  Anything less, while impressive, isn’t quite dominant enough to make the cut.  In addition, I’m limiting the pool to the 8-team era.  Therefore the 2013 Lannisters, who had 18 wins, will not count.

2023 Wolf Spiders (18-5-1, 0.771)

The first contender is last season’s champion, the Wolf Spiders!  Kyle’s team has a share of the all-time wins record with 18.  They also equaled the Armadillos’ winning percentage of 0.771.  In addition, they defeated the Armadillos themselves who had a whopping 17 wins.  This year’s Armadillos had one fewer loss than Kyle. 

If these two teams played head-to-head, it would be an interesting battle.  The Wolf Spiders won all five pitching categories last year cross the league, but this year’s Armadillos had the better offense.  Both teams had incredible hot streaks, and Kyle had an immortal run to win the title last year.  I would rank these two teams as equals.  Kyle relied on an historic season from Ronald Acuna Jr., and the Armadillos found diamonds in the rough.  Both methods led to stellar results.

2021 Capital City Goofballs (17-8, 0.680)

The 2021 Goofballs were a solid squad who ended every week with either a win or loss.  The squad faced hellacious competition from the Possums, Armadillos, and the Lannisters.  The Goofballs were able to fight off these challenges and win on the last week of the season.  The depth of competition was impressive, but the Lannisters actually had superior pitching on the season compared to the Goofballs.  Kevin had a slight edge on offense.  While this squad was certainly good, they aren’t quite up to the level of the 2024 Armadillos.

2018 Armadillos (18-6-1, 0.740)

Much like the 2021 Goofballs, the 2018 Armadillos were built on a sound offense.  They were at the top of the league in most categories.  However, the Possums and Lannisters won most pitching categories and also led the league in OBP and SLG>  The Possums were fierce competitors as well, with excellent pitching.  While the 18 wins were impressive, the season totals show that this team might have gotten a bit fortunate to build up such an impressive win total.  There’s no doubt they earned the title, but the win total might have been more realistic at around 16.  For this reason, the squad does not compare to this season’s Armadillos.

2015 Lannisters (17-7-1, 0.700)

The second title for the Lannisters came on the back of strong performances across the board.  Like other teams above, the Lannisters led every offensive category on the season save RBI.  However, the team’s pitching was more middle-of-the-road.  As with the other teams, this one wouldn’t quite build the resume that the Armadillos achieved. 

This concludes the list!  Other legendary teams have won the title, but none did so with the singular dominance of the 2024 Armadillos and 2023 Wolf Spiders.  On a pure statistical level, the Wolf Spiders have the edge due to their unorthodox strategy of dominating pitching.  However, they also were second overall across the board on offense.  This year’s Armadillos don’t have that level of statistical dominance; their showing is more of a strategic success. 

The Armadillos didn’t have the star performances that Kyle did, but undoubtedly did more with less week to week than any other team in history.  Their 309 moves were more than double the second-highest total from the Wolf Spiders (140 moves).  No name players contributed meaningful numbers without over-tinkering. 

So which team is the greatest of all time? This is difficult to say.  The 2023 Wolf Spiders had the better players.  However, one could argue that the great Lannister teams probably had the most talented rosters ever assembled.  But this raises another important point – Kyle faced the pressure week-after-week of being the defending champ and having every team take their best shot at beating them.  This was a demonstrable phenomenon for the Lannisters, and the Wolf Spiders faced it as well.  Having said that, the Armadillos dealt with this to some extent due to their early lead this year. 

I will phrase my opinion this way – the 2023 Wolf Spiders and late-2010’s Lannisters are the best teams to ever compete.  However, the 2024 Armadillos is by far the best managerial performance of all time.  The team, almost by sheer force of will, avenged their heartbreaking loss from last season and claimed another title.  Now they will face the inevitable challenge of trying to defend the title from a series of challengers in the 2025 season.

League Update

 The 22^nd week of the season saw an incredible series of battles that have likely decided the title for the season.  The Kraken fought to the bitter end but were outlasted by the Possums.  The Armadillos survived a spirited comeback from the Wolf Spiders.  The win clinches the title for the season’s top performer.  At the bottom of the standings, both the Hares and Skyline Sluggers earned solid victories to push for better draft position.

 CP Kraken (12-6-2) vs. RK Possums (11-9)

 The only team with a chance to catch the Armadillos was the Kraken.  Chris’s squad has refused to capitulate and was the only true challenger for the last several weeks.  The team relied on explosiveness and finally, after weeks of hanging on, they couldn’t quite muster the offense they needed to win.  The Possums also fought on, rallying through the mid-season to move into the league’s top 3.  Rick also refused to give up, and is now firmly in the top of the league table.

 Their effort this week was led by the offense.  Manny Machado had a huge week with 3 home runs, 9 RBI, and a 1.094 OPS.  Jazz Chisolm Jr. added 2 home runs and a 1.288 OPS.  He also had a strong 3 steals, which were matched by Bryson Stott.  The Kraken’s offense was carried by two players: Yordan Alvarez and Matt Olson.  The pair combined for 8 of the team’s 9 home runs.  They added 17 RBI and 15 runs.  Their OPS values were 1.650 and 1.220 respectively.  Their two-man effort wasn’t enough, and the Possums held a 4-0-1 lead.  The tie was in RBI, and Chris would have tied the week with just one more.

 On pitching the Kraken were  much better.  The team led the league in strikeouts and were third in ERA.  The Kraken had the best WHIP in the league.  Cole Ragans was outstanding with 9.0 IP and 14 strikeouts.  Sean Manea and Logan Gilbert were also great.  Ryan Helsley added two saves.  Sadly, Bailey Ober suffered an horrific start in which he allowed 9 ER in just 2.0 IP.  This was a brutal turn for the Kraken, because they were only able to tie the Possums in IP.  With saves also tied, there was no way for Chris to salvage the tie or win for the week.  Had Ober make it through one more batter, Chris would have again tied.  The same can be said for saves.  The week ended on a knife’s edge, and this time the Kraken were left out.  The Possums did enough on the mound to win, and ultimately end Chris’s dream of upending the Armadillos.

 Although the loss is a tough one for the Kraken, it is worth remembering that Chris has been the only one to keep pace with the Armadillos.  The rest of the season is likely a battle for second place, but the Kraken did their best to keep the race close and made some bold moves.  The Possums have also moved into the conversation for second place, which is a surprising and welcome outcome after a slow start to the season.

 LK Armadillos (14-3-3) vs. KK Wolf Spiders (9-10-1)

 The Kraken’s loss gave the Armadillos a chance to all but clinch this season’s championship.  The team responded with a strong showing against a game Wolf Spiders team.  Larry’s team got a boost from the pitching staff that led the league in ERA and tied for the lead in saves.  The Wolf Spiders were able to mount a challenge on offense, but fell just short of the upset. 

The Armadillos’ best pitcher was Spencer Arrighetti.  He did not allow an earned run in7.2 IP and added a huge 11 strikeouts.  Tarik Skubal also had a good start, throwing 8.0 IP with 8 strikeouts.  These long starts were crucial as they prevented Kyle from challenging in IP.  Kyle’s team struggled with short starts from Brandon Pfaadt, Zac Gallen, and Jon Gray.  However, none of these pitchers were a total disaster and each also recorded a good number of strikeouts.  This kept IP and especially strikeouts somewhat close.  Both teams had great weeks from their bullpens.  In the end the Armadillos were slightly more efficient and won 4 of 5 categories.

 On offense, the Wolf Spiders were better, but they didn’t have quite enough power to earn the tie or upset.  Freddie Freeman and Dylan Crews each had 2 home runs.  Alec Burleson and Corey Seager were also strong with OPS’s over 1.000.  Jackson Merrill and Josh Jung added 5 total steals, easily winning the category.  The Armadillos countered with a huge week from Lawrence Butler.  He had 4 home runs, and an astonishing 1.968 OPS for the week.  Jarren Duran added 3 home runs of his own.  The rest of the team struggled, but the strong home run totals were enough to win the category and the week.  Butler in particular was essential – without him, Kyle would have easily taken all five categories.

 The win also clinches the title for the Armadillos, who have had a run that is only matched by the 2013 Lannisters.  This year, the Armadillos were able to get the job done down the stretch.  Despite strong challenges from the Kraken and others, the team refused to lose their focus.  After last season’s strong start and shocking fade, the Armadillos remained resolute in their pursuit of the title in the offseason.  With a roster closing in on 300 moves, the team has made the most of every available opportunity.  This season will likely end as one of the best ever for the league, and show that the rest of the league has some catching up to do to be competitive.

 HP PhoeGnomes (8-11-1) vs. JK Hares (6-11-3)

 Lower in the standings,  the PhoeGnomes and Hares faced off in a battle for draft position.  Neither team has been great this year, but both squads have had their moments.  In this case, the Hares were able to emerge with the win, and step into 6^th place.  After several weeks of floundering, the team finally put together a complete performance.  Jeff’s team led the league in OPS, and runs, and were in the top half for RBI and home runs.  Brent Rooker was on the warpath again with 3 home runs and a 1.494 OPS.  Jake Cronenworth added a couple of steals and a0.941 OPS.  Nico Hoerner and Bryan Reynolds each were great in part-time duty.  The PhoeGnomes  had a great week from Bobby Witt Jr., who had 4 home runs and a 1.011 OPS.  Three players had 2 steals each, and Heather won the category.  However, the Hares were able to take the other 4 without too much worry.

 The Hares were decent on the pitching side, and the PhoeGnomes struggled.  This was a recipe for disaster for Heather, as Gavin Stone and Martin Perez suffered bad outings.  Aaron Nola had a short but solid start with 9 strikeouts in 6.0 IP.  The Hares relied on Zack Wheeler to record 13 strikeouts and just 2 earned runs spaced over 2 starts.  Despite low strikeout totals, the Hares’ staff avoided critical meltdowns. Heather also suffered from a missing bullpen and failed to record a save. This was enough for the Hares to earn a convincing, complete victory.  This moves the Hares up a slot in the standings, and increases their chance to have the first pick in the 2025 draft.  However, the PhoeGnomes are still tied with the Hares pre-tie-breakers, so the battle is still far from over.

 KG Capital City Goofballs (7-8-5) vs. CM Skyline Sluggers (6-13-1)

 The week’s final match saw the Skyline Sluggers step up and deliver a nice win versus the Goofballs.  Charlie’s team led the league in home runs by a huge margin, and also paced the league in RBI.  Willy Adames had 5 home runs, 10 RBI, and a steal to go with a 1.150 OPS.  William Contreras and Shohei Ohtani each had 3 home runs, and Ohtani added 3 steals.  He is now 6 homers and 7 steals away form an almost-unthinkable 50/50 season.  The Goofballs had a match for Adames with Corbin Carroll’s 5 home run, 11 RBI, 1 steal, and 1.510 OPS week.  The monster performance was shadowed by Bryce Harper, who didn’t have a home run but did record a 1.101 OPS.  Sadly for Kevin, the rest of the team couldn’t keep pace and Charlie swept all 5 categories.

 On pitching neither side was great, but Charlie again did just enough to win.  Nathan Eovaldi was the standout with 10 strikeouts over 7.0 IP.  He allowed 0 earned runs and set the pace for the team.  Kevin had a nice two-start week from Jose Berrios who allowed just 2 earned runs and struck out 11 over 13.2 IP.  Freddy Peralta also had a nice start.  However, the team’s WHIP was slightly inflated and ultimately Kevin couldn’t manage a sweep for the tie.  This gave the Skyline Sluggers their first win in several weeks, which is always good for morale in the clubhouse.  Charlie is now 2.0 games behind both the Hares and PhoeGnomes, and there’s still plenty of time for him to climb out of the basement.

 Players of the Week

 The weeks best players have to be Lawrence Butler for the Armadillos and Cole Ragans for the Kraken.  Ragans’ strong start was exactly what the Kraken needed to try to stay close, and Butler delivered the home run category, and ultimately the league title, to the Armadillos. 

 Next Week

 With the title wrapped up, attention must now turn to other battles.  The Possums will try to keep their silver medal hopes alive against the Armadillos.  The Hares will do the same for 6^th place versus the Wolf Spiders.  The Kraken will play the Goofballs, and try to hold on to second.  Finally, the Skyline Sluggers and PhoeGnomes meet in a battle to stay out of last place!