JK Lannisters (14-5-1) vs.  CP Legion (9-7-4)

In a week with three important matches, the Legion were successful in fighting off elimination.  Chris posted the league’s best offensive numbers.  The Legion led the league in home runs, steals, OBP, and SLG.  Jose Ramirez led the way with four home runs.  Six other Legion players added homers and Ender Inciarte and three steals.  The Lannisters had an excellent week from Welington Castillo, who had four home runs and eight RBI.  Six other Lannisters had home runs, and the team posted strong totals.  They had the second best steals, OBP, and SLG.  They tied for second in home runs.  Despite the strong showing, Chris won all five categories.

On pitching, the Lannisters suffered a disastrous week from Mike Fiers.  He threw 8.1 innings in two starts and gave up 14 earned runs.  This ruined the Lannister’s hopes for the rate stats for the week.  Chris had great starts from players like Luis Severino and Jimmy Nelson.  The Legion led the league in strikeouts and had excellent ERA and WHIP numbers.  This led to a convincing 9-0-1 victory.  The Legion stayed in contention with the win, and provided help to the Armadillos, Goofballs, and Possums.  After a massive eight game winning streak, the Lannisters were due for a down week.  They remain in first place but still have four other teams chasing them.

RK Possums (9-6-5) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (12-6-2)

With a lopsided Lannisters’ loss, the Goofballs had an opportunity to move within half of a game of the league lead.  The Possums needed a victory to stay close.  Both teams combined for the best two pitching performances of the week.  The combined numbers may be the best the league has seen in several seasons.  Both teams had ERAs below 1.40 and WHIP’s below 0.96.  The Possums had better counting performance.  They took both strikeouts and wins.  The Goofballs had better saves and the slightly lower ERA.  The Possums earned a narrow 3-2 edge thanks to WHIP.  Rick relied on monster weeks from his best to pitchers:  Max Scherzer and Corey Kluber.  The pair combined for 28.0 innings pitched, 26 strikeouts, five earned runs, and 23 hits plus walks.  Edwin Jackson was the only Possums’ starter with a WHIP over 1.00.  The Goofballs countered with a great week from Jose Berrios.  However, the team’s bullpen was shaky.  Dellin Betances and Felipe Rivero had poor rate stats.  This was just enough for the Possums to edge out a lead in WHIP.  The Possums would have won at least four categories against every other team, and the Goofballs were not far behind.

The battle was also close on offense.  Rick had better power, but Kevin took RBI and OBP.  Rick had more steals, but a slightly better SLG.  Rick pulled out the win with a narrow 3-2 category edge.  Josh Donaldson and Joey Gallo were the Possums’ two best hitters.  The pair each had two home runs.  Xander Bogaerts and Andrew Benintendi had two steals each.  The Goofballs had similar numbers from Freddie Freeman and Domingo Santana.  The split categories meant that SLG was the only category that could earn Kevin a tie.  Domingo Santana had two home runs on Sunday for Kevin’s team, but the Possums answered with a team SLG of 0.929.  This was enough to give Rick a victory and keep himself firmly in the title race.  The loss is devastating for the Goofballs, who are now a game and a half back and facing a tough series with the Lannisters.  Rick is just two games behind, but can’t win a tiebreaker over the Lannisters.  He will need more help, but for now this key victory is something to celebrate.  The Possums’ upset is a nice break for the Lannisters, who could have lost more ground to their closest competitor.

LK Armadillos (11-6-3) vs.  SM Lasershow (2-15-3)

A major beneficiary of the Possums’ and Legion’s wins was the Armadillos.  Larry’s team had a match against the league’s lowest-ranked team and took advantage.  The win helped them gain ground on the two teams ahead of them in the standings.  The win was keyed by great offensive numbers.  Jorge Polanco had a great week with three home runs, eight RBI, and a steal.  Gary Sanchez scored a home run but will also be suspended for three games this week.  Overall, the Armadillos tied for the second most home runs for the week and were behind only the Lannisters and Legion in overall offensive production.  The Lasershow had a good week from Tommy Pham but didn’t have enough extra to challenge in any of the five remaining categories.

On pitching, neither team posted great numbers, but the Armadillos were able to post enough counting stats to secure four categories and a dominant win.  Drew Pomeranz, Alex Cobb, and Julio Teheran had good strikeout numbers, but poor ERAs.  Kevin Gausman stayed hot for the Lasershow, but his good work was undone by Ervin Santana and Jim Johnson.  The Armadillos had a smooth win and are now just a game back from the league lead.  Like the Possums, the Armadillos cannot win a tiebreaker over the Lannisters.  They will need additional help and an outright lead to take the crown.

KK Thunderwolves (3-15-2) vs.  HP PhoeGnomes (10-10-0)

The week’s final match saw the PhoeGnomes score their first tie of the year against the Thunderwolves.  Kyle posted good offensive numbers thanks to big weeks from Adam Jones and Brandon Crawford.  The PhoeGnomes had two home runs from George Springer, but little else in terms of power.  Heather had the second lowest SLG in the league, but she did take steals and OBP.

On pitching, both sides were evenly matched.  Kyle had the edge in saves and wins, but Heather saw better rate stats and a few more strikeouts.  The PhoeGnomes didn’t earn a save for the week, but had an incredible 21 strikeouts in just 12.0 innings pitched from Chris Sale and Taijuan Walker.  The pair didn’t allow a run, either.  The remarkable starts were more than enough to earn three categories and secure the tie.  Neither team is in the playoff race, but Kyle can take some pride in managing the semi-upset.

Next Week

The playoff race continues with another huge series of games.  The Goofballs and Lannisters meet for the last time.  Jeff will still be in first place not matter the outcome, but need the win to keep pace and relieve some pressure over the last three weeks.  A win for Kevin puts him right in the middle of the title hunt.  The Armadillos face the Possums in another crucial match.  The Armadillos will not play the Lannisters again and will have to win to keep pace.  The Possums are playing for their lives again.  The Legion face the PhoeGnomes, and Chris needs a win to stay alive.  Heather’s team is more talented than its record indicates.  They will do their best to eliminate the Legion, and then try again against the Lannisters in two weeks.  The final match pairs the Lasershow and Thunderwolves.  Neither team wants to end the year in last place, and this match gives the Thunderwolves a chance to stay out of the cellar.

The Lannisters lost Elo ground but remain the only team above 1,600.  The Armadillos and Legion made up some ground.  The Possums took a nice step forward, and are not well above the PhoeGnomes.

Next week features some close matches.  The Armadillos and Possums are essentially a coin-flip.  The Lannisters are slight favorites over the Goofballs.  The Legion and Thunderwolves are both the heaviest favorites, with around 60% chances to win.

The Lannisters remain at the top of the Elo board after a lengthy winning streak.  The Goofballs moved into second place after a better quality victory than the Armadillos.  The Legion lost ground and the Possums are now close to moving into fourth place.

The biggest match of the week shows the Lannisters with a small advantage over the Legion.  The Goofballs are even smaller favorites over the Possums.  Larry is a commanding favorite over the Lasershow, and Heather has a good probability versus the Thunderwolves.

 

 

CP Legion (9-6-4) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (11-6-2)

The week’s premier battle featured the Goofballs and Legion.  Both teams were near the top of the standings and each needed a victory to keep pace with the Lannisters.  The Goofballs entered with four straight victories, but the Legion hoped to defeat the expansion team and continue to push for the title.  The week started well for the Legion, with a huge four home run week from Francisco Lindor.  Christian Yelich and Paul Goldschmidt added two each, and the Legion totaled five steals.  This was good enough to win the OBP and SLG categories, but the Goofballs had substantially more RBI.  The culprit was Rhys Hoskins, who had an incredible six home runs and 15 RBI for the Goofballs.  His totals gave the team the lead in home runs and RBI, and Brian Dozier’s three steals secured a third category and a 3-2 advantage.

Chris Archer led the way for Kevin.  He had two starts over 13.0 innings pitched with 18 strikeouts and just two earned runs.  Chris had decent weeks from Jimmy Nelson, Carlos Martinez, and Luis Severino.  However Jimmy Nelson struggled, and the Legion fell behind in ERA and WHIP.  Corey Knebel and three saves for the Goofballs, and the team was more efficient in striking out batters.  Both teams had about the same number of innings pitched, but Kevin had the edge in strikeouts.  This left Chris without a path to victory despite a good overall performance.  The Goofballs took four categories and won the week.  Kevin remained 1.5 games behind the victorious Lannisters.  The Legion are still mathematically alive, but will need tremendous help after falling to 3.5 back with four to play.

HP PhoeGnomes (10-9) vs.  LK Armadillos (10-6-3)

The week’s second most competitive match saw the Armadillos eliminate the PhoeGnomes.  After a crushing loss to the Lannisters, both teams needed a win to stay in contention.  The Armadillos offense remained red-hot.  The led the league in home runs, RBI, and SLG.  Yet again, Giancarlo Stanton led the way with five home runs and 11 RBI.  Gary Sanchez was almost as good – he had four home runs and 10 RI.  Edwin Encarnacion and Anthony Rizzo added two each.  Heather was competitive in home runs, OBP, and SLG.  Four players had two home runs, and five others had one.  However, the team as a whole fell just short in three categories.  The Armadillos earned the five category sweep.

Neither team had outstanding pitching, but Heather was in too deep a whole to climb out despite having the edge in several categories.  Taijuan Walker was good in two starts but didn’t strike out a lot of batters.  Chris Sale struggled in his lone start but Hyun-Jin Ryu was good, as was Madison Bumgarner.  The Armadillos struggled with Chad Betts and J.A. Happ .  John Lackey was cut after a terrible outing.  However, the team got strikeouts and saves.  This was enough to win two categories and take the week, despite a close call on a few offensive categories.  The Armadillos are just two games behind the Lannisters.  The PhoeGnomes were eliminated from contention after falling 4.5 games back.

SM Lasershow (2-14-3) vs.  RK Possums (8-6-5)

Besides the Goofballs, Armadillos, and Legion, the Possums are the only other team left with a chance to catch the Lannisters.  Rick has quietly built a powerful offensive core, and he put together a complete week to stay in the hunt.  Rick had the second best pitching stats behind the Goofballs.  Patrick Corbin was great in two starts over 15.0 innings.  He struck out 14, allowed one earned run, and picked up two wins.  The bullpen was strong and was tied for second in saves.  Masahiro Tanaka and Justin Verlander had 18 strikeouts in just 14.0 innings pitched.  The Lasershow had little to counter the Possums’ pitching.  Jim Johnson imploded and Coe Hamels struggled to a 6.35 ERA over two starts.  Eduardo Rodriguez wasn’t much better.  Only Sonny Gray had a good start for the week.  Rick took every category except WHIP and had a commanding lead before offense was factored in.

The Lasershow were far strong on offense than pitching.  Yasiel Puig and Jonathan Schoop had two home runs.  Five other Lasershow players had a home run as well.  This was enough to win SLG and OBP.  The team also took steals thanks to two from Andrelton Simmons.  Rick had a strange offensive week.  He was second in home runs for the league and won RBI.  However, these results did not translate to OBP or SLG.  Josh Donaldson and Khris Davis had three home runs each but both had OBPs below 0.300.  This strange pattern made the week closer than it likely should have been.  However, Rick did enough to pull out the 6-4 win and remain alive.  Like Chris, he will need help but at this point week-to-week survival is the only concern.

KK Thunderwolves (3-14-2) vs.  JK Lannisters (13-5-1)

The week’s final match saw the Thunderwolves take a shot at the Lannisters in their final match of the year.  Despite having a staff full of injured starters, the Lannisters found a way to win with pitching for the week.  Rich Hill’s near-no-hitter led the way, and his 0.11 WHIP contributed to the Lannisters’ strong total.  The bullpen came through as well, with both stars and part timers contributing saves.  Fernando Rodney, Brad Hand, and Sam Dyson had four saves total.  Kenley Jansen added two more.  Kyle struggled for the week with disastrous starts from Michael Wacha, Aaron Nola, and Marcus Stroman.  The Lannisters took four of five categories.

On offense, neither team delivered stellar stats, but the Lannisters did enough to take three more categories and win the week.  Marcell Ozuna had four home runs, and three other players had two each.  The Lannisters’ offensive depth paid dividends yet again.  Robinson Cano and Paul DeJong had strong SLG numbers in limited use.  Kyle had a great week from Adrian Beltre, but little else to offer.  The Thunderwolves fell, but tried their best to remain competitive despite early pitching disasters.  The win keeps the Lannisters I first place, 1.5 games ahead of the nearest competitor.

Next Week

There are two huge matches next week.  First, the Legion will fight for their lives against the Lannisters.  Next, the Possums face the Goofballs.  The Possums must win this game to remain in contention.  Both of these teams are hoping for a Legion victory.  The Lannisters will cheer for the Possums to keep the Goofballs at bay, and more teams at medium distance.  The Armadillos face the Lasershow.  The Armadillos are another team who would benefit from a Legion victory.  The only meaningless match of the week pairs the Thunderwolves and PhoeGnomes.  Both teams are playing for pride and will want to stay sharp for their final matches of the year against the league leaders.

LK Armadillos (10-5-3) vs.  JK Lannisters (12-5-1)

As the season draws to a close, every match is important.  The Armadillos faced the Lannisters in a close battle for the top of the leaderboard.  After weeks of inconsistent offensive performance, the Lannisters exploded to lead the league in home runs, RBI, and SLG.  Leading the way were Justin Upton and Manny Machado.  Each had four home runs and the pair combined for 19 RBI.  Jose Abreu and Mike Trout had three home runs each, while Paul DeJong and Kris Bryant had two apiece.  The Armadillos put up excellent totals early in the week, but it wasn’t enough.  Gary Sanchez had a monster four home / 10 RBI week, and Giancarlo Stanton added three home runs.  The team also led the league in OBP thanks to Stanton’s performance.  Unfortunately for the Armadillos, the Lannisters had a 3-2 advantage before pitching.

The Lannister bullpen was a standout for the week with six saves to the Armadillos’ four.  This put immense pressure on both pitching staffs.  The Lannisters were slightly better than the Kershaw-less Armadillos.  Reynaldo Lopez and J.A. Happ suffered abysmal starts.  Dallas Keuchel was great in one start, but the rest of the Armadillos’ squad was mediocre.  The Lannisters weren’t much better, after a Jacob deGrom meltdown.  However, the strong bullpen and a few quality starts were enough to capture ERA and WHIP.  The Armadillos won strikeouts, but the Lannisters took the week.  The result has to be frustrating for the Armadillos, because their offense was the second best in the league.  The win puts the Lannisters firmly in the lead for the title, but there are still four teams within just three games of the lead.  The Armadillos fell to three back, but can still make up ground and own the tiebreaker.

RK Possums (8-6-4) vs.  CP Legion (9-6-3)

The Possums kept their title hopes alive with a surprising tie against the Legion.  Rick’s week looked a lot like the Armadillos – great hitting and middling pitching.  Leading the way was Josh Donaldson with four home runs.  Nine other Possums’ players had home runs, and the team was second in both OBP and SLG.  The Legion didn’t put up good offensive totals except for steals.  Delino DeShields had three for the week and the Legion were second in the league.

Chris had a much better week pitching.  Despite a bat stat line from Danny Salazar, the team had the best ERA, saves, and strikeout total in the league.  Roberto Osuna and Raisel Iglesias had three saves each.  Luis Severino and Brad Peacock allowed just one run in two starts.  Overall the Legion had the best pitching line for the week.  Rick struggled, especially for the rate stats.  However, he did manage five wins.  This was enough to secure the tie for the week.  Carlos Rodon and Brad Peacock had good outings for the Legion but their teams let them down and neither got a win.  This cost Chris the victory for the week.  However, the Legion are just 2.5 games back and still alive in the title hunt.  The Possums are three back, but the tie keeps their dream alive as well.

KG Capital City Goofballs (10-6-2) vs.  KK Thunderwolves (3-13-2)

The Goofballs continued to use a horde of players to amass solid production and continue to ascend up the standings.  This week Kevin used 22 hitters and ten pitchers, or more than three quarters of the entire roster!  His best player was Nelson Cruz, who hit three home runs.  However, more unknown names like Rhys Hoskins added a home run, and Lorenzo Cain contributed a steal in just five at bats.  The Goofballs don’t have the star power of some other teams, but they have solid depth and continue to hunt for production on the waiver wire and free agent pool.  The team’s efforts have paid off and the deep roster continues to enjoy success.  This week the Goofballs led the league in OBP and had solid offensive numbers that could have topped the league most other weeks.  The Thunderwolves continued to struggle on offense, but did lead the league in steals thanks to big weeks from Rougned Odor and Whit Merrifield.

Neither team had the best pitching stats, but Kevin had enough good arms to take four categories.  Kyle Hendrisk and Dinelson Lamet had two good efforts each.  The Thunderwolves relied on Zack Greinke and Yu Darvish, but a series of injuries and bad starts derailed the team’s chances.  The Goofballs cruised to a win and are not in second place, just 1.5 games behind the Lannisters.  There are six weeks left and the teams meet once more, so Kevin will need to win and get help.  However, his position at the top of the league shows that his aggressive approach to acquisitions works.  It’s also a reminder to other struggling teams (like the Thunderwolves) that a re-build can happen quickly if you can find the right parts.

SM Laswershow (2-13-3) vs.  HP PhoeGnomes (9-9)

The week’s final match saw the PhoeGnomes defeat the Lasershow.  Sean’s demise came because of his pitching, where he posted the worst ERA and WHIP in the league by a considerable margin.  Jim Johnson struggled, as did Trevor Rosenthal.  Hector Neris contributed little, and the solid work from Rick Porcello and Pat Neshek went to waste.  Heather countered with a great week from Gio Gonzalez.  In two starts, Gonzalez didn’t allow a run and had a 0.87 WHIP.  Charlie Morton was good, as was the bullpen.  Heather cruised to a 4-0-1 advantage.

Sean fared better on offense.  He had a good SLG number thanks to a huge four home run week from Rafael Devers.  Heather had much less power, but did take OBP and steals thanks to Jose Altuve and Austin Hedges.  Solid efforts from Jay Bruce and Ryan Zimmerman weren’t enough to help the Lasershow, and Heather earned another victory.  She is now in 6^th place and 3.5 games back.

Next Week

The final matches continue in the 20^th week of the season.  The Legion and Goofballs have a critical match.  The losing team is likely out of title contention.  With the Lannisters facing the Thunderwolves, both teams will want a victory to keep pace and play for the final match-up with the league leaders.  The Armadillos look to keep their title dreams alive against the PhoeGnomes.  Finally, Rick hopes to stay alive against the Lasershow.

The Lannisters edged closer to 1,600 with a strong victory.  The Legion and Armadillos stayed where they were, while the Possums and Goofballs picked up a few points in heavily-favored matches.

The Lannisters and Legion are huge favorites over the bottom two teams in the league.  However, the other two matches are almost coin flips.  The Armadillos and Possums are just 55% favorites in their battles.

CP Legion (9-5-2) vs.  LK Armadillos (10-4-2)

The Legion and Armadillos met in yet another close battle for first place.  The Armadillos took the first match but the Legion struck back and won the second.  The third encounter was even closer, with each team leading at multiple points throughout the week.  However, the final result was an even 5-5 tie.  Both teams posted prolific offensive numbers.  Paul Goldschmidt had three home runs and 11 RBI.  Chris Taylor added three homers and a 0.800 SLG for the week.  Even Justin Smoak was hot, with two home runs and six RBI.  The Armadillos countered with three home runs from Giancarlo Stanton and nine RBI from Eduardo Nunez.  Ten Armadillos’ players had at least one home run, compared to seven for the Legion.  Larry led the league in home runs and SLG.  He tied for the lead in steals and RBI. However, his OBP was only fourth overall.  This gave Chris a critical category win.

Both teams had strong pitching for the week.  Chris easily led the league in strikeouts with 83.  The Lannisters were second with 64.  Larry had a similar lead in saves – his total of nine was well above the Possums’ second-best six.  This left ERA, WHIP, and wins as the only categories in play.  Going into the last day, the Armadillos had a small edge, but Chris had better pitchers ready.  Chris got what he needed from Luis Severino and Jimmy Nelson.  However, Roberto Osuna almost caused disaster for the Legion.  He allowed four runs in 0.2 IP and brought the ERA gap to just 0.122.  This was as close as the Armadillos could, though, and Chris secured four pitching categories.  This left the teams with a 5-5 tie for the week and an overall tie for the season.  The teams will meet one more time in Week 24.

HP PhoeGnomes (9-7) vs.  JK Lannisters (10-5-1)

The Legion and Armadillos’ result opened a window of opportunity for the Lannisters and PhoeGnomes.  Both teams are in the mix for the title and, like the Legion and Armadillos, had two close battles earlier in the season.  The Lannisters won the first match but Heather took a close victory in the second.  After a few weeks of improved pithing, the Lannisters were forced to rely on their offense again.  Justin Upton and Mike Trout provided most of the power, with three home runs each.  Heather had a monster week from Wilson Contreras.  He had five home runs and 13 RBI for a 1.182 SLG.  However, it wasn’t enough to combat the depth of the Lannister lineup.  Heather took steals, but Jeff won the other four categories after some Sunday heroics from Marcell Ozuna and Trout.

On pitching, Heather fared better.  She had the second best ERA and WHIP in the league.  Chris Sale struggled but Danny Duffy excelled in two starts.  The Lannisters had little to counter Heather’s rate stats.  However, they made several good Sunday pickups and were able to take strikeouts.  Heather had a chance to win the category and secure the victory for the week, but Hyun-Jim Ryu was removed from his start after seven innings despite allowing a single hit and no walks.  Heather’s pickup looked brilliant, but he came up just short.  Kenley Jansen removed any doubt when he struck out the side in a meaningless appearance.  The result propelled the Lannisters back into first place.  Heather probably deserved a better result for the week and can take comfort in losing only a half game on the other leaders.

RK Possums (6-6-4) vs.  KK Thunderwolves (2-12-2)

The Possums looked to keep pace with the leaders against the Thunderwolves.  Rick’s offense and pitching answered the call and delivered a resounding 9-1 win over Kyle’s squad.  Cody Bellinger had four home runs and Joey Gallo continued to pay dividends in both OBP and power.  Kyle didn’t have a lot of power to offer, but Adrian Beltre did have six RBI.  However, four Possums had at least two home runs compared to just two such players on the Thunderwolves.

Kyle was more competitive on pitching.  He got a great start from Yu Darvish (who was traded to the Dodgers).  He also got a nice week from Aaron Nola.  However, their good was undone by a bad Zack Greinke outing, and a terrible effort from Bud Norris.  Rick got serviceable performance from Jeff Samardzija and a nice Justin Verlander start.  The Possums’ bullpen was also strong, recording the second more saves in the league.  Overall, Rick cruised to a dominant win and remains just 2.5 games out of first place.

SM Lasershow (2-11-3) vs.  KG Capital City Goofballs (8-6-2)

After surprising the Legion, Sean tried to bring down the Goofballs.  However, Kevin unleashed a rare strong pitching performance.  They led the league in ERA by a wide margin.  Though they made only five starts, the staff performed well and allowed just a 1.73 ERA.  The bullpen avoided any serious meltdowns.  Jacob Faria was particularly strong, striking out nine in just six innings pitched.  The Lasershow threw almost twice as many innings as the Goofballs.  The easily won strikeouts and wins, but the Goofball’s bullpen took saves and secured WHIP.

On offense, the Lasershow used 20 different batters.  The Goofballs responded with 21.  Both teams made the most of their lineups and the Goofballs were near the top of each offensive category.  Brian Dozier was strong, with three home runs in just 11 at-bats.   The Lasershow had multi-home run weeks from Yasiel Puig, Jay Bruce, and Justin Turner.  However, other players struggled and the team was left with the worst SLG in the league.  Kevin won with relative comfort and is just a game and a half behind the Lannisters.

Next Week

Things don’t get easier for the Lasershow.  Their next match is against the Lannisters.  The Legion also get a breather against the Thunderwolves.  The two matches to watch feature the Armadillos versus the Goofballs and the Possums against the PhoeGnomes.  All four teams will need wins with the other two leaders facing weaker competition.

After a few weeks of problems, I’ve fixed the ELO ratings!  The pitching rules violation was a real problem, but it has been corrected!

The Lannisters are back on top of the all-time Elo ratings.  The Legion lost a few points for their draw.  The Armadillos gained a handful of points for beating the Thunderwolves.  Kevin made a nice jump into the top four.

The Goofballs and Possums are the biggest favorites against the league’s tow lowest-rated teams.  The Lannisters have an edge against the PhoeGnomes.  The Legion and Armadillos are, fittingly, even at 50/50!

New Owner Makes Waves; Defending Champs Rely on Pitching; Goofballs Cool Off PhoeGnomes; Leaders Edge Thunderwolves

SM Lasershow (2-11-2) vs.  CP Legion (9-5-1)

Sean began his first week with a franchise with a difficult challenge.  He faced the Legion, one of the league’s top teams.  Sean made several roster moves to clear the glut of Cardinals on his team.  The former Happy Hollidays then made a trade to build team depth.  The loss of Carlos Martinez will hurt the team’s pitching.  However, the Lasershow’s roster was thin in too many areas.  Trading from strength to build depth is probably a good strategy.

Ryan Zimmerman paid immediate dividends.  He had two home runs for the week in just seven at-bats.  Jay Bruce had an excellent week as well, with two more home runs and seven RBI.  This was enough for the Lasershow to tie for the league lead in homers.  The Legion were less successful on offense.  Sean won four categories with relative ease.  Chris managed to take OBP, and his narrow margin of victory would ultimately salvage a tie.

Both teams struggled on pitching.  The Lasershow struggled to find saves and the Legion took advantage.  Chris dominated strikeouts and had a comfortable margin in ERA and WHIP.  Despite a disastrous start from Lance McCullers, Chris posted a good mix of quality starts and good strikeout totals.  The Lasershow countered with a good Lance Lynn week.  The team stacked up wins, too.  This gave Chris four categories to Sean’s one.  This gave the two teams a tie for the week.  The battle was hard-earned for the Lasershow, who rallied behind their more active new owner.

The result is a new highlight for a franchise that has failed to thrive for too long.  Sean still has a lot of work to do to upgrade the roster, but his victory over the Legion should put the league on notice.  There will be no more easy victories, DL players in the lineup, or pitching oddities.  As far as the standings go, the Legion will take a hit, but the tie is much better than a loss.   Still, this gives a little bit of breathing room for the Goofballs, Armadillos, PhoeGnomes, and Lannisters.  With so many teams clumped near the top, every result is critical.

KG Capital City Goofballs (7-6-2) vs.  HP PhoeGnomes (9-6)

After a slow start, the PhoeGnomes have risen to become one of the favorites for the title.  The Goofballs are in the conversation, and have proven they’re no longer a year away from competing.  The Goofballs stayed just two games out after a close victory over the PhoeGnomes.  Kevin relied on strong offensive stats to carry the week.  He tied for the lead in home runs and was second in both OBP and SLG.  The Goofballs had ten players with a home run.  The team posted a balanced offensive attack.  Two players had five RBI and only five players out of the 18 started for the week did not have an RBI.  Heather lost all of the offensive categories except steals.  Like the Lannisters, the PhoeGnomes suffered an unusual power-outage.  Marwin Gonzalez had a nice week, but Heather lacked and real offensive bright spots.

Despite the problems on offense, Heather fared much better on pitching.  Madison Bumgarner was phenomenal, allowing just one earned run over two starts.  Chris Sale had a great start, too, and the team had the best WHIP and second best ERA in the league.  Heather also tied for the lead in wins with seven.  Kevin wasn’t able to counter Heather’s rate stats, but he did take strikeouts.  Jon Gray and Chris Archer had nice weeks, but the Goofballs struggled to get victories.

The turning point for the week was saves.  Neither team had many saves, but Kevin’s “closer by committee” strategy worked well enough to tie the category and take the week.  Heather tried to take the lead on Sunday but only Greg Holland ended up pitching.  Aroldis Chapman and Brandon Kintzler both sat out losing games.  The Goofballs didn’t have a Sunday save, but they did have two relievers each record two strikeouts.  This was a critical difference-maker because it gave Kevin the category.  Without strikeouts from at least one reliever, the Goofballs would have tied the category and the week.

JK Lannisters (9-5-1) vs.  RK Possums (6-5-4)

The Possums’ combination of power and pitching sometimes gives the Lannisters problems.  Rick has fared well against Jeff in the past, and this week was no different.  However, the Lannisters relied on an unusual savior to earn the win – their pitching staff.  Jacob deGrom and Gerrit Cole were outstanding, totaling 27 innings pitched, three wins, and 30 strikeouts.  Five different Lannister relievers piled up nine saves, easily the best in the league.  Kelvin Herrera scored four by himself, more than the team total for every other bullpen save the Armadillos.  None of these relievers allowed a run, and Jeff led the league in ERA.  Rick had a solid week on the mound as well.  He had the most strikeouts in the league and put up a solid win total.  However, the Lannisters carried a 3-1-1 lead before accounting for hitting.

Both teams struggled on offense.  Rick had the lowest SLG in the league while the Lannisters tied for the fewest home runs and had the worst RBI total by a wide margin.  Bryce Harper and Jose Abreu each had two home runs, and no other player on either team had more than one.  Rick managed a few more RBI and home runs, but neither team has much to be proud of.  Jeff won the rate stats, Rick took homers and RBI, and steals were a draw.  This was enough for the Lannisters to escape with a 5-3-2 win. The loss hurts the Possums, who are now three games out of first place.  The Lannisters vaulted into second, and have a huge match with the PhoeGnomes looming.

LK Armadillos (9-4-2) vs.  KK Thunderwolves (2-11-2)

The week’s final close game saw the Armadillos slip past the Thunderwolves.  Larry had the best offensive week of any team and led the league in every statistical category (with home runs being a tie with the Lasershow).  Giancarlo Stanton had three home runs and eight RBI to pair with eight walks.  JD Martinez and Eduardo Nunez each had two homers.  Kyle had a nice week from Rougned Odor (three home runs) but little else.  His numbers were not the worst in the league (those belong to the Possums and Lannisters) but it wasn’t enough to pressure the Armadillos.  Larry had a 5-0 lead before looking at pitching.

Kyle was much more competitive on pitching, but neither team was especially effective.  The Thunderwolves threw a few more innings and had a nice strikeout total.  They also led the league in wins (tied with the PhoeGnomes).  Zack Godly had a great start for the Armadillos, but Steven Matz and Jameson Taillon imploded.  Kyle saw Yu Darvish suffer though the worst start of his career.  Darvish’s time in Texas came to an end with a nightmare ten earned run loss against the Orioles.  Bud Norris was miserable as well, allowing eight earned runs in 1.1 innings pitched.  Despite these abhorrent starts, Kyle somehow won ERA and WHIP!  Unfortunately for Kyle, the Armadillos won saves and took the week by a narrow margin.  The Thunderwolves had a decent week, though, and Kyle has to hope that the offensive improvement is permanent.

Next Week

This week features two hugely important battles.  The Legion and Armadillos meet again and continue the league’s most bitter rivalry.  The Legion are just a game back, and the Armadillos look more vulnerable than ever.  The PhoeGnomes face the Lannisters, too, and both teams need a win to keep pace with the Legion and Armadillos.  Depending on the results, the Armadillos, Legion, and Lannisters could all take first place.  The Goofballs have to face the Lasershow, who are showing signs of being competitive.  The Possums will hope to keep pace and gain ground on a couple of teams with a match against the Thunderwolves.

Rules Violation

Week 14 is over, but there was a major rules violation that created problems with the results. The Happy Hollidays had at least 11 starts and the limit is 8. He was leading the Armadillos, but this included three pitching categories. It’s impossible to untangle what the pitching results would have been if the Hollidays had used the correct number of pitchers.

Since the Hollidays won the match, and the win consisted of tainted categories, I had to take extreme action. I swapped the Hollidays with the Possums since both teams were losing after Sunday’s last game ended. The Goofballs beat the Hollidays (instead of the Possums) and the Armadillos beat the Possums (instead of losing to the Hollidays). This means that everyone’s records are accurate.

However, this also creates some problems. The system’s internal tie-breakers are now off. It’s unlikely that the Hollidays will be tied with either the Armadillos or Goofballs. However, the Possums, Goofballs and Armadillos could see ties.

1. The Goofballs should have a victory over the Possums.
2. The Possums should NOT have a loss against the Armadillos.

This means that if the Armadillos and Possums tie, we will need to manually track the tie-breaker rather than rely on the game. The same applies to the Goofballs and Possums.

We’re going to add a co-owner to the Hollidays who will (hopefully) be active and try to keep this kind of thing from happening again.

Also, thanks to the Possums and Goofballs for being understanding of the situation. These changes will not impact either of your teams, only the results you’ll see on the page for the week. The Elo ratings will also reflect your wins and losses against the correct teams.

CP Legion (8-4-1) vs.  JK Lannisters (7-5-1)

The week’s most important match paired the Legion and Lannisters.  Chris P. hoped to remain in first place while the Lannisters looked for revenge after a narrow loss in Week 07.  Chris gained the advantage early with a serious of good pitching performances before the All-Star break.  Jimmy Nelson rewarded the Legion with two strong starts and 17 strikeouts.  Robbie Ray added another solid outing with 13 strikeouts in just 6.0 innings pitched.  The Lannisters had good starts from Jacob deGrom and Stephen Strasburg, but suffered from two Jon Lester meltdowns.  On offense, the teams were evenly matched before the break.  Chris held narrow leads in home runs, SLG, and OBP.  Jeff had the advantage in RBI.

After the break, the Lannisters’ offense came to life.  Bryce Harper had two home runs on Friday and Mookie Betts added a critical homer on Sunday.  The Lannisters also got strong starts from Jose Quintana and Rich Hill.  The switch to the NL seems to agree with Quintana, and Hill has been strong when healthy.  The Legion suffered some bad luck when Lance McCullers and Robbie Ray’s starts were pushed back until Week 15.  The Lannisters were able to capture ERA, WHIP wins, and saves.  This was enough to guarantee a win after the offensive categories broke for the Lannisters late in the week.  The match evens the season series at one win each.  Both teams needed luck to win in their given weeks, and the third match will be even more important with the teams tied near the top of the standings.

KG Capital City Goofballs (6-5-2) vs.  RK Possums (6-4-3)

Both the Goofballs and the Possums needed a win to keep pace with the league leaders.  Neither team posted league-leading numbers in many categories, but both put up solid stat lines.  Kevin managed the highest home run and RBI totals in the league.  Rick had strong numbers as well, but his OBP and SLG figures were below those of the Goofballs.  Kevin relied on huge weeks from Nelson Cruz, Freddie Freeman, and Anthony Rendon.  The trio combined for 11 home runs and 34 RBI.  Rick had a nice week from Joey Votto and Charlie Blackmon, but Kevin’s depth won out.

On pitching, Rick threw many more innings than Kevin.  This gave him and edge in strikeouts and WHIP.  However, Kevin had the better ERA, wins, and saves numbers.  David Price was strong for the Goofballs, but Corey Kluber and Max Scherzer countered for the Possums.  Ultimately, Kevin’s better bullpen lowed his ERA enough to lock down the win for the week.

CM Happy Hollidays (2-9-2) vs.  LK Armadillos (8-4-1)

The week’s most bizarre match belonged to the Armadillos and Happy Hollidays.  After violating the rules for starting pitching, Chris M. had to forfeit for the week.  However, the Hollidays posted good numbers and could have won the week without the extra pitchers.  Chris won home runs, OBP, and SLG versus the Armadillos and had a commanding lead.  Justin Turner was strong, with four home runs, and Yasiel Puig added three more.  The Armadillos had few counters, despite a 16 RBI week from Daniel Murphy.

On pitching, the Armadillos relied on two starts each from Clayton Kershaw and Carlos Carrasco.  The two recorded 45 strikeouts in 29.1 innings pitched.  However, Carrasco wasn’t effective in run prevention.  Drew Pomeranz struggled in his two starts.  Alex Colome recorded five saves, but the Armadillos were vulnerable in ERA and WHIP.  The Hollidays tried to take advantage but threw 90 innings, many of which were illegal.  A strong week from Lance Lynn evaporated.  It’s impossible to say where the Hollidays would have fallen, but without any starting pitching, the team won three categories with potential in ERA, WHIP, and wins.  Unfortunately, we will never know.  With a new co-owner arriving to shake up the team, the rest of the league will need to pay more attention to this club.

HP PhoeGnomes (8-5) vs.  KK Thunderwolves (1-10-2)

The week’s final match saw the Thunderwolves go for the upset against the PhoeGnomes.  Kyle was strong on pitching, and had the best ERA, WHIP, and wins numbers in the league.  He also won strikeouts.  Alex Wood, Yu Darvish, and Aaron Nola totaled 37 strikeouts.  Darvish allowed 9 runs in 11.2 innings, but the rest of Kyle’s staff was dominant enough to offset this poor play.  Heather took saves thanks to a big week from Brandon Kintzler, who had four saves.  Heather had good pitching stats that would have beaten most teams.  However, she was down 1-4 before offense.

The PhoeGnomes excelled with power, spread, and getting on base.  They led the league in all three categories by a substantial margin.  They were also near the top in home runs and RBI.  Seven PhoeGnomes players had at least two home runs.  Andrew McCutchen showed signs of life, and George Springer had a great all-around week.  The Thunderwolves tried to counter with solid production from Rougned Odor and Adrian Beltre.  It wasn’t enough, though, and Heather swept all five categories and escaped with a win.  Kyle could have managed a tie with one more steal and home run, or two more of either category.  Despite the loss, Kyle’s team is playing better and should be taken seriously by the contenders.  Meanwhile, Heather remains the hottest team in the league.

Next Week

The third cycle begins with a crucial match between the Legion and PhoeGnomes.  Both teams need a win, and the Legion hope to stop Heather’s dominance.  The Goofballs and Lannisters meet in a competitive match, as do the Possums and Armadillos.  Rick may need a win to stay in title contention. Finally, the Thunderwolves will test themselves against the Happy Hollidays.  Kyle has too much pride to finish in last place, and knows this is a good chance for a win.