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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Player of the Week

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

Next Week

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

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

After another exciting week of action, there are no more undefeated teams left in the Dirt Mountain League! There are also no more winless teams, and it seems like every team is in contention.

RK Possums (1-2) vs. KK Wolf Spiders (3-0)

All good things must eventually come to an end. This was the case for defending champ’s undefeated streak to start the season. After three weeks of dominance, the Wolf Spiders were bested by the Possums. In a week with good pitching, Rick’s squad was a step above the rest of the league. He had the lowest ERA in the league by a wide margin. This was paired with second most innings pitched in the league, making the feat that much more impressive. Sonny Gray led the way with 13.0 IP and 15 strikeouts and only one earned run. Kyle also had great pitching, and would have beaten most other teams. Zac Gallen even had 12 strikeouts in just 6.1 IP. This kept Kyle competitive, but Rick led 3-2.

The Possums sealed their victory with a good offensive showing. They led the league in runs, HR, and OPS. They were near the top in steals and were second in RBI to the Wolf Spiders. Byron Buxton led the with with four home runs and 10 RBI. Kyle enjoyed a nice week from Brent Rooker, but the Possums proved too strong. The victory raises their record to 2-2 and drops the Wolf Spiders to 3-1.

CP Legion (0-3) vs. CM Skyline Sluggers (1-2)

After a difficult start to the year, the Legion finally managed their first victory over the Skyline Sluggers. Both teams have struggled on the pitching side to start the year, and are the only two teams with aggregate year ERAs over 4.00. Their WHIP numbers are also near the bottom of the pack. However, when paired against each other, the teams are on equal footing. Neither team put up great pitching stats, but the Legion were able to get just a bit more from their starters and releivers. They finished with good WHIP and ERA numbers. Chris also managed a pair of saves. Charlie got a lot of IP and strikeouts, which is a positive sign, but the team’s abysmal rate stats doomed them to a 2-3 disadvantage.

Both teams had reasons for optimison on offense. Chris had good home runa and RBI totals led by a Cody Belliner and Jeremy Pean’s two home runs each in limited playing time. Charlie was able to win steals behind an amazing week from Shohei Ohtani. He posted two home runs, three runs, four RBI, and an incredible four steals. Unfortunately for the Skyline Sluggers, teh rest of the team didn’t rise to the ocassion. Chris was comfortably for the week and finally has his first win.

JK Hares (2-1) vs. LK Armadillos (2-1)

The Hares and Armadillos continued the league’s pattern of good pitching and merely adequate offense. Neither tam could gain traction hitting. The Hares won home runs and RBIs comfortably, but were not competitive in steals. The Armadillos somehow managed 29 RBI on just 4 home runs, and an OPS that was near the bottom of the league for the week.

On the pitching side things were more interesting. Dylan Cease spoiled a fantastic week for the Hares pitching with a disastrous outing, essentially cancelling-out a near no-hitter from Spencer Strider. The Armadillos suffered a miserable week from Johan Oviedo and Chris Bassit. The Armadillos sent a message by immediately cutting the player affectionaly known as the “Bassit Hound” from their roster. We can only hope that he was sent to a no-kill shelter, or that some other team will adopt him before he takes that cold, lonely walk to the back, from which no dogs ever return.

Despite two saves on Sunday, the Hares were denied a tie by a comback win/save from the Padres’ Josh Hader. After a frustrating week of rainouts, Jeff feels like he deserved a better fate than 5-4-1 loss. The Armadillos will take the win, but must improve their pitching to compete with the 3-1 Wolf Spiders.

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

The week’s final match saw Kevin’s Goofballs right the ship against the PhoeGnomes. Kevin had the second most well-rounded week behind the Possums with good hitting and pitching! The Goofballs had a series of solid starts from seven different players, showing great depth. No one had an individual monster performance, but the group had excellent consistency up and down the rotation. Carlos Estevez and Devin Willaims combined to add five saves. For her part, Heather relied on a series of good strikeout performances. Nestor Cortes and Kevin Gausman totalled 26 in three starts! Cortes had a strange week, giving up 10 earned runs, 7 of which came in his second start. This doomed Heather’s chances to win ERA, but he managed enough strikeouts and IP to give the PhoeGnomes the edge in two categories.

Despite the weird pitching results, Heather was not able to mount a charge on offense. The squad suffered though a down week from Bobby Witt Jur, who was just 4/26. Vladimir Guerrero Jr was only 5/25 with no home runs. When your two superstars have weeks like this, it will be hard to compete. Kevin deployed a whopping 19 players en route to a solid showing across all categories. Kevin wasn’t at the top of the league in any one category, but showed excelleng consistency. Ozzie Albies was probably the best Goofball hitter for the week with a nice 5/17, two home run week.

After a hot start, the PhoeGnomes are now back at .500 with most of the rest of the league. The Goofballs are also even for the year, and can take pride in a solid week.

Players of the Week

Despite the loss, the Skyline Sluggers’ Shohei Ohtani is the player of the week thanks to his incredible four steal performance! On the pitching side, Spencer Strider gets the nod for throwing one of the most dominant starts of the year so far. Sadly for both the Sluggers and Hares, neither effot was enough for the teams. Both will have to hope for better support in the future.

Next Week

The week offers everal intriguing match-ups! Both the PhoeGnomes and Armadillos need to find consistency if they are to compete for the title. They face off in a tough match. The Legion also have a tough draw, as they look for their second win against the hot Possums squad. The Goofballs and Slyline Sluggers face off, and both teams want to build some momentum. Finally, the Hares will face the Wolf Spiders. The Hares’ pitching may be a problem for the Wolf Spiders, and both teams want to rebound from a loss.

After a wild third week, the Dirt Mountain League has a clear front runner! The Wolf Spiders secured their place at the top of the league with a close win over the Legion. The PhoeGnomes suffered their first loss of the year after a massive performace from the Skyline Sluggers. Both the Armadillos and Hares defeated their rivals to improve to 2-1.

KK Wolf Spiders (2-0) vs. CP Legion (0-2)

The Wolf Spiders showed why they are the defending champs with a close win over the Legion. Kyle relied on strong pitching to sweep all five pitching categories with the best stats in the league. Chris wasn’t able to offer much resistance, but the Legion did manage respectable IP and K totals. What makes Kyle’s pitching even more impressive is that his eight starts came from eight different starters!

The Legion fared better on offense led by a standout week from Nico Hoerner. However, Chris needed to win steals to secure a tie. Despite having seven players with a steal, the Legion were unable to match the Wolf Spiders’ total of 9. Of those 9 steals, 5 belonged to Ronald Acuna Jr.

The win leaves the Wolf Spiders alone in first place, but the poor overall offensive showing means there is still room for improvement. Several teams could have beaten the Wolf Spiders this week, so Kyle can’t remain complacent at the top. The Legion must find some pitching help if they want to begin the journey out of last place.

CM Skyling Sluggers (0-2) vs. HP PhoeGnomes (2-0)

After two tough weeks to start the year, the Skyline Sluggers rallied to give the PhoeGnomes their first taste of defeat this year. Charlie led the league in runs an dRBI, and was second in home runs. Hunter Renfroe had a great week with three homers, and Heather couldn’t compete in any category.

The Sluggers also had excellent pitching, led by Jacob deGrom’s two starts with 16 strikeouts over 10 IP. The team’s stats would have been even better without a blowup from reliever AJ Minter. Kevin Gausman’s struggles doomed any hope Heather had for a tie.

This match revealed that the Skyline Sluggers are no longer a doormat team, and that they intend to compete this season. Charlie’s team is vastly improved, and will be a threat to anyone. With better luck in Week #01, they could be 2-1. The PhoeGnomes were an early season pick to contend for the title, so Heather has to hope this week was an aberration. They should be fine, but the week might serve as a wake-up call for any overconfident players.

JK Hares (1-1) vs. KG Capital City Goofballs (1-1)

After a dismal offensive week, the Hares rebounded to bludgeon the Goofballs. A slew of un-drafted pickups powered the Hares to the league lead in home runs. Max Muncy contribted five for the week along with 9 RBI, a steal, and a 1.815 OPS. After shaming himself in Week #02, Mike Trout rebounded to contribute 4 home runs and a 1.318 OPS. The Goofballs were able to take steals, but the team failed to mount a further challenge on offense.

Neither team excelled on the pitching side, but the Goofballs were worse in critical rate stats. Four players gave up 5 or more earned runs for the week. The Hares had similar numbers, but more in the 3-4 earned run range. This gave the team enough quality to win the rate stats and secure the week.

The Hares normally rely on pitching to win, so it was a nice break to have a good offensive performance. They improve to 2-1, but know that they are a long way from competing from the title. The Goofballs fall to 1-2, and (as usual) need pitching help to compete. However, Kevin often makes shrewd pickups, and will definitely work to improve the team.

LK Armadillos (1-1) vs. RK Possums (1-1)

The week’s final match saw the Armadillos defeat their bitter rival, the Possums. The matchup was quite close, and both teams had great pitching performances. The Armaidllos were able to win the rate stats, while the Possums held the advantage in K and IP. Larry led the league in saves, and took a 3-2 lead.

On offense, the Possums tried to rally and had decent numbers. Adolis Garcia had a monster week with 8 runs scored, 4 home runs, and 14 RBI! However, the rest of the team couldn’t match his effort. The Armadillos countered with James Outman’s big week with 4 home runs. J.T. Realmuto had three steals, and the Armadillos cruised to a 4-1 category win, conceding only runs to the Possums.

Like the PhoeGnomes, the Possums will need to look for more offense to get back to 0.500. Perhaps the return of Fernando Tatis Jr will provide some needed inspiration. The Armadillos took care of business, and will be dangerous if they can continue to find solid pitching.

Player of the Week

This week’s player of the week is a tie between Adolis Garcia and Max Muncy! Both players put up absolutely monster numbers, especially since they are not considered superstars.

The pair combined for 15 hits, 9 HR, 21 RBI, 11 walks, and an OPS of ~1750. Congratulations to both players for putting up such insane numbers for their teams!

Next Week

Week #04 offers several promising match-ups. The Legion are absolutely desperate for a win versus the hot Skyline Sluggers. The Armadillos will try to keep winning against the Hares.

The Goofballs will look to bounce-back against the PhoeGnomes in an intriguing match-up that will tell us a lot about where each team stands in the fight for the title. Finally, the Possums will look to hand the Wolf Spiders their first loss of the year.

After the first two weeks of the season, two teams stand undefeated. The defending champion Wolf Spiders and PhoeGnomes are alone at the top of the league.

Four teams are off to 1-1 starts, including the Hares, Armadillos, Possums, and Goofballs.

Two teams are at the bottom with 0-2 records – the Skyline Sluggers and Legion. However, both teams have reason for optimism as they were close in each of their defeats.

Early Category Leaders

There are clear learders in several categories to start the year. The PhoeGnomes, Wolf Spiders, and Armadills have over 92 runs each after just two weeks. By comparison, the Hares lag behind iwth just 67.

The Possums have the most home runs, beating the PhoeGnomes by three with 30 total. They are also tied for the lead with the PhoeGnomes in RBI with 97. As expected, the Armadillos lead the league in steals with 25 and the Hares are last with just 7.

OPS, our best measure of overall offensive performance, varies wildly across the league. The PhoeGnomes are far above the rest of the league at 0.9013. The Hares are in last place with a dismal 0.6379.

On the pitching side, the Hares are faring better. They are close to the league lead in stikeounts, ERA, and WHIP. The Wolf Spiders are near the top as well in all pitching categories expcept for saves. Heather leads that category as well with 10. The Goofballs and Skyline Sluggers lag far behind with just 3 each.

The msot notable theme is that outside of the PhoeGnomes and Wolf Spiders, not team feels complete. The Legion have decent offensive totals, but their pitching is behind only the Skyline Sluggers to start the year. Charlie’s team also has acceptable offensive totals, but poor pitching ratios. However, there is a silver lining for Charlie as the team has great strikeout numbers, especially with the fewest IP in the league.

Other teams in the middle of the pack need to address shortcomings on at least one side of the ledger to remain competitive with the elite teams. The Possums, Armadillos, and Goofballs are all viable contenders if they can add hitting or pitching respectively.

Players of the Week

The Player of the Week for Week #02 is Ronald Acuna! The Wolf Spiders’ superstar lifted Kyle to a win instead of a loss or tie.

Acuna managed an 12/25 hit total with 2 steals, 6 RBI and runs, and a homer. He proudced an incredible 1.232 OPS for the week.

Without Acuna’s standout performance, The Skyline Sluggers would have won steals and probably OPS, which would have been more than enough to flip the week to his side.

The Goat of the Week on offense was the Hare’s Mike Trout. The former superstar managed to go just 4/23 ith no home runs and only 3 runs and RBI.

On the pitching side, the Wolf Spiders were able to overcome a deplorable week from Sandy Alcantara, who gave up 13 earned runs in just 10.0 IP.

Week #03 Preview

The most interesting matchup for Week #03 is the Legion versus the Wolf Spiders. Chris is desperate for a win, and to complete his quest to win the title after an 0-2 start. He has the benefit of facing Kyle’s team a week after the Wolf Spider’s best pitchers each threw two games a piece. This means Kyle will have to rely on his lower-tier starters for counting stats. This might give the Legion the opportunity they need.

Another good match is between the Possums and Armadillos. These two teams have a lone history of rivalry, and both would prefer to be 2-1.

Elsewhere the PhoeGnomes face the Skyline Sluggers. While this match appears to favor Heather, Charlie’s squad has improved and is eager for a win. Finally, the Hares face the Goofballs, in a match that always brings strategy to play.

This page will host all trades involving future considerations for the 2023 season (and beyond)!

2023-07-31

RK Luis Castille
~ for ~
KK Lourdes Gurriel Jr
KK 2023 #03 Pick (Becomes #2 if Kyle wins the title)

2023-02-06

KG Luis Robert
KG 2023 #06 Pick
~ for ~
RK Ozzie Albies
RK 2023 #12 Pick

2023-02-06

LK Paul Goldschmidt
LK Jacob deGrom
LK Brandon Woodruff
~ for ~
CM 2023 #01 Pick
CM 2023 #03 Pick
CM JD Martinez

2022-04-23
LK Mackenzie Gore
LK PTBNL (Pending Injury Return)
~for~
CP Adalberto Mondesi

2022-04-20
HP Yordan Alvarez
~for~
CP Rhys Hoskins
CP Seiya Suzuki
CP 2023 Round #01 Pick

2021-02-27
RK Yu Darvish
~for~
LK Patrick Corbin
LK 2021 Round #06 Pick
LK 2021 Round #10 Pick
LK 2021 Round #13 Pick

2020-03-08
CP 2020 Round #03
CP 2020 Round #05
CP 2020 Round #07
– for –
LK 2020 Round #02 (final pick)
LK 2020 Round #06

2020-03-08
CP 2021 Round #01
– for –
KG 2020 #Round 02

2020-03-08
JK 2020 Round #16
– for –
RK Conditional Trade

2020-03-08
HP 2020 Round #01 (#3 overall)
HP 2020 Round #13
– for –
LK Alex Bregman
LK 2020 Round #02 (original pick)
LK 2020 Round #08
LK 2021 Round #03
LK 2021 Round #09

2020-03-06

KG 2020 Round #01 (#5 overall)
KG 2020 Round #04 (#28 overall)
– for –
HP 2020 Round #02 (#10 overall)
HP 2020 Round #03 (#18 overall)

2020-03-02
KK 2020 Round #02 Pick
– for –
LK 2020 Round #06 Pick
LK 2020 Round #11 Pick
LK 2020 Round #13 Pick
LK 2020 Round #16 Pick

2020-02-24
KG 2020 Round #01 Pick (#3 overall)
– for –
HP 2020 Round #01 Pick (#5 overall)
HP 2020 Round #12 Pick