2012 DVs vs 2013 Warpigs

The last two NASOMA champions are squaring off in a best of 7 series via NetPlay. Games 1 and 2 took place last night. Here are the results...


Game 1 @ The BallPork - Warpigs win 4-2

Allan Craig opened the scoring with a solo homer off of Adam Wainwright in the top of the 1st, but a bases loaded walk to Yadier Molina off of Jered Weaver in the bottom of the inning tied the score.

Jesus Montero homered in the 4th on a 3-2 roll to give the DVs a lead, but the Pigs responded in the 5th with a 2-run homer by Edwin Encarnacion. Fernando Rodney then came on to start the 6th and shut down the DVs for the next 3 innings. Yoenis Cespedes hit a solo shot off of Drew Storen in the 8th to make the lead 4-2.

Three Warpig relievers got an out apiece in the 9th. J.J. Putz got the last one to earn the save.


Game 2 @ The BallPork - DVs win 7-4 in 13 innings

Opposing starters Alexi Ogando and Jordan Zimmermann got off to rough starts. The DVs scored 4 in the top of the 1st, but the Warpigs responded with 3 in their half and another run in the 2nd to tie the game. Both starters settled down and there was no more scoring until the 13th, when Jesus Montero (on ANOTHER 3-2 roll!) and Henry Blanco went back to back off of Casey Janssen.

The Warpigs, in a rare occurrence, used all 25 available players. The non-SPs, Adam Wainwright and Cliff Lee, both appeared as pinch hitters in the game; and the Pigs finished the game with no players left on the bench or in the bullpen (and no DH).

The rest of the series will (hopefully) be played later this week.

Least Likely to be Traded

Some teams trade all the time, and some rarely make a deal. Some players bounce around from team to team, and others are locked in. And it doesn't help that some teams (like the Fungoes) almost never make a trade. And Nad players become untouchable once somebody asks about them.

*Our beloved commissioner has agreed to award a demerit credit to any team who manages to trade for anybody on this list in the next 3 months AND to the team who trades them. So you'd both start the year with a negative 1 demerit. Trade them to the Buckeyes or the Warpigs and get FIVE demerit credits!

Anyway, to while away the winter, here is a list of the least likely players to be traded in NASOMA:

20. Andrelton Simmons, Killer Bees - He can't hit a lick, and he was recently traded TO the Bees... but he's a Brave and quite possibly the best defensive SS since Ozzie Smith. Oh, and he's a Brave.

19. Adam Jones, Inmates - He wasn't ALWAYS an Inmate or he'd be rated higher.

18. Yadier Molina, Warpigs - The Pigs trade as much or more than anybody, but this guy is a Cardinal, he's the best player at his position, and he was the main reason the Pigs won in 2013.

17. Jose Fernandez, Warpigs - Young and talented, with a great card. You'd have to be a fool to trade this guy. Oh wait, how'd I get him in the first place??? :o)

16. Yasiel Puig, Drillers - Might have been higher before he started getting arrested for driving 110 mph. Super talented, but there is some risk here, too.

15. Buster Posey, Drillers - It's hard to imagine that there are 14 guys less likely to move than this guy.

14. Carlos Gonzalez, Inmates - He can hit. He can run. He can field. He's not going anywhere. Like Charles Manson, he'll die an Inmate.

13. Matt Holliday, DVs - Holliday has played for the Rockies and Cardinals, the DVs' two favorite teams. Half of the DVs' wardrobe is made up of Holliday jerseys. Much to the consternation of Matt Holliday, he'll always be a DV.

12. Joe Mauer, Sidewinders - The Snakeman recently took his Joe Mauer SOM card collection to his priest and had them blessed.

11. Troy Tulowitzki, Rhinos - Other shortstops have and will come along thru the Rhino system, but Tulo is still there and still in charge. The Rhinos have occasionally made blockbuster deals, but don't expect Tulo to ever be part of one.

10. Dustin Pedroia, Wahoos - The Chief recently confessed that he has a Pedroia poster on the ceiling above his bed. Too much information, in my opinion.

9. Elvis Andrus, Mavs - He's a Ranger, he's good, and he's a good guy. Short of the Rangers trading him, he'll stay a Mav.

8. Miguel Cabrera, Zaps - He's the second best player in baseball. His move back to 1b is the only thing keeping him from being ranked in the top 3.

7. Joey Votto, Rhinos - More valuable to the Rhino front office than anybody else on the team, and why not? He is an onbase machine.

6. Yu Darvish, Goofs - The Goofboy is a huge fan of Ranger players, and Darvish has become the face of the franchise.

5. Clayton Kershaw, Fungoes - Actually, every player on the Fungo roster could make up the top 20, but there are 4 guys ranked ahead of this Kershaw despite the fact that he's the best pitcher in baseball and is still only 25 years old.

4. Mariano Rivera, FFTs - This year's card will be his last, and the good doctor is nothing if not loyal. I wouldn't be surprised if he used a reserve to keep him in 2015.

3. Andrew McCutchen, Zaps - They just don't get any better than McCutchen. The Zapper once traded Josh Hamilton after his best season, but that won't happen with McCutchen.

2. Shin-Soo Choo, Goofs - A few weeks ago, it might have been possible to get Choo from the Goofs, but now that he's a Ranger, he's locked in.

1. Mike Trout, Fungoes - The best player in baseball plays for the manager who makes the fewest trades. That's why he's #1 on this list.

* - This is a lie.

Merry Christmas!

Buckeyes and FFTs trade

The Buckeyes traded Chris Capuano and pick 98 to the FFTs for Jeremy Guthrie and pick 80.

Trimming Rosters

I'm going to start cutting the dead weight off of our rosters. If you have any "for sure" cuts, send me an email. This is just for the guys you have no plans to keep, trade, or reserve. And you could always change your mind. Or at least up until the official cut down date (some time in March, I assume.)Thanks to the FFTs and Zaps for already sending me their lists.

I'll start by taking the names off the rosters page, but I guess I could delete them from the Winter Tracker as well.

Ratings Preview

You probably already know this, but SOM has released their range ratings preview for next year.

Here are the 1's:

C:  Wieters, Sal Perez, Russell Martin, Yadi
1B: Goldschmidt, Anthony Rizzo, Freeman, Adrian Gonzalez
2B: Galvis, Espinosa, Zobrist, Cano, Pedroia, Darwin Barney, Phillips
SS: JJ Hardy, Jose Iglesias, Alcides Escobar, Yunel Escobar, Elvis Andrus, Andrelton Simmons, Tulo, Hechavarria, Brendan Ryan, Gregorius
3B:  Machado, Longoria, Beltre, Arenado
LF:  Brandon Barnes, Trout, Starling Marte, Gerardo Parra, Sam Fuld, Gregor Blanco, Alex Gordon, Carlos Gonzalez
CF:   Brandon Barnes, McCutchen, Lorenzo Cain, Adam Jones, Ellsbury, Bourjos, Trout, Carlos Gomez, Denard Span
RF:  Victorino, Brandon Barnes, Josh Reddick, Parra, Heyward, Jay Bruce

Zaps and Buckeyes trade

The Zaps trade Jed Lowrie, Peter Bourjos, Wes Middlebrooks, Jonny Gomes, and Josh Johnson to the Buckeyes for Cole Hamels.     

Pigs and Buckeyes trade

The Warpigs traded Justin Ruggiano to the Buckeyes for Adam Dunn.

Winter State

With the weather keeping me inside for a few days, I thought I'd endeavor to place some sort of holistic ratings on the teams in NASOMA to get a handle on where we stand as we enter the 2014 season.

Please understand that the following rankings do not take into account any prospects for the future - it's just an idea of how good we'll be next year. I used the Winter Tracker, so if you own players who are NOT listed on there, they were not taken into consideration. And obviously there's nothing scientific about it. I simply rated all 16 teams in four categories: draft pick situation, hitters, starting rotation, and bullpen. So yes, pitching counts twice as much as hitting in this rather shoddy system, but there's some adage out there that supports that premise, I believe. I considered adding Intangibles as a 5th category, but that would have had to include such things as "The Buckeyes always win" and "The Rhinos always cave and draft for the future" and "The Drillers suck"... things like that. And it all seemed too obvious to mess with. Anyway, I assigned each group a score of 1-10, with this rubric:

10 - the best, hard to improve this area

7-8-9 - pretty dang good

6 - slightly above average

5 - average

4 - slightly below average

3-2-1 - in need of repair

There aren't too many surprises. There are four ratings of 10 - twice for rotations, once for lineup, and once for draft picks. There are two ratings of 1 - both for bullpen. The Fungoes are the obvious team to beat. The MFD will have quite the race, as will the AWD. The Tweener totals surprised me a little, but there's no denying that's a talented pitching staff. Even the BUD, winners of the last two Higdons, will have an interesting race for first, although the winner is due a #4 playoff seed and the 12th pick in next year's draft.

The keys will be the trades that happen between now and the draft, the draft itself, and then the watch to see which teams give up the ghost and take aim at 2015.

And here we go...

Warpigs
Draft: 4 - An early pick (#2) saves this from being even lower since they have no 2nd.
Lineup: 2 - Yadi and Prince. That's it. The cupboard is bare.
Rotation: 10 - Wainwright, JFernandez, Zimmermann, and Strasburg earn the first 10.
Bullpen: 1 - Only because the ratings don't go any lower.

Wahoos
Draft: 10 - And here's the second rating of 10. They have 6 of the first 19; 9 of the first 36.
Lineup: 4 - Pedroia is joined by new acquisitions VMart, Beltran, and Aoki. But not much else.
Rotation: 4 - Anibal is pretty good, but Verlander, Gee, and Buehrle will be very hittable.
Bullpen: 1 - Right now if you call the bullpen, no one will answer.

DVs
Draft: 5 - All their own picks. They pick 7th.
Lineup: 5 - Holliday, Craig, Stanton, ARam, Kinsler.
Rotation: 4 - Latos, Weaver, Lynn, Porcello... maybe 4.5
Bullpen: 4 - Clippard is good and Breslow helps.

FFTs
Draft: 4 - No 1st or 4th.
Lineup: 4 - HanRam, Napoli, and Pence, but a lot of holes.
Rotation: 5 - Kuroda, Samardzija, Liriano, Masterson, Leake
Bullpen: 3 - The last Mariano card(?), but it's pretty good.

Rhinos
Draft: 2 - One pick in the first 90, and it's #59. Hard to help your team like that.
Lineup: 8 - Maybe the 2nd best in the league going in: Votto, Cano, Tulo, Gomez, Myers...
Rotation: 3 - Hudson, Garza, CC. If not for Gerritt Cole, this is probably a 2.
Bullpen: 4 - Jansen and O'Day are stout, but nothing else.

Fungoes
Draft: 5 - Their own picks, and they pick 9th.
Lineup: 7 - Trout is awesome, but plenty of help coming from Carpenter, Hosmer, and Zimmerman.
Rotation: 10 - Another perfect 10. Kershaw, Price, Harvey, Medlen, and even D.Holland.
Bullpen: 7 - Papelbon, Perkins, Cishek, and Robertson allow the league's best drafter to draft bats.

Inmates
Draft: 5 - No first, but extra 3rd and 4th. They pick late in each round.
Lineup: 6 - Beltre, CarGo, AJones, Marte, Segura. Above average offense, but not great.
Rotation: 5 - Parker, Chacin, Straily, Stults. Injuries keeps this from being better.
Bullpen: 4 - Street, Grilli, D.Hernandez. Like everybody, will need to get better in the draft.

Nads
Draft: 5 - His own picks, starting at #6.
Lineup: 2 - AGonzalez... and then... okay, when Ben Revere is your 2nd best hitter, that ain't good.
Rotation: 4 - CJ, Fister, and Miley is the start of a decent nucleus.
Bullpen: 4 - Not great relievers, but a lot of them: Thayer, Albers, Balfour, LeCure, Blevins.

Drillers
Draft: 6 - Their own picks, but it starts at #1.
Lineup: 7 - Ellsbury, Longo, Posey, Puig, Bruce, Yelich. Even better when they add Donaldson.
Rotation: 5 - Shields, Minor, Corbin, Cobb. I rated this as average, but it might be better than that.
Bullpen: 4 - Nathan, Mujica, and Gregerson. Not a bad start.

Zaps
Draft: 5 - All their own picks, starting at #10.
Lineup: 10 - Holy cow. The AL MVP. The NL MVP. The NL MVP Runner Up. And there's lots more.
Rotation: 4 - Scherzer will dominate, and Greinke is fine; but there isn't much else.
Bullpen: 3 - Ziegler and Parnell will need some help.

Buckeyes
Draft: 4 - No 1st or 2nd, but an extra 3rd. And all the best cards are always still there when he picks.
Lineup: 3 - Ortiz and Cuddyer and probably a bunch of guys named Greg Pirkl.
Rotation: 4 - Hamels and Dickey. Miggy Gonzo too.
Bullpen: 5 - Uehara, and Alias Smith and Johnson.

Mavs
Draft: 5 - An extra 2nd, but thanks to his 100 wins last year, his picks are all pretty late.
Lineup: 7 - Chris Davis leads a salty group: Harper, the good Upton, Country Breakfast, Lucroy.
Rotation: 5 - Cain, Bailey, Buchholz, Gallardo. If Buchholz hadn't been hurt, this rating is higher.
Bullpen: 4 - Doolittle, GHolland, RRoss.

Sidewinders
Draft: 5 - No 1st but an extra 2nd.
Lineup: 5 - Mauer, Kipnis, Belt, Wright. A good nucleus. Depth needed.
Rotation: 6 - Sale, Lester, Moore, Peavy, Cueto. The Cueto injury hurt.
Bullpen: 6 - Kimbrel and Chapman. Best 1-2 punch in the league. That's all there is for now.

Killer Bees
Draft: 6 - No 3rd, but he has an extra 5th and his first pick is early (#4).
Lineup: 6 - Freeman, Encarnacion, Werth, CSantana. Pretty solid.
Rotation: 6 - CLee, Teheran, ESantana, Ubaldo, Lincecum.
Bullpen: 4 - Janssen, RSoriano, Peralta, Stammen. Not a great group, but a good start.

Tweeners
Draft: 6 - An extra 1st. He picks #5 and #13.
Lineup: 4 - Victorino, Zobrist, Sandoval, Rosario. Losing VMart hurt some.
Rotation: 8 - Deep and good: Iwakuma, Tillman, King Felix, MadBum, Shelby Miller, Gio.
Bullpen: 6 - Smyly, Avilan, Romo.

Goofs
Draft: 5 - His own picks, starting at #12.
Lineup: 4 - Ahh... Choo.
Rotation: 5 - Darvish, Griffin, Lohse
Bullpen: 3 - Benoit and Walden.

Totals by Division:

BUD
19 Wahoos
18 DVs
17 Warpigs
16 FFTs

HWD
29 Fungoes
20 Inmates
17 Rhinos
15 Nads

MFD
22 Drillers
22 Zaps
21 Mavs
16 Buckeyes

AWD
24 Tweeners
22 Sidewinders
22 Killer Bees
17 Goofs

Team Stats and League Leaders

Scroll down on the NASOMA home page to see a list of some of the league leaders in various categories. There are also links to take you to the team stats for both pitching and hitting.

Some highlights... The Zaps' Andrew McCutchen won the batting title, hitting .332 to finish just ahead of the unlikely runner up, Erick Aybar of the Nads. Josh Hamilton of the Goofs led the league in both home runs and RBI. Hamilton also led in slugging percentage. The Rhinos' Joey Votto won the onbase category, but numbers 2 and 3 were, again, Nads (Miguel Montero and Josh Willingham). Surprisingly, no players reached the 100-walk mark this year. Juan Pierre of the Drillers led in stolen bases with 53, and Adam Jones of the Inmates led with 60 doubles.

In pitching, Adam Wainwright of the Warpigs went 22-3. Kyle Lohse (20-7) of the Goofs was the only other 20-game winner. The ERA champion was Clayton Kershaw of the Fungoes (2.74). Kershaw (248) also led the league in strikeouts. The Pigs' Fernando Rodney led in saves with 45.

In the team categories, the Warpigs had the top batting average, onbase percentage, and slugging average. The Pigs also scored the most runs. The Zaps had the most home runs, and the Fungoes stole the most bases. The Goofs made the fewest errors in the league, and the Fungoes made the most.

The Mavs allowed the fewest runs and had the lowest ERA. The Fungoes had the most strikeouts, and the Goofs led the way in shutouts with 21. The Bees, for a record 15 years in a row, did not have an error by a pitcher. Now that's good coaching.

Soon you will be getting an All Star ballot from the DVs. Please take the time to vote.

Updates

The Mavs have a new home address (the Midlothian Mavs?) and the Killer Bees have a new email address. Both have been updated on the address page.

Wahoos make 2 more trades

The Wahoos trade Jeff Samardzija and pick 83 to the FFTs for Craig Gentry, Garrett Jones, and pick 114.

The Wahoos trade Nolan Arenado and Chris Carter to the Tweeners for Victor Martinez and Nori Aoki.

Inmates and Wahoos trade

The Wahoos traded Dan Straily and pick 51 to the Inmates for pick 15.

Trade

The FFTs trade Nick Punto and pick 50 to the Warpigs for David Freese and pick 80.

2014 Draft Order

I'll put up a Draft Grid next week, but here's the draft order based on records and playoff results:

1. Drillers
2. FFTs
3. Wahoos
4. Killer Bees
5. Tweeners
6. Nads
7. DVs
8. Sidewinders
9. Fungoes
10. Zaps
11. Rhinos
12. Goofs
13. Buckeyes
14. Mavs
15. Inmates
16. Warpigs

Game 6

It may not have been as close as the earlier games, but the 16-6 final game of the 2013 World Series was a classic. The Pigs were rolling their 12th game of the day, but the Inmates were rolling their 18th! We were both tired, and after a 7-run 2nd inning by the Pigs, the game began to unravel a little. Here are some of the more memorable game 6 events:

In the 6th inning, the Inmates rolled a ss-x groundout followed by a gbA groundout, only to have me realize that I did NOT have my 1e12 in the game at ss, but instead still had the 1e24 in there, so the ss-x groundout should have been an error, but the following gbA made it a double play anyway.

Still in the 6th inning, the Inmates pinch hit Starling Marte for Danny Espinosa - forcing me to pull Darren Oliver for Fernando Rodney. I really wanted to leave Oliver in because Adrian Beltre was on deck. So... Rodney gets Marte out to end the inning, and then all hell breaks loose. The HEAD INMATE suddenly realizes that he COULDN'T hit for Espinosa because he was his last option at 2b. AND, it turns out, Marte had STARTED THE GAME! lol. So Espinosa has to hit for
himself, which means, of course, there was no need to pull Oliver. So back comes Espinosa. Back comes Oliver. The 3rd out is made (again), and Beltre leads off the next inning against... Oliver.

But the chaos didn't end there. After Oliver got Beltre out to start the next inning, Casey Janssen (not Rodney, who is somehow still available in the pen) comes in and immediately gives up a homer, but he then gets the next 3 batters in order, until The HEAD INMATE realizes, hey, there was already one out when he came in, so that last out shouldn't have batted.

It was quite a day at the Pigsty. Congratulations to all the teams for making the playoffs, and especially to the Inmates for getting to the World Series. Except for surrendering a 5-run 1st inning in game 1 and a 7-run 2nd inning in game 6, the Inmates would have won the Higdon.

Darren Oliver was the World Series MVP, going 2-0 in 10 innings of relief, allowing only 4 hits and 1 run and striking out 10. Edwin Encarnacion was 1-for-20 with no RBIs in the first 5 games of the Series, and then hit 3 homers and 2 doubles in game 6, knocking in 8.

NASOMA Playoffs 2013

...are underway.

First Round:

Rhinos vs Inmates

Gm1 - Beckett at Beachy - Inmates win 4-2
Gm2 - Jackson at Anderson - Rhinos win 7-6 in 10 innings. The Inmates missed a 1-17 homer to lead off the bottom of the 10th. The result, though, was a triple. Alas, he was stranded at third.
Gm3 - Parker at Hudson - Inmates win 4-0.
Gm4 - Billingsley at Garza - Rhinos win 6-3.
Gm5 - Beachy at Beckett - Inmates win 6-2.
Gm6 - Sabathia at Anderson - Inmates win 8-3.
INMATES win the series 4 games to 2.


Buckeyes vs Goofs

Gm1 - Karstens at Lohse - Buckeyes win 5-1
Gm2 - Hamels at Darvish - Buckeyes win 4-3
Gm3 - Lewis at Capuano - Goofs win 5-4 in 11 innings. "He's been deflowered."-HEAD INMATE
Gm4 - Villanueva at Harrell - Buckeyes win 5-2.
Gm5 - Lohse at Karstens - Buckeyes win 4-2.
BUCKEYES win the series 4 games to 1.


Second Round:

Inmates vs Mavs

Gm1 - Parker at Cain - Mavs win 4-2.
Gm2 - Beachy at Vogelsong - Mavs win 4-2.
Gm3 - Gallardo at Anderson - Inmates win 5-3
Gm4 - Cain at Stults - Inmates win 9-3
Gm5 - Vogelsong at Parker - Inmates win 6-4.
Gm6 - Beachy at Gallardo - Inmates win 7-2.
INMATES win the series 4 games to 2.

Buckeyes vs Warpigs

Gm1 - Hamels at Wainwright - Buckeyes win 8-4
Gm2 - Karstens at Zimmermann - Buckeyes win 6-4 in 11 innings.
Gm3 - Lee at Capuano - Warpigs win 4-2 in 15 innings.
Gm4 - Wainwright at Hamels - Warpigs win 5-3.
Gm5 - Zimmermann at Karstens - Warpigs win 12-1.
Gm6 - Capuano at Lee - Warpigs win 5-2.
WARPIGS win the series 4 games to 2.

World Series:

Inmates vs Warpigs

Gm1 - Parker at Wainwright - Warpigs win 5-4.
Gm2 - Beachy at Zimmermann - Warpigs win 5-4.
Gm3 - Lee at Billingsley - Warpigs win 4-2.
Gm4 - Wainwright at Stults - Inmates win 2-1 in 11 innings.
Gm5 - Zimmermann at Parker - Inmates win 6-0
Gm6 - Billingsley at Lee - Warpigs win 16-6. Edwin Encarnacion goes 5-5 with 2 doubles and 3 home runs, driving in 8.
WARPIGS win the series 4 games to 2.

Sidewinders and Mavs trade

The Sidewinders send their 5th round pick to the Mavs for Devin Mesoraco.

Tweeners and Sidewinders trade

The Tweeners traded Yasmani Grandal to the Sidewinders for Ryan Howard.

Draft Order

The non-playoff teams will draft in this order:

1. Drillers, 60-102
2. FFTs, 64-98
3. Wahoos, 64-98 (won head to head vs FFTs 9-5)
4. Killer Bees, 67-95
5. Tweeners, 73-89
6. Nads, 75-87
7. DVs, 78-84
8. Sidewinders, 78-84 (won head to head vs DVs 8-2)
9. Fungoes, 79-83
10. Zaps, 87-75

Wahoos 4, Warpigs 1

With cards on the floor everywhere, the regular season comes to a close...

Gm1 - Warpigs win 6-4. Molina has a double, a homer, and 4 RBI. Wainwright (22-3) gets the win.

Gm2 - Wahoos win 8-7 in 10 innings. The Pigs scored 6 in the 9th to tie it, but Ianetta hit his second homer of the game in the 10th.

Gm3 - Wahoos win 8-5. Reddick hits a grand slam.

Gm4 - Wahoos win 5-4. Reddick gets 4 more RBI (9 over the last 2 games). Ianetta hit a 9th inning solo homer for the win.

Gm5 - Wahoos win 5-4. The 2013 regular season comes to an end. Bring on the playoffs.

Killer Bees 3, Nads 2

Bees go 3-2 at Nads ending a perfectly shitty season. Time to rename these ball-less wonders Game 1 - Tim Lincecum struck out 11 batters and Freddie Freeman slammed a homerun and had 2 RBI as the Killer Bees beat the NADS 5 to 0. Game 2 - Justin Verlander was able to finish what he started and was credited with a complete game as the Killer Bees outscored the NADS 6 to 1. Game 3 -Adrian Gonzalez had 4 hits as the NADS topped the Killer Bees by a score of 7 to 2. Game 4 - Carlos Santana had 2 base hits and 4 RBI as the Killer Bees outscored the NADS 13 to 4. Game 5 - Catcher Miguel Montero recorded 4 RBI with one swing when he ripped a grand slam where the NADS beat the Killer Bees 9 to 5.

Playoff Preview

The 2013 NASOMA Playoffs will be held November 16th at the Pigsty. All are welcome. The lineup this year is unique in that it's all local teams. The Inmates, driving up from Waco, are making the longest trip.

So how will this year's games play out? Four of the six teams have never won a Higdon, so there's a great chance at some new blood (like last year when the DVs broke their cherry). Will the Goofs overcome all odds and get to the World Series in his first ever trip to the post season? His predecessor made many playoff appearances but fell short of the final round - sometimes painfully. Will the Rhinos, runners up in 2 of the last 3 World Series, grab their first crown? Will the Inmates bring the Higdon home to the Sodom and Gomorrah reveries of the Baptist Bowl Choralaires? Will we then have to buy a new plaque? Will the Mavs win their first World Series? After being swept in their only two trips to the finals, will the Mavs win their first World Series game???

Here's one man's opinion...

Round 1
Let's face it, the Rhinos are still playing because the Zaps thought the first draft pick went to the non-playoff team with the best record and tanked his last 10 home games. The Inmates went 10-4 vs the Rhinos this year. There's no reason to think that was a fluke. The Inmates win in 5 games.

The Buckeyes went 9-1 vs the Goofs. Now, if the Goofs could convince him to play the games on the computer, I think the Buckeyes would win it in 5. But if they roll, which tradition dictates they should, this is a 4 game sweep by the Shriveled Testicle Gang. Sorry Goofster. You had a great season. Aren't you glad you got moved to the AWD? Can you hear the banjos playing from your canoe?

Round 2
The Inmates, should they win the first round, would face the Mavs. These two teams went 5-5 this year, so it should be quite entertaining. Maybe the "must see" match up of the entire playoffs. The Mavs are an excellent team, with a balanced lineup and solid pitching, but the Inmates will be on a roll. I think the Inmates advance to their 2nd ever World Series. Inmates in 7.

The Buckeyes and Warpigs, the two playoff veterans, would square off in the other series. The Pigs won the regular season series 7-3, but this is the Buckeyes. And Buckeye is Swahili for "illegal recruiting practices""playoff mastery". The Buckeyes win game 7 on the road, upsetting the #1 seed.

World Series
While it's true the Inmates are scared to death of playing the Buckeyes, and are required by league rule to whimper at the site of those red and white dice, these Inmates are on a roll. Gone are the days of an all-4 outfield. Gone are the days of a .290 onbase guy batting 2nd. Gone are the LDMFs. These Inmates are for real. This is indeed, THE YEAR OF THE INMATE! The Inmates win it in 6, finishing it in a flourish at the Baptist Bowl.

But I could be wrong.

DV/Tweener Trade

The DVs traded Luis Avilan to the Tweeners for Tommy Milone.

Nads 3, Sidewinders 2

Game 1 – The Snakes scored 3 runs in the 2nd inning that was all the runs Johnny Cueto(3-1) needed.  

Game 2 - Todd Frazier had 3 base hits as the NADS beat the SIDEWINDERS by a

score of 11 to 4.

 

Game 3 -  Jared Burton shut the  SIDEWINDERS down as the NADS outscored the  SIDEWINDERS 4 to 3.

 

Game 4 -One run was the difference as the NADS defeated the SIDEWINDERS 2 to 1.

Game 5 -In a one-sided affair the SIDEWINDERS batters pounded the NADS

pitchers for 16 runs while Chris Sale(1-1), with relief help from Craig

Stammen, allowed the NADS 4 runs.

Baseball Question

How bad IS Bobby Valentine?

Maybe this will become a new strategy. Hire Bobby V to be your manager, finish last place, and then fire him and win the World Series the next year.

DVs 3, Warpigs 1

Netplay games at the BallPork...

9/6 - DVs win 5-2. Five solo shots off of Dillon Gee, who goes the distance.

9/7 - DVs win 5-1. Three solo shots and a 2-run homer for the DVs.

9/8 - DVs win 7-6. Fun game - similar result.

9/8 - Pigs win 5-0. Adam Wainwright salvages the second game of the double header.

Inmates 5, Rhinos 2

Dice and cards at the Baptist Bowl!

 

RHINOS 11 – INMATES 8 (14 innings – Baptist Bowl): Inmates cruise into the 9^th with an 8-2 lead when the wheels fall off. The lowlight of the inning comes when Pierzynski tosses a throw into left field on a steal attempt of 3^rd to allow a run to score – TWICE in the same inning. With both staffs needing to watch innings the game heads into the 14^th (Inmates managed only one hit after the 5^th inning…) when Bastard-O decides to throw strikes for the first time this season. The Rhinos score three to ice the game.

 

INMATES 8 – RHINOS 4 (Baptist Bowl): Jones, Pierzynski, Espinosa, and Teixeira all tater for the Beakless Chicken Gang as Jackson takes it on the chin for the Rhinos.

 

INMATES 5 – RHINOS 4 (Baptist Bowl): A see-saw battle ends with a Rios walk-off homer in the 9^th with two outs.

 

RHINOS 4 – INMATES 2 (Baptist Bowl): Norris hits the floor, the Inmates can’t capitalize on 10 hits, and the Rhinos win.

 

INMATES 2 – RHINOS 1 (The Preserve): Beckett allows a 2-run one-out homer to Cargo in the first, then tosses a no-hitter the rest of the way. The Rhinos can’t take advantage and lose.

 

INMATES 9 – RHINOS 3 (The Preserve): Inmates pound out 17 hits, and a Rhino rally in the 9^th falls six runs short.

 

INMATES 5 – RHINOS 0 (The Preserve): Stults starts for the Inmates due to innings issues, and throws a 3-hit shutout. Drew has 4 RBI with a double and a tater.

 

The HEAD INMATE

Playoff Matchups are Set

The Inmates and Rhinos are still playing their final 7 regular season games, but the word from Waco is that they are 2-2 so far, which ends the drama about the playoff seedings.

The Inmates win the HWD and will be the 3 seed. The Rhinos will be the final wild card and 6 seed.

The Zapper will stay home and play with himself.

I'll get back to you with a Post Season Preview, including where and when this year's playoffs will be held. In the meantime, congratulations to all six teams.

Playoff Update

The Rhinos moved a step closer to grabbing onto that last wild card spot by whipping up on the Drillers last night. Here's the current situation:

The Warpigs (1), Mavs (2), Goofs (4), and Buckeyes (5) have cemented their post-season seedings. The Inmates are in, and are 1 win away (they have 7 left with the Rhinos) from claiming the HWD and that #3 seed. The Rhinos are 2 wins away from eliminating the Zaps and winning the #6 seed.

The odd thing is, the Inmates and Rhinos will play each other in the first round regardless of which one wins their division. The Rhinos would need to sweep the final 7 games from the Inmates in order to win the division and have home field advantage in the first round, but either way, these two teams will square off against each other.

Unless...

If the Rhinos go 0-7, they're out and the Zaps will be seed 6. If the Rhinos go 1-6, it would necessitate a 1-game playoff between the Zaps and Rhinos for that last seed.

The other first round series will feature the Goofs and the Buckeyes. Congratulations to the Buckeyes
for manipulating the seedings and assuring a first round victory and the SuperGoofs. It should be a
quick, fun series.

At the other end of the standings, the first pick in the draft is down to 2 teams. The Drillers are finished and have 102 losses. The Wahoos only have 97 losses, but they have 5 games remaining against the Warpigs.

Rhinos 7, Drillers 3

4/4 Rhinos lose 7-8  - The Rhinos loaded the bases in the 9^th with no outs and failed to score Escobar bunts into FC runner out at home, Mastroianni drives a flyball to RF and the runner holds, Ellis misses 1-7 single for the final out. Rhinos go down in defeat. 

4/5 Rhinos win 7-4 - Braun slammed a homerun and had 4 RBI’s.

4/6 Rhinos win 7-0 - Mastroianni had 2 base hits and 2 RBI’s.

5/16 Rhinos win 14-6 - Braun had 4 hits of the Rhino 17 hits, one of which was a Grand Slam.

5/17 Rhinos win 3-0 - Kemp had 3 of the Rhino’s 12 hits as the Rhinos shutout the Drillers.

6/27  Rhinos lose 1-2 - With 2 outs in the 8^th Bruce  gets 1-5 single then Moustakas homers on a BP HR 1-5, handing the Rhinos another crushing loss.

6/28 Rhinos win 6-2 - Escobar pounded out 4 hits as the Rhinos win.

8/9 Rhinos win 14-3 - Gordon had 4 hits and 3 RBI’s. The Rhinos scored early and often with 6 runs in the 1^st inning and 5 runs in the 2^nd inning.

8/10 Rhinos win 4-1

8/11 Rhinos lose 2-5 - The Drillers pulled off a dramatic come from behind win as they scored 5 in the bottom of the 9^th to beat the Rhinos.

Buckeyes and FFTs Trade

FFT's trade their 2014 5th, 6th,7th picks to Buckeyes for their 3rd and 9th of 2015.

Big Papi Grand Slam

Could that possibly be our own Snakeman celebrating the grand slam?

Drillers 3, Nads 2

Game 1 - In a good matchup it was the NADS 5, the DRILLERS 2. Doug Fister delivered a fine performance allowing 7 hits and no walks in 8 innings.

Game 2 - Jay Bruce went deep and had 3 RBI as the DRILLERS bested

the NADS 4 to 1. 

Game 3 - Tyler Colvin had 3 base hits as the NADS beat the DRILLERS 

6 to 4.

 

Game 4 - NADS were battered 9 to 3 by the DRILLERS.

Game 5 - Alex Cobb completed the game without help from the bullpen and Paul Konerko hit one over the fence and had 3 RBI as the DRILLERS defeated the NADS 7 to 1

 

Zaps 3, Nads 2

Game 1 - Center fielder Andrew McCutchen had 4 hits as the VIVAZAPASTAS bested the NADS in 11 innings 6 to 3.

Game 2 - In a two run game the TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS got by the DAVE NADS by the score of 4 to 2. The critical plate appearance was by Dayan Viciedo who silenced the stadium when he rifled a three-run blast.

Game 3 - VIVAZAPASTAS got by the NADS by the score of 5 to 2. Zack Greinke(5-1) got the win allowing 1 run in 6 innings.

Game 4 –NADS defeated the TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS by a score of 8 to 7. The win was credited to Collmenter(3-5) who went 3 and 1/3 innings allowing no runs.

Game 5 -Wade Miley was able to finish what he started and was credited with a complete game as the NADS defeated the VIVAZAPASTAS by the score of 8 to

4. 

Snake Deals

The Sidewinders sent Craig Stammen to the Killer Bees for Michael Bourn.

Then the Sidewinders traded Carlos Beltran to the Wahoos for the Rhino 2nd and the Buckeye 5th.

Rhinos 5, Zaps 0

Zaps have lost 10 in a row. Quick played them so I can blame Hal. I'm done at home.

    Game 1-Second baseman Robinson Cano smacked 2 homeruns at PNC Park as the JOSE RHINOS beat the slumping TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS in 10 innings 5 to 4. The score was knotted at 4 after nine innings. JOSE won the hard fought contest in the 10th inning. B.J. Upton doubled. Joey Votto stepped into the batter's box and he delivered a one-base hit. After another out, Alex Gordon stepped in and he grounded into a double play. JOSE finished with 15 hits while TRISTAN ended up with 11. The victory was credited to Darren O'Day(1-0) who went 1 and 1/3 innings, allowing no runs. Kenley Jansen was credited with his 3rd save. Bobby Parnell(4-4) was the losing pitcher in relief.

Game 2- Ryan Braun smashed 2 homeruns at PNC Park where the JOSE RHINOS beat the struggling TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS 11 to 3. Braun was unconscious out there. While TRISTAN pitching was serving softballs up there for him to hit, the TRISTAN fans were serving up some hardball barbs when he entered the batter's box. But he just used it as fuel for the fire. He delivered a solo blast in the 4th inning, hit a single in the 6th inning and blasted a Grand Slam homerun in the 8th inning. JOSE banged out 12 hits on the afternoon. Joe Kelly(2-0) got credit for the victory, pitching 8 innings and allowing 3 runs. The losing pitcher was Jaime Garcia(5-5).

Game 3-The JOSE RHINOS put 4 runs on the scoreboard in the 8th inning and nipped the reeling TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS 9 to 8 at PNC Park in a hard fought contest. Octavio Dotel(2-1) got the win with a nice relief outing. He surrendered only 1 hit and 1 walk in 2 and 2/3 innings dropping his ERA from 4.50 to 3.68. Dotel got relief help from Kenley Jansen who was excellent in relief and gained credit for his 4th save. Travis Blackley(4-2) was the losing pitcher in relief. He surrendered 3 hits and no walks in 2 innings.

Game 4-Josh Beckett had a strong outing at PNC Park where the JOSE RHINOS beat the floundering TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS 5 to 1. Beckett(1-1) pitched a solid game. He didn't give up much, just 4 hits and 2 walks in 9 innings improving his ERA from 4.50 to 3.00. JOSE had 8 hits for the afternoon. Zack Greinke(13-8) absorbed the loss. He pitched 7 innings allowing 5 hits and 3 walks. 'I've been working on a few things in my delivery, and I think I'm hitting a good groove.' Beckett said after the game. 'I'm ready to start another game tomorrow!'

Game 5-Alex Gordon hit 2 doubles and had 2 RBI and Edwin Jackson had a complete game at PNC Park where the JOSE RHINOS beat the floundering TRISTAN VIVAZAPASTAS by the score of 7 to 1. JOSE drew first blood jumping out to an early lead in the first inning scoring one runner using 2 hits. JOSE managed 16 hits in their victory. Jackson(4-4) allowed 1 run on the game. Jaime Garcia(5-6) suffered the loss. He was touched for 9 hits and 3 walks in 5 and 2/3 innings.

Fungoes 3, Sidewinders 2

FUNGOES@SSWs Fungoes take 3 of 5

 

 

6/8 Morrow beats Medlen

6/9 Snakes are befuddled by Brad Lincoln who goes the distance for a 5-1 victory. Wieters and Hosmer hit taters

 

8/21 Kershaw dominates in CG victory

8/22 Medlen beats Morrow 2-1. Wieters hits a solo HR and RBI double

8/23 Snakes win 7-6 in 11 innings. With bases loaded, Gordon singles off of Papelbon for snake win on fan appreciation day. We have 3 at Bees and 5 at Nads left.

Sidewinders 4, DVs 1

DV@SSWs SSWswin 4 of 5

5/14   Peavy beats Maholm 9-2

5/15 Sale beats Halladay 7-4 despite 2 Stanton homers

 

 

8/6 Mauer doubles in the winning run in the bottom of the 13th. Snakes win 5-4

8/7 DV score 2 in the 9th off Kimbrel. Trumbo drives in winning run as DVwin 5-4

8/8 Snakes win 6-2. Plouffe with 3 run HR in 7th

Playoff Picture Almost Cleared Up

The Mavs clinched the MFD title today and the #2 seed (and a first round bye) for the post season. The Warpigs (BUD Champs) have sewn up the #1 seed, and the SuperGoofs (AWD Champs) have the #4 seed. The Inmates will probably be the #3 seed and earn the HWD title, but at present has a magic number of 5 over the Rhinos.

There are 3 teams battling for the 2 Wild Card spots. No one has clinched yet, but the Buckeyes and Zaps have a lead over the Rhinos.

Buckeyes 8, Mavs 6

Buckeyes and Mavs finish up their seasons today. Buckeyes go 8-6. Odd series as Buckeyes go 6-1 at Mavs, but then go 2-5 at home.

 

At Mavs

Game 1 - Buckeyes win 11-6

Game 2 - Buckeyes win 8-5

Game 3 - Buckeyes win 12-6

Game 4 - Buckeyes win 3-1

 

Game 5 - Buckeyes win 6-3

Game 6 - Mavs win 6-4

Game 7 Buckeyes win 3-2 (11 innings)

 

At Buckeyes

Game 1 - Buckeyes win 3-2

Game 2 - Mavs win 6-1

Game 3 - Mavs win 10-4

 

Game 4 - Mavs win 4-2

Game 5 - Mavs win 17-3

Game 6 - Mavs win 9-8

Game 7 - Buckeyes win 8-7

Inmates 5, Fungoes 2

Dice and cards at the Baptist Bowl!

 

FUNGOES 6 – LDMF 0 (WTF): Harvey handcuffs the LDMF for the second one-hitter tossed at the Inmates by Fungoe pitchers this year. An 8^th inning single by Drew prevents the no-no. Billingsley pitched a CG loss.

 

FUNGOES 7 – INMATES 6 (11 innings – WTF): With two outs in the bottom of the 9^th and a 6-5 lead, Bastard-O serves up a BP tater to tie the game. Grilli serves up the game-winning tater in the 11^th.

 

INMATES 6 – FUNGOES 5 (10 innings – WTF): Fungoes score two in the bottom of the 9^th to send the game into extra innings. Late inning Inmate defender Drew makes two errors. Parra base-running heroics win the game for the Inmates in the 10^th.  With two outs, Pierzynski walked. Parra came in to pinch-run, and promptly stole second, then third with the throw going into left field allowing Parra to score.

 

INMATES 4 – FUNGOES 2 (Baptist Bowl): CG win for Floyd. A two-run tater in the 9^th accounts for the only two Fungoe scores.

 

INMATES 6 – FUNGOES 5 (14 innings – Baptist Bowl): Norris is pulled in the 1^st with the bases loaded and no outs. Both teams hit solo homers in the 12^th; Inmates win in 14^th on a single/2-base error followed by a hit with everyone in. Inmates use 9 pitchers.

 

INMATES 6 – FUNGOES 2 (DH game 1 – Baptist Bowl): A Beltre two-run tater in the 4^th puts the Inmates ahead for good. Stults gets 3-inning save.

 

INMATES 6 – FUNGOES 2 (DH game 2 – Baptist Bowl): Forsythe and Teixeira both homer off of Kershaw in the 6^th, while Santana gives the bullpen a break with a CG win.

 

The HEAD INMATE

Rosters and Draft Picks Updated

On our website (yes, we have one) there is a link to Rosters and Trades. I have made some (hopefully helpful) updates. First of all, next to your team name at the top of the chart, there is a number in parenthesis. That number represents how many Reserve Spots you own. Then, at the bottom of your roster, there are a series of numbers highlighted in yellow. These are your own draft picks that you still own. The numbers are 1-12. If a number is missing, that means you no longer own that pick. Below that, highlighted in some purple-ish color are the picks you have acquired from other teams.

 

Please visit the page and check your team for Reserves, Rosters, and Draft Picks and reply to me with confirmation.

 

I hope this information makes it easier for you to see what you own (and make trades!).

Congratulations to the SuperGoofs!

The Goofs clinched the AWD today and will be the #4 seed in the playoffs. Congrats to the kid. The Oilers would be proud.

Sidewinders 3, Nads 2

Nads take a tweener split 2-3 vs ssws

 

6/7 Snakes win 6-5 John McDonald of all

people has 5 RBI

 

6/8 Fister beats Lester 7-4 on Agon and Ross homers.

 

8/18  Miley beats Peavy 5-2, Balfour gets the save

 

8/19 Sale beats Collmenter. Seth Smith, of all people, has 5 RBI

 

8/20 Cueto struggles but snakes battle back to win 7-4

Two Warpig Trades

The Warpigs trade Cliff Lee, Casey Janssen, and Edwin Encarnacion to the Killer Bees for Jose Fernandez, and Brett Lawrie.

The Warpigs trade Mike Leake, Mike Napoli, and the FFT 2nd to the FFTs for the FFT 1st and the Warpig 3rd.

Wahoos 3, Sidewinders 2

Wahoos win 3 of 5 at Snakes.

 

4/7/13 Cueto beats Samardzigihijsoaii  eieio; Chapman with save

4/8/13 Hoos win 5-2 Sanchez loses the shutout with 2 outs in 8th. Ramirez with the save( EAR ASS MO Ramirez that is.)

 

 

6/29 wild win for the home team. The score was tied at3,4,5 and 6 before Snakes pull away for 8-6

 

6/30Hoos win 6-4 on the strength of 2 doubles each by Seager,Pedroia and Werth.

 

7/1 Cueto yields 4 taters on the way to a 7-3 wahoos victory. Buehrle scatters 10 hits for the CG win.

Trade

The Warpigs trade Brad Ziegler to the Zaps for Mike Napoli.

Snakes and Bees play with each other

Snakes won 5 of 7 in Nashville 10 days ago. Bees win3 out of 4 September games at the Strohs Church Lot in Stanley.

 

9/6 Verlander dominates in a 3 hit shutout. Infante has a couple of doubles.

9/7 Bees spanks snakes 11-4 behind4 homeruns

 

9/8 In the Chubby Gonzalez Memorial DH, the snakes win the first on a walk off JeterHR off Motte while the Bees take the nightcap 7-3. Infante gives the Bees 3 big insurance runs with a tater off Chapman in the 8th.

Buckeyes 5, Goofs 0

Buckeyes and Goofs roll dice for their final 5. Buckeyes take all 5.

 

Game 1 - Buckeyes 3 Goofs 2 - Youkilis' 2 run 8th inning homer spells the difference.

Game 2 - Buckeyes 5 Goofs 4 - C. Hart continues to be the Goofs nemesis going 3 for 4 with just a triple away from cycle

Game 3 - Buckeyes 4 Goofs 1 - Salty with a homer and Cuddyer steals base as a pinch runner on Nelson's pinch hit clutch hit to get the insurance run.

Game 4 - Buckeyes 10 Goofs 4 - Buckeyes pound out 12 hits but no homers. Youk and Cuddye each with 2 RBI's

Game 5 - Buckeyes 9 Goofs 2 - C. Hart goes 4 for 4 (single, 2 dubles, and a homer). Had a triple 1-4 double 5-20 in the last at bat, but just missed the triple.

Inmates 4, Fungoes 3

Dice and cards at WFT!

 

FUNGOES 3 – LDMF 0 (WTF): Five Fungoe pitchers toss a one-hitter in a bizarre game. A HR-1 opens the scoring for the Fungi; Forsythe makes the first 2 of many errors in the series. Only Beltre’s 2B in the 2^nd keeps the LDMF from being no-hit.

 

INMATES 2 – FUNGOES 0 (WTF): The Inmates return the shutout favor, holding the Fungi to five hits.  Forsythe makes yet another error.

 

INMATES 5 – FUNGOES 3 (WTF): Billingsley allows a three-run tater in the 1^st, then the Fungoes quit scoring. A Parra 2-run double in the 8^th ices the game for the Inmates.

 

INMATES 2 – FUNGOES 1 (WTF): Forsythe kicks another chance, allowing the only run off of Inmate pitching. Parra once again gets the game winner, yhis time a tater in the 3^rd.

 

FUNGOES 7 – INMATES 4 (Baptist Bowl): Fungoe lumber blasts the Inmates. Jones hits a pair of homers, but not much else happens positively for the Inmates.

 

FUNGOES 11 – INMATES 5 (Baptist Bowl): UUUGGGLLLYYY game! Forsythe makes two more errors (6 for the series); Marte hits a grand salami after Frieri walks the bases full; Floyd takes one for the team and pitches a CG, allowing 11 hits, 9 walks, and 3 taters.

 

INMATES 10 – FUNGOES 6 (Baptist Bowl): Holland tosses BP. Inmates hit four homers, and the bullpen doesn’t quite immolate themselves. Woohoo – Inmates win! Inmates win!

 

The HEAD INMATE

Trade

The FFTs traded Trevor Bauer to the Sidewinders for Neftali Feliz.

Trade

The Buckeyes traded Garrett Jones and Lucas Harrell to the FFTs for Wandy Rodriguez and Donovan Solano.

Sidewinders 4, DVs 1

We're so bad we can't even beat the Sidewinders!

DVs 10, Wahoos 4

Scores were:

@Wah 4/16 – DVs win 9-4

4/17 DVs 13-3

4/18 – DVs 8-3

@DVs 5/27 g.1 Wah win 6-4

5/27 g.2 DVs win 7-6

5/28 DVs 8-7

5/29 – DVs 6-4

@Wah 7/8 Wahoos win 7-4

7/9 DVs win 5-1

7/10 DVs win 6-4

7/11 Wahoos 11-0

@DVs 9/9 DVs win 5-3

9/10 DVs 4-3 (11)

9/11 Wahoos win 6-1

Drillers 3, Nads 2

Drillers 3 Nads 2

5/14 Cobb and Mujica combine on a 6-hit shutout.  Drillers win 1-0

5/15  HAL yanks Chen in the first inning again?  Drillers lose 5-4, but still have the 3-inn min box checked...

8/6 Jennings double, steals third, scores on a Mouse SF in the 10th.  Drillers win 3 - 2.

8/7  Drillers win 9 - 4 behind 12 hits.

8/8 Miley spins a 4-hit shutout behind 8Ks and no walks in this 4 - 0 Nad Victory.

Drillers 5, Wahoos 5

Wahoos and Drillers split 10 games in epic race to the bottom!

4/24 Chen can't escape the 2nd inning but Drillers make it close.  Wahoos win 9-6 in the Mudpit.

4/25 Out hit 14 - 9, somehow the Wahoos win 7 - 6

7/16 Nolasco finds the trick; allow more hits than your team gets and we win 8 - 2!

7/17 Shields beats Sanchez.  Drillers win as both pitchers go the distance 6 - 1.

7/18 Drillers have a 3-game win streak!  9 - 1 

6/3 Bruce raises his average to .195 and hits #22 as the Drillers win another one, 5 - 4.

6/4 Wahoos score 2 in the ninth, but it's two too few.  Drillers win 8 - 6.

6/5 Posey's 4-5 and 17th aren't enough.  Wahoos win 8-4 despite scattering 14 hits. OUD LOB 11

8/16 Burnett falls to (5-15) and Wahoos line was 12 16 0.  Hoos win 12 - 4.

8/17 Wahoos rap out another 15 hits vs Driller pitching and win the finale 9 - 5.

Interestingly, the Wahoo manager sent instructions for 11 games, but Drillers yelled "uncle" after 10.

Nads 3, Killer Bees 2

Nads take 3 of 5 at the Hive.

My team sucks, but my calves are awesome.

Beeboy

Killer Bees 4, Inmates 1

Somehow the Bees manage to take 4 of 5 at the Hive.  My team sucks.  Good luck in the playoffs.

Details from the Extra Reserve Contest

The Warpigs won with 920 losses, finishing 5 losses ahead of the Killer Bees and 6 ahead of the Zaps. The final few weeks were nip and tuck between the three teams, but the Pigs pulled ahead thanks to the hot streak of Cleveland and the suck streak of the White Sox. The Warpigs pulled this off despite having as one of their teams the Boston Red Sox, who tied with the Cardinals for the best record in baseball.

The Final Standings were:
1. Warpigs, 920
2. Killer Bees, 915
3. Zaps, 914
4. Sidewinders, 910
5. Drillers, 905
6. Wahoos, 903
7. Rhinos, 902
8. DVs, 900
9. FFTs, 894
10. Inmates, 891
11. Fungoes, 882
12. Mavs, 877
13. Tweeners, 874
14. Buckeyes, 868
15. SuperGoofs, 832
16. Nads, DNP (again)

For the record, the top losers were:
1. Astros, 111
2. Marlins, 100
3. White Sox, 99
4-5. Cubs and Twins, 96
6. Mariners, 91
7. Phillies, 89
8-11. Rockies, Brewers, Mets, and Blue Jays, 88

Everybody had Houston, and everybody except the Goofs had Miami, but oddly, only 3 teams picked the White Sox. Those 3 teams finished 1, 2, and 7.

There's a link on the NASOMA home page showing your picks.

Extra Reserve Pick Contest

The Indians' win on the last day of the season not only assured them of the top Wild Card spot in the American League, it also clinched the Extra Reserve Pick Contest for the Warpigs. I'll submit a detailed account after today's games are completed.

Mavs 5, Killer Bees 0

It was a brutal series.  The KB's just couldn't get hits.  For the year, the Bees got 21 runs in the ten games against the Mavs.

 

Game One:  Three Mav pitchers combine to throw a six hit shutout.  The KB’s left eight on and hit into two LoMaxes.  Doumit and Moss drove in the runs for the Mavs who could only get four hits but all were for extra bases.  Homer Allowed Bailey wins the Chico’s Bail Bonds Player of the Game award picking up his 16^th win in the process.  3-0 Mavs.  The Mavs 16^th shutout this year.

Game Two:  Vogelsong wins his 16^th.  Brandon Moss is the Chico’s Bail Bonds Player of the Game hitting a double and a homer driving in two of the Mavs four runs.  The Mavs hit into three double plays, had a player caught stealing and two runners thrown out at the plate as they continue to run the bases with reckless abandon.  Mavs 4-2.

Game Three:  Despite leaving twelve on base which is hard given how often we get thrown out running them, the Mavs win 6-2.  Country Breakfast wins the Betty’s Brothel’s Blow of the Game award with a big three run homer in the first that proved to be all the Mavs needed.

Game Four:  The KB’s missed a HR 1-6 fly B with two out in the ninth off Aaron Crow’s card.  A tainted save if there ever was one.  Michael Bourn led off with a home run and the Mavs faithful headed to the beer stand figuring it was time for the KB’s to start hitting finally but it didn’t happen.  The homer was one of three KB hits for the game.  Chico’s Bail Bond’s Player of the Game goes to Homer Allowed Bailey who held the KB’s to three hits in six innings.  Mavs win 2-1.

Game Five:  Another tough offensive game for the KB’s as they manage only two hits.  Chase Headley wins the Chico’s Bail Bonds Player of the Game with two home runs and four RBI’s.

Killer Bees 3, Inmates 2

All games at the Baptist Bowl via CM:

 

BEES 6 – LDMF 0: Lincecum tosses a 3-hit shutout; Freeman and Soriano tater.

 

BEES 7 – INMATES 3: Bees score four in the 9^th off of the Inmate arson squad. Verlander gets the win, allowing only 5 hits in 8 IP.

 

INMATES 9 – BEES 6: Inmate bats finally wake up a little, and the bullpen hangs on to finally score a win.

 

INMATES 2 – BEES 1: Inmates still can’t figure out how to hit Lincecum, but Rios hits a solo homer in the 6^th for the game-winner.

 

BEES 7 – INMATES 6 (14 innings): HAL allows Verlander to toss a complete game (?!?!), and the Inmates were hitless for the last 6 innings. A Freeman 2B was the game-winner.

 

The HEAD INMATE

Goofs 7, Rhinos 3; Buckeyes 6, Rhinos 4

Goofs 7 Rhinos 3

Game 1 Goofs 9 Rhinos 5 - Goofs hit 4 HR's as Villanueva gets the CG win

Game 2 Goofs 4 Rhinos 1 - Josh and Alexi each homer

Game 3 Goofs 5 Rhinos 1 - Darvish shuts them down as Hunter drives in 4

Game 4 Goofs 9 Rhinos 2 - Goof roll continues as they bang out 17 hits

Game 5 Rhinos 6 Goofs 4 - Rhinos finally get one as Jackson gets the win

Game 6 Goofs 9 Rhinos 7 - Ike, Kozma and Kratz all homer in support of Lewis

Game 7 Goofs 6 Rhinos 0 - Griffin and Benoit combine on 5 hit shutout

Game 8 Goofs 1 Rhinos 0 - Yu, Benoit and Tazawa combine on 2 hitter

Game 9 Rhinos 3 Goofs 1 - Marshall in relief of Cahill gets the win

Game 10 Rhinos 4 Goofs 3 - O'Day gets the win in relief

 

Buckeyes 6 Rhinos 4

Game 1 Buckeyes 7 Rhinos 6 - Ortiz and Youk homer as the Buckeyes out hit Rhinos 15-6

Game 2 Buckeyes 2 Rhinos 1 - Bonifacio with 3 hits and an RBI

Game 3 Buckeyes 6 Rhinos 5 - Cuddyer and Dunn each drive in 3.

Game 4 Buckeyes 9 Rhinos 2 - Ortiz, Youk and Izturis all homer as Dickeye gets the win

Game 5 Rhinos 7 Buckeyes 0 - Cahill CG shutout as Votto hits 2 HRs and Gomez 1.

Game 6 Buckeyes 12 Rhinos 11 - Buckeyes hit 7 homers and need all of them to win a wild one.

Game 7 Rhinos 10 Buckeyes 2 - Cahill too tough again as Rhinos romp

Game 8 Buckeyes 7 Rhinos 1 - Cuddyer and Hart each homer

Game 9 Rhinos 6 Buckeyes 5 - Gomez and Gordon homer as Kelly wins in relief

Game 10 Rhinos 10 Buckeyes 4 - Gomez hits 2 more homers as Beckett gets the win

It's post season time!

Verlander Traded

The Wahoos trade Jayson Werth, a 5th round pick, and a 7th round pick to the Killer Bees for Justin Verlander and a 3rd.

Fungoes 6, Wahoos 4

Fungoes and Wahoos finished up today all played by Fungoman via pc manager.

 

May 5 at Hooville:

 

Center fielder Jon Jay had 4 hits at PNC Park as the WAHOOS beat the FUNGOES by the count of 3 to 1.

The Wahoo offense came through in the first inning scoring 2 runners on 3 hits.  The early run support proved sufficient
for Mark Buehrle.  That was all the run support Buehrle required.  Neither team managed to score after the 3rd inning. 

Buehrle was helped out by Erasmo Ramirez who recorded his 2nd save.  Rick Porcello(5-13) took the loss.  He gave up 3 runs and 5 hits in 5 and 2/3 innings.

 

May 6 at Hooterville:

 

In a close game the WAHOOS got by the FUNGOES by the score of 5 to 3.  Jeff Samardzija delivered a fine performance in picking up the win.  He went 6 and
2/3 innings surrendering 5 hits and 3 walks dropping his ERA from 3.90 to 3.44.  Samardzija got help from Wade Davis who earned his 1st save.  Clayton
Kershaw(12-11) was tagged with the loss.  He pitched 6 innings giving up 7 hits and 4 walks.

 

May 7 at Hoostonville:

 

Left fielder Ryan Ludwick smacked a grand slam as the WAHOOS swept the overmatched FUNGOES, 18 to 6.

Wahoo bats were hot in the 4th inning when they had 4 runs on 5 hits, the 5th inning which saw them plate 4 runs on 4
hits and the 8th inning scoring 5 runs.  Wahoo batter had 20 hits overall, while Fungoes had 14. 

The winning pitcher was Anibal Sanchez who allowed 3 runs in 7 and 2/3
innings. Jordan Lyles(7-7) was given the loss.  He was hit hard and gave up 13 hits and 3 walks in 4 and 1/3 innings.  "Basically we suck" lamented the WTF skipper.

 

June 17 at WTF:

 

Clayton Kershaw(13-11) and Mark Buehrle treated the Fungo fans to a fine pitching duel at Pac Bell Park.  The Fungoes eventually emerged as victors over the Wahoos

by the score of 2 to 1.  Kershaw allowed only 3 hits and 2 walks in 7 innings, while racking up 8 strikeouts.  Jonathan Papelbon preserved the game for Kershaw, recording his his 25th save.

 

June 18 st WTF:

 

Josh Reddick hit one over the fence and had 3 RBI as the Wahoos beat the Fungoes by a score of 11 to 4.  Reddick enjoyed a fine day at the plate.  He stroked

a one-base hit in the 2nd inning, tripled bringing in two baserunners in the 4th inning and lofted a solo-blast 'downtown' in the 6th inning.  The victory went to Kevin Correia

who went 6 and 1/3 innings, allowing no runs. Jordan Lyles(7-8) took the loss.  He was unable to control the Wahoo  offense and allowed 6 hits and 2 walks in 3 and 2/3 innings.

 

July 29 at Wahoolaunchingpad:

 

Delmon Young knocked 2 homeruns and scored 3 times at PNC Park where the FUNGOES beat the WAHOOS by the score of 10 to 4.

Young was a thorn in the side of the hometown fans as he enjoyed a fine day at their team's expense.  He stroked a base-hit in the 2nd inning, hit a
bases-empty home run in the 4th inning, clubbed a solo home run in the 5th inning, lashed a single in the 7th inning and slapped a one-base hit in the
9th inning.  Offensively, Fungo offense was a juggernaut.  The Fungoes scored in 6 separate innings.  The win was credited to Clayton Kershaw(14-11) who went 6 innings allowing 1 run. Jeff Samardzija absorbed the loss.  He surrendered 9 runs in 5 and 1/3 innings. 

 

July 30 at Wahoohitpark:

 

Clint Barmes connected with a 'big fly' and had 3 RBI at PNC Park where the Fungoes beat the Wahoovians 11 to 3.

The Fungoes took the lead off Anibal Sanchez in the first inning scoring one runner. Mike Trout took charge himself, delivering a solo home run.  The Fungoes
offense man-handled the GARTH pitching staff as they scored in 7 of the 9 innings.  Kris Medlen(10-6) went 6 innings allowing 1 run for the win. Sanchez was
given the loss.  He gave up 6 runs in 5 and 2/3 innings.

 

August 29 at WTF:

 

Clayton Kershaw dominated striking out 10 batters and Ryan Zimmerman had 3 base hits and 2 RBI at Pac Bell Park where the Fungoes beat the Wahoos

by the score of 4 to 1.  Kershaw(15-11) simply was too much for the Wahoo batters.  He allowed only 3 hits and 1 walk in 7 innings.  Both teams ended up with

7 hits on the night.  Jonathan Papelbon gained credit for his 26th save.  Jeff Samardzija was the loser.  Despite losing, he struckout 11 batters in 8 innings.

The Wahovian manager was upset after the game.  'I don't like to complain but did you see that umpires strike zone?', he said.  'Maybe they ought to start
calling the strike zone the way it's printed in the rule book.'

 

August 30 at WTF:

 

The Fungoes win it by a 6 to 2 score at Pac Bell Park.  Nelson Cruz helped send the fans home Juiced er, um, I mean, happy.  He doubled scoring two
baserunners in the 1st inning and lifted one out of the park for a two run home run in the 3rd inning.  Neither team managed to score after the 3rd
inning.    The victory was credited to Jordan Lyles(8-8) who went 6 innings, allowing 2 runs. Anibal Sanchez was charged with the loss. 

 

August 31 at WTF:

 

Matt Wieters hit 2 doubles at Pac Bell Park as the Fungoes beat the Wahoos in 10 innings 4 to 3.  The game was deadlocked at 3 after nine full innings. 

In the 10th, Ryan Zimmerman slapped a one-base hit.  Clint Barmes came to the plate and laid down a sacrifice bunt.  One out later, Matt Carpenter came to bat

and would ground a single through the drawn in infield giving the Fungoes the victory and sending the 25 home-town fans home happy.  The Fungoes managed 8 hits

in their victory.   Jonathan Papelbon(4-3) picked up the victory, allowing 1 run in 2 and 2/3 innings. Jake Arrieta suffered the loss in relief.  He allowed 1 run and
1 hit in 2 and 1/3 innings. 

 

Fungoes win 6 of 10 from the Wahoos raising their record to 71-72