Newsletter for games through 9-25

NL DOGFIGHT: The big news was that the Rockies posted a 6-1 week to tie the Dodgers for the last wildcard spot…They can thank Pittsburgh, who took 2 of 3 from the Reds after Cincinnati won 2 of 3 from the mighty Astros….After the Dodger/Rocky logjam the Reds are 1 game back…The spoiler of the week was Washington, who swept the Braves, helping the Reds, Dodgers, and Rockies…Atlanta is still alive, 2 back with 3 left…The Dodgers draw the Padres while the Rockies play the Giants…Atlanta gets Philly…Cincy plays the Mets…

AL RACE: Finishing strong where the actual Angels faltered, Acthen’s crew went 5-2 to seal no worse than a tie in the last AL wildcard spot…They did it mostly themselves, sweeping Toronto in a 4-game series…Meanwhile, Texas can overtake Boston and post the best ASFBL record if they can make up 2 games in the short week…The Jays take on the Chisox, while the Angels face the Rangers in the last 3 games…

SCHEDULE NOTES:  Remember that schedule will run continuously, so that the wildcard games will start 1 game after the regular season…the top 3 teams will therefore get 7 days’ rest…Click on the rules link and find the playoff section for full details…The next lineup will be due next Tuesday, but after that we typically run 1 series every 2 days, so we should wrap up the season by about October 10…

FEATS AND FAILURES:

Jon Lester of BOS had 10 strikeouts against BAL on 9/20/2011
Derrek Lee of BAL had 8 RBI against BOS on 9/20/2011
Matt Kemp of LAD had 5 hits against SFG on 9/21/2011
Rod Barajas of LAD had 6 RBI against SFG on 9/21/2011
Jesus Flores of WAS struck out 4 times against PHI on 9/22/2011
Justin Verlander of DET had 12 strikeouts against BAL on 9/25/2011
Mark Reynolds of BAL struck out 4 times against DET on 9/25/2011
Jason Donald of CLE had 5 hits against MIN on 9/25/2011
Mike Stanton of TOR struck out 4 times against TBR on 9/25/2011
Adam Lind of MIL had 6 RBI against FLA on 9/25/2011
Mark Trumbo of LAA struck out 4 times against OAK on 9/25/2011
Josh Willingham of OAK struck out 4 times against LAA on 9/25/2011

Advertisement

Newsletter for games through 9-18-2011

FEATS AND FAILURES:

Matt Wieters of BAL robbed 3 hits against TBR on 9/12/2011
Carlos Lee of CIN had 5 hits against CHC on 9/12/2011
Joe Benson of MIN struck out 4 times against KCR on 9/13/2011
Ian Desmond of WAS hit 3 home runs against NYM on 9/14/2011
Clayton Kershaw of LAD had 12 strikeouts against PIT on 9/15/2011
Cliff Lee of PHI had 10 strikeouts against STL on 9/16/2011
Matt Wieters of BAL robbed 3 hits against LAA on 9/16/2011
Darnell McDonald of BOS hit 3 home runs against TBR on 9/16/2011
Darnell McDonald of BOS had 6 RBI against TBR on 9/16/2011
Mark Kotsay of NYM struck out 4 times against ATL on 9/18/2011

Newsletter for games through 9-11-11

DODGER MOMENT:  Dana Eveland of LAD threw a no-hitter against WAS on 9/6/2011!!!  The actual Dodgers have had the best record in MLB over the last 14 games, and the actual club went 5-2 this week.  A team no contender wants to play down the stretch…Despite the real team’s run, Balligall’s crew are +4.5 WOR…

COMMENTS: The huge series this week was Detroit and Cleveland, and congrats to Detroit for a big week in a key race.  They have turned the tightest race in the league into a 5-game lead in 2 weeks…Never say die; the Marlins, Mariners, and Jays all posted winning records despite being a bit down in the standings…the Mariners and Jays both have positive WOR…The key divisional race is now the NL central, with the Cards and Astros all tied up…The Reds were the team with the best record in the division and are +6 WOR…The Angels have a half game lead on the last AL wildcard spot, and like the real club get more dangerous in the playoffs where you only need 3 starters…Atlanta has the 3rd best pitching in the ASFBL, but only the 2nd best in their division, behind Philly…Anaheim leads the AL in pitching, another reason the top teams might be looking over their shoulder…The Yankees have scored the 3rd most runs in the ASFBL, but are still more than 100 behind the Bosox, who lead everybody by a lot…KC leads the league with 142 stolen bases….Atlanta defenders have robbed 245 hits this year, more than 2 a game, and giving their pitchers almost an inning a game…

PENNANT STRETCH:  21 lineups submitted this week, a little low by this year’s standards but a huge rate based on historical comparison….

FEATS AND FAILURES:

Clayton Kershaw of LAD had 10 strikeouts against WAS on 9/5/2011
Aaron Bates of MIN had 6 RBI against CWS on 9/5/2011
Brett Pill of NYM had 8 RBI against FLA on 9/5/2011
Tyler Colvin of DET had 7 RBI against CLE on 9/7/2011
Joe Mauer of TOR robbed 3 hits against BOS on 9/7/2011
J. P. Arencibia of TOR had 6 RBI against BOS on 9/8/2011
Lucas Harrell of CWS had 10 strikeouts against CLE on 9/8/2011
Adrian Gonzalez of BOS struck out 4 times against TBR on 9/9/2011
Ian Kinsler of TEX hit for the cycle against OAK on 9/9/2011
Alexis Rios of HOU had 5 hits against WAS on 9/10/2011
Madison Bumgarner of SFG had 10 strikeouts against LAD on 9/11/2011
Trayvon Robinson of LAD struck out 4 times against SFG on 9/11/2011

Newsletter for games through 9-4-11

COMMENTS: The Tigers pried first place in the AL central from the Indians…The Tigers owe a holiday card to the Royals and Oakland, who each played spoiler against the Tribe…The AL wildcard race is a dogfight for the second spot, with the Jays, Indians, and Angels within a half game…It’s a 4-way race in the NL, with Atanta, Cincinnati, Colorado and the Dodgers in a virtual tie…St. Louis crawled into a tie with the Astros…Oakland and the Angels each went 6-1…Milwuakee posted the best record in the NL, going 5-1…The actual Dodgers had an 11-1 run, but the fantasy group is still +4 WOR…Four fantasy players have more than 40 Homers…

25 owners submitted lineups this week!

FEATS AND FAILURES:

Brett Lawrie of TOR robbed 3 hits against TBR on 8/29/2011
Jerry Hairston of MIN had 5 hits against CWS on 8/30/2011
Miguel Cabrera of DET had 5 hits against KCR on 8/31/2011
Clayton Kershaw of LAD had 13 strikeouts against SDP on 8/31/2011
Ryan Braun of BOS struck out 4 times against NYY on 8/31/2011
Derek Jeter of NYY had 5 hits against BOS on 8/31/2011
Andruw Jones of NYY struck out 4 times against BOS on 8/31/2011
Nick Swisher of NYY struck out 4 times against BOS on 8/31/2011
Martin Prado of ATL robbed 3 hits against LAD on 9/3/2011
Geovany Soto of CHC had 7 RBI against PIT on 9/4/2011