As we head into Sunday, one of the two head-to-head matchups looks to go right down to the wire.
Despite anemic weeks, the Arbitration Losers and Upton No Good will take their series right down to the end. And whoever wins will definitely feel lucky, as they likely will do it with a weekly total that could be south of 150.
The Losers hold a narrow 110-107 lead. With their Game 1 advantage, that translates into a 14-point aggregate lead. The Losers will have Jon Garland pitching against the Brewers, while UNG will pin its hopes on Jhoulys Chacin against the Diamondbacks. UNG got a tough break when Edwin Jackson missed his start this week because of a rainout Friday. But Jason Hammel's 8-point outing as the emergency starter kept UNG close.
The other series is all but wrapped up. The Pickle Bugs lead the Triple-A's 213-142, so it would take a major miracle on Sunday for the Triple-A's to rally. Should they hold on and win, the Bugs would face the Gladstone Goatwhisperers in the semifinals, while the Misfits await the winner of the Losers-UNG.
Chad Billingsley's win Saturday night enabled the Pickle Bugs to take over the overall lead.
OVERALL STANDINGS
1. Pickle Bugs (Jon) 3521
Fifteen-point wins for Billingsley, Volstad
2. Arbitration Losers (Tim) 3506
Nothing beats a six-point Saturday
3. Upton No Good (Bill-Rich) 3501
Conflicted teammates: Upton's hits help beat Jimenez
4. Gladstone Goatwhisperers (Arik) 3486
Cueto's suspension should have been longer
5. Misfits (Reid) 3478
Might be time for an overthrow of Castro
6. VC Appraisers (Kevin-Dave) 3264
No bonus points for positive drug test (Paulino)
7. Pitch You Blockhead (Scott) 3232
Apparently, Blockheads are following instructions
8. Triple-A's (Ken) 3209
Bad news: Nolasco could be done for season
9. Fresh Fish (Rick) 3124
Just when they thought they could escape cellar, Strasburg goes down
9. Chico's Chuggers (Shawn) 3124
Felipe Lopez loses starts, and points, too
HEAD-TO-HEAD PLAYOFFS
Pickle Bugs 213, Triple-A's 142 (Bugs lead two-week aggregate +78)
Arbitration Losers 110, Upton No Good 107 (Losers lead two-week aggregate +14)
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Friday, August 20, 2010
Thursday's report
Normally, we would top the blog during head-to-head playoffs with how those matchups are going.
But an unusual twist leads us to start off with the overall race.
The Arbitration Losers and Upton No Good are struggling through poor weeks, meanwhile the Pickle Bugs are having a big week. The combination of those two facts has created a logjam at the top of the overall standings.
Here it is Aug. 20, and the top five teams in the overall standings are separated by just 14 points.
One of these five teams will eventually win the overall championship and one of these five teams will finish out of the money. And the end of the season is a little more than six weeks away.
Also, at least one of these teams will not advance to the head-to-head semifinals. And at this point, it looks as if that will be the Losers or UNG.
As we mentioned, neither team is having a good week. They are having the kind of weeks that would normally kill teams' hopes of advancing in a head-to-head matchup. Luckily for both teams, they are facing each other.
Heading into the weekend, the Losers lead 56-55, but UNG is set for four pitching starts over the weekend (Jimenez, Gallardo, Chacin and EJackson). The losers will get just three starts (Halladay, Jurrjens and Garland).
OVERALL STANDINGS
1. Gladstone Goatwhisperers (Arik) 3457
Jay Bruce has come alive
2. Pickle Bugs (Jon) 3453
OK, we'll say it: Ted Lilly? What the hell?
3. Arbitration Losers (Tim) 3452
Dunn, Tulowitzki, Montero, Stanton combine for -2 points this week
4. Upton No Good (Bill-Rich) 3449
Chris Young has lessened sting of bad week
5. Misfits (Reid) 3443
Misfits lose some punch when K-Rod has season-ending surgery
6. VC Appraisers (Kevin-Dave) 3234
Good news: Utley back from DL; Bad news: Hawpe is dumped by Rox
7. Pitch You Blockhead (Scott) 3175
Broxton trying to work his way back to closer job
8. Triple-A's (Ken) 3158
Remember when Matt Kemp was Top 20 player?
9. Chico's Chuggers (Shawn) 3095
Felipe Lopez struggling, and may have lost everyday job
10. Fresh Fish (Rick) 3082
Johnson and J-Roll account for 36 of 70 weekly points
Head-to-head scores
Pickle Bugs 145, Triple-A's 91 (Bugs lead two-week aggregate +61)
Arbitration Losers 56, Upton No Good 55 (Losers lead two-week aggregate +12)
Player acquisitions
RP John Axford, by Misfits (August No. 2)
But an unusual twist leads us to start off with the overall race.
The Arbitration Losers and Upton No Good are struggling through poor weeks, meanwhile the Pickle Bugs are having a big week. The combination of those two facts has created a logjam at the top of the overall standings.
Here it is Aug. 20, and the top five teams in the overall standings are separated by just 14 points.
One of these five teams will eventually win the overall championship and one of these five teams will finish out of the money. And the end of the season is a little more than six weeks away.
Also, at least one of these teams will not advance to the head-to-head semifinals. And at this point, it looks as if that will be the Losers or UNG.
As we mentioned, neither team is having a good week. They are having the kind of weeks that would normally kill teams' hopes of advancing in a head-to-head matchup. Luckily for both teams, they are facing each other.
Heading into the weekend, the Losers lead 56-55, but UNG is set for four pitching starts over the weekend (Jimenez, Gallardo, Chacin and EJackson). The losers will get just three starts (Halladay, Jurrjens and Garland).
OVERALL STANDINGS
1. Gladstone Goatwhisperers (Arik) 3457
Jay Bruce has come alive
2. Pickle Bugs (Jon) 3453
OK, we'll say it: Ted Lilly? What the hell?
3. Arbitration Losers (Tim) 3452
Dunn, Tulowitzki, Montero, Stanton combine for -2 points this week
4. Upton No Good (Bill-Rich) 3449
Chris Young has lessened sting of bad week
5. Misfits (Reid) 3443
Misfits lose some punch when K-Rod has season-ending surgery
6. VC Appraisers (Kevin-Dave) 3234
Good news: Utley back from DL; Bad news: Hawpe is dumped by Rox
7. Pitch You Blockhead (Scott) 3175
Broxton trying to work his way back to closer job
8. Triple-A's (Ken) 3158
Remember when Matt Kemp was Top 20 player?
9. Chico's Chuggers (Shawn) 3095
Felipe Lopez struggling, and may have lost everyday job
10. Fresh Fish (Rick) 3082
Johnson and J-Roll account for 36 of 70 weekly points
Head-to-head scores
Pickle Bugs 145, Triple-A's 91 (Bugs lead two-week aggregate +61)
Arbitration Losers 56, Upton No Good 55 (Losers lead two-week aggregate +12)
Player acquisitions
RP John Axford, by Misfits (August No. 2)
Monday, August 16, 2010
Week 20 roster moves
PLAYERS ACQUIRED
SP Chris Volstad, by Pickle Bugs (August No. 2)
OF Mike Stanton, by Arbitration Losers (August No. 2)
SP Daniel Hudson, by Misfits (August No. 1)
PLAYERS RELEASED
2B Freddy Sanchez, by Arbitration Losers
SP Jonathan Niese, by Misfits
SP J.A. Happ, by Misfits
1B Ike Davis, by Misfits
WEEK 20 ACTIVE ROSTER CHANGES
UPTON NO GOOD: Benched SP Jason Hammel, activated SP Jhoulys Chacin
PICKLE BUGS: Benched SP Wandy Rodriguez, activated SP Chris Volstad
FRESH FISH: No changes
VC APPRAISERS: No changes
GLADSTONE GOATWHISPERERS: Benched SP Ian Kennedy, activated SP Clayton Kershaw
ARBITRATION LOSERS: Benched OF Johnny Gomes and SP Bobby Enright, activated OF Mike Stanton and SP Jon Garland
TRIPLE-A'S: Benched SP Vicente Padilla, activated SP R.A. Dickey
MISFITS: Released 1B Ike Davis; moved SP Homer Bailey from disabled list to bench; benched SP Ryan Dempster; moved OF Aubrey Huff to 1B; activated OF Shane Victorino from disabled list; activated SP Hiroki Kuroda
PITCH YOU BLOCKHEAD: Benched SP Madison Bumgarner; activated SP Clayton Richard
CHICO'S CHUGGERS: No changes.
SP Chris Volstad, by Pickle Bugs (August No. 2)
OF Mike Stanton, by Arbitration Losers (August No. 2)
SP Daniel Hudson, by Misfits (August No. 1)
PLAYERS RELEASED
2B Freddy Sanchez, by Arbitration Losers
SP Jonathan Niese, by Misfits
SP J.A. Happ, by Misfits
1B Ike Davis, by Misfits
WEEK 20 ACTIVE ROSTER CHANGES
UPTON NO GOOD: Benched SP Jason Hammel, activated SP Jhoulys Chacin
PICKLE BUGS: Benched SP Wandy Rodriguez, activated SP Chris Volstad
FRESH FISH: No changes
VC APPRAISERS: No changes
GLADSTONE GOATWHISPERERS: Benched SP Ian Kennedy, activated SP Clayton Kershaw
ARBITRATION LOSERS: Benched OF Johnny Gomes and SP Bobby Enright, activated OF Mike Stanton and SP Jon Garland
TRIPLE-A'S: Benched SP Vicente Padilla, activated SP R.A. Dickey
MISFITS: Released 1B Ike Davis; moved SP Homer Bailey from disabled list to bench; benched SP Ryan Dempster; moved OF Aubrey Huff to 1B; activated OF Shane Victorino from disabled list; activated SP Hiroki Kuroda
PITCH YOU BLOCKHEAD: Benched SP Madison Bumgarner; activated SP Clayton Richard
CHICO'S CHUGGERS: No changes.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Top scoring players
BATTERS
1. Albert Pujols (PB) 363
2. Joey Votto (VCA) 341
3. Carlos Gonzalez (UNG) 338
4. Ryan Braun (FF) 330
5. Rickie Weeks (Mis) 323
6. Matt Holliday (PYB) 317
7. Adam Dunn (AL) 315
8. Jayson Werth (TA) 314
9. Brandon Phillips (GG) 311
10. Hunter Pence (GG) 304
PITCHERS
1. Roy Halladay (AL) 402
2. Adam Wainwright (Mis) 382
3. Ubaldo Jimenez (UNG) 369
4. Chris Carpenter (TA) 318
5. Josh Johnson (FF) 315
RELIEVERS
1. Heath Bell (PB) 234
2. Billy Wanger (GG) 228
3. Brian Wilson (AL) 223
1. Albert Pujols (PB) 363
2. Joey Votto (VCA) 341
3. Carlos Gonzalez (UNG) 338
4. Ryan Braun (FF) 330
5. Rickie Weeks (Mis) 323
6. Matt Holliday (PYB) 317
7. Adam Dunn (AL) 315
8. Jayson Werth (TA) 314
9. Brandon Phillips (GG) 311
10. Hunter Pence (GG) 304
PITCHERS
1. Roy Halladay (AL) 402
2. Adam Wainwright (Mis) 382
3. Ubaldo Jimenez (UNG) 369
4. Chris Carpenter (TA) 318
5. Josh Johnson (FF) 315
RELIEVERS
1. Heath Bell (PB) 234
2. Billy Wanger (GG) 228
3. Brian Wilson (AL) 223
Sunday's report
HEAD-TO-HEAD PLAYOFFS
Misfits 203, Fresh Fish 75; Misfits win series 1-0
Gladstone Goatwhisperers 182, VC Appraisers 160; Goatwhisperers win series 1-0
Pickle Bugs 190, Triple-A's 183; Pickle Bugs lead series 1-0
Arbitration Losers 211, Upton No Good 200; Arbitration Losers lead series 1-0.
For the first time since moving to the head-to-head format, both Nos. 1 and 2 seeded teams advanced to the semifinals without having to play a second game in the series. The Misfits earned the most lopsided victory in FBLG head-to-head history with a 203-75 victory. The week the Fresh Fish had likely ranks as the worst single week that did not fall during the All-Star Break in the FBLG's 18-year history. We know for fact that the best week in league history is 299 points. We don't have an exact number on the previous worse, but we believe it to have been in the 80s somewhere, easily bested by the Fish's anemic 75-point total. Just how bad was it? Well, the Fish's ace (Josh Johnson) put up a -5 outing. Two positions players (Clint Barmes and Seth Smith of the Rockies) posted 0-point weeks. Ryan Braun was the team's star for the week with 14 points. But heading into Friday's game, he had a 0 points for the week.
The Goatwhisperers were not hurt by the fact the Johnny Cueto lost out on a second start last week because of his suspension. The VC Appraisers went into Sunday almost in a dead-heat, but came up empty on Sunday, scoring only 13 points. The GGs scored 39 despite missing out on Cueto and having Tim Lincecum post a two-point outing.
The Misfits and Goatwhisperers get Week 20 off to rest their starters for the semifinals beginning Week 20.
The other two games are still very tight, despite Week 19 wins from the Pickle Bugs and Arbitration Losers.
The Triple-A's and Upton No Good must win in Week 20 to stay alive and they must outscore their opponents by more than what they were outscored by in Week 19.
In other words, UNG needs to beat the Losers by 12 points in Week 20 after losing 211-200 in Week 19. The Triple-A's deficit is just seven points after the Bugs won 190-183.
OVERALL STANDINGS
1. Arbitration Losers (Tim) 3396
Time for Johnny Gomes to take his whopping one-point week to the bench
2. Upton No Good (Bill-Rich) 3394
Really hoping starting pitchers get a little more help from hitters and bullpen next week
3. Gladstone Goatwhisperers (Arik) 3360
Hunter Pence quietly having a great season
4. Misfits (Reid) 3351
Really hoping Howard returns from DL in time for semifinals
5. Pickle Bugs (Jon) 3308
Heath Bell's 20 points made him the best PB pitcher of the week
6. VC Appraisers (Kevin-Dave) 3135
Ronny Paulino's 0-point week hurt head-to-head chances
7. Pitch You Blockhead (Scott) 3081
Huge 38-point week for Wade LeBlanc
8. Triple-A's (Ken) 3067
Padilla's -5 outing on Sunday came at a very bad time
9. Chico's Chuggers (Shawn) 3022
Jonathan Sanchez needs to guarantee more points for Chuggers
10. Fresh Fish (Rick) 3012
Garcia, Zito set for dual starts; We'll see if that's a good thing or bad thing
Misfits 203, Fresh Fish 75; Misfits win series 1-0
Gladstone Goatwhisperers 182, VC Appraisers 160; Goatwhisperers win series 1-0
Pickle Bugs 190, Triple-A's 183; Pickle Bugs lead series 1-0
Arbitration Losers 211, Upton No Good 200; Arbitration Losers lead series 1-0.
For the first time since moving to the head-to-head format, both Nos. 1 and 2 seeded teams advanced to the semifinals without having to play a second game in the series. The Misfits earned the most lopsided victory in FBLG head-to-head history with a 203-75 victory. The week the Fresh Fish had likely ranks as the worst single week that did not fall during the All-Star Break in the FBLG's 18-year history. We know for fact that the best week in league history is 299 points. We don't have an exact number on the previous worse, but we believe it to have been in the 80s somewhere, easily bested by the Fish's anemic 75-point total. Just how bad was it? Well, the Fish's ace (Josh Johnson) put up a -5 outing. Two positions players (Clint Barmes and Seth Smith of the Rockies) posted 0-point weeks. Ryan Braun was the team's star for the week with 14 points. But heading into Friday's game, he had a 0 points for the week.
The Goatwhisperers were not hurt by the fact the Johnny Cueto lost out on a second start last week because of his suspension. The VC Appraisers went into Sunday almost in a dead-heat, but came up empty on Sunday, scoring only 13 points. The GGs scored 39 despite missing out on Cueto and having Tim Lincecum post a two-point outing.
The Misfits and Goatwhisperers get Week 20 off to rest their starters for the semifinals beginning Week 20.
The other two games are still very tight, despite Week 19 wins from the Pickle Bugs and Arbitration Losers.
The Triple-A's and Upton No Good must win in Week 20 to stay alive and they must outscore their opponents by more than what they were outscored by in Week 19.
In other words, UNG needs to beat the Losers by 12 points in Week 20 after losing 211-200 in Week 19. The Triple-A's deficit is just seven points after the Bugs won 190-183.
OVERALL STANDINGS
1. Arbitration Losers (Tim) 3396
Time for Johnny Gomes to take his whopping one-point week to the bench
2. Upton No Good (Bill-Rich) 3394
Really hoping starting pitchers get a little more help from hitters and bullpen next week
3. Gladstone Goatwhisperers (Arik) 3360
Hunter Pence quietly having a great season
4. Misfits (Reid) 3351
Really hoping Howard returns from DL in time for semifinals
5. Pickle Bugs (Jon) 3308
Heath Bell's 20 points made him the best PB pitcher of the week
6. VC Appraisers (Kevin-Dave) 3135
Ronny Paulino's 0-point week hurt head-to-head chances
7. Pitch You Blockhead (Scott) 3081
Huge 38-point week for Wade LeBlanc
8. Triple-A's (Ken) 3067
Padilla's -5 outing on Sunday came at a very bad time
9. Chico's Chuggers (Shawn) 3022
Jonathan Sanchez needs to guarantee more points for Chuggers
10. Fresh Fish (Rick) 3012
Garcia, Zito set for dual starts; We'll see if that's a good thing or bad thing
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