Monday, June 18, 2018

Week 11: The Check Swing

We so rarely get to put Marlins up here, so congrats to Stud of the Week JT Realmuto!
It was a low-scoring week around FBLG, as only Bill's Project Mayhem managed to score more than 170 points, clocking in with 192.2. That was enough for PM to leapfrog from 8th to 6th, and they sit not far out of 5th.

Only one team in the league has more than 7 wins, and it's the fourth-place Arbitration Losers. Must be that D.J. LeMahieu magic, I guess.

There are three teams within 23 points of each other atop the scoreboard, led narrowly by the commishes. Near as we can tell, the only category Fasano Don't Dance leads the league in is walks by its "hitters." So there's your drafting strategy next year. You're welcome.

The scoreboard

Ancient cavemen try to take down Carlos Santana.
1. Fasano Don't Dance (2011 points, 7-4, last week 2): Three-quarters of the projected rotation was hurt or on the bench in Week 11, and none of the hitters did much of note, but the commishes got just enough to squeak out a 4-point win against the Misfits. For the second week in a row, Brian "Marlin" Anderson was the top hitter, putting up 24.5. Jake Lamb, now healthy, added 17, but overall the offense was merely adequate. Carlos Santana had 7 walks and 5 singles, which would be amazing if he didn't run like a 3-legged woolly mammoth, but not as helpful when he finished most of those trips on base... still on base. Young Jack Flaherty (28.3 in 2 starts) anchored the rotation, striking out 13 and allowing only 1 run in 11.1 innings. Jacob deGrom was brilliant again and all it got him was 10 points. And closer Brandon Morrow was let out of his bubble wrap just long enough to throw 1 inning all week. Robbie Ray and Ronald Acuna are due back from injury shortly, which should help with the stretch run.

 2. Stable Geniuses (2006.2 points, 5-6, last week 1): The Geniuses came up just short in the matchup with the Bucs, falling under .500 despite being just a few points out of the overall lead. Sean Newcomb (18) has developed into a legit ace for Matt's revolving door rotation, and Ross Stripling (15.3) isn't far behind. But the rest of the crew is up-and-down, and Brad Boxberger (6) might have Matt yearning for the days of having Kenley Jansen in there. The offense was balanced but not spectacular in Week 11, led by Odubel Herrera and Starling Marte, who each put up a 19.5. No one else reached 15 points, and Travis Shaw (14) was somehow caught stealing twice. Where you going, Travis? Even with the down week, this offense is still scary to face and fully healthy.

That feeling when your brilliance costs Max Scherzer a win.
3. Fresh Fish (1988.5 points, 6-5, last week 3): The pitching was less than fresh, but the offense was good enough for a narrow win against PYB. Max Scherzer struck out 10 but only scored 11 because his team's offense couldn't solve the riddle that is Marco Estrada. Patrcik Corbin (10.3) went 0-1 in 2 starts, Kenta Maeda (4) couldn't strike anyone out, and Dan Straily (9) is sadly a Marlin. Among the hitters, Andrew McCutchen (25) and Justin Bour (20.5) mashed, and only Maikel Franco (9) failed to reach 10 points. Javy Baez and Buster Posey are both dinged up, but Wil Myers is almost back. Yu Darvish is still a few weeks away - maybe he'll be back in time to contribute down the stretch. Or maybe he'll just keep being mediocre.

4. Arbitration Losers (1953.7 points, 9-2, last week 4): Having Braves this year is a good thing: Arodys Vizcaino (21) had 4 shutout innings for 4 saves, scoring 21 to lead Tim's pitching staff in a win against BodySuit Man. Chris Stratton (18) had two pretty good starts, Jon Lester (12) continues to be annoyingly effective, and Tim was able to overcome Michael Wacha's (-5) blowup start. Among the hitters, JT Realmuto (28) blew up with 3 homers, 6 RBIs and 8 runs. But Bryce Harper (5.5) continued to scuffle... did you know he's hitting .217? Despite missing Corey Seager and AJ Pollock, this offense is still humming along. But the pitching is missing Johnny Cueto and Adam Wainwright, and Julio Teheran left his amazing Sunday start with hamstring cramps. Tim needs all these guys healthy to make a run.

I WILL CHARGE THE UMPIRES THE RIGHT WAY.
5. The Misfits (1919.8 points, 7-4, last week 5): Reid's offense went freaking ballistic in Week 11, putting up 132.5 points. But the pitching was poor, and Wade Davis' Sunday implosion killed the Misfits' chances of taking down the Fasanos. First the good: Trevor Story - now FBLG's third-leading hitter - posted a 29 on the strength of a homer, 4 doubles, 6 runs and 7 RBIs. Lorenzo Cain (26.5) Christian Yelich (17.5) and Josh Harrison (16.5) were the other big contributors. The low scorer was Yadier Molina (7.5), but he did it THE RIGHT WAY (mostly by not hitting and also making an error). Reid's pitching, outside of - no, really - Anibal Sanchez (18) was pretty bad, as Seth Lugo and Tyson Ross each posted a 4 and the aforementioned Davis put up -6.7 for the week. The Misfits' DL currently has Clayton Kershaw, Taijuan Walker, Jeremy Hellickson, Walker Buehler, Howie Kendrick and Evan Longoria on it. Some of those guys won't be back (or not soon), but getting a few horses back will help with the season's final 6 weeks.

6. Project Mayhem (1899 points, 4-7, last week 8): The week's top-scoring team continued to hit and also finally got some pitching in its destruction of The Rookies. Aaron Nola put up 25 in 2 starts, and Jameson Taillon (14) and Tyler Mahle (12.3) each earned wins in their lone start as the staff put up 65.7 for the week. Marcell Ozuna (26) finally got hot, hitting 4 homers and driving in 8 for the week. Nolan Arenado (21.5) was his usual self, and young Juan Soto (15.5) had a nice week too. The offense is deep and it's clicking right now - any week the pitching shows up, the Fight Clubbers will be a tough out. Will Jimmy Nelson come back to provide a late boost?

 7. Pitch You Blockhead (1889.5 points, 6-5, last week 7): Scott couldn't get quite enough offense to get past the Fresh Fish, and as with most things in the world, at least some of the blame falls on the Mets. Asdrubal Cabrera (6.5) finally cooled off at the worst time, and no one picked up the slack. Anthonys Rizzo (13.5) and Rendon (12) were pretty good, and Ian Desmond (21.5) mashed 3 homers, but Wilmer Difo (1), Dansby Swanson (7), Billy Hamilton (2) and Yasmani Grandal (7) all failed to reach 10 points. On the mound, Chad Kuhl (16) and Clayton Richard (15) had strong wins, and Mike Foltynewicz (11) was dominating before getting injured, but that injury could really hurt Scott's chances. That's now four starters on the DL (along with Rich Hill, Joey Lucchesi and Zach Davies), and the Blockheads could really use some of that firepower back.
"Hey, Joey! Are you glad you're still a Red?"
8. BodySuit Man (1882.7 points, 4-7, last week 6): Adam's pitchers made 7 starts in the week... and went 0-3. So that's not ideal, and explains the loss to the Arbitration Losers. Jon Gray (18) struck out 19 but allowed 9 runs, Jake Arrieta (-2.7) was shelled in his only start, and neither Clay Buchholz (8.7) nor Tanner Roark (7) could get a win in 2 starts apiece. And closer Sean Doolittle only pitched once. On the offensive side, Ketel Marte (20) led the way, which is, again, not ideal. Ender Inciarte (17.5) and Joey Votto (17) were good; Ryan Braun (4.5), Willson Contreras (6) and Todd Frazier (7.5) were less so. Votto managed 4 hits on the week, none of them singles or homers. Way to cut out the margins, Joey! Noah Syndergaard and Yoenis Cespedes are both Mets, so both are hurt - getting them back could be a huge boon. 

9. The Rookies (1771.3 points, 3-8, last week 9): As a general rule, you don't want your closer to be your top-scoring pitcher. And you almost definitely don't want him to score more than half your pitching points for the week. But that's just what Felipe "Vazquez" did for Henry, and that helps explain the blowout loss to the Kelms. Zack Greinke (3.7), Madison Bumgarner (3), Gio Gonzalez (1) and Trevor Williams (-1) combined to go 0-4 and allow 16 runs in 19.2 innings. That's not really going to get it done. In good news, Henry still has the league's best hitter, and Freddie Freeman (20.5) led the way again. David Peralta (19.5) was right behind him, but Scott Schebler (3), Jay Bruce (4.5), Chris Owings (5) and Tucker Barnhart (8) didn't help the cause much. Even Ozzie Albies (12.5) cooled off a little. Henry's team may be the healthiest in the league, with only Jeff Samardzija on the DL... and, really, it's not like he's scoring many fewer points on the DL than he was in the lineup. All four of Henry's current starters have pitched like aces at one point or another - can they put it all together at the same time?

10. Clemente's Bucs (1740.8 points, 4-7, last week 10): Ray's sluggers led the way in a narrow win against the Stable Geniuses. Rhys Hoskins (24) came back from trying to break his face to hit 3 homers, and Paul Goldschmidt (23), while cooling off a little, continued to hit the ball all over the damn place. Finding Brandon Nimmo (17) has paid off for Ray, and now Adam Eaton is back. And we haven't even talked about Kris Bryant (7.5) and Austin Meadows (10), both of whom are capable of big weeks any time. The Bucs' pitching wasn't great, with Jose Quintana (10) and Chase Anderson (19.3) managing a 1-2 record in 4 starts. New closer Kenley Jansen (11) is dealing, but preseason fantasy darlings Luke Weaver (2.3) and Luis Castillo (1) have both been up-and-down this year.


Hitting leaders after Week 11

1. Freddie Freeman (R) 240
2. Nick Markakis (FDD) 220
3. Trevor Story (M) 213
4. Ozzie Albies (R) 210.5
5. Nolan Arenado (PM) 208.5
Swing as hard as you can, just in case you hit it.

Pitching leaders after Week 11

1. Max Scherzer (FF) 270.7
2. Jacob deGrom (FDD) 199.3
3. Aaron Nola (PM) 196.3
4. Patrick Corbin (FF) 195
5. Sean Newcomb (SG) 171
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