Week 11: Thursday Roundup

Of all the Pirates outfielders, who'd have guessed this guy would be the most impressive?

STUDS: Jon Gray (M) earned the win, striking out 10 and allowing 4 runs in 6 innings. Cody Bellinger (R) and Manny Machado (AL) each homered twice, singled, and drove in 3. Jarrod Dyson (R) homered, doubled, scored twice and drove in 2. Bryan Reynolds (AL) had 2 doubles, a single, a walk, a run and 2 RBIs. Charlie Blackmon (CB) had 2 homers, a triple, a walk and 4 RBIs. Zack Greinke (YA) earned the win with 3 strikeouts in 7.1 shutout innings. Clayton Kershaw (FF)

DUDS: Edwin Diaz (M) blew a save and took the loss, allowing 3 runs and striking out 1 in 2 innings.

Week 11: Wednesday Roundup

Nightmare to opposing pitchers at the plate. Nightmare to his own pitchers in the field. Austin Riley is never dull.

STUDS: Austin Riley (FF) was a double shy of a cycle, scored 3 runs and drove in 3. Cole Hamels (YA) struck out 9 in 7 shutout innings for the win. Garrett Cooper (CB) was a double shy of a cycle, drove in 4 and scored twice.

DUDS: Fernando Tatis (HG) went 0-fer with an error. Kolten Wong (YA) singled and erred.

Week 11: Tuesday Roundup

"Was the crowd noise here in Miami a big factor for you today?"

STUDS: Pete Alonso (HG) homered, walked twice, scored twice and drove in 3. Christian Yelich (HG) was a triple shy of a cycle and scored twice. Brian McCann (FF) - everyone's favorite redneck cousin - had a pair of 2-run homers. Anthony Rendon (YA) homered twice, walked, and drove in 3. Yasmani Grandal (WLB) was a triple shy of a cycle (boy we'd like to have seen that triple), drove in 4 and made an error. Dakota Hudson (WLB) struck out 6 and allowed 1 run in a 7-inning win. Max Muncy (CB) had 2 solo homers and a walk. Jeff McNeil (CB) enjoyed a doubleheader, homering, doubling, singling twice, scoring 3 runs and driving in 3. Charlie Blackmon (CB) homered, doubled, scored twice and drove in 3.

DUDS: Raisel Iglesias (HG) allowed the walkoff run and took the loss in 0.1 innings. Javier Baez (AL) made an error. Patrick Corbin (R) allowed 7 runs and struck out 5 in a 5-inning loss.

Week 11: Monday Roundup

Sure, Eduardo Escobar had 2 homers Monday. But there were 13 total homers in the game. Is 15% really that impressive?

STUDS: Howie Kendrick (YA) just keeps on keeping on. He doubled, singled, walked twice, drove in 1 and scored 3 runs. Nick Markakis (YA) homered, singled 3 times and drove in 4. Trea Turner (CB) was a single shy of a cylce, scored twice, drove in 2 and was caught stealing. Starling Marte (CB) had 2 homers, a single, 3 runs and 4 RBIs. Ozzie Albies (R) had 2 solo homers. Eduardo Freakin' Escobar (R) had 2 homers, a double, a single, 3 runs and 5 RBIs. Scott Kingery (R) had 2 homers, a triple and 3 runs. Michael Wacha (M) - wait, really? - struck out 4 in 6 shutout innings to beat the Marlins.

DUDS: Matt Carpenter (HG) - who had 36 homers and 42 doubles last year, and sits at 9 and 8, respectively - walked and erred. Is going from an .897 OPS and a 4.9 WAR to .718/0.4 bad? Asking for a friend. Max Muncy (CB) also walked and erred, but at least he hasn't forgotten how to hit. Greg Holland (R) gave up 2 runs in an inning.

Week 10: The Check Swing

This man is the catcher for FBLG's No. 1 team. His name is Tony Wolters, and he's hitting .307.

Since there wasn't much movement in the rankings this week — just the Fightin' Zeppelins and the Rick Springfielders trading spaces — we'll take a look at each team's outlook for the rest of the season. Who cares about what happened in Week 10? Certainly not the commissioners, who got drubbed by Yari's Autonomics.

1. The Rookies (1991 points, 4-6, last week 1): With a rotation of Patrick Corbin, Max Fried, Zack Wheeler and Robbie Ray, the Rookies seem well-suited to maintain their early-season success. See, Rich? Three lefties for the first-place team — that's not a coincidence. We're not really sure what to expect from Greg Holland, who has been good but doesn't pitch all that much. Henry's lineup has been outstanding, with huge contributions from Nolan Arenado, Cody Bellinger and Eduardo Escobar. Can Ozzie Albies return to form? Will Tony Wolters continue to outperform his actual talent? Will Derek Dietrich lose playing time when Scooter Gennett returns to the lineup? Good thing Henry has Gennett too!

At .331, Melky Cabrera is finally hitting his weight.

2. Yari's Autonomics (1980, 6-4, last week 2): It's easy to forget that Adam drafted 2 of FBLG's 5 best first basemen this year (Josh Bell and Pete Alonso). YA eventually sent Alonso packing in exchange for Nick Markakis to strengthen the outfield, but we're still not sold on that crew now that Andrew McCutchen is done. Markakis is going to put up points every week, but you never know what you're going to get from Yasiel Puig and Ian Desmond. We also wonder when the Melky Cabrera magic will wear off. The rest of this team looks fantastic, though. Bell, power-hitting Howie Kendrick, Anthony Rendon and Jean Segura have the infield locked down, and Jorge Alfaro has been solid behind the plate. We're all jealous of the rotation of Max Scherzer, Zack Greinke, Mike Soroka and Cole Hamels — but Sean Doolittle has been more volatile than usual.

3. Project Mayhem (1943.2, 6-4, last week 3): There isn't an obvious weakness on Bill's team, which has a deep lineup, a studly ace and a good closer. If we were to nitpick — and why wouldn't we? — we'd point to the rotation as a potential stumbling block. Yes, Walker Buehler and Kyle Hendricks have led the way, but Miles Mikolas hasn't been nearly as good as he was a year ago and Chris Archer doesn't look good at all. Anibal Sanchez hasn't pitched badly but can't get a win because the Nationals are kind of a mess. The offense might not have big names, but it sure does put up points thanks to J.T. Realmuto, Ketel Marte, David Peralta, Lorenzo Cain, Brandon Belt and Paul DeJong. We sure like watching Joc Pederson and Franmil Reyes swing for the fences, too.

Matt has hopped on the Nick Pivetta train.
Watch out for derailments! 

4. When the Ledee Breaks (1929.8, 6-4, last week 5): It's hard to argue with Matt's "who needs an ace?" strategy when you see his team only 60-some points out of the lead. Caleb Smith hit the Injured List and Jake Arrieta hit the bricks, so WLB is relying on Chase Anderson, Nick Pivetta, Dakota Hudson, Joey Lucchesi, Jose Quintana and Sandy Alcantara to carry the mail on the mound. Which we realize is a muddy metaphor, but so what? Check back in a couple of weeks and Matt's rotation will probably be completely different. Meanwhile, we're jealous of the outfield of Ronald Acuña Jr., Juan Soto and Michael Conforto. Trevor Story and Mike Moustakas have anchored the infield, and Brian Anderson, Christian Walker and Daniel Murphy have the other spots covered.

5. Hassey's Girl (1906, 7-3, last week 4): The commissioners' pitching staff have settled in and appears to be one of the better batches in FBLG. Hyun-Jin Ryu and Aaron Nola have combined to go 15-2, and Rich Hill is 3-1 since coming off the Injured List. How good will Jameson Taillon be when he returns? German Marquez has been either fantastic or a disaster, and the closer situation never seems settled on this team. It's Raisel Iglesias at the moment, which means the commissioners have to root for the Reds to win games. Yuck. On the hitting side, this doesn't even look like the same team from the draft; only 4 players remain (Wilson Ramos, Matt Carpenter, Christian Yelich and Gregory Polanco). HG is asking an awful lot out of its young players, specifically Nick Senzel, Raimel Tapia and Fernando Tatis Jr.

At least the Nationals won't have to worry about resting
Stephen Strasburg in the playoffs this season.

6. Clemente's Bucs (1879.7, 4-6, last week 6): Ray's pitching staff just feels like it's missing something. You have to like the foundation of Stephen Strasburg and Kenley Jansen, and Brandon Woodruff has been a pleasant surprise. It sure would be nice if Mike Foltynewicz remembered how to pitch like he did in 2018. Can Eric Lauer or Zach Eflin be a consistent 4th option in the rotation? Ray's lineup looks good with an infield of Eric Hosmer, Max Muncy, Trea Turner and Josh Donaldson. The outfield is centered around the hot-and-cold Charlie Blackmon and Starling Marte, and Garrett Cooper has supplanted the slumping Victor Robles in the Bucs' lineup. Can those guys stay healthy enough for CB to make a run?

7. Lumber Co Lumber (1832.3, 4-6, last week 7): After the draft, John's lineup made us drool but his pitching staff made us wonder how it would hold up. Shows what we know — after 10 weeks, both units rank in the middle of the pack, although the offense is the best in FBLG at walking and singling. Willson Contreras, Freddie Freeman, Bryce Harper and Rhys Hoskins have been among the best in the league at their positions. Corey Seager and Dansby Swanson have been good at shortstop, but it's hard to find room for both of them in the lineup. Robinson Cano and Wil Myers have been jettisoned, and Ryan McMahon and Jason Heyward have underwhelmed in replacing them. We (meaning Rich) might have written off Jon Lester too soon, and Steven Matz has been better than expected. Kenta Maeda has 7 wins, and Tanner Roark is striking guys out at a surprising rate. And you know what Josh Hader can do at the back end.

Once you serve up a long homer, you lose the right to tell
the hitter how you'd like him to circle the bases.

8. Arbitration Losers (1797.3, 7-3, last week 8): Tim's team has a lot of good players but also a lot of guys who aren't living up to their hype. Kirby Yates has been unbelievable in the bullpen, but the rotation is full of 5 guys and zero winnings records. Madison Bumgarner is out here screaming at guys who hit homers into McCovey Cove off him, Yu Darvish is pitching like it's the World Series, and Sonny Gray can't buy a win. Julio Teheran has been great lately, but Kevin Gausman is a train wreck. Javier Baez, Eugenio Suarez, David Dahl and Adam Eaton have anchored the lineup, but disappointing veterans Joey Votto, Manny Machado and Buster Posey (currently on IL) have to start producing for AL to move up this list.

9. Fresh Fish (1778, 5-5, last week 9): The pieces all appear to be there for Rick's team to make a big run, but it's just not happening yet. We'd all love to have a rotation with Jacob deGrom, Clayton Kershaw, Chris Paddack and Luis Castillo. Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Marcell Ozuna have been impact players on offense, but there hasn't been much else to get excited about. There's 50-year-old slowpoke Brian McCann behind the plate, error-prone Amed Rosario at short and extremely error-prone masher Austin Riley in the outfield, plus Mariners cast-off (never a good sign) Jay Bruce. For some reason, the silly Brewers sent Keston Hiura to the minors, and the less we say about Addison Russell, the better.

Paul Goldschmidt rounds first and ... can't remember
which base comes next. 

10. The Misfits (1601.8, 1-9, last week 10): It's too early to say the Misfits' season is over, but it certainly appears to be getting there. The pitching staff is Noah Syndergaard and a collective shrug. Jon Gray has been mostly good but suffers from the classic volatility of Colorado pitchers. Edwin Diaz has been mostly good but is also a Met, so there's that. Jack Flaherty has been a disappointment, and Michael Wacha has a 6.30 ERA. The lineup looked a lot better before Yadier Molina and A.J. Pollock got hurt, but it's not like the Misfits were winning with those two. Paul Goldschmidt is having a terrible season by his standards — 5 doubles, Paul? — and Justin Turner and Ryan Braun haven't been able to carry the lineup themselves. Adam Jones has been a pleasant surprise but has battled an injury recently, and Cesar Hernandez has been his usual steady self.

Batting leaders after Week 10

1. Christian Yelich (HG) 245.5
2. Cody Bellinger (R) 243
3. Josh Bell (YA) 233
4. Nolan Arenado (R) 229
5. Trevor Story (WTLB) 222

Pitching leaders after Week 10

1. Max Scherzer (YA) 194.3
2. Stephen Strasburg (CB) 193
3. Hyun-Jin Ryu (HG) 181
5. Luis Castillo (FF) 172.7
5. Zack Greinke (YA) 170.7

Week 10: Sunday Roundup

"Have you ever just, like, thought about your fingernails, man?"

STUDS: Robbie Ray (R) struck out 10 and allowed 2 runs in a 6.2-inning win. Stephen Strasburg (CB) struck out 6 and allowed a run in a 7-inning win. Walker Buehler (PM) tossed 7 shutout innings with 9 strikeouts for the win. Noah Syndergaard (M) struck out 7 in 7 shutout innings for the win.

DUDS: Evan Longoria (PM) singled, walked and erred. Colin Moran (LCL) went 0-fer with an error.

Week 10: Saturday roundup

It could have been worse for Jack Flaherty, who didn't strike anyone out Saturday. He could have taken the loss, too.

STUDS: Steven Matz (LCL) struck out 10 and allowed 2 runs in a 6-inning win. Justin Turner (M) doubled twice, singled, scored twice, drove in twice and walked. Julio Teheran (AL) struck out 5 and earned the win in 6 shutout innings. Max Scherzer (YA) struck out 9 and got the win in 7 shutout innings. Zack Greinke (YA) fanned 7 and picked up the win in 6 shutout innings.

DUDS: Dansby Swanson (LCL) went 0-fer with an error, which adds insult to injury for John because Corey Seager had a 10-point day on his bench. Jack Flaherty (M) allowed 4 runs in 3.2 innings. Evan Longoria (PM) singled and erred.

Week 10: Friday roundup

Did you know that Mike Soroka is Canadian? Fellow Canadian James Paxton is called "The Big Maple," so we propose calling Soroka "The Big Maple Bar from Tim Horton's." 

STUDS: Cole Hamels (YA) fanned 10 and got the win in 8 shutout innings. Mike Soroka (YA) struck out 6 and allowed 1 run in an 8-inning victory. Fernando Tatis Jr. (HG) had 3 hits — including a homer — drove in 2, scored twice and stole a base. Christian Yelich (HG) doubled, singled twice, scored twice, drove in a run and stole a base. Brandon Woodruff (CB) struck out 10 and allowed 3 runs in a 6-inning win. David Peralta (PM) homered, singled twice, scored twice and drove in 2. Ronald Acuña Jr. (WLB) homered, singled twice and drove in 3. Freddie Freeman (LCL) homered, doubled, drove in 3 and walked twice.

DUDS: Sean Doolittle (YA) struck out 2 in 0.2 inning but allowed 2 runs, blew the save and took the loss. Jose Peraza (M) went 0-fer with an error.