It's everybody's favorite time of year. Yes, it's the Beatles edition of the Check Swing. So grab your Gideon's Bible, Rocky Raccoon, and enjoy as we connect each FBLG team with its Beatles theme song.
1. E-3 (2,129 points, 8-4, last week 1): It figures, right? Adam puts Matt Cain back in the lineup, and he gets hammered. We expect Cain to throw a no-hitter while on the E-3 bench one of these weeks. In other news, Andrew McCutchen scored 42 points this week. Fab Four: "Money." This team has had no injured position players and surprising greatness from Jason Hammel and Josh Beckett. That's money.
2. Ryan's Rangers (2,088 points, 8-4, last week 2): Zero from Nate Eovaldi and Angel Pagan? Three from Chase Headley and 5 from Anthony Recker? No problem for Bill's team, which got 28 from Anthony Rendon to beat Tanana. Fab Four: "I Need You." Anthony Recker and Chase Headley haven't been getting the job done. Bill desperately needs Wilson Ramos and Nolan Arenado back.
3. Danger Zaun (2,077 points, 4-8, last week 3): Yes, these guys are third in the points and tied for last in the standings. The blame for this week's loss goes to the pitching staff, which went winless in four starts. At least Devin Mesoraco appears to have solved the catcher problem.
Fab Four: "Nowhere Man." Hey, Adrian Gonzalez. What have you been doing for the past month and a half? Making all your nowhere plans for nobody?
4. Fresh Fish (2,075 points, 4-8, last week 4): Speaking of having a bunch of points but no luck in the standings, Rick's team put up 214 points this week — and lost anyway. Let's pin the blame on Hanley Ramirez. If he hadn't made an error, Clayton Kershaw's no-hitter would have been a perfect game and Kershaw would have gotten 5 more points. Fab Four: "Not a Second Time." That was FBLG's collective reaction when Rick added Danny Espinosa for the second time this season.
5. Tanana in the Tailpipe (2,017 points, 6-6, last week 5): Outfield injuries really crippled Matt's team this week, as he got only 10 points from Andre Ethier, Nate Schierholtz and the injured Christian Yelich. Matt Carpenter and Yadier Molina didn't help, either, scoring 9 apiece. Fab Four: "I'll Be Back." All those injured outfielders will start coming back soon. Yelich, Juan Lagares and Bryce Harper should boost that offense pretty quickly.
6. Pitch You Blockhead (2,010 points, 8-4, last week 6): Scott's team was fortunate to face the struggling RMH this week — 164 points would have meant a loss against most other foes. Jay Bruce and Jonathan Lucroy powered the offense, but Josh Rutledge was a 4-point dud. Fab Four: "I'm Looking Through You." Where did you go, Martin Prado? You too, Hanley Ramirez? You three, slumping pitching staff?
7. Arbitration Losers (1,985 points, 6-6, last week 8): Tim got double-digit output from everyone except Tim Hudson this week. Freddie Freeman, Denard Span and Rafael Soriano combined for 75 points. Just wait until Cliff Lee, Gerrit Cole and Michael Cuddyer come off the disabled list. Fab Four: "Misery." Look at this team's disabled list. In addition to the three stars mentioned above, there's the versatile Emilio Bonifacio and the disappointing Jedd Gyorko.
8. Rocky Mountain High (1,939 points, 5-7, last week 7): Jon's starting pitchers combined for just 19 points, or 1 more than RMH's top performer. That would be Anthony Rizzo. Troy Tulowitzki's 8-point week was a disappointment, as well. Fab Four: "I'm Down." Jon's team has lost five matchups in a row, and this week's 113-point performance was the low point. When is Carlos Gonzalez due back?
9. Misfits (1,934 points, 6-6, last week 10): A blowup outing by Aaron Harang was the only bad news for Reid's team, which cracked the 200-point barrier. Tanner Roark led the way with 26. Does Matt Kemp's 21-point week signal a return to MVP form? Fab Four: "All Together Now." Week 12 was the first time this team put it all together at the same time. If Joey Votto, Hunter Pence, Wilin Rosario and Kemp play to their potential, the Misfits can make a run.
10. Rookies (1,907 points, 5-7, last week 9): A thunderous 40-point week for Aramis Ramirez wasn't enough to lead Henry's team to victory. The Atlanta offense hit the skids, and the Rookies paid the price. It was nice of Tommy La Stella to stop hitting right after joining the club. Fab Four: "Fixing a Hole." Even with the big week from the recently acquired Ramirez, the Rookies are last in third-base production. Thanks for nothing, Mike Olt, Cody Asche and Juan Uribe.
