Season review: Misfits

Points, placing: 4545 points, 3rd place

Drafted team: 1B Ryan Howard; 2B Skip Schumaker; SS Yunel Escobar; 3B Pablo Sandoval; C ivan Rodriguez; OF Andre Ethier; OF Rick Ankiel; OF Ryan Spilborghs; SP Dan Haren; SP Roy Oswalt; SP Ryan Dempster; SP John Maine; RP Brad Lidge; B: Cameron Maybin, Todd Wellemeyer, Clint Barmes

Players added (17): SP Luis Castillo (W3), SP Braden Looper (W4), 3B Pedro Feliz (W5), OF Juan Pierre (W6), RP Trevor Hoffman (W7), OF Gary Sheffield (W9), OF Andrew McCutchen (W11), SP Aaron Cook (W11), SS Edgar Renteria (W13), SP Jonathan Sanchez (W15), OF Garrett Jones (W16), OF Eugenio Velez (W19), SP Livan Hernandez (W20), OF Jake Fox (W22), SP Vicente Padilla (W23), RP Carlos Marmol (W24), C Geovany Soto (W25)

Players dumped (16): SS Clint Barmes (W3), SP Todd Wellemeyer (W4), 2B Luis Castillo (W5), OF Cameron Maybin (W7), OF Ryan Spilborghs (W8), 3B Pedro Feliz (W9), RP Trevor Hoffman (W13), OF Juan Pierre (W13), OF Gary Sheffield (W16), OF Rick Ankiel (W18), SS Edgar Renteria (W19), SP Aaron Cook (W20), SP Livan Hernandez (W22), SP John Maine (W23), OF Jake Fox (W24), C Ivan Rodriguez (W25)

Players on DL: OF Rick Ankiel (W5-7), RP Brad Lidge (W10-12), SP John Maine (W11-22), SP Ryan Dempster (W14-17)

Time lost by players on DL: 22 weeks

Points/ranking by position: 1B-475/3; 2B-301/7; SS-334/6; 3B-396/2; C-228/6; OF-367/5; SP-367/4; RP-168/9.

Final analysis: If there was one team we thought would be best suited to challenge the Chuggers for the top spot in the second half, it was the Misfits. They were a picture of consistency. They finished third overall after having the third-best hitting and third-best pitching. And they had some shrewd moves like picking up Juan Pierre when Manny Ramirez was suspended and snatching up the Pirates Andrew McCutchen when Nate McLouth was traded to Atlanta. Yet the pitching strength they had in the first half of the season faded in the second half. Haren was not quite as good. Oswalt battled injuries. And Dempster and Maine had stints on the DL. Their inability to find suitable replacements kept the Misfits from taking advantage of the fact that their players spent a league-low 22 weeks on the DL. Still, they were able to reach the head-to-head finals for a second year in a row.

Season review: Triple-A's

Owner: Ken Martinez

Points/ranking: 4400, 4th place

Players drafted: 1B Connor Jackson; 2B Chase Utley; SS Stephen Drew; 3B Mark Reynolds; C Chris Snyder; OF Nate McLouth; OF Raul Ibanez; OF Randy Winn; SP Ricky Nolasco; SP Rich Harden; SP Bronson Arroyo; SP Randy Wolf; RP Jason Motte. B: James Loney, Max Scherzer, John Baker

Players added (11): RP Matt Lindstrom (W2), SS Ryan Theriot (W4), RP Ryan Franklin (W4), SP Andrew Miller (W8), SP Ross Detwiller (W8), C Rudy Paulino (W11), OF Gerardo Parra (W11), OF Nate Schierholtz (W13), C John Baker (W14), SP Charlie Morton (W17), SP Gerardo Parra (W20)

Players dumped (11): RP Jason Motte (W2), SP Matt Lindstrom (W4), C Chris Snyder (W8), SP Ross Detwiller (W10), C John Baker (W11), OF Gerardo Parra (W13), C Rudy Paulino (W14), OF Nate Schierholtz (W15), SP Andrew Miller (W17), SP Charlie Morton (W20), OF Connor Jackson (W26)

Players on DL: SS Stephen Drew (W4-8), SP Rich Harden (W8-9), 1B Connor Jackson (W9-26), OF Raul Ibanez (W11-14), OF Nate McLouth (W20-22)

Time lost by players on DL: 32 weeks

Points/ranking by position: 1B-347/7; 2B-431/1; SS-346/5; 3B-393/7; C-207/9; OF-380/5; SP-337/6; RP-187/8

Final analysis: Other than leading at 2B with Chase Utley, the Triple-A's did not excel at any one position. But the positions they ranked low at -- catcher and reliever -- are low-scoring positions. So the net result was a fourth-place finish. They got lucky with a low time on DL (32 weeks), but they were key injuries to key players (Drew, Harden, Ibanez and McLouth). Still, the T-A's found the right replacements to remain in the money mix.

Season review: Arbitration Losers

Owner: Tim Martinez

Points, ranking: 4348, 5th place

Drafted team: 1B Adrian Gonzalez; 2B Kelly Johnson; SS Miguel Tejada; 3B Garret Atkins; C Ryan Doumit; OF Ryan Braun; OF Ryan Ludwick; OF Mike Cameron; SP Tim Lincecum; SP Edison Volquez; SP Randy Johnson; SP Manny Parra; RP Brian Wilson; B: Jordan Zimmermann, Brian Giles, Jon Garland

Players added (17): SP Zach Duke (W3), C Nick Hundley (W3), OF Justin Upton (W4), 2B Clint Barmes (W4), SP Manny Parra (W6), 2B Luis Castillo (W6 and W12), 3B Andy LaRoche (W7), C Jason Jaramillo (W10), SP Antonio Bastardo (W10), SP Chad Gaudin (W13), SP Randy Wells (W14), SP Kenshin Kawakami (W16), 3B Scott Rolen (W18), SP Bud Norris (W19), SP Pedro Martinez (W20), SP Nelson Figueroa (W22)

Players dumped (16): SP Jon Garland (W3), SP Manny Parra (W4 and W11), OF Brian Giles (W4), 2B Clint Barmes (W6), SP Zach Duke (W6), 2B Luis Castillo (W11), C Jason Jaramillo (W17), 3B Garrett Atkins (W18), SP Chad Gaudin (W19), SP Edinson Volquez (W19-x), SP Jordan Zimmermann (W19-x), 2B Kelly Johnson (W21), SP Bud Norris (W22), SP Antonio Bastardo (W23), SP Randy Johnson (W25)

Players on DL: C Ryan Doumit (W3-14), OF Ryan Ludwick (W6-10), SP Edinson Volquez (W7-8 and W9-18), C Nick Hundley (W11-19), SP Antonio Bastardo (W13-22), SP Randy Johnson (W14-25), 2B Kelly Johnson (W14-16), SP Jordan Zimmermann (W16-18), OF Justin Upton (W18-20), 3B Scott Rolen (W20)

Time lost by players on DL: 84 weeks

Points/ranking by position: 1B-399/6; 2B-280/10; SS-392/4; 3B-299/7; C-215/7; OF-426/1; SP-309/8; RP-247/3.

Final analysis: The Losers managed a top-division finish despite suffering through a second-highest 84 weeks of players on the DL. Two of the five pitchers they drafted had their season ended by Tommy John surgery. A third pitcher suffered a torn rotator cuff. One-third of their 1484 pitching points were scored by one guy -- Tim Lincecum. Nine of their 17 free-agent acquisitions were pitchers, including 7 of their last 8. But they did have the league's best outfield, aided by the Week 3 acquistion of Justin Upton (thanks, Scott!).

Season review: Gladstone Goatwhisperers

Owner: Arik Heidenreich

Points, standing: 4283 points, 6th place

Drafted team: 1B Prince Fielder; 2B Orlando Hudson; SS Jose Reyes; 3B Edwin Encarnacion; C Chris Iannetta; OF Hunter Pence; OF Jayson Werth; OF Chris Young; SP Cole Hamels; SP Yovani Gallardo; SP Matt Cain; SP Clayton Kershaw; RP Chad Qualls. B: Micah Owings, Jeremy Hermida, Ross Ohlendorf

Players added (12): SP Doug Davis (W3), 3B Casey Blake (W4), OF Willy Taveras (W7), SS Cristian Guzman (W7), C Carlos Ruiz (W8), SP Randy Wells (W10), 3B Ian Stewart (W10), RP Huston Street (W12), OF Scott Hairston (W14), OF Garret Anderson (W18), C Yorvit Torrealba (W25), RP Franklin Morales (W25)

Players dumped (11): SP Ross Ohlendorf (W3), OF Chris Young (W7), SP Micah Owings (W10), OF Willy Taveras (W10), C Carlos Ruiz (W11), RP Chad Qualls (W12), SP Randy Wells (W14), 3B Edwin Encarnacion (W14), OF Scott Hairston (W18), C Chris Iannetta (W25), SS Jose Reyes (W26)

Players on DL: 3B Edwin Encarnacion (W4-13), SS Jose Reyes (W7-26), C Chris Iannetta (W8-10)

Time lost to players on DL: 33 weeks

Points/ranking by position: 1B-491/2; 2B-347/4; SS-287/8; 3B-296/8; C-215/8; OF-352/8; SP 349/5; RP-190/7

Final analysis: Arik picked Jose Reyes with hopes of ranking first among shortstop. But Reyes got off to a slow start then spent most of the season on the DL. The result was the Goatwhisperers finished eighth at shortstop. And Cole Hamles, the GG's top pitching pick, struggled for consistent results. The end result was a sixth-place finish. The Goatwhisperers did a good job of staying in the title hunt for much of the first half of the season. But they did a fast fade in August and September.

Season review: VC Appraisers

Owners: Kevin Klock/Dave DeLong

Points/finish: 4190, 7th place

Drafted team: 1B Derrek Lee; 2B Dan Uggla; SS Rafael Furcal; 3B David Wright; C Ramon Hernandez; OF Carlos Lee; OF Matt Kemp; OF Chase Headley; SP Derek Lowe; SP Hiroki Kuroda; SP Jair Jurrjens; SP Kyle Lohse; RP Jose Valverde. B: Aaron Rowand, Paul Maholm, Todd Helton

Players added (6): SP Francisco Cordero (W3), SP Joel Pineiro (W8), 1B Joey Votto (W13-trade), C Miguel Montero (W16), SP Charlie Haeger (W21), John Lannan (W21)

Players dumped (5): SP Joel Pineiro (W9), 1B Derrek Lee (W13-traded), RP Jose Valverde (W15), 1B Todd Helton (W17-stolen), C Ramon Hernandez (W26)

Players on DL: SP Hiroki Kuroda (W2-8), RP Jose Valverde (W7-12), SP Kyle Lohse (W10-14, W21-23), C Ramon Hernandez (W16-26), David Wright (W20-21), SP Hiroki Kuroda (W20-22)

Time lost to players on DL: 37 weeks

Points/ranking by position: 1B-439/3; 2B- 343-5; SS-315/7; 3B-387/4; C-300/2; OF-384/2; SP-248/10; RP-162/10

Final analysis: The VC Appraisers had worst possible start to the season ... for them. They had a good start. Not a great start or a terrible start, or a start loaded with injuries. Just a good start. Because of that, they were not prompted into action. They only made moves when injuries made it necessary and didn't make any monthly moves simply to look to get better. They burned only five of possible 20 moves -- the lowest amount by six moves. Because of that, they didn't look to improve their dismal pitching staff. They had the league's best hitting by more than 100 points, but their pitching was the league's worst by almost 300 points. If they had matched the pitching of the ninth-worst pitching staff, they could have finished fourth overall. And who knows where they might have finished in the head-to-head.

Season review: Fresh Fish

Owner: Rick Ingebritson

Points, placing: 4141, 8th place

Drafted team: 1B Carlos Delgado; 2B Felipe Lopez; SS JJ Hardy; 3B Aramis Ramirez; C Bengie Molina; OF Manny Ramirez; OF Adam Dunn; OF Jeff Francoeur; SP Johan Santana; SP Carlos Zambano; SP Chris Young; SP Chris Volstad; RP Mike Gonzalez; B: Cody Ross, Jamie Moyer, Garret Anderson.

Players added (11): OF Colby Rasmus (W4), 3B Bill Hall (W4), OF Milton Bradley (W6), SP Ubaldo Jimenez (W6), 1B Nick Johnson (W6), 3B Jerry Hairston (W9), 3B Pedro Feliz (W11), SP Jason Marquis (W14), RP Rafael Soriano (W16), SS Edgar Renteria (W19), Tim Hudson (W22)

Players dumped (10): OF Garret Anderson (W6), OF Colby Rasmus (W6), SP Jamie Moyer (W8), 3B Bill Hall (W9), 3B Jerry Hairston (W11), 3B Pedro Feliz (W14), RP Mike Gonzalez (W14), 1B Carlos Delgado (W26), SP Johan Santana (W26), SP Chris Young (W26)

Players on DL: OF Garret Anderson (W4-5), SP Carlos Zambrano (W5-7, W19-21), 1B Carlos Delgado (W6-26), 3B Aramis Ramirez (W6-13), SP Chris Young (W11-26), SP Johan Santana (W21-26)

Time lost by players on DL: 59 weeks

Points-ranking by position: 1B-301/10; 2B-355/3; SS-249/9; 3B-256/10 ; C-295/3; OF-363/6; SP-370/2 ; RP-197/5.

Final analysis: The Fish's greatest accomplishment of the season is to finish the year with the second best starting pitching despite losing 43 weeks to the DL for three of his top four pitchers. The lack of fear to grab Rockies pitchers (first Jimenez, then Marquis) helped bridge that gap, plus the late-season addition of Tim Hudson. But injuries, and an inability to deal with them, at 1B (Delgado) and 3B (Ramirez) proved too much for the Fish. Once again, Rick showed he can be a great owner in April and May, and not so great in August-September. Still, the Fish managed a fourth-place finish in the head-to-head.

Season review: Pickle Bugs

Pickle Bugs

Owner: Jon Bullock

Points, placing: 4067 points, 9th place

Drafted team: 1B Lance Berkman; 2B Kaz Matsui; SS Jimmy Rollins; 3B Chipper Jones; C Russell Martin; OF Corey Hart; OF Jay Bruce; OF Lastings Milledge; SP Brett Myers; SP Johnny Cueto; SP Chris Carpenter; SP Oliver Perez; RP Matt Capps. Bench: Kenshin Kawakami, Casey Blake, John Lannan

Players added (18): OF Daniel Murphy (W2), 2B Mike Fontenot (W2), SP Jeff Karstens (W4), SP Todd Wellemeyer (W5), SP Barry Zito (W5), OF Dexter Fowler (W5), SP Livan Hernandez (W9), SP Tommy Hanson (W10), OF Chris Young (W11), OF Mark DeRosa (W13), RP Trevor Hoffman (W14), 1B Todd Helton (W17), 2B Martin Prado (W17), OF Lastings Milledge (W18), 2B Casey McGehee (W21), OF Angel Pagan (W21), 3B Juan Uribe (W23), SP Tom Gorzelanny (W25)

Players dumped (17): SP John Lannan (W2), 3B Casey Blake (W4), OF Lastings Milledge (W5), SP Jeff Karstens (W5), SP Kenshin Kawakami (W5), SP Todd Wellemeyer (W7), SP Livan Hernandez (W11), OF Daniel Murphy (W12), 2B Mike Fontenot (W13), RP Matt Capps (W14), OF Chris Young (W20-x), SP Oliver Perez (W22-x), SP Martin Prado (W24), 2B Kaz Matsui (W24), RP Brett Myers (W24), OF Dexter Fowler (W25), OF Lasting Milledge (W25)

x-players released with season-ending injury

Players on DL: SP Chris Carpenter (W3-6), SP Oliver Perez (W6-14), 2B Kaz Matsui (W8-11), SP Brett Myers (W9-23), OF Jay Bruce (W14-24), OF Mark DeRosa (W15), 1B Lance Berkman (W17-18), OF Corey Hart (W18-23), OF Dexter Fowler (W21-23), SP Johnny Cueto (W21)

Time lost by players on DL: 69 weeks

Points-ranking by position: 1B-347/8; 2B-300/8; SS-422/2; 3B-308/6; C-259/4; OF-322/9; SP-317/7; RP-195/6

Final analysis: Early season slumps by Berkman, Rollins, Jones and Martin put the Bugs in a big hole. Only Rollins completely recovered. Plus, Jon waited to draft his first pitcher, then that first pitcher (Myers) was lost for 15 weeks to the DL. When he returns, he pitched from the bullpen. However, there was the standout performance by Chris Carpenter. And the additions of Zito and Hanson boosted their pitching and sparked the late-season surge to the consolation prize.

Season review: Boondock Saints

Boondock Saints

Owner: Bill Kelm

Overall finish: 4042 points, 10th place

Drafted team: 1B Joey Votto; 2B Rickie Weeks; SS Khalil Greene; 3B Ryan Zimmerman; C Brian McCann; OF Carlos Beltran; OF Jordan Schaefer; OF Fred Lewis; SP Brandon Webb; SP Josh Johnson; SP Jeff Suppan; SP Jonathan Sanchez; RP Francisco Rodriguez; B: Elijah Dukes, Mike Pelfrey, Chris Duncan

Players added (23): SP Livan Hernandez (W2), SP Jason Marquis (W3), C David Ross (W3), SP Dave Bush (W4), SP Chris Coghlan (W6), 2B Chris Counsell (W7), SP Ross Ohlendorf (W7), 1B Casey Kotchman (W9), SS Alex Gonzalez (W9), 1B Adam LaRoche (W10), 2B Joe Thurston (W13), 1B Derrek Lee (W13-trade), SP JA Happ (W14), OF Josh Willingham (W16), SS Jack Wilson (W17), OF Matt Holliday (W17), SP Mat Latos (W18), SP Cliff Lee (W18), SS Alcides Escobar (W20), SP John Smoltz (W21), 2B David Eckstein (W23), SP Josh Hammel (W24), SS Wilson Valdez (W25)

Players dumped (22): SP Mike Pelfrey (W3), SP Livan Hernandez (W4), C David Ross (W6), SP Jordan Schaefer (W6), SP Jason Marquis (W7), OF Elijah Dukes (W11), 1B Joey Votto (W13-traded), SP Jonathan Sanchez (W14), OF Chris Duncan (W16), 1B Adam LaRoche (W16), SS Khalil Greene (W17), 1B Casey Kotchman (W17), 2B Joe Thurston (W17), SS Alex Gonzalez (W20), OF Fred Lewis (W21), SP Jeff Suppan (W23) SP JA Happ (W24), Matt Latos (W24), Ross Ohlendorf (W24), SS Jack Wilson (W25), SP Brandon Webb (W26), 2B Rickie Weeks (W26)
Players on DL: SP Brandon Webb (W2-W26), C Brian McCann (W3-5), 2B Richie Weeks (W7-W26), 1B Joey Votto (W9-12), SS Khalil Greene (W9-10, W13-16), 1B Casey Kotchman (W10-11), SS Alex Gonzalez (W11-17), OF Carlos Beltran (W12-22), SP Dave Bush (W12-23), SP Jeff Suppan (W18-22)

Time lost with players on DL: 93 weeks

Points/rank by position: 1B-442/4; 2B-255-10; SS-183/10; 3B-427/1; C-345/1; OF-354/7; SP-302/9; RP-215/4

Final analysis: Bill has been known to never waste a monthly move. But 22 free agents added to his roster is even a record for him. He used all 19 allocated monthly moves, plus three more when he had players traded to the AL. And even was involved in the lone of trade of the season. But all of this activity could not help him avoid the second last-place finish by a defending FBLG champion. Why? Injuries played a big role. He lost his ace, and second-round pick, Brandon Webb for the season in Week 2. His No. 1 pick, OF Carlos Beltran, spent 10 weeks on the DL. All totalled he sent nine players to the DL for a total of 93 weeks of lost playing time. Not even the additions of Matt Holliday and Cliff Lee could keep the Saints from the cellar. And to add insult to injury, Bill cut Jonathan Sanchez the week prior to his no-hitter.

Top scoring players for 2009

BATTERS
1. Albert Pujols (WWJB) 525
2. Prince Fielder (GG) 491
3. Ryan Braun (AL) 484
4. Ryan Howard (Mis) 475
5. Hanley Ramirez (CC) 468
6. Matt Kemp (VC) 464
7. Chase Utley (TA) 431
8. Ryan Zimmerman (BS) 427
9. Jimmy Rollins (PB) 422
10. Jayson Werth (GG) 417
11. Andre Ethier (Mis) 415
12. Carlos Lee (VC) 407
13. Shane Victorino (CC) 402
14. Adrian Gonzalez (AL) 399
15. Mark Reynolds (TA) 393
16. Miguel Tejada (AL) 392
17. Raul Ibanez (TA) 387
17. Brandon Phillips (CC) 387
19. Pablo Sandoval (Mis) 382
20. Troy Tulowitzki (WWJB) 371

STARTING PITCHERS
1. Tim Lincecum (AL) 495
2. Adam Wainwright (CC) 483
3. Javier Vazquez (WWJB) 456
4. Dan Haren (Mis) 451
5. Josh Johnson (BS) 419
6. Chris Carpenter (PB) 387
7. Matt Cain (GG) 382
8. Jair Jurrjens (VC) 361
9. Ubaldo Jimenez (FF) 340
10. Wandy Rodriguez (CC) 335

RELIEVERS
1. Jonathan Broxton (WWJB) 305
2. Heath Bell (CC) 271
3. Brian Wilson (AL) 247
4. Francisco Rodriguez (BS) 215
5. Ryan Franklin (TA) 184

Season's final daily report

Overall standings

1. Chico's Chuggers (Shawn) 4708 -- Shawn completes first worst-to-first finish in FBLG history
2. WWJB (Scott) 4608 -- Best finish ever for Scott in seven FBLG season
3. Misfits (Reid) 4545 -- Fourth consecutive top-4 finish for Reid
4. Triple-A's (Ken) 4400 -- Fourth upper-division finish in past five seasons
5. Arbitration Losers (Tim) 4348 -- 16th upper-division finish in 18 FBLG seasons
6. Goatwhisperers (Arik) 4283 -- Arik still waiting on Jose Reyes to return
7. VC Appraisers (Kevin-Dave) 4190 -- Fourth second-division finish for Klock/DeLong tandem
8. Fresh Fish (Rick) 4141 -- Season is about three months too long for Fish
9. Pickle Bugs (Jon) 4067 -- Late rally avoids fourth last-place finish.
10. Boondock Saints (Bill) 4042 -- Second first-to-worst finish in league history, first since 1998.

Consolation head-to-head

Pickle Bugs 144, Triple-A's 107