Playoffs Week 5: The Check Swing

1. Fresh Fish (4,011 points): Rick's team took a 46-point lead after the first week of the three-week championship series against the Misfits. With Clayton Kershaw, Buster Posey and Giancarlo Stanton leading the way, the Fish are going to be tough to beat.

2. Danger Zaun (3,988 points): Oh, NOW the Rich/Brian team picks up some wins, improving to 3-0 in the consolation round. Too little, too late, guys. Anyway, forget about Stephen Strasburg; Zack Wheeler is the ace of this team. 

3. Ryan's Rangers (3,789 points): The Steroid Bunch is down 48 points after the first week of the three-week third-place series against the Tailpipers. Can Carlos Gomez and Ryan Braun pull their weight and get this team in gear before it's too late? 

4. Tanana in the Tailpipe (3,784 points): A 195-point week has Matt's team in command of the third-place matchup. Of course, much of that point total can be attributed to double starts for Tyson Ross, Cole Hamels and Adam Wainwright this week. 

Clayton Kershaw and Johnny Cueto are tied for the lead in FBLG
points (441), and Kershaw missed a month because of injury.

5. Arbitration Losers (3,761 points): Tim's team is one of five teams battling for third place in the points race, but the Losers will need more production from Yadier Molina and Matt Holliday than the 15 points they offered this week. 

6. E-3 (3,743 points): Andrew McCutchen is the top-scoring hitter on Adam's team, which is no surprise. Bet you didn't think Jimmy Rollins would be No. 2, though. They're both well behind Johnny Cueto, who would probably win the Cy Young if not for that Kershaw guy.

7. Pitch You Blockhead (3,733 points): Scott's team is 3-0 in the consolation round, and next week's duel against Danger Zaun should be a good one. This would be a good time for Hanley Ramirez to play like 2013 Hanley Ramirez. 

8. Misfits (3,674 points): Reid's five pitchers supplied only 34 points as the Misfits dug themselves a hole in the championship series. Can Aaron Hill and Chris Johnson chip in, or will Rick's team win this thing in a runaway? 

9. Rocky Mountain High (3,496 points): Anthony Rizzo is out. Troy Tulowitzki is out. Carlos Gonzalez is out. The pitching is wildly inconsistent. It's not going well for Jon's team. 

10. Rookies (3,443 points): Only three players (Ervin Santana, Jason Heyward and Jordan Zimmermann) reached double digits in points for Henry's team in a 72-point disaster. Most of the blame can be directed at Atlanta. 

Playoffs Week 5: Sunday's Roundup

That's not a typical pitcher swing.

Studs: Adrian Gonzalez (DZ) hit a pair of 3-run homers. Gerrit Cole (AL) hit a 2-run homer, struck out 8 and allowed 4 runs (3 earned) in a 6-inning win. Zack Wheeler (DZ) singled and fanned 6 while allowing 1 run in a 6-inning win. Adam LaRoche (PYB) hit a pair of solo homers off Cole Hamels. Jhonny Peralta (FF) hit a 2-run homer, singled twice and scored twice. Adam Wainwright (Tanana) went the distance in a win against the Brewers, striking out 3 and giving up 1 run. 

Duds: Denard Span (AL) went 0 for 2 an error and a caught stealing. Anthony Rendon (RR) went 1 for 3 with an error. Billy Hamilton (DZ) went 1 for 4 with an error. 

Transactions: Effective Saturday, Pitch You Blockhead puts Jay Bruce in for Martin Prado. Tanana in the Tailpipe adds Justin Turner and benches weak-ankled Starlin Castro.

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 198, Misfits 152

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 195, Ryan's Rangers 147

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 178, Rookies 72

Pitch You Blockhead 169, Arbitration Losers 150

E-3 160, Rocky Mountain High 123

Playoffs Week 5: Saturday's Roundup

Javier Baez had a rough couple of games. Things only got
worse when Steve Bartman stole his lunch money.

Studs: Lance Lynn (RMH) gave up 5 hits and walked 4, but only 1 of the 3 runs he allowed was earned. He struck out 6 in 6 innings and got the win. Johnny Cueto (E-3) struck out 8 and allowed 1 run in a 7-inning win. Justin Morneau (Tanana) hit a 2-run homer and singled 3 times. Francisco Liriano (RR) fanned 9 and got the win in 6 shutout innings. 

Duds: Matt Holliday (AL) went 0 for 4 with 2 errors. In two games, Javier Baez (RR) went 1 for 9 with 7 Ks and an error. 

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 183, Misfits 137

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 149, Ryan's Rangers 118

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 139, Rookies 69

Pitch You Blockhead 144, Arbitration Losers 128

E-3 146, Rocky Mountain High 103

Playoffs Week 5: Friday's Roundup

Remember when Marcell Ozuna struggled in spring training?

Studs: Marcell Ozuna (PYB) went 4 for 5 with 2 doubles, 4 RBIs and 2 runs. Dan Haren (RMH) singled and allowed 1 run while striking out 6 in a 6-inning win. Jarred Cosart (FF) singled, scored, allowed 3 runs and fanned 6 in a 7.2-inning victory. David Wright (E-3) went 4 for 5 with a steal, a double, 2 runs and an RBI. 

Duds: Marlon Byrd (FF) went 0 for 5 with 3 Ks and an error. Bryce Harper (Tanana) went 1 for 5 with 2 Ks and an error. Rafael Soriano (AL) blew his 7th save and allowed 3 runs in 0.2 inning. 

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 151, Misfits 85

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 129, Ryan's Rangers 72

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 115, Rookies 52

Arbitration Losers 119, Pitch You Blockhead 117

E-3 102, Rocky Mountain High 77

Playoffs Week 5: Thursday's Roundup

Devin Mesoraco wants you to know that he's 6 for 7 with
3 homers and 18 RBIs with the bases loaded this year.

Stud: Devin Mesoraco (DZ) went 4 for 4 with a homer, a double, 4 RBIs and 2 runs. 

Dud: Yangervis Solarte (PYB) makes back-to-back appearances here thanks to an 0-for-4 performance and an error. 

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 109, Misfits 66

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 111, Ryan's Rangers 51

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 74, Rookies 45

Arbitration Losers 97, Pitch You Blockhead 74

E-3 81, Rocky Mountain High 51

Playoffs Week 5: Wednesday's Roundup

Adam LaRoche came off the bench to provide 10 points of offense.

Studs: Adam LaRoche (PYB) homered, singled, scored twice and drove in 5. Carl Crawford (RMH) was a triple short of the cycle, scored twice and drove in 2. Tom Koehler (FF) singled and fanned 10 while allowing 2 runs in 7 innings. Corey Dickerson (DZ) blasted a pair of solo homers. 

Duds: Yangervis Solarte (PYB) and Jean Segura (AL) singled and erred. Matt Garza (RMH) gave up 6 runs in a 3-inning loss. Kenley Jansen (RMH) blew the save, allowing 3 runs in an inning. 

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 109, Misfits 61

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 104, Ryan's Rangers 46

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 58, Rookies 44

Arbitration Losers 88, Pitch You Blockhead 67

E-3 79, Rocky Mountain High 51

Playoffs Week 5: Tuesday's Roundup

We're going to keep running photos of happy Giants
simply because they annoy Rich.

Studs: Buster Posey (FF) homered, doubled twice, drove in 4 and scored 3 runs. Clayton Kershaw (FF) had another dominant outing, striking out 8 and allowing 1 run in an 8-inning win. He also singled and scored. David Wright (E-3) doubled twice, singled, drove in 3 and scored 2 runs. 

Duds: Mat Latos (RMH) gave up 5 runs on 10 hits in a 5-inning loss. Ian Desmond (DZ) went 0 for 4 with 3 Ks and an error. 

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 81, Misfits 49

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 89, Ryan's Rangers 35

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 40, Rookies 11

Arbitration Losers 73, Pitch You Blockhead 45

E-3 56, Rocky Mountain High 38

Playoffs, Week 5: Monday's Roundup

Old Hoss Radbourn says, "Six whole innings, huh? Meh.
In my day, the manager would have had to drag my lifeless carcass off the mound."

Studs: It was Shocking Performances by Leadoff Hitters day in FBLG. Ben Revere (PYB) blew everyone's mind by driving in 5 runs - on a 3-run triple and a 2-run single - to power the Phillies offense. Denard Span (AL) awed everyone by hitting a pair of homers to double his season total to 4. Also, Hunter Pence (Misfits) continued to be spastically awesome, homering in both the suspended game being completed and also the day's regularly scheduled game. Buster Posey (FF) had 4 hits between the two games. But the day belonged to Tanana's pitchers, with Cole Hamels striking out 7 in the first 6 innings of a combined no-hitter and adding a double and run scored, and Tyson Ross striking out 8 and allowing 1 run in a 6-inning win.

Duds: Andrelton Simmons was hitless (obviously) and made an error. Matt Adams was 0 for 4 with an error.

Championship series (top 3-week total wins)

Fresh Fish 33, Misfits 31

Third-place series (top 3-week total wins)

Tanana in the Tailpipe 52, Ryan's Rangers 29

Consolation matchups

Danger Zaun 21, Rookies 2
Arbitration Losers 44, Pitch You Blockhead 22
E-3 22, Rocky Mountain High 18

Week 23 (Playoffs, Week 5) Transactions and Lineups

Players acquired

Tanana in the Tailpipe sign SP Henderson Alvarez (September move #1).

Misfits sign OF Jorge Soler (September move #1) and 2B Aaron Hill (September move #2).

Danger Zaun sign OF Ender Inciarte (September move #1).

Players released

SP Trevor Cahill

SP Kevin Correia

C Yasmani Grandal

Score correction

Your commissioners neglected to give Jake Peavy (Arbitration Losers) 6 points for his start on Monday, 8/25. The score has been updated to reflect that start and floggings have been administered to those responsible.

Lineup changes

E-3: Bench OF Curtis Granderson, OF Allen Craig and SP A.J. Burnett; activate OF Drew Stubbs, OF Grady Sizemore and SP Joe Kelly.

Fresh Fish: Bench SP Mike Leake and SP Bartolo Colon; activate SP Tom Koehler and SP Hyun-Jin Ryu (from DL).

Rookies: none.

Rocky Mountain High: Bench SP Tim Lincecum; activate SP Matt Garza (from DL).

Pitch You Blockhead: Bench OF Jay Bruce; activate OF Yangervis Solarte.

Tanana in the Tailpipe: Bench SP Jon Niese; activate SP Henderson Alvarez.

Ryan's Rangers: Bench SP Wily Peralta and SS Adeiny Hechavarria; activate SP Gio Gonzalez and SS Javier Baez.

Misfits: Bench OF Jon Jay; place 2B Daniel Murphy on DL; activate OF Jorge Soler and 2B Aaron Hill.

Arbitration Losers: Bench 2B Jedd Gyorko, SP Jake Peavy and SP Jacob deGrom; move Josh Harrison from SS to 2B; activate SS Jean Segura, SP Wade Miley and SP Tim Hudson.

Danger Zaun: Bench 2B Kolten Wong, C Travis d'Arnaud and OF Khris Davis; activate 2B Arismendy Alcantara, C Devin Mesoraco and OF Ender Inciarte.

Playoffs Week 4: The Check Swing

The 2014 FBLG championship series is set. And it's between teams that went 9-9 and 8-10 during the regular season. So there's that. Congrats to Rick's Fresh Fish and Reid's Misfits for advancing to the three-week championship series. Ryan's Rangers and Tanana in the Tailpipe will do battle for three weeks to determine third place. And the rest of us will continue the consolation slap-fight.

1. Fresh Fish (3,813 points): With the favorites for the NL Cy Young (Kershaw) and MVP (Stanton), Rick's going to be tough to beat. Jarred Cosart put up two good starts last week, because of course he did. And Buster Posey remembered that he used to be a power hitter and decided to try that again. The Fish just keep putting up points, and now Hyun-Jin Ryu is off the DL and pitching well again. Uh-oh.

2. Danger Zaun (3,810 points): A solid week from most of the offense and a big start from Stephen Strasburg was enough to help the Zaunies improve to 2-0 in the consolation round and keep pace with the Fresh Fish. Just as the disabled list shrunk to just four starting pitchers, Kolten Wong went down with a possible concussion. Danger Zaun has already fired its training staff and hired a holistic healer.

3. Ryan's Rangers (3,642 points): Bill's guys fought valiantly but were swept away by the Fish, landing in the third-place matchup. Chase Anderson and Francisco Liriano did their thing on the mound, but team ace Wily Peralta was shelled. And the non-Rendon part of the infield combined for just 17 points. Now the Rangers will have to pick themselves up and get ready for the angry Tailpipers.

4. Arbitration Losers (3,605 points): Tim's guys were the big movers this week, vaulting two spots into fourth place. Matt Holliday woke up Saturday convinced he was back in Coors Field and that it was 2007, and then went out and hit like it. Pablo Sandoval and Josh Harrison had monster weeks too, and Peavy led the Jake-heavy rotation (Arrieta, deGrom) with a near-no-hitter.

This guy is ashamed of the performance of his namesake last week.

5. Tanana in the Tailpipe (3,589 points): Reid's guys were nice enough to let Tanana hang around until the last day of the semifinals, then threw four starts at them to pummel them into submission. Other than Tyson Ross and Bryce Harper, though, Tanana mostly didn't show up this week.

6. E-3 (3,583 points): Adam's old Phillies - Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins and A.J. Burnett - combined for 69 points. And it wasn't enough for a win. That about sums up the second half of E-3's season, actually. Johnny Cueto keeps rolling along, at least. But Dee Gordon and Curtis Granderson have slowed down, Miguel Montero is in a slump, David Wright is hurt, and no one knows where Allen Craig went. Maybe he fell down the Springfield Mystery Spot?

7. Pitch You Blockhead (3,564 points): Scott's blockheads pitched great and dragged his offense to a win. It helped that RMH only put up 83 points against him. In fact, if PYB had started no players on offense, they still would have won easily. Jeff Samardzija remembered that he's supposed to be an ace, and new addition Mike Minor continued his late-season reawakening. Unfortunately, Scott's leading hitter this week was Neil Walker. And he was on the bench.

8. Misfits (3,522 points): What a weird, weird week. Only one of Reid's hitters - Hunter Pence - showed up. The other seven hitters combined for 31 points, with half of those coming for Charlie Blackmon. Daniel Murphy got hurt midweek and couldn't be replaced. And yet... when you throw eight starts out there from your solid rotation, you end up getting over 100 points from them (even with Tanner Roark throwing two duds) and somehow the team nearly 300 points out of the lead is in the championship series.

9. Rocky Mountain High (3,373 points): Oof. The less said about this stinkbomb the better. Mat Latos pitched great in a win. He put up 18. The next-highest scorer this week was three guys tied with eight points apiece. Five of the seven days this week, Jon put up 6, 4, 4, 6 and 5.

10. Rookies (3,371 points): A decent week for Henry's guys, but no chance against Tim's squad this week. Justin Upton continues to be a fringe MVP candidate and Jordan Zimmermann pitched like an ace. But too many of the other Braves hitters are struggling and Doug Fister put up a rare stinker of a start.