Week 12: The Check Swing

Raise your hand if you're excited to watch the Mets waste Pete Alonso's career.

Some movement in the standings this week, as Ray jumped up 2 spots and closed within about 40 points of Adam's lead. The top 5 teams are still separated by less than 100 points, so we're looking at a great battle down the stretch.

1. Yari's Autonomics (2403.3, 7-5, last week 1): Adam's team had a strong week but couldn't overcome Rick's pitching in the loss. Let's blame Zack Greinke (1), just because we can. Cole Hamels (23 in 2 starts) and Max Scherzer (22) certainly did their part, even if Hamels couldn't secure a win. On offense, Yasiel Puig (29.5) came out of nowhere for a monster week, and everyone else was mostly solid-ish. Josh Bell (11.5) and Jean Segura (12) picked bad times to cool off, and no one but Puig could hit the ball out of the park, but YA kept its grip on the top spot nonetheless.

2. Clemente's Bucs (2362.7, 6-6, last week 4): Ray's team crushed the ball to vault two spots into second place with a big win against Bill. Josh Donaldson (21) and Jeff McNeil (20.5) led a balanced attack as the offense put up 138.5 points. Newfound ace Brandon Woodruff (26 in 2 starts) led the way on the mound, even with Stephen Strasburg (13), Zach Eflin (8) and Trevor Williams (5) failing to blow people away. The important thing to note is that Starling Marte put up 15.5 points without hitting a single, and in fact with only 3 hits total, and that's damned impressive.

Heads up in the front row!

3. The Rookies (2361.3 points, 5-7, last week 2): Cody Bellinger (23.5) continued to scorch the ball, but Eduardo Escobar (8), Tony Wolters (9) and Hunter Renfroe (10.5) all cooled off in a loss to Hassey's Girl. Scott Kingery (3) hit well but made 4 errors, which is Amed Rosario territory. On the mound, closer Greg Holland put up a minus-2 in 2 appearances, but all four starters scored 12 or more points. The offense just couldn't produce enough for a win.

4. When the Ledee Breaks (2345.7, 7-5, last week 3): Matt's squad took down the Misfits on the backs of - guess what - his offense. Juan Soto (31.5) kept slugging, and Michael Conforto (20) and Christian Walker (20.5) chipped in strongly as well. The bad news was the loss of Trevor Story, which looks like it could last for a while. With a big piece of the offense down, how will the Zeppelins respond? Pitchers Joey Lucchesi (22 in 2 starts) and Dakota Hudson (17) look like they can handle the weight, but can Jose Quintana (-4.7) and Chase Anderson (2)? Anderson has already been cut, so that answers that.

5. Hassey's Girl (2304.3, 9-3, last week 5): On a week when the pitching staff really only had three starts - with Rich Hill leaving with an injury after an inning - the commish offense stepped up in a win against the Rookies. As you'd expect, it was Pete Alonso (33.5) and Christian Yelich (30.5) leading the way, as a mostly dormant offense put up 12 homers and 11 doubles... and 26 walks. Patience is just the best virtue. German Marquez (15), Aaron Nola (14) and Hyun-Jin Ryu (10) each had quality starts but couldn't earn wins.

6. Project Mayhem (2262.2, 7-5, last week 6): Bill's offense couldn't keep up with Ray in a loss to the Bucs. Ketel Marte (19) kept hitting annoyingly well, but no one else did much of note, unless you'd like to note JT Realmuto going hitless and scoring just 1 point on a pair of walks. Maikel Franco (2) is stuck in a deep, dark hole and Franmil Reyes (1) cooled off. As a team: just 2 homers (both by Joc Pederson), 5 doubles, a triple and 9 RBIs. That's not great. Imagine how bad it could have been if not for Walker Buehler's 28-point outing! Miles Mikolas (20 in 2 starts) also contributed and Will Smith (13.7) just keeps rolling as a closer for a terrible team.

7. Lumber Co Lumber (2170.8, 5-7, last week 8): John's squad got a win against the Losers on the back of some strong offense, led by Freddie Freeman (31.5). Every other hitter - except poor, sad Colin Moran - put up at least 14 points in a balanced attack. The pitching was less impressive, though Jon Lester (13.7) did earn a win. Stevens Brault (6) and Matz (-1) weren't great, and Kenta Maeda got only 15 out of 2 starts. Good thing Lumber Co brought the lumber.

How is Brian McCann not in this picture?

8. Fresh Fish (2170.3, 6-6, last week 9): Rick's pitchers put on a clinic to top Adam in a high-scoring matchup. Jacob deGrom (34.3 in 2 starts) looks like the deGrom of last year, Joe Musgrove (19), Clayton Kershaw (18) and Luis Castillo (18.7 in 2 starts) all pitched well, and Felipe "Vazquez" locked up 3 saves. 106.3 points total for the staff. The offense was.... also present, doing some things in an ok fashion. Amed Rosario (22.5) was the leader, though, which is not great in general. At least he didn't make an error! Marcell Ozuna (15.5) made 2 of them, though, to offset a strong offensive week. The rest of the hitting was pretty much meh, but it didn't matter with the pitching.

9. Arbitration Losers (2147, 7-5, last week 7): Tim's pitching staff was brutally bad in the loss to LCL. Just horribly bad. Closer Kirby Yates put up 10 despite the blown save Sunday, but no starter had more than 8 and two (Julio Teheran and Madison Bumgarner) put up negatives. A good way to slip from 7th to 9th in the point totals, I'd say. On offense, Manny Machado (27.5) kept slugging, and Bryan Reynolds (21), Javy Baez (21) and Joey Votto (20.5) did their share of damage. Fun note: Tim had Kike Hernandez in the lineup for one game... in which he hit a pinch-hit grand slam. He was cut the next day. Baseball is cruel.

10. The Misfits (1901, 1-11, last week 10): Reid's old dudes just aren't hitting like you'd hope. Paul Goldschmidt (13), Ryan Braun (15), Justin Turner (14.5) and Yadi Molina (11.5) all hit fine, but none are dominating the way Reid needs to win some ballgames. I've said it once; I've said it a thousand times: if Cesar Hernandez (16.5) is your leading hitter, you're pretty much cooked. On the mound, Michael Wacha (14) and Jon Gray (14) had strong starts and Merrill Kelly (16 in 2 starts) put up some points. But there's no ace here to pick up the slack.

Batting leaders after Week 12

1. Christian Yelich (HG) 301
2. Cody Bellinger (R) 287
3. Freddie Freeman (LCL) 275.5

4. Josh Bell (YA) 274

5. Nolan Arenado (R) 262

Pitching leaders after Week 12

1. Max Scherzer (YA) 236.3
2. Hyun-Jin Ryu (HG) 217
3. Stephen Strasburg (CB) 207
4. Brandon Woodruff (CB) 205.3
5. Luis Castillo (FF) 202.3

Seriously, this guy is picking fights with reporters? My grandma could whoop his ass.

Week 12: Sunday roundup

Fernando Tatis Jr. scores on a routine pop-up to the second baseman. Seriously. 

STUDS: Fernando Tatis Jr. (HG) singled twice, walked twice, drove in 2 and scored 3 runs. Joey Votto (AL) homered, singled twice, walked and drove in 3. Brandon Woodruff (CB) struck out 12 and allowed 3 runs in a 7-inning win. Kenley Jansen (CB) struck out 2 in 1 inning and picked up a vulture win.

DUDS: Scott Kingery (R) walked and erred. Kirby Yates (AL) blew a save by allowing 1 run in 1 inning.

Week 12: Saturday roundup

Dansby Swanson shows why he's known more for his offense than his defense. 

STUDS: Yasmani Grandal (WLB) homered, doubled, walked, drove in 2 and scored twice. Juan Soto (WLB) tripled, singled twice and drove in 4. Dakota Hudson (WLB) struck out 6 and allowed 1 run in a 7-inning win. Freddie Freeman (LCL) doubled, singled, drove in 5, scored and walked. Dansby Swanson (LCL) homered, doubled, drove in 4, scored 3 times and walked. Josh Hader (LCL) struck out 4 in a 2-inning save. Zack Wheeler (R) struck out 5 and allowed 1 run in a 7-inning win.

DUD: Jose Quintana (WLB) allowed 8 runs and fanned 2 in a 4.1-inning loss.

Week 12: Friday roundup

Walker Buehler was pretty fired up about his 26-point outing on Friday.

STUDS: Walker Buehler (CB) went the distance in a win, allowing 2 runs and striking out 16 Rockies. Christian Yelich (HG) homered, doubled, drove in 3, scored twice and stole a base. Marcell Ozuna (FF) homered, singled twice, drove in 3, scored twice and stole a base. Joe Musgrove (FF) struck out 8 and allowed 1 run in a 7-inning win.

DUDS: Ozzie Albies (R) singled and erred. Scott Kingery (R) doubled and erred twice. Josh Bell (YA) committed an error.

Week 12: Thursday Roundup

Javier Baez (right) is pictured next to a very understanding woman.

STUDS: Javier Baez (AL) homered, tripled, scored twice and drove in 2.

DUDS: Greg Holland (R) allowed a run in an inning and blew the save. Madison Bumgarner (AL) allowed 6 runs and struck out 3 in a 3.2-inning loss. At least he didn't have to fish anything out of the ocean.

Week 12: Wednesday Roundup

As if the dude wasn't scary enough looking to opposing hitters.

STUDS: Cody Bellinger (R) homered, singled, walked, scored 3 runs and drove in 2. Patrick Corbin (R) struck out 8 in 7 innings, allowing 1 run in the win. Max Fried (R) allowed 2 runs and struck out 6 in a 6-inning win. Willson Contreras (LCL) had 2 homers, 5 RBIs and a walk. Brian Dozier (LCL) had 2 homers, a double and 4 RBIs. Bryan Reynolds (AL) had a homer, 2 singles, 3 runs and 3 RBIs. Juan Soto (WLB) had 3 singles, 2 walks, 2 steals, 2 runs and an RBI. Ryan Braun (M) homered, doubled, walked and drove in 3. Chris Taylor (YA bench) had 2 homers, a double, 3 runs and 4 RBIs. Max Scherzer (YA) - pitching with a freshly broken nose - struck out 10 in 7 shutout innings for the win.

DUDS: Steven Matz (LCL) allowed 5 runs and struck out 2 in a 5-inning loss.

Week 12: Tuesday Roundup

Rick's twin aces combined for nearly 40 points yesterday.

STUDS: Pete Alonso (HG) had a homer, 2 doubles, a single, 2 walks, 3 runs and 3 RBIs. Nolan Arenado (R) was a triple shy of a cycle, scored twice, drove in 3 and walked. He also committed an error. Michael Conforto (WLB) homered, doubled, walked, scored twice and drove in 2. Jacob deGrom (FF) struck out 10 and allowed 2 runs in an 8.1-inning win. Clayton Kershaw (FF) tossed 7 shutout inning with 6 strikeouts for the win. Jeff McNeil (CB bench) was a triple shy of a cycle, walked, stole a base and scored 3 runs.

DUDS: Julio Teheran (AL) struck out 3 and allowed 6 runs in a 4-inning loss. Yasmani Grandal (WLB) walked and erred. Mike Moustakas (WLB) went 0-fer with an error and left with an injury. Marcell Ozuna (FF) went 0-fer with an error, as did Jorge Alfaro (YA). Paul DeJong (PM) walked and was caught stealing.

Week 12: Monday Roundup

A year after disappointing fantasy owners who saw him as a breakout candidate, Luis Castillo is about to be an all-star.

STUDS: Matt Carpenter (HG) - no, seriously, why are you laughing? - was a triple shy of a cycle and scored three runs. Sure, one of those hits was a bunt double, but who's counting? Ozzie Albies (R) continued his tear, homering, singling twice and driving in 4. Joey Lucchesi (WLB) struck out 5 in 7 shutout innings to earn the win. Brian Freaking McCann (FF) - who is apparently 24 years old again - had a homer, 2 singles, 2 walks, 2 runs and 2 RBIs. Luis Castillo (FF) struck out 7 and allowed 2 runs in a 6-inning win. Miles Mikolas (PM) tossed 6 shutout innings with 4 strikeouts to earn the win.

DUDS: Chris Taylor (YA) drove in a run and erred.

Matt Carpenter just bunted for a double... yes, you read that correctly! pic.twitter.com/mtJUNpG4ji

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) June 18, 2019

Week 11: The Check Swing

Charlie Blackmon's totals for the week: 6 homers, 1 triple, 4 doubles, 10 singles, 15 RBIs and 12 runs. That'll work. 

We're keeping it short this week because it's a busy time of year in the commissioners' office. We're out building Habitat for Humanity homes, rescuing kids from orphanage fires, helping old ladies cross the street and the like. We hope to be back with a full writeup next week, but we're also easily distracted by shiny things.

1. Yari's Autonomics (2221.3, 7-4, last week 2): Ever since we bashed Adam's team as bottom-feeders, they've been going berserk. Notoriously streaky Ian Desmond was the top scorer with 38.5 — including 13 RBIs — as 7 Autonomics scored 20 points or more in a win against Matt's Zeppelins.

2. The Rookies (2195.8 points, 5-6, last week 1): Henry got only 13.3 points from his pitchers but still cracked the 200-point barrier in a win against LCL thanks to Ozzie Albies (36), Scott Kingery (35) and Eduardo Escobar (29.5).

3. When the Ledee Breaks (2162.8, 6-5, last week 4): Not even 33 points from Ronald Acuña Jr. and 29.5 points from Trevor Story could get Matt's team past the Autonomics.

Wearing No. 4 in Philly, Scott Kingery has a bit of a Lenny
Dykstra vibe out there. Let's hope he's less of a douche. 

4. Clemente's Bucs (2160.2, 5-6, last week 6): If 200 points is a good week in FBLG, how good was Ray's 280.5 in Week 11? The offense alone put up 227.5, led by Charlie Blackmon's 60. Ridiculous! These guys totaled 19 homers, 57 RBIs and 51 runs while pummeling the Losers.

5. Hassey's Girl (2104.3, 8-3, last week 5): The commissioners have 3 of the top 11 pitchers in FBLG but haven't had a consistent offense to help them. In Week 11, Fernando Tatis Jr. (30.5) and Pete Alonso (26) did their part in a win against the Fish.

6. Project Mayhem (2094.5, 7-4, last week 3): Ketel Marte's 38-point week pushed Bill past Reid's Misfits in our low-scoring duel of the week. Hilariously, Marte hit 5 homers — and drove in no one but himself.

7. Arbitration Losers (1995.3, 7-4, last week 8): Manny Machado (32.5) and David Dahl (28.5) went nuts in a wild series at Coors Field, but Tim never really had a chance against the Bucs.

8. Lumber Co Lumber (1994.2, 4-7, last week 7): Freddie Freeman had a 32-point week to pace the Lumber hitters, but the pitchers went 0-3 and totaled only 28.3 points.

9. Fresh Fish (1960, 5-6, last week 9): Future DH Austin Riley (26), Anthony Rizzo (22.5) and Brian McCann (20) combined for 8 homers, but Rick's club lost a close one to the commissioners.

10. The Misfits (1746.5, 1-10, last week 10): Another rough week for Reid included closer Edwin Diaz posting a -3. Wil Myers led the way with a 20.5-point performance.

Sergeant-at-arms Brian McCann confronts a FBLG owner
who violated the rules regarding starting pitchers.

Batting leaders after Week 11

1. Christian Yelich (HG) 270.5
2. Cody Bellinger (R) 263.5
3. Josh Bell (YA) 262.5
4. Trevor Story (WTLB) 251.5
5. Freddie Freeman (LCL) 244

Pitching leaders after Week 11

1. Max Scherzer (YA) 214.3
2. Hyun-Jin Ryu (HG) 207
3. Stephen Strasburg (CB) 194
4. Zack Greinke (YA) 186
5. Luis Castillo (FF) 183.7

Week 11: Sunday roundup

Be honest. You saw the Marlins had an "H. Ramirez" and you assumed it was Hanley, right?

STUDS: Anthony Rendon (YA) homered, singled twice, drove in 2 and scored 3 runs. Yasiel Puig (YA) did the same except he scored only 2 runs. Ronald Acuña Jr. (WHB) homered, singled 3 times, scored 4 runs and drove in 2. Sonny Gray (AL) struck out 8 and allowed 3 runs in a 5-inning win. Josh Donaldson (CB) was a triple short of a cycle and drove in 2. Mike Foltynewicz (CB) struck out 6 and allowed 1 run in a 6-inning win. Ozzie Albies (R) doubled twice, singled, scored twice and drove in 2. Josh Hader (LCL) struck out 3 in a 2-inning save. Harold Ramirez (M) homered, doubled and drove in 3. Ketel Marte (PM) was a triple short of a cycle, scored 3 runs and walked. Hyun-Jin Ryu (HG) struck out 8 and didn't allow an earned run in 7 innings.

COORS FIELD STUDS: Fernando Tatis Jr. (HG) finished a homer short of a cycle, scored 3 runs, drove in 1 and stole a base. Ian Desmond (YA) doubled twice, singled, scored twice and drove in a run. Charlie Blackmon (CB) homered, singled twice and drove in 3. Hunter Renfroe (R bench) and Ryan McMahon (LCL bench) combined for 19 points their owners didn't get credit for.

DUD: Justin Turner (M) went 0-fer with an error.