ALOMAR DIVISION
In the Championship Bracket, the #3 Austin Senators squeaked by #6 Ghost Man On Third by a score of 6-5-1. The Senators and Ghost played cat and mouse over the weekend, with both teams resting their starting pitchers on Saturday. Ahead 6-5-1 going into Sunday, Ghost grabbed four free-agent hurlers and started six pitchers in an attempt to regain the lead in innings and wins. Strong efforts by the Senators’ Jon Lieber and Pedro Martinez foiled that strategy, as Ghost remained tied in wins and lost the innings race 68.2 to 66.1. Ghost also lost the lead in K/BB ratio in the process, turning a thin lead into a tough loss. The Senators will attempt to slow down the extra spicy hot #2 Thunderbirds, who averaged over eight wins per week during the second half of the regular season.
The #4 Horse Field Hammers defeated the #5 Gashouse Gorillas 7-4-1 in the other Champ’s matchup. Offense led the way as the Hammers batted a robust .298/.368/.519 and won every offensive category except steals. The Gorillas didn’t get enough help from hitters other than Mark Teixeira, who slugged .800 and provided 14 of the Gorilla 39 RBI all by himself. Neither team pitched very well, but the Hammers did win two categories, enough to guarantee victory. Horse Field Hammers will square off against the #1 seed Toronto Walrus. Ghost Man On Third and Gashouse Gorillas will fight for fifth and sixth places.
In the Consolation Bracket, the #9 Eastern Shore Birds pecked the #12 Homer Jays Simpsons 7-3-2. The Birds pitched exceptionally well, finishing with 69 innings, seven wins and saves, a 3.12 ERA, an 0.95 WHIP, and a 3.69 K/BB ratio, yet they won only four of those categories thanks to the Simpsons sterling 1.92 ERA and 3.80 K/BB ratio. Nevertheless, the Birds won in reasonable comfort by sweeping the offensive rate categories. The Birds will land on #8 Mebion Glyndwyr this week in the semifinals.
The #11 Chatsworth Halos captured the #10 Red Mosquitos 8-3-1 in other Consolation meeting. The Mosquitos couldn’t overcome a grim offensive effort (.190/.280/.330, 18 runs, 24 RBI, with just about everyone but Scott Podsednik guilty of malpractice) and woeful performances from A.J. Burnett and Jeremy Affeldt. Folks like Craig Counsell, Placido Polanco and Jason Kendall assisted the Halo cause. The Halos take on #7 Reykjavik Fish Candy this week, while the Mosquitos and Simpsons battle for 11th and 12th in a consolation match.
BARFIELD DIVISION
#3 WAMCO won its Championship Bracket matchup against the #6 Burlington Mazsters by the score of 8-4-0. Even with a comfortable lead, WAMCO dared to start Aaron Cook in Colorado and Rick Helling, and both pitched well and earned wins. The Mazsters chances of earning some offensive rate categories vanished with a weird line of .214/.244/.548 on Sunday. WAMCO will tackle the #2 Jay’s Ehs and will move up to Alomar in 2006 unless Schroedinger’s Bat wins the crown.
#4 Team Junior Felix, an occasional visitor to the top of the standings, lost to #5 Schroedinger’s Bat 7-4-1. Felix led 7-4-1 going into the final day but lost three pitching categories due to a subpar performance from Matt Morris and a one-inning, four-run meltdown of a start by Carlos Silva. Meanwhile, Schroedinger’s Brad Penny and Bruce Chen both won and provided the margins in innings, ERA and WHIP. The Bat will take on the #1 Mighty Midgets.
In the Consolation Bracket, #12 Jick’s Rays waxed the #9 Middleclass Elitists 12-0-0. The Elitists didn’t play terribly overall and the Rays didn’t break any records, but the Rays did win every close battle and ran away with a few other categories. The Rays will duel #8 European Wannabe.
The #11 Monkeymen Cubed corralled the #10 Lubumbashi Posse 7-4-1. The Cubed trailed 4-6-2 after Saturday night but overcame a seven-RBI deficit and slight disadvantages in slugging and K/BB ratio on the ultimate day. The Posse endured a horrific Sunday, batting .143/.226/.179 with three runs scored and none batted in. The Monkeymen will face the #7 Pistol Nine. In the consolation matchup in the Consolation Bracket, the Middleclass Elitists will take on the Lubumbashi Posse.
CARTER DIVISION
Tied on Saturday with #6 Bodell’s Bashers holding the tiebreaker, #3 Pohnpei Papayas rallied for a 7-5-0 victory in the Championship Bracket. The Papayas trailed 3-2 in stolen bases until Sunday, when two swipes by Julio Lugo and another by Randy Winn provided the winning margin. The Bashers wisely benched their entire pitching staff in order to retain leads in the rate categories, but the lack of prowess on the bases spelled doom. The Papayas tilt against #2 Magic 9 this week, and they will advance to Barfield in 2006 barring a playoff victory by Three Bucks On A Hun.
#5 Three Bucks On A Hun roared back from a 5-6-1 deficit to win 9-3-0 over #4 Dr. Z’s Hot Men. The Men suffered a Sunday batting effort that would make Barfield’s Lubumbashi Posse blush: 1-for-39 with a double and four walks. Combined with a good day by the Hun, Dr. Z lost its lead in runs, RBI and OBP, and the Hun’s two Sunday saves grabbed another category for good measure. The Hun will face #1 Baseball North. Dr. Z and Bodell’s Bashers fight for 5th place this week.
In the Consolation Bracket, the #9 Garth Iorg Gremlins defeated the #12 Mechanical Brains 7-4-1. The Gremlins scored only 27 runs and batted .250/.322/.375 but won those categories. The Brains picked the wrong week to slump, with Jason Varitek, Adrian Beltre, Johnny Damon, Moises Alou and several others slugging below .300. The Gremlins face #8 Team Balla.
The #10 @$$kickers dissipated the #11 New Jersey Stratuses 8-3-1 in the other consolation game. The contest was closer than it appeared; the Kickers won categories by one steal, .002 of batting average, and .007 of OBP. This week, the Kickers square off against #7 The Angry Gnomes, and the Stratuses and Mechanical Brains play a match for 11th place.
