AL East Round 4: Biv Gets First Series Win As Harrison Takes 2 From Long Ball

The two teams currently bringing up the rear in the AL East battled on Saturday afternoon and after two hitfests won by the Cougars, Larry salvaged Game 3 behind a pitching masterpiece.


Game 1: Harrison 5, Long Ball 3
W-D.Cabrera (2-0), L-Z.Miner (0-1), S-R.Perez (4)

Daniel Cabrera constantly escaped trouble in this one, but recorded just enough outs around the 7 free passes issued to become Harrison's first two-game winner. Zach Miner couldn't get out of a bases-loaded jam in the 7th as Jhonny Peralta, Ivan Rodriguez, and Matt Stairs strung together three straight RBI. Peralta recorded three hits on the day while his counterpart at SS, Asdrubal Cabrera, also had three hits for Long Ball.

Game 2: Harrison 6, Long Ball 3
W-A.Burnett (1-2), L-S.Kazmir (0-3), S-R.Perez (5)
Among the 27 combined hits in this game, things got ridiculous in the 6th frame when Harrison pounded five straight two-out hits off Larry starter Scott Kazmir. A successful double 1-2 or flyout roll from Ivan Rodriguez was immediately followed by Peralta getting a double 1 or flyout foll, which drove in what turned out to be the decisive run. Jason Michaels had three hits for the Cougars while Troy Glaus was 4-for-4 for Larry.


Game 3: Long Ball 1, Harrison 0
W-C.Wang (1-2), L-J.Shields (0-2), S-J.Papelbon (1)
Larry's 8 hits resulted in only one run courtesy of a 4th inning single from Asdrubal Cabrera which scored Bob Abreu. It was all the offense that was necessary behind Chien-Ming Wang's seven innings of spectacular pitching, as the Taiwanese hurler allowed only three hits. Jonathan Papelbon came on in the 8th to work a two-inning save, his first of the season.


Quick notes:

• Harrison's offense continues to play below expectations, as the Cougars average a meager 3.4 runs per game. As a microcosm, top pick Magglio Ordoñez is batting only .227 and has grounded into a league-high seven double plays.
• Rafael Perez has saved all five of the Cougars victories.
• DH Johnny Gomes has struck out an incredible 15 times in 25 at-bats. With J.D. Drew scheduled to come back from injury for Round 5, Biv is complementing sending the windmill down to AAA Speaker City for the remainder of Block 1.

Next up:

Harrison Cougars (5-7) at Army of Steamrollers (4-5)*
Finer Things Club (4-2)* at Long Ball Larry (4-8)

AL West Round 2: After the Snow takes 2 from Santa Poco Amigos

This will be short with much help from HAL's reporting as it was over a week ago and my memory is a bit foggy.

Snow 0 - Amigos 3 (W-Garza, L-Gaudin, S-Putz)
Paco jumped out to a quick first inning lead and handed that lead to his unhittable bullpen to cruise. Buck and Cust homered for Paco and the Snow left 8 men stranded. From HAL:
"In a game for the baseball purist, Matt Garza(1-0) and Chad Gaudin(0-1) squared off in a tense pitching duel, Santa Poco Amigos finally emerged victorious over After The Snow, 3 to 0. Santa Poco drew first blood jumping out to an early lead in the first inning scoring one runner. That early scoring was all that Garza needed. J.J. Putz relieved and was untouched by After The as he recorded the save, his 1st. "

Snow 5 - Amigos 4 (W-Moseley, L-Riske, S-Street)
David Riske entered the game with a one-run lead in the seventh and had all sorts of trouble. From HAL:
"Dan Johnson was a seemingly constant irritant to the hometown fans as he provided much of the offense for the visitors. He cracked a solo homerun (his 1st of the season) in the 1st inning and tripled bringing in two baserunners in the 7th inning. Santa Poco threatened in the 9th but AfterThe was able to put down the rally. The winning pitcher was Dustin Moseley(1-0) who allowed no runs in 2/3 of an inning. Moseley got relief help from Huston Street who gained credit for his 2nd save. David Riske(0-1) was the loser in relief. He pitched 1 inning allowing 3 hits and no walks. 'Fundamentals, fundamentals, fundamentals' said Biv West after the game. 'We lost this game tonight because we didn't follow the instructions every Little
Leaguer hears every day.'"

Snow 9 - Amigos 3 (W-Lackey, L-Meche)
Ichiro swiped 3 bags in the contest, to highlight the win. From HAL:
"Jason Bartlett cracked a homer and had 3 RBI at McAfee Coliseum as the After The Snow beat the Santa Poco Amigos by the count of 9 to 3. After The tallied 5 runs in the top of the 5th inning with the help of 3 hits. The crucial at-bat was provided by Bartlett who helped quiet the crowd when he lofted a three-run 'big-fly' (his 1st of the season). After The totaled 10 hits on the night. The victory went to John Lackey(1-1) who went 7 and 2/3 innings, allowing 3 runs. The loss was charged to Gil Meche(0-2). He was not very effective, surrendering 8 runs in 5 innings."

Next up:
Snow: Chad West
Biv: Kyle West (already played)

AL East Round 3: Army of Steamrollers pitch their way to 2 wins over Long Ball Larry

I did get a lot of favorable rolls. I admit that. Many a ballpark single came out on the positive side for me. A 1-3 roll for a grand slam went my way. I was never caught stealing. I terrorized his left side of the infield with many an "x" base hit. But to raise Greg's ire to a level seen only a few times before, I sent my runner home on a 1-19 chance with an 8-0 lead. All-in-all, Greg took it graciously with comments like: "F**k this!" "I would throw the next pitch at your earhole." "Can I just get one *** *** roll? Seriously. Just one." He added curses wishing bad karma on this club and hoping that I never, ever again win against a Chad-coached team - something I normally can't do anyway. That said, there were some noteworth events in the three games:

Army 11 - Larry 0 (W-Guthrie, L-Weng)
Jeremy Guthrie was again Orel Hershiser-like and gave up no runs for the second straight game to raise his scoreless streak to 17 innings. Chien-Ming Weng was charged with 11 runs for the loss. Curtis Granderson accounted for 5 RBIs and was a homer away from the cycle.


Army 13 - Larry 1 (W-Bonderman, L-Clemens)
The Steamrollers jumped out to a quick lead and tired out two pitchers before 5 innings had past. This is the game that Brendan Harris hit the afore-mentioned grand slam. Army colected 21 hits in all with Nick Markakis grabbing four of those to go along with 3 RBIs. Sizemore also notched his 9th stolen base of the season. Troy Glaus was 2-2 for Larry before being plunked and sent to the DL. Pinch hitter Corey Patterson came in to grab the first RBI of the series for the Larrys in the 7th inning.

Army 1 - Larry 6 (W-Marcum, L-Robertson)
Shaun Marcum came up big in a complete-game effort. He gave up just 5 hits and 1 run to muffle the Army offense. At the plate, Bobby Abreu was unstoppable collecting 3 hits and 3 RBIs. He also hit one of 3 triples for Larry on the game. Heads up to the next team Marcum faces as he is quoted in the post-game report: 'I've been working on a few things in my delivery, and I think I'm hitting a good groove. I'm ready to start another game tomorrow!'

Next up:
Army (4-5): Brian East
Larry (3-6): Biv East

AL East Round 2: Bob Loblaw takes 2-of-3 from Army of Steamrollers

While the phones at the Bob Loblaw Law Office continued to ring off the hook, his strat team went to work, going 2-1 against Scott's Army last night. Two notes: Manny Delcarmen may save every game and Erik Bedard may strike out 300 this strat season.

Game 1: Bob Loblaw 5, Army of Steamrollers4
W: J.Tavarez (1-0), L: B.Wolfe (0-1), S: M.Delcarmen (3)

Bob led 4-1 going into the bottom of the 6th and looked to be cruising to victory...then Army broke out the lumber. Nick Markakis' solo HR (2nd) in the 6th was followed by solo HRs by Derek Jeter (1st) and Melvin Mora (1st) in the 7th to tie the game 4-4. The mood on the Steamroller bench quickly faded, however, as Travis Hafner led off the 8th with a HR (1st) to provide the eventual winning run. Alex Rodriguez hit is 3rd HR of the season and Brian Roberts went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles for Bob, while Melvin Mora was unstoppable for Army going 3-for-3. Markakis, Jeter and Curtis Granderson added 2 hits apiece.

Game 2: Army of Steamrollers 3, Bob Loblaw 2
W: J.Litsch (1-0), L: J.Towers (0-1), S: B.Seay (1)

Derek Jeter and Aubrey Huff had RBI singles and Grady Sizemore stole 3 bases to help Army hand Bob their 1st loss of the season. The matchup of #5 starters turned in a pair of solid pitching performances. Winner Jesse Litsch gave up 6 hits and 3 walks while striking out 2 over 8 innings, while loser Josh Towers went the distance giving up 6 hits and 3 walks and struck out 7 Steamrollers. Kevin Youkilis and Delmon Young each had 2 hits for Bob.

Game 3: Bob Loblaw 5, Army of Steamrollers 3
W: CC Sabathia (2-0), L: E.Bedard (0-2), S: M.Delcarmen (4)

Erik Bedard matched the 15 strikeouts he had in his opening start, however he also matched the loss as well as Bob Loblaw was able to get wood on enough of Bedard's pitches to win the rubber match. Manny Ramirez's RBI double in the 3rd broke a 2-2 tie. Brian Roberts and Delmon Young added RBI singles in the 4th and 5th innings to puch the lead to 5-2. Army pulled one back on a Franklin Gutierrez sac-fly in the 8th but could get no closer. Grady Sizemore continued to run wild, stealing his 7th base of the season and he, Gutierrez and Nick Markakis all had 2 hits. C.C. Sabathia struck out 8 as he went 7.1 innings for his 2nd win of the season.

Pena batters Nausicans to lead Long Ball Larry to 2 of 3

Carlos Pena outdueled David Ortiz in a battle of red-hot first round East draft picks as Long Ball Larry (Detter East) took a pair from the homestanding Surly Nausicans. Pena went deep three times, driving in eight runs, while his DH counterpart left the yard on two occasions.

GAME 1: Long Ball Larry - 10 Surly Nausicans - 5, 12 innings
WP: Mike Timlin (1-0)
LP: Mariano Rivera (0-1)

Carlos Pena, Carl Crawford, and Troy Glaus combined for 10 of the 17 LBL hits, two homers, and drove in eight of the team's ten runs, including all five in the decisive 12th inning. Crawford broke the tie with a bases loaded triple off of Nausican reliever Mariano Rivera and Pena provided some insurance two batters later with a two-run homer, his first of three on the series. LBL reliever Mike Timlin threw two scoreless frames for his first win of the season.

GAME 2: Long Ball Larry - 8 Surly Nausicans - 2
WP: Phillip Hughes (1-0)
LP: Mike Mussina (0-1)
Sv: Zach Miner (1)

Pena went deep two more times, driving in five of the eight LBL runs as part of a 12-hit attack. Crawford and Dustin Pedroia each had two knocks as Phillip Hughes cruised through six strong innings for the win. Zach Miner locked down the Nausicans in the final three stanzas to earn the save. Ortiz provided the lone highlight for the Nausicans with his third long ball of the year.

GAME 3: Surly Nausicans - 6 Long Ball Larry - 0
WP: Fausto Carmona (2-0)
LP: Scott Kazmir (0-2)

Fausto Carmona put a sudden and violent stop to the LBL offensive juggernaut, silencing their bats over 7.1 shutout innings. His effort was supported by two more hits and two more RBI by Ortiz. Following this contest, each of the 2-5 hitters in the Surly lineup are hitting over .400 for the season.

AL East Round 2: FTC powers to series win; Biv falls to 0-4 in Rubber Games

Biv is still looking for this first big break of the season after his Harrison Cougars dropped two of three to the Finer Things Club (Chad East) on Sunday afternoon. Biv-owned teams are 0-4 in rubber games of a series, and is 1-2 in all five series played so far.

For FTC, the bullpen was the savior in a series in which it was missing key 3B Mike Lowell and the starters went 2 2/3 (injury), 4 2/3 (limited) and 5 2/3 innings (fatigued).

Game 1: FTC 13, Harrison 1.
W-J.Frasor (1-0), L-J.Lester (0-1).
B.J. Upton, Robinson Cano and Frank Thomas each homered, and the trio combined for eight hits and nine RBIs in a blowout. Ryan Raburn's two-run single was the key blow in FTC's four-run first. No. 4 FTC starter Jake Westbrook was removed for a 7-game injury in the third, bringing on Jason Grilli and Jason Frasor to clean up.

Game 2: Harrison 3, FTC 0.
W-D.Cabrera (1-0), L-J.Jurrjens (0-1), S-R.Perez (2).
Ivan Rodriguez delivered a bases-loaded, two-run single in the second and that was all the Cougars needed to support No. 5 starter Daniel Cabrera. FTC laced eight hits, three by Thomas, but could not string anything together. Joel Zumaya and Rafael Perez slammed the door with four terrific innings of relief.

Game 3: FTC 7, Harrison 4.
W-J.Verlander (2-0), L-A.Burnett (0-2), S-R.Betancourt (2).
Ryan Garko returned from an injury to record his first hit of the season -- a two-run homer -- to lift FTC to a series victory. Cano and Upton also went deep. Harrison made things interesting in the sixth, getting a two-run single from Jacoby Ellsbury off specialty reliever Joba Chamberlain. But Rafael Betancourt entered with two outs in the seventh and went the rest of the way for a hard-earned save.

Series note: Despite several key injuries, Finer Things Club is off to a fast start, boasting a team batting average of .292, a slugging percentage of .498 and a team ERA of 2.55. Top pick Jorge Posada is already paying off, with 10 hits through six games.

Up next:
Harrison Cougars (2-4) at Bob Loblaw (3-0)*
Surly Nausicians (2-1)* at Finer Things Club (4-2)

Thome, Vlad, and dramatics help to cool off Kinnicks

A team expected by its owner to pack plenty of offensive punch, The Big Hebs (Detter West) had failed to meet expectations through the first nine games of the season. However, a possible solution to their offensive woes may have been solved when second round pick Jim Thome returned from injury after missing most of the first three series. In Round 4, it was Thome who combined with Vladimir Guerrero to help their Hebrew squad to two out of three against the red-hot Clean Sweep Kinnicks (Kyle West). If you read nothing else, check out the game two report.

Game 1: Kinnicks - 8, Hebs - 1
WP: Casilla (2-0)
LP: Benoit (0-2)

Heb starter Kyle Davies was spectacular, but got a no-decision after leaving the game with a 1-0 lead. With the Hebs clinging to the one-run lead, the Kinnicks poured it on with an 8-spot in the eighth off of reliever Joaquin Benoit. Thome had three of the five Hebs hits as Santiago Casilla retired one batter to pick up the win.

Game 2: Hebs - 7, Kinnicks - 6
WP: Weaver (2-1)
LP: F.Rodriguez (0-1)

After dominating the series and catching seemingly every break for 17 innings, Kyle saw things take an abrupt and decisive turn in the ninth inning of game two. Behind Johan Santana, the Kinnicks led 6-2 entering the final half inning, but a couple of hits and a walk brought the tying run to the plate against reliever Francisco Rodriguez. After Thome's pinch-hit, bases loaded walk brought the tying run to first base, Vladimir Guerrero hit a two-out, walk-off grand slam off K-Rod to give the Hebs their most dramatic win of the year.

Game 3: Hebs - 11, Kinnicks - 8
WP: Banniser (2-1)
LP: Vazquez (1-1)
Sv: Oliver (1)

This one wasn't nearly as close as the score appears as Jose Guillen's four hits keyed a 17-hit Hebrew attack. Thome, Orlando Cabrera, and Guillen all smashed long balls as Darren Oliver retired the final hitter in the ninth to quell a 4-run Kinnick rally.

Notes:
*Thome practically lived on the basepaths, going 5-for-7 with three walks on the series.

* The Big Hebs have won three of their four series played, yet only have a 6-6 record to show for it.

* Gary Matthews Jr. was injured for 8 games, the third time a Big Hebs starter has been lost for the maximum length this season.

Clean-Sweep Kinnicks take 2 of 3 against the Santa Poco Amigos

Game 1 Kinnicks 9 , Amigos 7

Game 1 was a fight till the end. It was a good day for Clean-Sweep thanks to Kinsler. He smashed a solo-shotout of the park in the 1st inning and smashed a two-run homer (his 5th of theseason) in the 5th inning. Santa Poco was out-hit by Clean-Sweep, 17 hits to 9.
Javier Vazquez(1-0) got credit for the victory, pitching 5 innings and allowing 7 runs. Francisco Rodriguez got the save, his 3rd. The losing pitcher was Jon Garland(1-1).

Game 2 Kinnicks 3, Amigos 8

Zack Greinke(1-1) contributed a pedestrian performance to earn the win. He was reached for 6 hits and 1 walk in 5 and 1/3 innings and gave up 2 homeruns. Santa Poco finished with 10 hits while Clean-Sweep ended up with 7. Reggie Willits went 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored and an RBI. Greinke got help from J.J. Putz who earned his 2nd save. Miguel Batista(0-2)was tagged with the loss.

Game 3 Kinnicks 6, Amigos 4

Center fielder Nick Swisher hit a homerun and had 3 RBI at SAFECO Field as the Clean-Sweep Kinnicks beat the Santa Poco Amigos by the count of 6 to 4. The game started off with Clean-Sweep taking the lead in the first as they scored 2 runs on 1 base hits. Overall Clean-Sweep out-hit Santa Poco 11 to7. Odalis Perez(2-0) got the win allowing 2 runs in 5 innings. Francisco Rodriguez earned the save, his 4th. Matt Garza(1-1) was the losing pitcher.

Overall: The Kinnicks move to 7-2 while the Amigos fall to 3-6.

AL East Round 1: Bob Loblaw sweeps Long Ball Larry

Game 1: Bob Loblaw 2, Long Ball Larry 1
W: CC Sabathia (1-0), L: S.Kazmir (0-1), S: M.Delcarmen (1)

The AL East opener for both teams was pitcher's duel that saw CC Sabathia and Scott Kazmir battle back-and-forth. Manny Ramirez's RBI single in the bottom of the 8th snapped a 1-1 tie and Manny Delcarmen sailed through the 9th to provide victory for Loblaw. Kevin Youkilis had 3 hits and an RBI and Delmon Young had 2 hits for the winners while Dustin Pedroia had 2 hits and Bobby Abreu notched the only RBI for the losers. The real stars, however, were Sabathia and Kazmir. Sabathia gave up 4 hits, walked 2 and struck out 8 over 8 innings in notching the first win of the season. Kazmir was the hard-luck loser going the distance while giving up 6 hits and 3 walks while also striking out 8.

Game 2: Bob Loblaw 12, Long Ball Larry 8
W: C.Schilling (1-0), L: C.Wang (0-1)

Game 2 was the exact opposite of Game 1. Curt Schilling was fatigued before he got out of the 1st as Long Ball hung five runs in the 1st then added another in the 2nd to lead 6-0 quickly. Bob scored a pair in the 3rd before swinging the momentum their way, scoring nine in the 5th (where Bob batted around before the 1st out was recorded). The offensive stars were many: Dustin Pedroia had 3 hits and Gary Sheffield had 4 RBIs for Long Ball. Sheffield and Carlos Pena also hit their 1st HRs. For Loblaw the honor roll includes Delmon Young going 4-for-4 with a HR (1st), 2 runs and 2 RBIs; Alex Rodriguez went 2-for-4 with a HR (1st) and 4 RBIs; and Vernon Wells went 2-for-4 with a HR (1st), 2 runs and 2 RBIs.

Game 3: Bob Loblaw 4, Long Ball Larry 2
W: T.Wakefield (1-0), L: R.Clemens (0-1), S: M.Delcarmen (2)

Loblaw scored a pair of runs in the 1st and another pair in the 3rd to stake Tim Wakefield to an early 4-0 lead, then hung on for the win. Alex Rodriguez went 1-for-2 with a 2-run HR (2nd), 2 runs, and 2 walks while Miguel Tejada added 2 hits. Bobby Abreu both Long Ball RBIs and Gary Sheffield had 2 hits. Wakefield went 7 strong innings, scattering 5 hits and walking 2. Manny Delcarmen did give up a run before closing the game out for his 2nd save.

Big Innings lift Surly Nausicans to series win

Two big innings and two complete-game pitching performaces propelled the Surly Nausicans to a series victory over the homestanding Harrison Cougars on Wednesday night.

The recaps:

Game 1: Surly Nausicans 11, Harrison Cougars 4

Surly's seven-run eighth inning broke a 4-4 deadlock as the Nausicans captured the season opener. The big inning was highlighted by a two-run single by No. 8 hitter CoCo Crisp and a two-run double from No. 9 batter Julio Lugo. David Ortiz went yard in his first at-bat to start the scoring, but Harrison rallied to a 4-2 lead before Surly's Kevin Millar tied it with a 2-run double in the sixth. Fausto Carmona pitched a complete game six-hitter to outduel the hard-luck A.J. Burnett, who was charged with eight runs despite a relatively solid start.

Game 2: Surly Nausicans 16, Harrison Cougars 0

An eight-run fourth inning staked Surly's Josh Beckett to a 10-0 lead, and he cruised to a complete-game shutout despite scattering nine hits and four walks. Millar's grand slam and Victor Martinez's two-run double highlighted the big inning. CoCo Crisp went 4-for-5 and four other Nausicans each recorded three of Surly's 21 hits against James Shields and Chad Durbin. Alex Rios and Aaron Hill went deep for Surly.

Game 3: Harrison Cougars 7, Surly Nausicans 5

The Cougars surived a Nausican rally to get into the win column in the finale. Magglio Ordonez, using his incredible split-card against lefty Andy Pettitte, doubled and singled home runs and Jonny Gomes added two run-scoring doubles as the Cougars put up five runs in the fifth and sixth innings to grab a 6-1 lead. Surly responded by scoring four in the seventh, the last three on Alex Rios' second bomb of the season. But Harrison got a cheap insurance run when Crisp (2E1) misplayed Ordonez' line drive into run-scoring double in the eighth, and Rafael Perez slammed the door with three strikeouts in the ninth, his second inning of work.

Next up

Long Ball Larry (0-0) at Surly Nausicans (2-1)
Finer Things Club (2-1) at Harrison Cougars (1-2)

Clean-Sweep Kinnicks take them all at the home of the Huge Mistakes

Game 1 Kinnicks 10, Mistakes 3

Adrian Beltre touched them all and had 3 RBI at Metrodome where the Clean-Sweep Kinnicks beat the Huge Mistakes 10 to 3. Odalis Perez(1-0) struggled at times, but was good enough to get the victory. He gave up 3 runs, 8 hits and 3 walks in 5 and 1/3 innings. Clean-Sweep finished with 13 hits while Huge ended up with 8.

Game 2 Kinnicks 10, Mistakes 7

Adrian Beltre smacked 2 homeruns as the Clean-Sweep Kinnicks defeated the Huge Mistakes by the score of 10 to 7 at Metrodome. Clean-Sweep had the winning rally in the 9th inning scoring 3 runs on 3 hits. Yuniesky Betancourt got things going when he blasted a solo shot (his 1st ofthe season). Beltre was next and he cracked a solo homerun (his 3rd of theseason). Nick Swisher then drew a walk. Garret Anderson was next to theplate, but was promptly struck out. Kenji Johjima stepped into the box and doubled scoring the final run of the inning. Clean-Sweep ended up with 15 hits for the game while Huge had 8.

Game 3 Kinnicks 7, Mistakes 3

Johan Santana tossed a complete game and Adrian Beltre went yard and had 3 RBI as the Clean-Sweep Kinnicks defeated the Huge Mistakes 7 to 3 at Metrodome. Beltre had a big day against Huge. He tripled knocking in a run in the 1st inning and blasted a two-run home run (his 4th of the season) in the 7thinning. Clean-Sweep had 12 hits for the night.

Overall: The Clean-Sweep Kinnicks outscored the Huge Mistakes 27 to 13. The Kinnicks had hot bats as they knocked out 40 hits total. Getting incrediably lucky with homeruns in a stadium that is not very friendly, Adrian Beltre now has blasted 4 homeruns. Johan Santana stays hot and has pitched his second complete game. Kinnicks push to 5-1 overall with the Mistakes falling to 2-4. Also I might add that the Kinnicks, as a team, launched 11 homeruns in this 3 game series.

AL West Round 2: Hot bullpen leads Hawaiian sweep

The Hawaiian Organ Donors (Chad West) don't offer much in terms of big bats or good gloves. But the bullpen is getting the job done. Following Monday's sweep of the Big Hebs (Greg West), the 'pen has given up only 1 run in 16 2/3 innings pitched. That calculates to a season ERA of 0.54 for the bullpen, compared to a hideous 6.62 for the starters. A quick series recap:

Game 1: Donors 7, Hebs 6
W-Shields (1-0), L-Speier (0-1), S-Jenks (2).
Michael Young drove in four runs, including the go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh off Justin Speier to rally Hawaiian. Odd note: Minor-league callup Danny Richar homered for the Donors as a pinch-hitter in the sixth, giving the light hitting second baseman homers in his first two JKSA plate appearances. Bobby Jenks got five outs -- all off his card -- for his second save.

Game 2: Donors 4, Hebs 0
W-Loe (1-0), L-Davies (0-1).
A battle of #5 starters went Hawaiian's way, as Kameron Loe surprised everyone by pitching 5 2/3 scoreless innings. The Hebs, without Jim Thome and Jarrod Saltalmacchia for the entire series, managed just three hits. David DeJesus hit a two-run homer for the Donors.

Game 3: Donors 6, Hebs 5
W-Neshek (1-0), L-Jered Weaver (0-1), S-Jenks (3).
Paul Konerko's first home run of the season broke a 5-5 tie in the bottom of the eighth, helping to complete the sweep and spoiling a 3-for-3 day from the Hebs' Eric Chavez. Jason Kubel drove in three runs for the victors, who got three innings of scoreless relief from Akinori Otsuka, Pat Neshek and Jenks.

Up next:
Hawaiian Organ Donors (4-2) at After The Snow (1-2)*
Huge Mistakes (2-4) at Big Hebs (2-4)

AL East Round 1: Finer Things Club wins prolonged series (Hurry home, Biv!)

So much for quick three-game series. Issues with the Strat program, Hamachi and racquetball forced a three-game set between Army of Steamrollers (Norris East) and Finer Things Club (Chad East) to be spread over an entire weekend. But when all was said and done, FTC ended up winning two out of three -- with the middle game's statistics being re-created by memory:

Game 1: FTC 3, Army 2
W-Verlander (1-0), L-Bedard (0-1).
Army's Erik Bedard fanned 15 men, but The Club's Robinson Cano gave him fits with two solo homers -- including a walk-off job in the bottom of the ninth. FTC's only other run was a first-inning leadoff homer from B.J. Upton to start the season.

Game 2: Army 2, FTC 0
W-Guthrie (1-0), L-McGowan (0-1), S-Accardo (1).
The Steamrollers broke open a scoreless tie in the seventh with a leadoff walk to Jason Varitek, a hit-and-run single from Brendan Harris and an RBI single from Aubrey Huff. Harris later scored on a two-out passed ball, and the Army staff silenced FTC on five hits.

Game 3: FTC 9, Army 4
W-Halladay (1-0), L-Bonderman (0-1), S-Betancourt (1).
A four-run second for the Steamrollers seemingly put the writing on the wall. But FTC chipped away, inching back on a two-run homer from first-round pick Jorge Posada. The Club went ahead 5-4 with a three-run fifth. That triggered the first appearance of ultra-limited Joba Chamberlain, who came in to face Grady Sizemore with two on and two out in the sixth. Joba retired Sizemore (off Sizemore's card) and faced only one more batter (Derek Jeter) to start the seventh. FTC had a lousy day injury-wise, losing half of its starting infield in 3B Mike Lowell (3 games) and 1B Ryan Garko (2 games). Posada finished 4-for-5 and Ryan Raburn went 3-for-4 for FTC.

AL West Round 1: Huge Mistakes win 2-of-3 from Hawaiian Organ Donors

Hamachi seems to work very well, no problems with connectivity to report of. After 2 close games to open the season, The Huge Mistakes put a whuppin' on Felix Hernandez in the rubber match.

Game 1: Organ Donors 3, Mistakes 2
W: K.Escobar (1-0), L: J.Blanton (0-1), S: B.Jenks (1)

The Donors got all they needed in the top of the 1st as they tagged Joe Blanton for 3 runs via Paul Konerko's RBI double and a 2-run single from Billy Butler. Michael Cuddyer's 2-run HR (1st) off starter Kelvim Escobar in the 6th narrowed the deficit but the Mistakes could get no closer as Akinori Otsuka, Pat Neshek and Bobby Jenks slammed the door shut. Blanton went the distance, giving up only 7 hits and a walk after the dreadful opening frame. Billy Butler had three hits and David DeJesus had two for the winners while Joe Mauer and Mike Piazza had 2 hits apiece for the losers. Gerald Laird, fat-ass extraodinare, somehow beat out a sac-bunt attempt in the 8th.

Game 2: Mistakes 4, Organ Donors 3
W: C.Silva (1-0), L: M.Buerhle (0-1), S: J.Nathan (1)

Casey Kotchman's 2-out, 2-run double in the 7th broke a 2-2 tie and Carlos Silva scattered 5 hits and 2 walks over 8 innings to lead the Mistakes to their first win of the season. Howie Kendrick had given the Donors a 2-1 lead in the fifth with a solo HR (1st) but Marlon Byrd tied the game in the 7th with an RBI single and then scored on Kotchman's go-ahead hit. Chone Figgins and Paul Konerko added RBIs for the visitors, while the winning side got 2 hits apiece from Byrd and Torii Hunter. Macier Izturis stole his 2nd and 3rd bases of the season.

Game 3: Mistakes 11, Organ Donors 2
W: J.Danks (1-0), L: F.Hernandez (0-1)

The Donors would have been set had the game consisted only of the first three and last three innings. However the Huge Mistakes battered Felix Hernandez for all 11 runs in innings 4-6 to win the game and the series. It was an all around effort for the Mistakes as everyone had a hit, only Alex Gordon and Juan Uribe failed to score and only Joe Mauer didn't have an RBI. Macier Izturis had three hits and two RBIs, Gordon added 2 RBIs and Michael Cuddyer scored 3 runs. Chone Figgins finally had something to talk about as he went 3-for-5, Billy Butler and Gerald Laird continued to torch the Mistakes with 2 hits each, and Dave Richar hit a pinch-hit HR (1st) in the 8th. Danks was very good in his opener giving up 1 run and 7 hits while walking none and striking out six.

DRAFT!!! 12 hours and counting ...

So, the draft order and ballpark choices finished up as follows ...

West
1-After The Snow (Scott) - TEX
2-Hawaiian Organ Donors (Chad) - LAA
3-Clean-Sweep Kinnicks (Kyle) - SEA
4-Big Hebs (Greg) - KC
5-Santa Poco Amigos (Biv) - OAK

6-Huge Mistakes (Paul) - MIN

East
1-Bob Loblaw (Paul) - TOR
2-Harrison Cougars (Biv) - CLE
3-Surly Nausicans (Brian) - DET
4-Long Ball Larrys (Greg) - BOS
5-Finer Things Club (Chad) - BAL
6-Army of Steamrollers (Scott) - NYY

... we will convene at 9am ET (8am CT) on Saturday, March 7th. You should get a Chatzy invite from me in the half-hour leading up to the draft. If not, give me a ring at 515-240-9387 (cell) or 703-960-0194 (home).

Amendment E (needs vote)

Boys,

I have one final amendment proposal to consider.

Amendment E: 70% is 70%.
Would alter Article VII (1) to make a player's AB limit to be 70% of card ABs instead of 70% of card ABs + BBs.
My thoughts: Even though the way we do it now is consistent with old-time policy, I think this cheats toward too many ABs for a limited player. I know I have taken advantage of this rule, but I think it got a little out of hand last season. I would argue that it simplifies things (and makes it more realistic) to just take 0.7 x ABs. As it is now, let's say Player X has 100 ABs and 15 BBs on his card. Under current rules, he gets 115 x 0.7 = 80.5 or 81 official ABs. So, in essence, Player X is getting to use 81% of his card ABs rather than the 70% he should be allotted (just like pitchers are a cut-and-dry 70%). The law of averages would say that he would draw approximately the amount of walks he would need to end up with around 70% of plate appearances.

So, my vote is YES. It needs 4 more yes votes to pass.

How VII (1) currently reads:

In an 80-game JKSA season, owners are responsible for monitoring their own AB/IP usage. "Unlimited players" are defined by a pitcher with at least 165 card IP and a batter with at least 450 card ABs + card BBs. Otherwise, limits are as follows: For ABs, multiply card ABs + card BBs and multiply by 0.70, then round up to the nearest at-bat. This shall be the maximum number of OFFICIAL AT-BATS for that player in the 80-game regular season. For IPs, take card IPs and multiply by 0.70, then round up to the nearest inning. This shall be the maximum number of innings pitched for that player in the 80-game regular season.

I had the first, now for the last....

I don't like either of my options. But, I must make a selection. So, the ball park for After the Snow will be the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
Is it fair to say that the West sucks in every possible way?

One ballpark pick to go ...

My AL West park will be Angel Stadium.

On the clock for the last park pick: Scott.

If he has any moral backbone, he will never play games in U.S. Cellular Field, so I am guessing that Texas will be his.

Park choices with one to go are:

AL East
Scott-NY(A), Chad-BAL, Greg-BOS, Brian-DET, Biv-CLE, Paul-TOR

AL West
Paul-MIN, Biv-OAK, Kyle-SEA, Greg-KC, Chad-LA(A), Scott-???.

Mo Vaughn - 2000 Anaheim

What's the problem? He's rated in CF. Under current strat rules however, I'd probably use him in LF and have moved Matt Stairs and his softball swing into CF.

I am taking Seattle for my AL West Ballpark!!!!

Biv Deliberating on Ballparks

Fans of the JKSA are left waiting with baited breath for the third day in a row as Biv ponders his choice of ballparks for the 2007 season. League pundits are said to have found the delayed process "mysterious" and downright "odd" considering Biv's team is pretty much the same with every draft.

The owner that once started Mo Vaughn in centerfield is known for big-bopping, yet defensively deficient lineups. Among his reported targets this year are OF Jack Cust, 1B Jim Thome, and SS Carlos Guillen.