Playoff Week 1 Review – Playoffs are freaking weird man.
Tom Cat’s V Your Mom
This looked for the first 6 days like a classic battle of attrition as both teams were hovering around 0.200 BA and ERA’s over 5.00. It ended up coming down to whichever team hit better on Sunday, and as luck would have it, the Tom Cat’s bats came alive to sneak out a victory that was much closer than it looked.
Of the 8 categories Tom Cat’s won, 5 of them were by very narrow margin: 2 HRs, 0.015 BA, 0.063 OPS, 1 L and 1 HD.
Not to mention that 4 other categories were tied.
But, that’s how it goes in the playoffs, and regardless of context, Tom Cat’s advances to the AL championship.
Fajita Eaters V Baby Seals
Baby Seals’ bats were hot and alive the whole long week. I’m not sure what the playoff records are, but I have to imagine 70 hits ranks pretty high on that list. Meanwhile, Fajita Eaters seemed to have the opposite strategy, but despite batting below 0.200 for the week, managed to steal SB and BB.
The difference maker turned out to be the Fajita Eater’s rotation, which managed to squeak out narrow victories in IP (3.1 IP), W’s (1) and SV’s (1) to take 9 total categories on his way to a victory.
As much as Baby Seals may be in the record books for his offensive prowess last week, Fajita Eaters may be in the record books for first playoff victory for a team batting below the mendoza line.
But, that’s how it goes in the playoffs, and regardless of context, Fajita Eater’s advances to the AL championship.
Kelly’s Heroes V Danimals
The heavily favored Danimals came into the week looking for a healthy victory, but Kelly’s Heroes was hearing none of that. While Kelly’s Heroes won 4 categories narrowly (HR’s by 1, SB’s by 1, IP’s by 1.2, W’s by 1), the remaining categories would have been enough to clinch a tie, and most of the categories that Danimals took were relatively narrow in their own regard (R’s by 2, BB’s by 4, K’s by 4), making this one of the most unexpected and lopsided victories of the week. Again, I’m not sure what the playoff records are, but an ERA of 1.988 has to be competitive for the top 10 list.
It’s hard not to wonder if Kelly’s Heroes is going to regret their Tanaka waiver trade in the next week or two.
But, that’s how it goes in the playoffs, and regardless of context, Kelly’s Heroes advances to the NL championship.
Ball Busters V Rollin’ Goats
In a re-match of Week 6 of the 2020 regular season, Ball Busters was looking for some sweet revenge, while Rollin’ Goats was looking to continue his rolling momentum he had seemingly generated in the final two weeks of the regular season. Offensive categories weren’t particularly close. HR’s and RBI’s were won by 3, BB’s by 4, and SB’s by 2 were the only counting stats somewhat close, 3 of which were secured by Ball Busters. OPS though is another story, as the difference was a mere 0.0088, which is probably the difference of one batter stretching a single into a double.
The pitching though, is a completely different story, as Ball Buster’s swept the categories handedly, with the only narrow margins being a single W and a single HD to clinch the victory and advance to the next round despite losing badly to the same opponent just the week prior.
But, that’s how it goes in the playoffs, and regardless of context, Ball Buster’s advances to the NL championship.
Playoff Week 2 Preview
Tom Cat’s V Fajita Eaters
The battle of brothers, neither of which expected to make it this far. Fajita Eater’s, very much a team on the rise is self-proclaiming to be “playing with house money”, not expecting to be truly competitive until next season. Tom Cat’s has had a rough run the last few weeks, with bats and arms alternating between hot and ice cold weeks.
If Fajita Eaters wins, that will be their first World Series appearance. If Tom Cat’s wins, it will be their 2nd consecutive World Series appearance. The Banocolates computer claims Tom Cat’s have a 64% chance of victory, but this author has a feeling that it will be a very close and stressful week.
Key players to keep an eye on:
Tom Cat hitter – OF Adam Duvall Atl: with 4 HR’s last week, Adam Duvall won HR’s and likely OPS for the Tom Cat’s. An extremely streaky, power only bat, if he can knock a few more over the fence it will go a long ways to propping up the Tom Cat’s struggling offense.
Tom Cat pitcher – SP Zack Wheeler Phi: with a finger nail issue (guy can’t zip up his pants properly apparently?), Wheeler may have his Wednesday start further delayed, and a stint on the IL isn’t entirely out of the question. With injuries to Kluber and Gray, Tom Cat’s will need every quality IP he can get out of his remaining stud arms.
Fajita Eaters hitter – 1B Joey Votto Cin: With a disappointing 4 for 24 showing last week, Fajita Eater’s is hoping that Votto can recapture some of his former glory and contribute to prevent an offensive repeat of last week.
Fajita Eaters pitcher – SP Michael Pineda Min: Bundy’s leading this crew, but the rest of the options are shaky, none more-so than Pineda with his injury history paired with his consistency issues. Last week he was strong, and Fajita Eater’s is definitely hoping he keeps it up.
Kelly’s Heroes V Ball Busters
Apparently a battle of arms, as both teams’ strength is tied to their rotation and bullpen. From an offensive perspective, Kelly’s Heroes appears to have the advantage, but if Ball Busters is able to match or exceed their performance from just last week, things could get interesting quickly.
If Kelly’s Heroes wins, it will be their first World Series appearance. If Ball Busters wins they’ll earn a chance to capture their 2nd World Series victory.
Key players to keep an eye on:
Kelly’s Heroes hitter – 3B Rafael Devers Bos: With a 13 for 25 effort last week (3 HRs, 3 R, 7 RBI, 1.480 OPS), Devers was instrumental to the Kelly’s Heroes efforts last week. In what has been a continuation of his 2019 break out season, Heroes management will be hoping for another superlative showing to help propel those offensive categories.
Kelly’s Heroes pitcher – SP Trevor Bauer Cin: An absolute stud this season, Bauer is lined up for a double start in Week 2 of the playoffs, and if he can come close to matching his 7 IP, 10 K, 3H, 0 BB, 0 ER showing from last week, Kelly’s Heroes will be in a good position indeed.
Ball Busters hitter – SS Adalberto Mondesi KC: With 4 HR’s and 6 SB’s last week, Mondesi appears to be on a monster of a run, putting up numbers that can singlehandedly win weeks. If he continues, the gripes about the “Trea Turner Trade”, will have to subside somewhat. Big “If” though given Mondesi’s streaky history.
Ball Busters Pitcher – RP Liam Hendriks Oak: All of Ball Busters pitchers are interesting, and he has a couple potential double starts to watch (Minor and Lamet), but it’s hard to bring up the “Trea Turner Trade”, and not instinctively look at the receiving package. With 3 IP, 5 K’s, 0 ER and 2 SVs last week, Hendrik’s did everything expected of him. If Ball Busters is going to win, he will likely need all the bullpen support he can muster, and Hendrik’s is the most likely to lead that pack.
Good luck to all.
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