Week #18
The regular season comes to a close and it was an exciting finish in the division races as well as some side pot races. Three teams ended in a tie for the final wildcard spot, and it took three tie-breakers to decide which team got in. I would like to thank everyone for their great efforts this year in the score reporting. I was certainly in a transition phase with the new job when the league got started, so it was very helpful to get such consistent assistance with the scoring. I guess after three years of basically the same teams everyone kind of has the system down! Thanks again!
Here is a summary of how the season ended up:
A Division
The Contributors nearly swept the Blackjacks and walked away with the A Division
crown. These two teams battled it out all year, with the Contributors on a roll
the last 6 weeks of the season. The Blackjacks had showed little signs of
weakness until the final two weeks of the season when they lost back to back
series. This was just the opportunity the Contributors needed and they took
advantage. The Blackjacks will join fellow division rival Stingrays as the two
wildcard representatives from the A/B Conference. The Stingrays finished out
strong with a 4-1 over the X-Men. The A Division was certainly the toughest
division in the league this year as the four teams took spots 2-3-4-5 in scoring
average. WOW, that is truly impressive and the reason why this division has
three representatives in the postseason.
B Division
The Destroyers held a 2 point lead over the Rebels going into the final week,
and they took care of business on the field as they won 5 out of a possible 6
points in the final week. The Destroyers win the division while the Rebels are
left out of the playoffs after a great run and what had looked at one time as a
lock for a playoff spot. The Redbirds had a microscopic chance of making the
playoffs, and those chances vanished rather quickly as the weekend progressed.
The Destroyers are the lone playoff representative from the B Division.
C/D Divisions
The Hummers and Death already had the divisions wrapped up, so they looked to
stay healthy the final week. Congrats to the Hummers on finishing the season as
the Total Points Leader as well as the Scoring Average Champ. Now, this is where
things get interesting........First, going into the week the Cobras and Clippers
held the top two spots for the wildcards. The Cobras had 51 points while the
Clippers had 49 points. The Cobras clinched a playoff spot after Saturdays game,
despite going 1-2. But that bump to 52 points was enough to clinch a spot. How
you may ask? Everything else the Cobras needed to have happen,
well....happened! The Clippers start out 0-3 against the Death, the Barracudas
start out 2-1 overt he Connection. So now it is left to this....with Sundays
game to go, as well as total points and a potential top 8 finish, here's how
teams ranked: Vipers 50, Clippers 49, Connection 49, Barracudas 49. Talk about a
photo finish!!!!!!!! So the Sunday scores start coming in.......The Vipers lose
on Sunday to the Cobras as they score just 5 points for the day. This also
leaves the Cobras with just 102 points, not enough for a top 8. The Vipers are
done with 50 points. Next up is the Clippers who have managed to score just 50
points total through Saturday against the Death. Can the Clippers get a win and
make up a huge deficit on total points? Hardy, as the 'Clips lay another egg as
they lose again and end up with just 64 points for the week. WOW, talk about
going in the tank the last week!!!! Amazingly enough, the Clippers are left with
the same 49 team points they had going into the week. Now, the last remaining
game is the Connection and Barracudas. They are both tied with 49 team points,
so if one team can win two points out of a possible three, they get the final
wildcard spot. The Barracudas are ahead on total points 89-76. Both teams need a
good day to reach top 8 finish territory. So what happens...........The
Connection win the Sunday game 25-20. Let's see.......Connection get the win,
but Barracudas get the total points win 109-101, and neither team has enough for
a top 8 finish. That gives the Connection and Barracudas both 50 points. Hmmmm,
that is the same total as the Vipers. Time to go to the tiebreakers! All 3 teams
have 50 team points, next is total wins. Vipers and Barracudas both have 43,
Connection has 41. One team out! Next is head to head and we have to go back to
week #8. The Vipers defeated the Barracudas 4-1 in week. We have a wildcard
winner! The Vipers get the final spot in the 2003 playoffs.
Congrats to all the playoff teams! It was a great regular season and very competitive as always with this league.
Here is a brief breakdown of the player points sidepots:
1B Helton Destroyers
354 Points
Helton makes a late season push and overtakes Delgado who had led all year. You
could certainly classify Helton at the #7 pick overall a steal for Steve & Frank
this year.
2B Boone,B Oysters
332 Points
Boone pulled away from the field in the final month giving the Oysters a little
something to make the season worthwhile. Amazingly enough Boone was the #31 pick
overall. That is good value in round two!
SS $-Rod Stingrays
356 Points
In a close battle, $-Rod gets the win over a Nomar thanks to a monster week in
week #17. This was a close battle all year as the #1 and #3 picks battled it
out. The 44 point effort in week #17 gave $-Rod the needed boost to get the win.
Certainly this leaves little doubt as to who the top fantasy player is and
rightful #1 pick.
3B Lowell X-Men
317 Points
Here is a big upset as the X-Men's 7th round pick walks away rather easily with
the 3B crown. This win though may have to go in the record books with an
asterisk. The Clippers selected the top 3B on the board with the #6 overall
pick. The Clippers then proceeded to play Pujols in the OF for the first 7 weeks
of the year. When the light finally shined upon the Clippers and reality set in,
they moved Pujols to 3B for the final 11 weeks. The really amazing part is that
Pujols still almost managed to win this sidepot!!!!!! Pujols finished 3rd
overall and just 49 points back, despite missing SEVEN WEEKS!!!!!!! Pujols
finished the year with 383 points which was the top point total, but
unfortunately those points were split between 3B and the OF. Al and Mike will
certainly take the win of the sidepot as they really had a tough year as they
missed the playoffs despite having the 5th high scoring average in the league.
C Lopez Blackjacks
285 Points
This is the BIGGEST upset of the year, but it was a near wire to wire win for
the Blackjacks ELEVENTH ROUND PICK!!!! Yes, Lopez was their 11th round pick, and
the 15th catcher taken! That is late round value!!!! Lopez had a phenomenal
bounce back year as he performed consistently all year.
OF Bonds
Oysters/Cobras 354
The good news for the Oysters is that they had the #2 pick overall this year,
and Mr. Bonds didn't disappoint as he won the always competitive OF sidepot. The
bad news is, the Oysters traded Bonds away to the Cobras, a move the team really
never recovered from. The REALLY GOOD NEWS for the Oysters is that they did
retain the rights to Bonds sidepot in the trade, so they are the lone double
player points winner this year.
P Los Angeles Rebels
469 Points
The Rebels selected the LA Pitching staff in the 3rd round, the 6th staff
overall. Thanks to a return to health by Kevin Brown the LA staff was dominating
all year.
That is a summary of how the season finished, here is a brief look at the first round matchups in the playoffs:
Stingrays @ Contributors
These two teams battled it out in the tough
A Division and now get to face each other in round one. Hmmm, maybe winning the
division wasn't the best thing for the Contributors! This looks to be a close
matchup but it is hard to bet against the Contributors right now as they have
been the leagues best team since the All-Star break. Contributors win 3-2.
Blackjacks @ Destroyers
While Bill was certainly disappointed to
give up the A Division title, it may actually work out better. The Blackjacks
are the lower seed but certainly bring a much resume. The Destroyers battled
just to make the playoffs and have a talented lineup that includes Helton who
can win a series himself. This will be another close battle but it is hard to
overlook the near 14 point difference in scoring average. Going with the law of
averages, Blackjacks win 3-2.
Cobras @ Death
Despite the Death's 14 point advantage in
team points, the two had a measly 20 points difference in points scored. This is
about an even matchup, despite what the records may say. These two teams have
some serious history they are both trying to overcome. Maze has finally broken
his LONG fantasy playoff drought, and is out to prove he still has "it". The
Commish is riding a long streak of first round exits. The last three playoff
appearances have been non to kind to the Death franchise........ 2002 Baseball,
division winner, out round one; 2002 College Football, division winner, out
round one; 2002 NFL, division winner, out round one. Do you sense a
trend???????? Look for the upset, Cobras 4-1.
Vipers @ Hummers
The Vipers will have their hands full to say
the least. The Hummers dominated the regular season and remain healthy and even
have a red hot Sosa now hitting like only Sammy can. It will take a monster week
from the Vipers, who have shown the capability for big scoring weeks in the last
month. I can't bet against the Hummers though as they will win 4-1.
Good luck to everyone in round one of the playoffs! I am outta here!
The
Commish
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