ALL-TIME SBL CHAMPIONS
(5-Team League)
1983 - Gil Hulse
(6-team League)
1984 - Gil Hulse
1985 - Steve Dilbeck
(12-Team League, Division Play)
1986 - Mike Davis (defeated Gregg Patton)
1987 - Gregg Patton
1988 - Jeff Lane
1989 - Steve Dilbeck
1990 - Steve Dilbeck
1991 - Mike Davis (def. Steve Dilbeck, 14-12)
1992 - Vic West
1993 - Gregg Patton (def. Mike Davis, 18-8)
1994 - Dan Evans (def. Gregg Patton, 10-9; strike-shortened season)
1995 - Paul Oberjuerge (def. Steve Dilbeck, 14-9; strike-shortened season)
1996 - Mike Davis (def. Steve Dilbeck, 17-9)
1997 - Vic West (tied Dan Evans, 13-13; won tiebreaker, 8-3)
1998 - Gregg Patton (def. Mike Davis, 14-12)
1999 - Mike Davis (def. Damian Secore, 16-10)
2000 - Brian Goff (def. Gregg Patton, 14-12)
2001 - Mike Davis (def. Gregg Patton, 17-9)
2002 - Brian Goff (def. Vic West, 14-12)
2003 - Dan Evans (def. Brian Goff, 15-11)
2004 - Vic West (def. Mike Davis, 14-12)
2005 - Brian Goff (def. Dan Evans, 17-9)
2006 - Brian Goff (def. Paul Oberjuerge, 17-9); Playoffs: Brian Goff d. Steve Dilbeck, 18-8; Paul Oberjuerge d. Vic West, 13-13 (7-4 in tiebreaker)
2007 - Mike Davis (def. Brian Goff, 15-11); Playoffs: Mike Davis d. Steve Dilbeck , 16-10; Brian Goff d. Dan Evans, 14-12
2008 - Mike Davis (def. Brian Goff, 18-8); Playoffs: Mike Davis d. Damian Secore, 20-6; Brian Goff d. Gregg Patton, 14-12
2009 - Paul Oberjuerge (def. Andy Baggerly, 14-12); Playoffs: Paul Oberjuerge d. JP Hoornstra, 20-6; Andy Baggerly d. Dan Evans, 15-11.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Saturday, October 17, 2009
SBL Series 2009
ZERO's 14, BADGERS 12
Week 1: Paul 8, Andy 3; Week 2: Andy 7, Paul 4; Week 3: Paul 8.5, Andy 2.5; Week 4: Paul 9.5, Andy 1.5; Week 5: Paul 8, Andy 3; Week 6: Paul 6, Andy 5; Week 7: Andy 8, Paul 3; Week 8: Andy 7.5, Paul 3.5; Week 9: PAUL 5.5, Andy 5.5; Week 10: ANDY 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 11: Paul 6.5, Andy 4.5; Week 12: Paul 7, Andy 4; Week 13: Paul 6.5, Andy 4.5; Week 14: Paul 8, Andy 3; Week 15: Andy 6, Paul 5; Week 16: ANDY 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 17: Andy 9, Paul 2; Week 18: Paul 6, Andy 5; Week 19: Andy 7, Paul 4; Week 20: Paul 9, Andy 2; Week 21: Andy 8, Paul 3; Week 22: Paul 8.5, Andy 2.5; Week 23: Paul 6.5, Andy 4.5; Week 24: Andy 10, Paul 1; Week 25: Andy 6.5, Paul 4.5; Week 26: Andy 6.4, Paul 4.5.
Week 1: Paul 8, Andy 3; Week 2: Andy 7, Paul 4; Week 3: Paul 8.5, Andy 2.5; Week 4: Paul 9.5, Andy 1.5; Week 5: Paul 8, Andy 3; Week 6: Paul 6, Andy 5; Week 7: Andy 8, Paul 3; Week 8: Andy 7.5, Paul 3.5; Week 9: PAUL 5.5, Andy 5.5; Week 10: ANDY 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 11: Paul 6.5, Andy 4.5; Week 12: Paul 7, Andy 4; Week 13: Paul 6.5, Andy 4.5; Week 14: Paul 8, Andy 3; Week 15: Andy 6, Paul 5; Week 16: ANDY 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 17: Andy 9, Paul 2; Week 18: Paul 6, Andy 5; Week 19: Andy 7, Paul 4; Week 20: Paul 9, Andy 2; Week 21: Andy 8, Paul 3; Week 22: Paul 8.5, Andy 2.5; Week 23: Paul 6.5, Andy 4.5; Week 24: Andy 10, Paul 1; Week 25: Andy 6.5, Paul 4.5; Week 26: Andy 6.4, Paul 4.5.
Monday, October 12, 2009
SBL Playoffs
ZERO’S 10, WHITESKINS 6
Week 1: Paul 6, JP 5; Week 2: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 3: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 4: Paul 7.5, JP 3.5; Week 5: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 6: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 7: JP 9, Paul 2; Week 8: PAUL 5.5, JP 5.5; Week 9: JP 7, Paul 4; Week 10: JP 7, Paul 4; Week 11: Paul 10, JP 1; Week 12: Paul 11, JP 0; Week 13: PAUL 5.5, JP 5.5; Week 14: JP 7, Paul 4; Week 15: JP 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 16: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 17: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 18: Paul 7.5, JP 3.5; Week 19: Paul 9, JP 2; Week 20: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 21: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 22: Paul 10, JP 1; Week 23: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 24: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 25: Paul 11, JP 0; Week 26: JP 6, Paul 5.
BADGERS 15, BOMBERS 11
Week 1: DAN 5.5, Andy 5.5; Week 2: Dan 8, Andy 3; Week 3: Andy 6, Dan 5; Week 4: Dan 9, Andy 2; Week 5: Andy 7, Dan 4; Week 6: Andy 6, Dan 5; Week 7: Andy 6, Dan 5; Week 8: Dan 6, Andy 5; Week 9: Dan 8, Andy 3; Week 10: Andy 6.5, Dan 4.5; Week 11: Andy 10, Dan 1; Week 12: Andy 10.5, Dan .5; Week 13: Dan 8, Andy 3; Week 14: Dan 8.5, Andy 2.5; Week 15: ANDY 5.5, Dan 5.5; Week 16: Andy 7, Dan 4; Week 17: Andy 7.5, Dan 3.5; Week 18: Andy 8, Dan 3; Week 19: Andy 9, Dan 2; Week 20: Dan 7, Andy 4; Week 21: Dan 6.5, Andy; 4.5; Week 22: Dan 6, Andy 5; Week 23: Dan 6, Andy 5; Week 24: Andy 8, Dan 3; Week 25: Andy 9.5, Dan 1.5; Week 26: Andy 6, Dan 5.
SPECIAL PLAYOFF
WHITESKINS 13, GODFATHERS 13
Mega tiebreaker, based on cumulative stats: JP 6, Vic 5
Week 1: Paul 6, JP 5; Week 2: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 3: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 4: Paul 7.5, JP 3.5; Week 5: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 6: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 7: JP 9, Paul 2; Week 8: PAUL 5.5, JP 5.5; Week 9: JP 7, Paul 4; Week 10: JP 7, Paul 4; Week 11: Paul 10, JP 1; Week 12: Paul 11, JP 0; Week 13: PAUL 5.5, JP 5.5; Week 14: JP 7, Paul 4; Week 15: JP 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 16: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 17: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 18: Paul 7.5, JP 3.5; Week 19: Paul 9, JP 2; Week 20: Paul 6.5, JP 4.5; Week 21: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 22: Paul 10, JP 1; Week 23: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 24: Paul 7, JP 4; Week 25: Paul 11, JP 0; Week 26: JP 6, Paul 5.
BADGERS 15, BOMBERS 11
Week 1: DAN 5.5, Andy 5.5; Week 2: Dan 8, Andy 3; Week 3: Andy 6, Dan 5; Week 4: Dan 9, Andy 2; Week 5: Andy 7, Dan 4; Week 6: Andy 6, Dan 5; Week 7: Andy 6, Dan 5; Week 8: Dan 6, Andy 5; Week 9: Dan 8, Andy 3; Week 10: Andy 6.5, Dan 4.5; Week 11: Andy 10, Dan 1; Week 12: Andy 10.5, Dan .5; Week 13: Dan 8, Andy 3; Week 14: Dan 8.5, Andy 2.5; Week 15: ANDY 5.5, Dan 5.5; Week 16: Andy 7, Dan 4; Week 17: Andy 7.5, Dan 3.5; Week 18: Andy 8, Dan 3; Week 19: Andy 9, Dan 2; Week 20: Dan 7, Andy 4; Week 21: Dan 6.5, Andy; 4.5; Week 22: Dan 6, Andy 5; Week 23: Dan 6, Andy 5; Week 24: Andy 8, Dan 3; Week 25: Andy 9.5, Dan 1.5; Week 26: Andy 6, Dan 5.
SPECIAL PLAYOFF
WHITESKINS 13, GODFATHERS 13
Mega tiebreaker, based on cumulative stats: JP 6, Vic 5
Monday, October 5, 2009
SBL Notebook, Final
The Zero's are Number 1’s! Numero Uno’s! The Grand Poobah’s! The Big Kahuna’s! El Grande Queso’s! Yes, Paulo’s Zero’s, probably the longest-suffering, hardest-luck “elite” franchise in league history, are your 2009 SBL champions, having posted the best record in ball while sweeping to the American division title, then pancaking National division runners-up JP’s Whiteskins in the wild-card playoffs, 20-6, and edging AL runners-up Andy’s Badgers, 14-12, in the SBL Series. The Z’s are one of our four surviving charter franchises, there at the creation way back in 1983. They have always taken our little competition as seriously as anyone, always drafted shrewdly, always played hard and passionately, and almost always done quite well for themselves in terms of wins and losses – since the turn of the millennium they’ve averaged 93 wins a season. Yet somehow the fates have conspired to deny them their just deserts, consigning them to perennial and ever-frustrating bridesmaid status -- and so it is that this is only their second SBL title in 27 seasons, and their first in a full season, their other crown having been acquired in 1995, a season truncated by three weeks because of a strike that delayed its start until late April. (The Z’s owner has occasionally suggested that his team’s triumph in that 23-week season might be somehow less "legitimate" than one accomplished over a full 26-week, 162-game schedule, but the commissioner's office does not see it that way at all -- the fact is they decisively won the ’95 SBL Series against Stevie’s Beasties by a score of 14-9, and 14 wins in the Series earns you a championship in ANY year.)
There certainly can be no question that they earned this one, either. They won 106 games, nine more than anyone else. They moved into first place in the AL in Week 11 and never gave it up. They took sole possession of the best record in ball the following week and never gave that up either. Playing in what was quite possibly the strongest division, top to bottom, in SBL history -- the AL produced four 90-win teams, another that won 85 and, up until the season’s very last week, did not have a single team with a losing record -- the Z’s didn't merely survive, they won without being seriously threatened, finishing nine games ahead of the Badgers and maintaining a lead of at least eight games for the last eight weeks.
The WAY they won it, however, was not entirely conventional. Oh sure, they had their share of big producers on offense, from their first pick on draft night -- one Albert Pujols, who had perhaps the best season of his Hall of Fame career -- to their very last selection, Adam Lind, who delivered an out-of-nowhere 35 HRs, 114 RBIs, 46 doubles, 93 runs and .370 OBP, a hit-the-lottery payoff from the No. 291 pick in the draft. And yes, there were even unexpected contributions from rival owners -- such as the three who suffered simultaneous brain lock at the start of the draft and passed on Pujols, allowing the game’s best hitter to fall to Paul at No. 4 . . . and one of those same owners (who shall remain nameless) who donated Hanley Ramirez, the No. 1 overall pick, in a May trade. But what REALLY won this deal for the Zero’s was pitching -- specifically the contributions of the league’s best bullpen, possibly the best bullpen the league has ever seen. The quartet of Mariano Rivera, Jonathan Papelbon, Heath Bell and Huston Street combined for 159 saves -- an average of about 40 per man -- and also contributed enough positive numbers in the other categories (most notably strikeouts) to keep the Z’s competitive on the pitching side most weeks, even those when their starters, as starters are wont to do, faltered. Fourteen times in 26 weeks, the Zero’s posted an ERA of 3.25 or better; 15 times they posted a K-ratio of at least .95, and nine of those were over 1.00. More often than not, it seemed, the Z’s could count on winning at least three or four pitching stats, which meant they didn’t have to depend on overwhelming offense -- the preferred modus operandi of most SBL championship teams -- to win consistently. Paul’s bullpen-first approach may have gone against the historical grain, but he believed in it, he committed to it from the get-go -- spending precious early picks on Papelbon (30th overall, the first reliever drafted) and Rivera (69th), and adding Street (122nd) and Bell (148th) before the draft was half over -- and it paid off handsomely.
Before we put the wraps on another SBL season, we would be remiss if we didn’t send out kudos to the never-say-die Badgers, whose 97-win campaign (their best ever) featured an 18-1 finish over the last three weeks that enabled them to surge from fourth place and seven games out of the AL wild-card spot after Week 23 to second place, a comfortable six games ahead of the third-place BGoff Bammers, at season's end. Thus safely into the postseason for the first time in franchise history, Andy took out the injury-ravaged NL champs, Dan’s Cherry Valley Bombers, 15-11 in the wild-card round, before giving Paul all he could handle in the Series. The other wild-card berth was settled in a stunning final-week reversal, as the Whiteskins wiped out a five-game deficit to catch Vic’s Godfathers for second place in the NL. That necessitated a special playoff series to break the tie -- except that series also ended in a tie, 13-13. So we went to the next tiebreaker -- the cumulative-stats mega-game, one standard 11-category game based on the entire season's stats for the two teams (lllonnggg-time owners will recall that this was the method used to play the SBL Series up until 1991, when we switched to the 26-week head-to-head format). JP won the mega-game, 6-5, to qualify for the playoffs, where the Zero’s juggernaut awaited. In the end, this meant some extra midnight oil being burned at the commissioner's office, just to determine which NL sacrificial lamb would be sent out to be slaughtered by the Z’s in the wild-card round.
Which brings us, somewhat indirectly, to the final topic we wish to address before we stagger into the off-season -- imbalance between the divisions. The American division has been the stronger circuit throughout this decade, with only two NL teams, the CV Bombers in 2003 and the Godfathers in ’04, breaking through to win the SBL title in the last 11 seasons. Hey, these things run in cycles, and it happens in real ball too -- when was the last time the National League won an All-Star game? But of late the disparity in the SBL has grown more worrisome. Four years ago, all six National division teams finished with losing records, and this year wasn't much better, with only the CV Bombers finishing above .500 -- at 90-72, the same record as the AL's fourth-place team. None of the other five NL teams got close to the break-even point, with the Whiteskins and Godfathers finishing at 73-89, on down to the last-place Derek’s Derelicts at 59-103. A lot of this is attributable to the AL's dominance in interleague play –- a 181-107 advantage in the eight weeks of cross-divisional competition this year. But there's also this: In the four seasons since we adopted the expanded four-team playoff format, the NL has yet to win a single postseason series, going 0 for 8. Paul's 20-6 rout of JP this year was the most one-sided postseason series in SBL history. All of this has the commissioner’s office weighing possible realignment scenarios. We don't wish to hurt anyone's feelings, but perhaps a "trade" sending one of the AL's habitually stronger clubs to the NL in exchange for one of that division's less successful squads might be something to seriously consider. As always, input and/or suggestions from any or all SBL owners would be welcomed.
There certainly can be no question that they earned this one, either. They won 106 games, nine more than anyone else. They moved into first place in the AL in Week 11 and never gave it up. They took sole possession of the best record in ball the following week and never gave that up either. Playing in what was quite possibly the strongest division, top to bottom, in SBL history -- the AL produced four 90-win teams, another that won 85 and, up until the season’s very last week, did not have a single team with a losing record -- the Z’s didn't merely survive, they won without being seriously threatened, finishing nine games ahead of the Badgers and maintaining a lead of at least eight games for the last eight weeks.
The WAY they won it, however, was not entirely conventional. Oh sure, they had their share of big producers on offense, from their first pick on draft night -- one Albert Pujols, who had perhaps the best season of his Hall of Fame career -- to their very last selection, Adam Lind, who delivered an out-of-nowhere 35 HRs, 114 RBIs, 46 doubles, 93 runs and .370 OBP, a hit-the-lottery payoff from the No. 291 pick in the draft. And yes, there were even unexpected contributions from rival owners -- such as the three who suffered simultaneous brain lock at the start of the draft and passed on Pujols, allowing the game’s best hitter to fall to Paul at No. 4 . . . and one of those same owners (who shall remain nameless) who donated Hanley Ramirez, the No. 1 overall pick, in a May trade. But what REALLY won this deal for the Zero’s was pitching -- specifically the contributions of the league’s best bullpen, possibly the best bullpen the league has ever seen. The quartet of Mariano Rivera, Jonathan Papelbon, Heath Bell and Huston Street combined for 159 saves -- an average of about 40 per man -- and also contributed enough positive numbers in the other categories (most notably strikeouts) to keep the Z’s competitive on the pitching side most weeks, even those when their starters, as starters are wont to do, faltered. Fourteen times in 26 weeks, the Zero’s posted an ERA of 3.25 or better; 15 times they posted a K-ratio of at least .95, and nine of those were over 1.00. More often than not, it seemed, the Z’s could count on winning at least three or four pitching stats, which meant they didn’t have to depend on overwhelming offense -- the preferred modus operandi of most SBL championship teams -- to win consistently. Paul’s bullpen-first approach may have gone against the historical grain, but he believed in it, he committed to it from the get-go -- spending precious early picks on Papelbon (30th overall, the first reliever drafted) and Rivera (69th), and adding Street (122nd) and Bell (148th) before the draft was half over -- and it paid off handsomely.
Before we put the wraps on another SBL season, we would be remiss if we didn’t send out kudos to the never-say-die Badgers, whose 97-win campaign (their best ever) featured an 18-1 finish over the last three weeks that enabled them to surge from fourth place and seven games out of the AL wild-card spot after Week 23 to second place, a comfortable six games ahead of the third-place BGoff Bammers, at season's end. Thus safely into the postseason for the first time in franchise history, Andy took out the injury-ravaged NL champs, Dan’s Cherry Valley Bombers, 15-11 in the wild-card round, before giving Paul all he could handle in the Series. The other wild-card berth was settled in a stunning final-week reversal, as the Whiteskins wiped out a five-game deficit to catch Vic’s Godfathers for second place in the NL. That necessitated a special playoff series to break the tie -- except that series also ended in a tie, 13-13. So we went to the next tiebreaker -- the cumulative-stats mega-game, one standard 11-category game based on the entire season's stats for the two teams (lllonnggg-time owners will recall that this was the method used to play the SBL Series up until 1991, when we switched to the 26-week head-to-head format). JP won the mega-game, 6-5, to qualify for the playoffs, where the Zero’s juggernaut awaited. In the end, this meant some extra midnight oil being burned at the commissioner's office, just to determine which NL sacrificial lamb would be sent out to be slaughtered by the Z’s in the wild-card round.
Which brings us, somewhat indirectly, to the final topic we wish to address before we stagger into the off-season -- imbalance between the divisions. The American division has been the stronger circuit throughout this decade, with only two NL teams, the CV Bombers in 2003 and the Godfathers in ’04, breaking through to win the SBL title in the last 11 seasons. Hey, these things run in cycles, and it happens in real ball too -- when was the last time the National League won an All-Star game? But of late the disparity in the SBL has grown more worrisome. Four years ago, all six National division teams finished with losing records, and this year wasn't much better, with only the CV Bombers finishing above .500 -- at 90-72, the same record as the AL's fourth-place team. None of the other five NL teams got close to the break-even point, with the Whiteskins and Godfathers finishing at 73-89, on down to the last-place Derek’s Derelicts at 59-103. A lot of this is attributable to the AL's dominance in interleague play –- a 181-107 advantage in the eight weeks of cross-divisional competition this year. But there's also this: In the four seasons since we adopted the expanded four-team playoff format, the NL has yet to win a single postseason series, going 0 for 8. Paul's 20-6 rout of JP this year was the most one-sided postseason series in SBL history. All of this has the commissioner’s office weighing possible realignment scenarios. We don't wish to hurt anyone's feelings, but perhaps a "trade" sending one of the AL's habitually stronger clubs to the NL in exchange for one of that division's less successful squads might be something to seriously consider. As always, input and/or suggestions from any or all SBL owners would be welcomed.
Week 26 standings (Final)
AMERICAN
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Paul (3-3).......106...56....654...--
Andy (5-1)........97...65....599....9
Brian (2-4)........91...71....562...15
Mike (6-0)........90...72....556...16
Dennis (3-3)......85...77....525...21
David (0-6).......78...84....481...28
NATIONAL
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Dan (2-4).........90...72....556...--
JP (5-1)...........73...89....451...17
Vic (0-6)..........73...89....451...17
Gregg (2-4).......65...97....401...25
Damian (4-2).....64...98....395...26
Derek (4-2).......59..103....364...31
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Paul (3-3).......106...56....654...--
Andy (5-1)........97...65....599....9
Brian (2-4)........91...71....562...15
Mike (6-0)........90...72....556...16
Dennis (3-3)......85...77....525...21
David (0-6).......78...84....481...28
NATIONAL
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Dan (2-4).........90...72....556...--
JP (5-1)...........73...89....451...17
Vic (0-6)..........73...89....451...17
Gregg (2-4).......65...97....401...25
Damian (4-2).....64...98....395...26
Derek (4-2).......59..103....364...31
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