SBL Champions List

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 d. Dan Evans, 13-13 (8-3 in tiebreaker)
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
2010 - Mike Davis (def. Damian Secore, 15-11); Playoffs: Mike Davis d. Gregg Patton, 17-9; Damian Secore d. Paul Oberjuerge, 13-13 (6-5 in tiebreaker)

SBL Series 2010

MOANERS 15, DAMIANUNITED 11
Week 1: Mike 7.5, Damian 3.5; Week 2: Mike 7, Damian 4; Week 3: Damian 6.5, Mike 4.5; Week 4: Mike 6.5, Damian 4.5; Week 5: Damian 6.5, Mike 4.5; Week 6: DAMIAN 5.5, Mike 5.5; Week 7: Mike 6, Damian 5; Week 8: Mike 7, Damian 4; Week 9: Damian 7, Mike 4; Week 10: DAMIAN 5.5, Mike 5.5; Week 11: Damian 7, Mike 4; Week 12: Damian 8.5, Mike 2.5; Week 13: Mike 8, Damian 3; Week 14: Mike 9.5, Damian 1.5; Week 15: Mike 6, Damian 5; Week 16: Damian 6, Mike 5; Week 17: Mike 8, Damian 3; Week 18: Mike 9, Damian 2; Week 19: Damian 6, Mike 5; Week 20: Mike 6, Damian 5; Week 21: Mike 7, Damian 4; Week 22: Mike 7, Damian 4; Week 23: Damian 6.5, Mike 4.5; Week 24: Damian 8, Mike 3l Week 25: Mike 6, Damian 5; Week 26: Mike 8.5, Damian 2.5.

SBL Playoffs

MOANERS 17, INMATES 9
Week 1: Mike 6, Gregg 5; Week 2: Mike 6, Gregg 5; Week 3: Gregg 8, Mike 3; Week 4: Gregg 7, Mike 4; Week 5: Gregg 6, Mike 5; Week 6: Gregg 6.5, Mike 4.5; Week 7: Mike 6, Gregg 5; Week 8: Mike 8.5, Gregg 3.5; Week 9: Mike 8, Gregg 3; Week 10: Mike 7, Gregg 4; Week 11: Mike 7, Gregg 4; Week 12: Gregg 6, Mike 5; Week 13: Gregg 8, Mike 3; Week 14: Mike 9, Gregg 2; Week 15: Mike 10, Gregg 1; Week 16: Gregg 6, Mike 5; Week 17: Mike 8, Gregg 3; Week 18: Mike 9, Gregg 2; Week 19: Mike 6.5, Gregg 4.5; Week 20: Mike 7, Gregg 4; Week 21: Mike 8, Gregg 3; Week 22: Mike 8, Gregg 3; Week 23: Mike 8.5, Gregg 2.5; Week 24: Mike 6, Gregg 5; Week 25: Gregg 6, Mike 5; Week 26: Gregg 7.5, Mike 3.5.

DAMIANUNITED 13, ZERO'S 13 (DAM U. WINS TIEBREAKER, 6-5)
Week 1: Damian 10.5, Paul 0.5; Week 2: Damian 6, Paul 5; Week 3: Damian 8.5, Paul 2.5; Week 4: Paul 10, Damian 1; Week 5: Damian 6, Paul 5; Week 6: Paul 8, Damian 3; Week 7: Damian 6.5, Paul 4.5; Week 8: Paul 6.5, Damian 4.5; Week 9: Damian 7, Paul 4; Week 10: Paul 7, Damian 4; Week 11: Damian 6.5, Paul 4.5; Week 12: Paul 6, Damian 5; Week 13: Paul 7, Damian 4; Week 14: Damian 6, Paul 5; Week 15: Paul 8, Damian 3; Week 16: Paul 6, Damian 5; Week 17: Damian 6, Paul 5; Week 18: Paul 8, Damian 3; Week 19: Damian 6, Paul 5; Week 20: Paul 6, Damian 5; Week 21: Paul 7.5, Damian 3.5; Week 22: Paul 6, Damian 5; Week 23: Damian 8, Paul 3; Week 24: Damian 8, Paul 3; Week 25: DAMIAN 5.5, Paul 5.5; Week 26: Paul 6.5, Damian 4.5.

SBL Notebook, Final

A tip o' the Sun Baseball cap to Mikee's Moaners, winners of the venerable rotisserie league's 2010 championship by virtue of a 15-11 verdict over DamianUnited in SBL Series XXVIII. The Ms went almost wire to wire, piling up an impressive 125 victories and spending 23 of the 26 weeks in first place. They were fixtures atop the American division standings from Week 5 on, won the division flag by 19 games over the formidable Paulo's Zero's, then handled the Patton Inmates, 17-9, in the wild-card round before winning the Series against National division champions DamU -- who made some history of their own by becoming the first NL team to win a playoff series in the five years since the league added the wild-card round, doubling the postseason field to four teams. ... This is, the franchise owner is almost embarrassed to report, the Moaners' eighth championship in the league's glorious 28-season history; it is also their third in the last four years, a short-term run of SBL success unmatched in any previous four-year stretch. Which sort of makes the Moaners the Yankees of this fantasy outfit -- a comparison that deeply pains the club owner, given his lifelong hatred of the actual Yankees, a pathological contempt for the Bronx Bombers almost certainly traceable to his allegiance to the Dodgers virtually from the moment of their arrival (when he was 5) in Los Angeles from Brooklyn, where Yankee-hating was a civic responsibility ... and possibly acquired genetically, or by osmosis, dating to his gestation, in 1952, in the womb of a New York-born mother raised by a domineering Yankee-hating father ... ah, but we digress.

Every season, every team and every championship is different, but for the Moaners, championship No. 8 was REALLY different. An owner whose longstanding and passionate loathing of pitchers is perhaps unrivaled in league history ... just won a title primarily BECAUSE of pitching. In a drafting strategy born of desperation (after drawing draft position No. 8, perhaps the worst starting spot on the board), and at least partly by accident, the Moaners used five of their first 10 draft-night selections on pitchers -- and, even more surprising, it actually worked out. It started in the second round, when the Ms’ brain trust, stumped and mildly panicked as the draft clock ticked, was unable to find a hitter it deemed worthy of the No. 21 overall selection, causing it to blurt out the name "Tim Lincecum" – shocking, given the owner's unshakable belief that pitchers are notoriously unpredictable creatures, more likely to harm than help, and thus best left to the nether regions of the draft. While the cognitive processes that led to this momentous act of seeming madness remain unclear in the owner's memory, it resulted in the extemporaneous formulation of a new draft strategy: Draft MORE pitchers, early and often, so as to not "waste" the Lincecum pick, and build around the two-time Cy Young winner a staff that could, it was hoped, make the Moaners reasonably competitive despite what was sure to be a grossly inadequate offense. And, somehow, the pieces fell together -- Adam Wainwright (No. 74 overall) won 20 games; Andrew Bailey (87) was mostly lights out (at least when not injured); Carlos Marmol (100), in his first full season as a closer, turned into a 38-save monster with an outrageous 138 Ks in 77.2 IP; and Johan Santana (113) pitched like the vintage Cy Young winner of old at least as often as not. Throw in David Price, a young 19-win ace snagged for a song (216th pick) as the Moaners' No. 5 starter, and you had a staff that, in a season widely dubbed the Year of the Pitcher, was the SBL’s best. The Ms posted a sub-3.00 ERA a remarkable 14 times in 26 weeks, en route to a sparkling season ERA of 3.21. Their K-rate, an astonishing 1.01, might be a league record (think about it -- in any given given week, a K-rate over 1.00 is a rare and precious thing, likely to win you the stat ... and the Moaners AVERAGED that over an entire season). Their 92-58 win-loss record (Wainwright-Price-Lincecum-Santana combined for 66 Ws) was the best in the biz. And their bullpen, rounded out by Leo Nunez (often shaky, but still a 30-save guy) and supplemental pickups Alfredo Simon and Koji Uehara, churned out 124 saves, second in the league and an average of 4.8 per week.

The Moaners also benefited from impeccable timing -- pitching carried them early, when their offense was indeed unimaginably feeble, and later, when the pitching developed a few cracks, the offense, partially refurbished through the supplemental draft, was there to pick up the slack. The Moaners were consistently strong in stolen bases and total bases (147 SBs, 5.7 per week; 773 TB, 29.7/week), and ample power was supplied by four 30-HR, 100-RBI producers: Carlos Gonzalez, Ryan Howard, David Ortiz and (gulp) a miracle named Jose Bautista. (No other SBL team had more than two 30-100 guys; there were only 15 in all of baseball this year.) Gonzalez, nabbed with the 152nd pick (quite the steal!), was the kind of six-category star every SBL owner dreams of -- 34 HRs, 117 BI, 111 runs, 34 doubles, nine triples, 26 SBs, .376 OBP. As for Bautista, what can we say except, simply, Best ... Supplemental Pick ... Ever. A 29-year-old journeyman with 59 career homers (no more than 16 in a season) before this year, Bautista bashed an out-of-nowhere 54 dingers for the Blue Jays, 12 more than the MLB runner-up, Albert Pujols. The Ms acquired him six weeks in, with the next-to-last pick in the third supplemental, and from that point forward he hit 44 round-trippers in Moaner togs -- still more than any other player in ball hit for the entire season. Oh, he also drove in 124 runs, scored 109, had 35 doubles and a .378 OBP, even swiped nine sacks -- and the fact that the Moaners were able to draft him as a 3B, enabling them to bury their biggest (literally) draft-night bust, Pablo Sandoval, on the bench, was just an added bonus. Bautista was, too, part of an unusually strong collection of supplemental picks who helped the Ms get better as the season went on -- a group that also included Uehara and Simon, SPs Brett Myers and Madison Bumgarner, OFs Angel Pagan and Jose Tabata and 2B Ty Wigginton. That's eight useful players in 12 drafts, a very good batting average in the supplementals, and all the more remarkable for the fact that the Ms picked last or next-to-last in every draft but one. And the Moaners certainly needed that supplemental help, in a season when their first six choices in the draft proper -- Howard, Lincecum, 2B Brandon Phillips, Sandoval, OFs Carlos Lee and Bobby Abreu -- came up short of expectations, in most cases well short of career norms.

And now, in the clumsiest of segues, we interrupt this self-indulgent, narcissistic diatribe to give it up for DamianUnited, one of the strongest entries the National division has produced in recent years. Damian had one of those magical drafts in which most of his picks met or exceeded expectations. His offense was prodigious, the best in the league, powered by MVP candidate Josh Hamilton (32-100 despite missing almost all of September), comeback-player-of-year favorite Vladimir Guerrero (29-115), ageless Paul Konerko (39-111, .393 ... from the 221st pick!), binge basher Troy Tulowitzki (27-95, .381 in only 479 ABs) and a host of others. And his starting rotation, topped by NL Cy Young favorite Roy Halladay, CY contender Josh Johnson and AL whiff king Jered Weaver, was as good as any this side of Moanerville. But there's also a strong what-might-have-been element to DamU's season -- how good would they have been had they not suffered so many injuries to key players? While the Moaners skated through the season largely unencumbered by significant injury issues, DamU not only lost Hamilton and Johnson for the crucial final month, they were without their first two draft picks, 2B Ian Kinsler and SS Tulowitzki, for a combined 3½ months -- Tulo for about six weeks in June and July, Kinsler for about nine weeks over two separate DL stints, in April and August. As it was, Tulowitzki had better numbers than any other shortstop in ball, but what would he have done in the 600 ABs a full season would've provided? We'll never know. ... Kudos, too, to the Zero's, who put together another power-packed offense, one of the league's two or three best, and masterfully massaged a suspect pitching staff to squeeze 106 wins out of a roster that, in the hands of a lesser manager or less attentive GM, might not have gotten to 90. The Z's also gave DamU all they could handle in the wild-card round -- in fact their regular-season head-to-head matchup resulted in a 13-13 tie, necessitating use of the overall-season-stats tiebreaker, which Damian won by the slimmest of margins, 6-5, with DamU's microscopic 237-235 edge in home runs ultimately turning the tide. ... For the second consecutive year, the competition for the NL wild-card spot turned out to be the most interesting of the four races. Last year, it was JP's Whiteskins going 5-1 in the final week to wipe out Vic's Godfathers' five-game edge, forge a second-place tie and prevail in a tiebreaker to make the playoffs. This year, it was the Inmates, having begun the final week four games out of a playoff spot, going 6-0 and leapfrogging the third-place Godfathers (who went 3-3) and second-place Derek's Derelicts (1-5) to nab the prized postseason berth. . . . And, last and least, condolences to Dan's Cherry Valley Bombers, the defending NL champions, who executed a first-to-worst swan dive to edge out the BGoff Bammers for the WTIB booby prize with a 53-109 record. Better luck next year.

Before we sign off for the season, we offer our heartfelt thanks, as always, to our statkeepers -- Paul Oberjuerge, Gregg Patton and newcomer Dan Evans -- for their dedicated (and punctual!) work all season, and to first-year draftmeister Derek Rich, who seamlessly assumed the supplemental draft mantle from Brian Goff and smoothly guided the biweekly free-agent grab bags with a veteran's aplomb. And, of course, thanks to all of you for playing, and helping to sustain the spirit and tradition of one of the nation's oldest continuing fantasy baseball enterprises -- and, in our humble opinion, the absolute best of them all! Have a great off-season, and we'll see you, in person or via Skype, in March for the 2011 SBL draft.

Week 26 standings (Final)

AMERICAN
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT...GB
Mike (5-1)........125...37...772...--
Paul (1-5).........106...56...654...19
Andy (3-3)..........91...71...562...34
Dennis (3-3)........79...83...488...46
David (2-4).........68...94...420...57
Brian (5-1)..........56...106..346...69
NATIONAL
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT...GB
Damian (0-6)......93...69...574...--
Gregg (6-0)........78...84...481...15
Vic (3-3)............77...85...475...16
Derek (1-5)........77...85...475...16
JP (3-3)............69...93...426...24
Dan (4-2)..........53..109...327...40

SBL Notebook, Week 25

Congratulations – again, and this time officially – to DamianUnited, who, a week after clinching a tie for the National division title, wrapped it up for keeps, and with a pretty 7-0 bow on top to boot. It wasn’t the most overpowering undefeated week on record – DamU’s normally smash-and-grab offense managed just 19 runs, 18 TB and a season-low .291 OBP – but a 2.10 ERA, .98 BR stat and three tiebreaker victories got the job done well enough, pushing the DammedUnited a season-best 30 games above .500 at 93-63, a record certainly befitting a division champion. Now they’ve got a week to gird for battle with American division wild cards Paulo’s Zero’s in the first round of the playoffs. . . . Otherwise, the only race we’ve got left – the one for the NL wild-card spot – remained a going concern, with Vic’s Godfathers tiptoeing to within two games of second-place Derek’s Derelicts, and the Patton Inmates keeping alive their longshot playoff bid with a 6-1 week that left them four back of the Double-Ds and two behind the G-Daddies. Those three may be playing for little more than the right to serve as mulch in AL champion Mikee’s Moaners’ postseason garden, but whoever prevails will go into the books as a playoff participant, which is something anyway – there are only four of those each year. . . . Other than that, we’ve got nuthin’. Both division races are blowouts, it was another lackluster statistical week as hitters apparently have contracted a virulent case of the late-season blahs . . . no, this will not go down as anyone’s favorite SBL year. One week to go, and let’s hope the playoff series are more competitive than the regular season.

Week 25 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT...GB
Mike (5-2)........120...36...769...--
Paul (5-2).........105...51...673...15
Andy (0-7).........88...68...564...32
Dennis (2-5).......76...80...487...44
David (5-2)........66...90...423...54
Brian (2-5).........51..105...327...69
NATIONAL
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT...GB
Damian (7-0)......93...63...596...--
Derek (3-4)........76...80...487...17
Vic (4-3)...........74...82...474...19
Gregg (6-1).......72...84...462...21
JP (2-5)............66...90...423...27
Dan (1-6)..........49..107...314...44

2010 SBL Rosters (Updated)

BRIAN
C: V.Martinez (27), C.Ruiz (287)
1B: Pujols (1), G.Sanchez (S10)
2B: Beckham (79), Prado (222)
SS: E.Cabrera (274), Andrus (Tr)
3B: McGehee (183), Alvarez (S8)
OF: Lind (40), Quentin (118), Rasmus (261), J.Drew (S3), Gomes (S4), Scott (S9)
SP: Carpenter (53), Hanson (92), Latos (T1), Niese (S7), H.Bailey (T24)
Taxi: Beckett (66), Zito (S2)
RP: Wagner (105), Adams (209), Wood (Tr), Zumaya (S5)
DL: OF Blanks (144), 1B Glaus (248)

PAUL
C: Napoli (158), Buck (262)
1B: Huff (S4), Thome (S10)
2B: Cano (15), Weeks (249)
SS: H.Ramirez (2), Pennington (288)
3B: Zimmerman (28), Tejada (236)
OF: Markakis (41), Choo (54), Victorino (93), Swisher (133), H.Matsui (275), D.Stubbs (S7)
SP: Gallardo (80), Kuroda (184), C.Wilson (S1), W.Rodriguez (S8), Chacin (S10)
Taxi: Kennedy (S5), Harden (171)
RP: R.Soriano (67), Kuo (S6), Street (Tr), Hanrahan (S9)
DL: SP Pettitte (T2)

ANDY
C: Mauer (3), Posey (S4)
1B: Ad.Gonzalez (29), Helton (185)
2B: S.Rodriguez (250), Infante (S9)
SS: Scutaro (134), S.Castro (S3)
3B: Beltre (120), Headley (276)
OF: Crawford (16), M.Ramirez (68), Heyward (107), Borbon (198), V.Wells (211), Torres (S8)
SP: Liriano (94), T.Hudson (121), Jurrjens (159), Strasburg (237), Morrow (S10)
Taxi: SP Romero (Tr), SP Marcum (S4)
RP: B.Wilson (81), C.Perez (147), D.Bard (S6), League (S7)
DL: 2B Pedroia (42), OF Ordonez (277)

DENNIS
C: Wieters (108), Y.Molina (225)
1B: Teixeira (17), Overbay (278)
2B: Utley (4), Uggla (95)
SS: Jeter (30), Renteria (S6)
3B: Stewart (69), Rolen (S4)
OF: I.Suzuki (43), Kubel (135), Ludwick (160), C.Young (226), A.Jackson (S1), Stanton (S5)
SP: Verlander (56), Cain (82), B.Anderson (148), Danks (173), Duensing (S10)
Taxi: SP T.Wood (S7), SP Hunter (S8)
RP: Capps (109), Lidge (122), N.Feliz (265), J.Chavez (S9)

GREGG
C: Montero (123), Pierzynski (239)
1B: Morneau (44), Loney (252)
2B: Aviles (S6), Lowrie (S10)
SS: S.Drew (83), Hardy (S8)
3B: Reynolds (31), Peralta (253)
OF: Braun (5), Kemp (18), McCutchen (110), McLouth (161), D.Young (226), Snider (292)
SP: Kershaw (97), J.Sanchez (174), De La Rosa (200), Cahill (S5), Pavano (T20)
Taxi: Lackey (149), Hellickson (S9)
RP: Soria (57), Bell (70), Valverde (96), Lindstrom (136)

VIC
C: Doumit (227), Hundley (293)
1B: Berkman (124), Butler (137)
2B: Roberts (84), K.Johnson (241)
SS: Al.Ramirez (175), Ryan (280)
3B: A.Rodriguez (6), Polanco (240)
OF: J.Upton (19), B.Upton (98), Ad.Jones (111), Rios (150), Bruce (162), N.Morgan (188)
SP: Sabathia (32), Lester (58), Cl.Lee (85), Buchholz (201), Lewis (S2)
Taxi: W.Davis (T6), Penny (T19)
RP: Broxton (45), Saito (S1), Benoit (S4), Takahashi (S10)

DAN
C: R.Hernandez (281), Jaso (S10)
1B: Fielder (7), I.Davis (S7)
2B: A.Hill (20), Schumaker (268)
SS: J.Reyes (46), Bartlett (59)
3B: Cantu (138), Callaspo (294)
OF: Ethier (33), Cuddyer (72), Beltran (163), Bourn (202), Byrd (255), J.Guillen (S1)
SP: Billingsley (151), Garza (176), Hughes (T7), Garcia (T18), Niemann (242)
Taxi: Dempster (189), Wolf (215)
RP: Aardsma (86), Franklin (99), M.Gonzalez (112), Storen (S9)

MIKE
C: Iannetta (217), Olivo (Tr)
1B: Howard (8), D.Ortiz (164)
2B: Phillips (34), Wigginton (S1)
SS: Y.Escobar (126), A.Escobar (S9)
3B: Sandoval (47), Bautista (S3)
OF: C.Lee (60), Abreu (61), C.Gonzalez (152), R.Davis (203), Pagan (S6), Tabata (S8)
SP: Lincecum (21), Wainwright (74), J.Santana (113), D.Price (216), Bumgarner (S7)
Taxi: Lilly (190), Pelfrey (S5)
RP: A.Bailey (87), Marmol (100), L.Nunez (139), Uehara (S10)
DL: SP Harang (Tr), SS O.Cabrera (230)

JP
C: K.Suzuki (127), Kendall (S8)
1B: M.Cabrera (9), C.Pena (75)
2B: Zobrist (62), Kennedy (270)
SS: A.Cabrera (191), Furcal (Tr)
3B: Ar.Ramirez (49), C.Johnson (S10)
OF: Ellsbury (22), Ibanez (140), Hart (205), C.Ross (218), Holliday (Tr), Gardner (S3)
SP: Hamels (114), Oswalt (178), G.Gonzalez (T16), Buehrle (T9), Shields (204)
Taxi: Burnett (185), Padilla (S9)
RP: Papelbon (35), F.Cordero (88), Putz (Tr), Axford (S5)
DL: SP Webb (153)

DAVID
C: McCann (37), Barajas (S1)
1B: Votto (63), Ad.LaRoche (Tr)
2B: Kendrick (102), Iwamura (297)
SS: J.Uribe (S4), Ang.Sanchez (S9)
3B: D.Wright (10), Wood (S8)
OF: Bay (36), N.Cruz (76), Hawpe (141), Span (192), Damon (245), Boesch (S3)
SP: F.Hernandez (23), J.Vazquez (89), Nolasco (128), Matsuzaka (T15), S.Baker (179)
Taxi: Pineiro (T10), Silva (S5)
RP: M.Rivera (50), Lyon (193), Gregg (258), Dotel (Tr)

DEREK
C: Soto (155), Martin (220)
1B: Dunn (64). D.Johnson (S9)
2B: Figgins (77), Walker (S8)
SS: Rollins (25), A.Gonzalez (S1)
3B: Longoria (11), Kouzmanoff (207)
OF: Werth (38), Pence (116), A.Soriano (142), Reimold (180), Willingham (285), Raburn (S10)
SP: Greinke (24), U.Jimenez (103), Scherzer (181), Floyd (194), J.Vargas (S7)
Taxi: Cecil (S5) A.Sanchez (S4)
RP: Fuentes (90), Rauch (167), Gregerson (272), Clippard (S2)
DL: 2B Guillen

DAMIAN
C: Posada (143), I.Rodriguez (299)
1B: D.Lee (52), Konerko (221)
2B: Kinsler (12), Hudson (247)
SS: Tulowitzki (13), Desmond (240)
3B: M.Young (78), J.Lopez (168)
OF: Granderson (39), Hamilton (91), Hunter (101), V.Guerrero (169), G.Jones (208), Colvin (S8)
SP: Halladay (26), J.Johnson (65), Jer.Weaver (156), E.Santana (T12), D.Hudson (S10)
Taxi: Happ (182), E.Jackson (286)
RP: Jenks (130), Thornton (195), Meek (S3), Wuertz (S9)

SBL Notebook, Week 20

Badgers? We don’t need no stinking Badgers! So says the rest of the American division (although a couple of owners we can think of might employ language slightly more colorful than “stinking”), which can sense, feel, hear, see and, yes, smell Andy’s Badgers hot on the trail of another playoff berth and just maybe their first SBL title. The Badgers just completed a 24-0 rampage through the National division over four weeks of interleague play, and as we head into the home stretch they find themselves only two games out in the NL wild-card race and 11 off the division lead, with six weeks and 38 games to go. The Badgers, with their surging offense and power-armed starting rotation, are the team no one wants to play right now, and their AL rivals benefited from not having had to do so these last four interleague weeks – none more than the division leaders, Mikee’s Moaners, who’ve been giving off distinct signs of wilting in the late-summer heat, but have been fortunate to have those red flags largely concealed while playing the weaker National division. The M’s went 19-5 during the second interleague period, but consider this: Had they been facing AL competition the last three weeks, they would have won only two of those intra-divisional games and lost 13. So, they not only wouldn’t be enjoying their current nine-game lead on Paulo’s Zero’s and 11-game bulge on the Badgers, it’s conceivable they might not even be in first place anymore. But that’s all hypothetical; the Badgers are the reality every AL team must deal with now, and none will be able to avoid them from here on out. Even this week, when their muscular pitching frayed a bit, the Badgers simply fell back on their offense to run their post-All-Star break record to 29-2, posting league highs in runs (47), HRs (12), OBP (.399) and RBIs (a modest 35), and the second-best total in TB (35). Case closed. . . . The NL gained a measure of respectability in the final interleague week, playing the junior circuit to an 18-18 standoff thanks to some stellar mound work by the division’s two bottom dwellers, JP’s Whiteskins and Dan’s Cherry Valley Bombers, who rode the week’s best ERAs (2.03 and 1.46, respectively) to twin 5-1 performances. But the overall picture was not good at all for the Nationals, which is how it’s been going for the last several years. The NL won only one of the eight interleague weeks and barely one-third of the 288 games contested. Final score: AL 183, NL 105 , including a 96-48 walloping in the second period. The Moaners, in particular, fattened up on NL soft-serve, going 39-9, with the Badgers (38-10) right on their heels.

Week 20 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Mike (3-3).......91....33....734...--
Paul (4-2)........82....42....661....9
Andy (6-0).......80....44....645...11
Dennis (1-5).....60....64....484...31
David (2-4)......54....70....435...37
Brian (2-4).......45....79....363...46
NATIONAL
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Damian (2-4).....67....57....540...--
Vic (2-4)..........59....65....476....8
Derek (4-2).......57....67....460...10
Gregg (0-6).......55....69....444...12
JP (5-1)...........51....73....411...16
Dan (5-1).........43....81....347...24

SBL Notebook, Week 15

As we write every year at this time, the less said about our itty-bitty All-Star week, the better. We’d be remiss if we didn’t congratulate Dan’s Cherry Valley Bombers, who awoke from their season-long nightmare to go 6-0, despite some truly unsightly pitching numbers (7.40 ERA, 2.06 BR). It didn’t pull them out of the National division cellar, but still, there’s finally something to celebrate up around the county line – apple cider all around! Other than that . . . DamianUnited expanded their NL lead from two games to five, primarily because their two closest pursuers, Vic’s Godfathers and the Patton Inmates, went a combined 1-11. The ’Mates’ 0-6 accident continued a perplexing downward spiral, from a high-water mark of 27-5 through Week 5 to 48-45 today, 10 weeks later. . . . Status remained quo (or is that Kuo, the Korean hurler employed by Paulo’s Zero’s?) in the AL, where the top two teams both went 5-1, Mikee’s Moaners maintaining their seven-game edge on the Z’s. . . . There was a wide and tasty selection of close games, typical for this half-week in which the compressed statistical sample seems to drive most everyone toward the middle of the numerical pack. Every AL team was involved in at least one tiebreaker, of which there were five. . . . It’s essentially pointless to note statistical anomalies when the entire week is pretty much one big anomaly, but we couldn’t let this one pass: The Zero’s posted a 2.92 ERA, and a wholly incongruous 1.70 BR stat. The meager 12.1 innings turned in by their injury-riddled staff doubtless had something to do with that. Meanwhile, the Moaners put up totals in HRs (8), SBs (5) and saves (5) that wouldn’t have looked out of place in a full seven-game week.

Week 15 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT....GB
Mike (5-1)........69....24....742....--
Paul (5-1).........62....31....667.....7
Andy (3-3)........51....42....548....18
David (1-5).......44....49....473....25
Dennis (1-5)......36....57....387....33
Brian (4-2)........30....63....323....39
NATIONAL
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT....GB
Damian (4-2).....54....39....581....--
Vic (1-5)..........49....44....527.....5
Gregg (0-6).......48....45....516.....6
Derek (4-2).......46....47....495.....8
JP (2-4)...........37....56....398....17
Dan (6-0).........32....61....344....22

SBL Notebook, Week 5

And then, depression set in. So said Bill Murray in “Stripes” (or was it “Caddyshack?” . . . No, definitely “Stripes” . . . But jeez, when are we going to stop falling back on these silly movie quotes in the Notebook every week?) -– and so it was for offense in the SBL this week. The depression in this case was more like a trough, into which tumbled the relatively robust hitting numbers we’d seen in recent weeks. In their place were stats so tiny in some cases, you’d almost have thought it was All-Star week. Oh, there were a couple of exceptions, which we’ll dispense with right away: Derek’s Derelicts continued on the offensive tear they’d begun last week, walloping 18 HRs and collecting 40 RBIs, 36 TB and a .388 OBP. And Paulo’s Zero’s kept the power turned on with 12 HRs, after blasting 19 in Week 4. But that was it for noteworthy numbers. While the D’s and Z’s were combining for 30 homers, the other 10 teams combined for 59, and puny average of 5.9 per team (yes, we figured that out all by ourselves). Nobody but the Derelictables reached 40 RBIs (league average for everyone not named Derek: 29), no one could top his 36 TB, no one had more than 37 runs . . . you get the picture. It was the kind of week in which Mikee’s Moaners could “complement” their usual sturdy pitching with microscopic, (dare we say?) depressing o-stats across the board (31 runs, 26 TB, 6 HRs, 27 RBIs, 2 SBs, .272 OBP) and still post three 9-2 blowout victories -– part of a 4-3 week that actually lifted the M’s back into first place, a game ahead of displaced penthouse occupants Bristow’s Batfaced Girls, in the Great Mediocrity that is the American division. The AL race has devolved into quite the unremarkable mess, with no team able to distinguish itself, the top five separated by a mere four games. Three different teams have held first place in five weeks, and none has stayed there for longer than one week. The real power is in the National division, home of not only the mashin’ Derelicts but also the celebrated BTIB, the Patton Inmates, who enhanced their reputation with a 7-0 week that took their record to a sparkling 27-5, six games up on the smokin’-hot D-Train. More to the point, the NL won eight of 12 interleague games in this seven-game week, after going 9-3 the previous two weeks. Do we spy a trend here?

Week 5 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT....GB
Mike (4-3)........20....12....625....--
David (1-6).......19....13....594....1
Dennis (6-1)......17....15....531....3
Andy (2-5)........17....15....531....3
Paul (5-2).........16....16....500....4
Brian (0-7).........4....28....125...16
NATIONAL
Team, LW.........W....L....PCT....GB
Gregg (7-0).......27.....5....844....--
Derek (6-1).......21....11....656....6
Damian (5-2).....17....15....531...10
Dan (4-3)..........16....16....500...11
Vic (2-5)...........11....21....344...16
JP (0-7).............7....25....219...20

PaulO's Note: Week 5

Let's make this brief. Go right to what seemed to make the difference among the cellmates. The Z's: Five saves and a 1-0 record from the bullpen; Dotel and RSoriano 5IP, 0ER, 3BR, 9Ks and a 1-1 record. ... The Bat-faced Girls: King Felix, 3.1, 7ER, 9BR and an L and an 0-2 record. The Papacy: Mark Teixeira finally showing signs of waking, going 9-for-27 in the OBP world, with four runs, 8BI, a 2B and 3HR, as well as seven saves from three guys, Capps (!), Feliz and Lidge in a 2-0 week. ... If the Bitsy Threesome manages to beat any outsiders, it may come down to a big sub-in Thursday for all three at the catcher spot. Z's: (JBuck) 5223 with two taters; BFGs: (Barajas) 4223 with two taters; Papacy: (YMolina) 5143 with 2B and SB.

2010 SBL Rosters (Updated)

BRIAN
C: V.Martinez (27), C.Ruiz (287)
1B: Pujols (1), Glaus (248)
2B: Beckham (79), Prado (222)
SS: A.Escobar (131), E.Cabrera (274)
3B: B.Wood (145), McGehee (183)
OF: Holliday (14), Lind (40), Quentin (118), Blanks (144), Rasmus (261), Francoeur (S1)
SP: Carpenter (53), Beckett (66), Hanson (92), Kazmir (235), Zito (S2)
Taxi: Latos (1), H.Bailey (24)
RP: Wagner (105), Zambrano (170), Adams (209), Putz (300)

PAUL
C: Napoli (158), Buck (262)
1B: N.Johnson (132), Ad.LaRoche (197)
2B: Cano (15), Weeks (249)
SS: H.Ramirez (2), Pennington (288)
3B: Zimmerman (28), Tejada (236)
OF: Markakis (41), Choo (54), Victorino (93), Swisher (133), Cameron (210), H.Matsui (275)
SP: Gallardo (80), Kuroda (184), Pettitte (Taxi2), CJ Wilson (S1), K.Correia (S2)
Taxi: Peavy (106), Harden (171)
RP: R.Soriano (67), Francisco (119), Dotel (146), Mijares (289)

ANDY
C: Mauer (3), Olivo (290)
1B: Ad.Gonzalez (29), Helton (185)
2B: Pedroia (42), S.Rodriguez (250)
SS: Scutaro (134), Furcal (224)
3B: Beltre (120), Headley (276)
OF: Crawford (16), M.Ramirez (68), Hayward (107), Borbon (198), V.Wells (211), M.Ordonez (277)
SP: Haren (55), Liriano (94), T.Hudson (121), Jurrjens (159), Strasburg (237)
Taxi: Matusz (3), Harang (22)
RP: B.Wilson (81), C.Perez (147), F.Morales (172), Baez (S2)

DENNIS
C: Wieters (108), Y.Molina (225)
1B: Teixeira (17), Overbay (278)
2B: Utley (4), Uggla (95)
SS: Jeter (30), Hardy (212)
3B: Stewart (69), C.Jones (186)
OF: I.Suzuki (43), Kubel (135), Ludwick (160), F.Gutierrez (199), C.Young (226), A.Jackson (S1)
SP: Verlander (56), Cain (82), Danks (173), Porcello (238), Fister (S2)
Taxi: Chapman (4), Cueto (21)
RP: Capps (109), Lidge (122), Rodney (251), N.Feliz (265)
DL: SP B.Anderson (148)

GREGG
C: Snyder (S1), Pierzynski (239)
1B: Morneau (44), Loney (252)
2B: Barmes (187), Getz (266)
SS: S.Drew (83), Betancourt (S2)
3B: Reynolds (31), Peralta (253)
OF: Braun (5), Kemp (18), McCutchen (110), McLouth (161), D.Young (226), Snider (292)
SP: Kershaw (97), Lackey (149), J.Sanchez (174), DeLaRosa (200), Slowey (213)
Taxi: Padilla (5), Pavano (20)
RP: Soria (57), Bell (70), Valverde (96), Lindstrom (136)
DL: C Montero (123)

VIC
C: Doumit (227), Hundley (293)
1B: Berkman (124), Butler (137)
2B: B.Roberts (84), K.Johnson (241)
SS: Al.Ramirez (175), Ryan (280)
2B: A.Rodriguez (6), Polanco (240)
OF: J.Upton (19), B.Upton (98), Ad.Jones (111), Rios (150), Bruce (162), N.Morgan (188)
SP: Sabathia (32), Lester (58), Cl.Lee (85), Buchholz (201), Lewis (S2)
Taxi: W.Davis (6), Penny (19)
RP: Broxton (45), F.Rodriguez (71), Sherrill (267), Saito (S1)
DL: RP J.Howell (254)

DAN
C: B.Molina (228), R.Hernandez (281)
1B: Fielder (7), K.Morales (73)
2B: A.Hill (20), Schumaker (268)
SS: J.Reyes (46), Bartlett (59)
3B: Cantu (138), Callaspo (294)
OF: Ethier (33), Cuddyer (72), Bourn (202), Byrd (255), J.Guillen (S1), Fukudome (S2)
SP: Billingsley (151), M.Garza (176), Dempster (189), Hughes (Taxi7), Garcia (Taxi18)
Taxi: Wolf (215), Niemann (242)
RP: Aardsma (86), Franklin (99), M.Gonzalez (112), Qualls (125)
DL: OF C.Beltran (163), OF C.Jackson (229)

MIKE
C: Iannetta (217), J.Baker (256)
1B: Howard (8), D.Ortiz (164)
2B: Phillips (34), Wigginton (S1)
SS: Y.Escobar (126), O.Cabrera (230)
3B: Sandoval (47), Inge (269)
OF: C.Lee (60), Abreu (61), C.Gonzalez (152), R.Davis (203), J.Rivera (243), LaPorta (295)
SP: Lincecum (21), Wainwright (74), J.Santana (113), Lilly (190), D.Price (216)
Taxi: Saunders (8), R.Romero (17)
RP: A.Bailey (87), Marmol (100), L.Nunez (139), Simon (S2)
DL: RP Madson (177)

JP
C: Posey (296), Varitek (S2)
1B: M.Cabrera (9), C.Pena (75)
2B: Zobrist (62), Kennedy (270)
SS: Andrus (101), A.Cabrera (230)
3B: Ar.Ramirez (49), Encarnacion (231)
OF: Ellsbury (22), G.Sizemore (48), Ibanez (140), Hart (205), C.Ross (218), Coghlan (257)
SP: Hamels (114), Webb (153), Burnett (165), Oswalt (178), J.Shields (204)
Taxi: Buehrle (9) G.Gonzalez (16)
RP: Papelbon (35), F.Cordero (88), K.Wood (244), Chamberlain (283)
DL: C K.Suzuki (127)

DAVID
C: McCann (37), Barajas (S1)
1B: Votto (63), Kotchman (S2)
2B: Kendrick (102), Iwamura (297)
SS: E.Aybar (166), Theriot (206)
3B: D.Wright (10), Freese (219)
OF: Bay (36), N.Cruz (76), Hawpe (141), Span (192), Damon (245), Pierre (284)
SP: F.Hernandez (23), J.Vazquez (89), Nolasco (128), S.Baker (179), Blanton (232)
Taxi: Pineiro (10), Matsuzaka (15)
RP: M.Rivera (50), Street (115), Lyon (193), Gregg (258)

DEREK
C: Soto (155), Martin (220)
1B: Youkilis (51), Dunn (64)
2B: Figgins (77), S.Sizemore (246)
SS: A.Gonzalez (S1), Renteria (233)
3B: Longoria (11), Kouzmanoff (207)
OF: Werth (38), Pence (116), A.Soriano (142), Reimold (180), Bradley (259), Willingham (285)
SP: Greinke (24), U.Jimenez (103), W.Rodriguez (129), Scherzer (181), Floyd (194)
Taxi: Bedard (11), Millwood (14)
RP: Fuentes (90), Rauch (167), Gregerson (272), Clippard (S2)
DL: SS Rollins (25)

DAMIAN
C: Posada (143), I.Rodriguez (299)
1B: D.Lee (52), Konerko (221)
2B: Kinsler (12), Hudson (247)
SS: Tulowitzki (13), Desmond (240)
3B: M.Young (78), J.Lopez (168)
OF: Granderson (39), Hamilton (91), Hunter (101), V.Guerrero (169), G.Jones (208), Maybin (S1)
SP: Halladay (26), J.Johnson (65), Jer.Weaver (156), E.Santana (Taxi12), Braden (S2),
Taxi: E.Jackson (286), Bumgarner (13)
RP: Hoffman (117), Jenks (130), Thornton (195), Wuertz (234)
DL: SP Happ (182)

SBL Notebook, Week 4

Like the elderly but plucky Plague victim in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” who squeaked “I’m not dead . . . I’m getting better” as his son tried to throw him on the meat wagon, two of our most senior franchise owners have declared that reports of their demise were greatly exaggerated and appear well on the road to recovery. But before we get to Dan’s Cherry Valley Bombers and Paulo’s Zero’s, we pause for a word about the SBL’s most surprising story of the young season, the ascension of Bristow’s Batfaced Girls to heretofore uncharted heights, otherwise known as First Place. The Gals didn’t have the best week in the business -- in fact their pitching was as bad as we’re likely to see all season -- but they managed to scratch out a 4-2 mark and, on the strength of their month-long consistency, took over the top spot in the American division with an 18-7 record. It’s believed to be the first time Hizhonor has occupied the catbird seat unaccompanied, at least this late in the season. And looking at the impressive array of young, up-and-coming talent on his roster, there’s every reason to expect he can stay in contention for his first division title. The BFGs are the only team in the AL that hasn’t posted a losing week this season, and the fact they’ve done this despite injuries to several key players -- and despite their truly horrific 8.63 ERA, 2.13 BR stat and 0-4 WL this week -- has to bode well for their chances. Just think how high their ceiling may be once Nelson Cruz, Brad Hawpe and Huston Street return to active duty. . . . The Girls’ path to the AL mountaintop was cleared by Andy’s Badgers’ first toe-stub of the season, an 0-6 ker-plunk that dropped them all the way to third place, one game behind Mikee’s Moaners and three back of the BFGs. But the biggest noise of the week wasn’t the crashing of the Badgers but the roar emitted by the defending champion Zero’s as they awoke from hibernation. After staggering to a 5-14 start, the Z’s blasted out of their funk with a 6-0 surge fueled by a staggering 19 home runs, which their owner is claiming as a franchise record, and 49 RBIs. No fewer than five Zero’s players contributed multi-HR games to the cause, topped by a gimme-a-break-you’ve-gotta-be-kidding three-homer sub-in from backup catcher John Buck (!). It doesn’t get much better than that. . . . Over in the National division, the defending champion Bombers continued the resuscitation they began last week, putting together a second consecutive 5-1 performance fueled not by the monster offense that carried them in Week 3, but by sterling pitching that produced a 1.69 ERA, .94 BR stat and 5-1 WL, and lifted them to within a game of .500. Now seven and eight games, respectively, out of first place, the Zero’s and Bombers have served notice that they won’t give up their division flags without a fight. (Of course, that old Plague victim in “Holy Grail” ended up being clubbed to death by the meat-wagon owner at the son’s behest, so the Z’s and CVBs would be wise to keep the pedal to the metal!) Elsewhere in the NL, the Patton Inmates quietly went 4-2, improved their Best Record in Ball to 20-5 and maintained their lead at five games, albeit over a new runner-up -- Derek’s Derelicts (hooray, we remembered!), who assembled the best overall week (14 HRs, 43 runs, 42 ribbies AND a 2.05 ERA and 1.08 BR stat) to go 6-0 and displace DamianUnited from second place.

Week 4 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
David (4-2).......18....7....720....--
Mike (3-3)........16....9....640....2
Andy (0-6)........15...10....600....3
Paul (6-0).........11...14....440....7
Dennis (3-3)......11...14....440....7
Brian (1-5).........4...21....160...14
NATIONAL
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Gregg (4-2).......20....5....800....--
Derek (6-0).......15...10....600....5
Dan (5-1).........12...13....480....8
Damian (1-5).....12...13....480....8
Vic (3-3)............9...16....360...11
JP (0-6).............7...18....280...13

Free Agent Draft No. 2

Pre-draft moves:
Brian: P Zambrano to bullpen
JP: C Suzuki to DL, activate RP Wood from DL
Dan: OF C.Jackson to DL
Dennis: SP B.Anderson to DL
Damian: RP Happ to DL
Mike: RP Madson to DL

1. Brian: takes SP Zito, drops RP Frasor
2. Paul: takes SP Correia, drops SP Meche;
..........taxi: Correia up, Peavy down
3. Vic: takes SP Co.Lewis, drops SP Sheets;
.........taxi: Cl.Lee up, W.Davis down
4. JP: takes C Varitek, drops RP Affeldt
5. Dan: takes OF Fukudome
6. Dennis: takes SP Fister
7. Derek: takes RP Clippard, drops RP League
8. Damian: takes SP Braden;
..............taxi: Santana up, E.Jackson down
9. Mike: takes RP Simon
10. David: takes 1B Kotchman, drops 1B C.Davis
11. Andy: takes RP D.Baez, drops RP Ji.Johnson

PaulO's Note: Week 4

"The defending-champ Zeroes showed they were ready to play -- three weeks after the season began -- by slugging 19 homers (a franchise high?) and plating 49 runners in a week of offense utterly outlandish by the puny standards of the first three weeks. This was how good it got: The Z's got a three-homer sub-in from John Buck. Yeah. And their pitching wasn't horrible for the first time this season, including a tidy 4-2 in W/L. The Z's really need a 6-0 week to get back into something vaguely approximating contention. ... Queer weeks for the cellmates here. The Bat-faced Girls had a decent week of offense but their pitching, which was steady-to-good for three weeks, went up in flames. (Maybe Joel Pineiro was available to the Angels for a reason.) Check that 8.83 ERA, just a couple of runs short of crossing 9.00, which Commissioner Davis could tell us (basically) never happens. And the 2.13 BR stat (crossing the 2.0 threshold; also quite unusual), the 0-4 and only two saves. BUT, there is that seeming anomaly of a glittering 1.08 K-rat. Long-time observers of the game have noted that pitchers being bombed often rack up a "good" K-rat. Something, perhaps, about throwing such fat pitches that they either get driven over a fence or missed entirely. Or facing so many batters that eventually the whiffs amass? Anyway, so what, you ask. Just this: That 1.08 K-rat is the one pitching stat the BFGs pluck from the Papists in their matchup. Which matters because the Girls take five offensive categories from the papacy, three by the tiniest of margins. That is to say, by one counting stat. The Girls had one more HR, one more RBI, and win OBP thanks to having one fewer PA (the teams tied in BR). In a 6-5 game. Game of millimetres (as we spell it over here) indeed."

Bammers Looking For Closer in a "Good Deal"

From Mr. Goff, owner of the Bammers:

"Looking for a good deal:

Bammers are looking for a good closer and is willing to trade picks in this week's draft (or even trade the pick if the closer is good enough.

Let me know by Sunday if you are interested. (JJ Putz, the most likely reliever coming in return.)"


Looks like the Bammers have grown weary of their foursome of Wagner, Frasor, Adams and Putz.

SBL Notebook, Week 3

Getting the standard disclaimers out of the way right off the top: It’s early in the season . . . It’s only one week . . . Blah . . . blah . . . blah. Now then, it must be said with considerable conviction that some good things are happening in the long-suffering National division. The NL, winner of only two SBL titles over the last decade and 0-8 in playoff series since we adopted the wild-card format in 2006, appears to be mounting a comeback. Leading the charge is the new Best Team In Ball, the Patton Inmates, whose potent blend of across-the-board offense and power pitching (particularly from the bullpen, a Mental Defectives trademark) has carried them to a 16-3 record. In fact, all that separates the ’Mates from a perfect 19-0 start are three oh-so-close 6-5 defeats, including two particularly perverse losses to Mikee’s Moaners. The Frontal Lobotomizers’ 6-0 Week 3 performance catapulted them out to a five-game lead, partly because several other quality teams in the division keep beating each other up, with DamianUnited, tied for first a week earlier, suffering a particularly hard-luck 1-5 dive despite solid numbers. More telling, perhaps, than the Inmates’ hot start was the way the NL manhandled the American division this week, winning five of six interleague tilts by scores of 9-2, 9-2, 8-3, 7-4 and 7-4; the only AL victory was a 6-5 squeaker for Bristow’s Batfaced Girls over struggling JP’s Whiteskins. A look at the stat sheet provides a clear-cut explanation for the NL’s dominance. All three of the week’s double-figure home-run totals, all three of the 40-plus RBI counts and four of the six 30-plus run totals were logged by NL teams. The Nationals averaged 8.8, 37.0 and 33.2, respectively, in those stats, the Americans a paltry 5.2, 23.0 and 26.8. The NL also claimed five of the top seven OBPs. The AL was puny as it’s been in recent memory; no team in the division had more than 30 ribbies and three failed to even drive in 20. On the pitching side, NL teams recorded three of the five sub-3.00 ERAs, the only two sub-1.00 BR stats and the three highest save totals (cumulative score in that stat: NL 26 saves, AL 14). All in all, a statistical, and head-to-head, butt-kicking. (Hmm, can a butt-kicking be head-to-head, anatomically speaking?) Even the defending division champion Cherry Valley Bombers awoke to partake in the NL feast, rebounding from their 2-11 start to go 5-1 behind a 12-HR, 43-RBI, 38-run onslaught. . . . The big question, of course: Can the NL keep it up? Is this just a one-week aberration, or is the division in this for the long haul, with an eye on that elusive first playoff series triumph and maybe the first league championship for an NL aggregation since Vic’s Godfathers won it in 2004? Time will tell, but the numbers so far are encouraging, and a look at the rosters suggests that the pieces are in place for an NL renaissance -- there are a lot very good players, off to very good starts, in that neck of the SBL woods. Meanwhile, two traditional AL powers, the BGoff Bammers and Paulo’s Zero’s, continued to struggle -- the Bammers going 0-6 and falling to a shocking, WTIB 3-16, already a dozen games behind front-running Andy’s Badgers, and the Z’s just a couple ticks north at 5-14. The Badgers and the surprising Batfaced Girls were the only AL success stories this week, each going 5-1, leaving the ’Girls just a game out of first place.

Week 3 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Andy (5-1)........15....4....789....--
David (5-1).......14....5....737.....1
Mike (1-5)........13....6....684.....2
Dennis (3-3).......8...11....421.....7
Paul (2-4)..........5...14....263....10
Brian (0-6).........3...16....158....12
NATIONAL
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Gregg (6-0).......16....3....842....--
Damian (1-5).....11....8....579.....5
Derek (4-2)........9...10....474.....7
Dan (5-1)..........7...12....368.....9
JP (1-5)............7...12....368.....9
Vic (3-3)...........6...13....319....10

PaulO's Note: Week 3

"Some genuinely shaky numbers here, but somebody has to win. And it is the Bat-faced Girls who, true to early form, are the (marginally) better team ... and the Zeroes who didn't do enough to take advantage of weaknesses by their cellmates. ... The BFGs beat The Champs (hah) 8-3, but the Girls' game with the Papists was a excruciatingly tight affair. The BFGs won 6.5-4.5, avoiding a tiebreaker on the basis of (pick one) one more out recorded/one fewer baserunner allowed, winning the pitching BR stat by .001 -- 1.296 to 1.297. ... The Girls perhaps deserved to win, having put up the one genuinely impressive number on offense from this trio, those 12 (!) steals (five by NCruz). ... The Vatican's game with the Z's was nearly as close, coming down to a handful of baserunners in the OBP stat, which the Papacy carries by .015 points in a 6-5 game. ... So, onward and downward; we make no claims that any of the Tiny Trio will do much outside of this sad little pod."

SBL Notebook, Week 2

It's unwise to read too much into a baseball season in its infant stage -- SBL results, 13 games in, determine supplemental draft position but little else. So the ongoing spectacle of last season's division winners, Dan's Cherry Valley Bombers and league champions Paulo's Zero's, sharing cellar space with four-time SBL champs the BGoff Bammers after two weeks probably should be taken with entire shakers-full of salt. But perhaps the most surprising development at this early juncture is the presence of Mikee's Moaners at the top of the American division heap -- not because they haven't been there before (they have, and not infrequently), but because of how they got there. The M's, to put it bluntly, cannot hit -- Week 2 totals of four home runs, 28 runs, 31 RBIs and an abominable .278 OBP drive home that point much more effectively than the team's hitters have been driving home baserunners. But, in a shocking turn of events for a team owned and operated by one of the SBL's most notoriously pitching-phobic CEOs, the Moaners have suddenly and unaccountably begun channeling the mid-1960s Dodgers, overcoming a popgun offense by deploying a dollop of speed on the basepaths and superior work on the mound to fashion a 12-1 record, including an unlikely 7-0 run this week despite the feeble hitting numbers cited above. Those Dodgers featured Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale and an offense, personified by speedsters like Maury Wills and Willie Davis, that labored to manufacture just enough runs to eke out a 3-2 or 2-1 or 1-0 victory. Today’s Moaners have, for two weeks, featured Tim Lincecum and Adam Wainwright in the Koufax-Drysdale roles and Rajai Davis offering a somewhat pale Wills impersonation. Lincecum and Wainwright this week contributed 23 quality innings in which they allowed two runs, 20 baserunners, struck out 23 and notched three Ws, making them the linchpins in perhaps the best pitching week in franchise history -- microscopic ERA (1.23) and BR (.79) numbers, a 5-1 WL and monster K-rat (1.14). Moaners starters trudged to the hill seven times and surrendered exactly six earned runs in 53.2 IP. Meanwhile, R.Davis, who seems to have less trouble getting to second base than he does to first, contributed three of the Moaners' seven stolen bases, even as his OBP plunged to .246 (as leadoff hitter for OBP kings the Oakland A's, no less). And that, more or less, is how the M's managed to go 7-0 -- they won at least four pitching stats from everyone they played (in fact they conceded only 3.5 of a possible 35 pitching points), were beaten in stolen bases by only one of seven opponents, and picked just enough low-hanging fruit in the other hitting categories to win a fistful of close games -- one in a tiebreaker, three by 6-5, one by 6.5-4.5 and two 7-4 "blowouts." Decades of SBL experience and wisdom inform us that reliance on starting pitching as a long-term strategy is a recipe for failure in a fantasy league, particularly one that is 55% offense. But it has paid a short-term dividend for a Moaners team that deviated wildly from its traditional drafting approach by spending (wasting?) six of its first 10 selections on pitchers -- three starters and three relievers. . . . OK then, after availing himself of what he's sure will be his only opportunity all season to extol his team's (clearly ephemeral) virtues, your humble servant turns his gaze to the rest of the league, and sees that it is good. DamianUnited extended their stay in the first division with another solid week anchored by pitching (1.87 ERA, 1.04 BR, 4-1, .98 Ks) anyone but the Moaners would envy; they share the NL penthouse (at 10-3) with the Patton Inmates, whose combination of solid hitting and exceptional pitching was all but unbeatable in a 6-1 week. Andy's Badgers continued to look like the league's most explosive offensive force, though their pitching (5.40 ERA, 1.56 BR) let them down in a 4-3 week that left them two games behind the Moaners, and one ahead of Bristow’s Batfaced Girls, who rode 12 SBs, a .399 OBP and quality pitching across the board to a nice 6-1 week. And as for the Bombers, Bammers and Zero's, hey, it's only a two-week sample, just a blip on a long season's radar screen, not a six-month trend.

Week 2 standings

AMERICAN
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Mike (7-0)........12....1....923....--
Andy (4-3)........10....3....769.....2
David (6-1)........9....4....692.....3
Dennis (3-4).......5....8....385.....7
Paul (3-4)..........3...10....231.....9
Brian (1-6).........3...10....231.....9
NATIONAL
Team, LW........W....L....PCT....GB
Gregg (6-1).......10....3....769....--
Damian (5-2).....10....3....769....--
JP (3-4)............6....7....462.....4
Derek (1-6)........5....8....385.....5
Vic (3-4)...........3...10....231.....7
Dan (0-7)..........2...11....154.....8

Free Agent Draft No. 1

Pre-draft moves:
Dan: OF Beltran to DL
Vic: RP Howell to DL
Derek: SS Rollins to DL
JP: RP Wood to DL
Gregg: C Montero to DL

1. Dan: takes OF J.Guillen;
..........Taxi: Garcia, Hughes up; Niemann, Wolf down
2. Brian: takes OF Francoeur, drops Stubbs;
...........Taxi: Kazmir up, Latos down
3. Vic: takes RP Saito
4. Paul: takes SP CJ Wilson, drops Maine;
..........Taxi: Pettitte up, Harden down
5. Derek: takes SS Alex Gonzalez
6. Dennis: takes OF Austin Jackson, drops Fowler
7. JP: takes RP Affeldt
8. David: takes C Barajas, drops Shoppach
9. Andy: takes RP Ji.Johnson, drops Guerrier;
...........Taxi: Matusz up, Harang down
10. Damian: takes OF Maybin, drops Drew
11. Gregg: takes C Snyder
12. Mike: takes 2B Wigginton, drops Ellis

SBL Notebook, Week 1

Opening Week 2010 was a power-to-the-proletariat deal, with last year's unwashed masses enjoying a week in the sun while our two defending champions were driven underground, if not into it. Paulo's Zero's went from winning the whole shebang in October to an 0-6 stagger-out-of-the-gate in April, and Dan's Cherry Valley Bombers, last year's National division titlists, could manage only a 2-4 start, with one of the victories an ultra-tight 6-5 squeaker over the Z's. Meanwhile, Andy's Badgers, who ended last season on an 18-1 tear that lifted them into the AL wild-card spot and, ultimately, a highly competitive SBL Series that the Zero's won 14-12, extended their hot streak to the start of the new season, riding robust offense (10 HR, 43 RBIs, 37 TB, .397 OBP) and solid pitching (1.03 BR, 3.30 ERA, 6 saves) to the week's only 6-0 ledger. Also faring well were Mikee's Moaners and DamianUnited (both 5-1) and The Patton Inmates and Derek's . . . um, Team Formerly Known As The Itch Doctors Whose Current Name, I Am Embarrassed To Report, Escapes Me At The Moment, both of whom went 4-2. Those clubs finished fourth, fifth, fourth and sixth, respectively, in their divisions in '09. . . . Good offense is often at a premium in April, but not this year, as several teams posted numbers that were pretty damn impressive for a Week 1 -- perhaps at least partly attributable to weather that must've been pretty mild, judging by the near-total absence of rainouts. Four teams reached double digits in homers, three got into the 40s in RBIs, half the league had 36 or more runs, and eight teams reached the 30s in TB -- numbers you don't often see in the cold-weather weeks. But, with much of that offense apparently spread around fairly evenly, SBL success ended up being largely dependent on pitching well -- four of the five winning records were posted by teams whose ERAs ranged from 2.38 to 3.30, and the fifth winning team checked in with a decent 3.70. Those five teams accounted for 24 of the 36 wins on offer. On the flip side, the teams with the three worst ERAs went a combined 2-16.

Week 1 standings

AMERICAN
Team.........W....L....PCT....GB
Andy..........6.....0..1.000....--
Mike..........5.....1....833.....1
David.........3.....3....500.....3
Dennis........2.....4....333.....4
Brian..........2.....4....333.....4
Paul...........0.....6....000.....6
NATIONAL
Team.........W....L....PCT....GB
Damian.......5.....1....833....--
Gregg.........4.....2....667.....1
Derek.........4.....2....667.....1
JP.............3.....3....500.....2
Dan...........2.....4....333.....3
Vic............0.....6....000.....5

PaulO's Note: Week 1

If you've ever had PaulO keep your stats every week then you would have probably receved notes like this one, which I've been getting since I first joined the SBL. He's brutal but incisive, as usual. And when his teams are bad he's beyond self-depricating, he's self-destructive. Though there wasn't as much of that last season.

PaulO's note:

"Nice start by the Barristers. David's Bat-faced Girls scored more often than Tiger Woods in a singles bar, showed a little pop and walked like an Egyptian. Dennis had some moments, most of them sudden and big -- like 5 and 4 sub-in RBI days from Chris Young, as well as a sub-in granny from Yadier, giving him 13 unexpected RBI on his way to a big number there. But he is one homer and one steal shy of a tiebreaker with the Barrister. Game of inches, and all. ... Meanwhile, the defending champs fell on their faces, and the question already has been asked of the commish: Has anyone started 0-6 and won a pennant? OK, how about finishing with a winning record? Oh. I see. It's April 12 and already it's a long season for your favorite exile ..."

Note From New Draftmeister

From Draftmeister Nueva, Derek Rich:

"Greetings, owners ....

Granted, the first installment of the 2010 SBL Supplemental Summer
Suprises is still a week off, but I wanted to take this brief moment
to ensure that y'all have the optimal means to get your draft picks to
me.

Game on!"

2010 SBL Rosters

BRIAN
C: V.Martinez (27), C.Ruiz (287)
1B: Pujols (1), Glaus (248)
2B: Beckham (79), Prado (222)
SS: A.Escobar (131), E.Cabrera (274)
3B: B.Wood (145), McGehee (183)
OF: Holliday (14), Lind (40), Quentin (118), Blanks (144), Stubbs (196), Rasmus (261)
SP: Carpenter (53), Beckett (66), Hanson (92), Zambrano (170), Kazmir (235)
Taxi: Latos (1), H.Bailey (24)
RP: Wagner (105), Frasor (157), Adams (209), Putz (300)

PAUL
C: Napoli (158), Buck (262)
1B: N.Johnson (132), Ad.LaRoche (197)
2B: Cano (15), Weeks (249)
SS: H.Ramirez (2), Pennington (288)
3B: Zimmerman (28), Tejada (236)
OF: Markakis (41), Choo (54), Victorino (93), Swisher (133), Cameron (210), H.Matsui (275)
SP: Gallardo (80), Peavy (106), Harden (171), Kuroda (184), Maine (223)
Taxi: Pettitte (2), Meche (23)
RP: R.Soriano (67), Francisco (119), Dotel (146), Mijares (289)

ANDY
C: Mauer (3), Olivo (290)
1B: Ad.Gonzalez (29), Helton (185)
2B: Pedroia (42), S.Rodriguez (250)
SS: Scutaro (134), Furcal (224)
3B: Beltre (120), Headley (276)
OF: Crawford (16), M.Ramirez (68), Hayward (107), Borbon (198), V.Wells (211), M.Ordonez (277)
SP: Haren (55), Liriano (94), T.Hudson (121), Jurrjens (159), Strasburg (237)
Taxi: Matusz (3), Harang (22)
RP: B.Wilson (81), C.Perez (147), F.Morales (172), Guerrier (263)

DENNIS
C: Wieters (108), Y.Molina (225)
1B: Teixeira (17), Overbay (278)
2B: Utley (4), Uggla (95)
SS: Jeter (30), Hardy (212)
3B: Stewart (69), C.Jones (186)
OF: I.Suzuki (43), Kubel (135), Ludwick (160), F.Gutierrez (199), C.Young (226), Fowler (291)
SP: Verlander (56), Cain (82), B.Anderson (148), Danks (173), Porcello (238)
Taxi: Chapman (4), Cueto (21)
RP: Capps (109), Lidge (122), Rodney (251), N.Feliz (265)

GREGG
C: Montero (123), Pierzynski (239)
1B: Morneau (44), Loney (252)
2B: Barmes (187), Getz (266)
SS: S.Drew (83), Aviles (279)
3B: Reynolds (31), Peralta (253)
OF: Braun (5), Kemp (18), McCutchen (110), McLouth (161), D.Young (226), Snider (292)
SP: Kershaw (97), Lackey (149), J.Sanchez (174), DeLaRosa (200), Slowey (213)
Taxi: Padilla (5), Pavano (20)
RP: Soria (57), Bell (70), Velverde (96), Lindstrom (136)

VIC
C: Doumit (227), Hundley (293)
1B: Berkman (124), Butler (137)
2B: B.Roberts (84), K.Johnson (241)
SS: Al.Ramirez (175), Ryan (280)
2B: A.Rodriguez (6), Polanco (240)
OF: J.Upton (19), B.Upton (98), Ad.Jones (111), Rios (150), Bruce (162), N.Morgan (188)
SP: Sabathia (32), Lester (58), Cl.Lee (85), Buchholz (201), Sheets (214)
Taxi: W.Davis (6), Penny (19)
RP: Broxton (45), F.Rodriguez (71), J.Howell (254), Sherrill (267)

DAN
C: B.Molina (228), R.Hernandez (281)
1B: Fielder (7), K.Morales (73)
2B: A.Hill (20), Schumaker (268)
SS: J.Reyes (46), Bartlett (59)
3B: Cantu (138), Callaspo (294)
OF: Ethier (33), Cuddyer (72), C.Beltran (163), Bourn (202), C.Jackson (229), Byrd (255)
SP: Billingsley (151), M.Garza (176), Dempster (189), Wolf (215), Niemann (242)
Taxi: Hughes (7), Garcia (18)
RP: Aardsma (86), Franklin (99), M.Gonzalez (112), Qualls (125)

MIKE
C: Iannetta (217), J.Baker (256)
1B: Howard (8), D.Ortiz (164)
2B: Phillips (34), Ellis (282)
SS: Y.Escobar (126), O.Cabrera (230)
3B: Sandoval (47), Inge (269)
OF: C.Lee (60), Abreu (61), C.Gonzalez (152), R.Davis (203), J.Rivera (243), LaPorta (295)
SP: Lincecum (21), Wainwright (74), J.Santana (113), Lilly (190), D.Price (216)
Taxi: Saunders (8), R.Romero (17)
RP: A.Bailey (87), Marmol (100), L.Nunez (139), Madson (177)

JP
C: K.Suzuki (127), Posey (296)
1B: M.Cabrera (9), C.Pena (75)
2B: Zobrist (62), Kennedy (270)
SS: Andrus (101), A.Cabrera (230)
3B: Ar.Ramirez (49), Encarnacion (231)
OF: Ellsbury (22), G.Sizemore (48), Ibanez (140), Hart (205), C.Ross (218), Coghlan (257)
SP: Hamels (114), Webb (153), Burnett (165), Oswalt (178), J.Shields (204)
Taxi: Buehrle (9) G.Gonzalez (16)
RP: Papelbon (35), F.Cordero (88), K.Wood (244), Chamberlain (283)

DAVID
C: McCann (37), Shoppach (271)
1B: Votto (63), C.Davis (154)
2B: Kendrick (102), Iwamura (297)
SS: E.Aybar (166), Theriot (206)
3B: D.Wright (10), Freese (219)
OF: Bay (36), N.Cruz (76), Hawpe (141), Span (192), Damon (245), Pierre (284)
SP: F.Hernandez (23), J.Vazquez (89), Nolasco (128), S.Baker (179), Blanton (232)
Taxi: Pineiro (10), Matsuzaka (15)
RP: M.Rivera (50), Street (115), Lyon (193), Gregg (258)

DEREK
C: Soto (155), Martin (220)
1B: Youkilis (51), Dunn (64)
2B: Figgins (77), S.Sizemore (246)
SS: Rollins (25), Renteria (233)
3B: Longoria (11), Kouzmanoff (207)
OF: Werth (38), Pence (116), A.Soriano (142), Reimold (180), Bradley (259), Willingham (285)
SP: Greinke (24), U.Jimenez (103), W.Rodriguez (129), Scherzer (181), Floyd (194)
Taxi: Bedard (11), Millwood (14)
RP: Fuentes (90), Rauch (167), Gregerson (272), League (198)

DAMIAN
C: Posada (143), I.Rodriguez (299)
1B: D.Lee (52), Konerko (221)
2B: Kinsler (12), Hudson (247)
SS: Tulowitzki (13), Desmond (240)
3B: M.Young (78), J.Lopez (168)
OF: Granderson (39), Hamilton (91), Hunter (101), V.Guerrero (169), G.Jones (208), J.Drew (273)
SP: Halladay (26), J.Johnson (65), Jer.Weaver (156), Happ (182), E.Jackson (286)
Taxi: E.Santana (12), Bumgarner (13)
RP: Hoffman (117), Jenks (130), Thornton (195), Wuertz (234)

Blogs On The 2010 Draft

There have been a couple of blogs written about the 2010 Sun Baseball League Draft, so here are links to both.

PaulO's blog is here.

Dennis's blog is here.

2010 SBL Draft

FIRST ROUND:
1. 1B Albert Pujols, STL (Brian Goff)
2. SS Hanley Ramirez, FLA (Paul Oberjuerge)
3. C Joe Mauer, MIN (Andy Baggarly)
4. 2B Chase Utley, PHI (Dennis Pope)
5. OF Ryan Braun, MIN (Gregg Patton)
6. 3B Alex Rodriguez, NYY (Vic West)
7. 1B Prince Fielder, MIN (Dan Evans)
8. 1B Ryan Howard, PHI (Mike Davis)
9. 1B Miguel Cabrera, DET (J.P. Hoornstra)
10. 3B David Wright, NYM (David Bristow)
11. 3B Evan Longoria, TB (Derek Rich)
12. 2B Ian Kinsler, TEX (Damian Secore)
SECOND ROUND:
13. SS Troy Tulowitzki, COL (Secore)
14. OF Matt Holliday, STL (Goff)
15. 2B Robinson Cano, NYY (Oberjuerge)
16. OF Carl Crawford, TB (Baggarly)
17. 1B Mark Teixeira, NYY (Pope)
18. OF Matt Kemp, LAD (Patton)
19. OF Justin Upton, TB (West)
20. 2B Aaron Hill, TOR (Evans)
21. SP Tim Lincecum, SF (Davis)
22. OF Jacoby Ellsbury, BOS (Hoornstra)
23. SP Felix Hernandez, SEA (Bristow)
24. OF Zach Greinke, KC (Rich)
THIRD ROUND:
25. SS Jimmy Rollins, PHI (Rich)
26. SP Roy Halladay, PHI (Hoornstra)
27. C Victor Martinez, BOS (Goff)
28. 3B Ryan Zimmerman, WAS (Oberjuerge)
29. 1B Adrian Gonzalez, SD (Baggarly)
30. SS Derek Jeter, NYY (Pope)
31. 3B Mark Reynolds, ARI (Patton)
32. SP C.C. Sabathia, NYY (West)
33. OF Andre Ethier, LAD (Evans)
34. 2B Brandon Phillips, CIN (Davis)
35. RP Jonathan Papelbon, BOS (Hoornstra)
36. OF Jason Bay, BOS (Bristow)
FOURTH ROUND:
37. C Brian McCann, ATL (Bristow)
38. OF Jason Werth, PHI (Rich)
39. OF Curtis Granderson, NYY (Secore)
40. OF Adam Lind, TOR (Goff)
41. OF Nick Markakis, BAL (Oberjuerge)
42. 2B Dustin Pedroia, BOS (Baggarly)
43. OF Ichiro Suzuki, SEA (Pope)
44. 1B Justin Morneau, MIN (Patton)
45. RP Jonathan Broxton, LAD (West)
46. SS Jose Reyes, NYM (Evans)
47. 3B Pablo Sandoval, SF (Davis)
48. OF Grady Sizemore, CLE (Hoornstra)
FIFTH ROUND:
49. 3B Aramis Ramirez, CHC (Hoornstra)
50. RP Mariano Rivera, NYY (Bristow)
51. 1B Kevin Youkilis, BOS (Rich)
52. 1B Derrek Lee, CHC (Secore)
53. SP Chris Carpenter, STL (Goff)
54. OF Shin-Soo Choo, CLE (Oberjuerge)
55. SP Dan Haren, ARI (Baggarly)
56. SP Justin Verlander, DET (Pope)
57. RP Joakim Soria, KC (Patton)
58. SP Jon Lester, BOS (West)
59. SS Jason Bartlett, TB (Evans)
60. OF Carlos Lee, HOU (Davis)
SIXTH ROUND:
61. OF Bobby Abreu, LAA (Davis)
62. 2B Ben Zobrist, TB (Hoornstra)
63. 1B Joey Votto, CIN (Bristow)
64. 1B Adam Dunn, WAS (Rich)
65. SP Josh Johnson, FLA (Secore)
66. SP Josh Beckett, BOS (Goff)
67. RP Rafael Soriano, TB (Oberjuerge)
68. OF Manny Ramirez, LAD (Baggarly)
69. 3B Ian Stewart, COL (Pope)
70. RP Heath Bell, SD (Patton)
71. RP Frankie Rodriguez, NYM (West)
72. OF Michael Cuddyer, MIN (Evans)
SEVENTH ROUND:
73. 1B Kendry Morales, LAA (Evans)
74. SP Adam Wainwright, STL (Davis)
75. 1B Calros Pena, TB (Hoornstra)
76. OF Nelson Cruz, TEX (Bristow)
77. 2B Chone Figgins, SEA (Rich)
78. 3B Michael Young, TEX (Secore)
79. 3B Gordon Beckham, CHW (Goff)
80. SP Jovani Gallardo, MIL (Oberjuerge)
81. RP Brian Wilson, SF (Baggarly)
82. SP Matt Cain, SF (Pope)
83. SS Stephen Drew, ARI (Patton)
84. 2B Brian Roberts, BAL (West)
EIGHTH ROUND:
85. SP Cliff Lee, SEA (West)
86. RP David Aardsma, SEA (Evans)
87. RP Andrew Bailey, OAK (Davis)
88. RP Francisco Cordero, CIN (Hoornstra)
89. SP Javier Vasquez, NYY (Bristow)
90. RP Brian Fuentes, LAA (Rich)
91. OF Josh Hamilton, TEX (Secore)
92. SP Tommy Hanson, ATL (Goff)
93. OF Shane Victorino, PHI (Oberjuerge)
94. SP Francisco Liriano, MIN (Baggarly)
95. 2B Dan Uggla, FLA (Pope)
96. RP Jose Valverde, DET (Patton)
NINTH ROUND:
97. SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD (Patton)
98. OF B.J. Upton, TB (West)
99. RP Ryan Franklin, STL (Evans)
100. RP Carlos Marmol, CHC (Davis)
101. SS Elvis Andrus, TEX (Hoornstra)
102. 2B Howie Kendrick, LAA (Bristow)
103. SP Ubaldo Jiminez, COL (Rich)
104. OF Torii Hunter, LAA (Secore)
105. RP Billy Wagner, ATL (Goff)
106. SP Jake Peavy, CHW (Oberjuerge)
107. OF Jason Heyward, ATL (Baggarly)
108. C Matt Wieters, BAL (Pope)
TENTH ROUND:
109. RP Matt Capps, WAS (Pope)
110. OF Andrew McCutheon, PIT (Patton)
111. OF Adam Jones, BAL (West)
112. RP Mike Gonzales, BAL (Evans)
113. SP Johan Santana, NYM (Davis)
114. SP Cole Hamels, PHI (Hoornstra)
115. RP Huston Street, COL (Bristow)
116. OF Hunter Pence, HOU (Rich)
117. RP Trevor Hoffman, MIL (Secore)
118. OF Carlos Quentin, CHW (Goff)
119. RP Frank Francisco, TEX (Oberjuerge)
120. 3B Adrian Beltre, BOS (Baggarly)
ELEVENTH ROUND:
121. SP Tim Hudson, ATL (Baggarly)
122. RP Brad Lidge, PHI (Pope)
123. C Miguel Montero, ARI (Patton)
124. 1B Lance Berkman, HOU (West)
125. RP Matt Qualls, ARI (Evans)
126. SS Yunel Escobar, ATL (Davis)
127. C Kurt Suzuki, OAK (Hoornstra)
128. SP Ricky Nolasco, FLA (Bristow)
129. SP Wandy Rodriguez, HOU (Rich)
130. RP Bobby Jenks, CHW (Secore)
131. SS Alcides Escobar, MIL (Goff)
132. 1B Nick Johnson, NYY (Oberjuerge)
TWELFTH ROUND:
133. OF Nick Swisher, NYY (Oberjuerge)
134. SS Marco Scutaro, BOS (Baggarly)
135. OF Jason Kubel, MIN (Pope)
136. RP Matt Lindtrom, HOU (Patton)
137. 1B Billy Butler, KC (West)
138. 3B Jorge Cantu, TB (Evans)
139. RP Leo Nunez, FLA (Davis)
140. OF Raul Ibanez, PHI (Hoornstra)
141. OF Brad Hawpe, COL (Bristow)
142. OF Alfonso Soriano, CHC (Rich)
143. C Jorge Posada, NYY (Secore)
144. OF Kyle Blanks, SD (Goff)
THIRTEENTH ROUND:
145. 3B Brandon Wood, LAA (Goff)
146. RP Octavio Dotel, PIT (Oberjuerge)
147. RP Chris Perez, CLE (Baggarly)
148. SP Brett Anderson, OAK (Pope)
149. SP John Lackey, BOS (Patton)
150. OF Alex Rios, CHW (West)
151. SP Chad Billingsley, LAD (Evans)
152. OF Carlos Gonzalez, COL (Davis)
153. SP Brandon Webb, ARI (Hoornstra)
154. 1B Chris Davis, TEX (Bristow)
155. C Geovani Soto, CHC (Rich)
156. SP Jered Weaver, LAA (Secore)
FOURTEENTH ROUND:
157. RP Jason Fraser, TOR (Goff)
158. C Mike Napoli, LAA (Oberjuerge)
159. SP Jair Jurrjens, ATL (Baggarly)
160. OF Ryan Ludwick, STL (Pope)
161. OF Nate McLouth, ATL (Patton)
162. OF Jay Bruce, CIN (West)
163. OF Carlos Beltran, NYM (Evans)
164. 1B David Ortiz, BOS (Davis)
165. SP A.J. Burnett, NYY (Hoornstra)
166. SS Erick Aybar, LAA (Bristow)
167. RP Jon Roush, MIN (Rich)
168. 3B Jose Lopez, SEA (Secore)
FIFTHTEENTH ROUND:
169. OF Vladimir Guerrero, TEX (Secore)
170. SP Carlos Zambrano, CHC (Goff)
171. SP Rich Harden, TEX (Oberjuerge)
172. RP Franklin Morales, COL (Baggarly)
173. SP John Danks, CHW (Pope)
174. SP Jonathan Sanchez, SF (Patton)
175. SS Alexi Ramirez, CHW (West)
176. SP Matt Garza, MIN (Evans)
177. RP Ryan Madson, PHI (Davis)
178. SP Roy Oswalt, HOU (Hoornstra)
179. SP Scott Baker, MIN (Bristow)
180. OF Nolan Reimold, BAL (Rich)
SIXTEENTH ROUND:
181. SP Max Scherzer, DET (Rich)
182. SP J.A. Happ, PHI (Secore)
183. 3B Casey McGehee MIL (Goff)
184. SP Hiroki Kuroda, LAD (Oberjuerge)
185. 1B Todd Helton, COL (Baggarly)
186. 3B Chipper Jones, ATL (Pope)
187. 2B Clint Barmes, COL (Patton)
188. OF Nyjer Morgan, WAS (West)
189. SP Ryan Demptster, CHC (Evans)
190. SP Ted Lilly, CHC (Davis)
191. SS Asdrubal Cabrera, CLE (Hoornstra)
192. OF Denard Span, MIN (Bristow)
SEVENTEENTH ROUND:
193. RP Brandon Lyon, HOU (Bristow)
194. SP Gavin Floyd, CHW (Rich)
195. RP Matt Thornton, CHW (Secore)
196. OF Drew Stubbs, CIN (Goff)
197. 1B Adam LaRoche, ARI (Oberjuerge)
198. OF Pedro Borbon, TEX (Baggarly)
199. OF Franklin Gutierrez, SEA (Pope)
200. SP Jorge Dela Rosa, COL (Patton)
201. SP Clay Buchholz, BOS (West)
202. OF Michael Bourne, HOU (Evans)
203. OF Rajai Davis, OAK (Davis)
204. SP James Shields, TB (Hoornstra)
EIGHTEENTH ROUND:
205. OF Corey Hart, MIL (Hoornstra)
206. SS Ryan Theriot, CHC (Bristow)
207. 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff, OAK (Rich)
208. OF Garrett Jones, PIT (Secore)
209. RP Mike Adams, SD (Goff)
210. OF Mike Cameron, BOS (Oberjuerge)
211. OF Vernon Wells, TOR (Baggarly)
212. SS J.J. Hardy, MIN (Pope)
213. SP Kevin Slowey, MIN (Patton)
214. SP Ben Sheets, OAK (West)
215. SP Randy Wolf, LAD (Evans)
216. SP David Price, TB (Davis)
217. C Chris Ianetta, COL (Davis)
218. OF Cody Ross (Hoornstra)
NINTEETN ROUND:
219. 3B Ryan Freese (Bristow)
220. C Russell Martin, LAD (Rich)
221. 1B Paul Konerko, CHW (Secore)
222. 2B Martin Prado, ATL (Goff)
223. SP John Maine, NYM (Oberjuerge)
224. SS Rafael Furcal, LAD (Baggarly)
225. C Yadier Molina, STL (Pope)
226. OF Delwyn Young, MIN (Patton)
227. C Ryan Doumit, PIT (West)
228. C Bengie Molina, SF (Evans)
TWENTIETH ROUND:
229. OF Conor Jackson, ARI (Evans)
230. SS Orlando Cabrera, CIN (Davis)
231. 3B Edwin Encarnacion, TOR (Hoornstra)
232. SP Joe Blanton, PHI (Bristow)
233. SS Edgar Renteria, SF (Rich)
234. RP Michael Wertz, CHC (Secore)
235. SP Scott Kazmir, LAA (Goff)
236. 3B Miguel Tejada, BAL (Oberjuerge)
237. SP Stephen Strasburg, WAS (Baggarly)
238. SP Rick Porcello, DET (Pope)
239. C A.J. Pierzynski, CHW (Patton)
240. 3B Placido Polanco, PHI (West)
TWENTY-FIRST ROUND:
241. 2B Kelly Johnson, ATL (West)
242. SP Jeff Niemann, TB (Evans)
243. OF Juan Rivera, LAA (Davis)
244. RP Kerry Wood, CLE (Hoornstra)
245. OF Johnny Damon, DET (Bristow)
246. 2B Scott Sizemore, DET (Rich)
247. 2B Orlando Hudson, MIN (Secore)
248. 1B Troy Glaus, ATL (Goff)
249. 2B Rickie Weeks, MIL (Oberjuerge)
250. 2B Sean Rodriguez, TB (Baggarly)
251. RP Fernando Rodney, LAA (Pope)
252. 1B James Loney, LAD (Patton)
TWENTY-SECOND ROUND:
253. 3B Jhonny Peralta, CLE (Patton)
254. RP J.P. Howell, TB (West)
255. OF Marlon Byrd, CHC (Evans)
256. C John Baker, FLA (Davis)
257. OF Chris Coughlin, FLA (Hoornstra)
258. RP Kevin Gregg, FLA (Bristow)
259. OF Milton Bradley, SEA (Rich)
260. SS Ian Desmond, WAS (Secore)
261. OF Colby Rasmus, STL (Goff)
262. C John Buck, KC (Oberjuerge)
263. RP Jerry Guerrier, MIN (Baggarly)
264. OF Chris Young, ARI (Pope)
TWENTY-THIRD ROUND:
265. RP Neftali Feliz, TEX (Pope)
266. 2B Chris Getz, CHW (Patton)
267. RP George Sherrill, LAD (West)
268. 2B Skip Schumaker, STL (Evans)
269. 3B Brandon Inge, DET (Davis)
270. 2B Adam Kennedy, WAS (Hoornstra)
271. C Kelly Shoppach, TB (Bristow)
272. RP Luke Gregerson, SD (Rich)
273. OF J.D. Drew, BOS (Secore)
274. SS Evreth Cabrera, SD (Goff)
275. OF Hideki Matsui, LAA (Oberjuerge)
276. 3B Chase Headley, SD (Baggarly)
TWENTY-FOURTH ROUND:
277. OF Magglio Ordonez, CHW (Baggarly)
278. 1B Lyle Overbay, TOR (Pope)
279. SS Mike Aviles, KC (Patton)
280. SS Brendan Ryan, STL (West)
281. C Ramon Hernandez, CIN (Evans)
282. 2B Mike Ellis, OAK (Davis)
283. RP Joba Chamberlain, NYY (Hoornstra)
284. OF Juan Pierre, CHW (Bristow)
285. OF Josh Willingham, WAS (Rich)
286. SP Edwin Jackson, ARI (Secore)
287. C Carlos Ruiz, PHI (Goff)
288. SS Cliff Pennington, OAK (Oberjuerge)
TWENTY-FIFTH ROUND:
289. RP Jose Mijares, MIN (Oberjuerge)
290. C Miguel Olivo, COL (Baggarly)
291. OF Dexter Fowler, COL (Pope)
292. OF Travis Snyder, TOR (Patton)
293. C Nick Hundley, SD (West)
294. 3B Alberto Callaspo, KC (Evans)
295. OF Matt LaPorta, CLE (Davis)
296. C Buster Posey, SF (Hoornstra)
297. 2B Akinori Iwamura, PIT (Bristow)
298. RP Brandon League, SEA (Rich)
299. C Ivan Rodriguez, WAS (Secore)
300. RP J.J. Putz, CHW (Goff)
TAXI SQUAD:
1. Matt Latos, SD (Goff)
2. Andy Pettitte, NYY (Oberjuerge)
3. Brian Matusz, BAL (Baggarly)
4. Aroldis Chapman, CIN (Pope)
5. Vicente Padilla, LAD (Patton)
6. Wade Davis, TB (West)
7. Phil Hughes, NYY (Evans)
8. Joe Saunders, LAA (Davis)
9. Mark Buerlhe, CHW (Hoornstra)
10. Joel Piniero, LAA (Bristow)
11. Erik Bedard, SEA (Rich)
12. Ervin Santana, LAA (Secore)
13. Madison Bumgarner, SF (Secore)
14. Kevin Millwood, BAL (Rich)
15. Diasuke Matsuzaka, BOS (Bristow)
16. Gio Gonzalez, OAK (Hoornstra)
17. Ricky Romero, TOR (Davis)
18. Jamie Garcia, STL (Evans)
19. Brad Penny, STL (West)
20. Carl Pavano, MIN (Patton)
21. Johnny Cueto, CIN (Pope)
22. Aaron Harang, CIN (Baggarly)
23. Gil Meche, KC (Oberjuerge)
24. Homer Bailey, CIN (Goff)

Draft Order

1. Brian Goff
2. Paul Oberjuerge
3. Andy Baggarly
4. Dennis Pope
5. Gregg Patton
6. Vic West
7. Dan Evans
8. Mike Davis
9. J.P. Hoornstra
10. David Bristow
11. Derek Rich
12. Damian Secore

Goff Grabs No. 1 Pick

Brian Goff, owner of the Bammers, drew the No. 1 pick for the first time in franchise history.

Also, L.A. Times Dodger blogger Steve Dilbeck drew No. 2 for reigning SBL champion, and current Abu Dhabi resident, Paul Oberjuerge.

"Paul, you owe me!" Dilbeck said.

Draft Only Minutes Away

We're here in Chino Hills and waiting for a few more SBL owners to arrive. It's now 7 p.m. and we are only minutes away from the start.

Draft Day!

There are less than four hours remaining until the start of the 28th annual Sun Baseball League draft, which will come to you live tonight, March 30, 2010 from Chino Hills, California.

Will re-alignment take place? How well can Paul Oberjuerge draft a team from Abu Dhabi, UAE? Will Gregg Patton make chili again? Will there be beer?

All questions waiting to be answered as we tick down the seconds toward another thrilling start to another trilling season.

2010 Draft Day Set

From the office of The Commish:

"Looks like we’re a go for Tuesday March 30 for the 2010 SBL draft. Not everyone has formally RSVP’d, but it’s been a week since our preliminary announcement and no one has said they CAN’T make it, and we’re taking that as a big yes. (If the March 30 date IS a problem, please notify me ASAP.) Start time is 7 p.m. (6 a.m. Wednesday in Abu Dhabi!), at Gregg’s place in Chino Hills as usual."

It will be the 28th installment of the Sun Baseball League Draft.