Monday, October 29, 2012

SF 4, DET 3 (10); congrats, Giants and Cameron 1!

The Giants sweep the Tigers, and Aaron Cameron is our very first repeat BPP winner -- by less than a point! Congratulations, Bay Area.

I'm a bit bummed that we're out of baseball for the year, but it was an impressive performance by the Giants -- and I hope I'll see you all back here next year, when we'll have a slightly adjusted hitter-points set-uip, and (hopefully) less agita surrounding the wild-card set-up.

Until then...the final points:

Cabrera: 4
Posey: 4

Cain: 10
Scherzer: 13.33

And the final standings after the jump. Please check my arithmetic if something looks off to you.


Sunday, October 28, 2012

SF 2, DET 0

Not sure what the better comparison is, Groundhog Day or Sherman's March to the Sea. Whichever it is, it's fun baseball to watch, but somewhat dull for poolies -- and is likely to end with a quickness, which is too bad. (Although my current theory is that MLB and FOX employ McCarver in order to lessen the pain of baseball ending for the year; we're too busy being thrilled we don't have to listen to phrasings like "reeks of those words" anymore to notice that it's four months 'til spring training.)

Anyway. Points:
Cabrera: 1

Lincecum: 4.33

And thanks to Miggy, the lead changes hands again:
Cameron 1: 149.78

Johnson 2: 149
Reid: 138.34

Bingham 1 just off the pace; Wonsetler 1 creeping up thanks to Lincecum; everyone else pretty much in the same positions.

Giants look to lock down the sweep tonight at 8 PM, Cain vs. Scherzer. Should be fun to watch if you like pitchers' duels, less so if you have money on Los Tigres.

Friday, October 26, 2012

SF 2, DET 0

Wow. Exciting game as the Giants hold Detroit to just two hits. Let's hope the Tigers find their bats when they get home, or this thing could be over fast.

But it's not over for Johnson 2, oh no.

Points:
Posey: 1

Bumgarner: 13

And we have a new leader! By a split end, but still.

Johnson 2: 149
Cameron 1: 148.78
Reid: 137.34
Bingham 1: 136.34
120s: Wonsetler 1, Phillips, O'Reilly, Johnson 1, Tormey
110s: Green, Cameron 2, Bingham 2
90s: Junior, Shotwell
80s: Broom/Rom
70s: Wonsetler 2

No game tonight; first pitch on Saturday is 8:07 PM ET, Vogelsong and Sanchez taking the hill, so it will likely come down to hitter points that night.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

SF 8, DET 3

Giant bats continue their hot streak into the World Series -- and tune up Verlander via, among other things, 1) C-minus Tiger defense and 2) an awesome performance at the plate by "Pandoval" (...shut up, Tim McCarver). Nobody saw that outcome from a Verlander/Zito match-up, but that's what's kind of great about it.

Well, maybe not for Detroit fans.

Points:
Cabrera: 1
Fielder: 1
Posey: 2

Lincecum: 7.33
Verlander: 7

Bingham 1 climbs back into the money; Wonsetler 1 gets a boost from the Freak; otherwise, no big changes.

Cameron 1: 148.78
Reid: 136.34
Bingham 1: 135.34

Johnson 2: 135
Rogers, Wonsetler 1: high 120s
Phillips, O'Reilly, Johnson 1, Tormey: low/mid-120s
Green, Bingham 2: 110s
Snack-Size, Cameron 2, Shotwell: 90s
Broom/Rom: 80s
Wonsetler 2: 70s

We go again at 8 PM ET tonight, Fister vs. Bumgarner.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

SF 9, STL 0; Giants move on to World Series

Nice work by the Giants to hang on, and it felt like they started hitting just as the Cardinal pitching was coming apart. Giants/Tigers Classic starts tomorrow night at 8 PM ET.

Points:
Beltran: 1
Posey: 1

Cain: 8.67
Lohse: 2

Departing the pool on the players'/pitchers' side:
Beltran

Lohse
Lynn
Miller

And on the pickers' side:
Wild O'Reilly (no picks left)
The Buntings, Quinn (picks left, but mathematically hopeless)

I'll leave everyone else on the board, although anyone without at least 120 points is probably out of it -- but that's why they play the games. You never know.

Full current standings after the jump!

Monday, October 22, 2012

SF 6, STL 1

Well, you've got to appreciate San Francisco's commitment to maximizing our pointage for the NLCS. Not that we picked up a ton of points last night, but it's the principle of the thing.

Points:
Beltran: 2

Miller: 4

No change to the leaders, but Quinn is the happy new possessor of second-to-last place, as his Miller points bumped yours truly down to the bottom spot.

The deciding game of the series is tonight at  8 PM ET; Lohse and Cain are set to start, so we should see some movement points-wise, both up and...out.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

SF, STL 0

...Zito! A passel of scoreless innings from the (former) punchline sends the NLCS back to the Bay. Sunday, 7:30 PM ET.

Points:
Beltran: 1
Posey: 1

Lynn: 7.67

Reid climbs back into the money; full standings after the jump!

Friday, October 19, 2012

DET 8, NYY 1

Well, yeah, so...that's harsh. Congratulations to Detroit, a team that isn't getting as much credit as it should because the Yankees barely showed up, drama with A-Rod getting benched, blah blah blah. And condolences to Baltimore, all of whom are probably watching this in their underpants, drinking beer and yelling at the TV, "WE GOT THIS."

We'll get to pool-wide implications in a sec. First, the points:

Cabrera: 4
Fielder: 2

Sabathia: 4.67
Scherzer: 13.67

And Scherzer shuffles the leaders:
Cameron 1: 132.11
Rogers: 121.67
Winners O'Reilly: 116.34
Reid: 115.67
Bingham 1: 114.67
Johnson 2, Tormey: 114.33
100s: Wonsetler 1, Phillips, Johnson 1, Bingham 2, Green
90s: Half-Pint
80s: Shotwell, Cameron 2, Wild O'Reilly, Broomfield/Romine
70s: Wonsetler 2, Bunting 2
[face-palm]: Bunting 1, Quinn

In a world where Delmon Young is the most valuable anything...who's in, who's out, after the jump.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

STL 8, SF 3

Just getting this one done first because the other game (yiiiiikes) is going to take some time to sort out (YIIIIIKES). Lots of hitters picked up TB, but nobody on our board, and the pitcher points are as follows:

Lincecum: 4.67
Wainwright: 12

No change to the leaders here; SF faces elimination tomorrow night at 8 PM ET, and they're not helping their case by throwing Zito out there, but you never know. (Lynn goes for St. Louis.)

STL 3, SF 1

Not a lot of points, even for the Cain pickers, and Lohse really blew himself up with those BBs. At least they got the whole game in, though.

Points:
Posey: 1

Cain: 7.67
Lohse: 3.67

Shuffle at the top! Cameron 1 still holding a 10-ish-point lead, followed by Rogers, then Johnson 2:

Cameron 1: 123.44
Rogers: 113
Johnson 2: 112.33
Reid: 111.67
Bingham 1: 110.67
Tormey: 110.33

Rest of the 100s: Phillips, Johnson 1, Wonsetler 1
90s: Winners O'Reilly, Bingham 2, Green
80s: Bits, Cameron 2, Shotwell
70s: Broomfield/Romine, Wild O'Reilly
50s: Wonsetler 2, Bunting 2, Bunting 1
40s: Q

NYY tries to fight off the sweep at 4 PM ET, Sabathia v. Scherzer; the night game is STL/SF, Lincecum v. Wainwright. Lots of points up for grabs for the starters.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

DET 2, NYY 1

I love the postseason for a lot of reasons; one of them is getting to see extended mastery from teams and players I don't see a ton of during the regular season. It's so much fun to watch Verlander, and particularly his velocity rising during a game. Another dominating performance from the reigning Cy Young/MVP last night that the points didn't necessarily reflect.

And those points belong to:
Cabrera: 2
Cano (!): 1

Verlander: 11.33

Full standings after the jump!

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

SF 7, STL 1

This series is shaping up to be a tussle, which I like. Sweeps are so boring.

Not too many points, but at least Quinn's last pitching pick got on the board:
Beltran: 4
Posey: 1

Miller: 2.33

No change to the leaders -- Cameron 1, Rogers, and Tormey -- but we may see some reshuffling after tonight's NYY @ DET game, which bows at 8 PM ET with Verlander starting. Stay tuned!

Monday, October 15, 2012

STL 6, SF 4

I feel like I may have bunged the math here somewhere, since I have been writing about TV for 9 of the last 15 hours and have lost the ability to do any arithmetic that doesn't concern ratings. Please double-check for me.

Points, we've got:
Beltran: 4

Bumgarner: 4.33
Lincecum: 2
Lynn: 4.67

Standings after the jump.


DET 3, NYY 0

Sports radio here in NYC yesterday was talking about the loss of Derek Jeter as though he had actually died. "Mourning," that kind of wording. I wouldn't blame his injury for the Yanks' malaise...but it isn't helping, and he's the only one who was hitting.

Points:
Cabrera: 2

Kuroda: 18.67

Kuroda punts Tormey-san into the money. Full standings in the next entry!

Sunday, October 14, 2012

DET 6, NYY 4 (12); Jeter out for postseason with ankle fracture

That game went from uncomfortable (Valverde's meltdown) to unbelievable/fun (Ibanez homers again during said meltdown) to scary (Jeter screaming in pain). At first, I thought Jeter was joking around, TWiB-style, just sort of staying face-down all "and now I will lie here in shame over that error," and that kind of thing is funny sometimes, but not in extras in the LCS...but then the crowd is silent. As I said on Twitter, I have never heard a baseball venue that quiet, and I've gone to Newark Bears games.

When he couldn't put any weight on it, that was pretty much that. He's out for the postseason. I'm sorry, Jetes pickers. He did throw you a point on the way out, though.

Points:
Cabrera: 1
Fielder: 2
Jeter: 1

Pettitte: 8.67

No change to the leaders and no slates eliminated, but we do break the triple-digit barrier:

Cameron: 100.34
Rogers: 96.67
Johnson 2: 87
Reid, Bingham 1, Winners O'Reilly, Phillips, Johnson 1, Wonsetler 1: 80s
Green, Bingham 2, Tormey, Broomfield/Romine, L'Enfant: 70s
Cameron 2, Shotwell, Wild O'Reilly: 60s
Buntings: 50s
Wonsetler 2, Quinn: present

Game 2 of this series gets underway at 4 PM ET (Kuroda starting), followed by STL @ SF at 8 PM ET (Lynn and Bumgarner starting).

Saturday, October 13, 2012

STL 9, WAS 7; STL advances to NLCS, decimates picks

...Ouch. OUCH. Watching Storen on the mound was extremely painful all by itself, and then there's the fact that the Nats' pitching swoon swept out a shit-ton of pool picks. Most of the Washington hitters' picks put some points up on their way out, but still.

Points:
Beltran: 5
Harper: 7
LaRoche: 1
Werth: 2

Gonzalez: 6
Wainwright: 7.33

And it's adios for
Desmond
Harper
LaRoche
Werth
Zimmerman, R
Gonzalez
Zimmermann, J

And...for Ramos, who at 40 points off the pace has no picks left. Sorry, Juanito.

Full standings after the jump.

NYY 3, BAL 1; NYY advances to ALCS

This won't affect the pool much on the downside -- nobody had any BAL picks -- but Sabathia backers got a nice boost thanks to a masterful complete-game outing from Carsten Charles.

Points:
Granderson: 5 (finally)

Sabathia: 19 (9 innings, 9 K, 2 BB, 3-point bonus)

Rogers leapfrogs into the money, behind Cameron 1 and ahead of Reid...but it gets really ugly in our next entry. Stand by for the settled dust of the LDSes.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

DET 6, OAK 0; DET advances to ALCS

Man, that's disappointing. I mean, yay Detroit -- but I kind of wanted to see those crazy kids keep it going. Not least because now I have basically zero hope of winning, hee.

Points, points, everywhere!
Cespedes: 2
Fielder: 1
Moss: 1

Parker: 11.33
aaaaaand Verlander: 9 IP - 1 BB + 10 K + 3 for the CG = 21, hiyoooo

Leaders and laters, after the jump.

BAL 2, NYY 1 (13)

Jesus, baseball. You trying to kill us?

Only points belong to Grandpa Derek:
Jeter: 3

No change to the leaders -- Cameron I, Reid, and Johnson I -- but that baby is gaining. Pending an even bigger comeback from the Athletics than last night's, we'll be back to wrap that series up shortly.

WAS 2, STL 1

Who would have guessed Werth for the...oh, right. An entrant who is not even one month old. Sigh. But the Nats stay in it, so yay!

Points:
LaRoche: 4
Werth: 4
Zimmerman, R: 1

Lohse: 11 (!)
Zimmermann, J: 4 (...?!)

Leaders: Cameron I, Reid, and Johnson I, all within a point. Stand by!

SF 6, CIN 4; SF advances to NLCS

Now we'll start to see what's what. Not sure how to account for Cincy's loss here -- I kept forgetting San Francisco even had a team in the playoffs -- but Votto looked like he was in pain, and they may have just run out of gas.

In any case, it's time for some points...and some goodbyes.

Points:
Posey: 4
Votto: 2

Cain: 8.67

Sayonaras, after the jump.

OAK 4, DET 3

That was amazing. If you saw it in a baseball movie, you'd think it was fake. 

Meanwhile, over on Twitter, jokes about managers bunting proliferated...and in the pool, one Bunting clambered into first place. (Don't worry; it won't last.)

Points:
Cabrera: 1
Cespedes: 1
Fielder: 5

Griffin: 6
Scherzer: 12.33

Leaders and last licks, after the jump.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

NYY 3, BAL 2 (12)

Looks like we have a new candidate for the Shane Victorino statue, eh what? I love Raul Ibanez; he's fun-looking.

The only hitter points here came from Jeter, who evidently left the game with a nagging ankle injury. Kuroda had a very nice outing but didn't rack up many Ks.

Points:
Jeter: 4
Kuroda: 10.33

No change to the leaders; it's still Wild O'Reilly and Cameron and Wonsetler Is.

SF 8, CIN 3

Not a lot of points given the high score -- but the Lincecum peeps did pretty well for themselves.

Points:
Votto: 2

Lincecum: 10.33

That puts Wild O'Reilly back in the lead by a fingernail over Cameron I and Wonsetler I. Johnson I and Reid on their heels.

STL 8, WAS 0

I'm getting a feeling about Washington's chances, and it's not good.

Hitters' points only in the midday game:
Beltran: 3
Desmond: 4
Werth: 1
Zimmerman: 2

Wild O'Reilly back on top, followed by Cameron One and Reid. Johnson One and Green inches off the pace

Cueto removed from postseason roster

He can come back for the World Series, if the Reds make it and his oblique improves.

It also appears that Lincecum is confined to bullpen quarters for the duration, although it's unclear whether Bochy would consider spot-starting him. I don't see the Giants going further than the LDS, but we'll see what develops.

St. Louis put up a crooked number in the top of the 2nd. The game's on MLB and you should be able to hear it on your ESPN affiliate.

SF 2, CIN 1 (10); OAK 2, DET 0

Doing a bundle post because I'm behind and our next games start at 1 PM ET. The good news is, we'll get more baseball (read: "shots at points for almost everyone") because both 0-2 teams held off the broom.

The NL game had a lot of points...for one guy, and for once, I am the one who has that guy. It won't really help, but just let me have this, 'kay? The pocketful of Posey pickers also picked up a point:

Posey, B: 1

Bailey, H: 16

Meanwhile, over in the AL, Athletics pitching slammed the door but good on the Motor City lineup.

Points:
Cabrera, M: 1
Cespedes, Y: 1

Leaders and lineups: just click the jump link.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

BAL 3, NYY 2

Some slight reshuffling on the board after another rainy-ish nightcap. Pettitte pitched well but was still handed the loss.

Points:
Cano, R: 2
Granderson, C: 1
Jeter, D: 2

Pettitte, A: 11

It's tight at the top, but the money is holding steady:

Wild O'Reilly: 45
Cameron I: 44.67
Johnson I: 43.67
Rogers: 40.67
Green: 40

Monday, October 8, 2012

STL 12, WAS 4

I didn't watch much of the game; I wonder how much St. Louis's postseason experience helps them here, versus the Nats, who had a great regular season but may be feeling more pressure. I don't tend to think these "intangibles" make that much difference, and Washington does have some vets. I'm just wondering what everyone else thinks.

But I know this: whatever "intangible" made Wild O'Reilly pick Lynn, I wish I'd seen it last week.

Points galore:
Beltran, C: 8
Desmond, I: 1
Harper, B: 2
LaRoche, A: 4
Werth, J: 1
Zimmerman, R: 5

Lynn, L: 7
Zimmermann, J: 3

O'Reilly climbs into the lead, followed by Cameron I and Johnson I. Green, Reid, Rogers, Bingham I, and Johnson II not far off the pace. At the other end of things, Bunting I, Quinn, and Wonsetler Deuce are taking on water and need some more starters to go big.

NYY @ BAL underway. See you back here late-night.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

CIN 9, SF 0

Oo-fah. Not that this is entirely unexpected, but you don't necessarily think you're going to see the Freak come on in relief.

Fair bit of pointage to go around here:
Votto, J: 3


Arroyo, B: 10
Bumgarner, M: 7.33
Lincecum, T: 4

Your top three as of this writing:
Cameron Prime: 44.67

Johnson Prime: 43.67
Green: 40

The rest of the field and tomorrow's line-up, after the jump...


NYY 7, BAL 2

The wheels came off THAT with a quickness, eh? But not for Sabathia pickers!

Points:
Cano, R: 2
Jeter, D: 2

Sabathia, CC: 14.67

There's a new sheriff in town, but I'll do the full standings in the next entry.

WAS 3, STL 2

Oh, GG. NatGio netted only 3 points for his pickers (7 BB cost us dearly), but the Nats started the series with a win, and Wild O'Reilly is looking like a genius with his Wainwright pick.

Ze points:
Beltran, C: 1

Desmond, I: 3
Werth, J: 1
Zimmerman, R: 1

Gonzalez, G: 3
Lynn, L: 0.33
Wainwright, A: 13.67

As of this writing, standing by through the rain delay in Baltimore; if the drizzle's anything like it is here at BPP HQ, it ain't happening, though for the moment they're talking like they're going to play it. If they do, a bunch of poolies will be clambering back into the race.

Until someone else plays ball, though, your leaders are still Johnson Prime, Reid, and Bingham Une, with Bingham Deux, Green, Phillips, and Wild O'Reilly in striking distance. None of the previous winners near the money, for what that's worth.

DET 5, OAK 4

Ouch. Not looking too good for the boys from the Bay, but it's not like they're not staying in these games.

Points:
Cabrera, M: 5
Cespedes, Y: 2
Fielder, P: 1
Moss, B: 1

No pitcher points awarded. The last straggler is now on the board, and our leaders after the first game of the day are Johnson Prime, Reid, and the Binghams. WAS/STL nailbiter still in progress, NYY/BAL set to go in about half an hour if the rain cooperates.

CIN 5, SF 2

Something of a hinky night for the pool, as Cueto holds up during his delivery for a time-out, then has to depart the game with a back spasm. That's not awesome for his lone picker, Lauren, but at least the single out he got was a K? Is...this thing on?

Cain, possibly affected by the long layoff while the Reds warmed up their substitute, was bleh, but was still creditable points-wise. And certainly Posey put in an effort with 5 TB, but it was not to be.

Points:
Posey, B: 5

Cueto, J: 1.33
Cain, M: 8

Standings, plus the four-ring circus passing for the LDS sked, after the jump.

Saturday, October 6, 2012

DET 3, OAK 1

Not too many hitter points here, but the defending Cy Young winner gets most of the pool onto the board. Mostly I was glad to see Neshek keeping it together.

Points:
Cespedes, Y: 1


Parker, J: 10.33
Verlander, J: 14

Everyone on the board except Wonsetler Deuce, Broomfield/Romine, and the littlest Richardson; Johnson Uno and Bingham Dos open up a lead on the rest of the campo as we go into the nightcap. Full standings after the second game!

Friday, October 5, 2012

BAL 5, TEX 1

1. Ignore any predictions I may have made. "Oh look, this other blogger agrees that Atlanta and Texas will win, ah blah blah blah" argle I don't know anything. I'm not even talking right now. 2. Side bets on whether Ron Washington is getting fired now or in December -- call it.

Fiscally, this is not a great outcome for the pool; emotionally, I'm happy for Baltimore. I think I saw Buck Showalter's left incisor! 


Points:
Andrus, E 2
Darvish, Y 13.67

Housekeeping, leaders, and tomorrow's sked, after the jump.



STL 6, ATL 3

Wow, what a weird one...and it proves, at least to me, that a one-game play-in when the stakes are this high is not quite right. Never mind the horrible "outfield fly rule" call, which didn't make the difference here; it was the suddenly AAAA Braves D that really brought it home. Even two out of three I could live with, but a single game doesn't let teams correct for outlier performances.

And it's not fucking football, Bud Selig! If you love the game so much, why do you keep messing with it?

Anyway. Points.

Beltran, C 1

Lohse, K 10.67
Lynn, L 0.33
Medlen, K 10.33

And with Atlanta's departure, we lose:

Medlen, K


Bingham 2, Bunting Prime, and O'Reilly Wild on the board, everyone else standing by.

BPP 2012: Some stats

Welcome (back), all! The new postseason "system" is either going to make the pool a white-knuckle rollercoaster, or a total disaster. Or both, if you're the one who picked Kris Medlen. (You're not. I am. And I think I messed up big-time.)

Some interesting stats before play gets underway this evening:

1) Miguel Cabrera repeats as the top hitter pick, with 22 of you selecting him. The most popular team for hitter picks is Washington.

2) Justin Verlander is, unsurprisingly, leading the pitcher picks with 14, but when I counted them up, his margin wasn't as big as I'd expected; NatGio was also a favorite with 12. And the top of the pitcher-pick leaderboard team-wise belongs to...St. Louis? Most of that is O'Reilly Wild, who by the end of today will either look like a goddamn genius, or be sobbing quietly into the non-Busch lager of his choosing.


Monday, October 1, 2012

Your Pickables As Of 10/3/12 at noonish

We don't know who's playing whom yet -- and we may see a 163rd game, grr -- but we DO know the teams from which you'll make your picks.

NL Pickables
ATL
CIN
SF
STL
WAS

AL Pickables
BAL
DET
NYY
OAK
TEX

Watch this space!

Friday, September 28, 2012

BPP preview: the teams so far

Hello, friends. Less than a week to research picks; the good news is, if you're picking from NL teams, you know your options. The bad news is that, as of this writing, we have no idea who's going from the AL.

...Well, we have some idea (read: "not Cleveland"), but everyone's going intra-division this weekend -- except CHI, who's facing off against the suddenly-white-hot-again TB.

I loved last year's down-to-the-wire excitement, but I don't think my heart can take another go-round. My organizational skills definitely can't.

Anyway, here's what we know so far:

Pickable teams from the NL
ATL
CIN
SF
WAS

MLB standings, plus browsable/sortable season stats for hitters and pitchers, right here.