BBFL Week 21: Down To The Wire

Monday, August 30 2004 @ 08:53 AM EDT

Contributed by: Coach

When the going gets tough, the tough get lucky. A week ago, objects in my rear-view mirror were too close for comfort. Yesterday, waiver pickup Scott Elarton tossed an unlikely 2-hit shutout at the White Sox, leading my BBFL club to a first-round playoff bye with a 10-1 trouncing of cellar-dwelling Jick’s Rays. It proves that even an old, blind Walrus occasionally stumbles over a tasty seal.

The other contenders for top spot weren't so fortunate. Mebion Glyndwr led 8-3 entering Sunday play, but hannibal’s cannibals got four solid pitching starts to pull out a 6-5 decision. AGF fell out of the running for the regular-season title as the Thunderbirds, desperate to avoid relegation, beat the third-place squad 10-2 to move from 17th to 15th in the standings.

The gashouse gorillas edged Springfield 7-5 to close the gap in fourth, leaving the Isotopes on the brink of relegation. Fifth-place Red Mosquitos enjoyed quite a Sunday (15/37 with 11 R, 10 RBI and .838 SLG) to turn a 7-4 deficit into a 7-4 victory over Garces_not_on_roids, which dropped the latter precariously close to the Barfield bubble. A 9-1 defeat of the Moscow Rats vaulted the Chatsworth Halos over the cannibals into the final championship bracket slot by two games with just one week remaining.

Week 21 Alomar Division Standings

  #  Team                      W-L-T        Pct    GB 
  1  Toronto Walrus          150-86-16     .627    --  
  2  Mebion Glyndwr          145-98-9      .593    8.5   
  3  AGF                     138-100-14    .575    13   
  4  gashouse gorillas       140-103-9     .573    13.5 
  5  Red Mosquitos           137-104-11    .565    15.5   
  6  Chatsworth Halos        135-108-9     .554    18.5   
  7  hannibal's cannibals    129-106-17    .546    20.5 
  8  Austin Senators         126-110-16    .532    24  
  9  Horse Field Hammers     125-116-11    .518    27.5 
 10  Baird Brain             121-120-11    .502    31.5 
 11  Eastern Shore Birds     117-125-10    .484    36 
 12  SABR Magicians          113-123-16    .480    37 
 13  Billie's Bashers        113-130-9     .466    40.5 
 14  Reykjavik Fish Candy    112-131-9     .462    41.5
 15  Thunderbirds            112-132-8     .460    42 
 16  Moscow Rats             109-132-11    .454    43.5  
 17  Garces_not_on_roids     109-136-7     .446    45.5 
 18  K-Town Mashers          104-132-16    .444    46   
 19  Springfield Isotopes    101-136-15    .431    49.5 
 20  Jick's Rays              64-172-16    .286    86

My team led 8-3 Sunday morning, then Elarton (who had impressed me against the Yankees in his previous start) and Jason Marquis, coupled with the Fighting Jays beating Mike Mussina, turned around W and WHIP in a week that Freddy Garcia didn’t pitch at all and Mark Redman stunk. The hitters did their jobs; it's great to have the real Carlos Delgado back in the lineup after carrying that impostor for so long, and I can't say enough about Coco Crisp and Ronnie Belliard, role players who have recently become sluggers.

Obviously, a 22-1-1 record in two matches against the Rays has made a significant difference, but anyone grumbling about my relatively easy schedule should examine the Roto stats, which will be forthcoming from Scott Lucas. Every owner in both divisions owes a debt of gratitude to the host of the league's Web site and official number-cruncher; thanks also for picking me up in this space when I was on the DL, Scott.

Although my beloved Jays have been disappointing, 2004 has been a satisfying fantasy campaign. I drafted well, picked up quite a few useful free agents and avoided catastrophic injuries. The Walrus has led the pennant race for 20 consecutive weeks, and barring a collapse that would make the ’64 Phillies seem tenacious, should hang on for one more. That’s no guarantee of success in the playoffs, where we all return to square one. Getting to the semi-finals is an accomplishment, but as Snellville Jones found out in BBFL last year and Oakland A's fans can confirm, anything can happen in a short Head-to-Head series.

Much remains to be decided over the last seven days of the regular season; scoreboard watching will be intense. The defending champion Austin Senators, still mathematically alive, are probably headed to the consolation bracket unless they sweep the K-Town Mashers, who need clutch performances just to return to Alomar next season. There are several other meaningful matchups — I'm sure there will be some agonizing photo-finishes, and relieved that they won't involve me. Best of luck to everyone.

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