Postmortem to the 2009 Season

And on the 200th day, the Commissioner rests. So ends the 23rd season of FNFT.

In every year of FNFT I have three goals: to improve the player experience for everyone, to streamline the administrative process for me, and to try to field a championship team. I believe I accomplished my first goal. All of the feedback I have gotten about the new lineup and stats system has been very positive. The system will be back next year. My second goal was a slight step backwards, but not by much. I still spend way less time on league administration than I did 10 years ago. My third goal was one of the most stunning failures of my life. I spend a lot of time studying the game of baseball. I spent a lot of time preparing for this year's draft. I don't care if my top starting pitcher missed the whole year. A 106 loss season should never happen to me. Ever. It was an embarasement.

I've kind of had this notion that the more stats and analysis tool I provided for everyone, the more parity there would be in the league. I obviously didn't think that every team would finish .500, but with all of the same information available to everyone, I figured that it would keep the win-loss totals closer from team to team. This year in the FNFT, on average, teams were 14.0 games either above or below .500. That's the highest it's ever been. So much for my theory.

If you try to log in to the rosters system right now, you may find it unavailable. That will be the case for much of the off-season; it will be hit or miss. Alpha Five, the software I used to create the system, has an upgrade due out in a few weeks that will allow me to make a few changes. Nothing dramatic, but a few neat features will be added. I'll tell you what they are after I figure out how to do them. I do want to create a way for teams to log their own trades. The rest will be mainly window dressing. You are free to try to log in any time you wish to see what's new.

That being said, this would be a good time to let me know about any suggestions you have about the roster system or anything else FNFT. What did you think about the new playoff format? Avery thinks we should go back to both series being best of five. I would rather keep the 4-game series, but seed the playoffs so that the team with the best record plays the team with the worst record, regardless of who the Wild Card was. TMac did kind of get the shaft given his regular season record. Should we add a disabled list? Tweak the points? Now would be a good time to go on the record with your suggestions.

On thing that fell by the wayside this year was the regularly updated list of FNFT player points. I've finally done that. Here is next year's auction list:

POS	NAME	MLB	PTS
SP1	Tim Lincecum	SF	260
SP1	Zack Greinke	KC	257
SP1	Johan Santana	NYM	221
1B	Albert Pujols	StL	189
1B	Justin Morneau	Min	188
SP1	CC Sabathia	NYY	188
C	Joe Mauer	Min	188
2B	Chase Utley	Phi	177
OF	Jayson Werth	Phi	176
OF	Nick Markakis	Bal	172
SP2	Chris Carpenter	StL	172
3B	Evan Longoria	TB	171
OF	Matt Kemp	LAD	166
1B	Mark Teixeira	NYY	161
SS	Hanley Ramirez	Fla	158
1B	Miguel Cabrera	Det	157
SP1	Roy Oswalt	Hou	157
OF	Bobby Abreu	LAA	155
DH	Ryan Ludwick	StL	153
OF	Matt Holliday	StL	152
OF	Jason Bay	Bos	151
SP1	Roy Halladay	Tor	150
3B	Alex Rodriguez	NYY	150
2B	Brandon Phillips	Cin	147
SS	Troy Tulowitzki	Col	147
2B	Brian Roberts	Bal	144
SP2	Josh Johnson	Fla	144
C	Brian McCann	Atl	141
OF	Brad Hawpe	Col	141
OF	Andre Ethier	LAD	139
OF	Adam Jones	Bal	138
OF	Ryan Braun	Mil	137
1B	Adam Dunn	Was	137
2B	Aaron Hill	Tor	136
2B	Ian Kinsler	Tex	135
3B	Mark DeRosa	StL	135

TMac drafted Zach Grienke in the 5th round, Andre Either in the 8th round, Josh Johnson in the 10th round, and Chris Carpenter in the 16th round. All of them made the auction. Amazing.

Finally, the 2010 FNFT Draft will be Saturday, April 3 (my wife's birthday). Same time. Same place. I'll remind you 5 or 6 times before then.

Enjoy the MLB playoffs and have a good off-season.

The Fourth Time's a Charm

In their fourth appearance in the last five years, Jake's Wretching Weenergies have won the 2009 FNFT Championship. The most dominant team in the regular season has ridden that wave through the playoffs and to a championship. Jake becomes the 8th different FNFT champion in the past nine years, with only Dale Johnson having multiple championships in that span. Perhaps not coinidentally, Jake was the victim in each of Dale's World Series wins,

Lincecum on Butler... never mind. Great job Jake. You obviously know more about putting together a quality FNFT team than I wish I did.

World Series Game 6 Updates

Pitching options for Friday:

Jake
Lincecum Fri vs CHC Zambrano
Lester Fri @ NYY Sabathia
Martinez Fri @ Mil TBD

Avery
Hanson Sat @ WAS Mock
Wainwright Sat @ COL Jiminez
Chris Smith MTL @ nobody

Both Verlander and F Hernandez are pitching Thursday. It's likely that either would be available for Game 7. It's possible that Lester would come back on Wednesday for Jake and be his only Game 7 option.

UPDATE 8:05pm

Just did a quick check through the boxscores. Jake has home runs from Butler and Markakis and leads 21-12 on hitting alone. All of the hitters are in the lineup in early games except Molina for Avery. Lincucum pitches tonight for Jake. Tommy Hanson tomorrow for Avery.

UPDATE 9:00PM

Things are looking good for Jake. Billy Butler has hit his second home run and has 21 points. I've got Jake ahead 39-15 on hitting.

UPDATE 9:15pm

By the game in San Francisco is listed "Delayed - Ceremony"

UPDATE 9:20pm

The game in SF is underway. Lincecum fans two and gives up one hit in the top of the first.

Early games are starting to finish. I've got Jake ahead 41-20 on hitting. If Lincecum is on tonight, he will put Game 6 out of reach for Avery and wrap up an FNFT title for Jake.

RBI single by Youkalis - 3 points for the Moops.

UPDATE 9:35pm

1-2-3 for Lincecum in the 2nd. Benji Molina is not in the starting lineup for the Giants.

UPDATE 10:05pm

Avery's hitters are done (assuming Molina doesn't play). They finish with 26 points. Jake's hitters have 42, paced by Billy Butler's 22. Butler and Joe Mauer are still playing. The game is in the 8th inning.

Meanwhile, Tim Lincecum may be putting Game 6 away. He has given up two hits, one walk, and has three strikeouts through four shutout innings.

UPDATE 10:15pm

Five shutout innings - 5 Ks for Lincecum.

UPDATE 10:20pm

Alright - final update of the night. All of the hitters are done except for Molina who is not playing. Jake wins the hitting battle 42-26. Hoffman got 7 points as Avery's #3RP but no other relievers pitched so they are all still in play tomorrow. The big story though is Lincecum. He has given up a run in the top of the 6th and the Cubs lead 1-0 with Zambrano on the mound. As of this moment, Lincecum has 16 points, giving Jake a 32 point lead.

UPDATE Saturday 7:00am

32. That's the Moops magic number if they are to extend the FNFT World Series to a Game 7.

Jake has 58 points and can only get more from one of his relievers; either Mariano Rivera (NYY), George Sherrill (LAD), or Jason Frasor (TOR). Avery gets his starter Tommy Hanson, a reliever, and Benji Molina.

Here's how this will play out. Hanson starts in a 12:00 noon game in Washington. He obviously needs to pitch well or it's over. His last start was a 1-pointer, but his two previous starts were 27 and 26 point games. He's pitching against the worst team in baseball. The Braves have won four in a row and are clinging to playoff hopes. A game in the 20's by Hanson would make this very interesting.

Then at 3:00, the Giants start against the Cubs. Benji Molina was hit by a bat on his throwing hand on Thursday and is listed as questionable for the Cubs series. This is a blow to Avery's chances. Molina has 18 HRs this year and #19 would go a long way toward getting The Moops back in it.

Shortly after the Giants game starts, the Seattle-Toronto game will end and Jake will know if Jason Frasor, his #3 RP pitched.

The Red Sox-Yankees game starts at 3:00. Jake will be looking for a save from Mariano Rivera.

If we're still playing into the night, the Reds-Astros and Dodgers-Pirates both start at 6:00. Jake will be watching for George Sherrill in the Dodgers game if Rivera doesn't pitch. In the Astros game, Avery might be rooting for Jose Valverde to NOT pitch. If he doesn't The Moops will pick up 8 points from Andrew Bailey.

Stay tuned.

UPDATE 4:30pm

Hanson - 19 points. Jake leads 56-48.

Benji Molina is not in the starting line up for the Giants.

Jason Frasor gets a 14-point game for Jake, but it will be erased if either Rivera or Sherrill pitch.

As it stands right now, Jake is in the drivers seat but Avery is still not totally out of it. If Valverde does not pitch, Avery will get 8 points from his #2 RP, Bailey which would tie Jake's score. It would then come down to either Rivera or Sherrill pitching for Jake and getting negative points. Jake wins a tiebreaker based on Butler's game.

The Yankees-Red Sox game is scoreless in the 5th. Dodgers (Sherrill) and Astros (Valverde) start at 7:00.

World Series Game 5 Updates

He found the nut. Avery has picked up Jorge de la Rosa for Tuesday's game. de la Rosa has 15 wins this season - since June 6th!

UPDATE - Tuesday 7:45pm

Early returns...

JAKE
SP-Beckett BOS - (Wed)
RP-Rivera NYY - (9:00)
RP-Sherill BAL
RP-Frasor TOR
C-Mauer MIN - 1000/ - 0
1B-Butler KC - 0100/w - 2
2B-Zobrist TB - 1000/ww - 2
SS-Cabrera CLE - 3000/ - 0
3B-Zimmerman WAS - 2110/ - 2
OF-Smith COL - (8:00)
OF-Werth PHI - 3012/ww - 7
OF-McCutchen PIT - 2121/H - 9
DH-Gonzalez COL - (8:00)
TOTAL - 22

AVERY
SP-de la Rosa COL - (8:00)
RP-Hoffman MIL - (Brewers getting killed)
RP-Bailey OAK
RP-Valverde HOU
C-Molina SF - (8:00)
1B-Teixeira NYY - (9:00)
2B-Lopez SEA - 3000/ - 0
SS-Ramirez CHW - 1000/ - 0
3B-Izturis LAA - (9:00)
OF-Bay BOS - 0000/ - 0
OF-Byrd TEX - (9:00)
OF-Damon NYY - (9:00)
DH-Choo CLE - 2010/2 - 2
TOTAL - 2

UPDATE 8:00pm

de la Rosa has given up 2 runs in the first inning. (-3) The Curse of Tief strikes again.

For Jake, Carlos Gonzalez has tripled and scored.

I checked out redtube.com. Now I've seen everything. I suppose it was just a matter of time before that kind of stuff started showing up on the Internet too. Who'da known?

It appears as though George Sherill may get a save opp for Baltimore.

UPDATE 8:20pm

JAKE
SP-Beckett BOS - (Wed)
RP-Rivera NYY - (9:00)
RP-Sherill BAL
RP-Frasor TOR
C-Mauer MIN - 1000/w - 1
1B-Butler KC - 2100/w - 2
2B-Zobrist TB - 1000/ww - 2
SS-Cabrera CLE - 3000/ - 0
3B-Zimmerman WAS - 3110/ - 2
OF-Smith COL - (Not playing)
OF-Werth PHI - 3012/ww - 7
OF-McCutchen PIT - 4121/H - 9
DH-Gonzalez COL - 1110/3 - 4
TOTAL - 27

AVERY
SP-de la Rosa COL - 2 3 2 2 1 2 - 0
RP-Hoffman MIL - (Brewers getting killed)
RP-Bailey OAK
RP-Valverde HOU
C-Molina SF - (9:00)
1B-Teixeira NYY - (9:00)
2B-Lopez SEA - 3000/ - 0
SS-Ramirez CHW - 2000/ - 0
3B-Izturis LAA - (9:00)
OF-Bay BOS - 1000/ - 0
OF-Byrd TEX - (9:00)
OF-Damon NYY - (9:00)
DH-Choo CLE - 3020/2 - 3
TOTAL - 3

Sherill did not come in to pitch the 9th in a save situation. The game is now tied.

Jose Lopez (SEA) has hit a solo home run for Avery.

UPDATE 8:40pm

***de la Rosa is blowing up - 5 runs in with one out in the 3rd. Runs driven in by Gonzalez [edit - not true] for Jake. HE'S OUT OF THE GAME!!!***

Minus 12 for de la Rosa - and he's still responsible for a baserunner and could still get the loss.

de la Rosa's runner was erased in a double play. Colorado is only down by 1 so they could cover the loss.

UPDATE 8:55pm

JAKE
SP-Beckett BOS - (Wed)
RP-Rivera NYY - (9:00)
RP-Sherill BAL
RP-Frasor TOR
C-Mauer MIN - 2011/2w - 4
1B-Butler KC - 2100/w - 2
2B-Zobrist TB - 2000/ww - 2
SS-Cabrera CLE - 4110/ - 2
3B-Zimmerman WAS - 3110/ - 2
OF-Smith COL - 1110/2 - 3
OF-Werth PHI - 3012/ww - 7
OF-McCutchen PIT - 4121/H - 9
DH-Gonzalez COL - 1110/3 - 4
TOTAL - 35

AVERY
SP-de la Rosa COL - 2.1 6 6 6 3 2 - -12
RP-Hoffman MIL - (Brewers getting killed)
RP-Bailey OAK
RP-Valverde HOU
C-Molina SF - 1000/ - 0
1B-Teixeira NYY - (9:00)
2B-Lopez SEA - 4111/H - 8
SS-Ramirez CHW - 3000/ - 0
3B-Izturis LAA - (9:00)
OF-Bay BOS - 2000/ - 0
OF-Byrd TEX - (9:00)
OF-Damon NYY - (9:00)
DH-Choo CLE - 4030/2 - 4
TOTAL - 0

Colorado has scored so de la Rosa will not get the loss.

SEA/TB game is over with no change in above scores.

DET/CLE game is over with no change in above scores.

WAS game has ended with no change in Zimmerman's score.

Uh... the reason George Sherill didn't pitch tonight for Baltimore is because he doesn't play for Baltimore. He plays for the Dodgers. (He didn't pitch for them either.)

UPDATE

JAKE
SP-Beckett BOS - (Wed)
RP-Rivera NYY -
RP-Sherill LAD - dnp
RP-Frasor TOR - dnp
C-Mauer MIN - 3011/2w - 4
1B-Butler KC - 3100/w - 2
2B-Zobrist TB - 2000/ww - 2
SS-Cabrera CLE - 5110/ - 2
3B-Zimmerman WAS - 3110/ - 2
OF-Smith COL - 2110/2 - 3
OF-Werth PHI - 3012/ww - 7
OF-McCutchen PIT - 4121/H - 9
DH-Gonzalez COL - 1110/3 - 4
TOTAL - 35

AVERY
SP-de la Rosa COL - 2.1 6 6 6 3 2 - -12
RP-Hoffman MIL - (Brewers getting killed)
RP-Bailey OAK
RP-Valverde HOU
C-Molina SF - 2000/ - 0
1B-Teixeira NYY - 1010/ - 1
2B-Lopez SEA - 4111/H - 8
SS-Ramirez CHW - 3000/ - 0
3B-Izturis LAA - 1000/ - 0
OF-Bay BOS - 3000/ - 0
OF-Byrd TEX - 1000/ - 0
OF-Damon NYY - 1010/ - 1
DH-Choo CLE - 4030/2 - 4
TOTAL - 2

McCutchen (PIT) is done. Finishes with 12.

Valverde (HOU) pitched for Avery and got -1.

BOS/KC is done. Butler stays at 2, Bay stays at 0.

MIN/CHW are done. Ramirez stays at 0. Mauer stays at 4.

UPDATE 9:55pm

I'm going to call it a night. Jake leads 38-1. Avery has 5 west-coast hitters still playing but none of them have done much in their first couple of ABs. Unless 3 or 4 of those hitters go off, and Beckett bombs tomorrow night, Jake will win Game 5.

UPDATE Wednesday 5:40am

OK, it's not official until tonight - I know - but I'm calling it anyway. Jake wins Game 5. He takes a 33 point lead into today's action and still gets his starting pitcher, Josh Beckett. Avery's only opportunity for points are from his relief pitchers or if one of his top 4 starters unexpectedly pitches. Ain't gonna happen.

World Series Game 4 Updates

Jake's offense comes alive, the pitcher that Avery didn't pitch get 24 points, but the relief pitchers keep Avery in the game.

Had Avery picked Felix Hernandez, he would have been in the books at 55 points and forced John Lester to score 12 or more for Jake. Instead, Justin Verlander and some luck are needed for the eight-time FNFT King if he is to take Game 4. Jake leads 43-31 going into today's action with only the two starting pitchers still in play.

The first to the hill will be Verlander in a 3:10 p.m. start in Minnesota and Carl Pavano. The Twins are in hot pursuit of the Tigers in the AL Central so this will be a hard fought battle. Verlander is 0-1 with a 5.11 ERA against the Twins this year. Pavano has beaten the Tigers four times in '09 with a 1.49 ERA against the Cats.

Three hours after the bar is set, Jake's pitcher Jon Lester takes the mound in Baltimore. He is 3-0 with an impressive 0.84 ERA against the Birds this year. His opponent will be David Hernandez. Yeah, I never heard of him either.

Jake wins the tiebreaker thanks to the keen hitting eye of Billy Butler whose three walks contributed to his 15 point game. Therefore, Verlander must outscore Lester by 13 points if Avery is to win. If not, we will be knotted up at 2-2.

I won't be home (again) tonight, but the suspense will kill me so I may try to blog from my phone. We'll see. If not I'll try to post an update before I crash and as a last resort, as always. I will have the final stats posted long before all of you drag your sorry asses out of bed Sunday morning.

UPDATE 7:20 a.m.

Look at the two offenses we have playing in the FNFT World Series:

C	Bengie Molina
1B	Mark Teixeira
2B	Jose Lopez
SS	Alexei Ramirez
3B	Maicer Izturis
OF	Jason Bay
OF	Marlon Byrd
OF	Denard Span
DH	Shin-Soo Choo

C	Joe Mauer
1B	Billy Butler
2B	Ben Zobrist
SS	Asdrubal Cabrera
3B	Ryan Zimmerman
OF	Nick Markakis
OF	Seth Smith
OF	Jayson Werth
DH	Randy Ruiz

I obviously know NOTHING about fantasy baseball. I'm not sure either of those would make an above average MLB offense.

(Both Jake's and Avery's teams have phenomenal pitching. And as you know: pitching, pitching, pitching. It's apparently never been more true.)

By the way - none of those guys have their own little McFarlane statues so I'm obviously going to have to get creative again with the trophy. Teixeira and Mauer might, but no way any of the others do.

UPDATE Sunday 6:40 a.m.

That's gotta hurt. Had he played King Felix instead of the pitcher that Jake cut, Avery would have delivered a knockdown punch in the FNFT World Series. Instead, Jon Lester easily covers Verlander's 5 and Jake wins Game 4.

Series all tied at 2-2. Jake's has Josh Beckett on Tuesday, while Avery's has only his #5 Jonathan Sanchez. The tide has turned. Can he pull a Chuck Smith out of that hat?

UPDATE 7:00 a.m.

There is a player sitting out there who is such a blatantly obvious pickup for Avery that it's almost laughable. Let's see if he finds the nut.

World Series Game 3 Updates

Finally got a chance to sneak out of work for FNFT. (Internet is back on too.)

I had assumed going in that Hanson and Gallardo would be the starters. If so, Avery has a huge lead. Jake only gets Sef Smif and Wandy Wuiz. That's pretty gay. I don't think he has a chance. Mose tonight.

UPDATE Wednesday

Fuckinaye I'm busy at work right now! I had now time at all to blog Game 3 let alone pay any attention to it.

World Series Game 2 Updates

Lineups are set for Game 2 (baring any Friday morning changes).

Avery goes with pickup Jonathan Sanchez of the Giants who pitches Saturday night at home against the Dodgers (odd choice - Bush, Manship, and Fister were all available.) After playing defense by picking up Tim Hudson, Jake is going with Jon Lester tonight at home against Tampa.

UPDATE 815pm

Alright. Just got back from dinner. Baked cod at Nardo's and a few adult beverages at Ivie's. Let's see what we got...

Still raining in Boston. Jake's pitcher Jon Lester allowed bases loaded with one out in the top of the first when the skies opened.

Jake's Plan B if Lester is rained out is Josh Beckett tomorrow night.

UPDATE 850pm
Bob Dylan (aka Ryan Zimmerman) has hit a solo home run for Jake.

UPDATE 855pm
The game in Boston had been rained out. Jake will get Beckett tomorrow night.

Weather in Boston tomorrow calls for a 60% chance of rain. The Friday game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Sunday.

UPDATE SATURDAY 600am

What a mess.

Yes, I'm up this early. If you have dogs you would be too. Been up for a half hour.

What's a mess is the Game 2 boxscore. Rainouts in Boston And Texas have a lot of players in play today, with Jake holding a slim but insignificant 20-16 lead.

Avery's starting pitcher will be Jonathan Sanchez of the Giants who pitches tonight at home against the Dodgers and Vincente Padilla. 9:05pm game time. He will also be on Jose Valverde watch again who did not pitch on Friday. This time Avery is rooting against Valverde playing as then he would get 7 points from Trevor Hoffman. Avery's DH Kevin Kouzmanoff apparently has a strained left calf and will miss the next 6 games. Bad luck there. Outfielder Johnny Damon sat out last night's game with "a stiff lower back". No news as to whether he is expected to return tonight. Avery also had 3 hitters rained out last night; Jose Lopez of Seattle, and Kevin Youlilis and Jason Bay of the Red Sox.

Jake missed only one hitter: Ben Zobrist of Tampa who was rained out in Boston. His expected starter, Jon Lester allowed based loaded with one out in the first inning of last night's game before the game was rained out. His next starter is Josh Beckett who is pitching tonight. The weather forecast in Boston tonight calls for a chance of showers and patchy drizzle. With a doubleheader already scheduled for Sunday, I'm sure they will ride the weather out well into the night. Jake also has Tim Hudson pitching tonight in St. Louis if Boston is totally washed out, however if the game tonight is rained out, Sunday's game(s) would be used. It would be plausible that either Lester or Beckett would pitch then. In the bullpen Jake has a similar situation to Avery with his #2 RP getting 7 points. Mariano Rivera is his closer and would erase Jason Frasor's 7 if he pitches.

I've got plans for tonight so I probably won't have any live updates. But never say never.

UPDATE 410pm
Johnny Damon did not play in this afternoon's game. Neither did Mariano Rivera. These are both good news for Jake as he will now get Jason Frasor's 7. It's 27-16 Jake right now.

UPDATE 640pm
The start of the game in Boston is delayed by rain. Hard to tell by looking at the radar if they'll get it in. There's a glop of crap doing circles around Cape Cod. Probably no more updates until late tonight or tomorrow morning.

UPDATE SUNDAY 700am
I've taken the asterisk off of Game 5. If is now necessary. With the help of Mother Nature, Jake has won Game 2 of the FNFT World Series 45-44 and knotted the series at one game apiece.

Despite picking a dud for his starting pitcher, Avery was still in a position to win, riding a home run, a single and a walk by Kevin Youkilis. But five innings of baseball was all the skies would allow in Boston. Josh Beckett picked up a 2-point bonus for a 5-inning complete game. Youkilis and Jason Bay were denied any more at-bats, and Jake sneaks away with a 1-point win.

Earlier I had jokingly (because of their names) suggested that Avery could have pickup up either Bush, Manship, or Fister. Ironically, any one of the three would have given Avery a Game 2 win. Dave Bush threw a 31 point gem for the Brewers, Manship's -1 was 1-point better than Sanchez' -2 (Avery would have won the tie), and Fister didn't play which would have given The Moops a second reliever.

So we play on. Game 3 is Tuesday night.

World Series Game 1 Updates

(I wish I had more time to blog about the World Series, but with as busy as I am at work these Tuesday-Wednesday games are killers. But I digress...)

Could Jake have any worse luck? His top hitter, Carlos Pena, is out for the season with broken fingers. Yovanni Gallardo is skipping every other start because of what... youth? And to top it off his ace, Tim Lincecum, was scratched from his Tuesday start with a weak back (that he got about a week back.) All of this while he was asleep waiting for the World Series to start.

Neither team burst out of the gate in Game 1, but Avery holds the slightly better hand. With a 39-36 lead going into today's action. His only player on the board is his closer Jose Valverde of Houston. Just by appearing in tonight's game against the Braves, Valverde would erase a -4 game from Trevor Hoffman and have a chance to add to Avery's total. Houston's ace Wandy Rodriguez is on the mound for the Astros.

With no other pitchers than Lincecum scheduled to start, Jake got two relievers and lucky for him. Mariano Rivera and Jason Frasor each scored 8 points and combined, represented nearly half of Jake's point total. His player to watch tonight, and only player on the board, is Mike Lowell who apparently had a routine day off on Tuesday. If Valverde doesn't pitch, Lowell would need only 5 points to give Jake the Game 1 win. The Red Sox are at home against Baltimore's Jason Berken. Lowell is 1-for-1 lifetime against Berken. Game time is 6:00. I'll try to post an update once the starting lineups are in. If Lowell doesn't play, then it is Moop.

UPDATE 650pm
I can do a little of this tonight I guess. Mike Lowell is in the lineup for Boston and is 0 for 1. 39-36 Avery. If Lowell gets 4 points, Avery will need Valverde to pitch in order to have a chance to win.

UPDATE 700pm
Checking the news - Tim Lincecum says he's better and will be ready to pitch on Monday. What a screw job for Jake. Monday doesn't count for anything.

UPDATE 705pm
Looking ahead to Game 2, it looks like Jake will get Jon Lester on Saturday. Avery's only option at this point is Mat Latos. Although there's a couple of good pickups sitting out there. I think. Can anyone say 'Chris Smith'?

Boston 2, Baltimore 1 heading into the bottom of the 3rd. Lowell is due up 5th.

UPDATE 715pm
I'm watching women's tennis on ESPN2 - the 17 yr old chick from the U.S. against someone named Wozniacki (Poland?). I read an article today about the U.S. chick. She got booted out of here hotel in Manhattan because her reservation was up - didn't think she'd be there that long. Tuned in to see if she was a babe.

I have bigger tits than that. The other chick is a babe though.

UPDATE 720pm
Mike Lowell reached on an erro and stole second base. 39-37 Avery.

Varitek doubled him in. 39-38 Avery. Getting interesting.

UPDATE 755pm
I flipped over and watched a few minutes of The Obama. What a lying sack of...

Lowell singled in the 5th. It's 39-39. Avery wins the tie breaker so Jake needs one more opint out of Lowell to keep it alive.

On Lowell's single, Youkalis was throw out at the plate to end the inning. He will get one more AB for sure but probably no more.

UPDATE 825pm
The Braves lead the Astros 1-0 in the 6th. This is significant because of Valverde's chances of getting in the game. Valverde is apparently involved in some sort of age discrepancy dispute.

UPDATE 850pm
Lowell is up in the 7th with two on.

Lowell walks. Jake leads 40-39. Valverde must pitch or Jake wins Game 1.

Lowell was replaced by a pinch hitter - he's done. If Valverde pitches, a -4 from Hoffman is erased. Avery would lead 43-40 once he enters the game.

UPDATE 900pm
Houston doesn't score in the bottom of the 8th. Still 1-0 Atlanta. We'll see if Valverde pitches the 9th.

VALVERDE IS IN!

Anything better than a -4 and Avery wins.

Pop out. One down. 44-40 Avery.

Strikeout. Two down. 46-40 Avery.

Another strikeout. Side's retired. 48-40 Avery. Braves still lead 1-0. Astros coming up to bat in the bottom of the 9th. Jake's only chance is if Houston ties and then Valverde blows up in the 10th. Highly unlikely.

One out in the bottom of the 9th.

Single by Matsui and double by Berkman. Runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out.

Carlos Lee gets intentionally walked. Bases loaded with one out. A base hit ends the game and Avery wins. Jake needs a tie.

Tejada batting. BASE HIT. Two runs. Game over.

Valverde gets the win. Avery wins Game 1, 52-40.

Good night.

The Thrilla in Manilla

After much drama, both FNFT playoff series are sweeps, setting up a World Series showdown between perhaps the two most successful owners in the history of the league.

Jake will be playing in his fourth World Series in the last five seasons. His other FNFT World Series appearance was his sole championship in 1997.

Avery, The King of FNFT, will be looking for his 9th FNFT title. He returns to the World Series after a seven year absence.

Despite their success, the two teams have never met in the post season.

Much. much more to come as the Rivalry of the Century unfolds.

Late Saturday Update

If anyone is still watching, we've got a barn-burner in Game 3 of the Divisional Playoff.

For Joe, Zach Grienke checked in with 21 points. Exactly enough for a 51-51 tie with Avery. Joe wins the tiebreaker with 9 points by Miguel Cabrera compared to 8 by Avery's best hitter. Joe got no relievers, so he is in the books at 51.

For Avery, Trevor Hoffman did not pitch. His #3 reliever, Jose Valverde got 7 points and a win. Enough for Avery to take Game 3. But... His #2 reliever Andrew Baily (OAK) could still play. The A's lead 5-3 in the 8th. Stay tuned...

UPDATE: BAILEY IS IN THE GAME. Valverde's 7 points are gone. Bailey retired the last batter in the top of the 8th for one huge point. The A's are batting in the bottom of the 8th still leading 5-3. They've got two on with one out. If Bailey is replaced in the top of the 9th, Avery wins by one. If he stays in the game, we're still on...

UPDATE: The A's have gone up 7-3. Bailey is still in line for the save if he comes out to pitch the 9th so I'd say odds are good he's not done.

UPDATE: It's now 9-3 A's. They are still batting in the bottom of the 8th with one out.

UPDATE: The game is on SportsLine Live Look In. Bailey is looking like he still thinks he's in the game.

UPDATE: Bailey is on to pitch the 9th. It all comes down to this.

UPDATE: Base hit by Ichiro to lead off. Bailey is back to zero and the game is tied at 51-51.

UPDATE: Fly out to right. Avery back in the lead 52-51.

UPDATE: HOME RUN BY JOSE LOPEZ!!!!! Avery is screwed! Joe is going to win Game 3!!!

UPDATE: Single. BUT... I'm forgetting that Bailey is still in line for the save. If he can get out of this jam, Avery still may win. Bailey is at -5. He needs to finish with 1 or more. If he gets the next two outs without allowing any more base runners, Avery still wins.

UPDATE: Popout. Bailey is at -4. A save gets him to zero. It all comes down to this last batter.

UPDATE: STRIKEOUT!!! Bailey finishes with 2 points. Avery will win Game 3 by a score of 53-51 and go on to play Jake in the FNFT World Series.

Had the series gone to Game 4, Avery's pitcher would have been Mat Latos. He left tonight's game after 3 innings, giving up 4 runs on 3 hits and 5 walks.

Friday Night Snooze

The hitters have spoken. Whispered, actually.

With no hitters on either side able to crack double-digits and a solid performance by Justin Verlander, Avery takes a 51-30 lead over Joe in the FNFT Divisional Playoffs heading into today's action. The key game tonight is at 6:00 in Kansas City when Zack Grienke takes the mound for Joe. Neither team had a reliever pitch yet, and Avery can still get Shin-Soo Choo (gazunteit). Grienke obviously need a solid game for Joe to avoid the sweep, however 20+ games have been common for Grienke this year.

In the Saturday game, if it's needed, Joe gets Randy Wolf who pitches at home against San Diego. Game time is 9:00 p.m. Opposing Wolf is Mat Latos, Avery's only other starting pitcher going this weekend. Unless Avery looks to the scrap heap for another starter, we would have a head-to-head pitching matchup for Game 4 - again, if necessary. If Grienke fails tonight, then it's all Moop.

By A C-Hair

Joe, who by losing a a tie-breaker on the final day of the regular season was forced into a 1-game playoff, has lost another tiebreaker in the playoffs and find himself down 0-2 to Avery. But for two measly points, he could be up 2-1 and a game away from the World Series.

Game 3 is Friday night. Game 4, if needed is Saturday.

p.s. Anonymous - You know, it sit up at night typing that stuff and wonder to myself, "If I write something and nobody reads it, am I really writing it?" Seeing your comments this morning made my day.

From The Moors:

Actually Joe won his first tie breaker against Tief in the final game of the season because Tief's pitcher had a -10 points. Had he scored a -9 or higher, the Moors would most likely be up 2 games to 1 over the Moops, thus creating a Moops / Moors series.

T:
You're right. My bad.

Playoff Doubleheader

As I've previously mentioned, Game 4 of the Division Playoff Series between Avery and Joe - if there is a Game 4 - will be part of a doubleheader on Saturday. I'll try to explain again how a doubleheader works, with the help of a post I wrote last year...

Game 3 of the playoff series is Friday, September 4. Game 4 of the playoffs is Saturday, September 5. For the most part, these are treated as two separate and distinct games. You may submit separate lineups for each. You are allowed one pickup for each. The deadline for picking up players and submitting lineups is still on noon of game day, so you could (and in some circumstances, it would make sense to) change your Saturday lineup based on Friday results.

Hitters are fairly straight forward. Their Friday night game counts toward Game 3 and their Saturday game counts toward Game 4. The exception is if they don't play on Friday night. Then their Saturday game counts toward Game 3 and their Sunday game counts toward Game 4. This is an important point to be aware of. If one of your hitters does not play on Friday night, it might make sense to replace him in your Game 4 lineup, or else run the risk of not getting points for him for Game 4 because his Saturday game is already being used for Game 3. If a hitter plays on Friday and not on Saturday, or if his Saturday game is used for Game 3 on Friday, you still get his Sunday stats toward Game 4.

For starting pitchers, the pecking order for Game 3 is #1 SP on Friday, #2 SP on Friday, #3 SP on Friday and so on down to the bottom of your rotation, then #1 SP on Saturday, #2 SP on Saturday, and on down the line. So basically, if any of your starting pitchers pitch on Friday night, you will get one of them for Game 3. Game 4 works like any other game with the exception that you can not use the pitcher who counted in Game 3. The order goes #1 SP Friday, #1 SP Saturday, #2 SP Friday, #2 SP Saturday, and so on. Relief pitchers work pretty much the same way as starters. It would be a good idea to just figure out who you want your starting pitcher for each game to be and put them in as your #1 starter. You can stack the others up behind him just in case.

Make sense? Of course if the series ends on Friday night, this is all moot.

Playoff Update - Wed Night

Baring a blow-up by Trevor Hoffman, it appears that Avery has come back to win Game 2 of the Divisional Playoff Series. Felix Hernandez pitched 8 scoreless innings netting Avery 27 points and bringing his team total to 71. Meanwhile, Javier Vazquez is out of his game, finishing with 5 points bringing Joe's team total also to 71. Vazquez however is still on the hook for the loss; the Braves trail 7-3 in the 7th. If the Braves can't come back, Joe's total drops to 69. Avery also wins the tiebreaker with 13 points from Kevin Youkalis.

The only player still in play is Trevor Hoffman, Avery's third reliever. As I type this, the Brewers are trailing 6-2 in the 4th. It would take a negative point game by Hoffman for Joe to have a chance for the win.

Playoffs Day 3

Behind a 13 point outing from Jonathan Papelbon, Joe has taken a 66-44 lead over Avery in Game 2 of their best of five Division Playoff Series.

Both starting pitchers go tonight. King Felix Hernandez goes for Avery who pitches tonight at home against the Dodgers, and Javier Vazquez for Joe tonight at Florida. Hernandez' game starts first at 5:40pm CT. Vazquez takes the hill at 6:10pm CT in Florida. Avery can also get points from his reliever; either Andrew Bailey (CIN), Jose Valverde (HOU), or Trevor Hoffman (MIL); any of which will be hard pressed to match Papelbon's gem.

I will try to post blog updates tonight, but it's only one of about seven billion things I've got to do.