Week 9 Power Rankings
Can you smell it? The playoffs are coming and the games are going to be intense! These past couple of weeks have seen a few teams flirt around .500. These bubble teams will continue to shift around in the standings and this will affect the bracket to come. Then there are other teams toward the bottom of the standings that look to buckle up for the rough ride to the playoffs. The bracket will feature all 8 teams with a side to the bracket for each division. The first round will be two games, the first being the first place team vs last place and the second being the second place team verses third place. Then the semifinals will take place immediately after those games. The following week will be the league championship. If Mother Nature decides to stop being a bitch, then we could have a league champion in about a month.
Wee Willy Wiffle @ Green Bears
Sweep for WWW
Wee Willy Wiffle has been a team on the brink of victory all year. They're currently 7-9 and if they had better offense they'd definitely be above .500. I'm calling for a sweep of the Green Bears simply because no team hits worse than the Green Bears right now. But I think it will come down to who shows up for WWW. If Rich Ball shows up the odds are in Wee Willy's favor. But without Rich the team struggles to bring runs in but Jacob Dunkle's bat has been coming around so maybe they'd be okay if Rich is unable to attend. Last time these two teams faced one another the series was split and that could totally happen this week but I'd say that it's unlikely at this point. WWW are wiser this time around and Nick Kappra has mastered his pitching since then. But the Green Bears could really use a win. They are riding on a 9-game losing streak and could use one more tally in the wins column before the season ends, but it's unlikely.
Sit On My Base @ Team BagTag
Sweep for SOMB
This has potential to be a great matchup since both teams have improved over time. But I'm still going with a sweep for SOMB. They swept BagTag back in Week 2 and I see no reason why they won't do the same this week. Jeremy Ray's pitching is filthy and new-comer Scott Westcott has some good stuff if Ray gets in a pinch. But BagTag has some pitching depth as well. Brian Ball is still the team's go-to starter but Zach Blatt gets the results more often than not. Ryan Blatt is an amazing pitcher as well...if he is able to come. Then there's Brandon Woolum who has pitched a surprising 22 innings and 17 Ks. So there's a possibility for some good pitching matchups in this series. But when it comes to offense, you've got to go with Sit On My Base. BagTag have only hit 6 home runs as a team (Woolum leading the franchise with 3 HRs) but SOMB has hit 25 home runs (Andrew Westcott leading the team with 7 HRs). But I think the real problem for BagTag will be attendance. Gary Ball and Kara Dills have been MIA for weeks now. Last week the team had only players and were swept by Wee Willy Wiffle and were even mercy-ruled in the second game of that series. But if at least 4 BagTaggers show up we could have a split series on our hands if they hit the ball. Anything is possible this late in the season.
Honey Badgers @ Breaking Balls
Split Series
I have been looking forward to this series for weeks now. When we all got our first look at Jacob Fischer I knew he was the missing link the Honey Badgers had been looking for all season. He's got the goods to go toe-to-toe with Drew McClanahan and tomorrow we'll finally get to see what happens when these two face off. The Honey Badgers have recently brought back offensive assasin Kyle Kelley and at the same time, Zack Reedy has decided to start dropping bombs and Paul Hesson has hit 8 HRs (2nd most in league). So on the offensive spectrum, the Honey Badgers rival the Breaking Balls. But the deciding factor of this series depends on the balance between offense and defense. Both of these teams have excellent hitters and pitchers but it could all come down to one hit deciding the fate of the game. The last time these two teams squared off it was extra innings and low-scoring. There could be more of the same for this time around but it's funny to think that it could also be an offensive blowout if hitters can get around on the other team's top ace. Bottom line: if the Breaking Balls are going to lose a game this season...it will happen tomorrow.
Wiffle Ballers @ Poker Night
Sweep for Ballers
The Wiffle Ballers have been around .500 almost all season and this week could be a concrete step in finishing above .500 this season. There's no reason why they shouldn't sweep Poker Night. But having said that, Poker Night has potential to get a surprise win at the Wiffle Ballers' expense. Steven Adkins originally struggled with walks earlier this season but has recently conquered his accuracy problem. But Rick Hanshaw showed he had game on the mound last week against Wee Willy Wiffle so if Adkins finds himself in trouble, Hanshaw can back him up. In fact, I'd be shocked if Hanshaw didn't start one of the games. The Wiffle Ballers haven't been without their handicaps. Tim Wilson-Byrne is gone for the rest of the season (moved to Boston) and Stephanie Sadler has been absent but looks to return this week. The team's former worst batter, Justin Fairman, has recently adjusted his swing and has been hitting the ball a lot more. As for Poker Night, they could still sneak a win in during this series. They've hit more home runs this year than Wiffle Ballers and have done better at keeping their games low-scoring so I think they are more than capable of turning this into a split series.
