Series 4 Part 2

LIN 3, ZSY 4 F

                               

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
LIN	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	0	0
ZSY	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1

W – Paterson (1-1)                   L – Nen (0-1)                                     

Nobody really had any high expectations for the Z-Slayer pitching staff, but through three and a half series their starters have posted some of the best results in the league: They have the second highest ratio of quality starts in the league, only behind the Spartans of Bobia. Last night’s game was a continuation of this phenomenon. However, the contest was temporarily delayed when a westerly wind blew a cloud of Zachrian gas into the concession stands. After the cloud dispersed and the affected fans were flown by chopper to a medical facility, and the two Division 1 rivals were ready to play ball. Runelvys Hernandez built off of his excellent shutout performance against the Melmegetians by pitching six solid innings, only surrendering a solo homerun to LIN 1B Doug Mientkiewicz and being tagged for a second run after reliever Mike Myers allowed a runner to score that Hernandez had left on base before exiting in the seventh. On the flip side, Lindsyan Scott Schoenweiss improved over his disastrous first outing, but still did not inspire much confidence in his performance in this one. Although he only gave up three runs early on and eventually earned the quality start, he really struggled through most innings and was pitching in danger through most of the game. The Lindsayns mounted a comeback in the seventh against former Darkpaw reliever Mike Myers (has the curse of Foulke stayed with him across teams?), who blew a two run lead thanks to clutch RBI’s from Jeff Cirillo and Manny Ramirez. As seems to be the theme this series, both teams mobilized their bullpens for extra inning affairs but the home team made those preparations superfluous. In his first appearance of the year, Robb Nen was welcomed to his second inning of work by a lead-off double from Carl Crawford, who then easily stole third. Two batters later, the solidly consistent Jack Wilson brought home the winning run with a single.  After the game, a video went viral of LIN GM Jelly Bean  slapping the Lindsyan owner when questioned about the game.

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MAX 4, TYC 5 F

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
MAX	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	2
TYC	0	0	0	4	0	0	0	0	1

W – Kolb (2-0)                   L – Urbina (0-1)                    Blown save – Kolb (1)

As announced in the latest Kruk Bucket report, Randy Johnson and John Kruk faced off in charity at bat before the game, video posted below. After the opening Kruk-Johnson challenge, the weirdness continued all night in this game. Maxion starter Omar Daal began the game pitching three perfect innings, but might have been abducted and replaced by an imposter in the fourth, based on how awful his meltdown was when he surrendered a three run homer to Fred McGriff. For McGriff, who is having a career year despite having one of the lowest salaries in the league, is now near the top of the leaderboards for both RBI’s and homers. The real Omar Daal must have returned because, strangely enough, pitched a perfect fifth and sixth immediately following this. Tycoon starter Brad Penny was fine through seven, alternating between strong and weak innings, eventually giving up two runs in a sixth inning Bomber rally. Both bullpens took over after the seventh, leading to Tycoon closer Danny Kolb to take the mound in the top of the ninth. With two outs, the hot hitting DH Edgar Martinez launched an upper deck bomb which tied the game at four. The Maxions had an opportunity to drive in the winning run, but could not after Jeff “Automatic Out” Kent put the kibosh on that one. Still, the wind seemed to be totally removed from the Tycoon sails after this. Both teams mobilized their bullpens, but they ended up having to sit down again right away when Tycoon CF Grady Sizemore ended the game with a solo homerun. Bizarrely, this resulted in Tycoon closer Danny Kolb getting credit for the win even though he blew a save. This game was certainly a bizarre one, but bizarre would be a good way to describe the Tycoon season thus far, despite the fact that they sport the best record in the league.

As a result of this challenge, Randy Johnson has requested that Kruk make his $1000 charity donation to Lord Mao’s Fight Against Obesity (LMFAO).

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MMD 2, QEY 0 F

                               

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
MMD	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
QEY	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

W - Schilling (2-0)                    L - Rodgers                       S - Foulke (2)

In classic Meow Meow fashion, they squeaked out just enough runs for their elite pitching to win the game. Curt Schilling went seven strong, while Dan Miceli closed out the 8th for the hold, and Keith Foulke finished the ninth for the save. Kenny Rodgers pitched very well for the Warriors, his only major mistake coming from a curve ball the hung just a bit too long in the second, that the slumping Eric Chavez used to belt out of the park for two runs. The rest of the game was rather boring, truth be told. Besides Rodgers working out of a seventh inning jam, there really wasn't much offense for the rest of the game. While this is a disappointment for the Warriors, one wonders when Meowth will start to look for other offensive options, especially given the veteran talent currently in the free agent pool.