Start of Series 9

TYC - 4   QEY - 2
W - Lopez (1-2)   L - Haynes (0-1)   S - Kolb (3)
TYC : Lopez: 7 IP, 2 ER, QS (2)
QEY: Haynes: 5 IP, 4 ER
TYC: McGriff: 3-3, HR (4), 3 RBI (14), 2B, BB, 2 R
QEY: Burks: 1-4, HR (3), RBI (13)
TYC: Kolb: 2 IP, 0 H, BB

The Tycoons found themselves in a desperate situation this week, heading into Queynos: knocked down to third place and with a bullpen that has been worked down to the bone. What's worse, fourth starter Albie Lopez is not known to pitch very many innings and tends to rack up a large pitch count early. He thankfully got some run support early, in the form of a three run blast off the bat of Fred McGriff, who has had a rather pitiful season despite having great STATS (4 HR, 14 RBI). Most of those homeruns and RBIs came in the first two series of the year; this is McGriff's most significant production since. The Warriors answered directly in the bottom of the second, scoring a run of their own thanks to always great base running by Frank Catalonotto and a clutch single by Edgardo Alfonzo. In the fifth inning, McGriff lead off with a double, and was later brought home by a Ryan Freel single, bringing the score to 4-1 in favor of the Tycoons. But with a very badly depleted bullpen, the Tycoons were still in a very precarious situation. Queynos centerfielder Ellis Burks hit a solo homerun in the sixth to bring the deficit to two. With an already very high pitch count, Lopez was sent out to pitch the seventh inning at the behest of the Ghost of Mao. The gamble paid off and Lopez cruised through the inning, giving some badly needed rest to the bullpen. Closer Danny Kolb made his third straight appearance, but certainly didn't look tired, going two very strong innings to close the game and earn his third save of the year. This win puts a little bit of wind back into the Tycoons sails as they snap a four game losing streak. For the Queynos Warriors, a shot at the playoffs seems dimmer and dimmer with each day. Truly a shame, since this team has played much better than their 6-10 record might indicate.
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MEL - 1   BOB - 7
W - Burkett (4-0)   L - Garcia (0-3)
BOB: Burkett: 6 IP, ER, QS (4)
MEL: Garcia: 6 IP, 7 ER
BOB: Lowell: 3-4, HR(2), 3 RBI (7), R
BOB: Ichiro: 1-3, 2 RBI (12), 2 BB
BOB: Fingers: 3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 3 K

Before a packed capacity crowd at "Dulcolax Stadium", the hometown Spartans took on a Marauder team that is in a death struggle to squeeze into the playoffs. John Burkett, the only Spartan starter to survive on the roster since opening day, in some ways has been the most consistent pitcher on the team. His performances have not been dominant nor lengthy, but he is currently one of only six players in the league to achieve four straight quality starts. In this game he did have to work out of trouble more than once, but was quite effective at handling the rather weak Marauder attack. He only faltered once when he surrendered a solo homerun in the second inning. His rival and former teammate Freddy Garcia did not fare so well against his own team, taking a beating of seven runs over six innings. Big hits came off the bat of Ichiro Suzuki (2 RBI single), Fredgar Martinez (RBI double), Marcus Giles (solo HR), and most importantly, a crushing three run blow from the hot hitting Mike Lowell. Lowell has five RBIs over his last two game and is arguably the hottest hitter in the league at the moment. After Burkett had dutifully put in six innings of good work, he turned the game over to Rollie Fingers who had another incredible performance, twirling three perfect innings. With pitching as good as the Spartans have, they must be feeling really excellent when their offense puts up seven runs; they've only allowed more than three runs once as a team all season. As for Vindaloo's Marauders, they too can feel their shot at the playoffs slipping away, especially with one of the most difficult remaining schedules in the league. But then again, anything seems possible in the Pee Wee League.
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AXN - 4   STL - 3   F
W - Maroth (1-0)   L - Ankiel (1-2)  S - Kolb (5)
AXN: Maroth: 6 IP, 0 ER, QS(2)
STL: Ankiel: 6 IP, 2 ER, QS(1)
AXN: Blalock: 3-4, HR(4), 2B, BB, 2 RBI (8)
STL: Renteria: 1-3, 2B, BB, 2 RBI (13)
AXN: Cameron: 1-4, BB, RBI(7)

The control 2 Mike Maroth surprised the showdown world again with his second consecutive strong performance. The Cardinals, inconsistent as always, looked pretty dull in the early innings and were mowed down with relative ease by Maroth. Their bats did seem to come alive as the game went on, more on that later. On the flip side, Cardinals fourth starter Rick Ankiel pitched well enough to earn his first quality start of the year; going six strong only giving up two runs. It seemed like Ankiel had most of the Darkpaw lineup figured out with the exception of third baseman Hank Blalock, who continues to be the only offensive player of note for the Darkpaws. Blalock took Ankiel deep for a solo shot in the second inning, and then struck again with an RBI double in the fourth. As stated earlier, the Cardinals offense got off to a slow start early but seemed to pick up some steam towards the end. In the sixth inning, the Darkpaws defense committed an error and plunked Maroth into quite a jam with runners on second and third with no outs. But thanks to three strikeouts (and an intentional walk to Larry Walker) he finished his performance without giving up any runs. But reliever Satoru Komiyama struggled in the eight, allowing Larry Walker 04 to put the Cardinals on the board with an RBI single. Cardinals reliever Jason Isringhausen struggled himself in the top of the ninth and allowed the Darkpaws to rally for another two runs. With the score at 4-1, the Darkpaws brought in closer Danny Kolb to end the game. By now the Cardinals offense had awoken, and quickly loaded the bases with one out. Edgar "I'd Like To Rent A Ria" Renteria stepped up to the plate and whacked a line drive down the third base line that brought home two runs. Those are Renteria's team leading twelfth and thirteenth RBIs on the season. But the heart of the Cardinals order could not bring home the tying run, with Kolb managing to fly out Larry Walker and ground out Larry Walker 04. A very bitter loss for the Cardinals who really should have considered this an easy win. But it almost seems like they are cursed to split every series they play in, whether it be against the lofty Spartans or the lowly Darkpaws. They will have a tremendous pressure next game to avoid a sweep at the hands of one of the worst teams in the league. As for the Darkpaws, this win simply might just keep ALLIED_MASTERCOMPUTER in his job for a little while longer. The other upside is that closer Danny Kolb now leads the league in saves. Although Kolb really hasn't pitched particularly well, the Darkpaws rarely dominate their opponents, leading to lots of save situations for the struggling bullpen.