News and Notes from Around the League

Standings from 5/16/2009 thru 6/7/2009 (including game stats through 6/7/2009)

Name Avg HR R RBI SB ERA K S W W PCT Total
The Stinking Badgers
8.0 8.0 8.0 8.0 7.5 8.0 9.0 1.0 7.0 8.0 72.5
Giant Steps
4.0 5.5 6.0 5.0 7.5 9.0 8.0 2.5 9.0 9.0 65.5
The Depositions
9.0 9.0 9.0 9.0 6.0 3.0 1.0 7.0 3.5 4.0 60.5
A Cancer on the League
3.0 7.0 5.0 7.0 4.0 4.0 5.0 4.0 5.5 3.0 47.5
The FunGhouls
5.0 5.5 2.0 6.0 4.0 7.0 4.0 2.5 5.5 5.0 46.5
T. S. Intellectual
7.0 1.0 7.0 3.0 9.0 5.0 3.0 5.0 2.0 2.0 44.0
Marfa Dogs
1.0 2.5 1.0 2.0 1.0 6.0 7.0 7.0 8.0 7.0 42.5
Little Chi Chi
2.0 4.0 4.0 1.0 4.0 2.0 6.0 9.0 3.5 6.0 41.5
The Money Shot
6.0 2.5 3.0 4.0 2.0 1.0 2.0 7.0 1.0 1.0 29.5

Why has Peter surged to first place? It’s not enough to say the goddess has a ‘wide on’ for Peter. Who in the league is not a morsel to delight an average woman’s sex palate? No, we are a league long on charm, longer (in fact) on charm than on skill. So the question remains: blind luck or a series of master strokes on Peter’s part? (Peter does love to lay some master strokes on his part, of course, but that is semantic quibbling, so we will leave it alone. Which is more than you can say about Peter and his part. He’s a veritable coxswain: Stroke! Stroke! Stroke!)

Where was I?

How do we explain Peter’s success? He manned up and took Halliday, willing to spend money to make money, and thence on to the rest of his pitchers. Here is our first ‘aha’ moment. We are now a little frightened. He took a chance on Lee and Liriano. Particularly in Lee’s case, we see successful but unrewarded pitching. So look at that upside. He took a chance on Liriano, who has been appalling. But there is goodness in the badness: more upside! When I examine Peter’s pitching numbers, I foresee better numbers later on, no less. And oh: McCarthy? People had lost all hope. Verlander? Risk piled on risk. The question really is: What did Peter know and when did he know it?

We are also ravished by the fact Peter did what other great champions have done and blew off saves. He only has two, yet he thrives.

Now, on the hitting side, we are immediately struck by the fact his one true ‘can’t miss’ player – Grady Sizemore – has missed. And *still* Peter thrives. Mark Texarkanas – to which Peter will respond, ‘whatever’ – is now blasting in NYC. Kinsler is living up to hype and beyond. Ichiro dazzles and went cheaper than he should have. But no one rules our little roost without a stroke of luck good fortune. Choo-Choo is hitting. Astrolabe Cabrera is now on the world’s radar. Varitek was written off and has proceeded to write himself back on.

What I’m saying is Peter could hang in there and win this thing. And what a banquet that would be.