The Friday Hangover
Greetings, fellow SBLers! Sorry about not posting anything last Friday. Things got really hectic towards the end of the week, so hectic that I couldn't even start writing this little coulmn, let alone post anything. I'm back this week, and I have plenty for you to read. You'll find thoughts about the first two weeks of BASEketball, a style points explanation, the style points standings, as well as interviews with two of our sport's bright young stars (although those may be posted later because I want this up by Wednesday, due to the games this week being on Friday). It's like two coulmns in one!!!
Oh, and before I begin, I should send out a congrats to Danielle Hennon because I didn't do so two weeks ago when she graduated. I did get a pretty decent burn on Nate though.
Random Thoughts That Pop Into My Head About the 2007 SBL Season:
Offenses seemed much better in Week Two compared to Week One.
Without PJ Nespor, his Ladies have looked lost out there. They're even worse when Rando isn't around.
Did Nate look fired up or what when his Sparkling Wiggles squared off against PJ & the Ladies last week? It's almost as if he read an interesting piece of literature that gets posted on this great website on most Fridays that suggested that he may drop a contest to his rivals this season.
Nate looked to come out flat in his next game though. Perhaps he used all of his energy against Rando and co.?
Team Double Stuff is looking better than I thought they would and should continue to improve once Dank and Biddle return to the lineup. Too bad they're stuck in the same conference as Hot Fuzz and the Nappy Headed Ho's.
The opposite has to be said against Kathleen Turner Overdrive. With a golden opprotunity to beat a weakened Nappy Headed Ho's lineup (who played like shit last Sunday), they failed to plate more than three runs.
Gavin St. John looks to be a shoo-in for Rookie of the Year, making my pick of Tony Mastrian look just plain silly. Tony has played his part as well, showing up late for Week One and not impressing, then not showing up at all for Week Two. Lucky for him (and my pick), there are still eight weeks left.
Kudos to Bryan Frankovich for his performance in an extra-innings thriller against the Nappy Headed Ho's. You can't ask for much more than three run homers in the 9th and 10th to tie things up. Only time will tell if he can do this again in August.
If Sunday was any indication, any game between the Nappy Headed Ho's and Hot Fuzz should be fun to watch. They meet two more times this season and perhaps again in the playoffs. It's hard to predict who would win a three game series between the two teams, but it would likely be one of the better three-game series we've had in this league.
The Ho's looked much better in Week Two than in Week One, especially their captain. If Stud keeps coming, then watch out. I don't think he's even begun to warm up yet.
If Stud doesn't come, the Ho's should still be alright. Jamie Moroco, Matt McClelland, and Ben Smith all seemed to find a groove. Once Ray Cataline comes back, the defense can only get better. He should play well enough offensively to help this team get by.
Matt McClelland bank shots are less annoying when he's on your team.
The Screamin' Seagulls are vastly underachieving. The trio of Terry Hall, Lee Nespor, and Lenny Christ are much better than what they've shown so far. They'll get better.
The Sparkling Wiggles played a lot better than I thought they would in Nate Tomko's absense. They showed a lot of fight. Hopefully, they can play just as well with Nate back in the lineup. If that happens, this team is a real threat. They would not be my first choice of opponent in the playoffs.
That new feature to the stats program that Kip added is awesome. We're one step closer to looking and feeling like a real sports league. It also makes my job easier, just in case I need to do some research on a player's past or cumulative performance (for example, if I wanted to find out if anybody banged out 35 homers and 64 RBIs in just 9 games in the playoffs last year, I don't have to go to the 2006 page to find it...or perhaps if that same person only had 58 RBIs in 18 regular season games). Way to go, Kip!
In response to Mac's Mailbag, as much as I would love to have another week at the Sucka Free Outdoor Sports Complex, it is beyond my control. I can try to get them to let me have a week there, but it's unlikely due to the fact that I no longer live there.
Style Points Explained (in Q & A format):
Q: So, what the hell are "style points"?
A: Style points are a way to rate the "coolness" or "awesomeness" (or the lack thereof) of the plays that an SBL player makes (or doesn't make). In today's SBL, where individual accolades are much more important than team success, style points are there to guide you. Style points are here to entertain you. Perhaps style poins can be some sort of consolation for an otherwise poor performance. Normally, a 2-for-10, 0 RBI, 2 Dumb Thing performance by any player would be a bad thing, but if said player was awarded 5 style points for a sweet assist and 2 more for a nice looking double play, he or she might feel just a little bit better. It is hard for me to explain exactly what style points are other than that. You'll know style points when you see them.
Q: How do I earn style points? Can style points be taken away?
A: Style points can be awarded for a number of reasons. These include, but are not limited to: sweet looking double plays or assists, solo homers (at least one point, at least two if it's a walkoff solo homer), Pat Nespor getting an assist, awesome looking celebrations, doing something cool during a scrum, any made trick shots, anything else the judges see fit to award style points for. These points cannot be taken away, but negative style points can be awarded. Reaons for this include, but are not limited to: looking stupid during a double play or assist attempt, getting knocked on your ass by someone half your size, not taunting an opposing player after a blocked tip-in attempt (in addition to a dumb thing), a crappy looking celebration or psyche out attempt, not shooting a home run when there's less than two outs and the bases are loaded (man up, you pussy!), and anything else at the discretion of the judges.
Q: Wow, what a great idea, but who are these "judges"?
A: Kip Corbett and myself are the main judges of style points. Terry Hall was in charge of them for a game. The refs will probably also award a point or two. Mainly, it's Kip and myself thought.
Q: What happens to the person with the most style points at the end of the season? The person with the least?
A: The player who has accumulated the most style points at the end of the season will be named "Official Friday Hangover Unofficial Player of the Year". The player with the least will be named "Official Friday Hangover Unofficial Least Valuable Player". You will definately get a mention on this site as well as bragging rights for the next year. You may even get some sort of trophy.
Style Points Standings (after Week Two):
1. Terry Hall......................+9
2. Billy Weisberg...............+5
3. Rando Knight................+3
4. Matt McClelland...........+2
5t. Lenny Christ.................+1
5t. Aryn Christman............+1
5t. Kip Corbett..................+1
5t. Jamie Fabian................+1
5t. Dennis Lackey..............+1
5t. Mr. Mikey Moroco......+1
5t. Mrs. Mikey Moroco.....+1
5t. Lee Nespor..................+1
5t. Pat Nespor...................+1
14t. Jeremy Battyani...........-1
14t. Mike Frankovich.........-1
14t. Katie Kelly..................-1
17t. Bryan Frankovich........-2
17t. John Offutt..................-2
17t. Seth Salcedo...............-2
Everyone else is at 0.
Don't hold your breath for those trophies. The interviews with Terry Hall and Katie Kelly can be read by clicking on the links below. See you guys on Friday...probably.
Interview With Terry Hall
Interview With Katie Kelly
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