Offensive Player of the Week: Andrew Ybarra, Get a Wiff
Team captain Andrew Ybarra got off to an early lead in the home run sweepstakes, crushing two balls on his way to driving in 8 of his teams nineteen runs. He also scored 5 times. When he wasn't hitting the balls, he was recording walks, which led to his being a baserunner in 7-8 plate appearances.
Defensive Player of the Week: Austin Cudworth, West Coast Washout
Austin had a solid first game in left, as pitcher Brian Pendergast delivered opportunities for flyball outs with great regularity. None were bigger than his one handed snag of an Alex Arkfeld bomb. The robbery was the most nonchalant home run prevention in league history (one of the lesser known stats we record).
Pitcher of the Week: Matt Rosenfeld, 100% Real Juice
On a day which saw two one-hitters, Rosenfeld gets the nod for delivering a three-hit shutout performance against an established Chicken'n'Wiffles squad which led the league in many offensive team categories last year. He also gets a rookie bump for issuing only 5 walks, and controlling the game throughout.
Seattle Freeze to take NYC
No, New York is not suddenly importing our patented social phenomena, but they will get a taste of the Seattle Freeze just the same. The team composed of members of two Seattle Wiffleball teams will be competing in the National Wiffle League Association (NWLA) New York Regional Tournament. The team is composed of two Chicken'n'Wifflers, Preston Sahabu and Matt Pearson, and three members of the West Coast Washout; Andrew Winter, Jason Matt, and Daniel Rish.
Jason Matt modeling for the Freeze
If the team wins enough games, Seattle Wiffleball will earn an invitation to the July 16-17 NWLA National Tournament in Columbus, Ohio. Here's how the day will shake out:
9:30 AM/6:30 AM PST: Seattle Freeze @ Potomac (VA) Wiffleball League
11:30 AM/8:30 AM PST: Seattle Freeze @ Ontario County (NY) Wiffle Association
12:30 PM/9:30 AM PST: Mick Fenway (MA) Wiffleball League @ Seattle Freeze
2:30 PM/11:30 AM PST: Seattle Freeze @ Greater Auburn (MA) Wiffleball League
4:30 PM/1:30 PM PST: Tampa Bay (FL) Wiffle Ball @ Seattle Freeze
Intrigued? Check out these links below:
Videos of the NWLA tournament will be posted on the NWLA Youtube Channel
The Commish is Interviewed by Two Wiffle Dudes Podcast
Preview of the NWLA tournament by Two Wiffle Dudes
EXTRA! EXTRA!
The first half of the season has been characterized by a lack of writing characterizing the first half of the season. But all of that is behind us now...get caught up on league action below!
Part 1. Father's Day
The Dingers celebrated Father's Day in style, batting a lineup of 14 -- 7 dads and 7 sons. The series started off with an old-fashioned drubbing, as the Dingers scored 12 in support of Aidan Welch, who didn't need much help. Welch recorded all twelve outs via strikeout, and allowed no hits. Game two of the series was one of the best in the league this year, as the Dingers were out-dadded by Greg Nyssen, who smacked a homer and allowed only two runs, while son Francis reached base 3 times. Get a Wiff jumped ahead 4-1 with a four run first, after which Cody Thomson shut the door.Peter Berner-Hays gave the Dingers a spark in the third, knocking his son Max in on a single to right field. Max's aggressive baserunning drew a throw from outfielder Sam Brown, whose throw had plenty of arm behind it but beamed pitcher Greg Nyssen directly in the face. In the confusion, Peter took off for second, his dive to the base bringing a cheer from the Dingers' large supporting cast. The Dingers would load the bases in the next inning, but couldn't push any more runs across, as they fell 4-2.
Like father, like son:
Sons: 8-22 (AVG = .364, OBP = .533), 7R, 7RBI, 8BB, 9K
Dads: 5-17 (AVG = .294, OBP = .538), 7R, 5RBI, 9BB, 9K
The Berner-Hays: Terrors on the Bases
Part 2. Vanquished
I considered posting this article in the five spot, hoping not to attract your attention. New York was rough on the Freeze. Four losses, with three coming as shutouts. A composite .217 batting average. Jason Matt and Daniel Rish tied for the team lead with an even 18 ERA (Andrew Winter was not far behind, at 19.4, and we didn't unleash the Matt Pearson lob-ball on them). Plus it was humid. All told, the Seattle Freeze recorded an inning's worth of outs by restless leg syndrome*. And we had a short trip to several local hospitals. And it couldn't have been more fun.
We came into the games expecting to win. Seriously, we were ridiculously confident as we slowly took a train to the Bronx, happily discussing our plans even as we were getting ripped off by the Long Island Railroad. In retrospect, maybe it's easy to see that we were not destined for Ohio. The teams that Seattle Wiffleball was represented by are currently a combined 3-13. I had never pitched with an unscuffed wiffleball, and none of us had seen much unlimited speed pitching. So what is in Ohio? We will not know this year, but maybe our goal should be to find out in 2017. Jason Matt has taken on the role of scout and recruiter, leading the push to improve and make it to Believeland (actually Columbus) for the National Tournament held annually in July.
Despite our overall lackluster performance, the NWLA tournament was not without bright spots for your hometown squad. The bats came alive for a 11-1 victory over the Mick Fenway Rhode Runners, as Dan Rish dialed it in for a few innings, allowing only one hit and issuing one walk. Every member of the team got at least one hit**, and scored at least one run. However, the highlight of our tournament belonged to Preston Sahabu. In a bit of baserunning bamboozlery, Preston used the power of the unexpected to steal a base from the Tampa Bay Lightning in our final game. On a ball hit to center by XX, Tampa played for the force out of Sahabu at second. Preston beat the play by a quarter of a step, but third was the goal he had in mind. In stride, Preston made the turn as the Tampaplayers looked to the ump for an out call. The aggressive play was rewarded as Preston would score after the next at-bat.
*The NWLA has a rule that once on base, any player who leaves the base for any reason without the batter making contact with the ball is out. Coupled with five-ball walks, this was a recipe for disaster. Down a handful of runs but threatening, the Freeze had the bases loaded and one out against Greater Auburn Wiffleball. On the fourth ball to Preston Sahabu, Daniel Rish stepped off second, and was immediately ruled out. Jason Matt, on first, mistakenly thought this to be the third out, and stepped off the bag, thus completing a double play that was more low energy than a Jeb Bush - Ben Carson ticket. In the final game, again with the bases loaded, Andrew Winter was on first. After what the umps ruled the fourth balls, Winter asked an ump if that was the fifth ball. Perhaps the question was not heard, but Andrew took the silence for a 'yes', whereupon he was called out, ending the epic rally which would surely have ensued in its tracks.
**The NWLA might dispute this, as they record errors on batted balls. Both Preston Sahabu and Jason Matt were robbed of hits by error calls. WHAT? Yes, we were outraged too. But instead of signing a 'P' and playing under protest, we're going to use our accounting system and return all hits to theirrightful owners.
Part 3. Three cheers
Pitcher of the Weeks: Scott Lewis of Cannonball Coming threw a 5-inning perfect game versus Chicken'n'Wiffles on May 29th. The perfect game was the first ever in the league, and the only no-hitter longer than four innings ever in league history.
Honorable Mention: Greg Nyssen (Get a Wiff over Chicken'n'Wiffles) and Aidan Welch (The Dingers over Get a Wiff) get honorable mention for their run-of-the-mill no-hitters.
Defensive Player of the Weeks: Jacob Pope ( Brian Pendergast
Offensive Player of the Weeks: Karl Koch (Cannonball Coming) had an all-around beast of a month -- see below.
Part 4. Who is Karl Koch?
Is Karl Koch some kind of former MLB standout? So asked Jacob Pope, captain of the Dingers, on seeing Karl's offensive stats through four games with Cannonball Coming. Despite the small sample size, they are eye-popping.
AVG: .937 (15-16), SLG: 2.437, Doubles: 2, HR: 7, RBI: 27, Total Bases: 39
At this point, Karl could get out 23 consecutive times and still match last season's highest slugging percentage, and he has already tied both the single game and single season home run records. So, can he keep it up? If so, it will be hard to catch the 7-1 Cannonball Coming squad from steamrolling into the playoffs.
In addition, though he has yet to see the mound in live action, Koch is the purveyour of the league's only bonafide knuckleball, which could soon be dancing across a plate near you.
Part 5. Circle of Death
Okay, this one is just a teaser, or I would never publish this article. The schedule format will be released soon (a vague time in the future when things will be done by), and it will be a format termed the "Circle of Death". All teams will play 18 games, with playoffs on August 14th and 28th.
Part 6. Miscellanea
Anyone wishing to submit content to the website, please reach out to the commissioner -- it would be great to add multiple voices to the website on either a one-time or recurring basis. You may have noticed that last year, the site had more pictures -- mainly player pictures, which are very useful in figuring out who is who. Let it be resolved then, that there will be more content in this vein from this point forward.Finally, any suggestions regarding improvement in the league are suggested and encouraged. Shout out to Chicken'n'Wiffles' Zac Harris, for his suggestion to lower the strike zone (given the depth of the batter's box, it has effectively been raised two inches), the West Coast Washout's Jason Matt, for his suggestion to add a safety base at first (approved, but somehow implementation has not occurred over 11 months of hectoring), Marsha Swatosh, for her suggestion to add a roll of artificial turf to improve the catastrophe of a mound (under advisement), and Ryan Nemethy of the Bungalow Boys, for suggesting a bookkeeping app to save time in compiling stats (likely upon the return of Miss Swatosh, or when the commissioner gets a smartphone, or when hell freezes over). All are most appreciated (an appreciation I would like to show by implementing said ideas).
Remaining Schedule Announced
The remaining schedule is posted below, along with the much ballyhooed "Circle of Death". Basically, it needed a cool name to smooth it over. The schedule is a best effort attempt to create a balanced schedule in a slightly unconventional way. With a 9-team league, there was also an option to have three 3-team divisions. However, that will almost inevitably lead to unequal divisions, where teams fighting for the wild card are benefited because of their draw. This schedule may have the same shortcomings, but it is hard to point out any team that has a significantly easier or harder path to a playoff spot. So, here is the format:
Each team will play the two teams adjacent to them on the circle in single game matchups. This format removes the balance of having doubleheaders; where teams can't dominate by relying on a sole ace pitcher. To combat this... No pitcher will be eligible to pitch more than 3 innings in these games. This is meant to prevent teams from playing against a stacked deck in a way they wouldn't in a doubleheader. Also, this should lend itself to playoff contenders emerging -- Game 3 of any playoff series has a similar 4 inning limit. The 3 inning limit is representative of the number of games which have been cut short this year due to time constraints, which do not apply in the playoffs. A single pitcher may appear in both of the COD games; they are not connected in any way. In order to facilitate the playing of these games, all teams will be scheduled on Sunday, July 24th, with staggered start times. (ie. A vs. B @ 10 AM, B vs. C @ 11 AM, ... , H vs I @ 7 PM). That means that everyone will play two games, except A vs. I, which will be scheduled for a Sunday down the line. Exactly where you fall into that schedule will also be determined at a later date.
Full Remaining Schedule: (TIMES NOT INCLUDED)
7/17/2016
Wiffle Junction vs. 100% Real Juice
Bungalow Boys vs. Get A Wiff
RBI Steaks vs. West Coast Washout
7/24/2016
CIRCLE OF DEATH
7/31 /2016
100% Real Juice vs. Cannonball Coming
Wiffle Junction vs. RBI Steaks
Bungalow Boys vs. West Coast Washout
Dingers vs. Chicken'n'Wiffles
8/7 /2016
100% Real Juice Juice vs. Bungalow Boys
Wiffle Junction vs. Cannonball Coming
Completion of CIRCLE OF DEATH
One-Game Playoff Tiebreakers (if necessary)
8/14 /2016
Playoff Semifinals (#1 vs. #4, #2 vs. #3)
8/28/2016
Championship -- The Battle for the Little Golden Man Trophy
All-Star Festivities and Awards
Cannonball! Rookies Dominating the Stats
Check out the league leaders below! Full stats can be found on your team page, and play around with the league leaders tab to the left. But first:
Part 1: Better Know a Rule
During last Sunday's game between the Bungalow Boys and Chicken'n'Wiffles, Zac Harris hit a ground ball and singled, running straight through the base. One of his teammates scored on the play, and in doing so drew a throw from the Bungalow Boys defense. Harris advanced to third on the throw as it remained in play, coming straight from his position by the right field fence. Harris claimed this was a legal move, and quoted the relevant rule, almost verbatim. He was subsequently ruled back to first, as he had been in no way close to the path between first and second. But, alas, his protestations to the contrary were correct.
According to Rule 7.08(a)(1): "A runner's baseline is established when the tag attempt occurs, and is a straight line from the runner to the base to which he/she is attempting to reach." Since our league has no rule on the matter, we default to the major league baseball rules. This leaves the possibility of shenanigans when base-stealing is allowed (Google "Skunk in the Outfield", per Harris's suggestion), but means for wiffleball purposes that prior to a tag attempt being made, no effort need be made to remain between the bases.
Part 2: No Ruling = Better
The commissioner is sometimes consumed with zeal in the effort of loudly making umpiring decisions. The roots of this particular habit go back to the founding of Seattle Wiffleball, when real efforts had to be made to keep things organized and running smoothly. That no longer describes the atmosphere in the league, with 5 teams approaching the 2 year mark and 4 others going strong into the end of their first. This condition has two main drawbacks -- first, infallibility is not a part of the office. Just this past week, several close calls were made at the plate and on fair/foul calls. These had major impacts on the finales of both the Steaks - Juice and Cannonball - Dingers series. Were the calls right? Perhaps. Whether they were or weren't, the second major drawback is that in acting like an umpire, it undermines the need for opponents to come to a mutual understanding of what exactly transpired on a close play. For that reason, and in the name of getting the calls right, I will stand aside in the future unless called upon. If you haven't noticed a problem with rulings -- great! But if you have -- well the times, they are a-changing.
Offensive League Leaders
| Batting Average [Min 35 PA] | | On-base PCT [Min 35 PA] | | Doubles | | Homeruns | | Runs Batted In | | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Karl Koch, CC | .875 | Karl Koch, CC | .886 | Scott Lewis, CC | 10 | Karl Koch, CC | 7 | Mike Tarantino, CC | 39 | | Scott Lewis, CC | .667 | Scott Lewis, CC | .763 | Mike Tarantino, CC | 6 | Mike Tarantino, CC | 6 | Karl Koch, CC | 30 | | Andrew Winter, WCW | .571 | Andrew Winter, WCW | .681 | Zac Harris, CNW | 6 | Scott Lewis, CC | 5 | Scott Lewis, CC | 30 | | Mike Tarantino, CC | .533 | Jeremy Martin, WJ | .667 | Aidan Welch, DS | 5 | Jeremy Martin, WJ | 4 | Daniel Rish, WCW | 23 | | Epo Olivarez, 100% | .520 | Matt Rosenfeld, 100% | .667 | BJ Lemon, WJ | 5 | Sam Lacroix, 100% | 4 | Andrew Ybarra, GAW | 23 |
Pitching League Leaders
| Wins | | ERA [Min 10 IP] | | WHIP [Min 10 IP] | | Strikeouts | | OPP AVG | | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Aidan Welch, DS | 5-0 | Aidan Welch, DS | 0.23 | Aidan Welch, DS | 0.88 | Aidan Welch, DS | 73 | Aidan Welch, DS | .093 | | Scott Lewis, CC | 5-1 | Daniel Rish, WCW | 2.12 | Daniel Rish, WCW | 1.62 | Daniel Rish, WCW | 73 | Nick Winn, RBI | .114 | | Nick Winn, RBI | 5-1 | Cody Thomson, DS | 3.00 | Cody Thomson, DS | 1.67 | Nick Winn, RBI | 68 | Daniel Rish, WCW | .175 | | Greg Nyssen, GAW | 4-2 | Nick Winn, RBI | 3.46 | Scott Lewis, CC | 1.71 | Greg Nyssen, GAW | 63 | Cody Thomson, DS | .182 | | Daniel Rish, WCW | 4-2 | Scott Lewis, CC | 3.64 | Nick Winn, RBI | 1.85 | Scott Lewis, CC | 51 | Matt Rosenfeld, 100% | .244 |
Team Rankings
| Batting Average | | OPS | | Slugging Pct. | | ERA | | Walks Allowed | | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Cannonball Coming | .481 | Cannonball Coming | 13.50 | Cannonball Coming | 1.368 | The Dingers | 5.23 | Wiffle Junction | 56 | | Wiffle Junction | .415 | 100% Real Juice | 10.10 | 100% Real Juice | 1.194 | 100% Real Juice | 6.08 | 100% Real Juice | 68 | | 100% Real Juice | .403 | Wiffle Junction | 9.00 | Wiffle Junction | 1.125 | Cannonball Coming | 7.24 | The Dingers | 77 | | RBI Steaks | .394 | RBI Steaks | 8.75 | RBI Steaks | 1.112 | RBI Steaks | 7.64 | RBI Steaks | 79 |
