POwer Rankings Week 16

Quick playoffs thought before we move onto the power rankings: While we’re still a month away from the post season beginning, I want to go on the record and give my dark horse pick. Last year I talked about the similarities shared between each winning team since 2010. While I mostly agree these traits are coincidental, an argument can be made (especially for #3 on the list) that it’s an important feature for a championship team to possess. These traits are:

1.       At least two rookies on the roster.

2.       No player from the previous year’s championship club is on the team.

3.       The team ranks in the top 8 of Runs Scored.

Like I said, the first two may seem pretty coincidental but so far this has been the pattern. Only one team this year fits all three categories…. Team Younger.

This is a team that I predicted would get off to a slow start only to emerge late in the season. While the ship hasn’t necessarily hit smooth sailing yet, there are a few signs that point to potential playoff success. Despite sporting a measly 6-12 record (4^th worst in the league), they have the 6^th best run differential. They also play in The American League, which is completely up for grabs, and have beaten quality opponents including Mamone twice (including a  shutout) and Randell. Nobody in the AL has looked like a surefire pick, so I’m going to pick the team that has fit the recent championship criteria to make the finals.

Power Rankings:

1.       Applebaum (1): Another dominating performance last Sunday strongly suggests UH Left might be the first field selected in the playoffs. Applebaum has scored at least 20 runs in all three UH Left games this year. This league used to feature an Elite 3 or 4 teams at the top, but APplebaum has separated themselves from a very competitive group.

 

2.       Jacoby (2): On the bright side, their 5-4 loss was one of Jacoby’s best defensive outings of the season. For a team built on defense, that’s a good sign as we march towards the playoffs.

 

3.       Carlin (4): After back to back three run performances, Carlin has responded with 24 and 16 run offensive explosions. It’s safe to say that two game mini-slump was just a hiccup.

 

4.        Randell (3): After finally giving them the long overdue Power Rankings respect they deserved, Randell loses only their third game not decided by one run. I think their loss is more of a sign that Bykofsky is playing better than Randell having a poor game.

 

5.       Wallman (5): Seven wins in a row and 10 out of their last 12 only gets the fifth spot on the list? Again, this is more of a reflection on how strong the NL is than anything else.

 

6.        Goldfarb (8): This is where it gets murky. It’s pretty unusual for a time to jump two spots despite losing its last game, but so much of Goldfarb’s recent inconsistency can be excused by missing key players.

 

7.       Mamone (6): I still believe Mamone has Finals potential, but they need to get out of this slump. I’d call it a “mini” slump, but it becomes worse when you get shutout

 

8.       Pollock (7): The loss to Applebaum was ugly, but APplebaum has been crushing opoonants all season. The last stretch of games will be an important test to se if we can beat some of the elite teams.