2014 NLCS Wrapup - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Brew City came into the NLCS playing their best baseball of the year. They swept Portsmouth and Fleetwood and hoped to do the same to Metropolis. The Avengers had other plans, winning the first three games and taking the series four games to one, moving on to their third consecutive Brassball World Series. Here are some of the numbers behind the series.

• Brew City scored just ten runs in the series - fewer than Metropolis scored in Game Three alone.
• Avenger 3B Jose Bautista hit just .200, but did walk five times for a .400 OBP.
• Brew City ace Matt Harvey was both hard to hit (18 strikeouts) and easy to hit (3 homers) in his 13 2/3 innings.
• The Avengers had an .833 OPS vs right-handed pitchers but just a .382 OPS vs lefties.
• Doug Fister struck out 10 Avengers in just six innings. He earned a World Series ring with Metropolis in 2012.
• Another former Avenger, Andy Pettitte (2006 World Series ring), allowed one run in his three relief appearances, spanning 3 2/3 innings.
• The Metropolis pitchers held Brew City to a .567 OPS. They had a .756 OPS in the regular season. (No team was lower than .604 in the regular season.)
• The Brew City MVP candidate, Paul Goldschmidt had just three hits in the series, but two were homers. Unfortunately for the Warriors, they were both solo shots and the only RBIs Goldschmidt had in the series were when he drove himself in.
• Jose Reyes made both of the Metropolis errors.
• Brandon Phillips hit .333 (5 for 15), but was the only Warrior to hit better than .250.
• Metropolis struck out 47 times, an amazing 25.7% of their plate appearances. (They struck out in 18.4% of their plate appearances during the season.)
• Avenger flamethrower Aroldis Chapman gave up a homer in one of his two outings. This is becoming a pattern, as he gave up 10 homers in 60 innings during the regular season.
• Metropolis stole four bases in the five games, after stealing only 43 during the regular season.
• Avenger catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit .385 with a series cycle (two singles, a double, triple and homer). He hit just two triples during the regular season.
• Brew City went 2-10 against Metropolis in the playoffs and regular season. They were outscored 92-31 in those 12 games.
• Metropolis's slugging first baseman Chris Davis was just 2-17 with no RBIs.
• Avenger relievers inherited eight runners, five of whom were in scoring position. Only one scored.
• Following Game Five, Warrior Matt Harvey dodged questions about his right elbow, which he appeared to be favoring late in the game.
• Metropolis hit .294/.429/.529 in clutch situations, for a .958 OPS. Brew City hit .143/.200/.429 for a .629 OPS in their clutch at bats.
• Metropolis starter Clay Buchholz won the NLCS MVP award. He went 2-0 with a sterling 0.87 ERA in his two starts. He only pitched 10 1/3 IP in those starts, but that was his job - to give the game to the Metropolis bullpen.

2014 NLCS Game Five - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Brew City fought off elimination in Game Four and hoped to do the same in Game Five, this time with their ace on the hill. Matt Harvey took the loss in Game One, but dominated Metropolis for four innings before running into an Avenger rally in the fifth. Metropolis sent Clay Buchholz to the mound, hoping he could pick up his second win in the series and fourth win of the postseason.

McCutchen's homer put Metropolis ahead 1-0.

Harvey started the top of the first strong, striking out leadoff hitter Robinson Cano, but Andrew McCutchen silenced the crowd when he took a 3-2 fastball to straight-away center for a home run and a 1-0 Avenger lead.

Buchholz had only a slim lead, but didn't give the Warriors much room or hope, allowing just a single base runner in the first two innings.

Metropolis added to their lead in the top of the third when Cano and McCutchen hit one-out singles to start a rally. Cleanup hitter Chris Davis ripped a line drive down the line, but first baseman Paul Goldschmidt snared it for the second out. Jayson Werth came through with a clutch three-run homer, putting Metropolis up 4-0 and taking any remaining air out of the Brew City fans.

Clay Buchholz dominated for five innings.

Buchholz continued to cruise, pitching through the fifth inning while allowing just a single hit, along with a walk and a hit batsman. Buchholz also struck out five Warriors, but Metropolis still pulled him for reliever Kenley Jansen at the start of the sixth inning.

Metropolis used its deep bullpen aggressively all series and Jansen worked the sixth and got two outs in the seventh, before giving the ball to Nick Vincent. Vincent protected the 4-0 lead and gave the ball to lefty Caleb Thielbar with one out in the ninth inning. Thielbar allowed a double to Brett Gardner, but retired Carlos Beltran to end the game and send Metropolis to its third World Series in a row.

2014 NLCS Game Four - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Stephen Drew's homer put Brew City up 3-0.

Down 3-0 in the NLCS, the Brew City Warriors had their #4 starter on the mound, but everyone available in the bullpen to try and extend their season for one more day. That starter, Doug Fister, pitched for Metropolis in the last two World Series and hoped to keep his former teammates from popping champagne tonight.

Fister allowed two baserunners in the first inning, but struck out Jayson Werth and Bryce Harper to end the inning. With two outs and no one on in the bottom of the first, Fister's teammates went to work. First baseman Paul Goldschmidt took a Kyle Lohse slider out for a solo homer to start the scoring. Carlos Beltran followed with a walk and Stephen Drew slugged a two-run homer to put the Warriors up 3-0.

Danny Salazar escaped a big jam.

That was all Fister needed, as he kept Metropolis in check, striking out ten guys and not giving the Avengers any room to rally for the first six innings. Brew City called on lefty Andy Pettitte with two on and no one out in the seventh. Pettitte got an out when Goldschmidt caught a Jose Reyes line drive, but then hurt himself by failing to handle a Robinson Cano dribbler. His throwing error allowed Metropolis to score its first run and Brew City brought in Danny Salazar with the tying runs on base. Salazar faced MVP candidate Andrew McCutchen and not only won the battle, but got the pitcher's best friend, as McCutchen grounded weakly into an inning-ending double play.

Doug Fister K'd 10 Avengers.

That was the last rally in the game as both bullpens locked down the bats for the rest of the game. Kenley Jansen and Caleb Thielbar did the trick for Metropolis while Salazar gave the ball to closer Jesse Crain for the ninth inning. Crain dominated Jose Bautista and Jarrod Saltalamacchia before striking out Carlos Quentin to end the game and give Brew City its first NLCS win.

The Warriors stayed alive for another game and have to feel good about sending Matt Harvey to the mound in Game Five. They still have a long way to go, but winning Game Four was their first step.

2014 NLCS Game Three - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Brew City returned home to try and recapture its Wild Card and Division Series magic, as they were in a 2-0 series hole against Metropolis. Anibal Sanchez took the ball for the Warriors, matched by Metropolis's trade-deadline acquisition Justin Masterson.

Robinson Cano scored in the first.

The Avengers didn't give Sanchez any room to get comfortable. Robinson Cano doubled on the third pitch of the game and scored on Jayson Werth's two-out single to start the scoring. Werth stole second base to move into scoring position, but Bryce Harper flew out to end the inning.

Brew City tried to get the run right back, as Starling Marte singled and stole second to lead off the bottom of the first. Brett Gardner hit a rocket line drive, but Cano somehow snared the ball and quickly fired to Jose Reyes to double up Marte. With the bases empty, Paul Goldschmidt reached on an error and Carlos Beltran then singled. Masterson, perhaps a bit rattled, bounced a change up for a wild pitch before retiring Stephen Drew for the third out. Cano's play was huge, as it allowed Metropolis to keep their 1-0 lead despite two hits, an error and a wild pitch in the inning.

Paul Goldschmidt crushed a homer to tie the game.

The score remained 1-0 into the fourth, as each starter settled into a groove. The Warriors' MVP candidate, Goldschmidt, led off the fourth and crushed a homer deep into the bleachers, tying the game 1-1. Masterson shook it off and set down Beltran, Drew and Juan Uribe to end the inning and keep the game tied.

Bryce Harper homered in a wild fifth inning.

Unfortunately for the hometown fans, Sanchez ran into trouble in the top of the fifth. Reyes walked and stole second to start the inning. He moved to third on a Cano single and Andrew McCutchen walked to load the bases with no outs.

That's when it got really wild. Sanchez threw back-to-back wild pitches to send home two runners. He finally got an out on a Werth ground ball, but youngster Bryce Harper then slugged a two-run homer. Those four runs weren't all, as Sanchez gave up two more baserunners and reliever Yoervis Medina threw a wild pitch of his own and gave up RBI hits to Carlos Quentin and Reyes. Andy Pettitte finally got the third out, but Metropolis had turned a 1-1 game into an 8-1 blowout.

Masterson ran into some trouble in the seventh inning, but Aroldis Chapman bailed him out by retiring Brett Gardner with the bases loaded. Chapman stayed in to close out the game, despite giving up a two-run homer to Brandon Phillips in the ninth inning. By that point, the game was well out of reach and Metropolis took the game 11-3 and a commanding 3-0 lead in the ALCS.

2014 NLCS Game Two - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Metropolis has a 1-0 lead in the NLCS, having exploded for a five-run inning against Brew City ace Matt Harvey. Each team sent their #2 to the hill for game number two - Stephen Strasburg for Metropolis and Cliff Lee for Brew City.

Stephen Strasburg allowed just one run.

Both pitchers started strong, retiring the other side 1-2-3 in the first inning. Lee was a bit wild in the second, hitting Jayson Werth to start the frame. Werth went to second on a Jose Bautista walk and then scored the game's first run on a Carlos Quentin single.

Metropolis added to its lead in the third inning. Josh Satin, starting against the LHP Lee in place of slugger Chris Davis, squared up a curveball and hit a two run homer over the wall in right-center.

Josh Satin's homer stunned the Warriors.

With a 3-0 lead, Strasburg looked to be in control, allowing just two baserunners through five innings. Metropolis went to the

bullpen after Starling Marte doubled with one out in the sixth inning, calling on flamethrowing lefty Aroldis Chapman. Chapman uncorked a wild pitch and then gave up an RBI double to Brett Gardner, but retired Paul Goldschmidt and Carlos Beltran to end the inning.

After that, the Metropolis bullpen was in control. Nick Vincent went 1-2-3 in the seventh and eighth innings before giving the ball to Caleb Thielbar. Thielbar retired Gardner, Goldschmidt and Beltran in order to close out the game and give Metropolis a 2-0 lead in the series.

2014 NLCS Game One - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Brew City came to Metropolis the seeming underdog, having won 97 games to the Avengers' 121. However, the Warriors are playing their best baseball of the season, having swept away the Portsmouth Brewers and Fleetwood Walkers in eight straight games. They also had their undisputed ace, Matt Harvey, on the hill to face Avenger Clay Buchholz.

Matt Harvey was dominant at the start of Game One.

Warrior Starling Marte got the game started with a double on the second pitch. He scored moments later on Brett Gardner's single, giving the Warriors a quick lead and continuing their hot streak. Buchholz allowed another single to Stephen Drew, but escaped the inning without any further damage.

Harvey, on the other hand, looked sharp right from the start. He retired Metropolis in order in the first and cruised through the first four innings, allowing just two runners. Buchholz did his best to match Harvey and the game remained 1-0 Brew City into the bottom of the fifth.

Jose Bautista's solo shot started the fifth-inning rally.

Metropolis had the bottom of their order due in the fifth, but that didn't matter. Jose Bautista led off the inning with a homer to tie the game and the rally was on. Jarrod Saltalamacchia singled and Carlos Quentin leaned into a fastball to put two on with no outs. A double by Robinson Cano and single by Andrew McCutchen plated three more runs and put the Avengers up 4-1. Harvey gave up a single to Jayson Werth and walks to Bryce Harper and Bautista before finally being relieved. Andy Pettitte retired pinch hitter Josh Satin, but the damage was done. Metropolis had its ace and a deep and rested bullpen to protect a 5-1 lead.

Juan Uribe was thrown out in the seventh, ending a rally.

Brew City tried to rally back in the seventh, with singles from Alex Rios and Brandon Phillips to start the frame. Starling Marte pushed across a run with a groundout, making the lead 5-2 and chasing Buchholze from the game. Reliever Nick Vincent retired Gardner and slugger Paul Goldschmidt to end the inning.

Brew City scored another run in the top of the eighth, but Juan Uribe was thrown out trying to score on a Rios double, ending the inning and killing the rally.

Metropolis added two insurance runs on a Matt Wieters eighth inning homer, but Craig Kimbrel didn't need them, closing out the Warriors to end the game and secure the 7-3 Metropolis win in Game One.

2014 NLCS Preview - Metropolis vs. Brew City

Brew City swept two series to make their way to an NLCS matchup with two-time defending NL champ Metropolis. Here are a few nuggets to set the stage.

• The regular-season series was a complete mismatch, with Metropolis going 6-1 against Brew City. The sole Warrior win was 2-1, while the Avengers won games 16-4 and 20-2. Metropolis scored 66 runs in the seven games and allowed just 21. Metropolis scored more in their series vs. Brew City than it did against any other team.
• Brew City won 97 games to Metropolis’s 121, with much of that difference in games that could go either way. The Avengers went 10-0 in extra innings and 24-15 in one-run games. The Warriors went 11-10 in extras and 25-23 in one-run games.
• Even though the Avengers won 24 more games during the regular season, it’s tough to call them the favorite, as the Warriors just swept series against Portsmouth, who won 105 games and Fleetwood, who won 113 games.
• The series is a matchup of two first basemen who are also battling for MVP votes. The Warriors’ Paul Goldschmidt hit .333/.410/.602 for a 1.012 OPS with 41 homers and 145 RBIs. Avenger Chris Davis hit .286/.376/.662 for a 1.038 OPS with 51 homers and 124 RBIs.
• Metropolis will be facing Doug Fister, who it traded to Brew City during the offseason. Fister went 13-8 with a 4.61 ERA in 32 starts for the Warriors. He also started (and lost) the game vs Metropolis which Brew City lost 20-2.
• Brew City closer Jesse Crain appears to be fully healthy after missing much of the season. He is also a weapon out of the Warrior bullpen, compiling a 0.68 ERA in his 13.1 innings during the regular season.
• Brew City’s leadoff hitter Starling Marte knows his job is to get on base, anyway possible – he got hit by 20 pitches during the regular season, trailing only Shin Soo Choo’s amazing 35 in all of Brassball. (Number two hitter Brett Gardner got hit by 15 pitches himself.)
• The aces for each team had nearly identical seasons. Brew City’s Matt Harvey went 12-4 with a 2.44 ERA. Metropolis’s Clay Buchholz went 12-4 with a 2.45 ERA.
• The number twos were also nearly identical. Brew City’s Cliff Lee was 17-8 with a 2.68 ERA and Metropolis’s Stephen Strasburg was 18-7 with a 2.62 ERA.
• During the regular season, Brew City’s relievers were essentially indistinguishable from its starters – the relievers had a 3.52 ERA and the starters had a 3.53 ERA.
• The Metropolis bullpen was a real weapon, however, compiling a 2.49 ERA in 452 innings, compared to the starters’ 3.08 ERA in 1006 innings.

2012 Brassball All-Stars - Pitchers

My earlier post discussed the 2012 Brassball All-Star hitters.  Various challenges, including position difficulty, playing time differences and team representation can make the hitters a very difficult All-Star puzzle.  The pitchers shouldn't be as difficult, however.  You don't need to weigh the difference between a slugging first baseman and a defensive star catcher.  Sure, you need to have a bunch of starters and a couple relievers, but that's about it. 


So, let's take a look to see how this year’s All-Star pitching rosters stack up.


Similar to the Weighted OPS (wOPS) I used to rank the hitters, I’m going to use a simple calculation that will give pitchers credit for both the number of innings pitched and the quality of those innings.  Let’s use youngster Jeremy Hellickson and veteran Roy Halladay as examples.


Hellickson has pitched 138 2/3 innings with a sparkling 2.14 ERA.  Halladay, however, has pitched many more innings – 174 1/3, but his ERA is also significantly higher at 2.58.  Are Halladay’s innings more valuable than Hellickson’s superior ERA?  If we divide a pitcher’s innings by his ERA, we’ll get a Weighted ERA (wERA) that gives credit for both innings and ERA.  Doing the calculation for Halladay and Hellickson shows that, by wERA, Halladay’s quantity was more valuable than Hellickson’s quality.

Halladay: 174.33/2.58 = 67.57
Hellickson: 138.66/2.14 = 64.80

Those wERAs rank Halladay #2 and Hellickson #5 in all of Brassball.  Although drawing lines between players at the very top of the game may be difficult, that’s what I’m here to do.
Here are the top 15 starting pitchers, ranked by wERA.  Eight of the 15 will be making the trip to the midsummer classic.

	NAME	ERA	IP	wERA
1	C.Kershaw	2.52	175.33	69.58
2	R.Halladay	2.58	174.33	67.57	All-Star
3	T.Lincecum	2.37	159.67	67.37	All-Star
4	J. Verlander	2.73	181.00	66.40	All-Star
5	J.Hellickson	2.14	138.67	64.80	All-Star
6	J.Weaver	2.64	170.67	64.65
7	J.Shields	2.73	174.67	63.98	All-Star
8	Y.Gallardo	2.61	158.67	60.79	All-Star
9	M.Cain	2.64	160.33	60.73	All-Star
10	C.Sabathia	2.73	164.67	60.32
11	C.Carpenter	2.93	168.67	57.57	All-Star
12	M.Bumgarner	2.76	156.67	56.76
13	C.Hamels	3.18	169.67	53.35
14	M.Garza	2.57	136.33	53.05
15	J.Vazquez	2.80	141.67	50.60

Amazingly, wERA leader Clayton Kershaw won’t be at the All-Star game.  Springfield’s Tim Lincecum ranks third overall, but first in the NL and will be that league’s starter.  Santa Barbara’s Hellickson is the fourth best starter in the AL but got the starting nod, likely because of his 14-1 record, as much as his great ERA. 


Looking at the chart above makes it easy to identify Kershaw and Outlaw Jered Weaver as the two starters who most deserved a nod but were left home.  What about the starters making the trip that were further down the list?  Parkland’s Jon Lester ranked just 33 with a 41.59 wERA.  Cook County’s Anibal Sanchez also made the team with a 42.98 wERA, good for #28 in Brassball.  Sanchez made the team despite throwing just 104 innings, but he was a nearly perfect 12-1 in his 15 starts.


Now, let’s turn to the relievers.  Here it can be a little trickier, as many voters like to reward big save totals as opposed to the best pitching.  Every year, it seems that some of the most effective relief pitchers are somewhat hidden in the seventh and eighth innings, as opposed to the more glamorous role in the ninth.  I re-ran the wERA leader board limiting it to pitchers that made 10 or more relief appearances this season.  Here are the top 15, including saves for good measure:

	NAME	ERA	IP	SV	wERA
1	M.Belisle	1.02	44.00	1	43.14
2	J.Lopez	0.79	34.00	1	43.04
3	J.Venters	1.30	55.33	17	42.56	All-Star
4	S.Marshall	1.24	51.00	2	41.13
5	D.Oliver	0.95	38.00	6	40.00
6	K.Farnsworth	1.14	39.33	1	34.50
7	C.Martinez	1.74	57.00	5	32.76
8	F.Salas	1.55	46.33	28	29.89
9	P.Humber	3.18	93.33	2	29.35
10	S.Cishek	1.66	48.67	1	29.32
11	A.Alburquerque	1.24	36.33	2	29.30
12	S.Romo	1.13	32.00	2	28.32
13	J.Peralta	1.70	47.67	6	28.04
14	S.Casilla	1.52	41.33	3	27.19
15	T.Clippard	2.61	69.00	3	26.44

Amazingly, just one of the top 15 relievers, ranked by wERA is in the All-Star game.  Even more amazingly, it’s not the guy with 28 saves – Superior’s Fernando Salas.  A couple of names jump out from this list.  Obviously Lancaster’s Matt Belisle and Santa Barbara’s Javy Lopez have had standout seasons., even if they don’t get the chance to close for their teams.  Phil Humber, however, has been an absolute workhorse for the Maulers, throwing 93 innings in 41 games.  Given how hard he's been worked so far, Humber may actually prefer a three day vacation to a trip to the All-Star game. 

So, where did the All-Star relievers come from?  Here’s where they rank on the wERA list of pitchers with 10 or more relief appearances.  

Rank	NAME	ERA	IP	SV	wERA
3	J.Venters	1.30	55.33	17	42.56	All-Star
42	J.Smith	2.23	36.33	12	16.29	All-Star
50	B.Sanches	2.91	43.33	3	14.89	All-Star
57	S.Elbert	1.59	22.67	0	14.26	All-Star

Not surprisingly, Hessville, Brew City and Boston did not have many candidates for the All-Star team.  As such, their best choices (Smith, Sanchez and Elbert, respectively) were middle relievers.  Although he has been effective for the Tea Party, Elbert is likely the single least deserving All-Star this year.  He has by far the fewest innings of any All-Star and has only appeared in ten games.  All that said, I’d put my money on Elbert to win the game’s MVP, because that’s just the sort of thing baseball would do to surprise everyone.