[StLee]

Analysis

There was some movement this week, but very little has changed overall in a three-game week due to the All-Star Week festivities.

Goodneighbor rises to #1 for the second time this season. Last time, they only held the top spot for a week before Oberland took its rightful place as the best team in the CBO.

The Hancocks' rise is due in large part on what they did before this week. Riding an eight-game winning streak, Goodneighbor has shown that their 2297 team that finished the regular season as the #2 overall team was no fluke. Unlike last season, Goodneighbor should be able to advance in the playoffs against one of the two wildcard teams. That could spell trouble for the T-51s in the postseason.

Nordhagen Beach was able to put an extra game of distance between The Slog and themselves this weekend thanks to taking two of three at The Slog. While the bullpen has been in the middle of the pack in effectiveness this season, the starters are one of, if not, the best units in the CBO. Even when they don't get the run support they need, that 3.75 ERA is outstanding.

We will feature the Institute League at the bottom of this article. But first, the current Power Rankings.

Power Rankings

Weekly Team Power Rankings: Here are the current team power rankings for Commonwealth Baseball Organization:

Teams (Total Points, Tendency):
1) Goodneighbor Hancocks (143.1, +1)
2) Oberland T-51s (140.6, -1)
3) Nordhagen Beach Party Boys (119.2, o)
4) Diamond City Swatters (107.3, ++3)
5) Fort Hagen Silver Shroud (102.9, o)
6) Warwick Mirelurks (102.9, ++3)
7) The Slog Ghouls (97.9, --3)
8) Starlight Lady Killers (96.9, -2)
9) University Point Deathclaws (96.3, ++9)
10) Easy Town Assaultrons (95.3, +2)
11) Abernathy Adamantium (93.9, --3)
12) Concord Radstags (93.4, -1)
13) Finch Farm Four Leafs (86.4, +1)
14) FHE Yao Guai (85.7, -1)
15) Quincy Gunners (84.6, --5)
16) Salem Witch Hats (78.4, +1)
17) Lexington Synths (76.1, ++4)
18) County Crossing Bloodbugs (74.8, +2)
19) Jamaica Plain Red Rockets (72.4, --3)
20) Atom Cats (70.5, --5)
21) Vault 81 Dwellers (68.5, +1)
22) Egret Ninjas (68.4, --3)
23) Sunshine Tidings Chemists (64.8, o)
24) Roxbury Knuckle Punchers (40.6, o)

IL: A Three-Way Radrat Race

Abernathy, Fort Hagen, and Starlight are all sitting atop the IL at 37-31 with just 40 games left on the slate. If this keeps up, we will have one of the more thrilling league finishes that we have had in our three years of the CBO. Only two will go to the playoffs.

All three teams have had their ups and downs on the season with the Silver Shroud currently the hottest of the three: 7-3 in their last 10, weekend series win over the Lady Killers. The Adamantium are currently the coldest: 4-6 in their last 10, series loss at home against 4th-place Concord.

Some of Abernathy's recent troubles come on offense. CF Flatface Parker, whom the Adamantium obtained from Quincy, has hit just .184 for his new team in 26 games after hitting .307 in 42 games with the Gunners. While the middle of the lineup has been doing its job, the bottom of the lineup is falling flat. In addition to Parker, Joel Mutfruit and Canbed McMurty are failing to get hits at a pace needed to pull up the 7th-best scoring offense in the North Charles Association.

The Shroud can probably feel Abernathy's pain when it comes to offense. The 11th-best scoring offense has the least chance to separate itself from the pack unless it gets lights out pitching each and every game. The strange thing is that Fort Hagen is 3rd in the NCA in batting average and fourth in on-base percentage. They just do not get the timely hits they need at a consistent level to ever pull away from opponents. One aspect of that is that they are the second least powerful team in all of the CBO (FHE) with a NCA-low 46 home runs. For perspective, the Nordhagen Beach Party Boys' two best home run hitters, Dustin Mart and Michael Fogcrawler have hit a combined 45! Shroud cleanup hitter Sam Noob hits well for average (.344), but he has only 10 home runs, making him dead last in home runs for a team leader. For further perspective, most teams have at least two with 10 or more home runs. The only other team without that number is the Yao Guai, whose homers leader, Pistol Schmidt, only has 11. In short, the Shroud need to drive in those runners on base with big-time hits. If they are in the market for trades, they should look to sell off their farm for a home run hitter or two.

The Lady Killers are a team we still feel wary about due to their epic collapse last season. Sure, they cleaned house with the coaching staff, but many of the same players are here and will get nervous if they drop a few games at a time. Starlight is in the middle of the pack in scoring (6th with 352) and runs allowed (7th with 346). One of their biggest problems is that what should be a good starting staff in City Moore (4-9, 6.49), Chris Schneier (5-8, 5.84), Justin Sphinx (9-2, 3.43), and Jonathan Newman (8-9, 5.75) is 11th in the NCA in Starters ERA. It's only that good because of Sphinx's production since joining the team in late-April in a trade with Warwick. Despite the numbers not looking great, this team does have a lot of leadership and ability and right now stands as our favorite for taking the IL.