#4 Vault 81 Dwellers(63-46) vs #5 Jamaica Plain Red Rockets (59-49)
Season Series: Vault 81 8, Jamaica Plain 0
April 2-3 @V81: V81 3-2, V81 6-5
April 7-8 @JP: V81 5-2, V81 5-2
June 25-26 @V81: V81 10-2, V81 11-10
July 9-10 @JP: V81 9-6, V81 3-2
Vault 81 Home Page
Jamaica Plain Home Page
Game 1 Matchup
Analysis
After losing a tiebreaker game to Diamond City for the Railroad League crown, the Dwellers dropped from a first-round bye to the #4 seed. Lucky for them, they get the team they dominated most in the 2301 season, the Jamaica Plain Red Rockets. Vault 81 is a well-balanced team, finishing 2nd in the SCA in runs scored (580) while allowing the 5th-most runs (501). The heart of the scary-good offense is CF Aesed Hayjen (.348/29/84), the team's triple crown winner. Around Hayjen are some other strong pieces in RF Deer Quickwalker (.306/26/80), 2B Harry Byrd (.288/16/62), and SS Knud Bather (.281/27/80). The 1-2-3 combination in the starting lineup is pretty good for the team with the SCA's 3rd best Starters ERA (4.15). Ace Vince McCort returned from injury and started dominating, going 7-3 with a 2.12 ERA in just 13 starts. The Dwellers traded for Quentin Malone (13-13, 4.46) from Easy Town. Edwin Mass (16-7, 3.36) had the most success in leading the team in his own triple crown for pitching. In the bullpen, Vault 81 is not as good. CL Justin Sumbich (17 SV, 3.83) is serviceable but needs to be better. He did show improvement once he came over from Finch Farm, dropping his ERA from 4.50. Tom Rose (25 SV, 2.23) was the closer before and now becomes the best option out of the bullpen unless Mass or Danny Haines (14-8, 4.90) gets a lot of postseason innings.
Jamaica Plain returns to the playoffs after getting a taste last season. The Red Rockets were able to enjoy success as the 4th seed, getting a victory over Minutemen League rivals, the University Point Deathclaws. While the Claws climbed to the #1 seed this season, the Rockets dropped a spot. Part of that drop is through limited success on offense, including the 8th-most runs scored (498) and the 10th-best batting average (.249). In fact, no player hit over .300 with RF Goody Cloyse (.299/9/42) coming closest. LF Carney Cornseed (.284/26/75) and C Ayag Mour (.280/11/52) are the Rockets' best overall players. 1B Cody Flatt (.213/23/66) continues to be the CBO's best home run hitter, but he struggled at the plate a lot in 2301. While the offense has struggled, the pitching has kept Jamaica Plain afloat. They finished tied for 3rd in runs allowed (487) with the 4th-best Starters ERA (4.27). The young combination of SP Digger Vadim (13-9, 3.90) and SP Chris Deathclaw (14-5, 3.02) has been highly effective. Unfortunately, their ace, Chris Teddybear (4-1, 3.86) suffered another serious injury, meaning reliever-turned-starter Aldo Sanch (7-13, 5.60) is likely to get the start if there is a third game in this series.
Prediction
Vault 81 has had the Red Rockets' number all season, and there is no reason to think anything will change. The Dwellers take this one, 2-0.