BGB Fantasy League 2018: Week 17

Week 17 of the BaseballGB Fantasy League saw another change at the top – and the top two go head-to-head this week.

The Maltsters were the biggest winners of the week, using an offensive sweep to defeat the Sox 9-2. Nelson Cruz did most of the damage, homering four times and driving in 10, Marwin Gonzalez scored five runs and hit three homers and Hosmer batted .348 with a steal. Anibal Sanchez was one of three pitchers with a win while Jansen had the lone save of the matchup and McHugh and Madson had a hold each. Cole struck out 16 for the Sox while De Grom made the difference in ERA and WHIP for a very thin pitching staff.

Norwich go back to the top of the standings after their 9-3 win against the Chasers, sweeping the pitching categories in the process. Tanaka picked up a win, struck out 17 and posted a sub-1.00 ERA while Smith and Vazquez had two saves each and Ottavino picked up a pair of holds. Story hit four homers, drove in 11 and stole a base. Dozier (.368) and Baez (.417) each scored five runs and teamed with Posey (.467) to take average and OPS.

The RBIs picked up a 9-3 win against the Bombers to boost their chances of a place in the top eight. Gallo scored five runs, homered three times and knocked in seven while Gregorius and Markakis each batted .333 for the week and helped take OPS. Shane Bieber picked up a win and struck out 14 while Romo had a save and a hold. Chirinos was one of four Bombers with a steal and McCullers helped make the difference in ERA and WHIP in a scoreless outing which ended early because of injury.

Beckenham defeated the third-placed Riverkings 7-5. Carpenter launched four homers and batted .423 for the week, with McCutchen going deep twice and batting .440. Carlos Carrasco picked up a win without allowing an earned run and posted a 0.55 WHIP. Allen and Bradley had a hold each. Merrifield, Choo and Betts each scored five runs for the Riverkings, with Torres and Choo driving in six runs each. Merrifield also swiped three bases. Cahill struck out 10 while Dominguez picked up a pair of saves.

Batteries Essential were among the winners this week, defeating the Slugs 7-5. Despite a batting lineup of just four players, Abreu hit .478 and Benintendi stole two bases. Verlander had a win and 14 strikeouts and teamed with Godley to take ERA and WHIP. Herrera had two saves. The Slugs had eight runs from Soto while Acuna Jr and Rizzo (five RBIs) homered twice. Trivino and Betances had a hold each.

Finally, the Isotopes squeezed past the Knights in a very tight matchup. Flores, Suarez and Yelich all hit .400 or above for the Isotopes, taking OPS in the process too. Morton picked up a win and struck out eight while Rodney, Rondon and Hand had two saves each. Hand also had a hold while Colome picked up a pair. The Knights had the better of the offense as Trea Turner scored eight runs and stole six bases while Jose Ramirez knocked in eight to go with his three homers. Quintana made the difference in ERA and WHIP.

The standings now look like this:

The week 18 matchups are as follows:

Norwich v Isotopes

Riverkings v Maltsters

Knights v Batteries Essential

A&E Dept v Slugs

Chasers v RBIs

Sox v Bombers

Trade deadline reminder:

If you want to make a trade, you have until August 12 to do so.