Benchwarmer News

12/10/24

Site updates:
- 2025 salaries are posted and are final - Premium salary adjustments have already been applied
- 2025 player positions are updated but not final
  - Any player showing an "x" in their position didn't have any MLB stats in 2024, so I need to go back in and check what they did in the minors in 2024 (or maybe they didn't play at all and might be removed from the list) - their positions may change.
  - That usually takes a lot of time and I hope to be finished sometime in January/February (with everything going on this year, I never got that finished for the 2024 season).
Still to come before I can open up rosters for changes

Calculation of the 2025 salary cap
Some setup tasks to move from the 2024 season to the 2025 season.

12/4/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Final Results: NYC2ATL Yankees (Chevy Chase League) defeated I've Seen Your Face Before My Friend (Home of the Brave) 4 games to 0
- Congratulations to team owner Ricardo Alexander.
- This is Ricardo's 4th straight win in the BWB ultimate tournament.
- Ricardo won 9 league championships in 2024 and had 12 teams in the field of 128 that started out the Bash.
- Also congratulations to runner-up Sherman Wan in his fifth trip to the finals.

12/3/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Semifinals: All games posted. Championship round coming on Wednesday.
We're down to our final two teams. NYC2ATL (Chevy Chase) and I've Seen Your Face Before were victorious in the semifinals:
- I've Seen Your Face Before (81-69, Home of the Brave, Power Rank 63) - Sherman Wan vs. NYC2ATL (93-57, Chevy Chase, Power Rank 18) - Ricardo Alexander
- Ricardo has won the Bash for the last 3 years with different teams. Sherman has never come out on top, but has been runner up 4 times.
- Neither league has had a Bash winner before.

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12/2/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Benchwarmer Bash Quarterfinals: Games 1-7 posted. Semifinals coming on Tuesday
OK - life happening a little bit - time to pick up where I left off - Benchwarmer Bash Quarterfinals will post tonight
Answering another question, yes there will be a season in 2025 and I'll work to get caught up. Some of the timelines might be a little tighter.
- I'm unavailable the end of this week and the weekend - so I intend to get player salaries and positions for 2025 posted next week.
- After that, we can open up off-season trading.
Previewing the Bash:
- There are 8 teams remaining - 6 league champions and 2 wild card teams
- None of the franchises in the field have won the Bash before, although 3 owners have won with different teams - Ricardo Alexander, Jason Kiernan and Leif Jonson. Ricardo has won the Bash for the last 3 years.
- There are no repeats from last season as Federation champions.
- Federation titles by seed:
  - 1st: 3
  - 2nd: 5
- Owners with multiple teams in final 8:
  - 2 teams: Ricardo Alexander, Jason Kiernan, and Sherman Wan
- Our top seed based on BWB's power ranking, is Southeast Northern State Westerners (Bleed Dodger Blue) with an Power Index of 11. For the first time since we moved to Federations in 2009, none of the teams in the top 10 of power ranks made the final 8. 2021 was the last time the #1 team made it.
- I've Seen Your Face Before (Home of the Brave) has a BWB Power Index of 63 which is the lowest-ranked team to make the Bash quarterfinals. It's the first time since 2012 that we haven't had any teams ranked higher than 100 make the field.

11/17/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Federation Finals complete: Games 1-7 posted.
The final 8 teams now move to the Benchwarmer Bash - look for results to start on Tuesday.
Quick links to the Federation results:

11/16/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Federation Semifinals complete: Games 1-7 posted. Finals coming on Sunday
Previewing the Federation round:
- There are 32 teams in the Federation field - 18 league champions and 14 wild card teams
- None of the teams have ever won the Benchwarmer Bash
- 8 of the teams have previously won a Federation title, but none of the 2023 winners has advanced this far
- 3 of the 16 semifinal series have an owner with teams on both sides of the matchup - it's Jason Kiernan in all of them
- Owners with multiple teams in the Federation round of the Benchwarmer Bash:
  - 13 teams: Jason Kiernan
  - 3 teams: Ricardo Alexander, Leif Jonson, and Sherman Wan
  - 2 teams: David Henning, Dave Matter,
  - 6 other owners have a single team

11/15/24

Benchwarmer Bash - Association Round Recap
- Association titles by seed:
  - 1st: 8
  - 2nd: 8
  - 3rd: 10
  - 4th: 6
- 18 titles were won by league champions, 14 by wild cards
- For our league championship rematches mentioned below on 11/13, 3 of the 4 went to the finals loser - only Metropolis from Superman League won again in this round.
- 4 teams came in with a chance to repeat from 2023 and none of them did

11/14/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Association finals complete: Games 1-7 posted
Quick links to the Association results:

11/13/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Association finals coming on Thursday - first games posted in the morning.
Notes heading into the Association Finals:
- Second time around, not much change. Below we noted that 6 semifinal matchups were repeats of league championships. 5 of the 6 league winners prevailed in this series too - the only change was that NYC2ATL beat Overdried in the rematch.
- 14 of the 32 finals matchups feature teams in the same league. This time there are 2 repeats of conference championship series and 4 league championship rematches:
  - Birdland: J-town (Keith Rudy) vs Palmer, McNally, Cueller, Dobson (Jason Kiernan). PMCD won the league championship 4-3
  - Bronx Bombers: Chandeliers (Sherman Wan) vs Maris (Jason Kiernan). Maris won 4-3.
  - Experts: Fantasy on Roids (Christian Ingram) vs NYC (Scott Swanay). NYC won 4-1.
  - Superman: Here Come (Michael Lehman) vs Metropolis (Jason Kiernan). Metropolis won 4-2.
- In the Association finals we have 2 of the 32 series with an owner playing against himself: Jason Kiernan has both teams in 2 different finals: Yogi Berra Association and Hank Greenberg Association.

11/12/24

Benchwarmer Bash 2024 - Association semifinals complete - Games 1-7 posted.
Benchwarmer Bash - Matchups are posted for the Association Semifinals - see the Benchwarmer Bash page and look for "Association Results" links within each Federation block (or see the quick links below on the 11/11 note).
Previewing the Bash:
- There are 128 teams in the Association field - 68 league champions and 60 wild card teams
- 2 franchises in the field have previously won a Bash title, including last year's champion Kingston Baseball Club from Marxball (Ricardo Alexander) and there are 6 previous runners up, including last year's 2nd place team, Suffolk Steel from Perfect World (Robert Elias)
- 25 of the teams have previously won a Federation title, with 2 of 2023's 8 Federation winners attempting a repeat this year.
- 39 of the teams have previously won an Association title (a level of competition that started in 2019), 11 of 2023's 32 Association winners are in the field again this year.
- Of the 64 first-round Association matchups, 23 feature teams from the same league playing each other. Several are playoff rematches:
  - There are 8 rematches of conference championships
  - We have 6 league championship rematches:
    - A League About Nothing: Overdried (Jason Kiernan) vs NYC2ATL (Ricardo Alexander). Overdried won the league championship 4-1
    - Beer: Goose Island 312 (Jason Kiernan) vs Duff (Leif Jonson). Goose Island 312 won 4-3
    - Born to Run: Central City (David Henning) vs Runnin' Redbirds (Jason Kiernan). Runnin' Redbirds won 4-3
    - Deuces Wild: Las Vegas (John Stroba) vs Double (Jason Kiernan). Las Vegas won 4-1
    - Moneyball: Random (Jason Kiernan) vs Billy's (Michael Quinn). Billy's won 4-3
    - Triple Crown: Toronto (Leif Jonson) vs Hobart (Michael Rudolph). Toronto won 4-3

3 of the 64 first-round series have an owner with teams on both sides of the matchup - Jason Kiernan (twice) and David Henning
Owners with multiple teams in the Association round of the Benchwarmer Bash:
- 32 teams: Jason Kiernan
- 15 teams: David Henning and Sherman Wan
- 12 teams: Ricardo Alexander
- 6 teams: Michael Rudolph
- 5 teams: Robert Elias (plus 2 more as a foster owner for orphan teams), Leif Jonson, and Dave Matter
- 4 teams: Jerry King
- 2 teams: Alonda Clifton, John Hula, Christian Ingram, Andrew Lehman, Michael Quinn, John Stroba, and Jon Swanson
- 13 other owners have a single team

11/11/24

Benchwarmer Bash games will begin on Tuesday.
Association pages for the Benchwarmer Bash are available. They show entrants and game schedules with pitching matchups. You can reach them from the Benchwarmer Bash page or from these links:
Congratulations to BWB team owners who won multiple league championships in 2024: (see how this compares to last year)
- 19 titles: Jason Kiernan (out of 32 conference champions)
- 9 titles: Ricardo Alexander (13)
- 6 titles: David Henning (16) and Sherman Wan (10)
- 4 titles: Robert Elias (3, plus 1 as an foster owner of an orphan team)
- 3 titles: Leif Jonson (6) and Michael Rudolph (8)
- 2 titles: Jim Duzyk (3), John Hula (2), Dave Matter (2), Michael Quinn (5), John Stroba (3), and Jon Swanson (3)
34 of 2023's 68 league champions won their division again this season. 11 completed the journey to a repeat league championship.
Several teams have repeated for more than 2 seasons
- 4 straight championships:
  - British Invasion League: Kingston (Ricardo Alexander)
  - Marxball: Kingston (Ricardo Alexander)
- 3 straight championships:
  - Fenway Fenatics: Skeleton (Ken Stevenson)
  - Game Night League: Atlanta (Ricardo Alexander)
  - Home of the Brave: I've Seen Your Face Before (Sherman Wan)
  - Silver Screen League: Rick's Cafe (Sherman Wan)

11/5/24

Benchwarmer Bash field is finalized. The seedings on the Association pages are not yet updated.
Deadline for lineup changes for Benchwarmer Bash teams changed to Wednesday night - midnight Eastern

11/4/24

Playoffs: Championship Week: Games 5-7 posted - See Playoffs for All Leagues
- Find quick links to all your teams' playoff pages - including which teams are still active
- See a summary of all the league championship series

11/3/24

Playoffs: Championship Week: Games 1-4 posted - See Playoffs for All Leagues
- Game 5 coming Monday morning
- Scoring plan:
  - Games 5-7 on Monday
- Find quick links to all your teams' playoff pages - including which teams are still active
Week 27 lineup changes in place. Lineups are open again - teams headed to the Benchwarmer Bash can change their lineups one more time to last the duration of the Bash. Lineup deadline is Tuesday night, Nov. 5 Wednesday night, Nov. 6 at midnight Eastern.

11/2/24

Benchwarmer Bash page is now active - showing potential entrants. Listed wild card teams assume the higher-ranked teams win their league championships. Wild cards shown in italics are tentative and not confirmed.
34 of 2023's 68 league champions won their division again this season. 18 are still alive heading into the league finals
Congratulations to owners still alive with multiple conference wins: (see how this compares to 2023)
- 32 Teams - Jason Kiernan (out of 45 division winners)
- 16 Teams - David Henning (24)
- 13 Teams - Ricardo Alexander (17)
- 10 Teams - Sherman Wan (21)
- 8 Teams - Michael Rudolph (14)
- 6 Teams - Leif Jonson (8)
- 5 Teams - Michael Quinn (15)
- 4 Teams - Michael Lehman (6)
- 3 Teams - Jim Duzyk (5), Robert Elias (6), Tom McGraw (3), John Stroba (5), and Jon Swanson (4)
- 2 Teams - John Hula (7), Andrew Lehman (10), Dave Matter (13), Bill Munger (3), Jamie Reese (6), and Ken Stevenson (4)
- Add one more for Michael Lehman and Robert Elias as foster owners for 2 orphans still in the running.

11/1/24

Playoffs: Week 1: Game 7 posted - See Playoffs for All Leagues
- Championship Week will begin on Sunday
- Find quick links to all your teams' playoff pages - including which teams are still active
Lineup deadline for the 2nd week of the playoffs (Week 27): Saturday, November 2 at midnight Eastern
2024 in Review (Part 2):
- See Standings for All Leagues and Around BWB
- Of 272 division winners from 2023, 108 repeated with division titles this season (120 of 272 repeated last year)
- 83 of the division winners from last season finished below .500 in 2024, 40 of them dropped all the way to last place this year. 2 of those teams lost 100 games this year.
- From the 272 divisions that existed in 2023, 26 division winners in 2024 are franchises that never before won a division title.
  - Special shout outs to teams doing this for the first time after 10 or more years of league play:
    - Bill Munger, Broomall in Beatleball's 21st season
    - Matt Strawbridge, Australia in Shadowball's 20th season
    - Alonda Clifton, Real Ballplayers in Fenway Fenatic's 14th season
    - Christian Ingram, The 1993 Philadelphia Phillies in Phightin' Phils' 14th Season
    - Tom McGraw, Chip in Phightin' Phils' 14th Season
    - Andrew Lehman, Banta in Firemen League's 13th season
    - Sam Campbell, Cincinnati in Firemen League's 13th season
    - Ken Stevenson, Canadian in Motor City's 12th season
    - John Hula as foster owner, Cal in Moneyball's 12th season
    - Jaime Reese, Red in Cleveland Rocks' 12th season
    - Andrew Lehman, Cujo's in Scooby Doo's 17th season
- Of the 68 league champions from 2023, 34 of them repeated as division winners this season. (40 of 68 league winners from 2022 won divisions in 2023).
- 40 teams went "worst to first" - finishing in 4th place in 2023 and winning a division this year (31 last year).
- 21 teams out of 1,088 won 100 games this year, topped by 1 team with 108 wins: Leif Jonson with Duff in Beer League
- 21 teams lost 100 games, with 1 team dropping 112 for the season.
- 22 teams had 100 or more losses in 2023. 4 of them won their division this year (4 made 2nd-place) and 8 of them finished .500 or better. However, 10 of those teams finished in 4th place this season. None of those teams lost 100 games again this year.
- 13 teams won 100 or more games in 2023. 1 of them won 100 games again this season and 8 were division winners this year. Only 1 of those teams ended up below .500 this year.

10/31/24

Playoffs: Week 1: Games 4-6 posted - See Playoffs for All Leagues
- Game 7 will post Friday
- Find quick links to all your teams' playoff pages - including which teams are still active
Congratulations to owners with multiple division wins (see how this compares to last year):
- 45 Teams - Jason Kiernan
- 24 Teams - David Henning
- 21 Teams - Sherman Wan
- 17 Teams - Ricardo Alexander
- 15 Teams - Michael Quinn
- 14 Teams - Michael Rudolph
- 13 Teams - Dave Matter
- 10 Teams - Andrew Lehman
- 9 Teams - Orphan teams under BWB Office and foster owners
- 8 Teams - Leif Jonson
- 7 Teams - John Hula
- 6 Teams - Jamie Reese, Jerry King, Michael Lehman, Robert Elias
- 5 Teams - Alonda Clifton, Jim Duzyk, John Stroba
- 4 Teams - Don Kruse, Ken Stevenson, Jon Swanson
- 3 Teams - Craig Burke, Anthony C, Tom McGraw, Bill Munger, Jerry Stevens
- 2 Teams - Sam Campbell, Mike DeSmedt, Christian Ingram, Tom Kohl, Sheldon Price

10/30/24

Playoffs: Week 1: Games 1-3 posted - See Playoffs for All Leagues
- Game 4 will post Thursday morning
- Find quick links to all your teams' playoff pages - including which teams are still active
2024 in Review: This season, there were 18 divisional ties throughout BWB. In 2023, 8 divisions ended in ties - how did the teams in last year's tiebreaker games fare this season?
- Born to Run League - Cobb Division:
  - Winner: Quad Cities Stealing Home (Tom Kohl) - Went on to win the league championship. This year: Won the division by 5 games
  - Loser: Escape from New Jersey in a Green Ford Taurus (John Hula) - This year: Finished 3rd, 15 GB
- Born to Run League - Raines Division:
  - Winner: Central City Flashes (David Henning) - This year: Won again by 14 games
  - Loser: Quick Feet (Roland Dupont) - This year: Finished 3rd, 20 GB
- Fenway Fenatics - Cronin Division:
  - Winner: Green Monster (Tom McGraw) - This year: Finished 2nd, 1 GB
  - Loser: Scarlet Sox (Roland Dupont) - This year: Finished 4th, 29 GB
- Game Night League - Operation Division:
  - Winner: Minnesota Moose (Jon Swanson) - This year: Finished 4th, 15.5 GB
  - Loser: SoCal Blue Dogs (Scott Owens) - This year: Tied for 1st again and won the tiebreaker
- Minnie & Paul League - Carew Division:
  - Winner: Nebraska Legends (Michael Gaston) - This year: Finished 3rd, 6 GB
  - Loser: Bloomington Metropolitans (Sam Campbell) - This year: Won the division by 2 games
- Moneyball League - Scott Hatteberg Division:
  - Winner: Atlanta Beane Pies (Ricardo Alexander) - This year: Won the division by 2 games
  - Loser: Bloom County Boingers (Dave Matter) - This year: Finished 3rd, 4 GB
- Redbirds League - Brock Division:
  - Winner: Brooklyn Usual Suspects (Jerry King) - This year: Won the division by 10 games
  - Loser: Hello Wisconsin Stoners (Michael Lehman) - This year: Finished 4th, 25 GB
- Whiff League - Jose Canseco Division:
  - Winner: Arlington Killer Donkeys (Brad Lewallen) - This year: Finished 4th, 7 GB
  - Loser: Branyan's Bombers (Michael Rudolph) - This year: Won the division by 1 game

10/29/24

Week Twenty-six Transactions Posted
Next deadline - Week Twenty-seven (second week of the playoffs: Saturday, November 2 at midnight Eastern

10/28/24

Playoff schedules are posted. See the link for playoffs on your league's home page or you can get a link to any league's playoffs from this page. You can also view quick links to all of your teams' playoff pages.
One final deadline for playoff lineups - tonight at midnight Eastern. Let me know if you have any problems with that. We should be able to start posting game scores then on Tuesday.

10/23/24

The playoff tiebreakers are completed. Will try to get the schedules posted soon.

10/21/24

Initial posting of playoff tiebreakers within divisions. Main purpose at this point is to show which teams that tied for 2nd will play in the Gore Cup - this is a corrected version that added the 2nd place tie in Bronx Bombers.

10/17/24

Week 25 Statistics and Players of the Week
18 Division Champions from the October 15 tiebreaker games (See standings for all leagues and a full list of all 2024 division winners)
- A League About Nothing - Elaine Division: Infinite Zeroes (owner David Henning - 23rd win in 2024) - 4th time on top; League champ in 2020-21
- Anchorman League - Chancellor Division: Huey Lewis The News Boys (owner Alonda Clifton - 4th win in 2024) - 4th division win, 1st since 2018
- Beer League - Yeast Division: The Natty Lights (owner Bill Munger - 3rd win in 2024) - Defending league champ (6 overall); 15th consecutive pennant
- Blame Canada League - Kenny Division: Thunder Bay Voyageurs (owner Jerry Stevens - 3rd win in 2024) - 4th pennant, 1st since 2015
- Cleveland Rocks
  - Boudreau Division: Red Barchettas (owner Jamie Reese - 6th win in 2024) - 1st title in league's 12th season; Had finished 2nd 5 times, includling last year
  - Averill Division: Not So Hot In Cleveland (owner Andrew Lehman - 9th win in 2024) - 2nd win
- Commissioners League - Chandler Division: Brooklyn Dodgers (owner Jason Kiernan - 44th win in 2024) - 11th pennant; League champion in 2011-2012
- Fenway Fenatics -Boggs Division: Alaskan Wilderness (owner Dave Matter - 13th win in 2024) - 3rd trip to the playoffs
- Four Star League - Patton Division: Its the Top of the Pops (owner Andrew Lehman - 10th win in 2024) - 1st time on top since 2010
- Game Night League - Operation Division: SoCal Blue Dogs (owner Scott Owens) - Won for the 3rd time in league's 4 seasons; 2021 league champion
- Geek Pride League - Berners-Lee Division: Boba Chette Salutes Greef Karga (owner Sherman Wan - 21st win in 2024) - Defending league champ (3 overall); 5th straight division win and 9th in 10 years
- Grunge League - Hole Division: Knee Deep In Hoopla (Orphan team - Foster owner Alonda Clifton) - 3rd division win; 2021 league champ
- Hall of Fame League
  - Ruth Division: Seattle Survivors (owner Leif Jonson - 8th win in 2024) - Repeat win, 8th overall; Won 3 league titles between 2014-2017
  - Cooperstown Division: Alcatraz Crabcakes (owner Michael Burkert) - 5th division win; 2001 league champion
- North Siders League - Sutter Division: Wrigleyville Bryzzo Souvenirs (owner Jason Kiernan - 45th win in 2024) - 7th division crown
- Pacific Northwest League - Cougars Division: Hooterville Flying Pigs (owner Alonda Clifton - 5th win in 2024) - Also won in 2021
- Phightin' Phils League - Roberts Division: SGV Dukes (owner Michael Quinn - 15th win in 2024) - 4th division win, 1st since 2015; League champ in 2011-2012
- South Siders League - Fox Division: Delphi Titans (owner David Henning - 24th win in 2024) - 4th division title; 2016 league champion

10/15/24

Playoff lineup deadline extended at least until Friday night, Oct 18 at midnight Eastern.
18 divisions across BWB finished in a tie - Results are in - Regular season is complete!
- A League About Nothing - Elaine Division: Upper West Side Spongeworthies (Jon Swanson) at Infinite Zeroes (David Henning)
  - Result: Infinite 11 Upper West Side 5 - Box
  - Upper West Side won the division last year, its only one. Infinite finished 1st 3 years in a row (2020-2022), winning the league in 2021 & 2020
  - Infinite won the season series 12-6.
  - Infinite won all 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 25.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Infinite 6-4 (has lost 3 in a row) Upper West Side 4-6
- Anchorman League - Chancellor Division: Dave and Wendy Live at 6 (Sherman Wan) at Huey Lewis The News Boys (Alonda Clifton)
  - Result: Huey Lewis 10 Dave and Wendy 3 - Box
  - Dave and Wendy has 1 division win back in 2015. Huey Lewis has 3, most recently in 2018.
  - Huey Lewis won the season series 11-7 to get home field
  - Huey Lewis swept the final 3 games of the season to force the tie and took 2 of 3 when they played in Week 24
  - Record for the last 10 games: Huey Lewis 9-1 (with a current 8-game winning streak) Dave and Wendy 2-8 (on a 4-game losing streak)
- Beer League - Yeast Division: Guinness Orioles (Orphan team - Foster owner Alonda Clifton) at The Natty Lights (Bill Munger)
  - Result: The 7 Guinness 5 - Box
  - Guinness has 1 divsion win - back in 2009 when it won the league title. Defending league champ The Natty Lights has won the division every year since then - 2010-2023 - that's 14 straight years, which includes 6 league championships.
  - The has home field on the basis of a 12-6 win in their season series.
  - The won 4 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 24-25 - including sweeping Games 148-150 to force the tie.
  - Record for the last 10 games: The 6-4, with a current 5-game win streak. Guinness 4-6 - and have lost the last 5.
- Blame Canada League - Scott Hatteberg Division: Banff Snowcaps (Dave Matter) at Thunder Bay Voyageurs (Jerry Stevens)
  - Result: Thunder Bay 4 Banff 3 - Box
  - Banff has won the division 5 times, including 4 straight in 2019-2022. Thunder Bay won 3 consecutive titles 2013-2015 for its only trips to the playoffs.
  - Thunder Bay won the season series 10-8, giving it home field.
  - Banff won 4 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 24-25, including the final 2 games of the season to force the tie.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Thunder Bay 5-5 Banff 4-6
- Cleveland Rocks - Boudreau Division: Red Barchettas (Jamie Reese) at North Coast Wahoos (Michael Rudolph)
  - Result: Red 8 North Coast 3 - Box
  - This is the league's 12th season - Red has never won the division (2nd place 5 times, including last year). North Coast has 5 titles - all in the previous 5 seasons, and won the league in 2019
  - The teams split their season series 9-9. North Coast won 4 more division games than Red to earn the home field.
  - North Coast won 4 of the 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 24.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Both teams are 5-5
- Cleveland Rocks - Averill Division: Not So Hot In Cleveland (Andrew Lehman) at Lake Erie Storm (David Henning)
  - Result: Not So Hot 7 Lake Erie 3 - Box
  - Not So Hot has 1 playoff appearance in 2018. Lake Erie has 8 division wins in 12 seasons and 4 league championships.
  - Lake Erie won the season series 10-8.
  - Not So Hot won 5 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 25.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Lake Erie 4-6, currenly losing 5 straight Not So Hot 8-2 and on a 5-game winning streak
- Commissioners League - Chandler Division: Budapest Buskers (Jon Swanson) at Brooklyn Dodgers (Jason Kiernan)
  - Result: Brooklyn 5 Budapest 4 (Extra Innings) - Box
  - Budapest won the division last year and has 3 titles overall. Brooklyn has 10 division wins and was league champion in 2012 and 2011.
  - The teams split their season series 9-9 and had identical division records. Brooklyn won 3 more division games than Budapest to nab home field.
  - Budapest went 4-2 in the final 6 games they played in Weeks 23 & 25.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Brooklyn 4-6 Budapest 8-2
- Fenway Fenatics - Boggs Division: Alaskan Wilderness (Dave Matter) at Hawaiian Surfer Dudes (Andrew Lehman)
  - Result: Alaskan 5 Hawaiian 3 - Box
  - Alaskan has won the division twice, most recently in 2022. Hawaiian also has 2 titles, but none since 2013, when it won the league championship.
  - Hawaiian won the season series 10-8
  - The teams split their final 6 games
  - Record for the last 10 games: Hawaiian 8-2 Alaskan 2-8
- Four Star League - Patton Division: Upstream Boogie (Jim Duzyk) at Its the Top of the Pops (Andrew Lehman)
  - Result: Its the Top 4 Upstream 1 - Box
  - Upstream won the division last year, its only title. It's the Top has also only 1 division win, but not since 2010.
  - Its the Top has home field by winning the season series 10-8.
  - They split the last 6 games they played in Weeks 23-24.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Its the Top 6-4 Upstream 5-5
- Game Night League - Operation Division: SoCal Blue Dogs (Scott Owens) at Avalon Hill Armchair Generals (Robert Elias)
  - Result: SoCal 5 Avalon Hill 3 - Box
  - SoCal won the division in 2021-2022 then lost a 1-game playoff last year. Avalon Hill is looking for its first title
  - Avalon Hill won the season series 10-8
  - Avalon Hill won 4 of the final 6 meetings in Weeks 23-24
  - Record for the last 10 games: Avalon Hill 6-4 SoCal 7-3
- Geek Pride League - Berners-Lee Division: Mt. Airy Diplomats (Micah Bustard) at Boba Chette Salutes Greef Karga (Sherman Wan)
  - Result: Boba Chette 9 Mt. Airy 3 - Box
  - Mt. Airy has 2 division wins, but not since 2014. Boba Chette is the defending league champion (3 overall) and has won the division 4 years in a row and 8 years out of 9.
  - Boba Chette won the season series 11-7 to earn the home game.
  - Boba Chette won 5 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 25.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Boba Chette 7-3 Mt. Airy 3-7 and have lost their last 6
- Grunge League - Hole Division: Northwest Cards (Michael Quinn) at Knee Deep in Hoopla (Orphan team - Foster owner Anthony C)
  - Result: Knee Deep 5 Northwest 3 - Box
  - Northwest won the division last year and was league champion in 2018. Knee Deep has 2 division wins and a league title in 2021.
  - Knee Deep won the season series 13-5
  - Knee Deep swept the final 2 series these teams played in Weeks 24-25. They beat Northwest in the final 3 games of the season to force the tie.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Knee Deep 6-4 Northwest 3-7
- Hall of Fame League - Ruth Division: Canton Goats (Dave Matter) at Seattle Survivors (Leif Jonson)
  - Result: Seattle 8 Canton 4 - Box
  - Canton has 1 division win in the league's 24 seasons (2003). Seattle has won 7 times, including last year, and has 3 league titles.
  - The teams split their season series 9-9. Seattle won 6 more division games than Canton to get the home field.
  - The teams split their final 6 games in Weeks 24-25. Canton beat Seattle in the final 2 games of the season to force the tie.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Both teams are 4-6
- Hall of Fame League - Ruth Division: Give Me the Willies (Jamie Reese) at Alcatraz Crabcakes (Michael Burkert)
  - Result: Alcatraz 7 Give Me 6 - Box
  - Give Me has 3 division wins - the last in 2012 when it won its only league title. Alcatraz has 4 pennants, most recently in 2020, and won the league in 2001.
  - Alcatraz has home field on the basis of a 13-5 win in their season series.
  - Alcatraz won 4 of the 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 25.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Alcatraz 6-4 Give Me 5-5
- North Siders League - Sutter Division: Wrigleyville Bryzzo Souvenirs (Jason Kiernan) at Addision Ivies (Dave Matter)
  - Result: Wrigleyville 5 Addison 4 - Box
  - Wrigleyville has 6 division wins. Addison won its first division title last season.
  - Addison won the season series 10-8 to gain home field.
  - Atlanta won 4 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 24-25 and swept the final series to force the tie.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Addison 8-2, including a current 5-game win streak. Wrigleyville 5-5 and currently on a 4-game skid.
- Pacific Northwest League - Cougars Division: Big Mountain Lumberjacks (Dave Matter) at Hooterville Flying Pigs (Alonda Clifton)
  - Result: Hooterville 5 Big Mountain 4 (Extra Innings) - Box
  - Both teams have only 1 division title in 11 seasons - Big Mountain in 2018, Hooterville in 2021.
  - Hooterville won the season series 10-8 to earn the home game.
  - Hooterville won 5 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 24.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Both teams are 6-4
- Phightin' Phils League - Roberts Division: Steak Sandwich Fanatics of Philadelphia (Jason Kiernan) at SGV Dukes (Michael Quinn)
  - Result: SGV 7 Steak Sandwich 3 - Box
  - Steak Sandwich is the defending league champion and has 3 straight division titles. SGV has 2 league championships, but last made the playoffs in 2015.
  - Branyan's won the season series 10-8
  - The teams split their last 6 games played in Weeks 24-25
  - Record for the last 10 games: SGV 2-8 Steak Sandwich 6-4
- South Siders League - Fox Division: Wimpy's Hawks (Dave Matter) at Delphi Titans (David Henning)
  - Result: Delphi 7 Wimpy's 6 - Box
  - Wimpy's has won the division the last 5 seasons and won the league in 2021. Delphi was on top 2016-2018, including a league title in 2016.
  - Delphi won the season series 11-7 to earn the home game.
  - Delphi won 4 of the final 6 games the teams played in Weeks 23 & 25.
  - Record for the last 10 games: Delphi 3-7, and on a current 4-game losing streak; Wimpy's 8-2 and winners of 4 straight.

10/7/24

And we're done - sort of - Week 25 complete - Games 148-150 posted - See results
- That's a wrap on the regular season - except for the 18 divisions that ended in a tie and will require a 1-game playoff to decide the division
- It takes a little bit of setup to schedule the tiebreaker games - it might be a couple of days before I'm able to fit that in and score the games
- Standings for all leagues
- Around BWB
Heading into the final 3 games of the season, 85 of the 272 divisions across BWB have not yet been decided.
Update to the Close races across Benchwarmer Baseball before Game 148

10/3/24

Playoff lineup deadline shifted back to Wednesday, October 9 at midnight Eastern. This could go back further to that next weekend, but I want to preserve the ability to start games before that if the playoff brackets are set up by then.

10/1/24

Team finances updated after Week 24 games
Scoring won't be up tonight - will try for a late Wednesday post
Missed 1 of the division winners on the last post:
- Bleed Dodger Blue League - Drysdale Division: Southeast Northern State Westerners (owner Leif Jonson - 3rd win in 2024) - 6th division win; 2011 league champion

9/28/24

Sorry - busy week. I was prepping to score games Friday evening, but a health situation in my household had me at the hospital all afternoon/evening and will be back there today (everything appears to be OK). I will work on the games Saturday night with hopes to post late Saturday or on Sunday monring.

9/16/24

Heading into Week 23, the final 18 games of the season are all against teams in your division. Here's a look across all of Benchwarmer Baseball at close races

9/3/24

Reminder - this is the final week to sign free agents. Week 25 transactions are only for cuts and IR moves.

8/31/24

This is the final week to sign players for the 2024 season

8/29/24

Sorry I missed this last weekend when posting Games 118-120; it's a little bit earlier than we normally see...congratulations to our first Division Champion: (See standings for all leagues)
- B Movie Actor League - Burn Notice Division: Cyborg Avengers (owner David Henning) - First win since 2020, 5th overall; 3 straight league titles 2018-2020

8/23/24

Week 22 transactions - You'll see some prospect list moves this week in a few leagues - someone reported some issues last week with submitting transactions, so I allowed these moves. It was easier to add them in Week 22 using normal processing than trying to retroactively changing Week 21 stuff.

8/16/24

September roster expansion comes into play for game lineups during Week 23. However, since several of you have lots of teams, you can begin ordering your taxi squad and minor league players now - a week early.

8/10/24

It's our last deadline shift of the season. Starting this week and through Week 25, transactions and lineups are due on Wednesdays.

8/9/24

Trades are closed until the off season
Upcoming dates/deadlines of note:
- Wednesday, August 14 - Week 21: Final week to add players to the Prospects Roster
- Wednesday, August 28 - Week 23: Roster expansion - minor leaguers and taxi squad players can fill in as bench players.
- Wednesday, September 4 - Week 24: Final week to sign free agents

8/1/24

At Game 100, we've passed the 2/3 mark of the regular season

See the News Archive for older headlines.