June 26, 2013

Rob LaColla leads for the third update in a row, followed by Jim Kushner and Will Rice in a tie for second. According to the @PredictionsPool Twitter log, Rob has held the lead every day since Will spiked up to a 7-16 on June 16th.

Will’s best chance to catch Rob might be with Felix Hernández, who lost ground in the AL IP and ERA standings after a stinker in Anaheim on Thursday. King Felix (5IP, 12H, 6ER, 2K) blew a 7-0 lead against the Angels after a brutal five-run 5th featuring five singles and two home runs.

Hey folks! MLB Predictions Pool co-founder Dan McCloskey’s fantastic writing about baseball is showcased on the High Heat Stats site and on Dan’s Left Field blog. You can also hear Dan’s podcast debut with High Heat Stats here or on iTunes. Check it out!

June 19, 2013

Rob LaColla becomes our first leader to hold first in consecutive updates, with Jim Kushner and Karen McCloskey rounding out the top three. Rob has led in four updates this year, and is our only entrant with multiple first-place finishes. Will Rice hit seven points over the weekend but now sits in fourth place.

As is often the case, the carousel of pool leaders seems driven by the IP category in both leagues. The NL point shuttles between Clayton Kershaw (13 entrants) and Cliff Lee (current leader, Kushner only), with Adam Wainwright (no picks) in the mix as well. The AL IP pick usually belongs to Felix Hernández (4 entrants) with James Shields (current leader, Mike Levine only) occasionally on top. Is the lead in the MLB Predictions Pool dictated by pitching rotation spots, HBPs and freak injuries? Probably.

Get more frequent updates by following @PredictionsPool on Twitter!

-Dan and Jud

June 12, 2013

Rob LaColla sneaks ahead of Will Rice this week thanks to a pair of Dickey beanballs in Chicago. Mark Watzke sits in third with a 5-12, followed by a slew of entrants with four points.

Rob and Will become our first contestants to hit six points in an update this season, while the group averages above three points for the first time as well. Last year featured only one update leader with seven points: Aaron Smith on May 21st.

Follow @PredictionsPool on Twitter!

-Dan and Jud

June 5, 2013

Will Rice assumes first place this week, with Dan McCloskey and Rob LaColla ahead in HBP but shy one point. Will and Dan made huge jumps in the standings thanks to a two-start update week by Felix Hernández (15.1IP, 14K).

While the scope of the Biogenesis PED investigation isn’t entirely clear, possible MLB suspensions to Ryan Braun or Everth Cabrera could impact the results of our pool this year. Braun was chosen for a total of 31 NL picks across seventeen entrants, and more than half of us chose the league-leading Cabrera for steals.

Speaking of juice, click here for this week’s trivia question!

-Dan and Jud