Posting a shutout in any given week gives a pitching staff a pretty good chance to win the “least runs allowed” category in the TMR Zoo Double Play contest. Two shutouts almost guarantees it. Three is pretty rare. Now consider those three came all in one series against one of the more explosive offenses in Major League Baseball and the New York Mets are guaranteed the top pitching spot in our contest. Both the Mets and Minnesota Twins held opposing offenses to 14 total runs last week.
The Mets posted three shutouts in a three-game series against the division rival Philadelphia Phillies in week 7. Is that a testament to the New York pitching staff? Maybe not. The best word to describe the Phillies offense these days is “impotent.” The one-time powerhouse this year and one of the weekly favorites for the team to score the most runs in our Double Play contest, has been having trouble scoring a single run these days… following up the 0 runs in three games against the Mets with 4 in three games against the Marlins. They have been shut out 4 times in their last 9 games. The only bright spot for the Phils has been the perfect game thrown by Roy Halladay… a game they would have lost had Halladay not performed on that level.
The team that appears to have supplanted the Phillies in the run-scoring department is the Cincinnati Reds, who have now led the Majors in runs-scored for the past two weeks. Last week they scored 44, and they eclipsed that in week 7 with 50. Only one entrant picked them in week 7, but I would think that will change now. Unfortunately, that entrant did not select either the Mets or Twins to match his Reds prediction. In fact, nobody picked either of those teams to lead the league in the pitching category.
That means that a new item will be added to the already-big prize pack… it is also a prize in a standalone giveaway at TMR as well… The Real Man’s Guide to Fixin’ Stuff. Check the main prizing page for more details on this prize and the rest of the prize pack.
Its now time to enter your week 9 picks. Entering the Double Play contest couldn’t be easier. Essentially, all you need to do is pick two Major League Baseball teams. Using the drop down boxes on the entry page, pick the professional team you think will score the most runs in the upcoming week, then pick the team that will give up the least amount of runs. After you’ve selected your teams, guess the actual number of runs for each category in the fields provided. Each week we will update you on the top scoring teams in the league as well as the teams that allow the least amount of runs.
To win the prize, you must correctly identify the two teams. The scores you entered will be used to break any ties in the Double Play. If nobody can guess the two teams correctly, then no one wins the prize and it rolls over into the next week… and combined with another prize. The longer we go without a weekly winner, the bigger the prize pack becomes. Check the main prizing page to see how big the pot is now.
Once you’ve entered the TMR Zoo Double Play, you are automatically entered into the Jagermeister Grand Slam. If you have correctly guessed the two teams AS WELL as the exact number of runs scored and allowed, you have hit the Jager Grand Slam and win the Jagermeister 6-Bottle Shot Cooler.
Jagermeister, the brand known for pioneering the original bar party, with its signature Jagerettes, ground-breaking Tap Machine and category-changing Ice Cold Shots, is proud to introduce the newest innovation – the revolutionary new Jagermeister 6-Bottle Shot Cooler. The 6-Bottle shot cooler comes with six 750ml bottles and 50 shot cups – Just add ice and the party begins! You must be over 21 to win.
Remember, you are entering your guess for the UPCOMING week of baseball (6/06/10 – 6/12/10). The entry period for week 9 will close on Saturday at 11:59pm. Good Luck!
