Mississauga Men's Slo-Pitch League

Tier 1:

 

Final Regular Season Standings:

 

Playoff Matchups:

 

(1) Shattered Dreams vs. (4) TMT

Regular season head to head: Shattered Dreams 4-2-0 +16

 

This is the matchup between the 2022 Tier 1 Playoff Champs and the 2022 Tier 2 Playoff Champs. Shattered Dreams started the season 1-4-1 and were miles out of the playoff race. Miraculously, they were able to go on a hot streak to eek out the regular season title on the last day. They’ve been struggling on offense and have been lucky to pull out some close games. Their major weakness is their coaching as they’ve won a few games despite some egregious bonehead coaching mistakes that have befuddled some of the umpires. They are also limping into the playoffs with only 1 win in their last 3 games.

 

Conversely, TMT started the season hot and smashed Shattered Dreams in week 2 convincingly. It appeared to be a changing of the guard and TMT were comfortably in first place at 8-2 going into their week 6 rematch against Shattered Dreams. The rainy Tuesday went in the #1 seed’s favour and started a rough patch of the season for TMT. They have fallen to the 4 seed, but maybe by choice. In a 4D chess move, they defaulted their last regular season games to secure the #4 seed in hopes of playing Shattered Dreams, and who could blame them? Nobody would prefer to play Goobers or Thunder Buffaloes instead. It almost backfired as Shattered Dreams almost couldn’t secure the #1 seed in a tough battle against GOAT. TMT appear to be supremely confident in playing the 2022 Tier 1 Champs and may already be looking forward to the winner of Goobers and Thunder Buffaloes in the finals

 

(2) Goobers vs. (3) Thunder Buffaloes

Regular season head to head: Thunder Buffaloes 4-2-0 +22

 

This is a classic matchup between the two highest scoring offenses in the league. Save for one blowout, games were close and competitive between these two powerhouses. Goobers have proven they are competitive game in and game out, regardless of the night or division they’re playing in. They have been the most consistent this season, staying in the top 2 throughout. With a very consistent and disciplined offense from top to bottom, Goobers simply outslug the other teams. Teams will need to put up 15+ runs to beat them.

 

Fortunately for Thunder Buffaloes, they are the one team most equipped to outslug opponents as they scored 10% more than the next team (i.e. Goobers.) The oldest team in the division shook off their traditional slow start and are steamrolling into the playoffs, winning 5 of their last 6 games. Their playoff lineup is even more lethal than their regular season lineup so they are definitely the team to fear. This series looks like it’ll go the full 5 games and may be the de facto finals. The cars on Kennedy better watch out as there will be plenty of homeruns raining onto the road at Dunton.

Tier 2:

 

Final Regular Season Standings:

 

Playoff Matchups:

 

(1) Sacred Sluggers vs. (4) Jays

Regular season head to head: Sacred Sluggers 3-1-0 +6

 

Sacred Sluggers are the regular season champs over The Cubs due to tiebreakers. The first tiebreaker is head to head and the two top teams were 2-2 against each other naturally. The next tiebreaker is head to head run differential where Sacred Sluggers inch by with a +3. With the gift of the 1 seed, Sacred Sluggers actually have a tough matchup in the Jays. Even though they won the season series 3-1, it was only with a run differential of +6, indicating a fairly balanced series is on our hands. The 1 seed are a new team in the league and will have to prove its playoff mettle if they want to be crowned champions (and maybe even move on to Tier 1 next year)

 

At first glance, the Jays appear to be mediocre with their .500 record, but a closer look shows that they have wins against the top 2 teams which is quite impressive as those teams only have 5 losses each. This shows that they can hang and are very capable of pulling the upset. As a veteran team, they have the playoff experience to pull out the series. If they can get the early lead, they may pressure their young opponents into mistakes that could snowball into some victories. 

 

(2) The Cubs vs. (3) The Beauties

Regular season head to head: The Cubs 3-1-0 +16

 

The Cubs just missed out on the 1 seed but are rewarded with a matchup with a team they beat handily just two weeks ago. The 2 seed are also a new team in the league and may have playoff jitters. Their regular season stats show that they have the best combination of offense and defense in the division, so they have to like their chances. They started the season 9-0 and their first defeat was to their playoff opponent. Could this be a bad omen for the favourites in this series?

 

New teams dominated this division in the regular season as The Beauties are also new blood in this league. They are a strong 3 seed but may have run into their worst matchup out of all the teams in the division. The Beauties started the season strong at 7-0-1 but lost their first game against the strong 2 seed. This team should be plenty motivated to show that this division is not a two horse race. It will probably come down to their defense. They score as many runs as the top 2 teams but it seems they can’t prevent runs as well as the top 2. Defense wins championships.

Consolation Playoff Matchups:

 

 

(5) Brewski Boys vs. (8) Just Dingers

Regular season head to head: Just Dingers 2-2-0 +7

 

At first glance, Brewski Boys appear way better than the bottom 3 teams. While that may be true, slo pitch is all about matchups. They’re matched up against the team with the worst record in the division, but they split the season series and have a negative run differential. Brewski Boys will have to bring their best to win the consolation round.

 

Just Dingers are a new team in the league this year and have had a rough rookie season. It doesn’t appear that they have hit many dingers this year as they’ve scored the least runs in the division. However, they have a good matchup and the playoffs are a new season. It’s not how you start the season but how you finish.

 

 

(6) Rhinos vs. (7) Outliers

Regular season head to head: Rhinos 3-1-0 +24

 

Speaking of matchups, Rhinos appear to have a terrific matchup as they won the season series handily with a fairly large run differential. Playoffs are a different animal than regular season though and things can flip quickly. Weaknesses cannot be hidden in a best of 5 series and can be costly. Rhinos and Outliers have almost identical records and are familiar with each other. Here’s hoping for a good clean series.

 

Tier 3:

 

Final Regular Season Standings:

Playoff Matchups:

 

(1) Got Rice vs. (4) Klassics

Regular season head to head: Got Rice 3-1-0 +23

 

The 1 seed in the masters division are the new kids on the block, have the best social media, and took the league by storm. They have a whopping +199 run differential, more than double the next highest. With a powerful offense and steady defense, they look difficult to stop. It may be easy to predict an easy sweep over Klassics, but a closer look at the regular season games show something interesting. The 4 seed were able to win one and just barely lost another one. Close games produce big pressure situations and would likely the favour the veteran team looking to take down the young hot shots.

(2) Houndogs vs. (3) Medicine Hats

Regular season head to head: Medicine Hats 2-0-2 +6

 

This is a classic 2v3 matchup that will likely be the most competitive series in the league. Medicine Hats won the season series without losing a game but all four games were close and could've easily gone either way. Good thing the playoffs have a longer time limit as extra innings are likely for every single game in this rivalry. 

 

 

Consolation Playoff Matchups:

 

(5) Giants vs. (8) Blue Devils

Regular season head to head: Blue Devils 2-2-0 +15

 

Blue Devils finished last in the regular season but they definitely seem to know how to play against Giants. After a terrible start to the season, Blue Devils ended the last half of the season 8-6 and handily beating Giants in their last week of the regular season.. They look like they are ending the season strong. Giants are a veteran team in this league and this is not their first rodeo. They are not interested in being roadkill and will put up a good fight.

 

(6) Miller Twins vs. (7) Knights

Regular season head to head: Knights 2-2-0 +2

 

Two evenly matched veteran teams battling it out in a best of 5 series is probably the best softball anyone can ask for. Miller Twins and Knights are not as strong as their prime but can still play and compete with the best. They are not easy outs for any team and this is a great matchup to look forward to.

 

Tier 4:

 

Final Regular Season Standings:

 

Playoff Matchups:

 

(1) Cleveland Steamers vs. (4) Zwingers

Regular season head to head: Cleveland Steamers 5-1-2 +16

 

There will be a new Tier 4 champion as the defending champs Red Rubble did not qualify for the playoffs. Cleveland Steamers made sure Red Rubble didn’t make the playoffs by beating them in two very close games on the last day of the regular season. The 1 seed look to be in playoff mode and are hungry to win it all. Zwingers won’t go down easy though as they played some really close games against the 1 seed during the regular season. The feisty 4 seed are not looking to concede the series so easily.

(2) Havana Club vs. (3) Black Diamonds

Regular season head to head: Havana Club 4-1-1 +21

 

Based on regular season results, the 2v3 matchup in this division does not look close as Havana Club had Black Diamond’s number all season. However, games are not won on paper and Havana Club will have to prove their worth in the playoffs. If the 2 seed looks ahead to the finals too early, they may get surprised and beaten by the competitive 3 seed. Nothing can be assumed as the weather gets colder and softball season nears the end of another successful season.

 

Good luck to all teams!