If you've spent any time studying business at the college level, you're probably aware of the Disruptive Innovation Theory developed by Clayton Christensen. Put simply, the theory posits that market disruption comes from the bottom up, not the other way around. Wherever markets are dominated and driven by stable, well-established businesses, that market is ripe for disruption from smaller companies willing to take risks and innovate beyond the norms for that market.
Though the theory applies specifically to goods and services, is there a modified version that could apply to our league? Did this week provide any insights into what can happen when well-established teams get too comfortable?
Take, for example, the contest between the Damn Yankees and the Springfield Isotopes. The Isotopes entered the matchup with a 6-2 record and the advantage of playing at Duff Stadium where they scored a team-high 320 points in week 4. The Yankees, on the other hand, brought with them a 0-2 road record and an average score of 252.0 pts/gm - just a touch better than their total season average of 234.0 pts/gm. Only once this season had the 'Topes failed to reach either of those marks.
Advantage Isotopes, right? Not so fast.
The Damn Yankees bats, led by Betts' and Mountcastle's 28 points, proved slightly better, outscoring the Isotopes hitters by just 5 points. But that wasn't where this game was decided.
Scoring 40 points in a single outing, Eduardo Rodriguez anchored the rest of the staff and, together, they were able to tally 21 more than the 'Topes pitching staff who struggled throughout the week. Sonny Gray and Charlie Morton were off in week 5 scoring just 15 points combined which means they be spending some time throwing simulated work with the coaching staff this week.
On a side note, the Damn Yankees' 215 points last week currently has them holding the honors for the Lowest Score in a Win prize.
A little less unexpected, but still impressive, the Green Monstahs knocked off Team Prepas. Somewhat expected because Team Prepas continues to try to win games with a reduced pitching staff. Impressive because the Monstahs have been - dare I say - terrible this season. I hate to say I told you so...but I did.
"So, yes...I do believe the Monstahs have a great opportunity this week to rise to the occasion..."
The Monstahs looked better than they have all season scoring a team best, 329 points. For those keeping score at home, that's a 54% improvement between weeks 4 and 5. Does that mean we can expect them to score 506 point this week? Absolutely, I think we should.
But you can't really point to one specific area where the Monstahs excelled last week. It really was a team effort - their hitters and pitchers both finished second among all teams in scoring last week. Hence, the Monstahs posted the best score in the league.
And how 'bout them Bananas? The last team in the league to win a weekly matchup, the Bananas also happened to score enough to earn a bonus win. While one week doesn't turn their season around, it's certainly a much needed step in the right direction.
If were talking about disruptive competition among the league ranks, the contest between Dude It Was Ringworm and Myrtle Beach Mermen at Under The Sea Stadium should certainly qualify. Who saw that one coming? Put your hand down, Dude.
The Mermen entered the game averaging nearly 50 points more per week than Ringworm. To win the game, Dude It Was Ringworm would have to ask their pitching staff to rise to the occasion and deliver far more than the 74.5 pts/gm they were seeing over weeks 3 and 4. A tall order, but they did just that.
Ringworm's hurlers delivered 147 points over the course of week 5, their best since the opening week of the season. The Mermen's pitchers? They scored 64 points, their lowest total of the season...by a long shot. The previous low for the Mermen's staff was more than double that, 130 points in week 2.
And in a lopsided pitching contest like that, the Ringworm batters didn't need to do much, though they did.
After Ha-Seong Kim got things going with 12 points in the 1st inning, Ozzie Albies would go on to add 11 in the 2nd and 16 in the 3rd to help Dude It Was Ringworm jump out to an insurmountable 184-34 lead after three innings.
The Mermen would eventually get on track, outscoring Ringworm 102-45 in the final three frames. But when you're down by 150, that's just not going to get it done.
Most managers might struggle and feel frustration after losing a matchup like that and falling out of the division lead. Not the Mermen.
"The ringworm got me this week! Can't wait for the next week. I love this league."
The optimism from rookie owners in the Sagebrush Cactus League is adorable. We'll see if it's still there in week 18.
With week 5 largely going to the underdogs, can we expect more this week?
The short answer is no. But, there's a catch.
Just about every team looks evenly matched this week which means while the top teams in each division are battling it out on the diamond, there's an opportunity for lower ranked teams to get a victory and disrupt the standings.
Best of luck in week 6!
-- Commish
POWER RANKINGS
Another solid performance from Akes and Pain keeps them in the #1 spot while a bad week for the Mermen slowed their ascent to the top. With the Mermen falling to #3 this week, that opened up the opportunity for the Tator Tots to slip into the #2 position.
The two biggest gains this week were Dude It Was Ringworm - from #7 to #5 - and the Poke Bananas who climbed from #10 to #8.
The bottom two teams, Damn Yankees and Green Monstahs, weren't able to shake their low rankings despite their impressive wins. But if they can put together another solid performance in week 6, they may find themselves out of the gutter.
ALL-STAR LINEUP CHALLENGE
There wasn't much movement among the standings this week. In fact, the top 5 teams all remain unchanged with Akes and Pain and Myrtle Beach Mermen continuing to dominate the field.
It's difficult to see this contest shaking up too much until Paul Blackburn and Jose Altuve are able to join their teams. If and when they do, there are a number of teams around the middle of the standings that could actually make a push.
BATTING CHAMPION & CY YOUNG CHALLENGES
Much has changed since our last update in these contests.
In the Batting Champion contest there are seven new players listed among the top 20. While Albies, Franco, and Mullins all climbed 20 or more spots over the past two weeks, perhaps more impressive was Brent Rooker moved to #13 after being outside of the top 80 just two weeks ago.
With seven new players on the leaderboard, that means there were just as many to fall off. Some notables include Yordan Alvarez who dropped from #11 to #28, Hunter Renfroe who fell from #10 to #53, and Nolan Gorman who plummeted from #9 to NR.
It's also worth noting that last year's Batting Champion, Aaron Judge, is currently not ranked at all.
Five new names join the leaderboard in the Cy Young contest this week: Sonny Gray, Spencer Strider, Nathan Eovaldi, Anthony DeSclafani, and Chris Bassitt. Among those five, Gray and Strider seem like they might have the staying power to remain on the list, though all five have been impressive over the past two weeks.
Other notable names among the top 20 that stand out to me are Joe Ryan who moved up to #3 from #16, and Justin Steele who moved from #8 to #2. Whether or not they have what it takes to catch the leader, Gerrit Cole, there's no question that they're having a great start to their seasons.
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