The May round-up from Fantasy Baseball UK is here! Scroll down to find out who won Manager of the Month plus the rest of the round-up from the fantasy league.
London Series update
MLB hits our shores later this month when the Mitel & MLB London Series sees the New York Yankees face the Boston Red Sox at the London Stadium on 29-30 June. Congratulations to fantasy league manager, Kevin Flaherty, whose name was picked out to win two tickets to the Series after entering our prize draw in the last newsletter.
Hopefully, some of you are also planning to be at the games or the various activities MLB is putting on around the Series. Our friends at BaseballSoftballUK (BSUK), the national development agency for the sports, are supporting MLB to leave a legacy after the London Series. BSUK is helping MLB run various participation events around the London Series, part of BSUK’s overall mission to increase participation in baseball and softball in this country.
Last week MLB also formally announced the teams that will take part in the second London Series in 2020. The Chicago Cubs and St Louis Cardinals will play a two-game series at the London Stadium on 13-14 June 2020.
Book a softball event for a chance to win tickets
Here’s a final opportunity to win London Series tickets: to celebrate the relaunch of the Hit The Pitch website – BaseballSoftballUK’s national participation programme – if you book your softball event now, your organisation will be entered to win tickets to the MLB London Series 2019.
A Hit the Pitch softball day is an active, fun and different option for a company or community social event.
Click for more information via the Hit the Pitch website
FBUK All-Star Team of the Month: May
Based on fantasy points accumulated, here’s the month’s top performers at each position:
The National League player of the Month, Josh Bell of the Pittsburgh Pirates, chalked up the most fantasy points of any player between 1-31 May, and was 74 points clear of other players at the first base position. His 12 home runs included three multi-homer games, along with 12 doubles, 31 RBI and a .390 batting average.
Meanwhile, the American League Pitcher of the Month, Lucas Giolito of the Chicago White Sox, locked down the starter position in the FBUK All-Star Team. Giolito recorded five wins in a row with 46 strikeouts in six games total in May. In allowing only eight runs over those games, he also lowered his ERA from 5.32 to 2.85 through the month.
The New York Yankees’ closer Aroldis Chapman earned 11 saves in 12 games to secure the relief pitcher position in the All-Star Team. At third base, Nolan Arenado (Colorado Rockies) made the FBUK All-Star Team in both April and May.
Fantasy Manager of the Month: May
Well done to Ludo Basse, Manager of the Month, whose team Brinsonia scored the most fantasy points between 1-31 May. Ludo wins an Oyo MLB minifigure for his efforts. Thanks to BaseballSoftballUK for supporting our prizes.
Fantasy League Standings (top): Up to 7 June
Brent Bentley was among the top five managers of the month in both April and May, and those performances put his team Carry On My Heyward Son at the top of the Main Game at the time of writing. Last year’s runner-up, Ludo Basse (Brinsonia), has charged into the top five after winning May Manager of the Month. Last month’s top manager, Rupert Russell (Blue Through and Through), remains in the top ten.
In the $5m Game, Kev Mesher (The Brad Penny Pinchers) maintains a steady lead at the moment, while the 2017 double champion in the Main and $5m Games, Brian Matthews (Scioscialessly Unhappy), has opened a bit of a gap over the chasing pack in second place.
In the Limited Trade Game, Wayne Mason (A Frican Elephant) has a narrow lead while last month’s leader, Vaughan’s Vultures, has slipped out of the top ten. The league has got closer since April, with less than 40 points now separating the top four teams where once the top three were spread out over 175 points.
Finally…
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Thanks for playing, and good luck for the rest of the season!
The FBUK team
