Comeback Bacon! REVENGE TASTED SWEET and a little bit greasy in the Bronx last week as Canadian BackBacon staged a dramatic comeback against Doyle League archrivals Margo Adams Fan Club to claim the second annual Mendoza Winter Open championship. Trailing by two runs and down to their last three outs in Game 6, BackBacon extended the final series with a furious rally off feared Margo closer Jonathan Papelbon. With Game 7 tied 1-1 in the bottom of the eighth, the Canadians torched the tired Margo pen for six unanswered runs to send the home crowd into a delirium. Troy Glaus's 10 RBIs earned him the Series MVP trophy. Canadian BackBacon owner Todd Snider drew loud applause at the post-parade rally with a pledge to re-sign many of the team's star free agents. Finals batting leaders               Finals pitching leaders BackBacon 9, Margo 7 BackBacon's decision to start ace Roy Halladay on two days' rest backfired early, as Margo grabbed a 4-0 first inning lead on a rally aided by two errors, an infield single and a fielder's choice. But Halladay shut the door thereafter, gutting out 5 2/3 innings for the win. Troy Glaus hit a three-run shot to left in the third and added a run scoring double in the fifth. David Ortiz chased Margo starter Barry Zito with a home run in the seventh and Mariano Rivera coaxed a game-ending double play for the save. BackBacon leads series, 1-0
Margo 14, BackBacon 2 Margo jumped all over BackBacon starter Jake Westbrook, as Cleveland teammate Grady Sizemore hit two two-run homers in the first two innings, and catcher Mike Napoli added a two-run jack of his own to jump-start a 4-for-5 afternoon. Mark Teixeira also went deep twice to back a strong six innings by winner C.C. Sabathia. Series tied, 1-1		Margo 3, BackBacon 2 Margo closer Jon Papelbon went a strong 7 2/3 innings filling in for injured ace Johan Santana, and catcher Mike Napoli starred for a second game in a row, hitting a two-run home run with two outs in the sixth to hand Margo a lead she'd never relinquish. Justin Duchscherer pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the save. Margo leads series, 2-1		Margo 10, BackBacon 1 Margo's powerful lineup scored five first-inning runs off Canadian starter Jose Contreras and never looked back, as Earvin Santana pitched six scoreless innings. Travis Hafner homered and Mike Napoli legged out a triple to stake the defending MWO champions to a commanding series lead. Margo leads series, 3-1
BackBacon 6, Margo 5 Tadahito Iguchi scampered home with the winning run on a Brian Bruney wild pitch in the top of the eighth inning, and Mariano Rivera induced double-plays to end serious Margo threats in the eighth and ninth to send the series back to the Bronx. Vlad Guerrero, Phil Nevin and Iguchi had three hits apiece for the victors. A sixth-inning injury to C.C. Sabathia further taxed Margo's depleted pen. Margo leads series, 3-2		BackBacon 7, Margo 6 Margo led 5-1 in the sixth inning and by two in the ninth before fate voted Canadian. Brought in to close out the series, scheduled Game 7 starter Jonathan Papelbon gave up a double to Johnny Damon and a single to Joe Mauer. Walks to Vlad Guerrero and Jason Giambi followed to cut Margo's lead to one. There were still no outs when Glaus singled the winning run home. Series tied, 3-3		BackBacon 7, Margo 1 Papelbon returned to the scene of his Game 6 disaster and pitched five strong innings the next night before tiring. With two on in the eighth, Duchscherer retired Damon and Mauer before Vlad Guerrero snuck a single through the box to plate Orlando Cabrera. After an intentional walk to David Ortiz, Glaus blasted a grand slam to deep right. Jason Giambi followed with a solo shot. BackBacon wins series, 4-3

BackBacon Fries Vazquez, Juiced in Subway Showdown BackBacon 20, Juiced 6 The Canadians teed off against Juiced starter Javier Vazquez, scoring nine times before Vazquez was pulled in the second inning. David Ortiz hit three home runs and Joe Mauer went deep twice for the victors. BackBacon leads series, 1-0 BackBacon 5, Juiced 2 Mike Mussina scattered 5 hits and 4 walks over 7 1/3 innings and Mariano Rivera remained automatic in the pen as BackBacon once again prevailed at home. Rocco Baldelli stayed hot for the visitors. BackBacon leads series, 2-0 Juiced 4, BackBacon 1 Barry Zito was masterful on his home mound at Shea, limiting BackBacon's powerhouse lineup to five hits and a single run over eight innings. Wily Mo Pena took Jose Contreras deep in the sixth. BackBacon leads series, 2-1 Juiced 8, BackBacon 0 The Canadian offense continued to slump away from home, managing just four hits and no runs. Joel Zumaya pitched brilliantly for five innings after relieving the injured Felix Hernandez. Rocco Baldelli tripled and homered, while Mark Teahen went 3 for 3 with two stolen bases to pace the Juiced attack. Series tied, 2-2 BackBacon 1, Juiced 0 Roy Halladay pitched eight shutout innings to prevail in a pitcher's duel with Javier Vazquez. Joe Mauer walked to lead off the BackBacon eighth, and after two outs sandwiched around an intentional walk to David Ortiz, Jason Giambi blooped a double down the left field line to knock in the winning run. Mariano Rivera got out of a two-on, none-out jam in the ninth for the save. BackBacon leads series, 3-2 Juiced 7, BackBacon 1 Jonathan Papelbon allowed but one run in a dominant complete-game victory at Yankee Stadium for the visitors. Robinson Cano (twice) and Derek Jeter went deep off Yankee teammate Mike Mussina; Cano and Rocco Baldelli had three hits apiece. Series tied, 3-3 BackBacon 10, Juiced 4 Chone Figgins, Orlando Cabrera and Gregg Zaun paced a 16-hit assault as BackBacon muscled its way into the finals. David Ortiz and Vlad Guerrero launched a Bronx bomb apiece to seal the hard-fought victory. Mark Teahen and Nick Markakis went deep for a young Juiced team that's likely to be a perennial contender for years to come. BackBacon wins series, 4-3 Semis batting leaders

Divisional Play Statistics League standings League team vs team League game results League batting leaders League pitching leaders League fielding leaders League team batting totals League team pitching totals League team pitching totals (vs batter) League team fielding totals League current injuries League injury log League transaction log League batting register League pitching register Teams Paige Gibson Margo Adams Fan Club Canadian BackBacon Long-Eared Galoots Bear (DE) Brawlers Dangerous Habits Budd Bay Buffleheads Juiced East Dayton Hilljacks Minions of Jobu Prophets on the Margin Money Ball Too Natural Selection Royale With Cheese Uncle Charlie's Yakkers

Margo a Royale Pain Despite Rocket's Heroics Margo 9, Royale 4 Royale struck first on an Andruw Jones homer, but Margo came back on blasts by Mark Teixeira, Miguel Tejada and Travis Hafner. Johan Santana overcame a rocky start to throw eight strong innings. Margo leads series, 1-0 Margo 13, Royale 10 Royale erased an early 8-1 deficit thanks to an Andruw Jones grand slam, a three-run shot by Ray Durham and a brilliant effort by Pedro Martinez in relief of the shelled Brandon Webb, adding two more runs in the ninth to take a 10-9 lead. But Carl Crawford took Brian Fuentes deep to open the bottom of the ninth, and Howie Kendrick soon followed with a three-run walk-off off Aaron Heilman. Margo leads series, 2-0 Margo 4, Royale 1 Margo pushed Royale to the brink of elimination as its unheralded catchers continued to surprise, Kelly Shoppach going deep into the Wigley bleachers in the second. Barry Zito skated in and out of trouble through six despite control issues. Joe Saunders and Jonathan Papelbon shut the door in the eighth and ninth. Margo leads series, 3-0 Royale 6, Margo 4 Jason Schmidt went six innings for the win, while Royale's offense came alive against Earvin Santana at home. Brian McCann went 3 for 4 with two doubles, while Mike Cameron had a homer and a single to go along with two stolen bags. Pedro Martinez closed out a Margo threat in the ninth. Margo leads series, 3-1 Royale 2, Margo 0 Roger Clemens fired a complete-game, three-hit shutout against Margo's mashers to stave off elimination. The Rocket struck out 11, walked one and did not allow any of Margo's men to reach second. Thanks to a pickoff and a double play, he faced the minimum three batters in seven of the nine frames. Felipe Lopez homered in the third to give Royale the only run they'd need. Johan Santana suffered a serious injury in the fourth and was ruled out for the remainder of the playoffs. Margo leads series, 3-2 Margo 5, Royale 3 Home runs by Ray Durham and Chipper Jones couldn't forestall a repeat of last year's semifinal series between the two teams, as the game Royale once again came up two wins shy of a trip to the finals. Tejada and Rios went deep for Margo; Crawford and Sizemore had two hits apiece as well. Papelbon pitched two scoreless innings for the save. Margo wins series, 4-2 Semis pitching leaders