Contest - week two.

So this past week in the Strat-O-Matic contest it was the Astros hosting the Rangers in Houston.

In the MLB Showdown game the Rangers managed to outlast the Astros 5-4 to get the win for Ismael Valdes. Jim Kern picked up a two inning save. One point if you predicted the Showdown Rangers to win.

In just my second Strat-O-Matic game the Rangers beat the Astros 4-1. In the first inning Nelson Cruz, as shown here on his 2010 Strat card, came up with an injury after grounding out to the shortstop. He will be out for eight games. This effectively removes him from the rest of the contest. One point if you predicted the Strat-O-Matic Rangers to win.

For the second time the MLB Showdown Rangers won the scoring contest. This time it was close, 5-4. One point if you predicted that the Showdown Rangers would score the most runs.

A couple of more thoughts on Strat-O-Matic versus MLB Showdown.

When I first started looking at Strat-O-Matic I was convinced that it would not be as simple as Showdown. After just a couple of basic games I am changing my mind. The game is not as complicated as it looks at first. Granted, I am playing Showdown at the highest level of play and Strat at the lowest but the time it takes to play a game is about the same after just a short time. Nice to be able to grasp the game that quickly. Advantage even.

Injuries. They don't really exist in Showdown. At least not any that will take a player out of action for any length of time. I have always thought that this was a failing that I would like to see addressed. After all, the really good teams in baseball always have a good bench to give the starting lineup a break and to fill in in case of an injury. In spite of the fact that the Rangers got bit by the injury rules with Nellie Cruz I like the idea. Strat seems to be much more accurate in this area than Showdown. Advantage to Strat-O-Matic.

On to this week's match. Next the Rangers play the Mets in New York. Make sure to get your predictions in as the contest is still wide open. Remember to include if you think the Showdown Rangers will win, if you think the Strat 2009 Rangers will win, and which Rangers team you think will score the most runs.

For details on how this contest works please see this post.