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Aaron Civale was traded to the Rays yesterday. Going from the Guardians to the Rays for pitching is like going from caviar to caviar straight from a fish’s vagina. (Do fish have vagina? Wasn’t that a book title?) Going from the Guardians to the Rays for pitching is like going from bacon to bacon dipped in mayo. You were already at a team that developed great pitching, do you need to go to one even better? Aren’t you being a little greedy? Aaron Civale traded to the Rays and about to become a thinking man’s Zach Eflin. Call him Zach Brain. Civale is Eflin, who was Ryan Yarbough on the Rays, who was Matt Andriese, who was Drew Smyly, who was Jake Odorizzi, who was—Greybot 5000 is malfunctioning, please unplug, blow into my ear and plug me back in. Civale’s peripherals don’t back up his ERA, as I keep saying, but it didn’t matter because the Guards have magic, and the Rays have more magic. Also, on a side note, the Guards’ return of Kyle Manzardo, and I’m just so sick of the Guards being perpetual sellers. “Manzardo is a great return!” Sure, until the Guards sell him in four years for another prospect. My guess is they’re about to sell Josh Bell too, and call up Manzardo, but that’s clear conjecture. Manzardo is basically Josh Naylor, Part Two. Call him Josh Afternoon-Delight. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Hola, chicos and cinco chicas! Are you ready for some Tex-Max Schenchiladas? Ay, papis and cinco mamas, you want some Tex-Max Enscherziladas?! Ay?! So, the Max Scherzer trade to the Rangers was briefly held up because they needed Max’s approval, and I have been laughing for two days thinking about someone asking if they would waive their no-trade clause from the Mets. Can you imagine?

“Hey, I have to ask you–”
“Yes.”
“Wait, let me–”
“Absolutely.”
“You have to let me ask you, it’s a part of the clause, I must say the whole thing before you can answer. Okay, are you willing to leave the New York–”
“PLEASE!”

C’mon, bro. Max Scherzer is going to say, “No, I want to stay on this submersible.” So, Scherzer goes to the Rangers and this will fix everything. I kid. Scherzer could go to any team, except maybe the Rockies, and be Scherzer. His 4.01 ERA hasn’t been pristine, and he’s starting to show some wear at 39. His Ks are down, and his walks and homers are up. He has the worst xFIP of his career. I’d never bet against Scherzer — one does not bet against someone with two different colored eyes — but he does look more like a number two vs. the one he’s been for 13 years. By the way, the return package — which I’m sure Itch will go over — includes Luisangel Acuña. Hmm, pitch clock, fine. Limited pickoffs? Okay. But what’s Manfred doing with this “Every NL East team gets an Acuña” rule? From what I’ve heard, it’s a good return for Max Scherzer; the Mets did well. Until they trade Luisangel Acuña this offseason for Whit Merrifield or something equally bad. Anyway, here’s what else I saw this weekend in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

“Hey, man, how come you have names written on the seashells in your bathroom that is decorated in Tommy Bahama?”
Fantasy Baseball Prospector, “I’m glad you asked me. I’ve had those seashells lined up on my bathroom shelf for the last five years, but no one ever visits me so I never had a chance–nay, an opportunity to tell anyone what those seashells really, and truly meant–”
“–hey, man, can you get to the point? I saw you have prospects’ names written on the shells. Why?”
FBP, “Here, this one has Alex Kirilloff‘s name on it. Please listen.”
I take the shell, and press it against my ear. From the shell, I hear, “Post-post-post-post-post-post-post-post,” like it’s waves lapping against the shore. “Whoa.”
“That’s right. Each shell has a different name, and if you press it to your ear you hear how many ‘posts’ are in front of post-hype prospect.” I reach for one shell that reads Garrett Hampson, and he stops me, saying, “That one never stops saying ‘post.'”

So, Alex Kirilloff seems to be breaking out, finally. Why do we care? Quite brucely, he was tagged at every point in the minors as being a guaranteed superstar. What stopped him was repeated wrist injuries. Clearly, those are not good for his hitting. His wrist is supposedly fine now. He was out the other day with a sore shoulder, but the Twins are saying he’s fine, so the superstar we always thought possible might finally be here. Up next, pressing Nolan Jones’s seashell to my ear. Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy or Sell this week in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”1365370″ player=”13959″ title=”2023 Razzball BUY SELL HOLD for Fantasy Baseball Week 18″ duration=”189″ description=”It’s the BUY SELL HOLD for Fantasy Baseball Week 17! 0:23- Jordan Lawlar 0:50 – Gavin Williams 1:42 – Christian Encarnacion-Strand ” uploaddate=”2023-07-26″ thumbnailurl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/9233/snapshot/1365370_th_64c1a17d12dce_1690411389.jpg” image=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/9233/snapshot/1365370_sd_64c1a17d12dce_1690411389.jpg” contenturl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/9233/sd/1365370.mp4″ width=”480″ height=”270″] If Shohei Ohtani was playing when the game of baseball was invented, […]

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Nothing would make me happier than seeing the Angels be competitive. Wasting Ohtani and Trout is not fun. No one deserves anything. No one but Ohtani and Trout. Give them a chance! Give Ohtani a chance! Let Ohtani get in a World Series, toe the rubber, not like Quentin Tarantino thinks about that phrase, and pitch a shutout while hitting a blast or two. Give us that shizz in our eyeballs! If helping that is Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez being traded to the Angels, then we welcome it with open arms, which sounds like lyrics from Calling All Angels, so it makes sense. Reynaldo Lopez and Giolito were previously traded from the Nats to the White Sox, and, appizzarently, they share a travel agent. Lopez will work the 8th, and Giolito will fix that rotation. He’s going to a relatively similar ballpark, and he allows too many homers and walks, but he should be able to maintain a 3.60-3.80 ERA and his 9.5+ K/9. It’s coming at a good time for him too, I hear. “Let’s go!” That’s Giolito throwing his wedding ring into Lake Michigan. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Buying low is harder than buying high. Yeah, I said it. Buying low means the other person has to cut bait after being so pot-committed. Then, the person buying low has to put aside the player they are getting has been garbage, and they might be better off with getting a guy off waivers. Dansby Swanson (3-for-3, 4 RBIs and his 11th and 12th homer, hitting .271) yesterday made buying low harder or easier? In theory, it should make it easier, because those signs of life should allow the person who has him an easy way to unload, but signs of life usually works the opposite way. The person with Swanson has been pounding their team’s chest, hoping to revive it, and now: The EKG line shoots up and you want them to sell him? One thing is for certain, Dansby Swanson is going to be so forgotten for 2024 fantasy baseball, he’s gonna be basically free, unless he turns his whole season around. Can he? Absolutely. His 1st half last year was one of the best. He’s capable of continuing to shoot up that EKG meaning I’d buy low, if that were possible, which it’s not. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Yesterday, Cristopher Sanchez went 7 IP, 2 ER, 4 hits, zero walks, 8 Ks, ERA at 2.98, which is fine and dandy, but spelling it Cristopher is so Euro trash. Like you just stepped out of a Mazerati and you tossed me your keys, and I’m not valet, but simply a person selling balloon animals. With that said, Cristopher is carrying on the long, 3-month tradition of terrible pitchers being great and great pitchers being terrible. This is truly hilarious: His walk rate in the minors? 5.3 BB/9. El oh you gotta be kidding me el. In the majors, 1.3 BB/9. What, and I will pause now for emphasis, is going on? How can that be? It’s ludicrous. It’s Ludacris with What’s Your Fantasy, and Why Is He Not Getting Hit? Do MLB hitters just not know to hold for a walk? Could it be that simple? He’s barely a 8 K/9 pitcher, so if the walks are bad, everything about him is bad, but. Dot dot dot. Here we are. Streamonator hates his next start, and I have no confidence, but I would try him for his next start, because up is clearly down and vice versa. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Sal Frelick (1-for-3, 1 run) was promoted by the Brewers, and hit cleanup because you can’t stop the fun. The fun will overtake you, trample you, stampede you into oblivion if you try to stop the fun. The fun will stand on your head as you scream for your life if you try to stop it. Wow, fun doesn’t sound so fun. Yikes, glad I don’t have fun. I’m serious business and this callup is the same. I gave you a Sal Frelick fantasy just a few weeks ago where I told you to stash him, now I’m saying grab him. He was just in Itch’s top 25 fantasy baseball prospects. Itch said previously, “(Frelick is a) hit machine. Walked (8.8%) more than he struck out (7.4%) in 46 games at Triple-A, slashing .365/.435/.508 with four home runs and nine stolen bases. I have no idea why he didn’t get called up last year, and I’d like to call up a hit man to take out you-know-who.” C’mon man! Frelick is a grab in every league. Anyway, here’s what else I saw this weekend in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Players are going to start being traded like hot potatoes. Hot potato gratins. Sorry, I shouldn’t be doing this on an empty stomach. And when those players are traded, you know what this means? All new answers for the Immaculate Grid! Oh, and opportunities for younger players. One team that would never want to admit to being a seller. One team that is way too proud to be like, “We messed this up almost as bad as the Mets.” Their crosstown rivals, the Yankees. Don’t want to blow too many peoples’ minds here, but they were sellers last year too. The JoMo/Bader trade was not to make them better. With the Yankees turning the page, Oswald Peraza should get a “rest of the season” looksie. (We will put aside the fact that he should’ve been playing from March until now with Josh Donaldson told by Jimmy to go down that alley in Goodfellas to look at some new furs.) In the minors, Oswald Peraza went 12/11/.261 with great contact, and has been hitting leadoff for the Yanks, which he should. He’s their best leadoff hitter in some time with his speed and ability to take a walk. Also, one has to imagine that he knows what this opportunity means, and he’s going to want to show the Yanks he should be in their future plans. That means steals. As a team, the Yankees are on the cusp of doing a seance and having a medium channel George Steinbrenner, so Ghost Steinbrenner can fire the entire team, but, until then, Oswald Peraza will be in a great situation for fantasy. At worst, O-Pera beats out the Guardians’ Arias. Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy or Sell this week in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

This post will be an extended mea culpa. I didn’t believe Andrew Abbott (8 IP, 0 ER, 1 hit, two walks, 6 Ks, ERA at 2.10) when he was called up. Didn’t believe him after his first eight starts! Didn’t believe him when he had solid prospect pedigree. Didn’t believe him when he came to my house and said, “Why don’t you believe me? You’re hurting my feelings!” I didn’t believe him when he showed up at my favorite boba place to tell me he had a 9.2 K/9, 2.9 BB/9. Didn’t believe him when he showed up at my health club in a towel and sat in the sauna with me and walked me through how he had a .212 xBAA, an xERA of 3.62 and a .103 BAA on his sweeper, which he throws 16.1% of the time. I didn’t believe him when he walked next to my car, while I was in traffic, and told me his fly balls were crazy high, but literally, so they won’t leave the park. I didn’t believe him when he shook me awake in the middle of the night and told me to not trust his 4.59 xFIP. I didn’t believe him through all that, and I regret it. Sadly, I still don’t believe him. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

“The guys we have in here, in this clubhouse. These guys are home. This locker room for the last three months is where I’ve placed my bowl of cocktail wieners and beans on top of this wooden bench and dined, while people around me have said, ‘Really? You have to eat in here?’ This locker is where I hang my Mets’ jersey, where, before me, once Hubie Brooks hung his Mets’ jersey, and before him, another guy whose name I’m forgetting. That’s a legacy, and we’re damn proud. Mets is written across our chest, like a stigmata.” That was Justin Verlander as he tried to pretend to not want to be traded, making his best effort on the field — 8 IP, 1 ER, 4 baserunners, 7 Ks, ERA at 3.47. Verlander is carrying his worst peripherals in fifteen years — 7.6 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, 4.49 xFIP, just hideous stuff for a guy of his caliber, but maybe the inspiration to get off the Mets will be all he needs. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

“Anything you can do I can do better,
I can do anything better than you.

No, you can’t. Yes, I can.” Sang Christian Walker (3-for-5, 3 runs, 5 RBIs) as he had a double slam (19, 20) and legs (7). On Christian solder! *blowtorches a piece of metal*

“Anything you can do I can do better,
I can do anything better than you.

No, you can’t. Yes, I can.” Sang Austin Riley (3-for-5, 3 runs, 7 RBIs) as he hit hit his 17th and 18th homer.

“You’re supposed to wait for me to reply ‘Yes, I can’ after you say ‘No, you can’t.”

“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.” Sang Orlando Arcia (2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 RBIs) who hit his 8th homer. Next year, Christian Walker will once again be underrated, as he’s currently above Vlad Jr., Riley and others on the Player Rater, and others who went way before him, and I imagine will again in 2024. “No, they won’t.” Yes, they will! Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?