I went to a museum many of years ago and saw a 5′ x 5′ white canvas with a 2″ black line running down the middle of it. I looked left and saw a couple on the brink of orgasm looking at it. To my right was a man with glasses that looked as if the Riddler had hypnotized him. What was I missing? Shrooms, perhaps? I’m no connoisseur of art by any means, but this Son has a little culture running through his veins, so I do appreciate art. Much of it makes no sense to me, which I guess makes me a simpleton. Michelangelo’s statue of David, though? I get. The detail. The craftsmanship. I can see it. The only questions would be: Was it cold in there? and Was David Asian? Anyways, there’s no denying what David Peralta (77.1% owned – increase of 11.1%) has been doing on the baseball field. In 285 plate appearances, David has clubbed 14 home runs with 39 RBI and 2 stolen bases. The triple slash has been .277/.337/.500. He bats cleanup, strikes out only 22.1% of the time, and has a robust 48.7% hard contact rate. What about that humidor thing? Humidor Schumidor. David has a higher walk rate, lower strikeout rate, and higher ISO at home than on the road. Now, he does struggle against left-handed pitching (29.9% strikeout rate and .228 batting average), but he has hit 3 home runs off them and still bats fifth in the lineup. On the Razzball Player Rater, David is the 28th outfielder. TREASURE
Please, blog, may I have some more?
Bear or Bull: Wade “Am I Drowning?” Davis
June 19, 2018 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 18 Commentsby: Son
SAGNOF – Saves Ain’t Got NO Face. We all know the mantra. For those of you new to Razzball, the pursuit of saves is a fickle battle. There’s more turnover than at IHOP on free pancake day. Pitchers get hot, then not. Some need a break, while others just break. Many just plain suck. And then we have managers like The Sciosciapath. No further explanation needed. Although, even if I tried, I probably wouldn’t be able to explain his madness anyways. Whatever the case may be, saves appear out of thin air every season. Did you know that Phil Maton got a save last season? Exactly. In fact, a total of 162 pitchers got at least one save last year. Why am I driveling about saves? Because I want to write about Wade Davis today. I usually don’t write about closers because Smokey takes care of that, but I just got that itch after perusing Fangraphs. Yes, some scroll through Pornhub and Redtube. Pssst….I still do sometimes as well….But most of the time it’s scrolling and clicking on the various tabs on player pages at Fangraphs. SAGNOF. Son Ain’t Give NO F***s. So, what stood out about Wade Davis?
Please, blog, may I have some more?The first Martin that popped into my head was Martin Lawrence. Bad boys, bad boys. What you gonna do? What you gonna do when they come for you? To be honest, I never really liked Lawrence the movie star. Stand up comedian Martin? Wasn’t the best, but that always got a chuckle from me. After doing extensive due diligence…..typing Martin into Google….I’m truly ashamed of myself. How could I forget the good reverend, Dr. Martin Luther King? He’s my favorite Martin for sure, but you are here to read about baseball. Since catchers are…..my momma said to STFU if you ain’t got nothing nice to say about someone, so I’ll talk about Leonys Martin (32.4% owned – increase of 15.2%). I definitely have a type, as I pimp Brett Gardner too much for anyone’s liking. Anyways, Martin won’t bat for a high average, think .255 range, but he will hit some home runs and steal some bases. The projection systems have him ending with 18 home runs and 18 stolen bases. Not bad. Last season, 24 players in all of baseball went at least 15/15. He’s not a prodigious walker (currently 8.9% but career rate of 6.6%), but the strikeout rate is a manageable 20.3% and the hard hit rate is a robust 38.6%. His position atop the Tigers lineup is favorable. Now, he’s turrable against left-handed pitching, and correspondingly moves down to 6th or 7th against them in the batting order, but he plays and that’s half the battle. Will Martin be a league winner? Naw, but there’s a place for players like him. TREASURE
Please, blog, may I have some more? Bear or Bull: Gary Has Been A Dirty Sanchez
June 12, 2018 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 28 Commentsby: Son
Last season, Gary Sanchez clubbed 33 home runs with a .278/.345/.531 slash. As a result, fantasy players were drafting Sanchez with the 34th pick on average. Cue the Grey cackle. What What???!!! When our mustached leader descended from the peak of Mt. Tout, he read these words from the tablet that was being carried in the hand that wasn’t holding his boba drink: Thou shall not draft catchers early. Now, I know there are sinners among you. It’s ok. We are not perfect beings and many of us succumb to temptations. What’s done is done. That’s right. Not only did you sin, but you’ve been experiencing a Dirty Sanchez up to this point, as Gary is batting .190/.291/.430. What to do? What to do?
Please, blog, may I have some more?When visiting another place, I want to taste the cuisine and visit the places that give the locals pride. Now that I think about it, the places that make the locals want to puke as well. Yes, I’m a rubbernecker. I have never once inquired about a pillar of the community. They are reliable, respected, and provide essential support yet…..boooorrring. Same goes for fantasy baseball. There are players we get excited about and others that are…..boooorrring. Kevin Pillar (65.8% owned – decrease of 11.1%) is one of those players. His ADP was 212.7 in ESPN leagues. Currently, he has a triple slash of .260/.302/.435 with 5 home runs and 9 stolen bases. The projection systems have him ending the season with 13 home runs and 20 stolen bases in 635 plate appearances. There were 14 players in all of baseball that ended with at least 10 home runs and 20 stolen bases last season. Now, he doesn’t walk much (5.4%) and chases a ton of pitches outside the strike zone (40.2%). With that said, he doesn’t strike out often (17.8%), will provide an ISO around .145, and have a batting average around .265. He’s batting fifth in the Blue Jays lineup and will sometimes get slotted into the two-hole. Digging into the 2018 numbers for Pillar, I noticed that he’s been experiencing some drastic splits. Against lefties, he’s batting .192 with a .200 BABIP. For his career, he’s a .282 batter against lefties with a .319 BABIP. I’d expect some positive regression. TREASURE
Please, blog, may I have some more?For some reason, I thought the tomahawk chop at FSU football games was cool. At Atlanta Braves games? I absolutely despised it. I’ve always wanted to dress up as a cowboy and get my Yosemite Sam on inside the stadium. I know. I’ve got issues that my wife doesn’t even want to subscribe to. So, I thought it would be appropriate to head down to Atlanta and give Liberty Media a taste of my mind at SunTrust Park. To my surprise, John Schuerholz personally greeted me outside the stadium and brought me to his private box. He said, “Son, you know what makes me great?” What’s that John? Can I call you John? “Son, look at #17 down there on the field. I have the power to slap a big ole S on each side of his jersey.” Why would you do that, John? “Well, Son, everytime he stole a base or hit a home run, I could say to everyone: Look at that S Camargo!!!” Uh…..John? “Look here, Son. Just because I have the power to do something doesn’t mean I should alleviate all of my selfish desires. Capisce?” You are wise.
Please, blog, may I have some more?The value of Pi is unknowable, which makes it an “irrational number.” 3.1415926535897…..Computer scientists have calculated billions of digits of Pi without discerning a recognizable pattern. To infinity and beyond! This concept of irrationality has made many of men mad. On the flip side, Vetta is a Sanskrit term that means “knower” in Hindu philosophy, as in someone who has a deeper or higher spiritual knowledge. The dichotomy and duality of life. It is presented to us everyday. So, it would only make sense that Nick Pivetta (54.8% owned – increase of 24.3%) would be the literal poster boy. Against righties, 30.3% K-BB rate and 2.39 xFIP. Against lefties, 14.3% K-BB rate and 4.29 xFIP. At home, 2.80 xFIP and 26.4% K-BB rate. On the road, 4.33 xFIP and 14.9% K-BB rate. The overall snapshot, though, looks amazing. 10.19 strikeout rate with a 2.04 walk rate. 3.29 xFIP and 0.85 HR/9. The hard contact rate is only 27.1% and the swinging strike rate is 11.3%. Granted, the sample size is small and last season Pivetta was worse against righties. I like Pivetta, as he throws mid-90s, has good control, and can miss bats. Just be aware that there is more under the hood than what the overall numbers are showing. With that said: TREASURE
Please, blog, may I have some more? Bear or Bull: Travis, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
May 22, 2018 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 12 Commentsby: Son
Travis Jankowski was called Fred, by his older brother and sister, because he loved watching Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood as a kid. Mister Rogers was in fact Fred Rogers. Mind blown. Hey, I thought he was one of the neighbors. I wasn’t a big MRN guy, but I do remember the “Won’t you be my neighbor?” Anyways, Mister Rogers’ neighborhood was a place for children to learn and grow. “To foster the social and emotional ‘tools’ for learning self-esteem, curiosity, self-control, the ability to pay attention, to handle mistakes, and deal with anger.” Maybe I should have been more of a MRN guy. I’m not sure Mister Rogers would approve of Jankowski’s main professional skill, though: stealing bases. But check out what Mister Rogers would say before the end of each episode: “You always make each day a special day. You know how. By just being yourself. There’s only one person in the whole world that’s like you, and that’s you. And people can like you just the way you are. I’ll be back next time. Bye bye!” And then I realized…Mister Rogers would have bunted to break up a perfect game and given no shits about it.
Please, blog, may I have some more?About a year ago, I started seeing more people riding electric scooters around Los Angeles. Then, I’d see groups of scooters parked on sidewalks. My first thought was, “Scooter gangs!!! Ride-bys!!!” Alas, I did a little due diligence and learned that the company, Bird, was responsible for this new concept. It makes sense. Los Angeles is so spread out and mass transit kind of sucks, so the scooters have been a hot trend to be that “last-mile” of transportation. Unfortunately, not everyone agrees. Up in San Francisco, residents have been complaining about “disorganized parking and hazardous sidewalk usage.” Which side of the scooter rage are you on? The same question can be posed for Scooter Gennett (69.1% owned – increase of 35.7%). This Scooter has been the most added player in ESPN leagues over the past week. Rightfully so, as he’s gone 12-for-23 with 4 runs scored, 2 home runs, and 6 RBI over that span. For the season, Scooter is batting .323 with 19 runs scored, 6 home runs, 24 RBI, and 1 stolen base. We’ve been here before, as Scooter was often written up last season, when he finished with 27 home runs and a .323 batting average. I’m a Scooter Gennett guy. Low strikeout rate (18.8%), utilizes the whole field (38.4% oppo rate), 82.4% contact rate, and 8.7% swinging strike rate. He also has a 42.4% hard hit rate!!! Now, that will probably come down, as will the batting average that is supported by a .373 BABIP. With that said, a .270-ish batting average with a .170 ISO seems feasible with upside. Great American Ballpark is a great place to hit and Scooter is batting cleanup in the Reds lineup. The most encouraging thing for me has been the success against left-handed pitching: .343 average with 1 home run in 37 plate appearances. Keep in mind that the sample size has been small and that he’s a career .221 hitter against lefties in his career. With that said, even if he regresses against lefties, there’s still plenty to like with Scooter. As for the other scooters? I’d be scared shitless riding those things around. Too many people with road rage in Los Angeles. I’d imagine sidewalk rage could become a thing with riders getting clotheslined soon. TREASURE
Please, blog, may I have some more?Christian Villanueva made his debut last season and clubbed four home runs in 32 plate appearances. Can I get an amen? They came with a 31.3% strikeout rate and 0.0% walk rate, though. Only God is perfect. So, with that knowledge, many took solace in knowing they had a strong Christian and….Their faith was rewarded, as he smashed three home runs in his second game to start the 2018 campaign. Coincidence that Passover was March 30th to April 7th this season? Fine, don’t answer that, you party pooper. Let me enjoy my Ancient Aliens show in peace. For the non-believers and infidels, the plate discipline numbers and limited track record had them dancing to Milli Vanilli tunes. Sorry, tune. But then, he had an 11-game hitting streak in which he homered in three straight games and amassed a total of five home runs. Now, he’s mired in a 10-game bagel streak, in which he’s walked twice and struck out 13 times. Will this Christian be saved?
Please, blog, may I have some more?I rarely see the owner of the house next door. He inherited the house, renovated it, and is now renting it out. So, it was surprising when I saw him in the front yard one day. I went out and asked him what was going on and the response was that he was looking for a new gardener because the present, or shall we say former, crew was not doing the job they were being paid to do. Skimping on the raking, the cutting, and not coming when they were supposed to. I believe he was hiring them to come every two weeks. Anyways, as a gardener, I guess you could always play off the work that you did by saying, “I raked the leaves. The wind must’ve started blowing more leaves back right away” or “I cut the grass. It must’ve grown much faster this month.” The gardener’s, the dog ate my homework, excuse I guess. Well, Brett Gardner (69.8% owned – decrease of 9.7%) has not been raking lately as well. Is he playing us or is this the case of the baseballs? For full disclosure, I had Gardner as my sleeper coming into the season, so there may or may not be some bias in this evaluation. Before you throw internet tomatoes at my internet head, Gardner went 21/23 last season and was super cheap in drafts. Anyways, currently, he’s batting .198, has hit 1 home run, and stolen 2 bases in 150 plate appearances. Digging into the numbers, Gardner is hitting more ground balls, fewer fly balls, but has an elevated infield fly ball rate. The strikeout rate is up, but so is the walk rate. Other than that, everything else looks the same. In fact, the plate discipline numbers have been better. The swinging strike rate and O-Swing% are lower than the last few years. The BABIP is .256. The only other time it’s been below .300 is way back in 2008. The ISO is at .050. The last time it was under .1 was back in 2012. Now, Gardner is 34 years old, so there’s the chance that Father Time is flexing. With that said, I just don’t think this is the end. I expect some positive regression to the ISO and BABIP numbers. The Yankees are still batting him lead off against both righties and lefites and he’s only sat 3 games so far this season. Will he go 20/20 like last season? Probably not, but 15/15 with a ton of runs scored? I can dig that. You may not think that is sexy, but there were only 25 players in all of baseball to go at least 15/15 last season. TREASURE (This blurb will self-destruct if Gleyber Torres becomes the Yankess leadoff hitter)
Please, blog, may I have some more?Last week, an official member of the Razzball Commenter Crew (It’s free to join!) asked if I could do a Bear or Bull on Jorge Soler. I immediately responded with “Bareback?” and “Are you Japanese by chance?” Ok, I lied. My first response was “Sure,” but that doesn’t get clicks!!! Plus, my jokes come out as fast as a sloth takes a dump, but hey….eventually both come out. Anyways, Soler has been a hot topic recently. I’ve seen headlines circulating all over the internet, but like a psycho child that doesn’t take a peek at the hidden Christmas presents, I refrained. I wanted an unadulterated look. So, here it goes…
Please, blog, may I have some more?