That is one of my favorite GIFs of all-time. And it just happens to be perfect for this piece. Ian Happ (29% owned – increase of 27%) was called up to the majors over the weekend. On a side note, that 2% difference in ownership has to be Prospector Ralph. Anyways, in three games Happ is 4-for-10 with three runs scored, two home runs, and four RBI. So, why am I so giddy? He’s a Cub, so you know he’s going to be an OBP monster. He’s a switch-hitter so there shouldn’t be any platoon issues. Happ has also been batting clean up. Either Mrs. Maddon is smitten with Happ or Ian has some pictures tucked away of Joe. Whatever the case may be, he’s got some semblance of trust from the manager. Javier Baez is sitting on the dugout steps pondering what he did wrong. While Happ is not known as a plus defender, I don’t think that’s going to be too much of an issue. Have you seen who’s decorating left field for the Cubs? The final piece to the puzzle is the depth chart for CF: Albert Almora Jr. and Jon Jay. Exactly. TREASURE: IT’S HAPPENING!
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I always loved pinatas at parties. You got to beat the crap out of something with a stick until candy fell like manna from the heavens. Ah, the good ole days. To make it a little more challenging, pinatas would often be swung from side to side to make it a moving target. There would also be like a million kids waiting their turn because who wouldn’t want to beat the crap out of something with a stick? You would get two, maybe three swings. I noticed that if you showed some skill and whacked it with feeling, the parents would let you do your thing. As long as you didn’t look like a psychopath. Anyways, the point is that it took time to figure out how to hit the pinata correctly. With the limited number of swings afforded, it also made it a very stressful situation. Sounds a lot like baseball…
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One Man’s Trash: Scott Schebler Scalds Scrotums
May 11, 2017 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 23 Commentsby: Son
Scott Schebler (41.6% owned – increase of 13.3%) is batting .248/.322/.550 on the season with nine home runs and 20 RBI in 109 at-bats. He’s also sporting a 23% strikeout rate with an 8% walk rate. I thought Jay Bruce was on the Mets! The Reds be loving their lefty-whitey right fielders that can bop ’em out of the park. Unfortunately, they often send the crowd home unhappy like what happened after mighty Casey’s last at-bat. Me thinks that Carl Henry Lindner Jr., the owner of the Reds back in 2000, used to cry when he read Casey at the Bat as a child. It was during those times that his brain began to hatch the master plan. Bring his family’s dairy business out of the doldrums of the Great Depression. Become one of the richest men in the world so that he could buy a baseball team. Acquire a “Casey” on his team, thereby creating a parallel universe where mighty Casey does in fact not strike out. It would be in those moments when tears of joy would flow down his face, instead of the tears of sadness experienced in his youth. Lindner bought the team in 2000 and Adam Dunn, the original “Casey” was acquired in 2001. After Dunn left, Bruce took his place. So, bascially Schebler is just the most recent cog in the “Casey” legacy. Usually, I shy away from these types of players, as they are very streaky and you have to endure some rough cold streaks. With that said, he’s entrenched in the sixth spot of the Reds order, against both lefties and righties, and that power is so enticing! Also, that ballpark where he plays half his games is amazing for left-handed power to right field, which is the direction he hits to 44% of the time. Lastly, have you seen some of the pitchers in the NL Central? I imagine this is how Carl Lindner would look if he were still with us today. TREASURE (Beware: could become a donkey at any moment)
Here are a few other players that caught my eye on the most added/dropped list:
Please, blog, may I have some more? Bear or Bull: Has Aaron Hicks Figured Out the Matrix?
May 9, 2017 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 17 Commentsby: Son
It’s been a journey for Aaron Hicks. Not too different from the one Neo had to embark in the movie, The Matrix. When the Matrix called upon Neo, he was raw and naive. Along the way, many mistakes were made and observers debated the efficacy of his potential. Eventually, Neo figured out the Matrix and, as a result, was able to navigate seamlessly through it. Could the same be in store for Hicks?
Hicks ate the red pill and was subsequently drafted in the first round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft by the Minnesota Twins. Baseball America named him a Rookie All-Star and placed him as high as 19th in the top 100 prospect list. His first four years of professional baseball were spent in Rookie and Single-A. During those years, the walk rate was around 14% while the strikeout rate was around 20%. He was a .260-ish hitter and showed the ability to hit around six home runs and steal 15 bases. When he moved up to Double-A, Hicks hit .286, clubbed 13 home runs, and stole 32 bases. Was Hicks ready for the Jump Program?
Please, blog, may I have some more?Urbandictionary.com says that Souzz is the verb form of Souza, which is defined as, (noun) the unannounced general feeling in the air to engage in sexual contact, usually generated upon contact, eye contact, or sight of appearance. Yup, pretty much sums up with “relationship” with Steven Souza.
I’ve been infatuated with Souza since 2014, when he hit 18 home runs, stole 26 bases, had a .350 average, and posted a 12.8% walk rate with an 18.4% strikeout rate in Triple-A. Unfortunately, that success did not translate to the major leagues and the Souza-experience was born. Would make a hell-of-a-ride at Six Flags. Now, some injuries derailed the 2015 and 2016 seasons, but the Souza was not the same. The strikeout rate was in the mid-30s, the walk rate decreased to the single-digits, and batting average plummetted. It’s called the Big Leagues for a reason. I became relegated to the fact that the Souza would not be as fulfilling as I once dreamed about…
Please, blog, may I have some more? Bear or Bull: Does Hernan Perez Like The Color Red?
May 2, 2017 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 12 Commentsby: Son
Up until today, I believed that bulls got angry when they saw the color red. Spanish matadors have been using red capes to induce bulls to charge them since the 1700s, so it must be true, right? I mean, that’s what everyone said. And I wonder how the media is able to manipulate and why advertising is a gazillion dollar industry. Because of lazy peons like me! All it takes is a little research and….ta dow!!! The Mythbusters performed an experiment back in 2007. I love those guys and girl. Anyways, they showed that bulls charge due to the movement of the cape, not the color. In fact, bulls are color blind!!!
Please, blog, may I have some more? Bear or Bull, Week 4: Ryu Forgetting About Me?
April 25, 2017 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 29 Commentsby: Son
When the Dodgers signed Hyun-Jin Ryu before the 2013 season, my first thought was, This dude looks like a Macy’s Day Parade balloon; not a professional athlete. The Dodgers did shell out $36 million for him, so they obviously had more grandiose plans for him than to have him float high above Chavez Ravine to provide shade for the whole stadium. So I looked at his numbers in Korea. Not bad, but not great. Then I read the scouting reports and was meh. At the conclusion of his first season with the Dodgers in 2013, Ryu went 14-8, posted a 3.00 ERA, 1.203 WHIP, and struck out 154 batters in 192 innings. Those numbers don’t sound exciting, yet he ended that year as the 25th starting pitcher and 79th overall player in fantasy.
DISCLAIMER: This was written before tonight’s start in San Francisco. He is in my DFS lineups so I put my money where my mouth is. Oh God, help me.
Now, Ryu has missed the past two seasons due to arm injuries. He’s currently sporting a 5.87 ERA and 1.500 WHIP in 15 1/3 innings. There’s a ton of wear and tear on his arm, as he threw 1269 innings in Korea and 391 in the US. So, why is he the focus of this week’s Bear or Bull? Well, there’s this…
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It’s been seven years since we last saw Jason Voorhees stalk and slaughter in a Friday the 13th movie. As we all know, it’s impossible to kill him, so it only makes sense that he may have reincarnated in the form of Jason Vargas (57.6% owned; +54.5%), the Kansas City Royals pitcher. In 13 2/3 innings, Vargas has an ERA of 0.66, a K/9 of 9.22, and a SwStr% of 13.1%. Those numbers would be akin to the other Jason wielding an AR-15 and mowing down his slow-running prey. Let’s delve into the KC iteration of Jason and see if anything can get unmasked. Vargas has been in the major leagues since 2005. Prior to this season, he never had a K/9 over 6.54 and a SwStr% over 9.2% (2016 was 10.1% but he only pitched 12 innings). There has been no velocity uptick, as the fastball remains in the 87 mph range. So, what can we attribute this early success to? Early in his career, Vargas was primarily a fastball, sinker, and change pitcher. In 2015, he really started to incorporate the curveball. This is when he started throwing the four-seam fastball more and sinker less. So far in 2017, he’s decreased usage of the four-seam fastball, increased the sinker usage while still throwing the curveball and changeup.
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Cesar Hernandez is the number 10 overall player on ESPN’s Player Rater. The same Cesar is the number 26 overall player on Razzball’s Player Rater. Cut to Grey in three…two…one….interview with Grey Albright. Is he cackling due to the ranking discrepancy or the fact that Cesar is even that high to begin with? What I do know is that Grey thinks he is soigne because he wears two togas. Talk about flatulence. That’s how the ancients be flossin. Grey is playing a little too much Words for Friends apparently. Anyways, let’s break down The Emperor and see if we should be exalting him or stabbing him in the back…or front if you are a gangster.
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In order to mark the glorious return of baseball, I thought it only appropriate to pay homage to one of the greatest movies of our generation: Bloodsport. If you are one of the people that agrees with the 33% score on Rotten Tomatoes, then I’m going to have to fight you. Disclaimer: I’ve watched the movie hundreds of times, so that pretty much means I have a black belt in all the martial arts disciplines and will no doubt kick your ass. How could you not like a movie with lines like this or or scene with this? C’mon man!!!
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The Allais Paradox:
Gamble A: 100% chance of receiving $1 million.
Gamble B: 10% chance of receiving $5 million, 89% chance of receiving $1 million, and 1% chance of receiving nothing.
Gamble C: 11% chance of receiving $1 million, and an 89% chance of receiving nothing.
Gamble D: 10% chance of receiving $5 million, and a 90% chance of receiving nothing.
Most people would choose A over B, less money for no risk. Those same people would choose D over C, though, more money for more risk. Below is the expected value for each:
| Gamble | Expected Value |
|---|---|
| A | $1 million |
| B | $1.39 million |
| C | $110,000 |
| D | $500,000 |
* Formulas for the above can be found here.
Therein lies the paradox. If you are about expected value, you choose B and D, especially since the probabilities are the same.
You know what the real paradox is, though? I’m Asian, math SAT score was almost-perfect, English SAT score was ESL-esque (I was born in this country), and I get paid (not much) to write and I barely understand the Allais Paradox. No wonder my parents disowned me (They didn’t really, but I wouldn’t blame them if they did).
Damnit SON!!! What is all this mumbo jumbo and what does it have to do with Paxton and Urías?
Please, blog, may I have some more? Bear or Bull: Javier Baez vs. Ferrari 488 GTB
March 22, 2017 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 41 Commentsby: Son
It is said that spontaneity is the key to life. Well, I just got a little something something from the wife the other day, out of the blue so…Long live spontaneity!!! In past iterations of Bear or Bull, I compared two players that were being selected in the same range, according to NFBC ADP. Since my endorphins are still floating merrily through my bloodstream from the “sponataneity,” I wanted to change it up this week. Also, the player that caught my eye this week could not be compared to any mere player anyways. Only a Ferrari 488 GTB would suffice.
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