As I was flipping through my records the other day I came across my 45 of Devo’s Working in a Coal Mine. Originally a hit by Lee Dorsey, it was covered by the men in the funny hats and was a very popular song off the Heavy Metal soundtrack. For those that don’t know what Heavy Metal is you can look here. I would like to put up the trailer but it’s a NSFW kinda thing. Listening to this song reminded me of a guy that got lost in this seasons pool of injuries. Kole Calhoun is due back this week, most likely Tueday, and his ownership has dropped down to 10.8% in all of ESPN leagues! As this injury epidemic continues on we have been forced to drop some good players to make room for our studs. In all my years playing this maddening little game I have never seen anything like this. You must be some kind of wizard if you don’t have a player on the DL right now. Seriously go buy some lotto tickets and a couple of tall cans. You can pre-celebrate because you’re destined to be a winner. I shouldn’t try and explain all this craziness because that would be futile. Ok, maybe I’ll try one theory…maybe Bud Selig made a deal with the devil and now it’s time to pay the piper or maybe the devil and Bud Selig are one in the same. Insert your favorite evil laugh here….mine is Skeletor!
Coming into the season Kole Calhoun was one of Grey’s favorite sleepers. Like many of us, I agreed with him on that call. I got to watch Kole a lot last year and was always impressed with his skill set. In only 14 games this year, 60 AB’s, he’s impressively hit 3 HR’s, 8 XBH’s, stolen 2 bases and crossed home plate 12 times. His ISO is very nice (.250), his BABIP is low (.267), his percentages are right in line with his career numbers and that includes his very impressive 15.8% HR/FB rate. To say that 20/20 is still a reasonable mark for him to hit is right on. Grey had a conservative 68/14/62/.289/10 tagged with room for a lot more. I think we still get a lot more out of him. The Angels have been at the top of the offensive ranks at Fangraphs and Calhoun’s return should only make them stronger. There is nothing in the way of playing time and even when Josh Hamilton returns we might see him get a day off every 7th or 8th game. I know some of you might not view this as a Creeper or a Hit of the week. But this is my shout out to you guys to pick him up NOW! I haven’t seen his name written about too much nor too many people talking about him in the comments. Hopefully most of you could of held on to him, but if you don’t own him then go see if he’s available. It’s OK, I’ll wait *taps foot* Good, you’re back. He is usable as a 4th or 5th outfielder right away and can help you stop the hemorrhaging from all these injuries. For shallow leaguer’s he’s still a relevant add if you have the space.
Because I talked about a guy who is coming off the DL, should be here on Tuesday, I want to give you a few stream worthy plays in case there is a delay. Adam Dunn is due for one of his Schmotato Streaks and now feels like a good time to start another. After sitting for a few games he is back and hitting the last couple of days and that’s enough for me to take notice. He gets to start the week against three pitchers he’s hit a total of four home runs against at a park, Kauffman Stadium, where he has had lots of success. Then he returns home to HR friendly U.S. Cellular for a 4 game set with the Yankees. Garrett Jones has been starting to heat up and he is another candidate for the all-time Hot Schmotato team. He gets five right handers this coming week. The splits players know how much he loves himself some righties. Lastly, keep an eye on CJ Cron. He’s been hitting really well since his call-up posting a 4/2/6/.353 with 3 doubles in only 34 AB’s.. The Angels face 3 lefties this week, so we know Raul Ibanez won’t be in those contests. You never know what the Sciosciapath will do from day to day. He could show up with a red mohawk and I wouldn’t be surprised. I know that Cron needs to be out there everyday and I say my prayer to Crom to get more Cron every night. If anyone can figure out a pattern for Cron’s usage then please share your thoughts below. We can also talk about anything baseball or life you want to.
