Danny Glover played Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon movies. Murtaugh was the stabilizing force to the maniac that was Martin Riggs, played by the maniac Mel Gibson. Was Lethal Weapon a reality show before reality shows? Was the lethal weapon in Lethal Weapon Riggs or was it like a ying and yang thing where the combination of Murtaugh and Riggs formed a lethal weapon? I’m going with the assumption that Riggs was the lethal weapon.
You just can’t be considered part of a lethal weapon if you get trapped on a toilet while taking a shit. Sorry. Which segues perfectly to Dusty Baker and Koda Glover (49.1% owned – increase of 29.1%). Baker takes a shit on fans every night. The only difference between he and Murtaugh is that he doesn’t give a shit if there’s a bomb underneath the toilet. He’ll just keep shitting as long as he has that box of toothpicks next to him. Glover is the lethal weapon for the Nationals. Since returning in mid-May, Glover has racked up five saves, not allowed an earned run, walked one, and struck out 10 batters in 8 2/3 innings. Shawn Kelley who? Now, there’s the chance that the Nationals trade for a more established closer, they are in win-now mode after all. In addition, Dusty could always take a shit on the situation and insert someone else into the closer role if Koda struggles. With all that said, I do think Glover remains in the role, as long as he performs. The Nationals did tag him as their closer of the future so…TREASURE.
Justin Bour (54.3% owned – increase of 23.6%)
Bour is 18th in home runs and 27th in RBI in all of baseball. Dictionary.com defines a boar as “the uncastrated male swine.” Sounds about right. Boar…Bour…He must be Canadian. He was born in Washington DC? Close enough. Regardless, Bour is an animal at the plate. He’s clobbering the ball to the tune of a 47.3% hard contact rate. The 22.4% strikeout rate and 12.7% swinging strike rate are not bad for a power hitter. What I do like is the 11.2% walk rate, which is consistent with his minor league numbers. The .285 batting average is probably a little high, which is buoyed by the .310 BABIP. A .260-ish number is probably more realistic. The 30.2% HR/FB rate is probably unsustainable, so that will probably come down. In addition, Marlins Park is very tough on lefty power, but Bour has managed to hit seven of his 13 home runs there. That makes me think of “uncastrated male swine.” The main knock on Bour is playing time, as he often sits against lefties. In 40 plate appearances against LHP, though, he’s hit four home runs and batted .343. While I wouldn’t count on it, there could be some untapped potential here if the Marlins do decide to play him full time. It’s not like he’s been horrendous over his career, .254 batting average in 150 plate appearances. TREASURE.
Ian Happ (33% owned – decrease of 16%)
Over his last eight games, Happ has been 2-for-24 with no counting stats. There are definitely some concerning things here. 36.7% strikeout rate and 21% swinging strike rate!!! Yuck. It’s quite possible that even JA Happ could strike his brother-from-another-mother out. The contact rates are pretty atrocious as well: 71% in the strike zone and 61% in general. The one stat I really hate to see is the 36.8% chase rate. Now, the sample size is tiny. 16 games and 60 plate appearances. Yes, he’s received a few days off lately, but when he’s played, Maddon is still batting him in the meat of the order. The Cubs in general have been struggling, but you know things will pick up at some point. Normally, I eschew players that chase out of the strike zone and have a high strikeout rate and low contact rates. In this situation, though, I’m looking to hold or scoop up. The sample size has been super small up to this point. I want to see how he adjusts to the adjustments. I want to see how he performs when the weather and the rest of the lineup heat up. As long as Maddon keeps batting him in the four or five hole, I’m good with holding on to him. TREASURE, but understand that I could be selling him at a garage sale next weekend.
Aaron Altherr (56.6% owned – decrease of 10.8%)
I don’t understand the decrease in ownership percentage for Altherr. Are people playing in a league where there’s a penalty for having too many “A’s” in a player’s name? He’s 11-for-46 in his last 13 games. Ok, not great and he’s scored two runs and driven in five during that span without stealing a base or hitting a home run. Maybe it didn’t have anything to do with the number of “A’s” in the name. Man, we fantasy ballers are a fickle bunch aren’t we? Wham bam thank you ma’am. The .378 BABIP portends for some more regression to take place, so that .302 average will probably come down. I’m starting to get it. With that said, I see some positive things. The chase rate is only 23.3% and the contact rate in the strike zone is 81.8%. He’s mashing righties (.418 wOBA) and hasn’t been too shabby against lefties (.372 wOBA). Interestingly, the Phillies bat AA 6th against righties and 2nd against lefties. Go figure. There’s a reason why the Phillies are 17-33. Maybe the front office is dyslexic. Anyways, I like AA as a player, but the shituation is not ideal. TRASHY TREASURE.
