Bryce Harper is clearly no Jon Snow. Perhaps I should say that Harper is no Jaehaerys Targaryen. If you have no desire to read about my Game of Thrones theories, I suggest you skip down to the line that reads “I’m done with my Game of Thrones theories” and ignore what comes before it. By now most have come to the conclusion that Jon Snow is a Targaryen. I’m not going to go into the details, but the short of it is that Jon is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. Lyanna, Ned Stark’s sister, died giving birth to Jon. Ned claimed him as his own to save him from being killed by Robert Baratheon.
Ok, so maybe I am going to go dive into the details. Bran is one of the few living people that know Jon’s true identity. He learned this in one of his visions where he traveled back in time to the Tower of Joy, when he followed his father up the tower in which he found Lyanna who had just given birth to Jon. Before she died she begged him to raise Jon as his own. Obviously Ned obliged.
For those who still weren’t convinced of Jon’s lineage, this past week’s episode should have provided some additional proof. I’m not trying to pat myself on the back, but I have been telling those in my personal circle for about a year that it would be the dragons that recognize Jon as a Targaryen. Did you happen to see how well Drogon took to Jon in “Eastwatch”? Although I must admit, I expected it to be Rhaegal that befriended Jon. Rhaegal is named after Daenerys older brother Rhaegar, who also happens to be Jon’s father. Regardless, the scene was awesome and I fully expect to see Jon riding Rhaegal into battle at some point in the near future.
Here’s a small, but very important detail that was likely missed by many during last week’s episode. During a conversation between Sam and Gilly, she was reading the meticulous notes kept by the High Septum which included the crucial fact that Prince Rhaeger had his marriage annulled before being secretly married to another in Dorne. Guess where the Tower of Joy is. That’s right, Dorne! If Rhaegar married Lyanna, that makes Jon Snow his legitimate son and the true heir to the throne, not Daenerys. The line to the throne goes down. It only goes sideways, when it cannot go down.
Most of what I have just rambled about has become common knowledge to legit GOT fans. But the following contains very little proof and would certainly fall into the theory category. The big question is, who will ride the third dragon? It seems obvious to me that it will be be Tyrion since I believe him to be a Targaryen as well. Let’s examine the facts. The Mad King was in love with Tywin Lannister’s wife, Joanna. He also believed that the King of the Iron Throne had the right to “have” any woman he pleased. That would include Joanna Lannister, who happened to die during the birth of Tyrion, just like Lyanna Stark. And how about when Tyrion was able to unchain the dragons and convince them to go hunt without being eaten or incinerated. That little dwarf certainly has giant balls! Needless to say, when Tyrion mounts Viserion you won’t get an “I told you so” from me. On second thought, you might.
I’m done with my Game of Thrones theories.
So what does this all have to do with Bryce Harper. Very little if I’m being honest. Harper would have bent to knee to Daenerys the moment he met her. And if not then, then certainly when he saw her dragons. Actually, I think he would have perished several seasons ago. All that might be left would be Mike Trout, Paul Goldschmidt and Jose Altuve. Altuve obviously in the role of Tyrion Targaryen.
Harper had the misfortune of slipping on a wet first base during the first inning of a rain delayed game against the Giants. While he might have escaped serious injury, considering there was no structural damage to any of the ligaments, he will still likely be on the shelf for some time with a “bone bruise”. Luckily for the Nationals their lead in the NL East affords them the luxury of allowing Harper to rest and heal. Jon Snow would have been back out there for the second inning!
As usual, however, Bryce has been one of the best hitters in points leagues. He is in the top five of points with 413 points. Only Joey Votto (474), Paul Goldschmidt (434), Charlie Blackmon (429) and Nolan Arenado (415) have more. As for points per plate appearance, Harper (0.869) is third, behind only Mike Trout (0.972) and Joey Votto (0.920). For those teams that are heading into their fantasy playoffs, there is no replacing Bryce Harper. Sadly your chances of success have taken a dragon-sized hit.
In related news, Rafael Devers is becoming an instant hero in Boston. Fortunately for me, and many thanks to Ralph, I have been stashing him in my minor league spot all season. Actually it wasn’t all season. I had Cody Bellinger there to start the season, but when he was called up, I filled that spot with Devers. While a small sample size, his points per plate appearance is currently 0.779. Attempting to put that into perspective, here are some players with a similar PPPA. Anthony Rizzo (0.783), J.D. Martinez (0.775), Carlos Correa (0.773), George Springer (0.768) and Adrian Beltre (0.767). Are we looking at the next Adrian Beltre? They are both from the Dominican Republic.
If for some reason Aaron Hicks is sitting around on your waiver wire, you’d do well to pick him up. His numbers are solid across the board. His PPPA of 0.742 puts him right up there with the big dogs. Speaking of dogs, I’m looking forward to the Hound kicking some ass north of the wall. They’ve assembled quite the crew to capture a member of the army of the dead. With Clint Frazier on the DL, I’d expect Hicks to see plenty of playing time in the near future.
I realize I haven’t told you much you didn’t already know today, but at this point in the season, you’re mostly on your own. We can lead a horse to water, but we can force the water down his throat. If you have any specific questions, be sure to leave a comment below. It’s crunch time people!
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