My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

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Edwards Kings
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My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon Apr 04, 2022 2:31 pm

I missed writing this blog! The last couple of years have been rough as my job and losses to the family (Mom January 2021) have made things…and we all go through it at times…rough. But all that is, hopefully, behind me now. And effective EOB April 1st (no fooling) I am retired (at least semi)! No more managing staff during COVID. No more lack of planning in others constituting an emergency for me. No more dragging my ass in every evening and collapsing in my chair at of sheer mental exhaustion.

I AM DONE!

I will do some work when I want to at my rates and on my terms, but as to the day to day, color me gone. I have it better than most, I acknowledge that, but the last few years have been rough. Even the good had the bad…Braves win the World Series, but the bloody lock-out occurs and the Braves lose their heart, Freddie (I have hated Boras for years and now that hate is refined and concentrated). Olson is nobodies consolation price and a local boy as well (five years younger, locked up longer, and my #2 firstbaseman in my so-called notes), but still, losing Freddie stings. And to the Dodgers! Ewwww!

The Dawgs won a National Championship (can’t remember who they played, but it doesn’t matter) but then Stetson Bennett decides to play one more year! His long passes has more loft, less velocity and are easier to defend than an Eephus pitch, so the Dawgs will have to attempt the impossible (repeating as National Champions) without the benefit of the deep pass.

The good and the bad, but now I am retired. I can work on myself having immediately reduced stress. I am coming in at 280 and given my height (not quite 6’1” anymore), age (born during the Eisenhower Administration), and family history (which usually ends with frequent and extended periods of cold hands in the dark, tubes, bedpans, and machines that go “BING”), the gut has got to go. So walking, swimming, eating better, yoga, et all for me. Can’t do everything I want. My wife will not let me grow my hair long again (not full Fabio, or mullet, or man-bun length, just more like I had it a few years ago). Maybe I can negotiate as I already have three firm no-no’s:

Motorcycle
Mistress
Over Fifty Baseball

Maybe I will give up on the hair if I can get one of those (secret: don’t really want a motorcycle, mistresses are expensive and temperamental….or so I have heard…so maybe I can start playing baseball again). Probably not, but a boy has to have dreams.

I had, compared to what studying most of us do, almost no time for baseball in 2021 and very little for prep for 2022. Not setting up an excuse, just the fact. I was not able to make it to Vegas as what at least passes for professionalism in myself kept me grinding to set things up as well as I could before I left (my wife texted me at 2:30 on Friday, my last day, and asked if I was on my way home…nope, grinded to the end!). I was however able to relax and do an online Main Event Draft on Sunday April 3rd. Good group including old friends like Bob Mazur and Ray Murphy.

Strategy

Didn’t really have one, but for years my friend, Dave Clum, always advocated waiting on starting pitching. I, however, was one of the first and most consistent adherents to the “two-anchors” philosophy. I never drafted a pitcher in the first round of a Main Event, but I would typically leave the first four rounds with two starters (and the first ten with four or five pitchers, including at least one closer). Dave drafted a pitcher just about as early this year as he ever has (first pick of the 4th round). However, I had a few “thoughts” and “ideas”. First, with the shortened Spring, I feel/think/imagine that starters will not be stretched out. With the additional two roster spots, which most are filling with relievers, starters are going to be on such a short leash for a month, that, with the piggy-back, sixth starter, and Five is good enough for today mentality, starters are over-valued. I also expect more injuries and the blood bath has already started (DeGrom, Scherzer). Age, career IP, and history are working against a significant portion of the top-tier starters that will feed the “two anchors” rosters.

Radical and different typically does not work well, but I wanted to try something. Something I had never done. In the first ten rounds, two teams drafted three pitchers, five teams drafted four, six drafted five, and one team drafted six pitchers. One, me, drafted zero. That is 62 starters and relievers (plus another four in the 11th round before my pick at #13) gone before there was any “yellow” on my board. Nuts!

But I thought I saw something else. Though Ray Murphy “reached” for two pitchers I thought I would have as options later than the 10th and 11th round that he snagged them, I saw some real value arms in the middle third of the draft. No, I will not lead my league in saves banking on third tier closers for the day and FAAB, and no, I will not lead my league in ERA and WHIP, I saw some very credible pitchers (starters mainly) that I would grab, and then focus my efforts on FAAB and streaming.

Of course to work as a season long strategy, the offense I created needs to be the leagues best. At least a 70.0 point offense. So I went all-in. Grabbing players I wanted to fill the team I wanted to create (anchored by power/speed types). I grabbed players early to fit that profile, undoubtably to the exclusion of better individual players, all in the name of roster construction. Not everything went according to plan, but with one exception, the first ten players I grabbed I was very high on in my limited planning, and there were two players I thought I would get, one by really reaching, but did not.
Last edited by Edwards Kings on Tue Apr 05, 2022 12:24 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon Apr 04, 2022 2:32 pm

The Fun (or “Fund” if it does not work) Begins.

I had KDSed 13-14-15 as my preference because the type of player I wanted in the first ten rounds seem to fall there better than any other slot or at least gave me the shot to reach for the players I wanted. After ten rounds, the probabilities are so varied, honestly draft slot doesn’t matter (yes, I actually calculated deviation, though on such small sample sizes it is only slightly better than barn-door reliable, and probabilities of who would be available to me for my draft picks). In addition, drafting at the turn, when you are not as prepared as you might want to be, gives you a bit more time between picks. Anyway, at the turn I expected to have my choice of at least two of Tucker, Robert, Betts, and Trout. I also wanted OFers as once again, I do not think the field is very deep past the first thirty or fourty. But, as a fall back, Albies, and in a reach against the ADP, Anderson, and in a real reach Buxton would also fill the profile. This means not going for absolutely great players like Freeman (it burns, IT BURNS!) and Devers. Well, it turns out others were reaching. Devers and Trout, who had pretty solidly been going in the second round of the Mains, were picked 11th and 12th respectively before my pick at 13. I had really hoped to get Trout in the second, but picked Betts as my first. Then around the corner both Tucker then Robert was snagged. So much for plans…now for the back-up plan. Giving into my man-crush, I reached for Buxton who typically had been going around 30 or 31. Not a killer reach, but I left a lot of talent on the board by doing it. However these two guys promise to be awesome stat producers with good averages, even out of the lead-off spots (lots of PA between them). Now wait and cringe as more and more players I like, but left, get picked.

I kind of sweated on of my next picks as, even during my limited planning, he really did not fit the power/speed profile exactly. There were other guys I could get, but I wanted, really wanted Kris Bryant. Picking him at 42 was almost a full round reach, but I just expect great (1st round 2023?) things out of Bryant, so he is on my team. Coming back around is another guy who to me who has first round capabilities, Francisco Lindor. He is only 28 and given what he put up between 2017 and 2019 is well within his reach once more. And again to wait and watch.

My next pick was #72 and the probabilities told me I had a 22% chance to get him even though is ADP was #71. Wasn’t meant to be. The other players were reaching too and Javier Baez went at #63. Not to worry! I picked up two MI, both of whom can play 2B or SS for me, in Jorge Polanco and Jazz Chisholm. Minnesota is serious this year and Polanco should bat second most days for them. Not the greatest park for him (high flyball percentage), but he hits liners a lot and should have good BA, maybe get to double digit steals and hit 30 bombs. Chisholm is a bit of a break from my normal style because when the expectation is that young guys, who produce in their first season, will get better in their second does not seem to play out to me often. Regression is not the right word, but rather one season does not ever tell the whole story. Fast enough to make his GB profile work and powerful enough to hit 15-20 when he does get loft on the ball, he will be best served leaning to take a pitch and get on base more, or at least closer to .350 (the absolute speed is there).

With this start, I feel I have a nice blended core. I am going to take a bit of BA risk with my next target, whom I got in Rhys Hoskins, as well as the first player not to hit 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in a line-up. Not sure what Philly is really planning, but their FA acquisitions of Schwarber and Castellanos (see “knuckle-dragging thugs”) means pitching against them will not be fun. Hoskins will be the tail end of the new Gas House Gorillas and Rhys and his fly-balls ways should prosper. I had not really targeted this next player, but looking at what was need and what was left I tagged Josh Bell. He hits the ball on the ground too much and I think this puts his BA at risk, but every time I watched him play he seems to have a great eye and even when he hits it on the ground, he hits it HARD! He just doesn’t seem to get cheated.
Now I am sitting through eight rounds. Two OFers, three MI’s, and three CM. I have made my point. Still some quality pitchers out there. Go ahead Sport! Grab a couple! Nahhhh….

My ninth round pick was easy…Lourdes Gurriel. Solid ball player whose stats have really seem to have lagged a bit. Can hit the line drive…slightly better than league average power and speed. Just the kind of ball player who still has not had his “career” year. Could be now as what a team Toronto has. Then, the gambler in me arrives. Last year in my Auction league, I spent big bucks (rarely did I spend more than $20 on a player) on three guys. One was Cody Bellinger. I got him at pick #138 and his ADP in the Main to that point was around #105, so I am drinking the Kool-aid again. 2019 (yes, this is NOT 2019) he put up 1st Round value. He is only 26. He WILL be better than he was in 2021. Given the way the (damn) Dodgers have constructed their line-up, the best way for Bellinger to make me look smart (which of course is his sole purpose in life) would be to get back what he had and knock Muncy out of the 4-slot. Otherwise sixth is the best he will be able to do. He will have to hit and hit up higher in order to make this gamble work. If healthy, if not 1st round value, we could be talking second rounder for 2023.

This offense I build could be a 70 pointer. I will probably not lead the league in SB or BA, but I do not expect to give up many points in those two categories (closer to .265 BA with a chance at higher, and 120 SB with a chance a few more).

So you say this is a five by five league? Ok…NOW is the time for pitchers. Nine of my next ten picks are pitchers (I grabbed Sean Murphy in the 18th and Carson Kelly in the 21st for my “please don’t hurt my team” catchers). I will not lead my league related to pitching this year, but I am focused more on some competitive teams and arms that will net me as a staff at least a strike out per IP to keep me mid-pack or higher there. I will be streaming the FA pool for two-start starters as well as try to catch the hot hand in the bullpen. If ERA and WHIP are mid-pack, it is a winner for me:
11. Luis Severino – Doubtful for 180 IP first full year back from TJS, but should give good when in.
12. Jordan Montgomery – Another NYY. Another TJS recovery. Never pitched above 160 IP, but he did pitch 157 last year so 180+ is not outside the realm of possibility.
13. Noah Syndergaard – THOR! Is he back? Don’t know and 180 is not going to happen. He did strike out seven Dodgers (yup, still hate em) the other day, so close to old form is a win here.
14. Ranger Suarez – Classic over-achiever, but good control on a team that should give him a good chance (but that bullpen…hope they figure it out this year).
15. Bailey Ober – Minnesota should be competitive this year and he has a pretty live arm and his FB tendencies do not necessary hurt him in that park. Good control. Solid not spectacular.
16. Joe Barlow – Soon to be not-closing in a theatre near you! Not really a lot of competition in Texas, but they are trying the “committee” anyway. Hoping for a few saves to keep me from bottom feeding the category.
17. Alex Colome – Colorado will not win many games this year, but having a GB machine closer will help. Neither of my closers will help my K’s much.
19. Andrew Heaney – Old “Moon-Shot” Heaney. Can the Dodgers (did I mention I hate them) finally get that arm to full potential. Never had any problem with stuff, but he is 31. Late bloomer?
20. Garrett Whitlock – Right now Boston has him as piggy-back starter or long relief. Not much stability in the closer ranks or rotation, so he could go either way before the end of the year.
23. Luis Patino – Next great Ray? Maybe. Probably not 180 IP, but looking for him to pitch a large chunk of the season…and do it very well.
24. Will Smith – Definitely second banana to Jansen. It would take an injury which I hope does not happen, but will have value as a high leverage guy anyway.
27. Rich Hill – Heard he found a new undetectable substance for his curve ball rotation woes! Not really, but a useful streamer.

Rounding out, I drafted Mike Moustakas (22nd Round). They are not planning on using the “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” extra at second base anymore and with Castellanos and Suarez gone, I see 3B and DH in his future. Could swing back to relevance after two years of “Meehhh!” DH will extend his career. Nice park for him too. Pulling a Dan Semsel, I drafted yet another hot corner guy, on the other end of spectrum from Moustakas. Could we have been so excited about Alex Bohm and been so wrong? All of us? I think not. Worst thing is he will hit way down in the order with not much chance of moving up any higher than 6th, no matter what he does. Oh wait…ANOTHER third baseman..Brian Anderson. You really cannot win your league with this guy as a starter, but for bench replacement, a good guy to have around. Turns out, despite my start, I am short OFers (no surprise with so many third basemen). I got Kole Calhoun. If he hits, he plays. And JP Crawford. Kinda below the radar…not going to help you in any one category (though he should steal more, don’t you think?) . Worth more to his team, like Anderson, than to Fantasy, but another solid piece of bench meat.
Long blog…light reading. I am hoping offense will keep me in the game and that I can find (luck out) on a few more arms. There are always some out there. Anyway, FAAB next week and good luck all!

Baseball is BACK! I can be found many days at CoolRay Field now, home of the Gwinnett Stripers (no, not my favorite name), the Braves AAA franchise. Come by…the next beer is on me!
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Ultrarunner » Tue Apr 05, 2022 7:06 am

Thanks for the shout out, my friend. Your CI plan brought a tear to my eye (sniffle)

Missed you in Vegas! Hope I’ll see you there next year

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Tue Apr 05, 2022 8:33 am

Ultrarunner wrote:
Tue Apr 05, 2022 7:06 am
Thanks for the shout out, my friend. Your CI plan brought a tear to my eye (sniffle)

Missed you in Vegas! Hope I’ll see you there next year
You can make bank on me being in Vegas next year! Missed you guys too! No one in the neighborhood can make a kilt work like you can!

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

User avatar
Edwards Kings
Posts: 5879
Joined: Sun Mar 14, 2004 6:00 pm
Location: Duluth, Georgia

Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Fri Apr 08, 2022 7:34 am

Another shout out to Dan Semsel. Dan and I have much in common. We love fantasy baseball and we are both hard of hearing. However, there are some differences:

1) Dan knows what he is doing related to fantasy baseball as he has been co-champion of this thing.
2) I do not wear kilts.
3) Dan served his country long and honorably, retiring as a full bird.
4) Recent procedures aside, the mutha is in shape and can RUN!

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I mean, you have to admire the guy who gets up early...IN VEGAS...and runs like Dan does. Rumor has it he makes it to the California state line and turns back only because he wants to shower and press his dress before the first fantasy event of the day.

This appreciation has been amplified by my own recent attempts to reverse years of me sitting behind a desk without any diminution of appetite for good food. Hell, if I walk 2 miles, I feel like I deserve a parade. I am so gassed after swimming 250 yards, I need my Hello Kitty jammies, three fingers of bourbon, and a nap!

Don't know how you do it, brother, but here is to you! I myself will never approach your achievements in that regard, but I am out there now chugging away, and will not fall short of my goal...

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Now...time for my boubon and nap...
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

Ultrarunner
Posts: 154
Joined: Wed Jan 24, 2018 9:34 am

Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Ultrarunner » Fri Apr 08, 2022 10:46 am

I just scored a bottle of Thomas H Handy Sazerac and Jack Daniel’s Coy Hill High Proof in the Ohio Bottle lotteries in December and March. Very pleased.

Next year, I would enjoy walking a couple miles with you before we draft. Can’t promise the parade but the early morning drunks on the Strip provide a carnival atmosphere

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Fri Apr 08, 2022 2:00 pm

Ultrarunner wrote:
Fri Apr 08, 2022 10:46 am
I just scored a bottle of Thomas H Handy Sazerac and Jack Daniel’s Coy Hill High Proof in the Ohio Bottle lotteries in December and March. Very pleased.

Next year, I would enjoy walking a couple miles with you before we draft. Can’t promise the parade but the early morning drunks on the Strip provide a carnival atmosphere
Nice lottery wins! My retirement gifts from the company I was with was an autographed (no, not Pete Rose) Dansby Swanson baseball on a World Series ball and a bottle of Sweetens Cove. Yes, they knew me well.

I am in for the early morning dodge-a-drunk. I will try not to hold you back too much...
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Edwards Kings
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Joined: Sun Mar 14, 2004 6:00 pm
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon Apr 11, 2022 8:34 am

Week 1 - We made it through the first four days of the season…

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Ummm….not really. Three inning or four inning starts with short pitch counts and maybe two to four earned runs. Yee…freakin’…haw! Just makes me want to PARTY!

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OK…its early. My truncated first week, besides the short, uneven starts, also had surprise batting order placements and last-minute platoons. We expect that I guess. That is what FAAB is for.

On my sticks, ended up with good power counting stats with 25 R, 9 HR, and 22 RBI. Only one SB (Lindor) and the HR were driven by Buxton’s extreme efficiency (three hits, three HR). Hoskins, Bell, Bryant and Chisolm (surprisingly batting ninth or eighth in his two games already losing bats against lefthanders) trying to keep my BA up, even a little, by going collectively 15 for 41 or 0.370. The rest? Not so much. 19 for 118 or 0.160. It’s early. The best is yet to come. Blah, blah, blah….

Pitching, two slightly less dim spots. I cannot tell you if Syndergaard is back or not, but he had a nice first outing with 5 1/3 with only two hits, two walks and no earned runs. Only one K, but had the Astros swinging pretty freely, with good velocity (95) and 12 ground ball outs out of the 15 balls put in play. Though he gave up a run and since Jansen had melted down the previous game, Will Smith got me that rare save. Luck there because he was only in because I had four guys with a start during the first four days. Whitlock, BST, looked pretty good. I hope they do not waste him as a super MR all year. Ober, MIN, got me my second win of the week, though the four ER in 5.0 IP was a little rough. Severino and Montgomery, NYY, did me no favors. Only one walk between them (6 1/3 combined), but nine hits and five ER against the BoSox. Nine K’s though, so a 9/1 K to BB ratio is a silver lining I guess.

FAAB

Officially I guess this is the Week 2 FAAB, but right out of the draft last week with very little changing between the draft and the deadline, I did not even pursue. A few did, mostly small buck stuff. Anyway, the first few weeks everybody got bucks so toughest to discern what the competition will do. Didn’t want to blow all my bucks in one shot, so I ended up with no players purchased. My loss I guess, but the one guy I was most interested in, Kyle Wright, ATL, went for $122. I was not second place even. I like him, but for now the Braves seem intent on a six man rotation, mitigating his value somewhat. May regret not going stronger for him as he looked REALLY good. We shall see.

My two fall-back players I never even had a chance on because I would never have considered bidding higher than the winning bids. MacKenzie Gore, SD, went for $303 and Daniel Bard, COL, went for $141. Honestly not sure how long Gore will be up with Snell dealing with a (reportedly) mild groin strain and Clevinger in the wings. Gore may light it up and stay, but 30% of my FAAB is more than my gentle constitution can handle.

I wanted to upgrade my OF a bit, so I bid on Josh Lowe, TB. A lot of people really think more highly of him than I do. I rank him as a very good prospect, speed a bit a head of power yet, who at peak may be a 20/20 guy. Not sure about the BA or the fact he will play in platoon happy Tampa. Not jamming anyone else’s strategy, but he went for $556 in my league, and that was not the highest bid in the NFBC. Like I said, many think way more highly of him than me. The nineteen winning Main Event FAAB ranged from $218 to $613. Sorry, just cannot see dumping half my FA money on one player. The team who got him in my league, I wish him well and hope he comes in second. But this team also got Gore, so now has $141 left for the rest of the season.

You know what they say…

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

User avatar
Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon Apr 18, 2022 9:51 am

Where I go to swim is a nice, fairly new facility. The other early morning denizens are generally pretty old (ok, older). If we were more familiar, the other swimmers could call me “Kid”. The staff at the aquatic center keep the pool in good shape (i.e. no oily Ben Gay film on the surface of the water). Given we are swimming, there is typically a little more octogenarian skin showing than I would want to see before breakfast. Seriously, the last time I saw that many squiggly blue lines on a pale, off-white surface, I was reading a Rand McNally Atlas.

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But I have not much to crow about. Given what may loosely be termed my physique (big gut and noassatall), I have opted to wear a mid-thigh, short sleeved wet suit. This to me is a better option than constantly running the risk of losing my trunks mid-stroke and inadvertently mooning Granny in the next lane.

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Wet suits are made to be tight and squeezing my body into one, comically achieved with Cirque du Soleil inspired contortions, does not necessarily present a comely picture. I look like an early mistake of an apprentice sausage stuffer down at the local abattoir (too much meat, not enough casing).

So, this quest of mine to become more healthy has inadvertently generated America’s newest super hero….SAUSAGE MAN! Searching for truth, justice, and a dollop of good spicy mustard! I am giving out autographs every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at the West Gwinnett Aquatic Center.

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Week 2

Given the way I drafted (10 batters before drafting a pitcher), most of my focus is on how “smart” I was in the pitchers I drafted. Pitchers are something I will have to manage even more that I have in prior years as I do not have three or four solid, high-draft-pick starters and at least one good closer to kind of stick out there week in and week out. And, with all that managing comes the risk of over thinking and over managing. Hence sitting down last week Severino against Toronto and sitting down Garret Whitlock, who is promising to be this seasons’ uber-middle man. I had a reasonably good week, but could have been a great week with their combined 11.3 IP, no ER, 13 K’s and sub-1.00 WHIP. Brilliant!

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One of the pitchers I opted for instead was old 2/3 of an inning, 60-Day IL Luis Patino. This hurts two ways as I actually think Patino will be good, but besides missing his two starts (not that the first start was going well), I will have to now replace Patino because I cannot waste a reserve spot for a third of the season. I also went with Rich Hill so it is doubly confusing as to why I did not leave in Whitlock. My mind is a strange and unusual place sometimes.

For the rest, two-start Ranger Suarez was decidedly mediocre, while Montgomery, Thor, Ober, and especially Heaney were outstanding. In total for starters, nine games generating three wins, a 2.475/1.100 ERA/WHIP. As expected, a little light on the K’s with 34 in 40.0 IP. This will not cut it in the NFBC and was even that good thanks to Heaney’s 11 k, rarely to be repeated, effort over the weekend.

My “closers”, Alex Colome, who appears to have been superseded by Bard in Colorado, and Old TEX Barlow were flopping around a bit, fairly worthless.

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…but not really a bunch of better options available.

The bats did pretty well, with surprise contributions by Bellinger (3 SB) and Jazz Chisholm who was able to generate seven RBI’s out of the ass-end of the Marlin line-up. HR were down from where I needed them to be due to a week-end drought in that department after a good start. The big scare for me is the Buxton injury. I have watched that slide nine ways to Sunday and cannot for the life of me see what he did that would cause that injury. That, and the fact that he popped up, jumped up and down a few times, then walked off quickly under his own steam makes me hope that he will only miss most of the KC series. Just strange to me, but I need him. I reached almost a whole round for him as I have a “feeling” that he could actually put two halves together this year. Not a good start missing so many days early already.

FAAB

I have another “feeling” and I guess I was the only one really. In replacing Patino, I targeted Chris Archer. Not only was my $51 bid the highest in the Main (though a dozen and a half other teams picked him up), there were no other competing bids in my league. Archer will have two starts this week and pitched well in his first start against the Dodgers. A bit of a risk certainly as one of his starts is against the White Sox, but Archer is pitching for his job. The Twinkie six-man rotation will probably drop to five after rosters contract at the end of the month. Minnesota appears committed to Ober and Ryan, so with Gray’s injury not too serious, Archer is competing with Dylan Bundy and Chris Paddack for those last two spots. Can Archer pitch the rest of the year? History and less than 20 IP at the Major League level last year say “No!”, but I think Minnesota will challenge in the AL Central this year, so Archer could be a nice addition. Anything over 20 starts will be gravy and hopefully not too many blow-ups.

Alex Bohm has his glove custom made from refurbished cast iron skillets evidently. He is hitting, but is not really playing enough to even be considered the weak side of a platoon right now. I need an outfielder with Buxton down as my only back up, Kole Calhoun, is not hitting enough to stay in the Ranger lineup. I dropped Bohm and my first choice was Taylor Ward. Not sure what the Angels are really going to do with Adel (minors?) but I can see AB’s really being spready around. I bid accordingly and was not even runner up. Ward generated a lot of money-draining activity in the NFBC this week. I am not sure he will bring enough power to the table and given the expected plate-attempt spread probably occurring in Anaheim, I just could not pull the trigger for more than $30+. My second choice player also generated some (not nearly the number or dollars Ward did) interest, former Brave Christian Pache. My $13 bid was middling at best (the second place bid was $5 in my league) as most who got him probably had him as their #2 or #3 choice as well given the number of $1 winning bids in the NFBC Main. Oakland is just about the worst team to get a player on given the re-build and platoon atmosphere, but they seem to be happy with Paches’ defense in center. Talk about a guy going from top prospect to the dog house, Pache has done it in record time. There is something there with Pache other than defense based on what I saw when he played in the minors. He still hasn’t walked yet this year, and he still hasn’t stolen a base. I will probably use him for the first half of the week even though Buxton is “optimistic”. I would actually love Pache to play up to his pedigree as I really need some help to round out my team offensively.

With the Marlins sitting Brian Anderson more than playing him, and with Kole Calhoun showing his age, this next week will be looking for diamonds in the rough to improve my offense. I am pretty happy with most of my team and the teams prospects as a whole, but a few more good players never hurt. I see Moustakas and Christian Walker as being potential drags on my team unless they start to turn it around.

I do have to remind myself it is still way early….
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon Apr 25, 2022 8:48 am

Gotta love it when a plan comes together. At least in part. Lead by Buxton (who ended up with a week’s worth of stats in two games), Bellinger (thanks to Sunday’s performance…Is he really back?...I guess we will really know when the Dodgers start moving him up from the 7th spot in the order), and Chisholm (who moved to the top of the Fish BO mid-week and gave me 2 HR and 4 SB….has a YTD 0.340 OBP, but only a 0.304 OBP last week, but that is picking nits). With 46/17/47 Runs, HR, and RBI and 7 SB, only BA was lagging (0.2449 despite Lindor’s 0.3548) as it has all year so far. With Carson Kelly (0.111), Rhys Hoskins ( 0.196), Mookie Betts (0.196), Jorge Polanco (0.200) and Christian Walker (0.167) doing their best impressions of Mario Mendoza, I see more upside in my BA to offset the fact that Buxton (0.351) and Josh Bells (0.345) have over achieved in the BA department.

Buxton has been a prime catalyst so far in my good offensive numbers (double digit RBI and Runs with 6 HR). Already had one scare (still cannot see what he did to hurt himself on that slide), so in the back of my mind I am thinking how long will I have him (I reached for him draft wise, so I accepted the risk then). Given our collective love of recency bias, if Buxton stays healthy, he will be a first round pick next year.

Seems, for now, to have dodged two bullets with Josh Bell, though a “pretty clean” MRI is kind of like a woman being described as a “nice girl…makes her own clothes”. There are warning there. Not sure if the Nats will not rest him a few days and with Monday being an off day for them, I will not know until tomorrow probably. I did not draft Bell for his power as his 50%+ GB rate is always going to be a drag on him (he has over achieved in that regard, but 20-25 is my expectation), but I expect him to hit up in the order and have RBI/Runs plus a decent 0.270-ish BA potential. The Nats are not a good team, but all the talent is hitting in front of Bell as long as he continues to hit fourth. This will give me better “value” than the 8th round that I picked him.

Besides Bellinger, Lindor is also looking more like his pre-NYM big contract/COVID days. I drafted Lindor early in the fourth round, pretty much how most valued him as well. It is surprising to me that Lindor is only 28 and should just be in his prime. Can Lindor get back to the 30+ HR, 20+ SB, 0.280+ BA of his 2019 and before days? Yes. And he will this year and be another 1st Round candidate next year. Or did I just jinx it? More rum for Jobu!

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Speaking of Bellinger, is he also a 2023 first round candidate? No…but maybe second. He is younger than Lindor by two years and should just be entering his prime, but he will not reach his full 2022 potential hitting out of the seven hole. Love the SB so far. Hoping for another good week from him this week as he faces the back end of both the Diamondback and Tiger rotations.

In general, my bats are a Top 10 Overall Main right now and trending toward the 70.0+ points I need to make my strategy work for my individual league. My Pitching? Well….

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Had some really bad luck with nine games started and no wins from those starts. I get that from my Rich Hill/Chris Archer experiments gone wrong, but Severino, Montgomery, Syndergaard, and Ober starts generated a 2.077 ERA/ 1.108 WHIP with on 5 ER in the four starts. No wins. Most of the starts were not against push-over teams, but still. Had a start out of Garret Whitlock, but he was not stretched out enough to make five (still, one hit, no runs, seven K’s in four IP…love it). Losing some starts (Heaney who I wonder if he will be back this week or not?) and that hurts.

I have been lucky to maintain my average pitching stats so far, though I know I am walking the tight-rope with no true lock-down ace. My counting stats are suffering. Wins I should be doing better, but you just cannot project wins with any form of accuracy, especially in the 5/6 IP world we are in. My K’s are concerning. I am down about a half week of stats in that department, meaning I cannot maintain my association with Rich Hill much longer (though I did keep him this since his next start should be against Baltimore…if he stays in the rotation…they do not seem overly committed to him). Get Heaney back and find or stream some good starts from the FAAB pool should help me with that counting stat.

Saves, as predicted, are in the outhouse and I will need to find at least one reliable closer to fix that. It will take some luck. The guys we are bidding on now are shakey options on bad teams at best and disasters waiting to happen at worst. Between streaming startings and gambling on closers (a step I knew I would have to take, puts my average pitching stats at risk of blowing up…treading carefully!

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FAAB

After my draft and despite having five guys who could play OF in the first 10 picks, I felt like I was short. Mainly because I really wanted to play Kris Bryant at third. I ended up playing Bryant initially in my OF, but compensated by drafting three Third Basement. Mike Moustakas I had hoped would flourish at DH, but instead he has sucked…and got hurt…at DH! He is now being dropped like a bad habit, now owned in less that 50% of the Main Event Leagues. I have held onto him as I have a hard time believing he has gotten this bad this quick at 33. The Reds really do not have too much pushing him, but we shall see. I also drafted Alex Bohm, who looks bad on the field and looked like had lost his job. Rather, the Phillies just said “who cares about defense” and is playing him. I dropped him last week and he generated some interest in this weeks FAAB cycle ($61 winning bid, $52 runner up). I also have Brian Anderson. Don Mattingly is using his Marlins roster as a Swiss Army knife, so I cannot really tell when and where he will use Anderson, who should be a capable fill-in if I need him if he plays. He or Moustakas will be the next to go on my team sometime in the next few weeks.

All of that to say I really wanted an OFer to replace Bryant so I can use him at third. This can help strengthen a really good offensive team and I need all the points I can get to make up for my shortfall in pitching. To me, it really came down to two players, neither of which will win your league, but could be solid 5th OFer types and both carry (or will carry) dual eligibility, something that is always good. Josh Naylor in Cleveland was one and Pavin Smith, Arizona, the other. The Diamondbacks are really bad so far this year, so the initial nod might go to Naylor. They seem to have about five players for three spots (1B, RF, and DH) on that team, so I am just not sure how that playing time will fall out. Naylor ended up not being my focus and it turns out it didn’t matter because the winning and second place bids ($69/$37) were more than I was going to bid anyway. I went with Pavin Smith ($23/$17). A former 1st Rounder, he is playing most days, usually 6th in the line-up, and is just moving into his prime (26 years old). He has a ground ball tendency, but could end up with league-average power and BA that will not be a drag. I also have Christian Pache, but at least for the first half of this week I am going to kick the tires on Smith. Still looking to upgrade and I dropped Kole Calhoun.

I also made some half-assed bids on Staumont ($108 was the winning bid, mine was much less) and Stratton ($86). Knew I would not win. I was just not smart enough to even try to predict where the saves would go on those teams or how many save opportunities there would be in KC/PIT. Need to find the next great, surprise closer the week before they get the job….nothing to it.

So, this next week I will be focused on three things…pitching, pitching, pitching. I feel like I need to catch one more solid starter and find the treasure….a surprise closer. Nothing to it…what could stand in my way?

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 02, 2022 9:00 am

Bleeech! Well that was certainly a floater in the punch bowl. Constantly amazed at how a team can go from hot to ice cold in a week.

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I still have not been able to generate 300 AB as the team has been walked 39, 25, 23 respectively over the last three full weeks, though this is not really generating even good OBP as there is also a lot of breeze on my team. A general offensive malaise this week. My Catchers generated two hits. No one on my team had two HR and only seven total HR for the week. My RBI leader was last weeks FA pick up Pavin Smith with six (though he only scored one run (drove himself in with his only HR). My run leader was LA Dodger lead-off may Mookie Betts with seven (though he only had one RBI, which he generated with his only HR). That was my week. Two stolen bases (Pavin and Betts again). I ended up giving back much of the ground I had gained last week. Still a force to be reckoned with for HR, RBI, and Runs, but seriously slipped in SB and BA (and really in all five categories with looking at the Main overall.

Kind of like being asleep at the wheel…

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MLB really seem to treat April as expanded spring training. At least that is how it seems to me. 10-Day DL for what is at least reported as minor ailments. Lost Kris Bryant on offense that way, plus multiple games lost to DTD. Like having half your players like Chipper Jones late in his career…a lot of talent, but not doing me any good from the bench.

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My Pitchers got hit as well with this trend. Andrew Heaney still out and lost Bailey Ober to the DL as well…both “minor” injuries with the teams being “conservative”…meeh! The average stats for the week and year remain good, but given my wait strategy I know I have some blow-ups coming. Using Whitlock as much as the BoSox are using him, but since they switched him to opener, I lose on any chance at wins. Hill (Boston) and Archer (Minnesota) are also kept on short leashes. Probably good for my averages, but no so good for K’s and Wins. Due to “minor” injuries or illness (Thor) or low pitch counts, I only had eight starts last week, four of which were four IP or less. Killing me in wins and K’s. To add insult to injury, Joe Barlow finally had a save opportunity and he converted…against the Braves. My ERA for the week was pretty good (3.203), but how much better it would have been if the same player from the woeful Orioles hadn’t tagged Severino and Montgomery with two run shots in back-to-back games (almost assuredly the only time he will do that this year). Without those four earned runs, I would probably have one more win and an ERA of 2.288 for the week.

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FAAB

Still trying to work the FAAB pool, it ain’t like the 12-teamers. Not much out there and not much I need. Don’t believe Bailey or Heaney will be an option this week or by the time I really know, it will be too late. I decided to cut Rich Hill as he has about as much chance of going five AND getting a win as I do of nailing a supermodel (AND surviving the rath of my wife).

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So I took a gamble. I blew $11 (no second place bids) on Tyler Wells, Baltimore. A few others it looks in the Main took this gamble too. Two starts, KC and MIN. There were a few other two start pitchers I considered, but honestly didn’t look much better on paper. This could easily be my blow up, but for now I will whistle past the grave yard and see if I can get lucky.

I also dropped Will Smith, who seems to be pitching earlier in the games. I guess the Braves have lost more than a little bit of confidence in him. Another gamble that Ober and Heaney will be back in another week as I picked up another DL player in Ken Giles. Probably a couple of weeks away, but will hopefully net me a few saves in the months to come.

Need my sticks to start swinging again and need some pitching luck. It’s baseball and we are dancing…

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 09, 2022 2:26 pm

Test
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 09, 2022 2:28 pm

None baseball musing….There is a scary and quite frankly disconcerting medical pandemic occurring in the Atlanta media market. Not COVID, and I do not know if this horror is in your area or not, but given the amount of commercial air time given to it, both on radio and television, it must be that the men in the Atlanta MSA are having problems, shall we say, raising the flag.
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Every other commercial Viagra, Cialis, or one of those clinics that will help you with you this embarrassing problem that, according to the commercials, you cannot talk to your friends about (of course not…start talking like that to your friends and you will automatically be dropped for your every Sunday foursome and poker night) or your doctor. With all of the ravages of age, fortunately this malady is not one I suffer from. But one of these commercials kind of amuse me none the less. In the pitch, a woman’s voice comes on and declares “…and ladies, your man can last 30, 60, or 90 minutes or longer in the bedroom!’ Now, I am fortunate in the fact that I love my wife and she loves me. But after 30+ years of marriage, I starting thinking what would happen if I one amorous evening started pushing the boundaries of the claims that were made on that commercial. I imagine it would go something like this:

After 30 minutes: My wife “Honey, do you think we need to paint the ceiling?’

After 60 minutes: My wife “C’mon Sparky, aren’t you just showing off a bit? Grey’s Anatomy will be on soon!”

After 90 minutes: My wife, in a scene straight out of the Exorcist, with a low, growling, guttural tone “Where is the insurance policy because now I have to kill you!”

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I mentioned this to my wife. She said “Of course not Honey, I wouldn’t worry about asking about the insurance policy!” Anyway, I find these commercials funny. To baseball, which is going the other way by trying to shorten the games….


Week 5
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 09, 2022 2:28 pm

By now, four plus weeks in, our teams are showing us their true natures. Mine, as expected, has my sticks keeping me in the game. My team is scoring well in the counting stats (55.0 out of 60.0 possible points). Average is however lagging. Really down are my catchers, Murphy OAK (who came out of the box hot) and Kelly ARI (who did not) at a collective 0.173 BA. Murphy, batting third most days for the A’s has been otherwise alright. My primary third baseman has been Moustakas (0.163), my primary first baseman Hoskins (0.189), my primary UT Walker ARI (0.160) are also below the Mendoza line. In turn, there should be room to move up because only Bell WAS (0.343) and Jazz Chisholm (0.310) are hitting over their heads batting average-wise. Not surprising given the bad weather over the weekend in the Northeast, but once again I did not crack 300 AB for the week. That is on pace for not quite 7,200 AB for the season (I would prefer 7,500) but given 10 of my 14 bats are hitting somewhere between leadoff and cleanup, I will hopefully keep getting some productive AB at least.

Pitching, as expected, has been a mixed bag given I did not take a pitcher until the 11th round. My starts (35 to date) have had too many short ones, including Patino’s 2/3 IP. I finally dumped Rich Hill because Boston has just not shown enough confidence to let him see the opposing line-ups three times. Same goes for Archer, but I have held onto him mainly because I do not like the alternatives. When Ober and Heaney are healthy again, he becomes bench meat until he can at least qualify for a win. But even so, I the short starts (averaging 4.7 IP per game and even ditching Patino, Hill, and Archer from the numbers, that only goes to 5.1 IP) with a putrid win ratio of 23%. The good news is the starters ERA/WHIP has held up (3.294 and 1.176 respectively). The lack of IP from starters (166.7 IP) and the fact I am not getting a K per 9 rate I like (7.24) is also hurting, but I knew this would be a weakness. When the evil leprechaun escapes from my basement, my ERA and WHIP could easily take a hit given who some of my pitchers are.
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I have a core (Severino, Montgomery, Syndergaard, and Ranger Suarez) that I hope to add Heaney and Ober to as soon as they are healthy. Them, plus Whitlock (not included in the starter numbers above but may have played his way into the rotation for now) will hopefully give at least a mid-pack pitching staff. Closers are still a work-in-progress though Texas showed some life last week on the road and Joe Barlow showed up to lock up the role, such as it is.

FAAB

I was very quiet this week, only grabbing Kendall Graveman ($3, no competition) while ditching Colome as Bard has pretty much locked down the role in Colorado, Stallings ($2, $0) as Kelly is hurt, and JT Brubaker ($2, $0) who should have an interesting streaming start against Cincinnati in Pittsburgh this week.

Easy choice of who to play this week…If you are a healthy bat, pretty much you are in (Kelly and Kris Bryant DL10, Brian Anderson COVID 19, and JP Crawford DTD). Could have as many as 12 starts this week depending on circumstance and weather, even with Heaney and Ober on the DL.

Oh…I remember…this was another infomercial that used to make me laugh…I wonder if anyone ever bought one of these? Cracked me up….

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Thu May 12, 2022 5:30 am

I haven't seen Dan Kenyon on the Boards lately...Dan...you OK? Anybody know?
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 16, 2022 9:27 am

Baseball is weird and you gotta love it! Interesting for all (except Reds fans) in retrospect (probably boring to watch) is a combined no-hitter that Cincinnati loses on three consecutive walks and a fielders choice that should have been a double play. Total in the game…four hits and one run…like no one really wanted to win that game, but to lose a no hitter…

Not sure if the 42 year old Cardinal pitching prospect José Alberto Pujols Alcántara will get many high leverage situations out of the bullpen, but is the second oldest player to make a pitching debut (missed being oldest by six days). Ran it up there at about 69 mph…could start for the Teetotaler’s though!

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Can batting averages get any worse? Congrats on obtaining the top spot in the Main to Tyler Yung from my league…with a 0.2512 BA! Leading my league? 0.2530. If you are breaking 0.2600, you are kicking ass as only about three dozen teams have that distinction right now…are the baseballs really that mis-shapen? Disgusting….
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Maybe the end of the shift next year will help. Certainly should see ERA’s and WHIP’s rise next season? How will that impact us? GB pitchers even more valuable? Hitters with higher line-drive rates (when they make contact) see massive spikes in BA? Even more pressure on pitchers to go for the K (still blows me away that Smoltz career K per 9 rate was 8.0…boarderline soft-tosser today!).

Another week for my team to rack up R/HR/RBI from my top of the line-up weighted team but not much else (Overall, T-11th, T-15th, and T-47th respectively). Once again did not reach 300 AB for the week. Only two SB this week and only seven in the last three, putting me back into the middle of the pack. Topped off with poor BA (haven’t cracked 0.246 since the first full week), means my sticks are not picking up the slack from my pitchers. Especially bad this week from my OFers (Betts, Buxton, Pavin Smith, Gurriel, and Bellinger) who collectively went 18 for 107 or 0.1682. Buxton had two hits, though being grateful for small pleasures, both were HR.

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Another frustrating week of starts pushed back and short starts. Ffive of my ten starts did not make it out of the fifth inning and I won four of the five starts that did. Once again did not crack 50 K for the scoring period. My K per IP has improved (8.1) but not enough especially given my lack of IP. Syndergaard seems to be kicking it up a notch there. Severino and Whitlock can help in that regard as well as Heaney if he ever gets back. But I have a lot of ground to make up in K’s. This week I could have as many as 12 starts mostly against some offensively challenged teams like Baltimore, Oakland, Texas and KC. Maybe I can pick up some ground in K’s (and Wins dare I dream).

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Interlude

Just got back from swimming. How humbling swimming freestyle and being lapped by a Korean grandmother…doing the backstroke. The only guy I am faster than right now is one (other) old, fat dude who uses a sundial for his timer.

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FAAB

I know nothing from nothing. George Kirby could the difference maker in a lot of league championships. And if so, that would be another reason I do not win more. Smallest winning bid in the Main was $236, largest $557. In my league the winner/runner up bids were $322/$158. Congrats to the lotter winners. I would not have been able to pull that trigger. He is a great prospect and has really kicked butt in AA ball, though he does not even have a full season at that level yet, not to mention AAA. Seattle has a chance to win some games and is hovering around .500 thanks in part to having Texas and Oakland in that division. But I do not see Seattle overtaking the Angels much less the Astros. I just do not see Kirby being up that long on a team that may lose competitiveness as soon as July. Like I said, I know nothing from nothing and given my inherent lack of trust in rookies, I will never be in these kinds of bidding games.

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Having tempted the fates for two weeks, three starts from Tyler Wells, BAL (one win, 3.00 ERA, 1.13 WHIP), I picked up Dallas Keuchel, CHW. He plays on a good team and has had a couple of decent games in a row against tough AL East opponents, so given his next start is at the Royals, he was worth a $11 flyer (no runner up bid) for a one-week rental. I hope to get Baily Ober back this week and Heaney is pitching again, so barring any other injuries of COVID BS I hope to get back to my core SP (Severino, Montgomery, Syndergaard, Suarez, Ober, Heaney, and Whitlock).

I also did a $2 bid (no competition) on a back-up OFer in Michael A. Taylor. Prior to this I only had five healthy OF eligible players on my team. I hope Bryant’s ML rehab is fruitful but short. Would love to have him back.

Also, hope our missing friend Doughboy’s is ok….
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by DOUGHBOYS » Mon May 16, 2022 4:44 pm

Good Stuff, Wayne!
As for myself, I am all good. Enjoying baseball and life, my friend. I missed you in Vegas.
Since, I've taken a long hiatus from the Boards. But I'll be back. I always come back. :)

Keep up with the team and blog. I hope your team goes north, while your gut goes south. Oops, that's a natural thing anyways. Disregard.
By the way, that older Korean lady gets around.
She passed me as we were heading out of the grocery store the other day, cursing me as the automatic doors opened to the parking lot.
I never knew "Fat Ass" was universal in languages. I do now.
Keep up the good work, Wayne!
On my tombstone-
Wait! I never had the perfect draft!

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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 16, 2022 5:22 pm

Great news Dan! Glad all is well. FYI but probably TMI, but the next time I swim, I am going back to the trunks and on the flip turn, I am planning on testing Granny's eyes with the FULL moon shot!
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon May 23, 2022 5:01 pm

Well, that certainly was fun. It is always tough when our plans unravel. The team is dropping like a rock, so right now I feel like I am left arranging deck chairs…

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My average stats (BA, ERA, and WHIP) are bad and getting worse fast. I had it set up for 10 to 12 starts last week. Actually, I thought I had that the week before. But the way MLB is handling players (is 28 starts in a year now going to be the new standard?), the bubble keeps pushing out. Hoping for the extra starts to try and move out of the bottom feeders in K’s, hopefully without killing ERA and WHIP. Lost on all counts. I bought Dallas Keuchel last week as veteran pitcher on a good team with a scheduled start against one of the weakest teams in baseball (KC). Nope. The ChiSox brought Giolito back for the KC start and Keuchel gets the Yankees. At one time Keuchel could keep New York of kilter, but this week had predictable, and explosive results.

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Texas has not been an offensive juggernaut this year. Should have been a good matchup for Syndergaard this week in Arlington, but in 2/3 of an inning, this game set me back (four earned runs and six runners). A certain part of my of my anatomy is feeling like a piece of athletic equipment…

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Then Garrett Whitlock gets through a tough Houston, but Seattle crushes him (10 hits and five earned runs in three IP). I have Archer on my team because of Minnesota’s schedule for this part of the year, but the Twinkies will not let him go a full three times through any line-up, even Oakland, so no chance at getting five innings.

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On bats, still churning away in three of the counting stats, with 43.5 of 45.0 possible points (HR, RBI, and R), but steals have still been mid-pack at best and the 0.235 BA is pathetic. Betts, Chisholm and Bell are my only position anchors with a BA above 0.250. Need help, so I got some guidance…

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OK…but we must move on!

FAAB

Nolan Gorman may be up for good, but may also sit against left handers. A lot of money went for him this week (40% of the winners total FA budget) so I hope he meets expectations. Not my thing. I bid strongly (for me $51) on Johnny Cueto. That beautiful start in NY against the Yankees may be the high point of his year. I was not sure if he was the guy I wanted (good opponent this week, but the ChiSox schedule is hitting a tougher patch over the weeks after. After that, a toss-in bid for Willi Caster ($3…fourth conditional bid out of four). Meeehhh….

Waiting for someone to really make me go all in. I have one or two really big bids in my between now and the ASB. Will still be mid-pack with FA bucks.

Coming up, the schedule this week, for all of us, is loaded with games. Should have 10-12 starts and I need most of these starts to be strong. I know what I need.

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Ultrarunner » Wed Jun 01, 2022 6:09 am

I rather enjoy your gift for meme-ology. The hot grenade made my day and described my Ultimate Auction team in one clip

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Thu Jun 02, 2022 6:00 am

Glad you like them Dan...Sorry about the Ultimate!
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Thu Jun 02, 2022 6:01 am

My team is a bit of a…


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So I am taking a bit of a brake from bitching and moaning. Just some observations….

Went to the Gwinnett Strip(p)ers game last night, versus the AAA franchise of the Cincinnati Reds, the Louisville Bats. WOW! Poor Reds fans. Talk about a franchise in “rebuilding” mode with a dearth of MLB ready prospects. Pretty stinky…

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Recognizable names will be limited to Colin Moran and Jake Bauers, who were a collective one for eight last night (though the one hit by Moran was a long, hard….single). The pitcher for the Bats was a 29 year old piece of cheese named Randy Wynne. Two pitches, one a 90-91 MPH fast ball (if it was a sinker, it wasn’t much) and a 74 MPH off-speed (I was positioned to see the bats better, but if this was a curve, it did not break much). The Strip(p)ers were hitting him pretty solid and took him deep three times. If Cincinnati needs any high minors help, it will come from AA ball.

Making fun of the Bats, but with William Contreras and Spencer Strider up, the Braves do not have much at AAA either (hint, they reached down to AA for Michael II for OF help). Tucker Davidson and Kyle Muller maybe, but that is it. One of the reasons I went was to see another former-fantasy hot item in Huascar Ynoa. Don’t bother.

Ynoa still has no control. He walked four in five innings though none in the last two. He did record seven K’s on a 95-97 MPH fast ball, but the five innings took 97 pitches (51 K’s). His second pitch I guess you would call a slider, but no control while sitting at 84 MPH. I only remember one of these pitches actually catching the plate as it resided down (way down) in the zone all night, though he did get two or three swinging misses when the Bats bats went fishing (get it…fishing…Stripers…nevermind) for pitches. At best I see Ynoa as a reliever for the Braves IF and ONLY if they hire a sherpa guide to help him locate the zip code of the strike zone. I cannot recall him attempting a change-up, though he could have slipped one in during a (frequent) beer run. He can get by an inning or two in the Majors on the fastball alone but that is his ceiling right now.

As has been the Braves habit the last couple of years, the Stripers are loaded with veteran utility infielders who play regularly. In 2022 it is Phil Gosselin, Ryan Goins and Hernan Perez. Move on folks, not much to see here, though Perez had one bone-head play that nearly made me spit my beer. On Moran’s single, it was a deep fly ball that nearly split the outfielders, Drew Waters and Alex Dickerson. Dickerson fielded the ball and got the throw to the cut-off guy, Perez, sitting in shallow center field. Moran was thinking double and was hung up half way down to second. Moran juked back toward first. Rather than throw ahead of the runner to second base, Perez bit on the move and threw behind the runner, across the field, to first. This allowed Moran to take second on the throw. Stupid, rookie move by Perez that most of us would be running laps on after our little league game to learn the lesson.

I am glad William Contreras is doing well in Atlanta as the AAA catcher now, Chadwick Tromp (Chadwick?) has no arm. I recall three SB attempts by the Bats, all successful. Of the three throws, all were late, one sailed into center field (E-2), and one arrived about six feet higher that would be useful. His nick name should be “Air-Mail”.

Two other Striper players I wanted to see. One was Branden Shewmake. He plays SS at Gwinnett. Nothing the Bats provided was able to let me see his defense. He had one hit, but it was a good one (solo HR). Shewmake is not a top 100 MLB prospect, or even top 10 at the position. He is in the Braves now diminished top 5. One book I read on him has him working counts and a bit of a top-spin spray hitter. I can see that, despite the HR (which I would have counted higher if he was facing a better pitcher), in his swing. Not a ton of movement, looking for good plate coverage. I think he could handle ML breaking stuff as long as you are looking for contact drive pull hitters. Could be important as Dansby Swanson is in a walk year and I have heard no noise on the Braves signing him up for longer (though the Braves do play contract negotiations close to the vest).

And Drew Waters, CF. At one time, Pache and Waters were highly regarded Brave offensive prospects. Pache has taken his sub-Mendoza batting line to Oakland, so that leaves Waters. The shine has dropped off his prospect status (outside of the MLB top 100 and behind Michael II in Braves pecking order, though still the Braves #2 prospect), just as the recent MLB promotions has taken the shine off all the Braves farm system rankings. On the Braves farm system, I guess it is to be expected as over the last three or four years, it has produced three now maybe four starting pitchers, three of the four infielders, a catcher (maybe), and one maybe two outfielders. That is a lot of home-grown. Time to re-tool.

On Waters, he covers a lot of ground in Center and seem to run some good routes, though Ynoa only allowed three or four fly balls. His AB looked…stiff. He holds his bat over his shoulder level with his ear and while his hands are pretty static, he bobs the bat head up and down. Not in and of itself bad, but this and other things may create timing challenges. One his lead leg, he keeps his toes on the ground, but raises/rocks his heel up and down before raising the leg in a rather pronounced kick in order to get his body moving in a forward motion, though his back is ram-rod straight. A lot of movement below, upper body inert…stiff. The one time, on a two-strike count, I saw him keep his front leg less happy and his kick a little less high, he hit a solid line drive that took a good defensive play to get. All that motion in his bat and leg is gonna make it real tough, timing wise, for him at the MLB level I think. 24 Years old and still needs work.
Last edited by Edwards Kings on Thu Jun 02, 2022 6:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Thu Jun 02, 2022 6:02 am

Other thoughts….

Has Mookie been hot or what?!

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How can the Marlins score 26 runs in a double header and only get one win? Or rather, how can Colorado give up 26 runs in a double header and get one win?! Bombs away….

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Taps!

Robinson Cano…you were a great one…please quit while we can still remember.

Joey Votto…hitting just .173/.316/.300 with two homers and 10 RBI in 110 at-bats. The Reds still owe him $25M for 2023.

Hit tool kept him in the game long after his catching days were over, Carlos Santana is hitting .161/.293/.250 with a familiar two homers and 10 RBI but in 124 at-bats.

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Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Mon Jun 06, 2022 12:03 pm

Week 9

Man, getting healthy will kill you. They closed the pool for maintenance but even with that lost week I am swimming greater distances. Slowly. The grandmothers in the lanes next to me are no longer giggling, but I think they are calling me “위대한 흰 고래” which means “Great White Whale”. That is ok. I can handle it. And I am learning to say “나는 당신을 위해 세 차선에 플로터를 남겼습니다” which means “I left a floater in lane three for you!”

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Still stuck in mediocrity land with my team though we had a brief spurt of speed nine stolen bases thanks to Chisholm, Betts, and Andujar (who of course was sent down). As powerful of an offense as I think I drafted, I still have some holes to fill at third base since Bryant is down with the bad back, Moustakas has totally forgotten how to hit, and Brian Anderson now down in the back too. Can’t seem to get my BA over 0.240 and had a bit of an average week. Others didn’t and I have lost some ground. Andujar getting sent down when he did hurt as I really did not expect it (guess he didn’t either as he has asked to be traded). As such, once again, I fell just short of 300 AB. Given my strategy, this hurts as I am in sixth place in AB. Resting Buxton every other day hurts too.

I had four really good starts last week (Severino, Montgomery, who finally won a game, and Whitlock) though Whitlock had zero K’s, which is concerning. I have been generating around nine starts a week, though two start pitchers have been rare given how managers are treating pitchers this year. That, plus low K-rates means I have not generated 50 K’s in any one week. Hanging out in last place both in Wins and K’s. Even with the strategy I used, I wasn’t expecting that with a bulk of my starters drafted from teams like NYY, MIN, and LAD. The fact I do not yet have 400 IP tells me something too.

I only got two starts out of Heaney, but even with the small sample size, those two starts were awesome. When I get him back (Dodgers lie so much…minor shoulder soreness my ass!), I still think Severino, Montgomery, Thor, Suarez, Ober, Heaney, and Whitlock give me a decent seven that I can augment, as I have with matchup pitchers. Last weeks duo of Mitch White and JT Brubaker did not help. Stuck with Brubaker a little too long maybe. He had two good starts the week before and I am a little surprised the Diamondbacks got to him so well. White didn’t pitch too poorly, but the Brian Reynolds two-run dinger but a dampener on an otherwise good outing.

FAAB

Had to replace Andujar, White, and Brubaker. On the pitching side, I was in on Edward Cabrera, but not enough. He has a couple of tough road starts coming up in the next couple of weeks that kept me from putting in a stronger bid. Took a gamble on Jason Alexander (two starts maybe with one in Washington) and Tyler Wells (at Baltimore). Still trying the match-up game as much as possible. In the OF, I went with the (at least temporarily) resurgent Franchy Cordero. If I use him over Pavin Smith, it will be early when the BoSox only face one left-hander in the first four games.

I was watching the Braves/Rockies game yesterday and was struck (yet again) by the antics of Ronald Acuna. Yes, he got all of one and sent it far, far away, but he was in Colorado. His job is to hit. His bat flip, stutter step before thirds, all the showy stuff….does he really HAVE to shake his tail feathers EVERY time he does something good?

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That is about it. World doesn’t seem right, still. I mean, COVID is still messing with baseball, with only the Toronto Blue Jays benefiting. A lot of folks are saying “I wish I could get back to “normal”.”

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I couldn’t agree more….
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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Edwards Kings
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Re: My Blog is Back and Your Gonna be in Trouble...hey la, hey la, My Blog is Back!

Post by Edwards Kings » Sun Jun 19, 2022 12:22 pm

First and foremost, for those with the equipment and who used them properly, HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!

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Here is hoping you got your favorite “Soap-on-a-Rope” and homemade cards worthy of placement at MOMA….

I didn’t post last week because the theme has already become too redundant. If my team was above the fold early, it has now slipped so far off the front page to be back in the Classified’s after the notice from the crazy old cat lady Mrs. Arnold from down the street: “Lost: Three-legged cat. Has been neutered and lost an eye after being hit by a car. Left ear is mangled after a fight with a rabid raccoon. Has the mange and answers to the name “Lucky”.

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But here goes anyway. The last couple of weeks has been brutal for many of us with the DL hits. Right now I sit with six of seven bench spots tied up on the DL with types that are too good to drop including my first rounder (Betts), third rounder (Bryant) and fifth rounder (Polanco). Also have Whitlock and Ober down and one self-induced slot held by Giles. All of this limits my flexibility and hampers how active I can be in the FA pool. Still shifting the last couple of pitching slots in and out based primarily on who is playing the patsies in the upcoming week.

Which brings me to another point…since the (really) bad old COVID days, the rocket scientists that manage most of the small market teams seem to have gotten together to “rebuild” at the same time using the dump all worthy veterans and loading up on the minors in the hopes that in four or five years a competitive team can be fielded. AL West…who has Houston to be afraid of…the Angels, Rangers, Mariners, A’s? Collectively 39 games below .500. NL East? The Phillies are limping along, fired their manager, and the Fish and the Nats are pretty pathetic. NL Central is a two team race with the Pirates, Cubs and Reds seeming not even trying to field good teams. Might be a three team race at best in the NL West and AL Central. The only competitive division is the AL East (thank goodness they have Baltimore to kick around). I guess it could just be me, but there just doesn’t seem to be the competition there used to be. Or I just cannot figure it out.

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For my team I really have no choice but to keep doing what I am doing. Still at or near the top in HR (looks like HR are back as several teams in my league are trending towards 300+ for the year), Runs, and RBI’s, but have fallen to mid-pack in SB though the one surprise there are the 8 SB out of Bellinger. Sucking hind tit on BA which really surprises me. I didn’t expect Walker and Moustakas to carry my team, but I didn’t expect below Mendoza line either. Chisholm, Lindor, Polanco, Bellinger, and Buxton are all sub-0.250. Does that mean upside? Is there runway left to bring an average-based category up meaningfully?

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On pitching, the match-up strategy is not working. Wins are so unpredictable (surprise, surprise) and the K’s are just not coming. I am last in my league in both categories. I have been able to keep ERA and WHIP from falling too far below mid-point even with the recent blow-ups at the hands of the likes of Arizona, KC and the Cubbies. It also hurts that I have not been able to find even a semi-reliable second closer.

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Anyway, Happy Father’s Day again…hope yours is a good one!
Baseball is a slow, boring, complex, cerebral game that doesn't lend itself to histrionics. You 'take in' a baseball game, something odd to say about a football or basketball game, with the clock running and the bodies flying.
Charles Krauthammer

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