Welcome to the Friday, July 5th edition of Daily Slivers of the Fantasy Soapbox.
Discussing baseball is as fun as the game itself. It has a way of bringing people together to share different opinions about the sport we all love. A similar action can be done with fantasy baseball where we not only discuss topics but also look to improve our teams as well as the teams of our fellow fantasy baseball enthusiasts. Everyone has their own perspectives which are not to be cast off as frivolous. They should be used as a method of expanding our own knowledge.
In this article, I review the previous day's boxscores and provide my opinion on a variety of topics. Some will be random, some will be fun, and some will be stat-driven. It's a soapbox so I may rant from time to time as well. So without any further delay, below are my thoughts on July 5th. Enjoy them. You can even respond with your own thoughts on Twitter @EllisCan2.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and weekly lineup resources:- Fantasy baseball injury reports
- Fantasy baseball trade analyzer
- Daily MLB starting lineups for fantasy baseball
- Fantasy baseball BvP matchups data (Batter vs. Pitcher)
- Fantasy baseball PvB matchups data (Pitcher vs. Batter)
- Who should I start? Fantasy baseball player comparisons
- Fantasy baseball closer depth charts, bullpens, saves
- Fantasy Baseball live scoreboard, daily leaderboards
Daily Musings
- Christian Yelich at 31HR/19SB. Mission: 30/20 club before All-Star break. Three games to do it. Mark it down. How many of your league leaders have Yelich or Cody Bellinger(30HR/8SB)?
- What’s more American than Mike Trout serving up independence for one lucky ball(25).
- AY OHHH!! Victor Robles w/12th SB. Try and try again.
- Fernando Rodney, yep, same one. He gets the second SV of year. No, Sean Doolittle is still the guy.
- Anthony Rendon carries team. 20th HR, five from career-best.
- Nate Lowe finally gets called back up, not because he hit three HR in one game recently. Ji-Man Choi and Brandon Lowe a little knicked up. Two BB, two R. Nice.
- Andrew Benintendi w/day off. Working on his hitterish-ness. Hmmm. I'd like to think it can only be an improvement in the second half.
- All the other options are bad. Enter the best reliever on the team, Brandon Workman (2IP, 1ER, 2BB). Blown Save. Oops.
- Jose Ramirez two HR(403ft & 350ft) gives mixed emotions. The result is good. Process of 54.7%fly ball over the last 30 days. Meh. Still buying.
- David Fletcher w/MLB-best 2.4%SwingStrike rate. Rough June (.233AVG).
- POW! Gary Sanchez mashin’ a 461ft tater(24).
- Remember Francisco Lindor sliding to the second round of drafts? Top-10 in SB(13) to go with 12SB & .293AVG. Free money.
- Blue Jays still working on the “opener concept” allowing Derek Law to only pitch 0.2 innings (1ER) to start game.
- Marcus Semien works well solo or as a team. Two HR(13), incl. Grand Slam. Deliciously underrated.
- Nelson Cruz, please don’t try to steal again. You’re not a spry chicken anymore. We need you at the plate.
- For those keeping score, John Gant in the seventh & Carlos Martinez in the ninth(third SV)
- Someone has arrested the development of Mr. Wendle. AVG now at .188 for Joey Wendle.
- Yonny concert is so smooth. 7IP, 3ER, 5K. Yonny Chirinos w/excellent first half (7-4, 3.15ERA. 4.29FIP, hmmm)
- Eloy Jimenez w/ makes a 436ft donation to someone’s collection. 15HR & only 73% owned. C’mon people.
- Matthew Boyd needs only 5.1IP to accrue 13K. 4ER is a small price to pay.
- Miguel Cabrera is so fun to watch. He’s great for baseball & a great role model for young athletes. Batting .303 w/5HR.
- Mike Soroka w/36pitches & four ER in the first inning. Settled. 4.2IP, 2BB, 6K. That’s composure.
- Dansby Swanson provided plenty of fireworks for the crowds. Two HR(17).
- Luis Castillo (7.2IP, 0R, 9K) & Brandon Woodruff (6IP, 1ER, 6K) with great pitching duel. Reminiscing of way back in the day…2018.
- This is 2019 people. Why would you think that 66R, 15HR, 59RBI, 8SB, .331AVG would be good enough to be an All-Star? Yeah, he has a 3.4WAR(13th-best in majors), but who cares about that? Smothered, covered, diced, chopped, blended & topped w/sarcasm for Rafael Devers' awesome season.
- Danny Jansen does it again w/two HR(eight). Even more frustrated w/my $1 bid in TGFBI. Tie goes to the guy right behind me, who is now ahead of me. Lesson: Go $2.
- Tim Beckham w/three HR(14) & five RBI in last week. Don’t buy in. Why do 18% still own him?
- Kris Bryant w/17HR. Will the live ball help him get back to 2016 version?
- Dinelson Lamet solid in return. 5IP, 3ER, 7K. Rotation is full.
- Hyun-Jin Ryu dominance rolls on (10-2). Six scoreless innings w/5K.
- Have a great weekend. First, enjoy your Friday night baseball with family & friends. Reach out to new friends. I'm usually around if you want to share your opinions.
- No Fear, Just Fantasy.