Daily Slivers of the Fantasy Soapbox - Yesterday's Recap

Ellis Canady reviews last night's MLB box scores (8/1) and provides fun opinions on a variety of topics to help fantasy baseball owners with their lineups.

Welcome to the August 2nd 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 August 1st games. Enjoy them. You can even respond with your own thoughts on Twitter @EllisCan2.

• Fantasy baseball trade analyzer
• BvP matchups data (Batter vs. Pitcher)
• PvB matchups data (Pitcher vs. Batter)
• Who should I start? Fantasy baseball comparisons
• Daily MLB starting lineups
• Fantasy baseball closer depth charts
• Fantasy Baseball live scoreboard
• Fantasy baseball injury reports

Daily Musings

• For four games straight Aaron Judge has been dropping freedom all over the stadium. This one a 455-footer.
• That’s right, Trevor Story!!! Fourth deposit towards top-three fantasy value for 2020.
• Trent Grisham novel continued. Smitten w/Josephine, Beau cannot contain his joy. He climbed the Colorado hills, past the Kyle Freeland, and cut down a Rocky Mountain maple. He whittled the wood over many days into a variety of beautiful creations. One of which was a bat he used to crush any spherical intruders 457 ft (three).
• You don’t get as much these days for a grand slam meal. Gio Urshela made sure to super-size it & turn it into a combo meal.
• Luis Robert leads off & makes it look effortless w/ two doubles and a whopper (415 ft). Need to check out the league-leading 23.8% SwingStrike rate.
• It is wonderful to get gifts when the party is almost over. Hansel Robles gifted Josh Reddick his first homer & George Springer his second.
• Isn’t that cute, third basemen stand together. Alex Bregman & Anthony Rendon demonstrate their average-ness of .188.
• Maikel Franco brings the mustard w/ 112.5 MPH exit velo single.
• Wow, feeling a little selfish, Carlos Correa? Leaving five of your brothers behind.
• Rejoice for Griffin Canning’s 6 IP, 1 ER, 5 K vs. HOU. TEX next shouldn’t be much trouble….right?
• In the race of endurance, Zack Godley (3.1 IP) beats Masahiro Tanaka (2.2 IP). Good for him, he hasn’t won much of anything lately.
• Is it time to get giddy for Mike Tauchman sighting? Two SB, but I didn’t start him anywhere. Dammit!
• Michael Wacha is 8% owned. Why? Not for the ATL start, I hope (4 IP, 5 ER, 5 K). Ahh, for the MIA start, maybe.
• Whit Merrifield (third HR). Ooh-la-la.
• Ronald Acuna. What took so long for your first homer? I know, we are an impatient bunch.
• Big man wields a big stick. Miguel Sano punishes Rawlings twice for making him look foolish (40% K rate).
• Yep, I wouldn’t be surprised if Kenta Maeda gets 10 wins.
• Bring in the cutman. Austin Hays is wounded batting .107. Give him a break.
• Smooth Operator. Edwin Rios flexes his salsa dance moves with vigor (434-ft power).
• You are teammates. No fighting for the lead, Mookie Betts (16) & Corey Seager (21). (95+ MPH hits).
• Julio Urias arrives w/ W. SF next. Chalk it up? Maybe not.
• Wait. What?! Tyler Chatwood doesn’t mince words. 31.9% K/BB. But 90% LOB won’t stick.
• People don’t listen. Colin Moran continues to crush HR (five). Only 40% owned. Am I right about everything, hell no. One thing I do know is to Ride the Streak. Moran is feeling frisky. Enjoy that 96 MPH Exit Velo.
• Kyle Schwarber w/ high-velocity (114.6 MPH) …grounder for double play. Ah well. He did add second homer though.
• Anyone waiting on Mitch Keller?
• Evan Longoria w/ 20% Barrel rate so far. A spry young man.
• Khris Davis got is first hit, but he’s krushing my AVG.
• ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?! Joey Gallo w/ .240 AVG & second SB.
• Brothers Left Behind: Correa (five); Yoenis Cespedes (five); But the winner-take-all goes to…. Pete Alonso (six)…& Austin Slater (six)
• ENDGAME
  • The Royals tag Heuer with his first save. 1.1 IP, 1 ER. Not a real option.
  • Houston, we have a problem. Roberto Osuna heading for MRI. Ryan Pressly & Cy Sneed next best options.
  • The Undertaker has taken Hansel Robles. 1 IP, 3 ER. My Keynan Middleton shares signify my bias.
  • David Hale w/ two-out save. Don’t scrunch your face, you’ll get wrinkles. It’s still Aroldis Chapman.
  • Taylor Rogers (three). Easy as pie.
  • Finally. Baba Yaga time. Wick. Rowan Wick (one).
  • Trevor Gott’s eighth-inning appearance isn’t reassuring.
  • Liam Hendriks (two). Joakim Soria worked ahead of him. Second in charge has been identified.
  • Nick Goody used in the sixth. Narrowing it down to Jonathan Hernandez and injured player to be named later (J.R.)?
• Rant: Again, we’ve said it before, and we will say it again just to hear ourselves talk. From a functional standpoint, the body isn’t made to stop and start if not in a prepared state. The stopping and starting of spring training, followed by an expectation that the players would stay in shape, concluding with a shortened summer camp leads to muscles and tendons not ready for a daily grind of all-out effort. The answer is extremely thorough pre-game warmup and post-game stretching/rolling/ice. It’s not the normal year so players have to be extra vigilant in taking care of their bodies.
• Welcome Beckham Trout to the baseball world. No, not you Blue Jays. You’re already being creepy.
• Don’t forget your FAAB Prep:
• Have a great Sunday, wonderful people. Breathe in & relax. Stay stress-free on this fine day. Remember.
• No Fear, Just Fantasy.
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