Mostly MLB Notes: Talking Madison Bumgarner and a look around the league
Obviously we all know baseball is a marathon and not a race, and the easiest time to overreact is the beginning of the year. But baseball is back! It’s hard not to be excited (and go overly crazy for small samples). The biggest story from Sunday’s Opening Day was clearly Madison Bumgarner, who not only recorded an 11:0 K:BB ratio in one of the best hitter’s parks in baseball, but he became the first pitcher to ever homer twice on the first day of the season. His second was this mammoth blast. Moreover, only 16 players hit two or more homers 112 mph+ last season, and MadBum did it during the first game of the season. Pretty remarkable stuff. Unfortunately the reworked Giants bullpen blew not one but two saves, continuing last year’s theme. I’ve already been asked on Twitter who’s next man up in SF’s pen (it looks like Derek Law), but Mark Melancon has a strong track record, didn’t allow a single run in spring training and was given a massive contract during the offseason. His leash is going to be very long.
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Headlines of the Week: Bear Appears To Carry Laptop Computer At Montana Roadside…Uber Driver Picks Up Boyfriend’s Mistress At Airport…Parrot Accidentally Poisons Pet Dogs By Feeding Them Grapes…Giant Python Swallows Indonesian Farmer Whole.
Song of the Week: Japandroids – “True Love And A Free Life Of Free Will”
Quick hits: Some other things to note in the early going. Greg Bird hitting third in the Yankees lineup. Who knows if he’ll live up to the hype, but clearly New York management are believers…Again, just one game, but it sure was nice to see Javier Baez starting the first game of the season. I’d be shocked if he’s not given 550 at bats this year…Roberto Osuna’s placement on the disabled list sure seemed to come out of nowhere. Go add Jason Grilli…I hope you were able to grab Delino DeShields during your first waive of free agent pick ups…Steven Matz and Seth Lugo are both already hurt, with the former sounding like he’s headed for an extended absence. What looked like a deep Mets rotation is suddenly thin…Andrew Toles is hitting leadoff in the Dodgers’ first game (not Logan Forsythe). I’m already tired of myself saying don’t overreact, but that certainly makes Toles more interesting (and a cheap DFS option early on).
Police Blotter: Man Arrested For Stealing Thousands Of Tons Of Dirt…Man Accused Of Throwing Donut, Shooting At Car In Road Rage Incident…Thieves Steal Thousands From Man After Telling Him He Has Bug On His Leg…Woman Says ‘Don’t Worry About It’ When Police Find Boyfriend’s Body.
Longread of the Week: How A Floating Bale Of Cocaine Led To The Florida Keys’ Worst Murder In Decades
Quick Hits Part Deux: Devon Travis is also hitting atop the order. I’d love to see what he could do if he ever were to stay healthy…Adam Frazier is yet another surprise leadoff hitter, and while his inclusion is partly due to the DH being available, he’s an interesting flier in deep leagues after quietly posting a .301/.356/.411 as a rookie last season…Zach Davies is an intriguing young pitcher still available in more than 70 percent of Yahoo leagues. He posted a 135:38 K:BB ratio, owns a great changeup and should finish the year as the Brewers’ clear ace…As suspected, Stephen Strasburg worked exclusively out of the stretch. It certainly didn’t hurt his velocity, as he was regularly working 97 mph, but admittedly he allowed three deep fly balls that all nearly went for homers, and he was saved by a terrific play from Bryce Harper, who later homered himself. Still, Strasburg produced 12 groundouts without a walk in seven innings, so maybe he’s onto something.
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