Adopting a Pet

I’ve never owned any pets. I’ve owned fantasy baseball and football players that I’ve loved more than a pet (Shaun Alexander, Jimmy Rollins, etc.) But no pets in my history…….yet. My family once had a pet turtle that we kept and fed bread and spare meat, but eventually it got old and we let it go into a nearby pond. Japanese for turtle is 亀= kame.

I have always been apprehensive about dogs (I hesitate to say “scared.” Ever since my friend told me once he got bit by a dog on the chest, I was a little tentative around dogs, maybe a predisposed aversion towards them. Dog in Japanese = 犬(inu). Los Angeles is a GREAT place for dogs, I’m told, because they can always go outside, and literally every one of my neighbors has a dog or multiple dogs (I can hear them at night), but I’m not that inclined to get one. I’m told it’s a HUGE commitment to get a dog, and they cost thousands of dollars each year not to mention the care you have to put into training/walking/take the dog to the vet, so it’s not for me. For as much of a stickler as I am for time and hurrying through the day, a dog is too much work for me.

Don’t get me started on snakes (蛇 = hebi), birds(鳥 = torii), or

Goldfish (金魚

= kingyo) I could see myself getting. Like Wee Bey on the wire, I’m a fan of feeding fish and aqua tanks (not as messy and all over the place, kind of contained to one place at least). When I went to Shanghai for vacation, my friend and I spent about an hour getting fish food and fishing the fish at one of the more famous gardens (there was a koi pond).

鯉= koi.

Obviously koi is not the same as goldfish, but I do like the aspect of getting multiple fish with fish families or a “school of fish” and watching them spend their day zooming through the water. There’s a tranquility in that, a peacefulness. Btw, Hong Kong has a great goldfish market where dozens of shops concentrated in one street sell goldfish and aquariums. Pretty neat. By the way, one of my favorite Japanese proverbs is 金魚のふん, which means someone who follows someone around. It literally means goldfish poop, which I wonder who how hard it is to dispose of, or how frequently………

 

The mostly likely pet I would ever get, though, has to be……wait for it………a cat. As far as I’m told, not too much commitment, you can keep them at home during long vacations, don’t have too much to do for poop disposal (litterbox is it?) and they’ll sort of just be there for you. Not too much emotional attachment, but will always be there to be touched, maybe kill a bug for me once in a while. I'm not the kind of pet person to go "O, how cute!" or "Kawaiiiii!!!!!! = かわいい!!!!!!!) in Japanese.......I'd just want something to be around when I get bored.

Relating it back to fantasy baseball, (it all comes full circle), I’m not a fan of commitment for any of my players. I’m not gonna give guys 3-year deals in keeper leagues, I can barely keep a player for 3 weeks, much less 3 years. Fantasy baseball is actually kind of my pet- I take care of it every day, it has nothing to do with my career, it makes me happy, and sometimes (once in a while) it gives me enjoyment, keeps me company. Ultimately, the day I (finally) lose interest/ cure my addiction to fantasy baseball is the day I adopt a pet. So………NEVER!!!!!!

 

Fantasize on,

 

Robert Yan

Monday Mumblings- Observations about Life

 

1.)    First Financial Bank, the bank that I’ve been using since 2005, when I started college, always charges a $55 annual charge around this time every year, hoping to sneak it by me or disguise it under a pretense of “updating information about credit card users. Baloney. I bet they make thousands of dollars every year from customers who forget about this egregious little “annual charge” and forget to call in to cancel it, or are too lazy too, or something. It’s a statistics thing; most people will call in, but you make the money off people who don’t. The beauty of big business: the numbers are on your side.

2.)    I can’t think of a season where I’ve been less motivated by fantasy football. Sure I’m going to participate and I’ll be in numerous leagues and participate heavily in the smack talk and competitive banter, but I’m just not excited about the game itself anymore. A big part of that is due to its more addicting stepsister (the hard-core drug) fantasy baseball and the most important part of the year coming up, but I like to think it’s because I’m growing up……I’m leaving some of the toys back in the closet, I’m not as dedicated to something that won’t be part of my career/family in the future. Sacrifices must be made.  However, what little I know, I like Rashard Jennings as a sleeper for the Giants, I like Tony Romo/ Matt Ryan, and I think there’s too much negative hype about The Muscle Hamster Doug Martin. But what do I know.

 

3.)     Friday after work, I ran from my workplace in downtown Los Angeles to Dodger Stadium, and then back. It was an exhilarating experience. Dodger Stadium, unlike most ballparks in America, is set in a public park, so there’s plenty of trees, hills, and vegetation around, so the 2-mile trek wasn’t bad at all and very scenic. Plus, there’s nothing like passing up the $15 parking fees and traffic jam leading up to the stadium and instead doing something I’d be doing later that day anyway, running. Sitting down and taking in a live ballgame is one of the more refreshing things I’ve done. Great decision, Robert.

 

4.)    Is anyone else terribly excited about the new movie in the Jurassic Park series? Jurassic World? It’s not coming out until June of next year, but it’s already scheduled in my book. And I don’t even really watch movies in the theater anymore. Jurassic Park sequel and Independence Day, you can bank on me going to those.

 

5.)    I can’t statistically prove so, but Mondays have got to the be the worst traffic days of the year. Or at least, I get the most irritated sitting in traffic of all the other days. Not a good way to start off the work week.

 

6.)    The (only) good part about Mondays? My mom makes great food. I just had a Mom-made bento  (弁当) in Japanese because I went home over the weekend and my Mom likes to make me food, and it was MUCH BETTER than the $9 over-priced meals I pay for around the LA downtown area. Stupendous.

 

7.)    It must be difficult to be a parent. Some kids are angels and have no problems at all in their childhood-teenage development process, but hoping for one of those kids is like hoping to win the lottery, I think. Kids are naturally predisposed to become rebellious, think they know everything,  make mistakes in all facets of life (school, relationships, sports, decisions, substances, you name it) and the parent who invests so much time, energy, and money into that kid has to be an adult about the situation, always stay calm, and be a good role model. I haven’t been a parent yet, but I can see how that can be tough, and my sister (who’s 17 now and a senior in high school) represents A LOT of those challenges. I love my sister, but man can she get under my grill a lot. I often ask the question I’m sure most parents ask themselves: WAS I LIKE THAT WHEN I WAS (WHATEVER AGE THE KID IS AT)??????  Good practice for me when I reach parenthood, hopefully.

 

Fantasize on,

 

Robert Yan

Rinse and Repeat

2014 has been The Year of Rinse and Repeat for me. Because I’m learning Japanese, I replay certain things over and over again. Old TV shows, old podcast lessons, old books that I’ve looked over but find new things when I reread…….it’s not necessarily a bad thing, because I’m picking up on new things, and reviewing things over and over again is a common method for learning a new language, but it can become SO BORING. We as human being need new things in our lives. We as human beings need new stimulus, things that excite us. Whole industries and commercial enterprises feed off of that, whether it’s new movies, new TV shows, new music, new cars, new phones (do we really need a new version of a phone every 3 months? Seriously). Rinse and Repeat.

But sometimes, consider rewinding and going again. I never get this idiom right, but “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.” I know what I’m getting with a TV show or a movie, I know approximately what entertainment value I get out of it, and sometimes, even, I get surprised and see something new that I missed before. For fans of predictability and reliability, that’s golden. For those that need spontaneity and exciting new things (let’s be honest, we all need that once in a while), it’s probably not one’s cup of tea.  

Once I’ve had a food once, it loses some of its appeal. Once I go to a new city or new vacation spot once, I’ve seen it, I don’t really need to go again. Once I’ve done a certain roller coaster ride, I’ve experienced it; repeat session not needed (although, I’m probably more scared of it than anything). Once I’ve heard the same joke six times, it loses some of its humor. The good thing about the world is, there are so many new things out there! You don’t have to rinse and repeat!

Anyway, more about me. In 2014, I’ve often like I’m going through the motions, bored. Part of is because at work I go through the same documents all the time, I take the same path to work every day, I go to dodgeball at least 3 times a week, I visit the same websites, I lift the same amount of weights, I take the same running path all the time. Gotta mix it up, but it’s expensive to mix it up: Taking vacations costs money and time. It’s a delicate balance; I realize that some people follow the same routines for the rest of their lives and don’t really complain about it. That’s not me, though. I think if people could choose to live their life anyway, they would choose to do something different, be somewhere different, almost every day (save some time for being at a nostalgic place or at home, etc.) But always being on the move, feeling alive, adapting to situations, feeling like the leaf in Forrest Gump: that’d be the ultimate thrill for me.

Do you recycle fantasy players? I do. The good thing about fantasy players, they never pitch the same game twice. They’ll look very much the same, they’ll throw with the same hand, they’ll wear the same uniform, they’ll play against the same team, but it’s not the same exact game that they’re pitching/hitting. I find myself going back to the well time and time again for certain players because unlike real baseball and real managing, fantasy baseball is impersonal; you use the numbers, not the players. The players themselves don’t know if they’re playing for your team or not……you’re just predicting what those players do, and the more you know about a player (whether from past experience or not), the better you can predict what they will do. The Jered Weaver theory: I know Max does well at home, I know he doesn’t do so well on the road. Rinse and repeat.

 

Fantasize on,

 

Robert Yan

Music to my Ears

I admit, I have a weakness for Asian pitchers. So when I started half-Chinese Vance “Vanimal” Worley on Monday, I was expecting big things. Vance promptly served up homers to each of the first 2 batters en route to a 5-run first inning, severely damaging my chances of winning ERA and WHIP. He did redeem himself, however, with 8 K’s, but that’s like saying at least ur groceries stayed intact that time you got into a car accident. Geez Louise.

It’s Tuesday and I’ve personally seen my pitchers give up 5 homers already, one each by Jered Weaver, Max Scherzer, and Ryan Vogelsong, and 2 by Vance Worley (all in the first inning!) I really considered benching all my pitchers this week but decided against it. Eh.

At least the Angels are red hot. They’re the best team in the league by any measurement, record-wise, talent-wise, and consensus-wise. Could be a great time to make it to Angels games this September/ October? Maybe?

Music- I am not good at singing. I am not good at karaoke. I am not good at music theory (never understood circle of fifths, A minor, etc. I am not good at remembering lyrics to a song. I am not good at keeping the beat. I am not good at identifying names of songs when they come on the radio. I am OK at playing violin, but definitely still a lot of weaknesses.

It’s not that I don’t like music, I don’t understand how people can’t at least be entertained by the rhythmic beat of a song and the harmonic ensemble of sounds that music is. However, I probably enjoy it less than others do. I’ve never been to a rock concert. I don’t like loud music. I don’t know much about the Eagles or Limp Bizkit or the Insane Clown Posse or Cyndi Lauper or even much about Elvis, really. When I went to the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, I walked around and enjoyed myself but wasn’t fascinated or mystified like some were. For me, music is a nice diversion, nice source of entertainment to pass the time or to maybe even get through a difficult period (like sitting through traffic, getting through work, during a workout). I don’t need to specifically go listen to music, taken time out of my day, go out of way, etc., to get it.

I love the concept of a “walk-up music.” I think it signifies that you’ve done something special in your life, that you should be recognized when you come into a game/ give a performance/ do anything.

Headphones are almost as important as one’s phone. A smartphone without headphones seems naked, going through the day without headphones leaves one feeling empty inside, like turkey without gravy. So many things require headphones, like listening to music, taking phone calls in peace (well, this one’s not mandatory but helpful), listening to podcasts, listening to the news, learning a foreign language… especially in today’s age where people don’t really make contact with other humans anymore face to face (aka this vague idea of “talking,” headphones are necessary to catch up on all the social media and whatnot throughout the day). I suggest getting 2, maybe even 3, one for home, one of the office, and one for the car, and keeping them there. Don’t forget to return them to their proper spots if you go for a run with them or lend them out or something!

 

Music in Japanese is ongaku (音楽). Headphones are ヘッドフォン. Pitchers are tosha (投手). No word on what “pitchers getting shelled in the first inning each one giving up a homer” is, but 大失敗 (daishippai), big failure, pretty much sums up how my fantasy week (and today without headphones) is going.

 

Fantasize on,

 

Robert Yan

I found something I like about Dating!

The thing I like about dating is the different stories of people. When I schedule a first date with someone, I get their whole, (mostly) uninterrupted story, free of other people talking and chiming in, or interruptions in online conversations where it’s impossible to get much done in a short span of time. For that 2 hours or so, you have the other person’s full attention, and they have yours. Everything they’ve done in the 20+ years of life (sometimes 30) is discussed, and great stories and tales of yesteryear are exchanged (I take pleasure in knowing I have a few stories in the repertoire that can make people laugh/cringe/have some sort of emotional reaction, at least). The date is usually not checking their Iphone, they seem genuinely interested, and it is usually pretty good conversation. I’ve been surprised at how divergent a lot of people’s stories are, even in the somewhat-narrow parameters of the dating pool I select from (usually woman around my age who speak Chinese and are interested enough to give me a chance to go to dinner with them). They have different interests, some don’t like to exercise while some exercise every day, some are doctors that are very established in life and some are just finding themselves or still in school, some like that I’m a lawyer, some don’t, some live with their parents, some haven’t seen their parents in years. These are very interesting differences between people. Recently, through a matchmaking service, I learned that “I haven’t learned what I want yet” in a potential spouse, and that’s probably true: I have little experience in that area. But part of the reason is possibly because I appreciate all the differences in people, that I like to get eveyone’s stories. Or I just crave attention and finally get to interact with someone instead of solitarily sitting at the offense. Either way, I may not like the whole rejection part of the process and the games-playing and the knowing-other-people-don’t-really-like-me part, but for the times where I’m actually on the date, I really enjoy myself.

 

Fantasy baseball is……(wait for it)… similar to dating! Every fantasy player on your team has a different story, are at different points of their careers, produce different kinds of numbers, came from different areas of the world. It’s interesting getting to know these players; I make a habit of looking at each of my players’ Wikipedia page. The way I trade/ add and drop players, that makes for a lot of reading. Reading about them, getting excited, and then watching them pitch for your team is one of the greatest joys of fantasy baseball. Here’s some notes.

For what seems like the nth time this season, my batters do nothing. NOTHING on Monday. Lots of strikeouts, recent pickup JP Arencibia (picked up only to exploit a matchup against lefty Drew Smyly AT HOME) predictably goes 0-for-3 with 2 Ks.

Recently anointed closer Joaquin Benoit salvages the night with a 1-2-3 ninth inning, save, and Daisy Fuentes- strikes out the side. I used Benoit last year during the playoffs and have a soft spot for him; fellow Padres Andrew Cashner and Tyson Ross. Benoit, though, has an endearing way of taking his time, rearing back, and firing….not in any rush but getting the job done, kind of reminds me of the Old Man and the Sea.

Future me, it has been a joy to watch Max Scherzer pitch this season……most of the time. He is actually a very predictable pitcher, which is of additional value other than his inherent 20-W potential and high strikeout upside. He struggles on the road and against good teams (@ Oakland, @ NYY earlier this season) but is great at home (in the cavernous confines of Comerica Park) and especially during the day for some reason. I’ve seen like 4 or 5 starts this year during the work day where he just mowed down a right-handed heavy lineup, and Thursday afternoon was no different- Scherzer worked quickly and Scherzer threw strikes, culminating in 8 innings of 14-K shutout baseball. He has a way also of dialing up his fastball from 91 or 92MPH that he normally throws to 95MPH and 96 MPH when he really needs it, and he watches video all the time to keep his elbow in the right position to avoid Tommy John surgery. And his eyes are different colors, called heterochromia.

Nolan Arenado’s nickname is “Sharknado” for his whirling throws from 3^rd base. Awesome.

Lucas Duda’s nickname is “the Dude” after the Big Lebowski. Pretty simple but pretty awesome.

Marlon Byrd and Torii Hunter both have long histories (they’re both over 35) from not-very-affluent backgrounds and tales of spending years in the minor leagues going check to check and then reinventing themselves several times. They also from everything I see have great personalities, giving me extra motivation to root for them, unlike say, Ryan Braun. Byrd in particular has been a journeyman for various teams including the Nats, Phillies, Rangers, Cubs, Red Sox, Mets……..his stories would be awesome to hear.

 

Fantasize on,

Robert Yan

Mo' Money, Mo' Problems

 

“It’s just money.” – said many tablemates who had just lost a hand during college at underground poker tables during my times at University of Illinois- a wild and wacky time, to say the least. At the time I was confused by this remark as to whether to take it seriously, like a nonchalant, “I’m playing more for pride, money is just a side factor” or a more depressing, sullen, sarcastic “it’s just money that I’m losing, the most precious resource in the world.” I think it’s still a debate and I wonder about the thought process of 20-year old college kids regarding their spending habits, but over the years I’ve gradually tended towards the latter.

Money is a difficult thing to discuss, but to me money is VERY important. Money isn’t everything, but it’s something. Having money allows you to not worry about money, and not having money forces you to worry about money all the time. Money is also directly tied to the ACTUAL most important resource, which is time. We all only have a certain amount of time here, an expiration date. In order to make full use of that time, we would rather spend less time trying to make money (or make more money in a smaller space of time), and spending money sometimes equates to having to spend more time at work, or some other money-making endeavor (excluding trust fund babies and Internet-era startup CEOs, of course). As I grow older, I realize there are just a million things one can spend money on (and waste money on), including car payments, health care payments, insurance payments, rent, gas, Internet costs, cell phone bill, food, and those are just the fixed costs. We haven’t even gotten to discretionary or (gasp!) lavish spending. Money in itself isn’t something I’m too worried about, but because I’m such a stickler for time and squeezing every moment out of every day, I do worry about money. And which is why I was so down on my most recent Mexico trip. I think in hindsight, I was a little hangry (hungry and angry) and a little upset about a relatively low loss of finances, but that’s more a beef of “I worked and spent time to earn that money that you’re so callously making me spend $30 for a piece of paper for” than anything. Having been in debt before and in real danger of not paying that back for a long time and not making much money, I can say with unquestioned certainty that I like being financially secure than not. I’d like to stay that way, and wasting money in foreign countries and pieces of paper is not contributing to that goal.

Also, I want to buy a house in the near future. That will cost money, and require a consistent stream of money for the next 30 years after that. Sigh.

Tonight, the 0-5-3 (0 wins, 5 losses, 3 ties) House of Ballratheon dodgeball team takes on the Kenny Dodgers at Westchester Rec Center in a playoff matchup. I, Robert Baratheon, first of his name, king of the Andals, am more excited about this matchup than any other dodgeball game I’ve played in in recent history. It’s one thing that it’s a playoff game and the accompanying “win-or-go-home” backs-against-the-wall feeling, but I’ve felt very invested in this team, a conglomeration of players pieced together who have gelled into a formidable opponent, despite the 0 wins in the regular season. So many close games, so many near-misses, culminate in 50 minutes of dodgeball action tonight. This is the reason I play dodgeball, why I play organized sports, for games like these, and why I wish I was a professional athlete. More than just the fame, the money, and the glory, it’s to be able to compete in games like tonight. CAN’T WAIT.

Fantasize on,

Robert Yan

When in Rome

For all I know, every culture might have a saying akin to “When in Rome.” In Chinese it’s 入乡随俗

In Japanese it’s 郷に入れば郷に従え.

This past weekend, that multicultural proverb certainly applied to me. Went to Cabo San Lucas for a weekend trip and got more than my taste of Mexico.

First of all, my trip was fine. I got to hang out with friends in a foreign country at a fine resort right by the beach with spectacular views of the ocean and very luxurious rooms, and I learned that snorkeling is my cup of tea. I also had 2 celebrity sightings in the short 48 hours I was in Mexico, Aaron Brooks newly of the Chicago Bulls and Matthew Perry, of the TV show Friends fame. The weekend definitely could have gone a lot worse.

Now comes the ranting part and where the “You gotta play by the home court’s rules” comes in.

 

1.)    

Probably my own fault, but who’s to know that you’re supposed to keep your immigration card with you’re in Mexico? Nobody bothered to tell me, and in other countries you don’t need to keep anything. Therefore, I apparently looked very stupid when arriving for my flight back to the U.S. without the card, and after some surprisingly unfriendly help by the airline workers, I was directed to a rough, just-got-out-of-bed and woke-up-on-the-wrong-side-of-bed fellow at the immigration center who dismissively told me I had to pay $30 dollars for one. When I went to the ATM to get said money because I had run out of cash during the trip and the ATM spit out only pesos, I was unpleasantly surprised to find that the price was actually 400 pesos, despite the exchange rate being 12-to-1 and it theoretically needing to be only 360 pesos if at a pure 12-to-1 rate. No, $30 is not make or break for me (nor is $33 or whatever I ended up paying), but it’s just the concept of having to pay $30 for a piece of paper that no one told me to keep on me.

2.)   Supposed to call your credit card company to tell them that you’ll be in Mexico or else your charges will get rejected. How am I supposed to know?

3.)   Try not to pay any “tour guides” or “people helping you out” until the end, or until you absolutely have to. Especially when said tour guide leaves you on an island and promises that “someone will be here to help you out in two hours.

4.)   There are no pens in the airport to fill out immigration cards/entry cards upon arrival. I mean, seriously? There were about 30 people just getting off the plan at Mexico airport looking around for a pen to fill out their forms. You can’t provide one of those chained pens at a table and let people use them? Really? No wifi in the airport neither. Excuse me if I’m sounding like a stuck-up first world tourist here, but I’m sure the airports are taking money from my airfare, so try to provide the bare minimum of amenities, please!

5.)   Negotiate prices, especially cash transactions. Pretty much standard anywhere, but prices as first reported have been jacked up to accommodate for possible negotiation, so they’re taking money out of your pocket if you don’t.

6.)   Everyone’s working for a tip. This applies probably in a lot of tourist areas, but the sheer transparency of the people here in trying to get a tip is a bit nauseating. Luckily for American tourists, the American dollar goes a LONG way.

7.)   Don’t even bother exchanging money at the airport, especially in Cabo San Lucas. Everyone excepts American dollars and PREFERS American dollars, and Pesos will be accepted with disdain and a lower proportional rate. If you pay with American dollars, places will try to give you Pesos back, or they will charge a higher rate if you pay with pesos, or some other arrangement where they end up with American dollars instead of pesos. Hotels, 4-star resorts even! Will not give you change in American dollars for leftover pesos that you didn’t spend at the end and don’t want to waste. Really don’t value your own currency much, eh?

 

8.) There are mosquitoes. I got bit.

9.)   Anyway, I will probably never be going to Mexico again short of my family being taken hostage there or connecting on a flight somewhere else. Not to sound like a bitter tourist, but this is one place that I don’t want to “Be in Rome” or “Do as the Romans do.”

 

Anyway, this week I’m gonna keep a “Week in the Life of a fantasy baseball manager” blog, which if you followed the “A Day in the Life of the Fantasy Playoffs” series and liked, you should like this. A preview:

 

My second baseman this season is the Laser Show, aka Dustin Pedroia. A universally accepted top 40 fantasy player at the beginning of the season, he is acclaimed as a gritty player who outplayed his potential (he’s a short guy) to become one of the best in the MLB. Basically my kind of player……who’s genuinely sucked this season. Caught stealing more times than he’s hit, a lower than normal BA, very littler power (4 HRs all year despite having 20-HR power) and saddled on an unexpectedly bad Red Sox offense (especially since they play home games in a bandbox and you know, they won the World Series last year). Needless to say, I’ve been trying to find better options for Pedey, and as a testament to his lack of production replacements I’ve contemplated are Daniel Murphy, Dustin Ackely, Aaron Hill, etc. But on Saturday, I was reminded of the value of a Dustin Pedroia in one of the more brilliant plays of the seaosn. Playing in Anaheim against the Angels, Pedroia got on with a one-out single (what else is new, an empty single) bringing up Big Papi Ortiz, for whom the Angels (like most teams) shift so that their 3^rd baseman goes over to the right side to cover more ground in the likely event of Ortiz pulling the ball. This, however, forces Erick Aybar, the Angels SS, to be the only player on the left side of the infield between 2^nd and 3^rd. Pedroia realizes this and on the first pitch takes off for 2^nd, drawing a throw from Angels catcher Hank Conger, with Aybar covering. Conger’s throw is a little late and Aybar’s tag comes after Pedroia slips into 2^nd base (YAY! SB!) But inexplicably, Pedroia then gets up quickly, and in true “steal-the-bacon” fashion (middle school kids game) runs away from Aybar towards 3^rd base. As my mind struggles to comprehend what is happening, realization slowly sets in that NO ONE IS COVERING THIRD! Pedroia darts in without a throw, as Conger was supposed to cover 3^rd base since the 3^rd baseman had gone over to the right side for the shift. Ortiz later in the AB hits a sac fly to left that gets caught but scores Pedroia, resulting in a well-earned run. Just a heady, heady, play by Pedroia that nets TWO stolen bases and a run. This, fantasy owners, is why you invest in all-grit and determination players.

 

Fantasize on,

 

Robert Yan

Manic Monday

Here’s an odd question: What’s your favorite day of the week? Most people would probably either say Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and I’d tend to agree. Friday for me is somewhat poisoned because you have to trudge through the long work day that is Friday, so for me Saturday is the most liberating day sandwiched between joys of a Friday night and knowing the next day is not a work day (whereas Sunday is poisoned, etc.) I like finding unappreciated value in things, though, and I think weekday nights can be very productive: get your workouts in, get your social sports in, do your running: After all, about 70% of our week is comprised of weekdays, and we still have to survive through these days, so why not make the most out of them?

Weeknights, especially in the summer, are a GREAT time to go outside and enjoy the sunset while running around, for example, or playing tennis, or at an outdoor swimming pool, or ANYTHING. Almost everywhere in the United States, the months from June to August give you daylight until 8PM, so plenty of time after work to indulge in any of your fancies, maybe take in a baseball game, take in a show at the Hollywood Bowl (Los Angeles), join in a pickup soccer game, stroll around in an outdoor mall, have dinner at a café in the outdoor seating. It just feels like there’s so many possibilities in the summer whereas in the winter the days end at 5PM, there’s a lot of drudgery, there’s rain, so those are the weeknights spent at home studying or working and waiting for summer to fool around/ go out and play. The main idea, though, is, don’t just be a zombie on Monday-Friday and hope that the weekend brings joy, get out and do things you enjoy on M-F, even if work, life, prison (well, maybe not prison) gets in the way.

For example, Monday-Thursday are all great days to play dodgeball! I find that playing dodgeball after a long day of work affords a plethora of de-stressing opportunities, nothing like pretending like someone’s face is your boss’s and chucking a ball at a high velocity directly at their face. Very healthy, in my opinion, and you can’t get the same effect on weekends when you’re not as stressed!

For fantasy baseball, Tristan Cockcroft of ESPN did a wonderful article on why Sunday is the best day for “streaming pitchers,” which has to go into consideration for the list of factors involved in streaming pitchers (see my previous article on this topic). Basically, there are more day games  on Sundays, which favors pitchers not only because the sunlight can shield their pitches (I think) but also because hitters just got done playing the previous night and are still a little out of wack, their bodies are not used to getting up early and playing earlier in the day, whereas a starting pitcher has been preparing for the start for 5 days. Makes a difference, as with the “get-away games” on Wednesday and Thursday, although there’s not as much of them. It makes sense, as I’ve played like a zombie a bunch of times in dodgeball at noon on Sunday because my body’s used to being in a routine of sitting at work all day until 5PM, not running around and having balls thrown at it early in the afternoon.  So if you’re like me in a league where you have to decide to get pitchers for Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, the preferable choice is probably Sunday. (still adhere to the more prevailing factors like home park factors, quality of pitcher, etc.)

 

The following are a list of days of the week in Japanese

 

 

月曜日 = Monday

火曜日= Tuesday

水曜日= Wednesday

木曜日= Thursday

金曜日= Friday

土曜日= Saturday

日曜日 = Sunday

 

Fantasize on,

 

Robert Yan

Prospects and Busts

Today, Cubs 2^nd base prospect Javier Baez gets called up to the major leagues. Yawn. Maybe it’s just me, but every time an exciting Top 100 Prospect gets called up, I lose interest. Maybe it’s because I was never a highly touted prospect, maybe because I never got heavily recruited in high school or was never a star athlete in any sense, but I just think that the “New, Hot, Sexy, Hip” thing is usually overhyped. All of these prospects have risks attached to them, a lot turn out to be busts (just google Top MLB Prospect Busts), and most of them, if they make a significant contribution, will do so later in their careers as a post-hype sleeper, a la Lonnie Chisenhall this year, or Alex Gordon for the Royals.

As for me, I relish being a relative dodgeball unknown who came out of nowhere to be a legitimate dodgeball force. Everyone who starts dodgeball goes through a learning curve, everyone (including myself) sucks their first season, doesn’t matter if you have a the biggest arm ever or the quickest reflexes in the history of mankind. There’s just an adjustment period to figure it out. However, most new people get assessed by the veterans (in order to build teams for the future) and attributes to look for are how big of an arm, how athletic, willingness to catch. Well, I had no ability to throw hard, I don’t look very athletic, but I was willing to catch, probably the least important skill dodgeball “scouts” watch out for. I was not a prospect but panned out. TAKE THAT, Javier Baez!

 

Prospects for dating also tend to fizzle out. I mean, the biggest pet peeve that I have about online dating is right now is that there’s so much buildup before meeting face to face, so much introduction, “winking,” getting to know one another, making sure the other person isn’t a creeper/loser/fake account, etc., but then the date itself is the big “make-or-break”- if it’s a break, you don’t ever talk to that person ever again, life goes on without them. It makes the buildup seem pointless and futile and a waste of time, and online dating too much work.  It’s really a lot like following a baseball prospect- you scout them through online dating and “draft them” by making the initial contact. When they respond back, you feel great, you feel like there could be something here. They laugh at one of your jokes, equivalent of a home run in Double-AA providing encouragement. Conversations go back and forth for a week, you get to know the person, feel like they’re a real person and not just on online identity/baseball player. Finally the big day comes, the day of the date (the day of the callup), and the first at-bat you’re ready, but within 30 minutes (2 at-bats of groundout, strike out looking) you’re ready to move on to something else. That is the deflating feeling of a prospect bust/ date bust. Get used to it, myself 3 years ago who had different ideas about prospects and way-too idealistic expectations for dating, because it happens ALL THE TIME!

 

Fantasize on,

Robert Yan