State Of The State

I took a couple hits this week, primarily with Lance Lynn (four leagues) blowing up yet again, but Zack Wheeler also got destroyed, and so did Luis Severino in the Main. I won’t copy here what one of my managers said about Lynn, but even I thought it was a bit harsh. What does his mother have to do with it anyway?

Even so, my teams are all in contention, and I couldn’t be more pleased with the diligence of the managers. They are on it, and it appears (so far) I chose wisely.

ERA and WHIP are the biggest challenges (thanks in large part to Lynn), but a lot of pitchers are getting blown up, and the weather hasn’t even gotten hot yet, i.e., we can still make up ground if/when a few of the fast starters get crushed too.

It reminds me of the Mustard Seed Parable:

Kisagotami went to the place where the Buddha was teaching and asked about medicine for her [dead] son. The Buddha said he could help her, but first she must bring him a mustard seed — a very common spice that was sometimes used as medicine in the ancient world. But there was a catch — the mustard seed must come from a house that had never experienced death.

Frantically, Kisagotami went from one house to another, asking for a mustard seed. All were willing to give her what she wanted. But when she asked if anyone had ever died in the house, she was told “of course people have died here.” Finally it sank into Kisagotami that death came to everyone; all beings are impermanent.  Her mind cleared, and she took her son’s body to the charnel ground herself.

She returned to the Buddha, and he inquired about the mustard seed. I have resolved the matter of the mustard seed, she sighed. I understand now.  Then Kisagotami asked to be ordained into the order of nuns, and the Buddha ordained her.  She practiced diligently, and in time she realized enlightenment and became an arhat.

Find a team that hasn’t had a pitcher get blown up. There, now you’re an arhat. Or maybe an asshat. Too soon?

. . .

I emailed with Greg Ambrosius a few days ago, and I’m going to do a Beat Chris Liss NFFC in the next couple weeks. I actually wanted to do it this coming weekend, but Heather’s cousins are in town, and then a friend of ours is having his 40th birthday party too. (When you have a kid at 40, move to a new city and meet your friends through her school, they are mostly a decade (or more) younger than you.)

I’d do it during the week, but the start times are too late.

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