I am going to go ahead and say without any official report of it that the Diamondbacks/Dodgers game on Wednesday was the first game in baseball history that featured two players named Yasmani or Yasmany to homer in the same game, and that it was also the first game ever to feature three players whose names all start with “Yas” who all homered. This looks like another one for the Elias Sports Bureau to tackle and as stupid as it is, I think it is pretty remarkable. So let’s take this opportunity to give a little bit of a rundown on the “Ya Ya Yas.”
Yasmany Tomas of the Diamondbacks went yard for his 2nd HR of the season. The Cuban defect has for the most part produced well for the Diamondbacks, but I am sure that they were expecting and would like to see more power out of that beastly 6’2″ 255 lb. frame of his. So it was a very pleasant sight to see him deposit one over the fence on Wednesday. Despite the lack of power, Tomas has been getting it done with his batting average at .331 because of his wonderful ability to hit the ball to the opposite field and up the middle so often. This great skill that he has makes it incredibly hard for defenses to defend him, especially since opposing teams may not have great scouting reports on him in his first season. His high AVG is being supported by a BABIP that is currently well north of .400, but I am still optimistic about Tomas’ outlook due to his opposite field approach and for the likelihood that his power numbers will increase as he gains more experience during the season. With 3B and OF eligibility in fantasy leagues and being a part of one of the top offenses in the league, Tomas is a quality fantasy option.
Yasmani Grandal had that huge breakout game earlier this season where he hit 2 HR with 8 RBI at Milwaukee, and up until Wednesday, that one game had accounted for approximately 40% of his power production all season long. But with a HR on Wednesday, Grandal is now hitting .277 with 6 HR and 21 RBI in 45 games played. Grandal was one of the main pieces that the Dodgers received in return for dealing Matt Kemp to the Padres in the off-season, so the team clearly believed in him and so far so good. He’s not posting numbers that are off the charts, but he’s been a rock solid option at catcher. However, it should be noted that as a switch hitter, Grandal is much more productive as a left-handed hitter. From the left side this season, he is slashing .283/.400/.492 with all his HR and RBI coming as a lefty, and a nifty ratio of 26 K/24 BB. So keep this in mind if you own him and set your lineup daily, and also note that he makes for a very nice play in DFS (daily fantasy sports) when he is up against a right-handed pitcher, particularly ones that don’t throw too hard.
Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers ended up missing about 6 weeks with a strained hamstring, so he has a lot of time to make up for. Earlier this week, he came off the DL and has been making his return well known. On Wednesday, he had a perfect day at the dish, which included a 3-run bomb, to push his hitting streak to 4-games since returning (9 for 15 in those 4 games). But the sign of a true recovery from his injury might be when he steals his first base of the season. During his rehab of the strained hamstring, he suffered a setback otherwise he would have been back a few weeks ago. So he might approach it safely initially, but if he starts to steal bases like he is capable of then that will signify all systems are a go. Puig clearly has monstrous fantasy appeal and it’s scary to think of how good the Dodgers offense could be with him back, considering how they obliterated a lot of pitching without him.
Let’s take look at the rest of the hump day action.
The Backwards K 