Yahoo Sports 
Mostly MLB Notes: Murphy, Harvey and a look around the league
Daniel Murphy had an .862 OPS in August last year and followed that up with a .909 OPS in September. He then hit .328/.391/.724 with seven homers over 58 at bats against some of the best pitching in baseball during the postseason. He’s added six more homers in the early going this year, when he also leads major league baseball by a wide margin with a .387 batting average. He’s pulling the ball and hitting fly balls far more than previously in his career, and it’s pretty clear this is no small sample fluke. His 175 wRC+ ranks No. 4 in baseball. Murphy has been a top-15 fantasy hitter in 2016, and while a .387 BA is obviously unsustainable, he should be treated as a truly elite middle infielder moving forward.
This SNL Dead Poets Society spoof is pretty funny.
TV Talk: “Horace and Pete” is so, so good. Louis C.K. is a genius...The series finale for “Banshee” was well done. Really underrated show, albeit one extremely over the top...I know it had its share of detractors, but I seriously kind of liked “The Family”...This season of “Game Of Thrones” is easily one of its best yet.
[Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest now]
Matt Harvey has been one of the biggest busts of the 2016 season, as he sports a 5.77 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP, and his six losses are tied for the most in the NL. His average FB velocity and SwStr% are both career lows, although both remain plenty strong (94.0 mph, 10.7%). Harvey deserves plenty of blame, and it’s clear he’s been anything but sharp after throwing 211 innings while returning from Tommy John surgery last season, but there’s a strong argument he’s been rather unlucky as well. His .385 BABIP is nearly 100 points higher than his career mark (.288) despite a 23.6 Soft% that ranks 12th highest in baseball.
If Asdrubal Cabrera fields a would-be double play cleanly Thursday, Harvey pitches a scoreless inning. Instead, an error resulted in seven runs scored (four earned because “you can’t assume a double play”), chasing Harvey out of the game in the third inning. His 62.2 LOB% is the sixth lowest in baseball (and well below his 76.0% career mark). Harvey is someone who truly has his fantasy owners worried at this point, and there was even talk of sending him to the minors, so now is the time to see if you can get him at 65-70 cents on the dollar.
Headlines of the Week: Man Fined For Driving 3 Trucks Stacked Together Down Freeway...In-Ear Device That Translates Foreign Languages In Real Time...Cleveland Man Asks To Use Neighbor’s Phone, Strips Naked And Steals Her Canes...Mom Fights Son Over Taco Bell Burrito...Woman Accused Of Taking Bat To Man’s Car For Staying In Front Of Gas Pump For Too Long.
Quick Hits: Steven Matz’s 21.1 K-BB% is better than Chris Sale’s and his 54.2 GB% ranks top-15 among all starters. He has a 21:1 K:BB ratio with a 1.74 ERA and a 0.58 WHIP in May. Only health can prevent him from being a top-12 fantasy starter moving forward...Here’s Colby Lewis taking a 101 mph liner off his head that results in your average pop out...Eduardo Nunez is hitting .320 and has three homers with eight steals, yet the shortstop is owned in just 32 percent of Yahoo leagues. There was some concern he’d lose playing time once Trevor Plouffe returned, but he’s remained a fixture atop Minnesota’s lineup despite his defensive shortcomings at SS. Nunez has quietly been a top-12 fantasy shortstop this season...Giancarlo Stanton entered Sunday as the first position player in the past 50 years to go hitless with 15 strikeouts in a five-game span (h/t Buster Olney). Over his last 52 at bats, he’s batting .096 with 27 strikeouts while committing as many errors (two) as he has extra-base hits. Stanton’s slump is reaching epic proportions.
Police Blotter: Babysitter Takes Kids Along For Bank Robbery...Teen Gets 9 Years For Kidnapping His Great-Grandma...Man Arrested With Gun, Marijuana And Box Of Squirrels...Robber Demands To Use Victim’s Bathroom Before Stealing Car At Gunpoint.
Quick Hits Part Deux: The Cubs have a +58 run differential during Jake Arrieta starts this season, which is tied for the best ever during a pitcher’s first nine outings. Other than Chicago, only the Red Sox have a better run differential as a team in 2016....From Sunday to Friday, the Giants’ relievers tossed a total of one inning...Michael Fulmer was the key component in last year’s Yoenis Cespedes trade, and after Saturday’s 11:1 K:BB ratio performance, he’s firmly on the fantasy radar. He now has 33 strikeouts over 26.1 innings this season...Here’s my MLB Stock Watch column in case you missed it, and if you’re into fantasy football, be sure to check out this week’s podcast...Saturday marked the first ninth inning save opportunity for the Twins this month...Khris Davis has launched 32 home runs since August 1, a span of 359 at bats. He's tied with the other Chris Davis for the most long balls over that stretch...Meanwhile, teammate Marcus Semien is on pace to hit 36 homers this year, yet the middle infielder is owned in just 43 percent of Yahoo leagues.
Songs of the Week: Band Of Horses – “Casual Party” and “In A Drawer”
Longread of the Week: The False Promise Of DNA Testing
Quick Hits Part Tres: Just one of Jose Quintana’s 57 fly balls have gone over the fence, as his 1.8 HR/FB% is easily the lowest in baseball. Meanwhile, 10 of Cole Hamels’ 39 fly balls have left the yard this season...I nominate this Dillon Gee offering as the pitch of the year...The MLB record for strikeouts in a season is 223. Justin Upton is on pace to finish with 249...Devon Travis had a .304-38-8-35-3 line over just 217 at bats last season before suffering a shoulder injury that ended his year. There’s no guarantee he’ll be 100 percent when he returns, but the middle infielder should be back soon, and he’s well worth stashing if you have an open DL spot right now...This Jason Heyward catch was legit...Rajai Davis has four homers and 10 steals in only 126 at bats this season, and Michael Brantley continues to deal with shoulder problems. Davis is somehow owned in just 32 percent of Yahoo leagues.
