MLB All-Star Finalists 2019

Yesterday (Monday 6/24/19), MLB reminded us of the results of the first round of the brand new All-Star voting system. This year, in a departure from the tried and true "the player with the most votes gets to start" system, the top three vote-getters at each position from the three-week "Primary phase" become "finalists." Then, in a 28-hour burst starting tomorrow (Wednesday 6/26/19), voters will cast a SECOND ballot to select the actual starters from amongst those finalists. (Because MLB did not learn from US presidential elections in 2000 and 2016 how disastrous things can get when we depart from the popular vote.) While this system seems like a blatant clickbait scheme to entice fans to visit the website with the ballot not once but twice, it does allow for a period of concentrated player analysis, in which I will gladly partake.

Below will follow a position-by-position breakdown of the finalists for each position, organized by fantasy points, rather than alphabetically, as they are arranged in the above-linked article, or by total number of votes, as in this post where they announced the results. MLB's Instagram account already pointed out which teams have the most "Starters Election Candidates" (i.e., which teams' fans are most prone to stuffing the ballot boxes), but I plan to do the same with astrological signs, which are displayed in the far right column.

Would you believe that Aries starting first baseman Carlos Santana has never had an All-Star appearance in his 10-year career? That's even despite averaging 4.1 WAR per year as a primary catcher from 2011-13 and garnering some MVP votes in the last season of that span. He's got a good chance to break that streak this year, despite up and coming Aquarius fan favorite Luke Voit, who has surged since his trade to the Yankees. Over in the National League, breakout Leo Josh Bell got off to such a hot start that I didn't think anyone would catch him, but three-time Virgo All-Star Freddie Freeman has surged into the conversation lately, leading the race by a mere five points (although he does trail by 0.4 points per game). Thanks to Bell's power display, fellow Leo (and also a three-time All-Star) Anthony Rizzo has been relegated to fantasy astrology DH duty, and he should be an afterthought in this election.

It seemed a bit curious when the Yankees signed Cancer second baseman DJ LeMahieu during the offseason, since they already had a full infield. But injuries to Miguel Andujar and Troy Tulowitzki opened up playing time for David John, and all the two-time All-Star has done is lead the league in batting average (like he did in 2016 for the Rockies) and provide his usual brand of sterling defense. The out-of-nowhere breakout of Aquarius former utility player Tommy La Stella has been inspiring, and Taurus mainstay Jose Altuve has made the last five AL All-Star teams (plus one two years before that in 2012), but the choice here should be clear.

Despite his lead in both points and PPG, I might have a hard time voting for the versatile Libra Ketel Marte as a second baseman, since he's spent almost half of his 2019 as a centerfielder for the Diamondbacks. However, the same could be said of three-time All-Star Virgo Mike Moustakas, as he's filled in at third base for the injured Travis Shaw in Milwaukee. In fact, Moose just moved to the keystone this year after occupying the hot corner for the entirety of his career up to this point. Capricorn Ozzie Albies made the All-Star Game in his first full big league season in 2018, despite having lost his rookie eligibility due to a 57-game pot of coffee in 2017.

Burgeoning video producer Alex Bregman has held down both left side of the infield positions for the Astros in the past, due to multiple injuries to Houston shortstop Carlos Correa, and his shortstop eligibility comes in handy for the Aries fantasy astrology team (see below). Hunter Dozier's 2019 breakout has done a great deal to stabilize Leo's infield situation, as they were slated to rely on the oft-injured Zack Cozart at the hot corner according MLB.com's preseason fantasy rankings. It's clear that Yankees nation came out in force to vote for fill-in third baseman Gio Urshela (who didn't even make Libra's season opening fantasy roster); much more than fans of their rivals in Boston, despite the Red Sox having a clearly superior third base candidate in Scorpio Rafael Devers.

Nolan Arenado is the reason why it's so important for the above-mentioned Bregman to have shortstop eligibility, which opens up the Aries DH slot for a player with less versatility. Nado is the leading candidate for the starting job, which would make it five straight All-Star teams for the Newport Beach native - heading into the season he's also got four straight Silver Sluggers and SEVEN straight Gold Gloves. Meanwhile, the most accomplished Capricorn batter Kris Bryant has two All-Star appearances on his resume, in addition to an MVP and Rookie of the Year award, so he's also got a good track record to build on. Two Sagittariuses (Sagittarii?) round out the NL third base contenders, with Josh Donaldson narrowly beating out Justin Turner, although the former has had a clearly superior season in his first year with the Braves.

Red Sox fans clearly have been lackadaisical this All-Star voting season, as Libra infield captain Xander Bogaerts has had the best season amongst AL shortstop contenders, yet he didn't earn enough clicks to appear as a finalist. As it stands, Cancer Jorge Polanco (playing for the first place Twins) and Sagittarius Gleyber Torres (who shifted from second base to fill in for Troy Tulowitzki's newest injury) are fairly close in the race for point leader amongst the AL finalists. Meanwhile, Scorpio Trevor Story has had by far the best season of the NL finalists, yet he has received the fewest votes of the three. Not that Sagittarius Javier Baez hasn't had a great, if injury-shortened, year and it's nice to see former number one overall pick Dansby Swanson (an Aquarius) finally start breaking out, but the NL starting infield really should have two Rockies in the mix.

It's fitting that the consensus best player in baseball, Leo centerfielder Mike Trout, is also the American League's leading vote-getter. He should be on track to make his eighth straight All-Star team. Libra should also be well-represented, as defending AL MVP Mookie Betts and Minnesota slugger Eddie Rosario are the next two in terms of total fantasy points on the season. Speaking of the Twins, their fans couldn't get Aquarius Max Kepler into the next phase of voting, despite the German-born outfielder having scored more fantasy points than all but three of the AL finalists. Meanwhile, all three Astros outfielders are in the mix, despite the fact that Virgo George Springer has been out of action since May 24.

Two spots in the NL starting outfield should go to Sagittarius (and defending NL MVP) Christian Yelich and Dodgers star Cody Bellinger (who has taken his game to another level since moving to right field full time). Fellow Cancer Charlie Blackmon also patrols right field for the Rockies this year, moving from center for the first time in his career due to defensive limitations. Yelich's Sagittarius "teammate" Ronald Acuna Jr. has also had a great follow-up to his Rookie of the Year campaign, and it would make a certain amount of sense for him to earn the starting nod, as he is the only one of the top four point scorers who currently plays center field. Speaking of center field, the fact that Albert Almora Jr. is a finalist with over a million votes shows how egregiously Cubs fans stuffed the ballot box in this primary phase. I know he's a good defender, but if he makes this team after not even earning a spot on the Aries fantasy astrology roster, I might boycott the All-Star Game on principle.

It's pretty clear in both leagues who should be the All-Star catcher, as Gary Sanchez and Yasmani Grandal (a Sagittarius and a Scorpio, respectively) have handy leads on their competition. However, you should never underestimate Cubs fans, who have voted in a finalists at every position except second base, so there's a shot that Taurus Willson Contreras will "earn" the nod here. Up in the AL, it's amazing how deep the Gemini catching corps is, and that's not even counting Angels starter Jonathan Lucroy and former fifth overall pick Matt Wieters.

Perhaps the game's best pure hitter, Leo slugger J.D. Martinez has a nice point lead in the AL-only DH race, but this year he does have some statistical as well as intangible competition. Based on his last few seasons with the Giants, it seemed like Hunter Pence's career was over, but a retooled swing for the Aries outfielder earned him an opportunity with the Rangers, and he has more than taken advantage of it. Those two are followed by two Cancers, Nelson Cruz and Shohei Ohtani, a full-time DH while his right elbow recovers from Tommy John surgery. Notably absent from this list is prodigious Sagittarius slugger Khris Davis, whose .248 batting average so far in 2019 has raised his career AVG to the same amount, despite it sitting it .247 for the last four years.

Mountain - Basic Land Reprints

Well, I've just gotten back from some traveling, and what better way to welcome myself back home than by continuing my analysis of the pieces of art on Basic Lands that have been reprinted the most times in the game of Magic: the Gathering? This time, rather than going around the color wheel, I'm skipping to Red, because I had already taken screenshots of the most commonly-reprinted Mountain arts before my trip. As always, below is a chart of all the Mountain artworks that have been reprinted more than once (including a quick correction). Also, if you've already read my Basic Lands Reprints "Hub world" post, you will have already seen the first paragraph... but you could always read it again as a little refresher.

Not only is Karl Kopinski's artwork on Magic 2010 #244 the most frequently reprinted piece of art on a Mountain, it's the most frequently reprinted piece of art on any basic land in the history of Magic. I don't know if it's the snow-dotted peaks, the mist in the valley below, the flock of winged creatures to the right, or the band of adventurers to the left, but something about this gorgeous landscape got it reprinted a whopping 14 (fourteen) times! And that's only counting paper sets in English - a search on Scryfall will show you a Spanish version (Montaña) from Salvat and a Magic Online theme deck version, in addition to the original printing. Next on the list for Mountains, and tied for third overall amongst basic lands, is Magic 2012 #242, whose majestic yet topple-worthy rock formation by Cliff Childs has been reprinted ten times. Maybe the folks who decide which lands get reprinted really like traversable mountains from Core Sets, as this one also features a staircase. Mountain is the only Tierra básica not to feature art from an expert level expansion in its top three most reprinted artworks, as we have yet another entrant from M10 finishing in third place. The most stereotypical of landmasses, Nils Hamm's #242 shows a plethora of jagged red-orange peaks, which have appeared nine other times throughout Magic's illustrious history of sets.

The next four examples on the list of most common Mountain arts are tied at seven reprints apiece. You'll recall from the many times I've explained this situation that Magic's first print run (Alpha) had two pieces of art for each basic land, while the second print run (Beta) added a third (or rather, included the one that was mistakenly left out of Alpha). The first of the two above Mountains illustrated by Douglas Schuler (his name was misspelled on the actual paper cards) is from Alpha, while the second one was added in Beta (note the slightly more vibrant colors, especially in the white text). Speaking of printing errors, it's interesting to note that the Beta Mountain made its way into the Arabian Nights expansion by accident, even though that set was not supposed to include any basic lands, making "Basic Land - Mountain" the most-printed card amongst expert-level expansions. This doesn't explain why one Alpha Mountain was printed more times than the other, but the computer I used to create this database won't currently start up, so I can't exactly show my work.

Moving to the left, we see a good chronology of the evolution of rules text on basic lands. John Avon's art on Urza's Saga #344 - a haunting pastel depiction of a mist-enswirled range - features the "Tap" symbol followed by a colon, replacing the worlds "tap to" that appeared up until Fourth Edition. By the time we get to Magic 2014 (which was released in 2013), the game's designers had long since replaced any rules text on basic lands with an overlarge mana symbol; the change actually happened in 1999's Sixth Edition, the set immediately following Urza's Saga. However, you might also notice a difference in the type line between the third and fourth images above - up through mid-2003, all basic lands were denoted simply as "Land," but in Eighth Edition, they were changed to the more descriptive "Basic Land - [TYPE]" as is the case with Jonas De Ro's semicircular mountainous valley on Magic 2014 #243.

The above image is a little confusing in terms of number of reprints - the artworks on the entire top row and the one on the bottom left have been reprinted six times, while the last three on the bottom row have five reprints apiece - but I just couldn't resist a nice 2x4 grid. The silvery-white snow-covered peaks at the top left is the second Douglas Schuler Alpha Mountain I mentioned above. Next to it is yet another piece by John Avon, a sunset-inspired study in yellow, dark red, and black from the African-themed set Mirage. Seventh Edition was the second Core Set to include new art on lands (Fifth Edition did it first, but Classic Sixth Edition went back to reprints), of which Rob Alexander's starkly vertical slope rising above the clouds is one. I already mentioned the specifics of the basic lands from Shards of Alara in my post about Plains, but Aleksi Briclot's lava-soaked chasm in front of a red sky on #244 is one of two Mountains representing the Black-Red-Green shard known as Jund. Andreas Rocha's view down on some excessively sharp peaks in Magic 2014 #245 is the second entrant from that particular set in the top-12 of most-reprinted Mountain artworks.

Mercadian Masques #346 features another mountain by Rob Alexander, only this one is shown from a much longer distance away, such that you can clearly see its pointy top against a red-orange sky. I went over some of the blue tribes from the MMQ expansion in my post about Islands, but you would most likely find Goblins inhabiting the mountains in this set. We'll see more about the Onslaught expansion (set on the Dominarian continent of Otaria) when we get to Swamps, but suffice it to say, Sam Wood's art on #344 continues the theme of Mountains with footpaths on them, as this one has both a foot bridge in the foreground and a carved-in switchbacking ramp further towards the back. Speaking of Swamps, the most commonly reprinted art on which comes from Ravnica: City of Guilds, Richard Wright's #302 from that set rounds out our five-times-reprinted Mountains. Based on the Magic Premiere Shop watermarks on the RAV lands, this from-the-bottom view of jagged buildings resembling mountain peaks represents the militaristic Boros Legion.


MLB All-Star Game Season is coming up in the near future, so I will likely take a break from art for tabletop games for a moment to focus on that, but when I come back, the next land type featured will be the murky Black mana-rich Swamp.

Island - Magic Basic Land Reprints

If you've ever countered your opponent's potentially game-winning spell, or bounced their best creature with an expensive Aura on the stack, then you know the importance of having Islands in your deck. If the only word you recognize from the previous sentence is "Islands," then you still might enjoy the rest of this post, which details some of the artistic representations of said watery landmasses that have been reprinted the most times in the history of Magic: the Gathering. Here's a comprehensive list of each piece of art on a Basic Land - Island that has been reprinted more than once:

If you read my post about Magic's most reprinted Plains artwork, you'll likely notice some similarities with the situation regarding Islands. The first is that there is a tie atop both the leaderboards for most reprinted artworks, although while the two top Plains checked in at seven reprints apiece, each Island you see here was reprinted nine times. The second similarity is that the earlier of the two most reprinted lands are both from the Invasion set, and what's more, they were both illustrated by the great John Avon. This one in particular (Island #336) features a beach, with waves gently lapping against the shore, which is strewn with sharp hooked poles, sticking out of... dark rocks, with a foreboding giant outcropping looming in the distance. The other similarity is that the second of the two most frequent art reprintings is from a Core Set, although Island's co-leader was from Magic 2012 rather than Magic 2014. Cliff Childs's Island #235 depicts a somewhat different beach, the orientation of which is the same, only this time the waves aren't gently lapping at the shore: they're spilling over from a humongous bowl-like rock formation that towers over you, seems to have its own weather patterns, and obstructs all view of the horizon.

The arts on the above three Islands are tied for second most among that basic land type, having been reprinted seven times each. Harkening back once again to my Plains post, I talked about how Limited Edition's Alpha print run left out one of the three planned basic land arts, which was added back in the Beta print run. As you might recall, the two Alpha Plains were reprinted the same amount of times, once more than the Beta Plains, which makes logical sense. For Islands, however, one of Mark Poole's Alpha artworks - the numbering varies for Limited Edition, but it's the one with the lush green vegetation and a sparse beach, depicted during the daytime - ended up being printed once more than its Alpha counterpart... which itself was printed once more than the Island added back in Beta. Both of those two pieces of art appear below in the next section.

The middle Island above is from Seventh Edition, which was the last Core Set to use the old fashioned card frame, but it would be two more "Advanced-level" sets before they would abandon the white border. John Avon's art for #334 has a similar color scheme and perspective to his tied-for-the-most-frequent piece from Invasion, except the beach is replaced by tide pool-laden rocks, and there is a flat-top landmass in the distance instead of a tall thin pillar of rock. Even though there are no actual Islands on a plane-wide urban landscape such as Ravnica, Richard Wright's art for #294 from the set that introduced us to the City of Guilds shows a cluster of buildings and waterways that is rife with Blue mana. According to the Magic Premiere Shop versions of the Ravnica: City of Guilds basic lands, this particular Island corresponds with the Blue/Black milling guild House Dimir.

The top three Islands in the above image were each reprinted six times, the first of which being the other Alpha Island illustrated by Mark Poole, this one with decidedly less green, but more pink and yellow, given that it takes place during the sunset hour. The Mercadian Masques expansion takes place smack dab in the middle of the Weatherlight Saga, of which the Invasion block is the culmination. I'm not sure whether Scott Bailey's jagged swept-back mass of rocks on #336 represents a specific place on the plane of Mercadia, but based on context clues, it must be an area near the dwellings of the Rishadan Pirates or the Saprazzan Merfolk. I've said before that Magic 2010 was the first Core Set to receive new art for basic lands, and that's actually incorrect: what I meant to say is that it was the first BLACK BORDERED Core Set to receive new art for basic lands. One of these is Rob Alexander's tranquil cove (but not an actual Tranquil Cove) on #234. On the second row, we get the only Island art that has been reprinted exactly five times: Mark Poole's Beta Island - which is a near copy of one of the Alpha Islands, except the landmass is slightly larger and the sky is slightly less yellow.


It's going to be a little while until my next post, but when it arrives, it will be the tallest of all Basic Lands, and the only one that produces Red mana: the mighty Mountain.

Magic Basic Lands Reprints - HUB

I wrote an untruth in my last post: I said that my next post would go clockwise around the color wheel and profile Islands next in my series on the most frequently reprinted pieces of art on Basic Lands. Instead, I've decided to create another one of those "hub world" posts I like so much, including a blurb about the top reprinted lands of each type. I've already published the one about Plainses, and I'll repeat that one at the very end, since here I'll go in descending order of most reprinted land arts. And that distinction goes to the always Red...

Mountain
(47 arts reprinted more than once)

Not only is Karl Kopinski's artwork on Magic 2010 #244 the most frequently reprinted piece of art on a Mountain, it's the most frequently reprinted piece of art on any basic land in the history of Magic. I don't know if it's the snow-covered peaks, the mist in the valley below, the flock of winged creatures to the right, or the band of adventurers to the left, but something about this gorgeous landscape got it reprinted a whopping 14 (fourteen) times! And that's only counting paper sets in English - a search on Scryfall will show you a Spanish version (Montaña) from Salvat and a Magic Online theme deck version, in addition to the original printing. Next on the list for Mountains, and tied for third overall amongst basic lands, is Magic 2012 #242, whose majestic yet topple-worthy rock formation by Cliff Childs has been reprinted ten times. Maybe the folks who decide which lands get reprinted really like traversable mountains from Core Sets, as this one also features a staircase. Mountain is the only Tierra básica not to feature art from an expert level expansion in its top three most reprinted artworks, as we have yet another entrant from M10 finishing in third place. The most stereotypical of landmasses, Nils Hamm's #242 shows a plethora of jagged red-orange peaks, which have appeared nine other times throughout Magic's illustrious history of sets.


Forest
(46 arts reprinted more than once)

Boy, there was just something about those basic lands from Magic 2010, wasn't there? Steven Belledin's classic nature scene that found its way onto #248 in that set - with its single large-trunked tree dominating the right side of the frame, flanked by several smaller varieties (including a fern!) on a leaf-strewn floor - leads all Forests (the same set that leads all Mountains), and comes in second overall in basic land art reprintings with 12 instances. Next, we have a two-way tie with eight reprints each. The earlier of these is Glen Angus's bird-swarmed treetop village from #350 in the Invasion expert level expansion. Not only is Invasion from the pre-modern era (notice the older card frame?), but it's also very important to Magic lore, having been the culmination of the iconic Weatherlight Saga. Like Mountain, Magic 2010 lands occupy two of the top three most commonly reprinted artworks on Forest cards: the second one being Jim Nelson's single giant tree from #249.


Swamp
(45 arts reprinted more than once)

The most-reprinted Swamp artwork - tied for third most amongst all basic land reprints with Cliff Childs's M12 Mountain - is from a set that takes place on the same plane as Magic's most recent expert level expansion, War of the Spark: Ravnica: City of Guilds. While it's not explicitly stated in the set itself that Richard Wright's sprawling, towered, bridged, underground cityscape on card #298 represents one of the city-plane's ten two-colored guilds, there is evidence that it depicts a dwelling place of the Black/Red Cult of Rakdos. Like Forest, we have a two-way tie for second place in Swamp, and also like Forest, they are tied with eight reprintings apiece. ALSO like Forest, the earlier one is also from a pre-modern expert level expansion, this one from the second Otaria-focused block called Onslaught. Dan Frazier, the artist of pale, pink-flower-including pale bog on #341, has the distinction of also being the illustrator for the very first ever printed Swamp. Like Mountain, there is also a Magic 2012 land art in Swamp's top three, and it's the third land so far to feature a flock of birds, this one flapping over some green brackish water and in front of some dead gray trees. I'm assuming that Jung Park, the illustrator of #240, pronounces his name like Jung Ho Kang (or, more appropriately, as in Jund), rather than Carl Jung, given that both Park and Kang are Korean names, but I might be making an ass out of you and me by jumping to that conclusion.


Island
(45 arts reprinted more than once)

Picture a beach, with waves gently lapping against the shore, which is strewn with sharp hooked poles, sticking out of... dark rocks, with a foreboding giant outcropping looming in the distance. That's the scene on John Avon's #336 from the above-mentioned Invasion set, which I didn't mention before focuses on the Phyrexian invasion of Dominaria. Now imagine you're on a somewhat different beach, the orientation of which is the same, only this time the waves aren't gently lapping at the shore: they're spilling over from a humongous bowl-like rock formation that towers over you, seems to have its own weather patterns, and obstructs all view of the horizon. That's what you'd be seeing if you imagined Cliff Childs's artwork from #235 from the Magic 2012 Core Set. Also, both of those pieces of art have been reprinted nine times.


Plains
(43 [REALLY!? SKIPPING ONE!?!?] arts reprinted more than once)

We're here at the end, because the co-leaders in Plains art reprints are the smallest among all basic land types, appearing in just seven sets each beyond their original printings. The earlier of the two aforementioned original printings was from Invasion, a set that featured top-two art reprints for three of the five basic lands. John Avon's art for Plains #331, depicting a low angle shot of a field of wheat, conjures up images from the film Gladiator. However I imagine this is merely a coincidence, since the Ridley Scott-helmed Best Picture winner was released just five months before Invasion's print run, which means the artwork must have been commissioned long before that. While the overly-represented Magic 2010 was the first ever Core Set to include new art printings of basic lands, it wasn't until four years later that we got a Core Set Plains with real sticking power. Plains #233 from M14 features art by Andreas Rocha, which does a great job of conveying the expansiveness associated with prairie, steppe, and grassland, while also giving us a sense of perspective of the surrounding landscapes.

Plains - Magic Basic Lands Reprints

Last year, I did a deep dive into an aspect of Magic: the Gathering that has always fascinated me: new art reprints. If you don't want to click the link and read my previous post(s), the general idea is that I covered the top five cards (in terms of frequency) that have been reprinted with a piece of artwork that's different from its original printing. When I say "cards" above, I'm referring to spells and nonbasic lands; while Basic Land is the card type that has the most new art reprints, with four to five different versions of each appearing in many sets, they're also fundamentally different from any other card in Magic, given that a player can have as many as they want in their decks. What's more, each basic land type (Plains, Island, Swamp, Mountain, Forest) features many pieces of art that appear in multiple sets, sort of the opposite of a new art reprint. Considering this distinction, it's much more interesting to look at which lands' art pieces have been reprinted the most amount of times. At least that's what I kept telling myself when I put together the database from which the following excerpt has been taken:

The above image is a list of every Basic Land - Plains that has had its artwork reprinted more than once. Plains is a good place to start, not just because white mana sits at the top of the color wheel, but because the leader - or rather, co-leaders - in Plains art reprints is the smallest among all basic land types, appearing in seven sets beyond their original printings. The earlier of the two aforementioned original printings was Invasion, a very important set in Magic's history, it being the culmination of the iconic Weatherlight Saga. John Avon's art for Plains #331, depicting a low angle shot of a field of wheat, conjures up images from the film Gladiator. However I imagine this is merely a coincidence, since the Ridley Scott-helmed Best Picture winner was released just five months before Invasion's print run, which means the artwork must have been commissioned long before that. Magic 2010 (released in 2009, like new car models) was the first ever Core Set to include new art printings of basic lands, but it wasn't until four years later that we got a Core Set Plains with real sticking power. Plains #233 from M14 features art by Andreas Rocha, which does a great job of conveying the expansiveness associated with prairie, steppe, and grassland, while also giving us a sense of perspective of the surrounding landscapes.

Another reason why Plains is a good place to start this feature is that its next-most-common group of same-art-reprints (with six reprints each) includes a good reason to talk about the mistakes in Magic's first ever Core Set. Originally released in August 1993, the Alpha printing of Limited Edition included only two of each type of basic land, the Plains versions of which (illustrated by Jesper Myrfors) appear above. While they look very similar in terms of color and composition, notice the subtle addition of trees in the second one. In the Beta printing (October 1993), a third basic land of each type was added, after being mistakenly left out of the first print run. See the next section for the third "original" Plains.

2008's Shards of Alara expansion - which is based on three-color combinations known as "shards" - had a fun gimmick regarding the art on basic lands: one artist was assigned to illustrate four lands per shard, two from the central color and one each for the two flanking colors. Michael Komarck got the lands for the Bant shard (Green-White-Blue), which means he illustrated two Plains, one Island, and one Forest. The second of these two Plains (#232, depicting a tree-dotted hill with a castle in the distance and a tranquil stream in the foreground) is the third card pictured above. In an even more fun basic land gimmick, the following year's Zendikar expansion featured full art lands (a concept that debuted in 1998's parody set Unglued). Our old pal John Avon provided the pillar-esque art for Plains #230, although every subsequent reprint of the image featured a cropped version with the traditional card frame.

Rounding things out, five Plains have pieces of art that have been reprinted five times, three of which are from expansion sets we've seen before. First on the list (i.e. the earliest to be released) is the aforementioned Beta Plains that was unintentionally left out of the Alpha print run, this one with a flat foreground, as opposed to the U-shaped ones from Jesper Myrfors's two Plains from Alpha. Number two is the first of Michael Komarck's Plains from Shards of Alara (#231), which leans more into the Green mana side of Bant (hence all those trees). And number four is another full art land from Zendikar, and unlike John Avon's above installment from the same set, this hedron-filled one by Vincent Proce (#233) has been reprinted in its full art version, for 2015's return to the plane, Battle for Zendikar. Speaking of John Avon, his art for Plains #231 in the Magic 2010 Core Set shares many elements of his above-pictured Invasion Plains, most notably the overall burnt-umber coloring and its placement in a field. The main differences are that the path is emphasized, the point of view is slightly wider, so we see more of the sunset in the distance, and the vegetation looks more like tall grass than crops. The final Plains on this list is also from a Core Set (#232 from Magic 2013), and while Nils Hamm's artwork doesn't feature much in the way of details in the landscape, the color scheme and gentle lines present a very pleasant-seeming environment indeed.


Next time I'll continue around the color wheel and take a journey into Magic's most-reprinted artwork for Islands.

Fantasy Astrology 2019 Memorial Day Update

Two weekends ago, a lot was made about Memorial Day serving as the approximate quarter pole of the MLB season. And yet I still haven't posted anything baseball related since Spring Training. That's because of two video game-related reasons: 1) I have been editing Let's Play videos of the 2018 smash hit Red Dead Redemption 2 - you can view the first four episodes here, with no timetable for future releases. And 2) I have been using MLB 19: The Show to simulate a full season based on my patented Fantasy Astrology rosters. The results are in the books (no spoilers, since I'll likely try to post some highlights on YouTube, if I can tear myself away from the wild west), and I've since moved on to updating the rosters as of the said Memorial Day milestone.

This exercise has brought into focus the differences between setting a traditional fantasy lineup (which follows how real life major league players perform in actual games) and building a roster for a simulation (which uses computer models of each player based on quantifiable skillsets). To set the former, fantasy team owners must rely on Rankings (at least until they have a large enough sample size of statistics in the current season), whereas to build the latter, video game players can go off the game's displayed Ratings for various attributes (e.g. stamina for pitchers, contact/power hitting for batters). For Rankings, lower is better (i.e. Mike Trout is the #1 ranked fantasy player), while for Ratings, higher is better (i.e. Mike Trout's overall rating is 99 out of 100).

With these general parameters in mind, I tallied up the Ratings for each player in the Fantasy Astrology landscape in an effort to gauge the general talent level of the 12 Fantasy Astrology teams/signs. The results might shock and surprise you... or then again, they may not!

One thing that should come as no shock: when adding up the ratings from every player in a particular sign's talent pool, the sum total of ratings directly correlates to the number of players in that sign's pool. Thus Virgo, with its 137 players, predictably towers over signs with a player pool that numbers in the low 100's, or even the 90's, as in Aquarius and Scorpio. Where things get interesting is when you calculate the average rating across each player pool. The range is not very wide at all, with all but three signs averaging some fraction of 70, but there is a somewhat clearer hierarchy that emerges. Using the averages, Aries comes out on top, as the only sign with an average player that tops 71, despite having 16 fewer players to work with than Virgo. Following them, we have last year's surprise champion Gemini (70.94), then the always dangerous Leo (70.82), before we get to the league leading sign (70.73).

Next, to try and even the playing field, I added up the ratings over each sign's top 40 and top 25 players, since that's the maximum amount of players an MLB team can have on its expanded and active rosters, respectively. Keep in mind that I didn't go through and construct full rosters, balanced for positions and all that, but rather just sorted the Rating column best-to-worst and tallied up the appropriate number of players. Doing this causes the totals and the averages to line up (which is logical, since we're dividing by the same number of players each time), but it also causes Virgo to jump back into the lead across all metrics. In fact, there are only two changes when moving from the 40- to the 25-player selections: Libra and Gemini swap positions between #4 and #5, and Scorpio leapfrogs Pisces and Capricorn, moving from #11 to #9, and pushing the other two down correspondingly. It's a very small margin (especially where the 25-player sample is concerned, with just 2 numbers separating 1st place Virgo and 2nd place Aries) and the average range is quite narrow (although not nearly as narrow as when you look at the entire player pool), but again, it's a good snapshot of what the most powerful signs in the sky are.

It's anyone's guess if/how these video game-based analytics correlate to what's actually going on in the fantasy astrology landscape as it applies to the actual major leagues, but consider this a baseline to start with as we head into the summer.

Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5 Review

WARNING: MASSIVE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!1 

"I don't think she decided ahead of time that she was going to do what she did. And then she sees the Red Keep, which is, to her, the home that her family built when they first came over to this country 300 years ago. It's in that moment, on the walls of King's Landing, where she's looking at that symbol of everything that was taken away from her, when she makes the decision to-- to make this personal." 

- Game of Thrones co-creator D.B. Weiss

I don't usually watch the "Inside the Episode" features, even of shows that I follow closely. But I thought I'd check it out for Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5 to see what the show's creators had to say about Daenerys Targaryen's out-of-the-blue-yet-somehow-strangely-predictable departure from seven seasons' worth of character development. And that was the best that Weiss could offer: she decides "to-- to make this personal." But the decision to burn all the innocent people in King's Landing alive had nothing to do with any "personal" grudge of Dany's - it essentially amounts to her becoming a fantasy war criminal.

Khaleesi has been through hell over the show's history: she's been bullied, beaten, raped, lied to, stolen from, sold into slavery, had attempts made on her life, and subjected to all sorts of torture, both mundane and magical. Throughout it all, she has seemingly not lost sight of her goal: to retake the throne that had been in her family's possession for generations, and establish herself as a benevolent monarch who has the people's best interest at heart. And I just don't buy that anything that happened to her up to this point in the current season would cause her to become so violently unhinged.

Granted, the Dragon Queen has been through some rough times in the previous two episodes: she's witnessed the deaths of two of her most trusted friends and advisors - Jorah Mormont (a.k.a. Ser Friend Zone, a.k.a. Jorah the Explorer*) and Missandei of Naath (who was probably the only one in Dany's retinue who knew all of her various honorifics). Not to mention, one of her two remaining dragons just got crossbowed out of the sky (in what had to have been the most boneheaded strategical maneuver of the whole show. I mean, had no one on her team ever heard of "reconnaissance?" Maybe just do one high altitude flyover on a dragon before sending the whole fleet into an enclosed bay. Or have Bran warg into a seagull and check the situation a couple days in advance, rather than just using his powers to spy on the Night King while he was brushing his teeth before the Battle of Winterfell). Oh, and she did just learn that her erstwhile lover is secretly her nephew, who has a stronger claim to the throne than she does, based on the antiquated medieval rules of succession.

* All credit to YouTuber Ozzy Man Reviews for the mint nicknames.

So yes, that is a lot to have gone through in a short span of time. But is it any worse than what she's suffered in Seasons 1 thru 7, none of which caused her to lose her cool and sacrifice all the goodwill that she's fought to achieve? GoT co-creator David Benioff starts off the post-episode dive into Daenerys's motivations by pointing out that, for the first time, she is operating without some of the close friends and advisors who have helped her make these tough decisions in the past. So, what, has Jorah been Dany's moral compass the whole time? The same guy who was originally hired to kill her, and basically changed his mind because she was pretty? Tyrion is at least twice as smart, and three times as persuasive, and he's been counseling her against mass slaughter from the start. And despite their newly-complicated family situation, Jon Snow seems pretty even-tempered as far as civilian-burning is concerned. It's not as though she's suddenly devoid of reasonable people to listen to.

But I keep going back to Weiss's phrase: "make this personal." What personal grudge did Khaleesi have against the random people that she decided to exterminate? As far as I can tell, there was exactly one (1) person in King's Landing who wronged Daenerys in the past, and she happened to be standing right next to a window in the most exposed tower in the city (at least from a flying dragon's perspective). If Dany was really taking things personally, she would have flown up to the Red Keep, blasted Cersei in the face with some dragonflames, and gone about the business of, you know, establishing herself as that benevolent monarch, which has been her goal for 71 of the 72 episodes of Game of Thrones so far. She did not "make things personal," she revealed herself as secretly insane.

Which brings us to the question of her lineage. Before he was deposed, Dany's father was known as "The Mad King," with a penchant for burning his enemies alive while he watched and cackled maniacally. Then you have lines like, "every time a Targaryen is born, the gods toss a coin and the world holds its breath." So I get it, she was genetically predisposed to mass murder, so when you think about it, they've actually been setting this up from the very beginning of the show. Because the nature-vs.-nurture debate has been solved, and nothing that happens in a person's life can temper or counteract the crazy they're born with. Benioff and Weiss might as well have explained it by saying, "What we didn't explicitly tell the viewers, is that Dany was on her period during the invasion of King's Landing, which caused her actions to become erratic and unpredictable." Frankly, that's the kind of explanation I would expect from showrunners who see serial rape as the equivalent of character development, and who write lines like, "Men decide where power resides, whether or not they know it." (Emphasis mine.)

So as we prepare for next week's series finale, I'll close with a sentiment I recently saw on twitter dot com:

We'll all sunk cost our way through this last episode together

— Kimber Streams (@kimberstreams) May 13, 2019

Oh, also this one is really good too:

please this is so funny now pic.twitter.com/e7L1RWLUf0

— ju (@wildtargaryen) May 7, 2019

Game of Thrones Season 8 Preview

Which characters' stories can we expect to see most represented in the upcoming Season 8 of HBO's Game of Thrones? This is a question that could be puzzling some viewers as they prepare to tune in before tonight's season premiere. I didn't think to ask it to myself just now, but it so happens that I had been maintaining a story grid of the scenes throughout the show's previous seasons. Examining the frequency of scenes primarily featuring certain characters could potentially be used to answer this question. Here's the top 10 appearing characters, according to the analysis I've put together, color-coded for ease of reference.

WARNING: SPOILERS AND MAYBE SOME HALF-ASSED PREDICTIONS AHEAD!

1. JON SNOW
113 total scenes

Most of the promotional material I've seen for GoT S8 has featured the lovely mug of Kit Harrington's lovable bastard... OR IS HE? I mean, he is lovable either way, but his lineage has been thrown into doubt with some conveniently-placed flashbacks. He's taken over the Night's Watch, recruited the Free Folk, and made an alliance with the Dragon Queen (i.e. the queen who has dragons, not the one who acts like a dragon). His upward trajectory and unwavering good alignment make Jon Snow a powerful protagonist, but will he feel any ill effects from the dark magic resurrection spell from the end of Season 5?


2. TYRION LANNISTER
109 total scenes

I have been known to clown Peter Dinklage's accent in the show, since as a straight-up British accent, it honestly isn't all that sharp. But that was in my younger, more judgmental days, and now I realize that his character's not British, he's not British, and not even all the people who play Lannisters on the show are British. It's an accent that is sui generis, and either way, it hasn't distracted me from enjoying the quality of Dinklage's acting through the years. Also THE DINKLES THO!!!1
As one of the prime behind-the-scenes movers in GoT, Tyrion has never exhibited the traits of a true power seeker, and he seems more like a support class than a classic hero.


3. DAENERYS TARGARYEN
101 total scenes

Khaleesi was a fan favorite from the moment audiences saw one of Emilia Clarke's 12,000 wigs (am I getting that right?). Westeros history buffs are also more likely to root for her, pointing out that her family was initially in charge of the Seven Kingdoms, until they were overthrown by the Starks and Baratheons. Although, who did the Targaryens take over the throne from when they emigrated from ... is it Easteros? Essos? The point is, you live by the coup, you die by the coup, and not all rebellions are bad as far as the PEOPLE are concerned. She's got dragons, an army, a love interest, a good advisor, and DRAGONS. Not to mention her goal is clearly the throne, so she's gotta be considered the number one contender.


4. ARYA STARK
76 total scenes / 75 primary scenes

5. SANSA STARK
76 total scenes / 62 primary scenes

It cannot be a coincidence that the two Stark sisters have appeared in the same number of total scenes over the course of seven seasons of television... OR CAN IT? Digging deeper into the numbers in the chart above, you can see that Maisie Williams's Arya has the advantage over Sophie Turner's Sansa in Primary Scenes (where a character's story was the primary purpose of the scene, from my unprofessional perspective), as opposed to Extra Scenes (where that character's story was advanced in a scene that primarily featured a different character). Either way, they are firmly back on the same side, manning the first line of defense against a zombie hoard, and starting further than anyone from the location of the actual Throne. Not looking terribly promising for the Winterfell crew.


6. CERSEI LANNISTER-BARATHEON
74 total scenes / 63 primary scenes

The only true villain so far on this list, Lena Headey's character is close in scene total to both Arya (in total scenes) and Sansa (in primary scenes), which makes sense, given all the scenes the two of them shared in Season 2. But the question is, should Cersei even still be referred to as Baratheon? Her Baratheon husband is dead, as are all three of the children that she was trying to pretend were Baratheon; might as well drop the charade, right? At any rate, in the eyes of succession nerds, her claim to the throne is at best suspect, but let's not forget that possession is 9/10ths and all that. Given that Cersei has all the resources of both King's Landing, the Tyrells, and the Greyjoy fleet, Daenerys would do well to remember that a rightful claim isn't power, POWER is power.


7. NED STARK / ROBB STARK
53 total scenes

8. STANNIS / DAVOS / MELISANDRE
50 total scenes

I'm grouping these two stories together because they're basically finished. Sean Bean, Richard Madden, and Stephen Dillane have been off the show for multiple seasons now. It's true that Carice van Houten's Melisandre has kind of become a free agent, and Liam Cunningham has gone on some solo missions since Davos Seaworth joined forces with Jon (most recently to pick up another throne claimant Gendry), but neither really drive the narrative at this point.


9. BRAN STARK
46 total/primary scenes

Since going north of The Wall, Isaac Hempstead Wright has gone full Druid, all but removing himself from the concerns of his now former family, the Starks. Bran now goes by the moniker "Three-Eyed Raven," he can see different areas of the timeline, and he has lost all sense of social interactions. Scrying, ahem, WARGING is a useful tool for any adventuring party to have, but it seems like Brandon has taken on more of a support role.


10. JAIME LANNISTER
46 total scenes / 45 primary scenes

This MUST be a coincidence, that the eldest surviving Stark son and the eldest surviving Lannister son appear in the same amount of scenes... OR IS IT!?!?!?!? We've seen a shift in Nikolaj Coster-Waldau's character from being purely power hungry and serving his own self-interests (thereby serving those of his family) to having some concern about the greater good. Will it be enough to aid in the battle against the darkness, or will the knight's change of alignment be too little, too late?

Above is the series cast summary for Game of Thrones on IMDB, as of just mere hours before the premiere, showing that the actors with top seven episodic appearances are also part of the top 10 in terms of story scenes. Of the remaining ones, Samwell Tarly (John Bradley, 38 scenes) is still in the mix, heading back to the action from Oldtown with some pertinent information. Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen, 37 scenes combined) has embarked on some sidequesting to rescue his sister Yara (nee Asha, played by Gemma Whelan, and who is also represented in the gray-shaded scenes). I had grouped Littlefinger (Aiden Gillen) and Varys (Conleth Hill) together, but they only truly carry 12 total scenes, since their two storylines were closely linked to Sansa and Tyrion, respectively. The same goes for Iain Glenn's Jorah Mormont, who had appeared in solely Daenerys-dominated scenes for the majority of his time on the show.

I know people always say that past results do not guarantee future performance, but you  mostly hear that in terms of finance or athletic performance. Who knows if it applies to a narrative that's been designed for a particular resolution? Either way, now you know who's had the most, if not screen time, than STORY time in all the past Games of Throne, and it's up to you to decide how it might affect the unfolding season!

Let's Play Batman: Return to Arkham City: Episode 10

I've said many times that Episode 9 was the equivalent of this Let's Play's midseason finale, so that means Episode 10 is the second half premiere - and it should be treated with all the excitement and fanfare that accompanies a premiere. Even though it wasn't published until nearly three years after the release of the Return to Arkham series. And even though this blog recap was delayed for more than a month because of the excitement surrounding the start of the baseball season. But just watch the episode yourself and tell me it wasn't worth the wait...



As is fitting with any premiere, this episode starts with a lengthy cutscene, which establishes our new primary objective: retrieve a blood sample from Ra's al Ghul, so that Mr. Freeze can use it to complete his cure. Also in this cutscene, we see one of Ra's's ninjas (or rather one of his daughter Talia's ninjas) escape from one of Penguin's glass display cases and scamper out of the museum, conveniently leaving a trail of blood for me to follow. After we regain control, the in-game music drops out so that we can concentrate while scanning the evidence and updating Oracle on our progress. However, since you, the viewers, don't need to concentrate on anything except being entertained, I cut in the Arkham City Main Theme here, since the second half premiere is as good an excuse as any to bring back the game's most recognizable piece of music. Then as the conversation turns to the family al-Ghul, I use the opening theme from their first dedicated Batman: The Animated Series episode, the two-parter "The Demon's Quest."

Speaking of the Animated Series, after finding said ninja and stealthily equipping her with a tracking device, we get a new gadget delivered by none other than our fourth-favorite sidekick, Robin (the Tim Drake version). This particular music choice is one of my favorite in this whole Let's Play because of how perfectly the track syncs up with the in-game action. There's no music during the cutscene where Robin hands over the Line Launcher and agrees to take a sample of your infected blood to help Gotham area hospitals prepare for the impending epidemic, so I put in a track from Robin's (i.e. Dick Grayson's) two-part origin story "Robin's Reckoning" (partial audio link). I basically picked the first track from that episode with a length that fit in the space between when the ninja chasing theme faded out and the gadget upgrade theme faded in, and it just happened to follow the dramatic action of the scene, right down to the climactic swell when Batman reassuringly tells Robin that he'll find a way to solve this mess. For more examples of how BTAS music fits well with Arkham cutscenes, check out my Let's Play of Arkham Knight, although you might want to wait a few weeks until I start re-uploading the episodes in glorious full HD.

Before following the tracker, I take a break to pick up a Riddler trophy and fight some random henchmen, which also gives me the opportunity to experiment with more multi-layer music tracks, this time from the Arkham City soundtrack. You might recall that the ambient explore theme "I Know What You Guys Are Thinking" is among my favorite tracks in the game, but this piece of music also has an additional unreleased layer with percussion accompaniment for combat sequences. I'd say to watch that sequence and listen closely to see if you can spot where the new layer comes in, but it's not really a mystery since I explain it in the commentary. Shortly after this, the ninja's tracker leads us into the sewer system, where I use a track from the Arkham Asylum soundtrack that plays while you explore the cave system connected to the auxiliary Batcave.

While underground, we get a surprise cameo by Batman's most famous sewer-dwelling enemy Killer Croc. (Shout out to anyone who thought I was going to say the Sewer King.) For this brief scene, where Croc's uncanny sense of smell picks up the subtle aroma of Batman's infected blood, I use the music that plays when Croc chases you out of his lair underneath Arkham Asylum in the first game in the series. Then after progressing further into the sewers, we get another reference to the reptile-man formerly known as Waylon Jones, as I stumble upon a room he used as his hideout. While scanning the shock collar with which he was fitted back in Asylum (thereby completing another Riddler challenge), I play the opening theme from Croc's first Animated Series episode "Vendetta" to give the situation some appropriate atmosphere.

In between these two Croc sightings, there's a combat sequence with some Joker thugs that normally plays without music. For this fight, and the henchmen banter leading-in to it, I use another dual-layer track from Arkham Asylum. On the official soundtrack, this piece is rather generically titled "Crackin' Heads," but in order for the music to properly follow the action, I had to mix in its component parts: from the ch3 Admin series in the game rip audio files. Thus ends one of the most musically intensive episodes of the whole Let's Play!

Astrology 2019 Projected Lineups - Air Division

We're rounding things out with the Air Division, the home of former powerhouse Libra, winners of _ previous Fantasy Astrology championships, but whose reign of terror ended last year when they didn't even win the division. Actually, the Scales technically didn't NOT win their division, as they finished with an identical record as Gemini, but ESPN's proprietary "points for / points against" system awarded the Twins with the victory; they would eventually go on to win the championship. But as Libra is slated to be on top once again this year, let's start with them. As a reminder of the scoring system, signs gets 5 points for each Tier I player in their talent pool, continuing in descending order, finishing off with 1 point per Tier V player. And the color coding is as follows: Green = Tier I, Blue = II, Yellow = III, Red = IV, Purple = V

Despite the presence of only one Tier I batter, this outfield is by far the strongest in the astrology landscape, due to its incredible depth. AL MVP Mookie Betts leads the charge, and he's followed closely (albeit one tier town) by the owner of the richest contract in MLB history Bryce Harper, who hopefully doesn't show any lingering effects from being hit by a pitch on the ankle just a few games into his first Spring Training with the Phillies. The defensive prowess of the team's lone Tier III batter Starling Marte means that he would hold down center field in real life or a simulation, but Harper qualifies there as well for 2019, despite his poor defensive performance. Tier IV's Eddie Rosario and Andrew McCutchen could serve as a pretty serious DH platoon, while Tier V Aaron Hicks will provide yet more center field insurance when he comes off the DL. In the middle infield, Xander Bogaerts and Robinson Cano would make a fine double play combination, depending on whether the latter has truly cleaned up his PED act.

The Libra rotation has the curious distinction of being filled entirely by Tier IV starters; or it will be once Mike Foltynewicz is healthy enough to take the field. Until then bounce back candidate and former Team USA ace Chris Archer and lefty strikeout artist Robbie Ray will lead the pack. Those two will be followed by the most expensive pitcher in the sport (in terms of AAV) Zack Greinke and burgeoning Cardinals top of the rotation presence Jack Flaherty. In the bullpen, Dodgers star Kenley Jansen is hoping for a smooth recovery from offseason heart surgery, for both professional and general health reasons. Still playing out the extension he signed with the A's, Sean Doolittle flashed numbers that were superior to his Tier III standing, but staying on the field is always a challenge with him.

The fact that Gemini "won" the Air Division last year has almost everything to do with its pitching staff, and very little to do with a fully uninspiring offensive group. Pending free agent Anthony Rendon tops the bunch, and only a very deep crop of third basemen drops him all the way down to a Tier III standing. I don't  know if he's first-round-pickable, but he's definitely extension material for a Nats team that has come to terms with multiple Scott Boras clients before him (but then again, they also just let the biggest one walk away). Even a Tier IV placement for catcher Jonathan Lucroy assumes that he'll return to the solid offensive production that marked his early career, although even if he doesn't, I'm still salty that the A's allowed him to go to their in-state, in-division rivals rather than re-upping him after his magnificent work handling an unproven pitching staff. It's still unclear whether Luis Urias will gain shortstop eligibility, but until that happens, Brock Holt can hold down the fort.

NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom headlines a deep and exciting starting staff that quite litrally carried this team into and through the Fantasy Astrology postseason last year. Recently extended Phillies ace Aaron Nola was no joke either, and it remains to be seen if new Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen will follow suit with his former client. Staying with the extension theme, Jose Berrios declined the latest offer from the Twins (Minnesota) to lock up their young ace long term, but that development might make the Puerto Rican hurler that much more motivated to perform. The success of the Twins' (Gemini) bullpen is heavily predicated on when (whether?) Craig Kimbrel signs with a team prior to the 2019 season. New Cardinal Andrew Miller has been a high-leverage relief stud in the past, but he's coming off an injury-plagued season, and there's no guarantee that he'll see save opportunities with flamethrowing Virgo Jordan Hicks slated for the closer's role. Tier V reliever Jose Alvarado could end up getting the bulk of the ninth inning appearances for the Rays, but it's hard to count on any pitcher who plays for a team that's actively upending traditional roles throughout their staff.

Bringing up the rear, as they always seem to do in the Fantasy Astrology league, is Aquarius, a sign with only four tiered players on their entire roster - one less than the Libra starting rotation alone. Mutli-positional threat Whit Merrifield is a true fantasy asset for any team, and his ability to play the outfield alleviates a fairly significant roster logjam (allowing Tier III second baseman Rougned Odor to get into the lineup), but he's not necessarily the kind of player you want to headline your team with. It's possible that the White Sox's acquisition of Aries benchwarmer Yonder Alonso will keep Jose Abreu fresh with more at bats as the DH, but it's also possible that the DH penalty exists, in which case the Water Carriers would really be in trouble.

Speaking of being in trouble, this sign's only tiered pitcher found himself on the receiving end of a whopping 75-game domestic violence suspension last season, but despite that, Roberto Osuna is slated to close games for the heavily favored Houston Astros in 2019. Interestingly enough, another domestic violence suspension server, Addison Russell, is also a member of the Aquarius talent pool. Since there are no more tiered players to talk about, let's examine an astrological divisional oddity: the fact that Aquarius, a sign with Water in its nickname, resides in the Air division. This is actually quite logical if you think about it: although Water Carriers do interact with water, they must do so in an environment surrounded by air. If they were in water, there would be nothing to carry, and the bucket (or other receptacle) would just be floating around, and thus not able to be carried. Maybe someday there will be a bunch of elite players born between the months of January and February and we'll be able to focus only on the baseball accomplishments of this sign, but 2019 ain't that year.