...oh boy.  It’s time for my first ride on the Daily Blog, which is seeming more and more like a roller coaster without a safety harness.  Rarely have I done any fantasy writing without a previously established topic to riff on, but I’m excited to take on this challenge.  The opportunity to experiment a bit with my writing, voice, and tone seems intriguing -- but also daunting.  Now for 400 self-indulgent words why…

I’ve always considered myself an analyst first and a writer second. In a lot of ways, that’s more a reflection of my fear of alienating readers than it is a lack of faith in my ability to construct a grammatically correct sentence with bite.  In real life, I tend to embody some very Hank Moody-ish qualities, not taking anything too seriously while saying and doing things for my own amusement. I think myself entertaining (my mom has always told me the same), but I can put off certain people with my candor and choice of words, so I enjoy those who enjoy my company and antics and don’t worry about those I alienate.

But you’re different.  As much as writing is a reflection of an author’s voice, I’m not writing a God Hates Us All type novel here.  I’m not writing with the expectation that some people will love it and others will find it appalling.  I’m writing a blog that appeals first and foremost to sports fans who come here for information, not for people that just want something fun and interesting to read, regardless of the subject matter or content.

It’s a tough life for a self-assessed bad-boy writing in this field, saying things interestingly without putting off potential readers. I mean, I once took shit for writing an offhand comment that a certain fantasy sleeper of mine got me hard (as in a tingling sensation in my bathing suit area). And, of course, that’s not to say that crassness is the only way to write interestingly or that it’s my sole way of entertaining, although it is closer to my wheelhouse than cleverly crafted metaphors and elegantly simplistic prose.

So here’s what I propose.  Since I’m treading into new territory here, I’m going to experiment a little without going too far overboard, and you’ll tell me if it sucks or offends, probably with bricks through my window or anthrax in my mail.  Or by letting my superiors here at DFSEdge know, at which point I’ll be fired and be back out on the street selling access to my bodily orifices to 50-year-old mustachioed men in rapist glasses.  (Superiors: If you hear complaints from a man who calls himself Uncle Chester, ignore it.)

With that, let’s move onto things that can actually help you in daily fantasy…

WHAT WAS
We had the usual abridged Monday schedule yesterday, but the night was not without highlights.

Jason Heyward made an attempt to bust out of his slump by clubbing two homers against San Diego. I like him as a value play in games that are heavily basing his price on his 2013 performance… The example I used for a boom-or-bust tournament pick, Adam Dunn, went 4-for-4 last night with 2 HR, 5 RBI, 3 R, and 1 BB… Alex Cobb turned in his worst start of the year, allowing six runs in four innings, but that kind of outing will prove to be a rarity.  Dude’s so good; that change-up is just ridiculous… Rickie Weeks started against a righty and homered again. If he can start hitting, he’ll overtake Scooter Gennett for the lion’s share of the playing time at second base in Milwaukee and could send Gennett back to the minors. For now, you'll still have to monitor the lineup card to see who’s playing each day… Dallas Keuchel pretended he was good last night, spinning six 1-ER innings with 6 K and 0 BB.  Don’t expect him to do that ever again.  Like in his entire life… Brandon League blew a save in disgusting fashion (4 runs in 0.2 IP), and I seem to be the only one still buying him.  All the pressure on Don Mattingly could cause a change, so keep an eye on the situation. If he switches over to Kenley Jansen, you’ll have the opportunity to field a premium closer for dirt-cheap for a short while.

WHAT IS
Draft Street hasn’t gotten a mention here in the Daily Blog yet. The big shabang they’re currently pimping out is their 2013 DraftStreet Baseball Championship.  They run qualifiers every Tuesday (hey, that’s today!), Friday, and Sunday from May 3 to August 4, with those who qualify gaining entry to a Main Event that pays out $400,000 in prizes.  The winner will take home enough ducats to fill an entire room and still have enough left over to buy a diving-board perch to overlook the room (in numerical terms, that works out to precisely $100,000).

If you haven’t played on Draft Street yet and want to get your feet wet, they offer a no-risk freeroll tournament every Friday with a $300 prize pool, paying out the top 15 spots and awarding the winner a cool hundy spot.  You’ll even have the added benefit of playing against me.  If you do decide to play, you’d do me a favor by going through this link.

WHAT WILL BE
Gerrit Cole will be making his MLB debut today, and while he gets a relatively favorable matchup against the Giants at home in pitcher-friendly PNC Park, I’m still avoiding him unless the site you’re playing on gives him a bargain basement, Philip Humber-like price due to his rookie status.  He has an immense ceiling, but he looked overmatched at Triple-A, so another step up the ladder won’t help in the near-term.

Tony Cingrani returns to the majors tonight with a good matchup against the Cubs away from Great American Ball Park.  As ridiculous as his numbers were in his previous stint, you can’t throw your fastball 80 percent of the time and keep doing that well.  He lacks a quality third offering after his change-up, and I expect him to start getting exposed.

The struggling (read: unlucky) Cole Hamels gets a very favorable matchup against Minnesota at Target Field today, and I also like Max Scherzer (at Kansas City) and Tim Hudson (at San Diego), depending on how much you want to spend.

If you’re going really bargain basement, take a look at Aaron Harang, who has been relatively unlucky himself and who gets a good home matchup against a hapless Astros offense.

On the hitting side, I’d make it a point to target Phillies and White Sox.  The Phils get the terrific P.J. Walters (and by terrific I mean not major-league quality) and the White Sox get Chien-Ming Wang in his first start of 2013.  Wang will be looking to improve upon the 6.68 ERA he posted last year.  Yeah.