Hey, everybody. Welcome to the Roto Wire Fantasy Baseball podcast for Tuesday. This is August 17th. Wow, middle of August already. Time is flying. We are on week 21 of the fantasy season, fantasy baseball season. We're on our stretch run, Fred. Finally, we can finally say we're making stretch run decisions now. I think so. I've always questioned when you can call it the stretch run.

And I kind of cheat and probably say it's the stretch run once we hit August. But yeah, I think

mid-August, definitely you can say it's the stretch run. Yeah, I think so too. Especially because

your lineups are set, like the next time you for this week, like i think so especially because your lineups are set

like the next time you for this week like the next time you set your lineups will be in the 20s

for august well into the 20s yeah that's true that's true uh there there was a manager i

should get proper attribution uh but i forget who said it was a broadcaster quoting a a manager. I think it was Jim Leland, quote, no, it was John Topasur, Rodowire's Pittsburgh writer, quoting Jim Leland saying, Pennet Races start August 15th. So here you go. Interesting. We're good. Yeah, like, don't talk to me until August 15th about whether we're contenders or not. We'll see now. And your Reds are contenders. It's past August 15th and they are contenders, just not. Yeah? But probably not in the division. No, seven and a half out. They do have a head-to-head against them next week and I think another one in September. And nine games against the Pirates. They're currently playing the Cubs. They do have a big schedule advantage over most of baseball. But I don't think really over the Brewers. The Brewers have a similar schedule. Yeah, same thing. So I just don't see it. Plus, the Brewers pitching's healthy. So I think the only way the Brewers would have collapsed would have been if a couple guys like Burns or Peralta,

if the innings had added up for them and then, you know, beginning of August,

not shut down, but more injured.

Like what we saw with maybe like Tyler Glass now or something where he's going great guns and then all of a sudden he's out for the season.

Like the Brewers would have needed some things like that and they're pitching to fall apart their pitching is so good and deep and the bullpen's

good uh i i just can't it won't happen especially like you said with enough and all central games

on the docket like but but reds podrays for that last wild card spot and you just never know

you get in that wild card game i i know it, like if it's the Dodgers and if it's face like Scherzer or something or Bueller, like that's a pretty big uphill battle. But you never know. Yeah, that's right. That's right. But you know what? Part of me will be satisfied just getting to a wild card game but part of me is like at the same

time like okay this is a window we have and you know cassiano's might opt out vato is having an

incredible year it's probably unlikely to repeat that uh winker's having a great year on the aisle right now

you want to take advantage of these situations why you still can't you You know, I think, you know, Castillo is going to start to get more expensive. They'll start hearing more and more trade talk rumors about him. So, you know, I, you know, I want to be competitive in the playoffs. I'm still a little, you know, regretful that we then try to do more to compete in the first place. But we'll see. I do think of it. Like, what would have happened if they didn't trade away a Glacius? That's probably three or four games that we, that they would have won. You know, he would have blown one or two of them on his own. But there have been, there's been so many of them that it just, it just is frustrating a little bit there so no winker uh instead of

calling nick senzel back up in fact well instead of activating nick senzel and just keeping me on the

active roster they they optioned him on sunday uh and then on monday when they decided to put winker on

the aisle they didn't call up Senzel.

No, they instead they called up the shortstop prospect, Jose Barrero, formerly Garcia.

And that one surprised me a little bit.

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