Mason’s Musings: Patience

I woke up on April 25th of 2005 like I did any other day. I only had vague recollections of the night before and I was shaky and a bit nauseous, but that was normal because I was an alcoholic. I grabbed the bottle that was reserved for the mornings and I walked over to the sink in my bathroom. I looked in the mirror and didn’t like who looked back at me. Instead of pouring the contents of that bottle into a glass, I poured it down the sink. I was sick and tired of being sick and tired.

Patience. 

As long as I don’t drink today, tomorrow, I will celebrate 21 years of continuous sobriety. I don’t tell you this to impress you, even though I secretly hope it does. I speak publicly about my struggles because I know that out there are people who are struggling the way I once did and I hope it gives them hope that recovery is possible. Sobriety isn’t easy for everyone. It wasn’t for me. My first year in sobriety was an absolute mess. I made a lot of mistakes and struggled mightily because of it. I lost my job. I lost my home. I was arrested. I felt alone. I came very close to giving up because it was so difficult. I remember laying in bed on multiple occasions reminding myself that even though it felt like my world was falling apart, if I made it to bed that day without taking a drink, it was a successful day. 

Patience. 

Someone once told me “don’t quit five minutes before the miracle happens.” It is something that has always stuck with me because I have been close to quitting many times. The idea is that if you work hard and stay on the right path, usually things work out for you in the way they are supposed to. I am here today because I didn’t give up and I kept moving forward. That job I lost led me to eventually get out of bartending and move into addiction counseling and later fantasy analysis. When I was kicked out of the house I was living in, I ended up moving into a house with a guy who had a sister I would end up dating, then marrying and having children with. That arrest forced me to confront the issues I had been avoiding and eventually I was able to step in front of a judge and get off of probation early because I had become a productive member of society who made a positive impact in my community. That loneliness I felt compelled me to find people like me for social support. 

Patience. 

Being an alcoholic, I am super impulsive. It is not a great attribute in most areas of my life, especially fantasy baseball. I often want to make decisions quickly and not let things play out. One of the biggest things I have had to work on is not overreacting too quickly, especially early on in the season. If a player of mine is struggling, my heart tells me to cut them or trade them immediately. If I take a step back and think about it, most of the time, my brain tells me to relax and not make a brash decision. We spend all offseason prepping and studying for an upcoming season and when anything happens in fantasy, the instinct for most of us is to do something we probably shouldn’t. 

Patience. 

We live in a world now with instant information. This gives us the ability to analyze the players and the game much faster than five, ten or twenty years ago, but sometimes it makes it much more difficult to read through the noise. We are beginning to see some of the underlying numbers for players start to stabilize, but there are still a lot of things that are noise from a small sample. If you had a reason to like a player after your weeks or months of offseason prep, then you shouldn’t be ready to drop or trade them yet. Don’t quit five minutes before the miracle. 

Patience. 

Corey Seager

Seager was my most drafted hitter this year and has rewarded the faith I had in him by hitting .207/.317/.448 with six home runs and one stolen base thus far. The six bombs are great but he has struggled to get on base and is striking out a ton more than he has previously. Yes, the swinging strike rate has been higher this year, but most of his underlying numbers are right in line with where they normally have been. He is hitting the ball hard, barreling the ball, and making good contact. 

Patience. 

Ryne Nelson

Nelson was my most rostered pitcher and that doesn’t feel great with his 6.97 ERA and 1.45 WHIP. However, almost all that damage came in his last start when he gave up eight runs on eight hits and a walk in a third of an inning. Prior to that he had a 3.54 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP with a 22% strike out rate in his first four starts. He has a 109 Stuff+ and the best K/9 of his career. It will take him a while to work off that last start, but he should be fine. 

Patience. 

Vinnie Pasquantino

Pasquantino is hitting just .160/.248/.298 with three home runs in 109 plate appearances. The underlying numbers are down a little compared to last year, especially the bat speed which has gone from 58th percentile to 18th. However, this may be because he has been a little more aggressive in the zone and is not being as patient waiting for his pitch. He is looking better as the bat speed seems to be climbing and his ideal attack percentage is as well.  He should be fine. 

Patience. 

Logan Webb

Webb was marketed as the “safe ace.” The “safe ace” has produced a 5.11 ERA and zero wins through six starts.  His walk rate is up, but that is a trend we are seeing across the game as the league-wide walk rate has gone from 8.4% in 2025 to 9.8% so far this season. His Stuff+ is a little down, but the Location+ is the best of his career. His biggest issue is the defense behind him is taking a hit with Luis Arraez and Rafael Devers on the right side of the infield, but ultimately while he may take a small step back, he will end up being just fine. 

Patience.

Royce Lewis

If you drafted Royce Lewis then you should have known what you were getting yourself into and I definitely knew I was kicking the football like Charlie Brown with him. He has already had his first of probably many IL stints and he hasn’t been great when he has been on the field, hitting .205/.340/386 with two home runs and two stolen bases. However, the underlying numbers are encouraging. He has his best Z-Contact percentage, swinging strike rate, O-Swing, Hard Hit percentage, and average exit velocity of his career. He is walking at a 15% rate which may be a bit of the problem as he has been extremely passive at the plate. If he ratchets up the aggressiveness with those underlying skills, he should be great, until he gets hurt again. 

Patience.