As I've mentioned before in this space, I'm counting the days until Opening
Day of the baseball season.
For the record, we're down to 28. That's the good news.
Now for the bad news: There are only 13 days until my fantasy draft. Ugh! Here we go again....
Every year here at The Beacon News, staff members past and present participate in an office fantasy baseball league.
And every year, my team absolutely sucks. I'm a perennial bottom-feeder, annually one of the worst in the league.
Oh, there was one fluke year where I finished fourth. But typically, I'm eighth, ninth or 10th in the 10-team league.
Last year, I finished dead last, and I have Travis Hafner and Paul Konerko to thank.
I drafted those two guys in the second and fifth rounds, respectively, thinking I'd rack up the home runs and RBIs.
Instead, both sluggers endured massive slumps.
Hafner batted just .266 with 24 home runs last season. His batting average was 42 points lower than the previous year, and he hit 18 fewer homers.
Once on my fantasy roster, Konerko's batting average dipped from .313 to .259.
Needless to say, neither Pronk nor Paulie will be on my squad this year. Naturally, both will probably respond by batting .350 for someone else's fantasy team.
I've had similar luck with my closers. Huston Street always gets hurt. I had both Eric Gagne and Octavio Dotel last year. Both got traded midseason to teams that used them in middle relief roles. Suddenly, I had no one to collect saves. Yet another category I got destroyed in.
I've tried multiple draft strategies through the years. But no matter who I pick, my players get injured or suffer through career-worst years. With my luck, I¹ll probably draft both Matt Holliday and Alex Rodriguez this season, and they'll both bat .240.
So, if any Beacon News readers have any suggestions for me, be sure to drop me a line on my blog. I'll try anything to get out of the cellar at this point. Well, almost anything.
I still refuse to draft any players from the Minnesota Twins or the Blue Corporation from the North Side of Chicago.
I don't like either of those two teams much and can¹t stomach rooting for any of their players. Of course, maybe if I start drafting Twins and North Siders, they'll all play terrible and finish in last place, both in my fantasy league and in
real life.
Aha! Maybe I¹m on to something now......
Depending on your league you can do a few things. Go for a all round guys...Granderson, Alex Rios, Markakis, ect... you can get away without drafting a pitcher until rounds 8-9..then go for High K's and low era's..you cant worry too much about W's.
Later guys like Jon Lester and BJ Ryan will be there in rounds 20-22 for a steal.
Do your homework! Btw..placido Polanco of Det. is a great option for your flex..scores 100+ and hits .330+. So is Kelly Johnson 2b atlanta. Cano (NYY) should see his average go up around .315-.320 and is a fine option at 2b behind Chase U. and Brandon P.
Couple semi-sleeper late round picks for you, (the hardcore guys will know buy might slip by some others) OF - Colby Rasmus (St. Louis), OF- Bourn (Houston) 1b Votto (cincy) OF - Bruce (Cincy) and 3b longoria (Tampa) --Sleeper P Jari Jurrjens (ATl)-
Some late round pitchers to consider:
Don't hate on Gil M. (KC) or Javie Vasquez (CHI). they are both productive. Jamie Shields (Tampa) Jared Weaver (LAA) and John Maine (NYM) should all have great years.
I see you dont want to draft any cubs but what place did they finish in their divison last year? Right. 1st.
Soto is not a bad sleeper pic at C...i think C Brian McCann (Atl) will have an outstanding offensive year too!
Good Luck~
Play Ball
Tbets
I had Kelly Johnson last year, and that was one of the few good moves I made. Polanco would be a good pick too. Maybe I'll just load up on Tigers this season. That's going to be a good offensive team. Most of their pitchers suck, though, especially bullpen.
Nope, not picking any North Siders. They may have won the division last year, but they still only won 85 games. In addition, the North Siders have had back-to-back winning seasons roughly twice in the last 50 years. The odds are against them this year. Everyone thinks they'll be good, so they won't be.
The Twins are a better team than the North Siders, and I'm not picking any Twins either. Mauer, Morneau and Cuddyer are all monsters, all better than the best player on the Blue Corporation. Still not picking them.
McCann is an injury risk. A.J. Pierzynski has been my catcher ever since the Twins traded him. I'll stay off Javy Vazquez because I don't want my bad luck to wear off on him.