By Sean in DC
As promised, here is Part II of my article on podcasts. As a precaution, let me remind you, once again, that most of us cannot listen to (or appear on, as our own Tony Cincotta seems able to) every podcast out there. Ah, just kidding, Tony. But give them a listen, and decide which ones you enjoy listening to.
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
With the trade deadline just around the corner, plenty of minor leaguers will finally get called up to the Bigs, some with their current organization, others with a new team. As many teams look to rebuild, and with lots of prospects available, there should be plenty of minor league movement in the upcoming month.
Also in July, many of these players will be at the Futures Game, the day before the Major League All-Star game, so you’ll be able to get a first hand look at the best players in the minors. FBM Cugines is tracking the performance of the top prospects closest to the Majors, as well as the performance of the players blocking them.
By Tony in Hitchin
League 4
League 7
Annie Szemanski wasn’t the first woman to reach the major leagues. The story of her journey from the Federales League of Bolivia to starting second baseman for the Sparrows is an invention, a piece of fiction, the vehicle for Garrison Keillor to teach us a life lesson or two in his whimsical, gentle, Midwestern style. But it made me think of the role women play in the National Pastime. After all, can it really be the National Pastime without our better halves?
Rob in GR
League 9
Saves.
They are a necessary evil in fantasy baseball. You have three basic options when it comes to approaching saves:
1). You can pay big for one or two top closers, pray they don’t get hurt (sorry JJ Putz owners), and hope that you can make up the lack of offense later in the draft
2). You can punt saves all together (something of which I’m not a fan)
3). You can be somewhere in between.
Today, I’m going to focus on the third of these choices and give you some sleeper options for the second half.
with Chris from Atlanta
League 17
Week #13
This week’s column is a tribute to the comedian, George Carlin.
Like many others, his “Seven Words You Can Never Use on Television” bit was how I was introduced to him. He was a very cerebral comic, often saying things that first made you laugh then moments later made you stop and think.
Here are some of Carlin’s best one-liners and how they relate to fantasy baseball.
By Richard Schortemeyer III
With two historic stadiums (mostly historic for one side, but just go with it) closing shop at the end of this season, the NY Mets and NY Yankees will have their last, and arguably most important, series in their old stomping grounds this weekend. Some very important questions will be answered:
1) Which NY Mets team will show up; the one that won 2 out of 3 against the AL West leading LA Angels of Anaheim or the one that, dreadfully, lost 2 out of 3 against the MLB cellar dwellers, the Seattle Mariners?
2) Can the NY Yankees rebound from their previous lost series against their local
foes?
3) How will Joba the Phenomenon respond to his first starting experience in this fierce interleague rivalry?
4) MOST IMPORTANTLY: How much damage will recently acquired NY Mets infielder Andy Phillips do to his former squad?
Should be a very exciting weekend in NY, and like one of NY’s finest says, I will be ” … in a NY State of Mind.” Stay tuned because this should be interesting.
In this oldtimers’ edition of “On the Record,” we’ll talk about a veteran hurler who’s, once again, ‘knuckling’ upwards, an INF/OF who’s providing a great veteran presence in a young crew’s lineup, and a veteran outfielder who’s trying to make another comeback by providing some more history at an extremely historic field.
By The Jersey Hitman
League 6
League 17
We are just about halfway through the 2008 baseball season - it has gone by very fast, and I find myself looking at players and wondering what they will do in the second half. Two pitchers interest me. Can one keep the injury bug away and can the other rebound and put up the type of numbers many expected but did not get in the first half?
One thing I hate to do anytime is admit I was wrong. I am not ready to do that just yet, but I have to face a fact: I may have been wrong. Worse than possibly being wrong is the chance that Gabriel Lundeen may have been right. UGH!
By Jesse Severe
League 3
2,500 years ago, the Chinese philosopher Mozi told the following story:
A farmer was in the woods one day chopping down trees for firewood. For a while, he stood on one of the stumps of the trees he had already cut down, when a rabbit came speeding across the field, crashed straight into the stump, snapped its neck and died.
The farmer brought the rabbit home as dinner for his family. The next day, a passerby found the farmer again in the woods. This time, instead of chopping trees, he stood on a stump in the woods. Asked what he was doing, he simply said “hunting rabbits.”
Drafting last year’s elite middle relievers is like standing on a stump, waiting for a rabbit to crash into it again. Still, this is how most people look at middle relief in fantasy baseball.
By Gabriel Lundeen
Cappo, League 10
THE BEST PLAYER IN THE DEAL
You often hear the phrase “best player in the deal” tossed around when we discuss trades, but what does that actually mean? What if you don’t get the best player in the deal? What does “best” even mean, and how do you figure out who’s the best? More »
By Greg Mann
Cappo, League 5
Many times winning a fantasy baseball league depends on quick decisions.
Be the first to pick up a Ryan Braun when he is called up from the minors. Be the first to pick up Ryan Franklin when Jason Isringhausen is yanked from the closer role. Be the first to pick up a player who is starting a hot streak. Be the first to make an offer to an owner with players on the trading block.
But there are also times when patience can be a key to winning, and while that sounds like an obvious statement, sometimes it’s hard to practice patience in a game that often requires urgency.