By Ken In Toronto
League 14
League 15
Around the end of May, I heard some people talking about giving up the season and trying to upgrade their keepers for next year. I couldn’t believe this because as important as the draft is to fantasy baseball success, making heads up decisions throughout the year - and being a little lucky - are just as important.
Just because you’re 20 points back in the standings after two, three, or even fourth months, there’s still a lot of baseball left. Here are some guys who you didn’t count on to boost you to a league championship … and some guys who may have helped knock early season leaders out of contention.
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 Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
FBM Cugines is tracking the performance of the top prospects closest to the Majors, as well as the performance of the players blocking them. Let’s jump back into the action …
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
As the ‘08 season rolls on, 12 owners picking through the waiver wire on a regular basis leaves less and less to choose from. You need to make up points in the standings and can’t seem to find a difference maker. Well, it’s a perfect time to stop looking at what’s right in front of you and start looking at who could come up and save your team.
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 Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
Coming into the 2008 season, I saw 24 potential rookies who could make significant contributions to fantasy teams. It seems that many of you agreed with me, because a large number of draft picks were spent on prospects in this year’s Mafia leagues.
This was, presumably, because of the impact made by the likes of Ryan Braun, Troy Tulowitzki, and Hunter Pence in 2007. In some cases, these players are still being kept on fantasy rosters, even after being sent back to the minors.
Throughout the year, FBM Cugines will be tracking the performance of the top prospects closest to the Majors — as well as the performance of the players blocking them. By the way, “Cugine,” in case you were wondering, is a Mafioso term for a young tough guy looking to get ‘made’.
Let’ take a look at ‘Part II’ of this group …
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
Coming into the 2008 season, I saw 24 potential rookies who could make significant contributions to fantasy teams. It seems that many of you agreed with me, because a large number of draft picks were spent on prospects in this year’s Mafia leagues.
This was, presumably, because of the impact made by the likes of Ryan Braun, Troy Tulowitzki, and Hunter Pence in 2007. In some cases, these players are still being kept on fantasy rosters, even after being sent back to the minors.
Throughout the year, FBM Cugines will be tracking the performance of the top prospects closest to the Majors — as well as the performance of the players blocking them. By the way, “Cugine,” in case you were wondering, is a Mafioso term for a young tough guy looking to get ‘made’.
Let’ take a look at ‘Part I’ of this group …
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
During the pre-season, I polled the writers at FBM to get a feel for who they thought would be over and under-rated for the 2008 season. It’s great to get one person’s opinion, but when you can get 10, 15 or 20 opinions and combine them together, I think you can describe a thing with a certain exclamation point.
Listed below are the questions that I asked our writers. They gave their Top 5, and I weighted them much like a fantasy league, scoring 5 points for first choice, 4 points for second, etc. As it turns out, the writers vouched for guys other owners may have overlooked.
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
Now that draft season is upon us, it’s a perfect time to release the second part of my series on the effects of age on fantasy players: Closers.
Players who are over the age of 35 are known to regress statistically, but to what extent? How much should you realistically expect a player to regress based on his age? More »
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
With opening day inching closer and closer, Fantasy Baseball Mafia helps you get ready for your drafts by presenting the “Mafia 420″ … a ranking of the top 420 players available. Whether you have started preparing for the season late, or are just looking for another opinion of a player’s value, this list should be of particular interest. Well … it will if you want to win your league!
By Ken Balderston
League 14
League 15
We’re not in Kansas anymore, and the Cardinals are a far cry from the World Series champions they were in 2006. With injuries becoming a big issue, and former franchise cornerstones being traded out of town, the picture in St. Louis is far from settled. Only time will tell whether the Cardinals can compete in an improving NL Central.