By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
Last week, we took a look at guys I wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole. Well, I’ve decided I’m tired of the negativity.
Now, it’s time to turn our attention to a more positive topic. Who should we keep for next year? Who are some of the newcomers that we can reasonably expect to duplicate or improve their numbers next year?
Well, here are some names, as well as the first draft of my all under-rated team … and, yes, there will be some pitchers.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
What would you say if I told you that a Top-5 rated player - according to SportingNews.com - is an absolute stone cold NON-keeper? What would you think about a player with a .309 career average who should drop like a stone in your 2009 draft rankings?
This is the first edition of ‘The Hit List - Keeper Style’. This week, we focus on the negatives; players that shouldn’t be kept and players of whom you should be wary. Also included in this edition is the first installment of a recurring feature - ‘The All Over-Rated Team’. Watch out for these guys on draft day next year.
Let’s get started!
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
Well, folks, I’ve finally resigned myself to another year of moderate success. I only have a shot in one league … the non-keeper FBM staff league, where I currently sit in third place. I am also in third in Keeper League 14 and sixth in League 16 where I feel like I started behind the ‘8-ball’.
The reason I started behind the ‘8-ball’ is actually my own fault. I took over an abandoned team and built my keeper list through a new owner draft where I made mistakes on three of my five picks. Learn from my mistakes, and develop your own keeper list that can win your league.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
The Major League trade deadline has come and gone, but the fantasy deadline is right around the corner. This week can determine who wins your league and who is waiting for next year … again.
Making the right move isn’t always about catching up in the stats in which you are behind. Sometimes you can be better off in the long run by bolstering your position in a tight category or actually making a trade with someone else who isn’t even in the race.
This week’s ‘Hit List’ is about strategies employed at the trade deadline … and some players that can make all the difference.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
The anticipation is building. You can almost taste it. You see, it’s Christmas Eve - Eve here at the Hit List. The coming anticipation of what shiny new toys will be under the tree Christmas morning is almost unbearable.
The rumors swirl, the talks continue, possibilities abound. No, I’m not talking about some time warp of the calendar. Obviously, I’m talking about one of my favorite days of the year - the non-waiver trading deadline.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
Well, well, well. Look who’s back. That’s right folks; it is the return of the Hit List. We are just past the ceremonial halfway point of the season, and it’s time to unveil my half-surprise team. These are not necessarily the biggest surprises of the first half - but players that have both value that has gone under the radar and the potential to continue to shine in the second half.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
We’re back to tackle the rest of the A.L. today.
It’s not time to start building keeper lists just yet, but it is deep enough into the season to know what you have and where you need to improve. It’s important to be honest with yourself. What can you reasonably expect from the players on your team the rest of the way? Who’s good? Who’s bad? Who’s flying under the radar? Let’s have a look.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
The baseball season is six months long, and as it is now the beginning of June, it’s one-third of the way through. It’s not time to start building keeper lists just yet, but it is deep enough into the season to know what you have and where you need to improve. It’s important to be honest with yourself. What can you reasonably expect from the players on your team the rest of the way?
Over the next two days, I’ll take a look at the player from each A.L. team that has been the most noteworthy, both for good and bad, and I’ll also let you know if there is a player on that team who is flying under the radar - one who might provide big time help for a “minor” cost.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
It’s important to be honest with yourself as a fantasy owner. Does your team have the right pieces? If it doesn’t, can you get them? I have two teams, one is very much in it, and one is very much not.
The approach that I take to trading and acquiring players is different on each team. On one team, I want to make sure that I am addressing needs and trading from depth - just like any good fantasy GM would do. On the other, it’s pretty safe to say, it’s rebuilding time.
Who are some players that I (and you) should target? Who should I (and you) stay away from? In this edition of the Hit List, we examine some keeper-caliber players and some players that could be keepers by the end of the season.
By Butters in D.C.
League 14
League 16
Smart people say foolish things. For example: “We don’t like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out.” (Decca Recording Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962.)
Or “I’m just glad it’ll be Clark Gable who’s falling on his face and not Gary Cooper. (Gary Cooper on his decision not to take the leading role in “Gone With The Wind.”)
Even “I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” (Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943.)
Of all the smart people that have said foolish things, I think my favorite is probably “You have to admit, chasing saves is fun!” (Mike Siano, MLB.com Fantasy 411, 2007.)
Well, folks, I’m here to tell the story of exactly how wrong that can be. Between “closers of the future” and “mid-tier closers,” I’ve had just about enough, and there are a bunch of players about to get whacked.