Lately, you can't watch more than a couple minutes of sports without hearing the oversimplified explanation of the current NFL lockout described as "billionaires fighting with millionaires over how to divide $9 billion." Lost below the surface are the effects that the lockout is having on the $800 million per year industry of fantasy football. It only takes a stroll down the magazine aisle to notice that the normal litany of the self proclaimed best fantasy football magazines are absent. But what does that mean for you as a die hard fantasy football player?
The first thing the lockout means is that you will be forced to utilize different sources for your rankings and information, and I would argue that this is the best thing that could ever happen to you. The 2010 rushing leader Arian Foster was drafted in the last couple of rounds of most magazine's mock drafts last year, but was selected in the 6th round of the league I play in...why? A lot changes between June and late August. Because the fantasy football industry has become so popular and competitive, there is a mad rush to get a product on the newsstands first. Much of the information is incomplete or inaccurate by the time your draft rolls around. The effects of a key rookie holdout, pivotal free agent signing, a significant injury or recovery all can throw a serious wrinkle in your draft day plans. Raise your hand if you drafted Julian Edelman last year because you were sure Wes Welker wasn't going to be back on the field until mid season. So if you want a magazine for basic guidance and depth information, by all means get it but make sure you find some reliable websites that stay on top of all the signings, injuries, and depth chart battles and what they mean to your rankings.
The other repercussion of the NFL lockout on fantasy football is much more complex. The reason those magazines are not going to publication is that there is far too much to unresolved in regards to player movement to allow them to make predictions and observations. With the normal start of training camps less than a month away we still haven't had free agency. Worse still is that we aren't even sure what free agency rules will be when an agreement is reached. Over the next several days we will take a look at the key potential key free agents at each position, potential landing spots and the fantasy football implications. While we can't be sure when an agreement will be reached and what that will mean to the upcoming season at least you can get a little relief familiarizing yourself with the players who may be on the move in the coming weeks.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
Waiver Wire Help
Here are a few pitchers and position players that may be available in your league and able to help you out.
Colby Lewis-SP Texas Rangers Lewis has been solid in his last three starts. Prior to that he had been very inconsistent and may have scared some owners away. He is still far from a sure thing and you will want to play the matchups and proceed with caution. He faces a below average Orioles squad on the heels of a 6k, 0BB performance.
Scott Baker-SP Minnesota Twins Baker has worked his way back in to being the ace of the Twins staff. Four of his last five starts have been wins and in that time he is averaging nearly a K/IP
Jeff Karstens-SP Pittsburgh Pirates The surprise of the season has to be the Pirates who are only 2 games out of first in the cluttered NL Central. Karstens has been a workhorse of late working in to the seventh inning allowing 3ERs or fewer in each of his last six starts.
Daniel Murphy-1B, 2B, 3B NY Mets Murphy has hit so well of late he should continue to find at bats even after David Wright returns from the DL. His versatility will make him a popular fill in for days off. He hit .330 in June and registered 7 runs and 11 RBIs in the last two weeks.
Jason Bay-OF NY Mets Combine his slow start and some injury woes and there is a good chance that Bay is available in your league. If you can look past his pedestrian .244 season average his recent hot streak where he raised his average 26 points in 14 games might be the boost you need. Bay has five tool capability if he can stay hot & healthy!
Vernon Wells-OF LA Angels Wells' average is still floating around the Mendoza line but his bat has been extremely hot of late. Wells has hit over .300 since mid-June and can offer your team decent power along with some help in runs and RBIs.
Colby Lewis-SP Texas Rangers Lewis has been solid in his last three starts. Prior to that he had been very inconsistent and may have scared some owners away. He is still far from a sure thing and you will want to play the matchups and proceed with caution. He faces a below average Orioles squad on the heels of a 6k, 0BB performance.
Scott Baker-SP Minnesota Twins Baker has worked his way back in to being the ace of the Twins staff. Four of his last five starts have been wins and in that time he is averaging nearly a K/IP
Jeff Karstens-SP Pittsburgh Pirates The surprise of the season has to be the Pirates who are only 2 games out of first in the cluttered NL Central. Karstens has been a workhorse of late working in to the seventh inning allowing 3ERs or fewer in each of his last six starts.
Daniel Murphy-1B, 2B, 3B NY Mets Murphy has hit so well of late he should continue to find at bats even after David Wright returns from the DL. His versatility will make him a popular fill in for days off. He hit .330 in June and registered 7 runs and 11 RBIs in the last two weeks.
Jason Bay-OF NY Mets Combine his slow start and some injury woes and there is a good chance that Bay is available in your league. If you can look past his pedestrian .244 season average his recent hot streak where he raised his average 26 points in 14 games might be the boost you need. Bay has five tool capability if he can stay hot & healthy!
Vernon Wells-OF LA Angels Wells' average is still floating around the Mendoza line but his bat has been extremely hot of late. Wells has hit over .300 since mid-June and can offer your team decent power along with some help in runs and RBIs.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Mid Season Checkup
The calender flips to July tomorrow and the MLB All Star break is just around the corner. Active fantasy baseball team owners can be lumped in to one of two categories this time of year. Either you have dug in and are looking for ways to preserve your first half exploits or you are scrambling and looking for a couple of categories to make a splash in the standings.
Here are a few pieces of advice to consider as we enter the dog days of summer.
1-Give a little, get a little-The biggest mistake many roto fantasy players make is to ignore the numbers. If you have built a 30 stolen base lead over your closest competitor you still have exactly one more point in the standings than he does. Look for an owner struggling in your strongest categories and dangle a player who could potentially help them without compromising the lead you have built. Strengthen your team in other categories while maintaining your lead and bank precious points.
2-Know your league setup-If you play in a league that limits starts make sure to stay on top of how you are trending towards those limits. The last thing you want to have happen is to run a second tier pitcher out against a red hot offense week after week only to find out that you have reached your start limit with a month to go in the season. Pick your spots and play match-ups.
If you don't have limits on your position players take a hard look at players with multiple position eligibility on the waiver wire to plug in for regular off days and exploit their flexibility. Most 5X5 leagues are made up of 7 volume categories (R, RBI, HR, SB, W, SV, K) and 3 ratio categories (AVG, ERA, WHIP). If your league has no limits for position players there are very few situations where you should ever sit an active player. Pile up points. Four out of five of the offensive categories are VOLUME based!
3-Don't play the name game-Derek Jeter and Chipper Jones are sure thing Hall of Famers one day, but in 2011 they don't belong on your fantasy baseball team. But if for some unfortunate reason you have stuck it out with them I have some good news...every league has at least one owner(you know who I'm talking about) who is much more caught up in the past and will probably make a deal to have a name on his team. I have never played in a league that awards points for "Team Ambassador" or "Locker Room Leader". Move on and let some one else make the mistake of clinging on to the hopes of seasons past, way past.
4-Punt-This is my least favorite piece of advice and probably the most difficult to do. At some point in the season you may have to just admit to yourself, "This isn't happening!!!" in a certain category. You may have to come to terms with the idea of just "punting" on one stat. Don't dismantle an otherwise solid team chasing the delusion of a 30 home run deficit. Know your weakness, exploit your strengths. If you are fortunate to have a big lead in an area and can find a trading partner by all means chase those points, but don't flush your average and stolen bases down the toilet trading for Mark Reynolds and a handful of home runs. Just like a 30 home run lead will net you just one point against your closest competitor a hefty deficit only costs you one point in the standings!
Here are a few pieces of advice to consider as we enter the dog days of summer.
1-Give a little, get a little-The biggest mistake many roto fantasy players make is to ignore the numbers. If you have built a 30 stolen base lead over your closest competitor you still have exactly one more point in the standings than he does. Look for an owner struggling in your strongest categories and dangle a player who could potentially help them without compromising the lead you have built. Strengthen your team in other categories while maintaining your lead and bank precious points.
2-Know your league setup-If you play in a league that limits starts make sure to stay on top of how you are trending towards those limits. The last thing you want to have happen is to run a second tier pitcher out against a red hot offense week after week only to find out that you have reached your start limit with a month to go in the season. Pick your spots and play match-ups.
If you don't have limits on your position players take a hard look at players with multiple position eligibility on the waiver wire to plug in for regular off days and exploit their flexibility. Most 5X5 leagues are made up of 7 volume categories (R, RBI, HR, SB, W, SV, K) and 3 ratio categories (AVG, ERA, WHIP). If your league has no limits for position players there are very few situations where you should ever sit an active player. Pile up points. Four out of five of the offensive categories are VOLUME based!
3-Don't play the name game-Derek Jeter and Chipper Jones are sure thing Hall of Famers one day, but in 2011 they don't belong on your fantasy baseball team. But if for some unfortunate reason you have stuck it out with them I have some good news...every league has at least one owner(you know who I'm talking about) who is much more caught up in the past and will probably make a deal to have a name on his team. I have never played in a league that awards points for "Team Ambassador" or "Locker Room Leader". Move on and let some one else make the mistake of clinging on to the hopes of seasons past, way past.
4-Punt-This is my least favorite piece of advice and probably the most difficult to do. At some point in the season you may have to just admit to yourself, "This isn't happening!!!" in a certain category. You may have to come to terms with the idea of just "punting" on one stat. Don't dismantle an otherwise solid team chasing the delusion of a 30 home run deficit. Know your weakness, exploit your strengths. If you are fortunate to have a big lead in an area and can find a trading partner by all means chase those points, but don't flush your average and stolen bases down the toilet trading for Mark Reynolds and a handful of home runs. Just like a 30 home run lead will net you just one point against your closest competitor a hefty deficit only costs you one point in the standings!
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