Contract Update

Ok guys, 5 teams have submitted their rosters with contract signings. We have 7 more before I can turn on waivers. So get your teams in.

Lawndale Longhorns, you didn't spend your entire 50 credits. Can you resend me your roster with the necessary adjustments.

Also, when you send over your teams, do so in the order in which they were drafted. Thank you.

Waiver Reprieve

Ok, guys. I hear your pleas. I feel your pain. So this is what I'm gonna do. If I can get in everyone's contract signings in, I will go ahead and begin the waiver process shortly thereafter. So go ahead and get them in.

Special thanks to 3K, Rocky Mike, and Mr. Hackman for sending in their league fees. Everybody make sure you get your checks in.

Draft Recap

Get ready everyone...Baby Bisho's coming high and tight with his 1st annual fantasy draft analysis. Keep in mind, this analysis is the opinion of one owner, and not meant to hurt anyone's feelings. Here we go.

ARODSACYSSY
Best Pick – Javier Vasquez in Round 9
Worst Pick – Russell Martin in Round 3
Overall Grade – D+

With guys like Crawford and Quentin on the board at the end of the 3rd round, the Martin pick seems upsurd. In addition, when your staff ace is Wang, and Halladay was still available, one might ask if the “lipper” that was introduced early in the draft had some ill effects on the GM.

BABY GORILLAS
Best Pick – Chris Young (AZ) in Round 10
Worst Pick – Vlad Guerrero in Round 4
Overall Grade – B+

Love, love, love the starting pitching. Webb-Lester-Shields-Myers-Sanchez. About as solid as they come. The pen is strong as well…the “Mexicutioner” Soria might have the best peripherals of any RP. Added some good young talent late in the draft with Rasmus, Porcello and Lars Anderson. All 3 of those guys could make an impact this year. Would have rather had Aramis than old man Vlad in the 4th. Only thing lacking in the lineup is speed.

CLARK & ADDISON
Best Pick – Rickie Weeks in Round 21
Worst Pick – Ichiro in Round 3
Overall Grade – C

Ho Hum, Ho Hum off to work we go! There is nothing eye-popping about Clark & Addison on paper. They didn’t make any big mistakes, but didn’t find much gold in their pan either. They’ve got some power, a little speed, and very questionable in the rotation beyond Lackey. Weeks is an absolute steal in the 21st round if he stays healthy. Look for a middle of the pack finish in year #1

CLIENT #9
Best Pick – Lastings Milledge in Round 16
Worst Pick – Jeff Clement in Round 22
Overall Grade – A-

Very well balanced, but contract years are going to be an issue with such a young team. Kemp, Hart, Votto, Bruce…all of these guys should improve their rate stats over the life of their assigned contract. Pitching is solid, but not great, and the pen is a MAJOR question mark. There’s a chance come May 1st that there isn’t one clear cut closer on the roster. Strong drafting late with: Feliz, B. Anderson and Alvarez. Expect a top 3 finish in year #1

CO YANKEES
Best Pick – Edwin Encarnacion in Round 18
Worst Pick – Robinson Cano in Round 7
Overall Grade – B-

A lot like its GM, team is “long in the tooth”. Lee, Rivera, Oswalt, Wells, Damon, Polanco…Christ..is it 2003? In all seriousness though, Sizemore and Fielder provide a good base, and Peavy can anchor any fantasy staff. I actually like the late rotation picks of Kuroda and Blanton better than the earlier picks of Carmona and Pelfrey. Another positive, he’ll have a crap load of contract years to apply to younger players as half the team is staring at retirement in the next 2 years.

HOOSIER HEAT
Best Pick – Lipstick on a Pig here…I guess David Wright in Round 1
Worst Pick – and also awarded WORST PICK OF THE DRAFT – Victor Martinez in Round 4
Overall Grade – D

I guess I can start with V-Mart in the 4th round. One word…Yuck! Way too many question marks to contend this year: V-Mart, Burnett, Bedard, Hoffman, Konerko, Sherrill, Helton, Percival, Matsui, and Hafner. Half of the team was either injured for a majority of the season, in danger of losing their job, or traded in the off-season. Between Hoosier Heat and CO Yankees, they can start building phase #3 at Del Boca Vista. No prospects were drafted.


JIMMY’S DADDY
Best Pick – Ivan Rodriguez in Round 25
Worst Pick – Benjie Molina in Round 11
Overall Grade – C

When your 25th round pick will start over your 11th round pick, chances are you screwed the pooch on that 11th pick. I think Jimmy’s Daddy would be much happier with Pudge and Milledge, Encarnacion, Maybin, or Ankiel…don’t you? With a healthy A-Rod, and Hanley anchoring the offense, and 2 of the best closers in the business, look for a 5th-8th place finish in year 1.

LAWNDALE LONGHORNS
Best Pick – Cameron Maybin in Round 16
Worst Pick – Geovany Soto in Round 4
Overall Grade - A

Hands down, best draft had by any owner. The Soto pick is marked only because the author doesn’t believe in drafting catchers early. Top to bottom, there are no weaknesses, and plenty of upside in guys like Motte, Sandoval, Hanson, Price and Davis. Team is scary good..and finishes in the top 2.

TALLCORN COBRAS
Best Pick – Matt Cain
Worst Pick – Derek Jeter
Overall Grade – B-

The shine is off Jeter….declining numbers year after year, and continually drafted far too high. I was actually watching Doc Gooden’s 2003 no hitter for the Yankees last night, and was surprised to see #2 playing shortstop. BTW..Doc is NOT taking care of himself. Looks like the 3rd or 4th best draft overall, with Pujols, Soriano and Beltran, you can’t really go wrong. Besides grabbing Cain late, who, if he got some run support would be a top 15 SP, Tallcorn nabbed Felipe Lopez and Chris Volstad, who might find their way into the starting lineup for the cobras before week 3

THE ROCKPILE
Best Pick - Rick Ankiel in Round 13
Worst Pick – Magglio Ordonez in Round #6
Overall Grade – C+

Do you want to face the Rockpile when this rotation has 2 starts each in a week: Lincecum, Volquez, Felix & Ubaldo? I don’t! That’s 80 strikeouts right there. High strikeouts, high rewards, high risk. Would anyone be surprised if all 4 of those guys ended up on the DL with elbow bursitis or “my herky jerky motion caused my 24 year old arm to fall off”?? The offense needs help, but should keep them in the mix most weeks.

THE SWINGERS
Best Pick – Troy Tulowitzki in Round 9
Worst Pick – Anything from the 13th round on
Overall Grade – C-

I’m hoping autodraft clicked on at the 13th round, and those were not conscious picks. I count 7 of those picks that should be on the waiver wire. Rounds 1-12 were much different. Good mix of all categories, young guys with upside and established veterans. If The Swingers, can make some moves, and add some real depth, they’ll finish in the upper half in year #1

YEAR 2000!
Best Pick – Ricky Nolasco in Round 12
Worst Pick – Hamilton in Round 1
Overall Grade – B+

I would have picked differently in the first round…still don’t trust Hamilton. Year 2000! boasts the best pitching staff in the league, and should dominate all 5 categories each week. He’ll likely need to trade one of his arms for a bat or two towards the middle of the season, but count on a top 4 finish. Good, strong, talent for the next 3 years indeed


Projected Final Standings for Year #1
1. Lawndale Longhorns
2. Client #9
3. Year 2000!
4. Baby Gorillas
5. TallCorn Cobras
6. CO Yankees
7. The Rockpile
8. Jimmy’s Daddy
9. Clark & Addison
10. The Swingers
11. ARODSACYSSY
12. Hoosier Heat

Waiver Wire

Yesterday morning I inadvertantly set the date of the waiver process to begin today, March 23rd. Afterward, questions started pouring in about contract terms for those players. As you may have seen, I set the date to Monday, April 6th. This will allow you to sign all of your players (as the deadline is two days before Opening Day) before making any moves.

Last Minute Details Before Draft

To eliminate the ability to "work the system" we will be implying a limit on your pitching staff

1. You can have no more than 12 starts in a given week
2. You must have a minimum of 30 innings pitched in a week

If you need an explanation of why...ask Bisho.

DRAFT DAY

Welcome to draft day, guys! Quick tip, if you are having trouble accessing the draft room, here is the easiest way to get there. Log into with your CBS Fantasy username and password. When you are on the league homepage, you should see the following web address in your browser-

http://pg12.baseball.cbssports.com/

Simply type "draft" after the backslash and that should lead you to a link to enter the draft room. The web address should look like this-

http://pg12.baseball.cbssports.com/draft/

Give me a call if you have any questions or problems

UPDATE 8:25AM-As an FYI, to keep the draft moving at a good pace, you will have 60 seconds to make your picks each round. So be sure that your strategy is in place.

Rules Open Thread

Everyone should have a final copy of PG Sportsworld's 2009 Fantasy Baseball rules in your inbox. If you have any questions/comments, here's the place to address them. If I left anything out, please let me know. Thanks again for everyone's cooperation and input. Let's have a good draft guys!!

CORRECTION-Under the roster size, the file says 3 bench players. Please replace that with 8. So 17 active players, 8 bench players (for a total of 25 roster spots). The idea is for everyone to have 5 reserves and 3 minor league guys.