10 Suggestions To Make Your Fantasy Baseball Season Is Fun

By Todd Farino, Fantasy Baseball Search


I've been playing fantasy baseball since 1990. It has been a blast to play the game that has brought so many people back to baseball. The initial fun of playing fantasy baseball really came when it allowed people to watch the ESPN Sunday night game just for their fantasy players. All of sudden so many games became relevant. More and probably the bulk of fun came from being able to pick and manage your own team and watch your work be successful. The best part of course is winning against your friends. Since you've started playing fantasy baseball, how many times have you called your buddy and chatted about your players, upcoming games, or just baseball in general. More of the enjoyable aspects of fantasy baseball is you not only have the games to watch, but now you have sports news and baseball tonight. The entertainment fantasy baseball brings to your life has a tremendous impact and believe it or not can improve your quality of life. Over the past 6-8 years fantasy baseball has evolved and changed from being a simple rotisserie 5x5 to having all sorts of different league systems from rotisserie to points, to including new stats to head-to-head leagues. It has expanded and with that the enjoyment and fun has expanded. Even drafts have evolved with auction style drafts and keeper leagues have expanded to new types and rules. Everything has been going great for fantasy baseball, but recently over the past couple of years with the advent of fantasy baseball web sites has come fantasy baseball advice. Obviously, we will support managers using advice to help their teams win, but some of the advice takes away the fun and that isn't good.



Over the past several seasons baseball has evolved so fast that allot of the fun has been lost. We aren't talking about most of the fun we mentioned above. We are talking about the most basic loving fun that we all expect from fantasy baseball. The fun that originates the first moment fantasy baseball season starts. The pure kid like joy you expect and if you don't get it you lose everything. We will give you our top 10 ways that you can make sure you will have fun this season and continue to enjoy the game that you've always had fun playing.


1. Stay Away From Sabermetrics - Whoever adapted this statistical method of projecting your players performance for fantasy baseball was insane. Sabermetrics was originally developed as a tool to assist scouting in MLB, but not to replace it. What sabermetrics guys have done in fantasy baseball is removed the scouting portion and just left the numbers, formulas, and statistics. It's a known fact that most sabermetrics guys hardly even watch baseball and base everything on wild formulas and repetitious statistics like batting average and batting average balls in play (???HUH???). I will admit that some basic sabermetric stats like OBP (On Base Percentage), OPS (on base and slugging, Strikeouts Per 9 Innings, WHIP (Walks-Hits Per Inning), and a few other pitching stats are very useful for fantasy baseball. However, sabermetrics guys just turn fantasy baseball into a calculus class and your fantasy baseball homework really is homework! Here are some amazing and crazy formulas and calculations for you to consider courtesy of sabermetrics: line drive rate, batted balls in play, and BsR(Base Runs). Now the true crazy sabermetric measurements used in fantasy baseball and these are freaky; LIPS (Late Inning Pressure Situations, DIPS (defensive Independent Pitching Statistics), and the best one Equivalent Average (EqA). If you think I'm making it up, here is the formula for EqA:






Now I will agree that sabermetrics is an incredible asset for MLB, but for fantasy baseball it sucks the fun out of the game, unless you like equations like the one above. Avoid using most of sabermetrics and stick to the formulas you see in the statistical categories in a players stats and you will have much more fun than a sabermetrics manager. To identify a sabermetrics manager, they probably drink lots of coffee, wear glasses (because of some much reading), and have dark circles under their eyes. They are also probably going bald because they pull their hair out from insanity of doing so many calculations just to decide to pick up Garrett Anderson and most likely they have a MIT degree!

2. Smack Talk Or Post In Your League - In order to truly have fun in your fantasy league, you have to smack talk. Leagues that don't chat and don't have money on the line don't exist for very long. Communication in a league is just as important as running your team. So smack talk with the other managers. Just remember to keep it clean and never make it personal. If you are uncomfortable with smack talk, just post. League members love articles about the league like power rankings, matchups, funny league news, etc... You can have allot of fun with it.


3. Play Head-To-Head Leagues - If you play in multiple leagues this season, try a head-to-head league. Its much different then playing the standard rotisserie or points leagues and it carries with it more fun, excitement, and drama. In a H2H league, each week you will take on a different manager and score wins according to your matchup. This allows for strategies to not only be season long, but weekly as well. Overall you will have the fun and excitement of real baseball because each week you will face a team with 10 or more wins on the line. It allows you to play more short term, rather than the drawn out long-term version that 5x5 rotisserie offers.


4. Try Auction Style Drafts - Auction style drafts are not for the weak at heart or for the rookies. However, at some point you have to give them a try. They combine the excitement of a draft with the anxiety of an auction. They require advance study of your budget and how you will spend your allotted money. Its a much more exciting way to draft fantasy baseball.

5. Keeper Leagues - Keeper League rock for one main reason. They allow you to build a franchise and do it in a league that will exist for along time. If you play in multiple leagues, make one a keeper league. Keeper leagues carry a different flavor then the standard yearly leagues and you will get to know you opponents very well. Furthermore, it allows you to get credit for your outstanding draft picks and free agents because you get to keep them for years.

6. Listen To Podcasts and Read Blogs - Fantasy baseball podcasts are full of great information and can be very entertaining as well. Now, there are some awful ones were the information can be deadly to your team and I know of some. There are many were you will get outstanding information every week and podcasts that you can learn from. We highly recommend you listen to at least one per week. We favor The Fantasy Baseball Gurus Show and The Fantasy Baseball Scouting Report. If you are reading this article, you probably already read blogs. Its good to find 2-4 blogs and to read them regularly. You can find great thoughts, strategies and breaking news in good blogs.

7. Prepare For Your Draft - This one sounds weird when we are talking about having fun, but if you don't prepare for your draft I promise you will have no fun drafting or playing the season. In order to prepare we recommend buying one magazine and reading on breaks at work, on the toilet, or before you go to bed. Then as we mentioned in #6, listen to podcasts. Good draft preparation makes the draft very exciting and therefore fun.

8. Don't Worry About The Score Early - Allot of us will fall behind early as other teams have a fast start out of the gate. You shouldn't worry about this one bit or allow it to bother you that you are in last place at the end of April. Just like in real Major League Baseball it just doesn't matter. Managers who make moves and trade away studs in September make the rest of their season stressful and sad. Imagine the managers who traded CC Sabathia last May. Exactly. Their season probably wasn't a happy one.

9. Go With Your Gut - This is critical. Nobody will be more upset if they make a decision that went AGAINST their gut and their gut ended up being right. Most of us trust ourselves and if our gut is wrong we are OK with that. The whole reason we get into this game is for the excitement of winning based on your own strategies and making your own decisions. Sure reading blogs and listening to podcasts help, but in the end you must make your own decisions and therefore go with your gut. Your gut might be wrong more than right, but if you don't win, at least you did it your way.

10. Break Up The Season By Months - The last piece of the puzzle to having a fun and exciting fantasy baseball season is developing a timeline for it. Obviously you have to play your team nearly everyday, but you don't have to strategize daily. We recommend breaking up your season by the month. Build a strategy for victory month by month and not only will your season feel shorter or even quicker, but you will always have something to play for and most of all hope. For example, in April strategize to have a strong start. After April ends, evaluate where you stand and based on those numbers, stratagize what you have to do in May. If you examine your team and score in detail every month you will get a much better picture then if you do it daily or weekly.

I hope our 10 suggestions for making your fantasy baseball season more fun will actually work for you. Even know we take the game very serious and in some cases lots of money rides on them, the bottom-line is its a game we play for fun and in the spirit of competition. We don't have the skills to play Major League Baseball or the chance to manage a MLB team, but we can fantasize about drafting a team and winning a championship. That is the excitement and fun and fantasy baseball and everything else is a cherry on top. Have fun in the 2009 season. If you have comments or questions about this article, email me at Toddf@fantasybaseballsearch.com.

Fantasy Studs, Sleepers & Snoozers For Week 14

Studs, Sleepers & Snoozers For Week 14 In The NFL

December 5th, 2008

by admin

QB

Stud – Kurt Warner

Warner had his 300-yard game streak snapped last week, but now he has the pleasure of facing the St. Louis Rams. Expect Warner to start a new streak in a game that has blowout written all over it.

Sleeper – Matt Ryan

Ryan has become very consistent in the latter portion of his rookie campaign and this week he can be counted on for a very solid outing. The Falcons take on the Saints and their beat up secondary.

Snoozer – Philip Rivers

Rivers is coming off of a down week and things will only get worse when the Chargers take on the Raiders. Over the last 4 games, the Raiders have allowed an average of 153 yards per game to opposing quarterbacks.
WR

Stud – Anquan Boldin

Boldin is a great play this week for the same reasons as Warner. He had a sub par outing last week and will be happy to make up for it at the expense of the Rams.

Sleeper – Eddie Royal

Royal has been hit or miss this year, but Cutler has been hot and the Chiefs are coming to town. In the first meeting with KC, Royal had 9 rec. for 104 yards.

Snoozer – Terrell Owens

Owens has had back-to-back big games, but now the Cowboys face the stingy Steelers defense. Pittsburgh has only allowed one receiver to top 80 yards in the last 7 games.
RB

Stud – Adrian Peterson

League’s leading rusher vs. League’s worst run defense

Sleeper – Kevin Smith

Smith faces a tough defense, but they could be without their 2 starting defensive tackles. Smith also averaged over 12 yards per carry when the Lions visited the Metrodome earlier this season.

Snoozer – Clinton Portis

Portis had 21+ carries in each of his first 8 games, but the injuries have caught up to him and he’s had 15 or less carries in 3 of the last 4. The Ravens also boast the league’s 3rd ranked run defense and yield just 78 ypg.
K

Stud – Matt Bryant

Bryant came through again last week with 3 field goals and 2 XP. He’s about as consistent as you can hope for and the Bucs offense gets him in range.

Sleeper – Neil Rackers

Rackers hasn’t been able to live up to expectations after a monster year in 2005, but in the 2 weeks before the Eagles game he made 7 of 8 attempts. This week he’ll face the Rams, so he’ll have plenty of chances to score.

Snoozer – Nick Folk

Folk and the ‘Boys take on a tough Steelers defense this week. Folk will also have to worry about wind and poor field conditions.

How To Make a Great Point System For Your League

Liberal Point Happy Leagues Vs. Old School Point Leagues
By Todd "The True Guru" Farino

Making a point system for your league is not only the most important factor in setting up your league, but it's the hardest. There are so many sub-factors that go into building a point system that if you forgot to consider any of them, your point system can be flawed. A flawed point system could have imbalance, gaps in scoring, and missed points that should be earned. Imbalance is the most common form of flaw and is the biggest flaw of the old school scoring system. As most of my readers know, I am a man of change in the fantasy world. America elected a new leader on change, we should change fantasy football and fantasy baseball scoring for the better. The "old school" scoring system was basic and really put most of the points in the runningbacks. Even know the quarterback is the leader on the team and puts up great numbers in real games, in the standard scoring system they were outdone by runningbacks and that is imbalance. Kickers and defense also get no respect in standard systems and you almost ask yourself why you have them if they score so low. I've always been a fan of lots of points. I'd rather play in a league that has scores like 170.1 - 158.4, then low scoring leagues like 90-84. I feel that the more scoring opportunities there is, the more strategy can be used to win. You also feel like you always have a chance to win, even when you are down by several points. Let's get into our thoughts on building a fun and effective scoring system.

Scoring Balance
A key to any scoring system is balance. This doesn't mean that every player must have the ability to score the same number of points, but some players can't dominate the points against the entire team. A great example of that in the old school system was Marshall Faulk. If you got Faulk in the years where the Rams were "The Greatest Show On Turf" you probably won your league. That's fact. I've been in a league for 9 years now, and one manager won the first two championships and he had Faulk. To avoid that I made scoring more balanced, so one player couldn't win every game for you. That you in fact need other players to play well to win. Here are scoring options we recommend for making your league more competitive and balanced.

1. Point Per Reception - PPR leagues rock. Giving a point per reception gives credit to the receiver for catching balls. The argument against PPR leagues is that runningbacks should then get a point for carries if receivers get points for receptions. First of that is insane. Receptions are an act that the player must complete. They have to run an effective route, break away from a defender, and then actually catch the ball. A running back has the ball handed to them by the quarterback. So it makes sense to give a point per reception because it balanced the receivers with extra points. It even helped the runningbacks when they catch balls out of the backfield.
2. Completion Points - This one will get the least amount of consideration, but one thing I've done in some of my leagues to make the quarterback the the points leader along with the team leader was giving him points for completions. However, if you give him points for completions its also correct to cost him points for attempts. Similar to saves in baseball. The closer will lose points for the save opportunity, but get bigger points for getting the save. If he blows the save, he loses points. If the quarterback throws an incomplete pass, he loses points. What I have done is I give .75 points for a completed pass, and -.25 for the attempt. So if the quarterback completes the pass he gets .5 points. This not only powers up the quarterback, but helps your quarterback if he gets yards and completions, but he's on a team that runs in the touchdowns.
3. Field Goal Points - This one makes complete sense and it pretty much already being down. All field goals are not created equal. Why would you give 3 points for a 43-yard field goal and 3 points for a 19-yard field goal. You have to create a tiered scoring system. Give 3 points for 19 and under, 4 for 20-29, 5 doe 30-39, 6 for 40-49, and 8 for 50+. If you do that kickers now hold considerably more significant power for your team and getting kickers with big legs become more valuable.
4. Defensive/Special Teams Points - Defenses score OK in the standard system if they do great, but there isn't any wiggle room for a great defense versus a OK defense. You also don't reward defenses that don't give up allot of yards, but allow 20 points for whatever reasons. You should award points a reverse tier for "total yards allowed" and for "points scored". Special teams should always be includes, and points for forced fumbles with fumble recovery. Besides sacks and INTs, give points for blocked kicks and punts. Be liberal with your defense and special teams. We think they should have the ability to compete with your flex player. The key to defenses is, if they have a real bad 54-point type performance that they get a bad score. There has to inherent risk in a defense, that any defense can do very bad or very good based on performance. The standard system really doesn't have good separation on performances. Put all that together and not only is fantasy football more exciting, but its more balanced.

The point of your scoring system (spot the pun?) is to make the game fun, exciting and that even when you are down to your last player, you can still win. No more being absolutely broken that you are within striking distance to win, but you have a sorry old defense left on Monday. With a modern scoring system, with luck, you can win. Pure joy is the emotion we want, and that is the whole point of the game now isn't it? Another great advantage of a more liberal scoring system would help to eliminate the "Luck Factor". You could lose a game because your opponent had a running back get 4 TDs and he nearly beats you on his own. That is much harder to do with a liberal point system. As fantasy football has evolved over the years, so should evolve its system of scoring. Have fun, play smart, and you should have a great time playing fantasy football.

Patience is a Virtue

On Thanksgiving we all had great meals and spent wonderful time with our families. In my opinion the best part of turkey day is the football. We get treated to three games across the day and man was it w great day for football and fantasy football alike.

I titled this post "patience is a virtue" because so many stud players came out to play in day and in only 3 games. Many of the players that turned up big like Tony Romo, Larry Fitzgerald, DeSean Jackson, and Brian Westbrook have largely been let downs in recent weeks or for most of the season. If you had patience, if you had the strength to hold onto LenDale White, Donovan McNabb, and even Steve Breaston than you got the pay off you were waiting for.

Here are the numbers from some of the fantasy players who haven't been as good recently, who looked very good on Thanksgiving and paid off big if you started them:

LenDale White - 106 yards, 2 TDs
Chris Johnson - 125 yards, 2 TDs
Robironas - He put up zero nothing over the past two weeks - 4 field goals, 5 XPs
Tennessee defense - 10 points, DTD, INT, 2 FF, and 4 sacks.

Tony Romo - 331 yards, 3 TDs, INT
Jason Witten - 9 rec, 115 yards, TD
Terrell Owens 5 rec, 98 yards, TD

Donovan McNabb - 260 yards, 4 TDs
Brian Westbrook - 130 yards, 4 TDs
DeSean Jackson - 6 rec, 76 yards, TD
Larry Fitzgerald - 5 rec, 65 yards, 2 TDs
Steve Breaston - 6 rec, 45 yards, TD

Even though Kurt Warner had a bad night for his team, overall it was a great fantasy night with 235 yards, 3 TDs, and 3 INTs.

I know there are a few people out there who benched Brian Westbrook. Guys who benched Jason Witten, or even DeSean Jackson. If you didn't, you got redemption for at least 1 week. For my leagues, I started all the players involved in Thanksgiving Day games and let's just say my opponents woke up Friday morning a little fatter and looking up at a mountain of a score to overcome. I hope the same goes for the rest of you out there who owns these players.

Stupid Is As Stupid Does

The NFL Stupid Top Ten of 2008 – And Their Fantasy Impact

Plaxico Burress’ latest and most seriously stupid transgression has inspired this list of NFL players who have taken dumbness to levels which even dumb people laugh at. We rate their overall Stupid Factor and the impact their actions have had on a fantasy football level. The players listed here must have been on an NFL roster for the 2008 calendar year (sadly, Michael Vick and O.J. Simpson did not qualify only for that reason).

10. Donovan McNabb, Eagles: Saying that he didn’t know that NFL games can end in ties was pretty ignorant. Compounding that further by saying “I wouldn’t want to see what would happen in a playoff game or the Super Bowl”, makes you wonder if this guy has ever watched a game he hasn’t played in.
Stupid Factor (S.F.)=7
Fantasy Impact Factor (F.I.F)=3

9. DeSean Jackson, Eagles: The "rookie mistake" excuse doesn’t explain why he would toss away the football he was holding before he crossed the goal line for what would have been a sure touchdown. He must have been too pre-occupied with starting his lame celebration for the TD he didn’t score.
S.F.= 6
F.I.F= 6

8. Chris Henry, Bengals: Henry was arrested four times in a 14 month span and has missed 12 games due to suspension in the last two seasons. His talent as a wide receiver has been obscured by his uncanny ability for being arrested.
S.F.= 8
F.I.F=5

7. Larry Johnson, Chiefs: Johnson was suspended three games this season after being charged with simple assault for allegedly spitting his drink in a woman's face on Oct. 10. Johnson also faces a Dec. 4 court date for an incident that occurred last February when he allegedly pushed a woman's face in another Kansas City nightspot. Can you define this as stupid, classless or cowardly? Take your pick.
S.F.= 8
F.I.F. = 7

6. Steve Smith, Panthers: Smith has a history of attacking teammates. He was suspended by his team for the first two games of this season for breaking the nose of teammate Ken Lucas with a sucker punch during training camp practice.
S.F.=8
F.I.F=7

5. Adam “Pacman” Jones, Cowboys: A dangerous punt returner, but a more dangerous citizen. Jones has been arrested six times, and served a full season suspension in 2007. He is known for making it rain in strip clubs and for causing a riot, which led to gunshots and the paralysis of a security guard in a Las Vegas club. His most recent bout with stupidity was punching his own bodyguard assigned to him by the Cowboys to make sure he stayed out of trouble.
S.F.= 10
F.I.F = 5

4. Tatum Bell, Broncos: When the Lions brought in Rudi Johnson to essentially take Bell’s job in Detroit early this season, Bell was caught on camera stealing Johnson’s personal bag, which contained his clothes, while in the Lions offices. Bell was officially released shortly thereafter.
S.F.=9
F.I.F=6

3. Cedric Benson, Bengals: Benson was stopped May 3 while on Lake Travis and charged with boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest. He was then pulled over in downtown Austin on June 7 and was arrested on a drunken driving charge. The Bears wasted the 4th overall pick in the 2005 draft and cut their losses by releasing him before this season. He was signed by Cincinnati a month into this season and has been a flop averaging just 3.1 yards per carry and only one TD.
S.F. = 8
F.I.F. = 7

2. Plaxico Burress, Giants: Instead of using the momentum of a catching the winning pass in a Super Bowl victory, Burress has done everything possible to throw away his career with multiple disciplinary problems. He has been fined $200,000, suspended one game by his team for blowing off work, and suspended the first half of the game against Pittsburgh for not showing up to a treatment session for an injury. All that looks minor compared to carrying an illegal gun and then shooting himself in the leg while at a nightclub. Criminal possession of a loaded weapon is a felony in New York, punishable by up to a year in prison. The five year, $35 million contract he signed before this season is in jeopardy, as are his days as a New York Giant.
S.F.=10
F.I.F.= 8 (nice way to burn fantasy owners just before the playoffs!)

1. Travis Henry, Broncos: Henry signed a five-year, $22.5 million deal with the Broncos last year, and led the league in rushing a month into the 2007 season. He blew that on blow (possession and intent to distribute) and is now facing ten years in prison and a $4 million dollar fine. During the summer, Coach Mike Shanahan said that Henry lacked commitment. He obviously had something else he was more committed to. Oh yeah, did we mention that Henry has fathered nine children with nine different women – at last count. Clearly, football has never been his primary focus.
S.F.= 10
F.I.F.= 8 (for anyone who wasted an early draft pick on him last season)