PREPARATION
Each league I play in has different preparation requirements.
In the XFL we’re given depth charts showing the available players at their main position, with the kept players crossed out. No other materials are allowed. No prices, no lists, no notes. Two years ago we started allowing one colored marker to, um, mark up the depth charts. No writing. Fifteen teams with 15 keepers means the auction is freewheeling, especially because you’re not rifling through your papers. Pure joy.
In Tout Wars, a Google Sheet tracks the draft, which is good because the pace is frenetic. For the AL version, last Saturday, I sat next to Clay Link, who was updating the sheet. He knows how to spell all the names, he’s got good concentration, he’s a pro in every sense, and he had to work hard to keep up during the final hour. I used my iPad to show the board during the auction, and two sheets, one with ranked position players and one with pitchers.
The Edison Hotel kindly provided us with pencils and pads, which were helpful in compiling a quick list for the reserve rounds.
I’ve been spending today prepping for the Marshall League auction tomorrow. Marshall is a spinoff of the Stardust League, which I first started playing in in 1982. Stardust started at Inside Sports magazine, which published Dan Okrent’s first article about the Rotisserie League. John Walsh, the former Grand Poobah of ESPN SportsCenter, is still in Stardust and Marshall, which have the oddest set of roster rules I know of. We draft by position, so this year first all the corners are auctioned off, then all the catchers, shortstops, pitchers, second basemen, and finally outfielders, in batches. Multi-position players can be taken at any position they played 15 games the previous year, so you can’t be sure what the pool will look like. It’s 12 teams mixed with 11 reserves bought in the auction with a $550 budget, so it looks unlike any other league. And each team has three keepers, so it is somehow a little deep and still shallow at the same time. My keepers are Acuña ($75), Steer ($4), and Julien ($2). I think I’ll track it on my computer. Oh, and only four pitching categories. No WHIP.
Finally, a week from Sunday is the American Dream League. Old school 4x4 with keepers. We’ve made a butte of keeper tiers. First and last get 4, second and eleventh get 5, third and tenth get 6, fourth, fifth, and ninth get 7, and six, seventh, and eighth get 8. Fifth used to get 8 as well, as well as the first reserve round pick, but teams were starting to angle to finish fifth rather than in the money, so we made it a little less attractive. We’re once again having the auction on Zoom, a compromise for the folks who didn’t want the stress of flying in from out of town, but those of us in NY that day will have dinner together that night. I keep a Google Sheet to track the rosters, which I share with the others. Unlike Tout Wars the pace is stately. This is an older group. I’m ninth in tenure and have been an American Dreamer for more than 30 years.
I decided earlier to skip Justin Mason’s great Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational tournament and a similar excellent tournament Khang Do runs at the Baseball365 Facebook group. This year it’s all leagues with folks I’ve known for years, mostly drafting live. A live auction with friends, even if it has to be on Zoom, is the Best Day of the Year.
OH-OH-OHTANI!
What a mess. We can infer all sorts of nefarious stuff from the few facts and the significant lies that have emerged, most of which are being managed behind the scenes. So we have no idea where this thing will lead, but it is safe to say that 1) There is more to it than Ohtani’s friend being an illegal gambler and a thief, and 2) Even if a direct punishment isn’t applied to Ohtani, this is the sort of distraction that might cause a runner to miss second base returning to first on a caught fly ball. I was already down on Ohtani for injury reasons, but his price has to come down some.
DAILY PLANET
I was talking to a friend in St. Petersburg, Florida, today, a big Rays fan, and he doesn’t have a clue why Junior Caminero isn’t with the big club. Especially with Josh Lowe hurt. I wrote about Richie Palacios getting a shot yesterday, but it doesn’t really make much sense. The Rays organization, however, doesn’t seem to do anything haphazardly, so maybe they’re trying to wrest another year of control, or maybe there’s something we don’t know going on. For instance, if Caminero’s not a good shortstop and he’s blocked at third base by Isaac Paredes, maybe he needs some work at first base before he gets called up. My friend did agree that Amed Rosario looks like he’s going to get more playing time than anyone is predicting.
JD Martinez signed with the Mets. He’s earned $26, $18, and $22 the past three years, which means his $2 Tout Wars NL price was a joke. Literally, Phil Hertz was buying up Mets and the rumors of Martinez’s arrival in NY seemed to freeze what was left of the room late in the auction. I’m reminded that Martinez is one of those guys who somehow transformed himself mid-career, after three years of weak hitting. The Astros cut him near the end of camp in 2014, he signed on with the Tigers and almost instantaneously became a much more dangerous and productive hitter. In recent years he’d been fine, but not the power hitter he’d once been. Last year he regained some power, but at the expense of contact. Given his age and that strikeout rate climbing above 30 percent I’m not looking for a repeat, but he should hit homers. I have him projected to hit .270, but I think that’s too high. Steamer and ZIPS are closer to .245 and I think that’s a better bet.
The Rangers added Michael Lorenzen, who had one of the weirdest years last year. Brilliant with the Tigers despite striking out just seven per nine innings, he was traded to the Phillies, pitched a no-hitter, and then fell apart. It’s hard to know what magic he found in Motor City, but Lorenzen has never had such good control elsewhere. Maybe lots of games against the Royals, White Sox, and Guardians? He should be in the rotation soon, if not at the season’s start, but on a short leash.
Spring Training homer update: Oneil Cruz and Kyle Stowers, who was just sent down, lead with 7, with Wyatt Langford one back.
Spring Training steals update: Daulton Varsho leads with 7, with four guys one behind.
ROTOMAN’S FANTASY GUIDE 2024 UPDATE
Here’s a special sheet for folks who bought Rotoman’s Fantasy Guide 2024 softcover/PDF/Kindle. A Dropbox Excel download updated through March 21.
It’s password-protected. The password is the last word in the Ronald Acuña Jr. profile in The Guide. Lower case.
If you want to make edits save it with a different name.
The Editor’s Letter and Why We Did Pages for Rotoman’s Guide, which are missing in the printed Guide, are here.
Members here at the Substack have an updated spreadsheet linked to after the paywall below (after Rotoman’s big signature). Paid subscribers, even for one month, get access to that one. It is updated each Thursday.
FOR SALE
Rotoman’s Fantasy Baseball Guide 2024, softcover, $20, Kindle, $10.
Rotoman’s Fantasy Baseball Guide 2024, PDF, $12.
Ron Shandler’s Fantasy Expert, hardcover, $25, Kindle, $12. I wrote the foreword.
Les Leopold’s Wall Street’s War on Workers, hardcover, $25, Kindle, $23. I did a lot of the data work and some editing.
HOUSEKEEPING
When Will I See You Again Dept.: Tomorrow will have a fun guest post to get you through draft weekend with a smile. For Monday, ask questions, suggest topics, and there will be a news update.
I’ve posted the Historical Top Players by Position for 2021-2023 charts after the Paywall.
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