NationStates Jolt Archive

The draft has finished and we have entered the trash talking before the season starts phase.

Post what team is yours so we can get an idea who is who. I will list the teams and their owners on this post.

Teams:

Half @$$ Monkey Boys - Vittos Ordination
Key Players - Todd Helton, Vlad Guerrero, Jason Schmidt
Trading Block - Schmidt, Helton, Corey Patterson
Wants - Quick outfield or middle infield, Closer

The Soft Machines - Keruvalia
Key Players - Carlos Beltran, Mike Piazza, Roger Clemens
Trading Block -
Wants -

Bedford Falls Nine - Myrmidonisia
Key Players - Chone Figgins?, Jimmy Rollins, Ben Sheets
Trading Block -
Wants -

The Foul Poles - You Forgot Poland
Key Players - Johan Santana, Eric Gagne, Mark Texiera
Trading Block -
Wants -

Allegheny Illicits - Lascivious Maximous
Key Players - Ichiro Suzuki, Randy Johnson, Eric Chavez
Trading Block -
Wants -

Beat me to the punch! However, of course I'll join! :D

I'm guessing that with a 20 player max it's rotisserie, not head-to-head?

Indeed. I shall join. I like Yahoo's set up for fantasy football, so I'll probably like their fantasy baseball too.

I'm guessing that with a 20 player max it's rotisserie, not head-to-head?

Would rotisserie be better? I thought that I could set up two divisions, but apparently not.

Oh, no. Head to head rocks the beat. But I thought Yahoo put a 12-team cap on Head-to-Head.

Oh, no. Head to head rocks the beat. But I thought Yahoo put a 12-team cap on Head-to-Head.

I originally had it at head to head so I figure that it is allowed. I worry there wouldn't be enough weeks to play head to head with 20 teams. Divisions would solve that problem, but I don't think those are available unless you pay.

Screw paying. We could set up two twelves with the same stat categories and just compare records at the end.

EDIT: Only problem with that is they have to fill equally or else there'd be a talent concentration in the shorthanded league.

Screw paying. We could set up two twelves with the same stat categories and just compare records at the end.

We may not get the full 20, but if there does turn out to be a lot of teams we can change it to two 12s.

YFP, Keru, Sdaeriji, TGs

How long does the fantasy season run? And is there a link? I think we need the league ID #, not it's name.

If it's head-to-head, the season runs the length of the season, except you play one match-up per week of real baseball. So two teams are matched up, Yahoo tabulates the stats for the week, and the win-loss is based on that. This means the "season" is 22 weeks/fantasy games.

OK, if you want, you can TG your e-mail addresses to me and I can invite you through the Commissioner tools.

OK, if you want, you can TG your e-mail addresses to me and I can invite you through the Commissioner tools.

Yo, VO, TG.

If it's head-to-head, the season runs the length of the season, except you play one match-up per week of real baseball. So two teams are matched up, Yahoo tabulates the stats for the week, and the win-loss is based on that. This means the "season" is 22 weeks/fantasy games.

That would allow each team to play each other at least once in a 20 team league. That's not so bad.

If I could make a suggestion on the league scoring: Add stat categories beyond the Yahoo defaults. Yahoo puts a super premium on long balls. The default settings only score HR, RBI, Avg, SB, and R, which means a homer scores in three out of five categories.

Adding stat categories also gives more depth and gives a fuller portrait of the players.

In the past, I've played with:

R, H, HR, RBI, SB, K, E, Avg, OBP, SLG, OPS for batters and

IP, W, SV, BB, K, ERA, WHIP, K/9 for pitchers.

It's a good blend of percentage-based stats and real number stats, it's got a few negative values to penalize free swingers. Including Avg, OBP, SLG, and OPS may seem redundant, but compare how Pujols and Suzuki stack up across these four last year. By breaking the stats down, Suzuki is not undervalued as his contributions in Avg and OBP don't get totally obliterated by Pujols's power.

That would allow each team to play each other at least once in a 20 team league. That's not so bad.

But Yahoo caps it at 12.

If I could make a suggestion on the league scoring: Add stat categories beyond the Yahoo defaults. Yahoo puts a super premium on long balls. The default settings only score HR, RBI, Avg, SB, and R, which means a homer scores in three out of five categories.

Adding stat categories also gives more depth and gives a fuller portrait of the players.

In the past, I've played with:

R, H, HR, RBI, SB, K, E, Avg, OBP, SLG, OPS for batters and

IP, W, SV, BB, K, ERA, WHIP, K/9 for pitchers.

It's a good blend of percentage-based stats and real number stats, it's got a few negative values to penalize free swingers. Including Avg, OBP, SLG, and OPS may seem redundant, but compare how Pujols and Suzuki stack up across these four last year. By breaking the stats down, Suzuki is not undervalued as his contributions in Avg and OBP don't get totally obliterated by Pujols's power.

I agree with you that we need to change it up a little, but that is so many stats, do you think we would need that many?

I personally don't think that HR's need to be added in at all, there is no category for singles, doubles, or triples.

I agree with you that we need to change it up a little, but that is so many stats, do you think we would need that many?

I personally don't think that HR's need to be added in at all, there is no category for singles, doubles, or triples.

Agreed. A home run gets counted in R, H, and RBI. It doesn't need another category.

But Yahoo caps it at 12.

Ohh, I missed that.

I capped our league at 12. I don't know if it will force us to play rotisserrie if we get over that, but I am not taking the chance. If there are more that want to join up I guess we can start up two.

Agreed. A home run gets counted in R, H, and RBI. It doesn't need another category.

I guess we should base it equally on average and power, with defense and speed being secondary?

I guess we should base it equally on average and power, with defense and speed being secondary?

Well, I don't know. I think errors should weigh considerably.

Well, I don't know. I think errors should weigh considerably.

I am not sure if we can make it that important, there aren't too many statistical categories devoted to it.

The stats I think should definitely be included:

Batting: SLG%, OBP, SB, Runs, RBI, E

Pitching: W, L, ERA, WHIP, K/9, S

I am definitely open to adding or changing those, but I do know that there should be an equal number of batting and pitching stats for a head to head league.

I am not sure if we can make it that important, there aren't too many statistical categories devoted to it.

The stats I think should definitely be included:

Batting: SLG%, OBP, SB, Runs, RBI, E

Pitching: W, L, ERA, WHIP, K/9, S

I am definitely open to adding or changing those, but I do know that there should be an equal number of batting and pitching stats for a head to head league.

I think Average and K's should be included for batters, and IP for pitchers.

I think Average and K's should be included for batters, and IP for pitchers.

I understand Avg and K's being included (although I think that OBP and SLG would account for those), but why IP?

I understand Avg and K's being included (although I think that OBP and SLG would account for those), but why IP?

Because, personally, I think starters mean a lot more to a team than a reliever who comes in to get one left-handed batter out, then leaves the game. If a guy pitches 1/3 of an inning and strikes his guy out, he's got a ridiculous K/9, a 0.00 ERA, and if his team was down and comes back to win, he's got a W. But is he really that important to a team?

Well, personally, I'm a stats monkey, so I like to see them all. I read box scores like some people read the Bible. However you want to do it is fine by me, though. :)

Three teams in the league so far ... where's the rest of ya'll?!

I wouldn't mind playing, but I don't think I have the post count to make the cut.

Because, personally, I think starters mean a lot more to a team than a reliever who comes in to get one left-handed batter out, then leaves the game. If a guy pitches 1/3 of an inning and strikes his guy out, he's got a ridiculous K/9, a 0.00 ERA, and if his team was down and comes back to win, he's got a W. But is he really that important to a team?

Maybe K/9 should be changed to just K's? I don't like the idea of using IP, because if a team gets up by 7-8 runs early, quite often a starter will get 7 innings even if he gets rocked.

I don't suppose we could push the draft start time 1 hour ahead. :(

I wouldn't mind playing, but I don't think I have the post count to make the cut.

It is looking like post counts won't matter, as we aren't exactly fighting people off. So I will keep your name in mind, and assuming we don't get another 8 or 9 posters with over one thousand posts I will send you a TG witht the info.

I don't suppose we could push the draft start time 1 hour ahead. :(

I will see what I can do, I was thinking about doing the offline draft, and just drafting here on NS, but there are some problems that could arise with that.

EDIT: I bumped up the draft time, but if you guys think that an offline draft would be better we could do it.

Maybe K/9 should be changed to just K's? I don't like the idea of using IP, because if a team gets up by 7-8 runs early, quite often a starter will get 7 innings even if he gets rocked.

Yeah, Ks would be better than K/9. K/9 is skewed towards relievers. I think starting pitchers should be a lot more important to scoring than relievers.

Yeah, Ks would be better than K/9. K/9 is skewed towards relievers. I think starting pitchers should be a lot more important to scoring than relievers.

Alright, that is fine by me.

I will see what I can do, I was thinking about doing the offline draft, and just drafting here on NS, but there are some problems that could arise with that.

EDIT: I bumped up the draft time, but if you guys think that an offline draft would be better we could do it.

Thanks, but I meant 1 hour later. :D 8 pm CST. 7 would have been bad for me, now it's even worse at 6!

Thanks, but I meant 1 hour later. :D 8 pm CST. 7 would have been bad for me, now it's even worse at 6!

You can just set your pre-draft rankings and let the computer do it for you.

Thanks, but I meant 1 hour later. :D 8 pm CST. 7 would have been bad for me, now it's even worse at 6!

I'll tell you what, I will set it up so we can have a draft on NS and then just input the rosters into Yahoo. It will be a little more work, but it will give us a little more flexibility.

Bump for more teams.

Is there room for me to join?

Because, personally, I think starters mean a lot more to a team than a reliever who comes in to get one left-handed batter out, then leaves the game. If a guy pitches 1/3 of an inning and strikes his guy out, he's got a ridiculous K/9, a 0.00 ERA, and if his team was down and comes back to win, he's got a W. But is he really that important to a team?

If the manager has this pitcher on the roster when he does this, they're a friggin genius and deserve all the damn points.

One thing that prevents this from being a big issue is that HtH is week-based, so a player with this situation would only affect one out of 20 match-ups.

For batters, I definitely agree that SB and E should be counted for speed and defense. Strikeouts should count so that we reward the good eye. The other stuff, I'm good with about any combo.

For pitchers, I'm very pro IP, W, SV, BB, K, ERA, WHIP, K/9. The stat-by stat rationale:

IP: You want to reward a horse. You want to encourage the use of middle relievers and starters to prevent closers from running the show. (This can also be controlled by raising the minimum # of IP per week.)

W: Duh for starters. However, I think counting W and L gets a little redundant.

SV: Duh for closers.

BB: Duh for control.

K: Unit based stats favor starters.

WHIP and K/9: Percentage based stats favor relievers and closers.

However, look at the premium starters. Even compared to premium closers, they still rock WHIP and K/9. And they benefit from higher K counts.

ERA: Good measure for all pitchers, not as contingent on team performance as W and SV.

If eight is more stats than people want to measure for pitchers, I'd pull for dropping BB. It gets figured directly into WHIP and indirectly into W and S (as in, how to blow them). Also, BB will penalize starter-heavy rosters.

I'll tell you what, I will set it up so we can have a draft on NS and then just input the rosters into Yahoo. It will be a little more work, but it will give us a little more flexibility.

Oooh. Cool.

Yeah, Ks would be better than K/9. K/9 is skewed towards relievers. I think starting pitchers should be a lot more important to scoring than relievers.

As an alternative fix (I'm pro using both K and K/9), VO can set how many SP and RP a team is allowed as a league setting. Default is 2 SP, 2 RP, and 3 P (either SP or RP at manager's discretion).

We could go hardball and require a full 5 SP rotation, with 2 RP. This would mean we'd be digging way down into the talent well for starters, but this would be good because it would make the late rounds of the draft more meaningful.

Is there room for me to join?

Most likely, as long as you guarantee you will maintain your team, I can put you in.

I'll send you a telegram here in a bit.

I think the OBP would account for both average and the quality of a batter's eye, but it may not go far enough.

For losses, I am not that attached to them being included, but it is another stat that would gauge performance for both relievers and starters.

As for the number of stats, I don't care how many we have, just as long as they are even for batters and pitchers.

I don't really have a problem with more stats for batters, because the way GMC sets up the rosters, you have to manage a heck of a lot more batters than pitchers. So, while I think real baseball is more determined by pitching than by hitting, if we make pitching and hitting equal, it puts a lot more draft pressure on the pitchers (if the rewards are equal, and a roster includes 7 pitchers vs. 12 position players, the smart play is to draft pitching).

I don't really have a problem with more stats for batters, because the way GMC sets up the rosters, you have to manage a heck of a lot more batters than pitchers. So, while I think real baseball is more determined by pitching than by hitting, if we make pitching and hitting equal, it puts a lot more draft pressure on the pitchers (if the rewards are equal, and a roster includes 7 pitchers vs. 12 position players, the smart play is to draft pitching).

But in heads up competition, a team with better batters would have an advantage over teams with better pitchers, since they would have the advantage in more statistical categories.

But in heads up competition, a team with better batters would have an advantage over teams with better pitchers, since they would have the advantage in more statistical categories.

This is true, but because of the larger number of position players on each roster, and because of the shallower pool of talent in pitching, it's easier to monopolize pitching than hitting.

This is true, but because of the larger number of position players on each roster, and because of the shallower pool of talent in pitching, it's easier to monopolize pitching than hitting.

That is true, I guess I could deal with a small margin.

The other plus side is that if there's one more batting stat category, it's harder to tie a weekly match-up. One of the stats would have to tie numerically (fairly likely with things like errors) and the others would have to be evenly split.

This promotes the trash talk.

Oh, also, turn the live draft back on for the time being. This gives the managers access to the Yahoo-ranked list of players. Much easier than trying to muddle things out on ESPN.

bump

Would love to play. Let me know the needed info and I'll sign up.

Would love to play. Let me know the needed info and I'll sign up.

You have been TG'ed

Can I join?

Can I join?

It seems like we will have room, I will send you a telegram.

Finbergia, you have a telegram.

We need more teams, people.

I would love to join. I'm a vet fantasier who will likely sweep your league. Anyone here that I actually like is free to join my league as well. E-mail me or telegram me.

Roid Sox! Good name.

But how exactly will the draft work? Once we get a full boat, what do we do? Are we going to establish a draft order and cycle through it in this thread? If so, that could take a while.

Alternatives include:

Doing an online live draft. I know that there's no way one draft time will work for everyone, but we can compensate (to a degree) by allowing all those who could not be online and had to use the pre-ranking system first crack at the free agents/waivers. The first two days after the draft, only those players who could not make the draft get to sign free agents.

Doing an online draft where everyone uses the pre-ranking system. Scrap the live idea and make everyone use the pre-rank so we're all equally disadvantaged.

Doing an online draft where everyone uses the Yahoo pre-rank order. This, I reckon, would put more emphasis on trading in the pre-season weeks. The downside is that it's more or less random distribution of the top third of the league and managers give up a lot of choice. The upside is increased wheeling and dealing.

Using the forum for an offline draft. Upside: Everyone can participate. Downsides: Pain in the ass to keep track of who's picked whom; very slow; lots of work for Commish "Bud" Ordination; we'd have to rope in some third party to establish draft order; we wouldn't benefit from the automatic online tracking of chosen players and ranking of available players.

I'm good with any of these. I just wanted to lay out a few possibilities.

I would love to join. I'm a vet fantasier who will likely sweep your league. Anyone here that I actually like is free to join my league as well. E-mail me or telegram me.

Big talk, Sally.

*snip*

I think having the draft on here would be the best. It would take a while, but we would have a couple of weeks, and I don't mind the extra work if you guys help me keep the rosters straight.

Alright,

We can do the forum draft one of two ways:

Yahoo-style, where we draft out of the total pool of players. We establish a draft order and cycle through it 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 1, 2, ... until all the rosters are full. In this system, the burden is on the manager to count positions correctly, because if they wind up with only three outfielders in the draft, we can't turn back the clock, and they'll have to fill the gaps from waivers.

Sandbox-style, where each manager gets first pick in one position and 12th in another, and middle steps in between. This draft will not translate well into Yahoo, however, because they don't distinguish between OF positions.

I'd pull for the former.

Yahoo-style, where we draft out of the total pool of players. We establish a draft order and cycle through it 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 1, 2, ... until all the rosters are full. In this system, the burden is on the manager to count positions correctly, because if they wind up with only three outfielders in the draft, we can't turn back the clock, and they'll have to fill the gaps from waivers.


I think I like that idea better.

Any more teams available? Sign me up if there are.

Any more teams available? Sign me up if there are.

You have been TGed

We have room for four more teams.

There has to be more than eight baseball fans on here.

You have been TGed
I'm there, sort of. I guess we need an even number of teams. Someone else sign up.

We have room for four more teams.

There has to be more than eight baseball fans on here.

Let me know if you can't fill slots. I've got a friend or two I can get to sign up.

Let me know if you can't fill slots. I've got a friend or two I can get to sign up.

We might need them, but give it some more time, we have a couple of weeks.

I've been in alot of forum drafts, and they all take several months. Why not just do a nice live draft?

Okay, last chance for people to sign up.

I set the draft for a live draft at 4:45 this Tuesday. If that is bad, then we can have one on NS in which everyone has 3-4 minutes to draft otherwise we will autopick based on yahoo rankings.

Okay, last chance for people to sign up.

I set the draft for a live draft at 4:45 this Tuesday. If that is bad, then we can have one on NS in which everyone has 3-4 minutes to draft otherwise we will autopick based on yahoo rankings.
Id love to play (sorry for not posting sooner)

I played third base on a hardball team for quite a while.

(no wonder Kelly Gruber was my hero)

Id love to play (sorry for not posting sooner)

I played third base on a hardball team for quite a while.

(no wonder Kelly Gruber was my hero)

Kelly Gruber fucking rules.

I would normally TG this information to you, but since anybody is now more than welcome,

League Name: NS Fantasy Baseball
League ID: 233386
Password: NationStates

Kelly Gruber fucking rules.

I would normally TG this information to you, but since anybody is now more than welcome,

League Name: NS Fantasy Baseball
League ID: 233386
Password: NationStates
Awesome!

I should note Ive never done this before - but it looks like fun so I want to give it a go. :)

Awesome!

I should note Ive never done this before - but it looks like fun so I want to give it a go. :)

It isn't difficult. If you have any questions, just ask.

I'll join if you still need people, though that 4:45 (which I'm assuming is EST) is no good for me, since I'm way over on the other side of the International Date Line. If you could make it two hours later that would be perfect. If not, I could always just set my picks ahead of time and let the rest of you draft.

I'll join if you still need people, though that 4:45 (which I'm assuming is EST) is no good for me, since I'm way over on the other side of the International Date Line. If you could make it two hours later that would be perfect. If not, I could always just set my picks ahead of time and let the rest of you draft.

I have a feeling that 4:45 time will be bad for a lot of people, but it wouldn't let me set it any later.

I think we should probably just have a draft on here, when everyone can make it.

EDIT: And go ahead and sign up, you and Lasc should fill up the league.

I have a feeling that 4:45 time will be bad for a lot of people, but it wouldn't let me set it any later.

I think we should probably just have a draft on here, when everyone can make it.

EDIT: And go ahead and sign up, you and Lasc should fill up the league.Alright, I'll join now. If it's possible, maybe we could try to have a live draft on one of the messenger services. AIM or MSN or whatever, if we can arrange it. It might work better than a forum draft, which I can imagine would take a while.

EDIT: It appears that the draft time is actually okay for me, it just means I have to show up for work a little early. And then try to explain to my co-workers why I'm frantically shuffling through lists of player names.

What does everyone want to do for the draft? We need to figure this out for good.

What does everyone want to do for the draft? We need to figure this out for good.
I dont know, honestly Ive been trying to figure out how I can set aside a lump of time big enough to do it while Im at work... its easy to come into NS and post randomly... but to actually spend time on any one thing can be a little dodgy for me. Im worried the phone might ring, or worse, that since that time of day is worst for it, Ill be called out to a jobsite. Things I should have thought of before but never did... I feel bad bringing that up now.

Ill have to work it out somehow.

I dont know, honestly Ive been trying to figure out how I can set aside a lump of time big enough to do it while Im at work... its easy to come into NS and post randomly... but to actually spend time on any one thing can be a little dodgy for me. Im worried the phone might ring, or worse, that since that time of day is worst for it, Ill be called out to a jobsite. Things I should have thought of before but never did... I feel bad bringing that up now.

Ill have to work it out somehow.

Even if we did it on NS, you could be autopicked for if you were going to miss a round or even more.

The way it's set now (5:45 EST) is fine with me.

Even if we did it on NS, you could be autopicked for if you were going to miss a round or even more.
How do I go about setting that up? Is it something I can take care of tonight?

How do I go about setting that up? Is it something I can take care of tonight?

If we do it online, just make your list with Yahoo, if not you can telegram me your player rankings and we can pick your top player at positions you need.

The way it's set now (5:45 EST) is fine with me.

Yeah, me too, but I figure a lot will miss it.

If we do it online, just make your list with Yahoo, if not you can telegram me your player rankings and we can pick your top player at positions you need.
Wow... I wish I had paid more attention to this thread earlier, Im going to be scrambling to compile a decent list now... but Ill do my best, just post any choices made as far as how to handle this within this thread, and Ill take care of whatever I can tonight. I will likely be working late, but Ill do my best to get any corespondence out as soon as time permits.

Really I should have paid due attention to this, but I will do my best to assure that this is taken care of. Thanks VO.

Wow... I wish I had paid more attention to this thread earlier, Im going to be scrambling to compile a decent list now... but Ill do my best, just post any choices made as far as how to handle this within this thread, and Ill take care of whatever I can tonight. I will likely be working late, but Ill do my best to get any corespondence out as soon as time permits.

Really I should have paid due attention to this, but I will do my best to assure that this is taken care of. Thanks VO.

Setting up the Yahoo overall rankings is a pain in the nuts. I really miss the Sandbox position-based ranking system. Fast and easy.

Setting up the Yahoo overall rankings is a pain in the nuts. I really miss the Sandbox position-based ranking system. Fast and easy.
Thats what Im worried about - Im not sure if I can allocate enough time to do this properly, on which note, I really have to go now - but Ill be back in periodically to see whats going on.

Thats what Im worried about - Im not sure if I can allocate enough time to do this properly, on which note, I really have to go now - but Ill be back in periodically to see whats going on.
I certainly don't object to slipping the draft a day. Not if it makes it a little easier for all concerned.

I certainly don't object to slipping the draft a day. Not if it makes it a little easier for all concerned.
Well, I have compliled a list of players who Id choose, but having never done this before Im really quite clueless as to how it works.

Ill have to learn on the fly since Im at work and just making sporatic posts. :)

What does everyone think about giving those who cannot make the live draft first crack at the free agents? This gives the autopick people a chance to iron out the wrinkles.

Nothing serious, but those who don't make the live draft can pick free agents starting Wed., those who do make the live draft can start on Thur.?

The Fantasy draft will commence as scheduled, today at 4:45 CST.

Anyone who misses the fantasy draft will have first picks of the free agent pool.

My ranking list is set up and I am good to go!

Woo!

My ranking list is set up and I am good to go!

Woo!

Sorry you can't make the live draft. I wanted to make the draft much later than I did, but they wouldn't let me the second time I went to set it.

Hopefully you do get the players you would have drafted.

Sorry you can't make the live draft. I wanted to make the draft much later than I did, but they wouldn't let me the second time I went to set it.

Hopefully you do get the players you would have drafted.

It's in a couple hours, right? I can make it. I'm on Spring Break this week. :D

My ranking list is set up and I am good to go!
I thought the draft was going to take place here in NS? Or is that what you mean?

I thought the draft was going to take place here in NS? Or is that what you mean?

No, we are going to have it on Yahoo. Can you make it?

No, we are going to have it on Yahoo. Can you make it?
It seems unlikely that I will be able to, I sorted my own list of prospects, but I havent ranked any players on Yahoo. Haha, Im not sure what this stack of paper on my desk will do for me now... oh well, its always good to keep the recycle business going! Cest la vie! I dont mind :)

It seems unlikely that I will be able to, I sorted my own list of prospects, but I havent ranked any players on Yahoo. Haha, Im not sure what this stack of paper on my desk will do for me now... oh well, its always good to keep the recycle business going! Cest la vie! I dont mind :)

Sorry about that, I didn't get any response that it should be changed and I worried about doing in on here. There is still time to change it if need be.

The draft will be in less than 2 hours, you should try to make it, and if not get the rankings on Yahoo done.

Sorry about that, I didn't get any response that it should be changed and I worried about doing in on here. There is still time to change it if need be.

The draft will be in less than 2 hours, you should try to make it, and if not get the rankings on Yahoo done.
I'll try and get my rankings set right now, I hope it doesnt take too long, I dont have a lot of time to spare. Im on it though. :)

I'm ready to draft! I just got back from the doctor: I've got four stitches, my left arm is all anesthetized, and I've got a half-mickey of Wild Turkey. If I go from loopy to surly in the middle of the thing, that's either the drugs wearing off or the liquor kicking in.

If I do something ridiculous, like I dunno, draft Wakefield, call poison control.

I'm ready to draft! I just got back from the doctor: I've got four stitches, my left arm is all anesthetized, and I've got a half-mickey of Wild Turkey. If I go from loopy to surly in the middle of the thing, that's either the drugs wearing off or the liquor kicking in.

If I do something ridiculous, like I dunno, draft Wakefield, call poison control.

What happened?

And just some advice: Chan Ho Park is going to have a monster come back year, trust me.

If I do something ridiculous, like I dunno, draft Wakefield, call poison control.

Lol! I'll dial 91 and wait ...

And just some advice: Chan Ho Park is going to have a monster come back year, trust me.

Very possibly. I've got my eye on D. Ortiz for some mega stats.

Very possibly. I've got my eye on D. Ortiz for some mega stats.

I think YFP should draft Park first round. Park is guaranteed Cy Young stats. Really, he is.

As for Ortiz, I would expect somewhere in the range of 70-80 homeruns and 200 rbis.

I think YFP should draft Park first round. Park is guaranteed Cy Young stats. Really, he is.

As for Ortiz, I would expect somewhere in the range of 70-80 homeruns and 200 rbis.

Nod .... I agree with you on Park. YFP should nab him up.

Good predict on Ortiz. He's a good, solid player. Not my 1st round choice, but he's in the top 5. :D

If we rank only our top picks will the default picks fill in the void?

That's funny. Nice try guys, but I'm not going to be fooled that easily. Trying to distract me so you can get Traschel and Prior for yourselves. Gotta get up earlier than that.

The arm was semi-elective. Doc biopsied a mole last week, decided it had to go. I figured I could be the Schilling of internet slobs. Tough it through the draft with the markaine shot and all that.

If we rank only our top picks will the default picks fill in the void?

Yahoo will fall back on the default order and take the best available player for your available roster spots.

I don't know how it chooses between the bench spots and the position though (if you have three open bench spots and one open catcher spot and the choice is between Inge and, I dunno, Beltran, I don't know whether Yahoo first fills the position spot or whether it grabs the best overall player).

Nod .... I agree with you on Park. YFP should nab him up.

Good predict on Ortiz. He's a good, solid player. Not my 1st round choice, but he's in the top 5. :D

Yeah, I don't think that Ortiz will match Bill Mueller's power numbers this year, but Ortiz's speed on the basepaths makes up for that.

Neither of them should be picked above Jeff Cirillo, however.

If we rank only our top picks will the default picks fill in the void?

Yes, they should.

That's funny. Nice try guys, but I'm not going to be fooled that easily. Trying to distract me so you can get Traschel and Prior for yourselves. Gotta get up earlier than that.

Pffff, why would I draft Trachsel or Prior when I can get Glendon Rusch?

The arm was semi-elective. Doc biopsied a mole last week, decided it had to go. I figured I could be the Schilling of internet slobs. Tough it through the draft with the markaine shot and all that.

Hopefully we can get numerous close ups of your bloody armband after every pick you make.

I managed to make more than enough rankings to do the job. If I get a few of my top players I'll be happy enough. :)

Hopefully we can get numerous close ups of your bloody armband after every pick you make.

Oh, I'm going to be running color commentary in the draft chat. The armband is going to the hall.

The arm was semi-elective. Doc biopsied a mole last week, decided it had to go. I figured I could be the Schilling of internet slobs. Tough it through the draft with the markaine shot and all that.

Ewww ... had one of those removed from my leg a few years back. Painful as all get out. You have my sympathy.

The draft order will go in the order that you signed up. Since I am commissioner I moved myself to the sixth pick from the 1st pick, as I didn't want to appear to be giving myself an advantage.

Oh, I'm going to be running color commentary in the draft chat. The armband is going to the hall.
I'll be sending in shots of my sudden attack draft pick sheets... oh beleive me... they look sweeeet!

Do we all know who is who? Im the Allegheny Illicits... watch it...

Ewww ... had one of those removed from my leg a few years back. Painful as all get out. You have my sympathy.

Anybody want to trade sympathy for Gagne?

The draft order will go in the order that you signed up. Since I am commissioner I moved myself to the sixth pick from the 1st pick, as I didn't want to appear to be giving myself an advantage.

Wait, are you sure? I don't think it's established draft order yet. That shouldn't happen till 5:15.

EDIT: I misunderstood what you meant. Why not just let it do it randomly?

The draft order will go in the order that you signed up. Since I am commissioner I moved myself to the sixth pick from the 1st pick, as I didn't want to appear to be giving myself an advantage.

Sweet! So I get first pick? Nice! ;)

Wait, are you sure? I don't think it's established draft order yet. That shouldn't happen till 5:15.

EDIT: I misunderstood what you meant. Why not just let it do it randomly?

I thought they set them automatically to the order in which you joined.

EDIT: If you can think of a good way to set them randomly, then we can do that.

As it is here is the present order:

Soft Machines
The Red Dragons
The Foul Poles
The Roid Sox
Louisville Sluggers
Half @$$ Monkey Boys
California Crushers
Maubachia Cardinales
Bedford Falls Nine
Squirels
Jewmentum
Allegheny Illicits

I thought they set them automatically to the order in which you joined.

If set random, it should set an order 30 min. before the draft. EDIT: Yahoo, that is.

Damn... Im last! Curse my procrastination!! haha!

Another quick question, if we do start on the live draft, will the auto-pick feature still work? Or do we have to continue entering our choices manually? I think I might be off to a jobsite any minute here, and Im not sure if Ill be back in time.

You can go now and set up a draft queue if you're not going to be around. :) The link for the live draft is up.

Damn... Im last! Curse my procrastination!! haha!

Another quick question, if we do start on the live draft, will the auto-pick feature still work? Or do we have to continue entering our choices manually? I think I might be off to a jobsite any minute here, and Im not sure if Ill be back in time.

Get in on the live draft, there's an "away" button you can toggle.

Damn... Im last! Curse my procrastination!! haha!


You will have the 1st pick of the second round, so you will have picks #12 and #13.

Ok! On the way!!

Bump to keep this active as a forum for negotiations and trash talk.

Theoretically, you could trash talk with me, but since it is obvious that I am going to win, you might as well save some face and keep your mouth shut.

BTW, what about the stats, can we come to an agreement on the categories?

We need a compiled list of 'whos who' I only know who some of the teams are 'owned' by here on NS... I dont know if Im alone in that regard, but I just thought it would be kind of nice to post a list so we could cross reference and know who we were playing :)

I'll start (well, actually, I already did - but Ill post again for posterity)

Lascivious Maximus: Allegheny Illicits

We need a compiled list of 'whos who' I only know who some of the teams are 'owned' by here on NS... I dont know if Im alone in that regard, but I just thought it would be kind of nice to post a list so we could cross reference and know who we were playing :)

I'll start (well, actually, I already did - but Ill post again for posterity)

Lascivious Maximus: Allegheny Illicits

When we get them all listed, I will post them on the front page.

Vittos Ordination: Half @$$ Monkey Boys

I'm fine with pitching change today (even though it hurts me pretty directly), but I'd be opposed to monkeying around much more. The stat categories were posted before the draft, draft choices were governed by those stats, and changing them now can turn someone's draft from gravy to shit.

EDIT: The inclusion of IP was discussed before in this thread and the concensus seemed to be to include. I've already given my opinion on the batting categories earlier in the thread. But to sum up, I'm not pro including HR unless there are a lot of categories because the game quickly turns too moneyball when you've got half the categories heavily or directly influenced by the tater. I'm also not pro adding more batting categories at this point unless we also add pitching categories. This is definite self-interest because I decided to pursue pitching in the draft, even though there's one fewer stat category on that side, but I think it's a legitimate concern.

I'm fine with pitching change today (even though it hurts me pretty directly), but I'd be opposed to monkeying around much more. The stat categories were posted before the draft, draft choices were governed by those stats, and changing them now can turn someone's draft from gravy to shit.

Nice to see you finally quit bumping.

I can change it back, I just thought that people were saying they wanted IP changed to L. If it screwed people over in the draft, I can change it back.

Did you load up on relief?

Nice to see you finally quit bumping.

I can change it back, I just thought that people were saying they wanted IP changed to L. If it screwed people over in the draft, I can change it back.

Did you load up on relief?

The damn server was laggy so I had a triple before it ironed out.

I made pitching my priority. But I was expecting (and had argued for) inclusion of IP, because otherwise relievers are too good. I think IP is a good stat to include (better than L, which duplicates W and also favors relievers).

When we get them all listed, I will post them on the front page.

Vittos Ordination: Half @$$ Monkey Boys
I'm the owner/manager of the Bedford Falls Nine.

Not only fantasy baseball but basketball and football on nationstates

Oh, yeah. I'm the Foul Poles.

<--------- Soft Machines

I have set up a spot on the first post for people to have a trading block, I figure that should help start some trading. So if you want to add some players to your trading block or post what your team needs, I will put it on the front page.

Hey YFP, I offered you a trade, what do you think?

It's a good tactic, proposing trades like that. Eventually, somebody's finger will slip and you'll win the whole damn season. Money and fame will follow.

It's a good tactic, proposing trades like that. Eventually, somebody's finger will slip and you'll win the whole damn season. Money and fame will follow.

You will get a new trade offer every day. Eventually you will give up Hudson and Gagne for Kaz Ishii out of pure annoyance.

I guess I'll have to start making counter offers instead of rejecting. Eventually someone will slip.

Hey, anybody want to deal for Mariano? I thought I could stand to have him on my roster, but it turns out I was wrong.

I don't think I've ever felt as conflicted as I have watching these first few Sox-Yankees games. Ordinarily, I love to see Rivera blow saves. Especially against the Sox. But now, this joy has been tainted. Instead of feeling the usual warm glow at watching Mariano choke, I now find myself saying things like "shit" or "maybe he can pitch himself into a win."

So, if yer looking for a closer, let's deal.