Fantasy Baseball

Whoops, I guess this is the danger of writing for public consumption—you run the risk of looking like an utter jackass. Even when you think you're taking the necessary precautions, every now and then, risk yanks your card.

Today is apparently 'every now and then.'

The general consensus around fantasy circles is that second base is a deep position. To a degree, I understand the sentiment—the top tiers of players are crowded with guys who stuff the stat sheet to the gills. However, when you look at the overall draftable players, the position is almost as thin as the catchers...

THE SECOND BASEMEN

Officially there are now just 14 days left until the 2009 MLB season opens. Who will be this year's Tampa Bay Rays?

Last year's Rays went from celler dweller to World Series runners-up. So who will be this year's Rays?

Being a 44-year Cubs fan, can't remember anything before age 5, of course we all hope this will be the year.

And why not? Lilly, Dempster, Harden and Zambrano all return. Gone is oft-injured closer Kerry Wood. Hopefully Kevin Gregg will suffice.

After 100 years, we've gotta be close. But enough about my hopes and dreams.

Now that we're just two weeks away from Opening Day, I thought it would be a good time to do some updating to my rankings. With additional research, free agent signings, and injuries, some significant changes have occurred. Here are the top 20 outfielders as of today (to view the original rankings, click here):

We continue our pick-by-pick coverage for the KFFL K-FAD Expert League Draft. To recap, the league is your standard roster (2 catchers, 5 OF) 5x5 rotisserie 12-team league. I get the chance to represent Fantasy Baseball Search to play against some of the toughest competitors and expert minds in the industry.

The third segment of the KFFL K-BAD expert league draft went much better then the second segment for my team. I was able to draft all the players I needed and wanted, plus thanks to this being an email draft I was able to discover some fantastic steals.

We continue our pick-by-pick coverage for the KFFL K-FAD Expert League Draft. To recap, the league is your standard roster (2 catchers, 5 OF) 5x5 rotisserie 12-team league. I get the chance to represent Fantasy Baseball Search to play against some of the toughest competitors and expert minds in the industry.

The third segment of the KFFL K-BAD expert league draft went much better then the second segment for my team. I was able to draft all the players I needed and wanted, plus thanks to this being an email draft I was able to discover some fantastic steals.

Every MLB fantasy season there are sleepers that many people are totally unaware of. These players go unselected until the end of most drafts, where those fantasy owners that do indeed draft them, usually end up winning their entire league.

Last season Pittsburgh Pirates out-fielder Nate McLouth was a total no name going into the start of the season. During the first two months of the MLB season he hit .305 with 12 home runs. McLouth ended the year with a total of 23 home runs, 85 RBI, 101 runs, and 23 stolen bases.

Before being faced with a serious elbow injury, Chris Ray was locked in as the O's closer, and deservedly so. At age 24, Chris went on to post a 2.73 ERA and record 33 saves. 

It wasn't until the following season in 2007 that something peculiar began happening. 

Chris lost his dominance, but being the warrior that he is, kept on insisting nothing was wrong. Despite having discomfort in his elbow, even taking drugs to ease the swelling and null the pain, Chris still insisted he felt fine.

Hitters

I've been playing around in several draft lobbies lately and watching box scores. What's nice about this time of year is that it allows us to really take a look at recovering players and learn about injuries before we start drafting.  

So what have we seen this spring that would impact drafting and the season in general? More than you might think for a typical spring. Here are some notes taken over the past weeks that may help when setting up your drafts. 

Draft Late