Fantasy

This time of year, America is buzzing over both March Madness and the fantasy baseball information superhighway. 

In this show, I'll provide you with the broadband information you'll need to win a championship and get your coins in.

Join me as I get it in and let you know the under the radar players to roster.

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Deadlines. We all have them. I am no exception. In fact, I have a very important assignment for work that is due in approximately 15 hours.  

No matter what else is going on around me though, I always find myself thinking about fantasy baseball. It truly is an addiction. If Rachel Uchitel had to go on Celebrity Rehab for being addicted to love, then surely Dr. Drew would have something to tell me as well.  But they always say addiction can only be cured if the user really wants to be cured. I do not.  

First Base: James Loney, Los Angeles Dodgers

Loney has 89.3 RBI over the past three years despite combining for 36 home runs. His batting average and OPS have dipped the past three seasons.

He hit just .222 with a .575 OPS last year against lefties, and .245 and .662 over the past three years, which could lead Don Mattingly to sit him more often than Joe Torre did.

Brandon Belt garnered a lot of attention in 2010, just one year after being selected in the fifth round of the draft. 

There certainly wasn’t much expected from the 22-year old (he turns 23 on April 22), but he delivered in a big way. 

In fact, the Giants couldn’t keep him down, moving him from Single-A to Double-A to Triple-A, as he compiled the following line:

Fantasy drafts boil down to one of four things: sleepers, value plays, studs and over-hyped players, the latter of course being the worst. There is nothing more detrimental than reaching for a player too early just because BBTN (Baseball Tonight) talked about a player until they were red in the face.

We also have the players who break out the year before, only to fall flat on their face the next season—yes, I'm talking to you, Mark Reynolds.

Knowing which players to avoid is key to having a successful draft day and it is my honor to guide you down the right path.

With Opening Day just days away, many fantasy baseball leagues are conducting their drafts.  Draft day can either make or break your team’s chances this season.

A trendy approach to the draft is to recognize and draft “sleeper” players, but avoiding players who will be a bust is just as important.

Players like Grady Sizemore, A.J. Burnett and Nate McLouth killed fantasy owners in 2010, and it’s crucial to avoid drafting “bust” players in 2011.

Here is my 2011 All-Bust fantasy team.

Brad Lidge is the latest closer to go down with an injury and how long he will be out is completely unknown. The pain in his shoulder has yet to be identified, meaning he could be out a week, a month or maybe more. It was just a few days ago that I questioned if Lidge was even worth owning (click here to view) and now things look even more dubious. 

First Base:  Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves

Freeman struggled in his cup of coffee last year hitting .167 in 20 games (24 at bats). The Braves are committed to him at first base, though. He has the pedigree, hitting .319 with 18 HRs, 87 RBI and a .899 OPS for Triple-A Gwinnett last year. I’m not as confident in Freeman (this year) as I am in some of the other players, but the majority of first basemen have already made a name for themselves.

Fate can have a way from helping you win it all by snagging the best player ever, and it can totally screw you by giving you the last pick. No matter if you are a smart enough baseball fan, or the kind of fan who only knows the players on his favorite team, with the proper guidance from Bleacher Report and MLB Featured Columnist Tony Capobianco, then you too can win with a low pick.

Why the ninth pick? Because that's the pick I got in my draft.

Fantasy pools are not exactly an exact science, mainly due to the unpredictable nature of sports.  But from looking at past numbers, health, age and any particular player's track record, you can often predict what a player is capable of.

The Toronto Blue Jays are starting to have a lot of interesting fantasy options, something that wasn't always the case in past years.  They led the league in home runs last year, a category they will likely have strong numbers in again this year.