"Ball On A Budget" Fantasy League - Draft Prep and Rule Discussion

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 12:08 PM EST

All right, we have 41 people interested so far in the league, so we can go ahead begin getting ready. Right now there are enough people for 3 leagues with 5 alternates. Last year with 2 leagues we lost 5 people before draft day, so we may need even more alternates. Let me know if you are interested. Each person will be required to track their own team stats at Fangrpahs. Also, we will require about an hours worth of work from each person to help setup. People will be required to do one of the following:

Get the names, position eligibility (20 games in minors or majors last year or last year played if out for season) and salary amount (Cots Contracts) for a team. I have created a template spreadsheet for people to download so all the data is in the same format. If you have any questions please ask in the comments. I am sure there will be plenty on the contracts. Once done, email me the spreadsheet and I will put the final one together. (30 volunteers)
Help run the draft and write up a monthly piece on the standings. I found a Google spreadsheet works best for updates. The piece can be written as a Fan Post and BtB with set it as a Feature post. (6 volenteers)

Rule discussion after jump

Here are some rule changes that people mentioned.

Decrease time between picks -- 4 hours was too much last year, so I moved it to 2 hours. I would like to have it once someone hits the limit 3 times, the person after the person being skipped picks. The skipped person makes up pick.
Use couch manager for the draft. The main issue would we be able to go back and change a pick if it was made incorrectly (not enough money, positions not filled, etc).
Compensate people that draft later in the draft, vice earlier. I feel the snake compensates fine for this, but what does everyone else feel.
Trading players. If we do this there needs to be a veto vote (6 no votes) and the team's roster positions must be kept intact.

Here is a list of the people to be in the leagues and I will add team or manager as soon as they are picked. Please pick and team or be a manager by Feb. 10th. Then I will set the leagues, draft list and we can begin drafting when spring training starts.

Jeff Zimmerman Manager

Sky Kalkman

Harry Pavlidis (maybe)

DempseysArmy Orioles

erik

SFiercex4 - Marlins

vandystu Braves

Sky Kalkman

Satchel Price - Cubs

RangersandMets

JOHNRR12

Tommy Bennett

vivaelpujols

RedRobot8 - Mets

Steve Slowinski - Rays

jar75

Zach Sanders

Daniel Berlyn - White Sox

MattGaul

Dan Turkenkopf

Sam Page

perfectstrat

Blicks - A;s

Evan_S

OsandRoyals

WeNeedDavidJustice

PWHjort

fightnirish220

viktor06

azruavatar

HustlinOwl

gearshift Reds

gregorybfoley

philkid3 - Rangers

oldjacket

MatthewA

Alternates:

omahacov22

Steven Ellingson

QuinnTheEzkamo

yosoysean

danielj

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Comments

Snake Draft

Tango posted this a while back:

http://www.insidethebook.com/ee/index.php/site/is_the_fantasy_baseball_snake_draft_fair/

Put me down for one of the 30 slots for team data-gathering!

by WeNeedDavidJustice on Jan 30, 2010 1:29 PM EST reply actions

Any team fine?

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 2:02 PM EST up reply actions

Didn't know we could pick!

In that case, Braves me :)

by WeNeedDavidJustice on Jan 30, 2010 3:39 PM EST up reply actions

someone picked them in the last post

I can just assign once most have chosen

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 5:39 PM EST up reply actions

I read Tango's thread.

I like the 3rd round being first to last answer
or
the first pick loses a 7th round, 2nd pick loses a 8th round pick, etc

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 2:14 PM EST up reply actions

I'll take the Mets.

by RedRobot8 on Jan 30, 2010 1:31 PM EST reply actions

I'll handle the Mariners roster

And if you need someone to help run a draft, let me know and I can help.

MLB Notebook / Baseball Daily Digest / FanGraphs Fantasy

by Zach Sanders on Jan 30, 2010 2:12 PM EST reply actions

And, some thoughts on the possible rules

1. 4 hours seemed reasonable for picks. I know for me, I never have a stretch in my day (except overnight, of course) where I’m away and unable to pick for 4 hrs, but there is time that I’m away for 2hrs everyday. Maybe it’s just me?

2. CouchManager is nice, but since it doesn’t sort by WAR or take in account salaries, the autopicking would be a problem if someone times out.

3. I think a standard snake is fine. No issues there.

4. Do we really need to trade players? I say no.

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by Zach Sanders on Jan 30, 2010 2:54 PM EST up reply actions

I think we should definitely have trades

Do you know how boring it is to do a draft and then just watch and fill in numbers the rest of the year? It basically becomes a lotto, instead of a game of strategy and good judgement.

by vivaelpujols on Jan 30, 2010 8:07 PM EST up reply actions

It's a game of projection.

I think we’ve all got enough other leagues that requires daily or weekly maintenance. I, for one, enjoy draft drafts a lot more than in-season moves.

Plus trades would be a pain to score.

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by Sky Kalkman on Jan 30, 2010 8:37 PM EST up reply actions

Personally, I agree with this

I doubt I would make any trades in this league, even if we could; I do other leagues and those take up time during the summer. I love drafts and this one takes up so much time in and of itself, I feel like it more than makes up for the lack of action during the season.

"I never threw an illegal pitch. The trouble is, once in a while I toss one that ain't never been seen by this generation." - Satchel Paige

by Steve Slowinski on Jan 30, 2010 10:15 PM EST up reply actions

Last year, few people paid attention enoug to the league to even check and update the standings in Google Docs

Honestly, what’s the appeal for people to even pay attention to the league over 6 months if you can’t even do anything?

by vivaelpujols on Jan 31, 2010 8:49 PM EST up reply actions

How much "paying attention" needs to be done?

Just copy and paste some data once a month. Could even be less frequently, for an added element of surprise in the standings.

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by Sky Kalkman on Feb 1, 2010 9:24 AM EST up reply actions

I might keep you as a manager unless I we get 4 more.

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 5:39 PM EST up reply actions

Alrighty

I should give fair warning that I’m on the West Coast and don’t get up super early, so I wouldn’t be up when the rounds get going in the morning.

And, as aforementioned, there is a chunk of my day that I’m away for 3.5 hrs, but that’s it.

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by Zach Sanders on Jan 30, 2010 11:59 PM EST up reply actions

I can be one of the managers

by Jeff Reese on Jan 30, 2010 3:09 PM EST reply actions

I'll take the White Sox contracts

One thing I forgot to mention, which would really help organize the drafting, would be to have one or two members, impartial to the assigned draft, keep tabs on the players’ queques so it becomes a lot less complicated when(not if) players miss their turns. This way, not only can we go with the 2 hour limit practically, but we can do so without frustration and unfair advantages.

by Daniel Berlyn on Jan 30, 2010 3:12 PM EST reply actions

We usually had people from the other league do this last year.

It never seem much of a problem.

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 4:52 PM EST up reply actions

Yeah, but it should be clear who's keeping track of the queques

I never knew who to go to in a pinch.

by Daniel Berlyn on Jan 30, 2010 4:53 PM EST up reply actions

We'll try to set some people up. I am sure we can find a few people that are in front of their computer all day.

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 4:56 PM EST up reply actions

Contract Question

I assume we are just using a 10% raise again if the player is under team control and hasn’t agreed to a deal?

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by Zach Sanders on Jan 30, 2010 3:25 PM EST reply actions

I can take the Cubs

If you squint really hard, it almost looks like my name is Satchel Paige.
I write for Beyond the Box Score and The Hardball Times Fantasy

by Satchel Price on Jan 30, 2010 3:31 PM EST via mobile reply actions

Trading

Trading is my favorite part of any kind of fantasy league…I vote yes!

by WeNeedDavidJustice on Jan 30, 2010 3:41 PM EST reply actions

I'll take the Rays

I’m also open for managing a league, if need be. I’ve got time on my hands, so I can be around to help keep tabs on draft order and such.

"I never threw an illegal pitch. The trouble is, once in a while I toss one that ain't never been seen by this generation." - Satchel Paige

by Steve Slowinski on Jan 30, 2010 3:43 PM EST reply actions

I'll take the A's for contracts.

"I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it" ~ Mae West

by Blicks on Jan 30, 2010 3:56 PM EST reply actions

question

For contracts, entire 40 man rosters or just 25 man roster?

"I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it" ~ Mae West

by Blicks on Jan 30, 2010 3:59 PM EST up reply actions

If there are any major league contracts for anyone not on the 25 man but on the 40, I would add it

I’m not sure the A’s have anyone like that. Even if they did, I don’t think anyone would pick them.

by Daniel Berlyn on Jan 30, 2010 4:12 PM EST up reply actions

Another contract question

For example: Eric Byrnes is making $11MM this year, but the Mariners are paying him 400k due to AZ releasing him. What salary do I list?

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by Zach Sanders on Jan 30, 2010 4:24 PM EST reply actions

I'd vote his full $11M salary...

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by Sky Kalkman on Jan 30, 2010 4:33 PM EST up reply actions

Agree on the 11M

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 4:51 PM EST up reply actions

I'm going to give my strategy of last year another chance.

And That Happened: Sports with a Hint of Sarcasm

by philkid3 on Jan 30, 2010 4:32 PM EST reply actions

Also, I could probably do the Rangers roster.

Doing some moving today so I’m a little overwhelmed at this second by. . . life, so I’ll get back in here later.

And That Happened: Sports with a Hint of Sarcasm

by philkid3 on Jan 30, 2010 4:35 PM EST up reply actions

I'll handle the Marlins.

Marlin Maniac, a Florida Marlins blog
Come attend Intro to Sabermetrics 101!
Check me out at Beyond the Box Score as well.

by SFiercex4 on Jan 30, 2010 4:41 PM EST reply actions

Never saw that one coming

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 5:38 PM EST up reply actions

If I don't do it, who else will?

Marlin Maniac, a Florida Marlins blog
Come attend Intro to Sabermetrics 101!
Check me out at Beyond the Box Score as well.

by SFiercex4 on Jan 30, 2010 9:30 PM EST up reply actions

So for each player, they get a row, with their salaries and current team and an "x" or something for their position(s), correct?

by Daniel Berlyn on Jan 30, 2010 4:56 PM EST reply actions

Yes

I was going to do all the positions in one column, but figure this will make it easy to sort.

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 4:58 PM EST up reply actions

Sounds great.

If the Giants are still available, I’d like to do their contracts. Here’s a question though. After I’ve submitted a spreadsheet, what happens if the Giants sign a free agent(say, just as an example, Johnny Damon)? Would you update, or should I?

Avatars make the site look pretty. I still don't have one.

by perfectstrat on Jan 30, 2010 7:17 PM EST reply actions

I will try to keep track, but it will probably be best to give me a heads up.

Jeff Zimmerman - Protecting the world from RBI's and Wins from my mom's guest house.

by Jeff Zimmerman on Jan 30, 2010 7:39 PM EST up reply actions

If I run into any funky situations like that, I'll let you know then.

by perfectstrat on Jan 30, 2010 7:40 PM EST up reply actions

Question

Aaron Rowand’s signing bonus, according to Cot’s, was completely paid in 2008-2009, and should not factor into the 2010 salary. However, due to payroll management, the signing bonus has been pro-rated in the Cot’s payroll chart to bring the salary for Rowand to $13.6M in 2010. For signing bonuses that are not pro-rated, what should I do?

by perfectstrat on Jan 31, 2010 2:04 AM EST reply actions