2006, first team. Advice needed

[jschrah]

Waivers have passed on my first 2006 team. Any advice you could give would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jay

[url]http://fantasygames.sportingnews.com/baseball/stratomatic/2006/team/team_other.html?user_id=27644[/url]

[visick]

[u:fa504e9827]Hitting wise:[/u:fa504e9827]

Kendall is pretty much useless in US Cell. There are better options like:
Fasano and Barajas.

Konerko is fine.

Polanco, while he's go a nice card, is a small ball player. He'll work in any park, but you need guys with BPHR's. (ie. Kent)

ARod will mash.

I like Floyd in this set. Expect a low BA but nice SLG.

Dye is a good bargain.

Wells is OK if you are going to see ALOT of LH's.

You need some table setters for the top of the lineup. Guys to get on base for the big hitters.


[u:fa504e9827]Pitching:[/u:fa504e9827]

Harden is lights out, but very expensive. You might be better off served investing in you hitting rather than pitching. (Look @ Bautista, Chacon, Thomson, Clement etc...)

[jschrah]

Dropped Kendall, Wells (10 RH starters to 2 LH starters in division), Bako, and Vizcaino.

Picked up M. Bradley, Barajas, Hollins, and Durham.

Thanks for the advice. Traded .665, .783, .662, and .636 OPS for .834, .772, .714, and .785). Bradley should add OBP to the start of my lineup and hopefully fix that problem.

Hopefully my lineup should be strong.........
Polanco SS
Bradley CF
Kent 2B
A Rod 3B
Konerko 1B
Floyd LF
Dye RF
C. Lee DH
Barajas C

Thanks again,
Jay

[fredpaii]

[quote:ed621bc0a9="jschrah"]Dropped Kendall, Wells (10 RH starters to 2 LH starters in division), Bako, and Vizcaino.

Picked up M. Bradley, Barajas, Hollins, and Durham.

Thanks for the advice. Traded .665, .783, .662, and .636 OPS for .834, .772, .714, and .785). Bradley should add OBP to the start of my lineup and hopefully fix that problem.

Hopefully my lineup should be strong.........
Polanco SS
Bradley CF
Kent 2B
A Rod 3B
Konerko 1B
Floyd LF
Dye RF
C. Lee DH
Barajas C

Thanks again,
Jay[/quote:ed621bc0a9]

Jay, don't keep Bradley. He's a five on the injury scale. Six is worst so you know five is pretty bad. That means Bradley could miss up to around 40 or so games. Guys help me out if that guess is wrong. I want to suggest a player that is available for you to put at CF but I fear that it may not be so ethical of me since I am playing in your league. Don't keep Bradley though.

[chasenally]

Bradley will spend alot of time on the bench but that is not your big problem. Paplebon will have to start as you have only 5 pitchers and none of them pitch on 3 days rest. When you play in a hitters park you need to carry atleast 11 pitchers. You will kill your pitching staff in this park.

[fredpaii]

Just read down a couple messages.

[chasenally]

Is Russ and Polanco at SS and 2B? That will be very bad for defense. When Polanco goes down for up to 15 games as he has less then 600 plate app. Kemp will have tp play 2B. That's bad range trying to catch a grounder with a wet paper bag. Your OF has no range and when Bradley goes down not only will they not get to the ball before it hits the fence they will either drop it or over throw the cut off man. I have found that any outfielder with more then 8 errors in this game, you can double that. It looks like that you will start 7 of 9 RHB in every game. RHP will kill you. All of your relief pitching has only 1 inning before fatigue. Your defense is really bad and your range is even worse. You need to get some RP that pitches for more then 1 inning. Any SP that has less then 200 innings can be on the DL for more then 3 games. Then you get into a already short bullpen. 2 of your 4 starters give up way too many BPHR's. Spend less on SP and more on RP as they will pitch many innings. Get some RP that has 2 or more innings before fatigue. Your team looks good player by player but not as a whole and not in a ballpark that gives up alot of runs. Find a CF with a 1 range and good arwm even if he hits .081. Get a SS with the same if you have to. 2 or 3 smashers will do and fix the bullpen and add one or 2 as they will be out there after the 6th inning alot. Drop Bradley and your 3rd and 4th starter and get 2 that are cheap and no HR's on there card. I can't tell you the players you are looking for as I don't follow baseball that much anymore, but I do play this game and can read the cards and this team will lose 100 games as it is. :cry:

[fredpaii]

In my brief experience playing this game I've seen a few 90-100 game winners with SS's having a "3" range factor. Of course it helps if the hitter is as good as Michael Young is.

And one team I just got through playing against finished with a league-high 101 wins and he had a 2e8 at 2B, but only a 3e19 at SS, a 3e4 at CF, a 3e3 in LF, a 3e4 in RF, and a 4e9 at 1B. And he was [b:cbac4a344c]second[/b:cbac4a344c] in the league in least earned runs allowed (a Petco team was first). He did that while playing in a hitter's Park (PNC).

[chasenally]

The first number is range and that can be OK. When you have a 3 with a 25 error to go along with it that is really bad. I would take a LF with a 4 and a 3 error but I would not take a 4 with a 10 error. A 1 in RF with a 15 error will give up the runs he takes away with his glove with throwing errors. I on the other hand have never won 100 games or my division. I have taken OF players with great bat but really bad range with really bad errors (Vlad) and just got hammered. Had Manny Rameriz and Vlad in OF with Otriz at 1B and had to scramble at the end of the season not to lose 100 games. I beleived at the beginning of the season that I had built the best team I ever had. The batters where nasty but thier defense was even more nasty. Got to catch it before you can bat it. P have won it all twice in 10 teams but still feel that a Division Championship is bigger and better and I don't have it yet. Fell short by 1 and 4 games and that hurt. Pitching and defense was my down fall and oh yea that SOB HAL. His team will stink and you know it. Help him and who cares about the rest in your league. That's how I got started. When I lost by 4 he swept me in the last 3 of the season and went on to the playoffs. If the players are on waviers help him out. Thats the help I got. You are not trading him players you are helping him with players no one wanted during the draft or waviers or up until the start of the season. Hell you don't even want those players or ypou would have taken them.

[fredpaii]

My point was that while I may be eager to offer my assistance, it does not necessarily mean I would be helping him (as in a better w-l record). HAL is, like you mentioned, hard to gauge or understand at times.

Maybe you're right about offering help to someone in your own league. I guess Jerlins helped me out when we played together in my first league. Not sure if the season had started yet or not. But what the hell.

I'll give Jay my suggestions at our league. Doesn't mean they'll make him win anything. Just my suggestions.