Mon May 04, 2020 5:37 pm
Oh, well. As I think this through, our 24 team league has a much larger problem than LMB's constraints. In fact, I don't think we can use AD, at all.
Here's why.
Most of the superstars collide on multiple teams. Just looking at my own eligibles; Mantle, Mays, Snider, Aaron, Banks, and Kaline collide on at least three teams each (Snider might only be two). I think Mays is five. Aaron may also be five. Most of us can only squeeze one of our superstars in on our draft cards. If we try for two, it really thins out the rest of the card (but, some will squeeze two and even three). Squeezing more than one actually makes the issue worse. No ones' odds will even be 50% for most of the superstars because of how many teams will shoot for them (unless we collude with each other individually; which isn't really fair). The same is true for some mid-priced players and even desirable, low-priced players like good fielding middle infielders and catchers. Except, managers can fit multiples of the lower priced players on their cards increasing the # of teams trying to draft them. Of course, not every player is eligible on three or more teams. But, many are.
Point is, a lot of these players will be on three (and sometimes more) draft cards. Which means that two (or more) of our teams will miss on each of these players. HAL will substitute and it will be a mess / free-for-all / anything goes because HAL won't substitute according to our eligible rosters. HAL's substitute choices will result in multiple ineligible players on everyones' rosters. Maybe as many as five - eight - ten on each roster. There won't be any way to return them all to free agency. None of us will have rights to the wrongly drafted players. If I get McGwire because I missed on Mays and that's who HAL substituted, I can't trade him because I don't have rights to him and it wouldn't be fair and I may not be able to drop him into free agency before waivers if I have too many ineligibles and not enough roster room to drop them all.
So, waivers fires at 5pm and then it is a free-for-all while everyone tries as fast as they can to scan for their eliglbles and pick them up before their competitors. Except the folks who are working or at family events or who's wifi craps out or who knows what interferes. This is grossly unfair. And, of course, a few ineligibles won't get dropped at waivers for whatever reason and then the manager who doesn't actually own them will dictate when they become available in the free agent pool (eg. when they drop them) - an opportunity for more collusion.
That's why we need to draft at least the first few rounds.
No one has to believe me about this. We can go forward with the AD and see how many ineligibles are on everyones' teams and who tries to trade someone they don't have rights to. Then, we can contact 365support and ask them to crap it all and think about how to do it over.
This theme is a good theme, it really is. But, it is a difficult theme to execute if we don't mitigate the inherent failings.
