Mixed Leagues are Lame (1 Viewer)

[Reality Football]

I can't stand playing in mixed leagues anymore, unless perhaps the league is stretched to 20 teams or more. I'm an old-school roto player and I lament how Yahoo has dumbed down and watered down the culture of fantasy baseball.

I can only really get into my uber-nerd AL-only/NL-only leagues with minor league systems and minor-league contracts. Joe Borchard and Reggie Sanders represent top free agent talent in these leagues. Anyone else here feel similarly snobby/nerdy about their fantasy baseball these days? Or am I the lone curmudgeon muttering to himself in the corner?

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Yahoo has dumbed down and watered down the culture of fantasy baseball.

 

[Reality Football]

Yahoo has dumbed down and watered down the culture of fantasy baseball.

I mean it as a broad criticism of casual fantasy baseball players and the fantasy baseball "industry." A lot of folks have come to know the hobby through the narrow confines of the Yahoo system and other other free internet game outlets. I think that has hurt the hobby a great deal. The fallout from the "Yahoo Age" includes:1) fantasy baseball drafts receiving disproportionately more attention from the industry and players than auction systems.

2) a lot more casual commitment to teams, causing leagues to suffer.

3) Eric Karabell having gainful employment

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Yahoo has dumbed down and watered down the culture of fantasy baseball.

I mean it as a broad criticism of casual fantasy baseball players and the fantasy baseball "industry." A lot of folks have come to know the hobby through the narrow confines of the Yahoo system and other other free internet game outlets. I think that has hurt the hobby a great deal. The fallout from the "Yahoo Age" includes:1) fantasy baseball drafts receiving disproportionately more attention from the industry and players than auction systems.

2) a lot more casual commitment to teams, causing leagues to suffer.

Well I'm sure you have a legitimate complaint here but I think as long as people are playing, they are paying attention to the game which keeps baseball popular. For nearly a century baseball was the most popular sport in America but now without a doubt it's football. I don't have a problem with that but I do have a problem with people not understanding sports and liking football better so to me if fantasy baseball Yahoo style makes people understand and respect the sport, I'm for whatever it is that brings them in. I'm kind of a baseball nerd as I like the history and play SIM baseball but I never really was into fantasy baseball. I actually like fantasy hockey a little better and I like fantasy football much, much more. I think part of the reason is that I play SIM leagues and football and hockey with people really into the leagues. In baseball a lot of people just give up in July which is irritating. Plus for me I like baseball too much and enjoy just watching the game as something that is relaxing. I don't necessarily want the game bothered by the fantasy aspect.

I have one team in a serious dynasty league but I share it with two others to take some of the pressure off and ensure I still have fun. We actually have four Tigers on the team but I rarely care how those players do until after the game when I think about it. If one of our players is playing the Tigers, I hope they play badly. In football I hope the guy playing against my team has a good but not great game unless my squad is way ahead. Big difference in mindset.

3) Eric Karabell having gainful employment

Is Eric Karabell as bad with baseball as he is with football? I am thinking he is half the aliases at the Shark Pool everytime I hear him talk.

 

[Capella]

why would I want to limit myself to one-half of the player pool?

I hate single leagues.

 

[Reality Football]

why would I want to limit myself to one-half of the player pool?I hate single leagues.

Because the full player pool is way, way too deep. In 12 team mixed you can have three closers and a lineup with 4-5 All-stars.

 

[Capella]

why would I want to limit myself to one-half of the player pool?I hate single leagues.

Because the full player pool is way, way too deep. In 12 team mixed you can have three closers and a lineup with 4-5 All-stars.

so play 14-16 teams then.

 

[Fla\/\/ed]

why would I want to limit myself to one-half of the player pool?I hate single leagues.

There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.I prefer NL only leagues but will do mixed leagues with 14+ teams but prefer at least 16 teams with a 4-5 player reserve. That is one of the great things about this hobby, we can find leagues that fit what we like.One of my favorite leagues is 12 owners NL only with 4 reserves. We draft 5 AL players and get one AL player at the All-Star break. It is really interesting to watch the strategy each year of when and how those AL picks are used.

 

[Mr. Know-It-All]

I play in a 20 team mixed league. Not a lot of all star rosters thats for sure.

 

[Green94]

why would I want to limit myself to one-half of the player pool?

I hate single leagues.

Seriously.

 

[Gottabesweet]

I play in a mixed 10 team league with small benches and lots of talent in Free Agency. Fantasy Baseball passes time until Fantasy Football.

 

[Greco]

I like country and western.

 

[Reality Football]

I play in a 20 team mixed league. Not a lot of all star rosters thats for sure.

This I've found to be okay, though then you become encumbered by turnover issues in league ownership.

 

[guru_007]

When I first started playing, it was ONLY single leagues. 10-12 owners, AL only or NL only. I cashed every league, and won a majority of them. I much preferred this way of playing, as this was the way it was intended to be played.

However, most of my friends were either Yankees fans or Mets fans, so we needed to alternate leagues, one year NL, next year AL. Eventually, someone suggested to do a mixed league, and well, that's where it is today.

I HATE mixed leagues too, unfortunately, it's nearly impossible to find a full single league to play, as most people are too follow a single league for a full season.

In my opinion, there is way less skill and trading in mixed leagues, and that's the reason why I dislike them. No reason for someone to trade speed for power, when Dave Roberts is a free agent, or Aaron Rowand just got waived.

And 14 teams leagues are not nearly deep enough. You should have at least 1-2 guys on your team that only play 4-5 nights per week. Just too hard to find quality roto baseball leagues.

 

[Capella]

In my opinion, there is way less skill and trading in mixed leagues, and that's the reason why I dislike them. No reason for someone to trade speed for power, when Dave Roberts is a free agent, or Aaron Rowand just got waived.

I've never been in a league like that.I think you guys are playing in the wrong kind of mixed leagues.

 

[Capella]

There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.

Sure there is. In leagues where you lose a guy who is traded over to the other league mid-season, that's a huge flaw and an incredibly stupid rule. You mean to tell me that a rule that allows a player I drafted, and have used for three months, and is in my plans for the next three months, now gets taken off my roster with NO compensation, is not wrong?I'll never play in a league that allows that again. It's absurd.

 

[guru_007]

In my opinion, there is way less skill and trading in mixed leagues, and that's the reason why I dislike them. No reason for someone to trade speed for power, when Dave Roberts is a free agent, or Aaron Rowand just got waived.

I've never been in a league like that.I think you guys are playing in the wrong kind of mixed leagues.

Every league I play in either has a large free agent pool, or a large reserve roster. Either way, this pretty much kills most all strategy and trades, as guys are easily stashed, or readily available.When I first started playing, I'd say every owner made at least 5 trades per year, and some owners made 20+ trades. These days there are some owners who will make zero trades for the entire year.14 teamer with guys from this board, with 20% of the season gone, there has been 1 trade made the entire year, and I've received zero offers for trades.

 

[Greco]

There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.

Sure there is. In leagues where you lose a guy who is traded over to the other league mid-season, that's a huge flaw and an incredibly stupid rule. You mean to tell me that a rule that allows a player I drafted, and have used for three months, and is in my plans for the next three months, now gets taken off my roster with NO compensation, is not wrong?I'll never play in a league that allows that again. It's absurd.

 

[Steelers4Life]

I played in NL only leagues for 10 years and I loved it. But I dropped that 2 years ago to join a 16 team mixed dynasty league with 40 man rosters, 13-15 of them minors.

There's no comparison. I like the deep mixed league a lot more than the NL only leagues, and the dynasty/minor league aspect of it is as much fun as the major league roster.

I agree that NL or AL only leagues are more fun than 12 team mixed leagues, but I'll take a 16+ team mixed league every time.

 

[Fla\/\/ed]

There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.

Sure there is. In leagues where you lose a guy who is traded over to the other league mid-season, that's a huge flaw and an incredibly stupid rule. You mean to tell me that a rule that allows a player I drafted, and have used for three months, and is in my plans for the next three months, now gets taken off my roster with NO compensation, is not wrong?I'll never play in a league that allows that again. It's absurd.

That's your choice. Some NL or AL only leagues do allow you to keep the stats of a player that is traded to the other league. The NL only leagues I'm in don't do that. That is just one more factor to take into consideration when we build our teams and how players are viewed when it comes to trading. It also makes us watch players that will benefit is a player is traded...ie. a closer is traded and someone else takes over that role.It's all about the choices we make in what leagues we participate in just like football. Not one league type is better than another...all that matters is we find leagues we enjoy participating in.

 

[Your Mother]

I hate what everyone else likes.

 

[Reality Football]

When I first started playing, it was ONLY single leagues. 10-12 owners, AL only or NL only. I cashed every league, and won a majority of them. I much preferred this way of playing, as this was the way it was intended to be played.However, most of my friends were either Yankees fans or Mets fans, so we needed to alternate leagues, one year NL, next year AL. Eventually, someone suggested to do a mixed league, and well, that's where it is today.I HATE mixed leagues too, unfortunately, it's nearly impossible to find a full single league to play, as most people are too follow a single league for a full season. In my opinion, there is way less skill and trading in mixed leagues, and that's the reason why I dislike them. No reason for someone to trade speed for power, when Dave Roberts is a free agent, or Aaron Rowand just got waived.And 14 teams leagues are not nearly deep enough. You should have at least 1-2 guys on your team that only play 4-5 nights per week. Just too hard to find quality roto baseball leagues.

You are correct, sir.

 

[Reality Football]

:( There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.

Sure there is. In leagues where you lose a guy who is traded over to the other league mid-season, that's a huge flaw and an incredibly stupid rule. You mean to tell me that a rule that allows a player I drafted, and have used for three months, and is in my plans for the next three months, now gets taken off my roster with NO compensation, is not wrong?I'll never play in a league that allows that again. It's absurd.

That's your choice. Some NL or AL only leagues do allow you to keep the stats of a player that is traded to the other league. The NL only leagues I'm in don't do that. That is just one more factor to take into consideration when we build our teams and how players are viewed when it comes to trading. It also makes us watch players that will benefit is a player is traded...ie. a closer is traded and someone else takes over that role.It's all about the choices we make in what leagues we participate in just like football. Not one league type is better than another...all that matters is we find leagues we enjoy participating in.

And some leagues are only forced into that rule because crappy Yahoo, et. al. can't make provisions to accomodate for traded players to stay with their teams for the duration of the year.

 

[Billy Bats]

There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.

Sure there is. In leagues where you lose a guy who is traded over to the other league mid-season, that's a huge flaw and an incredibly stupid rule. You mean to tell me that a rule that allows a player I drafted, and have used for three months, and is in my plans for the next three months, now gets taken off my roster with NO compensation, is not wrong?I'll never play in a league that allows that again. It's absurd.

I guess it's all a matter of preference. We started an AL v NL league with ten teams. I didn't think I would like the fact that I can lose a player to the NL in free agency and not get anything in return. But it turns out to be fun when the winter meetings roll around, plus it adds a little strategy when drafting or trading players. Like last season, I was out of the playoff race so with all the trade talk surrounding Man-Ram, I dealt him to a playoff team for one player and 3 draft picks. Turns out he was never traded to the Mets, but I took a chance and moved him in fear of getting nothing for him. But if a player gets traded to the other league for a player that is on a NL roster, then we receive that player in return. The one thing I don't like about our AL v NL league is that the NL has two extra teams and a deeper player pool.

 

[dparker713]

There is nothing wrong with NL or AL only leagues espcially for someone like you that considers yourself above regular competition.

Sure there is. In leagues where you lose a guy who is traded over to the other league mid-season, that's a huge flaw and an incredibly stupid rule. You mean to tell me that a rule that allows a player I drafted, and have used for three months, and is in my plans for the next three months, now gets taken off my roster with NO compensation, is not wrong?I'll never play in a league that allows that again. It's absurd.

That cuts both ways. Last year I was able to get Soriano for a huge discount because everyone was afraid he'd get traded by mid season and no one had any clue as to where. He never got traded and with the extra savings I was able to build a much better team. Its just another element to consider when composing a team, and if you're paying attention a player is rarely traded without lengthy advance notice.

 

[Reality Football]

Jeff Erickson gets it:

Fantasy FocusPitchers in Commonby Jeff Erickson Printer-friendly Let's start off with some feedback from a previous column. In Cutting Bait, I mentioned that I still prefer playing in the deep AL- or NL-only leagues that mirrored the format of my first leagues (not to mention the original format of rotisserie baseball). The feedback on that point has been mixed. A critique of Tout Wars or LABR-style leagues is that they tie an owner's hands in-season by limiting the number of valuable players on the waiver wire. By doing so, it places an undue emphasis on the draft. This is especially true the earlier the draft occurs, when not all of the spring training battles have been sorted out. It also gives a big advantage to the teams that avoid injuries the best. As much as you might be prepared from reading Stephania Bell, Will Carroll, or Rick Wilton, luck is still a huge component here. As Joe Sheehan discussed before the Tout Wars drafts, part of the problem in these leagues is that the rules for creating the fantasy rosters haven't kept up with the roster constructions of major league teams.These are all fair points. Perhaps having smaller reserve rosters and limited DL slots could alleviate much of this problem, so that whenever you pick up a player, you have a hard decision on whom to cut. That still happens in these leagues (last year's AL Tout title was in part decided by one owner's decision to cut Akinori Otsuka two weeks before he replaced Francisco Cordero as the Rangers' closer), but not nearly as frequently as some owners might like. It's also important to distinguish between the alternatives--there's a balance that can be struck between this dire waiver wire situation and having a 12-team mixed league where each team is an All-Star squad. Nonetheless, there are still good reasons why I prefer the current format of these deep leagues: * Major Draft Day Decisions Carry Consequences: Did you invest full value in Alex Gordon? You'll have to live with his slow start--there are no Melvin Moras drifting out there on the waiver wire as a safety net. On the flip side, if you gambled on Roger Clemens signing with the Yankees in your AL-only league, investing some of your draft day budget on that hope, there's hopefully a big payoff when he dons the pinstripes. * More Trades Are Likely to Occur: Your mileage may vary depending on who is in your league, but if you're not going to find much batting help on the waiver wire, you're going to have to get that help from your league-mates. The leagues I've enjoyed the most over the years are the more active leagues where more trading goes on. * Knowing the Entire Player Pool Gets Rewarded: One of my favorite aspects of fantasy baseball is finding my little sleepers that develop into valuable role players. Guys like Erick Aybar, Chad Gaudin, and Fernando Cabrera should be rostered. One of my biggest complaints about mainstream baseball reporting is when the commentator doesn't bother to research the players in the game. When the analyst can't discuss Matt Murton's role or dismisses his value because "he hasn't seen him play" in person, it just drives me up the wall. I'm veering off-track a little here, but the point is that these guys have or could have considerable value in the right situation, and that should be reflected in fantasy leagues.Perhaps this discussion is an exercise of question-begging, however. The most widely played format of fantasy baseball is the 12-team mixed league, with daily moves in many cases. However, it's been my assumption that our readership is more likely to play in deeper leagues with more intricate formats. Am I wrong in this assumption? In which formats do you play? What sort of issues would you like to see addressed?

 

[koby925]

15 team mixed league. 7X7 categories (holds, losses, walks, total bases added to 5X5). 13 offensive starters a night - 5OFs, util, corner and middle infield and all positions. 9 starting pitcher spots, 3 bench, 3 DL spots. This league is never boring. Any emerging/platooning hitters, middle relievers, possible 5th starters have to be rostered or at least considered by everyone in such a deep league.

Guys like Ross Gload and Reggie Willits were hot commodities recently cause of their OF eligibility and increased PT due to injuries.