FP

I've made a few small tweaks to the FNFT Roster System. Most notably, the columns for FNFT points and FNFT points per game which used to be abbreviated "FNFT" and "FNFT/G" are now abbreviated "FP" and "FP/G" respectively. It saves a little bit of space. I've also rounded all of the decimal numbers like FP/G and ERA to the same number of decimal places so that they all line up.

Amazing Grace

Before anyone asks, I'll answer.

The grace period for changing you mind on your weekly player pickup is 15 minutes. If you pick up a player and then decide to pick up a different player instead, you have 15 minutes to submit the new pickup (by cutting the player you earlier picked up.)

Today Avery picked up Orlando Hudson and then cut him and picked up Scott Rolen 14 minutes and 16 seconds later.

So he's good.

Rule Change

Unless most of you have an objection, I’d like to make a rule change. I thought of this last year but forgot to bring it up at the draft.

I’d like to rescind the Craig Haralson rule which states that once you cut a player you can not pick him up again for one month.

My recollection is that the rule was written before the dawn of the Internet – back when you waited for your results in the mail. One crafty owner made a habit of effectively having a 24 or 25 man roster by shuffling players on and off of his team before anyone else even knew they were cut. Today, everything is right there. Once a player is cut, everyone knows. The rule was also written before we started limiting pickups to one per game and before we had a 24 hour waiting period before a cut player could be picked up. With these other two rules in place, I really don’t see a whole lot of point in keeping the Haralson rule.

Another argument against the rule is that the FNFT schedule is much more compact than it was back then. Today, one calendar month is almost one fourth of the FNFT schedule. That’s a long wait. Finally, it would let me scratch one thing off of my to-do list since I don’t yet have this programmed yet in the lineup system.

Comments welcome.

Playoffs? Playoffs? Your Talkin' About Playoffs?

As promised at the draft, here is a complete rundown of how the FNFT playoffs will work this year.

WHO'S IN?

First of all, who is in? The three division winners and one wild card team as determined by win-loss record. The wild card team will be the second place team with the best record among all non-division winners.

In the playoffs, the team with the best overall record will be the top seeded playoff team and play the wild card team in the first round in a 4-game playoff. The other two division winners will play each other in a best 3-out-of-5.

TIEBREAKERS

If there are ties in win-loss records at the end of the regular season, the following scenarios will set up a 1-game playoff to be held on the Tuesday following the end of the regular season, August 25th: (Ties will be broken in this order as well)

1. If two or more teams are tied for best record in their division, the 1-game playoff will determine the division champion.
2. If two or more teams are tied for the wild card position, the 1-game playoff will determine the wild card.
3. If two or more teams are tied for best overall record, the 1-game playoff will determine the top seeded playoff team.

Here is an outrageous example of how this works. Suppose the following are the standings at the end of the year:

Division 1
Team A 90-72
Team B 90-72
Team C 90-72

Division 2
Team D 90-72
Team E 90-72

Division 3
Team F 90-72

Teams A, B, and C go into the playoff to determine the Division 1 winner. Teams D and E go in to determine the Division 2 winner. Team F must also go in to determine the top seeded playoff team. And then the playoff will also be used to determine the wild card among the teams not winning their division in Divisions 1 and 2.

Suppose the 1-game playoff goes down like this:

Team A - 96 points
Team D - 84 points
Team B - 62 points
Team C - 58 points
Team E - 42 points
Team F - 16 points

Team A would win Division 1 since they beat Teams B and C in the playoff. Team D would win Division 2 since they beat Team E in the playoff. Team F would win Division 3 since they had the best record in their division - the tie breaker doesn't even matter here. Team B would win the wild card since they had the highest score among non-division winning teams. Team A would be the top seeded playoff team since they won the tiebreaker between themselves and the other two division winners - Teams D and F. Got that? In this scenario, Team A would play Team B in a 4-game playoff and Team D would play Team F in a 5-game playoff.

PLAYOFF FORMAT

In order to win the 4-game playoff, the top seeded team (best overall record) needs to win 2 games, the wild card team needs to win 3 games - whichever comes first. The other playoff series is a traditional best-of-five. The two playoff series winner will meet in a best-of-seven World Series as usual.

Mathematically, if you assume that the chances of either team winning a playoff game are 50/50, the top seeded division winner now has a 68.75% chance of winning their playoff series against the wild card team, rather than a 50% chance if they had played a best-of-five. I still like this rule change. It makes the regular season and having the best overall record a little more meaningful, but not so meaningful as to not give the wild card a chance.

FLEX SCHEDULING

The playoffs this year will use a flexible schedule system. The days on which playoff games would take place are:

Tuesday, August 25
Friday, August 28
Tuesday, September 1
Friday, September 4
Saturday, September 5***
Tuesday, September 8
Friday, September 11
Tuesday, September 15
Friday, September 18
Tuesday, September 22
Friday, September 25
Tuesday, September 29
Friday, October 2

If there is a 1-game playoff, it will be held on Tuesday, August 25. The playoff between the top seeded team and the wild card will start on Friday, August 28. If the teams in the other, best-of-five series do not need to play a 1-game playoff, their series will start on Tuesday, August 25. If they do need a 1-game playoff, their series will start on Friday, August 28 - the same day as the other series. In this case, the series would use Saturday, September 5 if necessary to play Game 4 of their series in the second game of a Friday-Saturday doubleheader. This is the only scenario in which a double header is used in the playoffs.

The World Series will start on the next Friday or Tuesday after the last playoff series ends. The earliest the World Series could possibly start is Friday, September 4. This would happen if there is not a 1-game playoff, the best-of-five playoff series is a 3-0 sweep and the 4-game playoff is a 2-0 sweep by the top seeded team. If the World Series started on Friday, September 4, the earliest it could end would be Tuesday, September 15 if it were a 4-0 sweep.

The latest the World Series could start would be Friday, September 11 (baring a tragedy). The latest if could end if it started on this day would be Friday, October 4 - the last Friday of the MLB regular season.

If you want to keep looking further ahead, the 2010 FNFT Draft will be on Saturday, April 3 - which is also my wife's birthday so you'll have to bring her something.

Sad, Sad News

If you haven't heard this news, a fantasy baseball blog is a grossly impersonal way to find out, however duty requires that I post this. I got a call this morning informing me that Dale Johnson passed away last night - the same night he won his 3rd FNFT Championship.

I don't have many details. He apparently fell ill early last night after walking his dog and called 911. From there, his life was in God's hands.

Dale joined FNFT in 1993. He played every year except for one-year sabbaticals in 1994 and 2004. He will be sorely missed. May he rest in peace.

Millers Maulers FNFT Champs

There's a new modern day king of FNFT - and a new Buffalo Bills. Dale's Millers Maulers have defeated Jake's Wretching Weenergies four games to one to win to the 2008 FNFT World Series. It is Dale's 3rd FNFT crown and second in four years. Jake has now lost three of the last four FNFT Worlds Series.

And oh, by the way, the first ever FNFT wild card team won the FNFT Championship.

Game 5

As the offenses continue to sputter, the FNFT World Series comes down to pitching once again. Dale holds a somewhat comfortable 34-10 lead heading into today's games. He has Chris Young of San Diego pitching tonight against Washington. Jake counters with Scott Kazmir of Tampa Bay who pitches this afternoon at home against Minnesota. Jake obviously needs a good to great game out of Kaznir to keep his World Series hopes alive.

Game 4 Update

Brandon Webb has given up 3 runs so far in the first inning. Dale will win Game 4.

Game 3 Final

Alright. I lied. Actually, I was working instead of blogging tonight.

By my unofficial count, I have it:

Jake - 38 + 7 (D Lee) = 45
Dale - 33 + 9 (Soriano) + 4 (Soto) + 5 (A Ramirez) = 51

It appears that Dale's Cubs did a bit more hitting than Jake's Cub. Dale will win Game 3 and take a 2-1 series lead.

I need to go into work early tomorrow, so I probably won't be able to post an update until tomorrow night.

Game 4 is Tuesday.

What a Mess

Like most of the rest of he country, the FNFT World Series is being turned on its head because of inclement weather.

As of now Jake holds a slim 38-33 lead in Game 3. He still gets points from Derrek Lee who plays tonight against Houston, right here under the roof in Wrigley Field North. Chipper Jones sat out yesterday's double header with a sore back, so he will take a zero.

Dale still gets four hitters from today's games: Geovany Soto, Aramis Ramirez, and Alfonso Soriano, all of the Cubs, and Curtis Granderson of the Tigers. The Tigers rained out a double header yesterday and have another slated for today, but from the looks of the weather forecast it's very iffy as to whether they will get either game in. If the games are rained out again, Dale will take a zero for Granderson.

I'll very likely have live blog updates tonight on the Cubs-Astros game.

Rain 3

This could be the lowest scoring FNFT World Series ever. After a night of many rainouts, Dale has a 25-10 lead going into today's games.

Apparently scared off by recent bad outings, Jake kept Brandon Webb down in his rotation and instead opted for Cole Hamels against the feeble hitting Brewers. Webb posted a 23 on Friday night which will probably go to waste. Hamels is slated to pitch tonight and the weather forecast in Philly look favorable. Jake also gets a relief pitcher and five hitters who were rained out on Friday.

Dale's ace Jake Peavy took the mound on Friday and tallied a sub-par 2 points. A 12 point game by Adrian Gonzalez accounts for most of his lead heading into Saturday. Dale still will get points from four hitters plus his RP.

The Cubs' game against Houston, which affects three of Dale's hitters and one of Jake's, is already postponed today. The teams will play a doubleheader on Sunday, assuming that the power is on at Minute Maid Park and that they've had the roof closed the past couple of days. There is a provision in the FNFT rules to use Sunday games if both Friday and Saturday games are rained out so it appears that Game 3 may not be completely settled until Sunday night.


CNN actually had this picture posted on their homepage this morning - front and center. It continues to amaze me how the lines between the mainstream media and the National Enquirer have blurred.

Game 2 Update

Josh Beckett has scored 15 points in his game tonight against Tampa Bay. That's not enough for Dale to catch Jake. Baring a total meltdown by Joakim Soria or Hong-Chih Kuo, Jake is going to even the Series at one game apiece. Jake leads 45-32. He also still gets his reliever. If neither Soria nor Kuo pitch, it will be 5 points from Matt Capps.

Game 3 is Friday.

Game 1 Deadlock

Sorry for the bit of radio silence the last couple of days. Been busy with the rest of my life.

The 2008 FNFT World Series has started, but Jake and Dale's offenses have not. Jake takes a 14-11 advantage into today's games. Both teams' aces take the mound: Brandon Webb (ARI) for Jake who pitches this afternoon in LA against the Dodgers, and Jake Peavy (SD) for Dale who goes tonight against the Brewers. Also throw relief pitchers into the mix for both teams. Jake would take a -2 from Grant Balfour unless Joakim Soria (KC) pitches tonight.

Game 5

The fat lady isn't singing, but she's on stage and ready to go. Jake taken a 75-42 lead after Tuesday night's games.

Connor still gets his starting pitcher Edwin Jackson of Tampa Bay. Jackson (11-8, 3.81) is at home tonight against the Yankees. He also gets hitters Kevin Youkolis and Carlos Quentin and a reliefe pitcher; either Joe Nathan (MIN), Francisco Cordero (CIN), or Seth McClung (MIL). Youkolis was scratched from last night's game with back spasms and is listed as questionable for tonight. Quentin sat out last night due to a sore left forearm and is also listed as questionable tonight.

Jake would still get points for Chritian Guzman and Chipper Jones. Guzman was given a routine night off on Tuesday and is expected back in the lineup tonight. Jones however was scratched from last night's game with a sore knee and Manager Bobby Cox has already said that he will not play on Wednesday.

33 points is the difference. Barring a gem by Edwin Jackson, Jake will be going on to his third World Series in the last four years and would play a rematch of the 2005 Series against Dale.

Game 4 live update

Brandon Webb gave up 4 runs in the first inning. Through 2 innings pitched he is at -9 points with a pitch count of 48. Even if he strikes out every batter from here on and the D-Backs come back and win, Webb will fall one point short. Connor is going to win Game 4 and force a deciding Game 5 on Tuesday.

Connor's second baseman Jeff Kent is sitting out with a sore knee. Apparently Connor is trying to collect all of the injured second basemen in the Majors.

Game 4 Gems

Roy Halliday was good, but Jake Peavy was better. Peavy scored 32 points by my unofficial count, including 13 strikeouts, easily covering Halliday's 16. Gerry added only two more points by Trevor Hoffman making the final score 60-45 and giving Dale a historic victory in the first FNFT playoff, three games to one. Dale will advance to the FNFT World Series; his third appearance in the last six seasons.

In the other game, Armando Galarraga posted a respectable 15 points for Connor. He also gets 8 from Francisco Cordero bringing his current game total to 69. Kevin Youkalis sat for the second straight day (don't know why). Connor also gets points from Jeff Kent tonight. Jake sits at 49 going into tonight's game with Brandon Webb on the hill. Connor wins a tie breaker on Jayson Werth's 21, meaning that Webb must outscore Kent by 21 in order for Jake to win the game and the series. If not, Connor will force a fifth and deciding game on Tuesday.

I'll probably post live updates tonight.

Game 4 Update

Pitching, pitching, pitching.

That's what Game 4 of the FNFT playoffs will come down to on Sunday as both playoff games are virtually deadlocked.

Jake leads Connor 49-46 going into today's action. Jake has his ace Brandon Webb on the mound. Webb is coming off one of his poorest outings of the year (-6); one that cost Jake a chance for a win in Game 2. Jake also gets a reliever; either Joakim Soria (KC) or Grant Balfour (TB). As an interesting sidenote, Jake cut Houston Street right before Game 4. Street scored 13 points on Saturday and Jake would have gotten those points if Soria and Balfour don't pitch. Connor counters with Armando Galarraga of Detroit. A mismatch on paper, but this game isn't played on a computer chip. Connor also gets a reliever; Jo Nathan (MIN) if he pitches, otherwise 8 points from Francisco Cordero, and hitting points from Kevin Youkalis and Jeff Kent.

In the other game Dale leads Gerry 28-27. Gerry gets Roy Halladay (TOR) and Dale gets Jake Peavy (SD) in today's games. Each team also gets a reliever - Wood (CHC), Hoffman (SD), or Kobayashi (CLE) for Gerry and Paperlbon (BOS), Wheeler (TB) or Gonzalez (ATL) for Dale. Both teams' hitters all played on Saturday - none scoring more than 7 points.

Game 3 Final

Game 3 of the FNFT playoffs is in the books. Jake and Dale each go up two games to one.

Jake took a 57-42 decision over Connor behind a 20 point game from Scott Kazmir and a balanced offensive attack. Dale easily defeated Gerry 70-53 behind 20 points from Francisco Liriano.

Game 3 Update

It appears that Jake will win Game 3 in the FNFT West Regional playoff. He leads Connor 53-47. Each still gets a relief pitcher. Connor gets Joe Nathan if he pitches or if not gets 1 point from Francisco Cordero. Jake gets Joakin Soria (KC), Grant Balfour (TB), or Houston Street (OAK) in that order. Connor also gets Ray Durham who did not play last night. Durham has been sitting out with a sore shoulder. Connor would be wise to pick up a new second baseman for Game 4.

In the other series, Gerry leads 53-40 after Friday night's action. However Dale still gets his starting pitcher Jake Peavy, a reliever (either Pappelbon [BOS], Weeler [TB], or Gonzalez [ATL]), and his catcher Geovany Soto who was given a routine night off on Friday. Gerry also gets a reliever - Wood (CHC), Hoffman (SD), or Kobayashi (CLE).

A reminder to all involved that Game 4 is tonight. You are free to turn in a seperate lineup and make a separate pickup for today's game.

Beckett Scratched

Dale's likely Game 3 starter, Josh Beckett has been scratched from his start Friday night.