Playing fantasy baseball is fashionable for many reasons.  It appeals to not only rad people, such as myself, but also has qualities that attract the nerdiest guy you know from your AP stats class back in high school.  People love the stats, and people love trying to predict the future.  If they didn’t, then why are psychic hotlines so popular?  For me, though, it is not really about the stats.  It is all about playing the role of the Fantasy GM.

I am sure that there are others who feel this way.  Maybe it is just the fact that I am now a baseball coach/manager, or maybe it is because I can’t stand being drug through the mud for another season as an Astros’ fan.  Whatever the reason, I love to play the role of the GM.  The best part about being the GM: the trades.  Oh, yes.

Trading is maybe the most exciting part of any fantasy season.  I love trying to negotiate a deal on a buy low candidate or trying to convince another owner that so-and-so is not really as good as he thinks he is.  Or maybe I just want some new blood in the lineup.  Regardless, I love trading and think that it is one of the most crucial components to a successful fantasy season.

With the one month mark rapidly approaching, I would like to introduce the first article in a new series I plan on putting out every other week this year.  I call it, Trade Bait.  It is a list of some players that I would like to acquire, as well as guys I am getting rid of as if they were the plague.  I will also start each article off with the list of trades that have gone down in the Denslow Cup before introducing each list.

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After reading Dee’s write-up of his draft picks, I would like to add my own review of the Denslow Cup 2011 draft.  Before we get into my picks and reasoning, let me tell you this: the league is filled with nerds, and playing in an OBP league drastically changes the way our draft goes as compared to other 5×5 leagues.  The draft was highly competitive, and was fantastic.  As Dee mentioned in his article, he and I gathered with a couple friends of the league, shared some suds and BBQ, and had our spring Christmas.  Just as with Christmas, entering draft day you never know what you are going to get.  By the end of it, you got a ton of stuff (or guys) and now it is time to see how it all works out.  I am incredibly optimistic about this year’s squad, So Fresh ‘n So Sheen Sheen, and where we can finish.  Last year was a debacle, with me finishing 13^th out of 16 teams.  This year we shaved 4 teams, and the rosters are representative of that.  So, without further ado, I present to you a team flowing with tiger’s blood and bi-winning, and that is about to right all the wrongs of 2010: So Fresh ‘n So Sheen Sheen.

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National League

West Division

1.     San Francisco Giants

2.     Colorado Rockies

3.     Los Angeles Dodgers

4.     Arizona Diamondbacks

5.     San Diego Padres

Central Division

1.     Milwaukee Brewers

2.     Cincinnati Reds

3.     St. Louis Cardinals

4.     Chicago Cubs

5.     Pittsburgh Pirates

6.     Houston Astros (tear drop)

East Division

1.     Atlanta Braves

2.     Philadelphia Phillies

3.     New York Mets

4.     Washington Nationals

5.     Florida Marlins

Wild Card Winner– Colorado Rockies

NLDS

Milwaukee vs. Colorado- Milwaukee wins in 5

San Francisco vs. Atlanta- San Francisco wins in 4

NLCS

San Francisco vs. Milwaukee- San Francisco wins in 6

Series MVP= Tim Lincecum

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Mark Twain is responsible for popularizing the Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke quote, “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”  As someone who bases many of his opinions on statistics, I could not agree more.  I could take any player, along with any different combination of stats, and come up with two different opinions on that player.  Anyone who has ever manipulated statistics to benefit their own argument knows exactly what I am talking about.  But what about the other times, when you come to an opinion that has no logical basis other than you just feel it?  Deep down inside your gut you have an inkling, an instinct that something will happen.  There is no real rhyme or reason behind this belief.  Most of the time when you mention these beliefs to friends they call you crazy, or some synonym of loco.  The beauty of these types of beliefs is that when they become a reality, when you have used only your gut instinct to defy the laws of statistical analysis, it is a thing of beauty.  I can honestly say that there is no better feeling in the world.

When I was 11-years-old, living in Houston, I told anyone who would listen how the Rockets were going to win it all.  They defied all odds, coming back from a 2-0 deficit in the first round to defeat the Jazz, then coming back from a 3-1 deficit to eliminate the Suns, and finally sweeping Shaq and the Magic in the Finals to win it all; all while becoming the first team in NBA history to defeat four 50-win teams en route to winning an NBA title.  What does this have to do with the 2011 baseball season though?  At 11-years-old, I had no idea what statistics could be used for.  I knew nothing about backing up an opinion with logical information.  I was freaking 11-years-old!  But, somewhere deep down inside I knew, I just knew, that my Rockets were not going to lose a playoff series that year.  Maybe it was because they had the heart of a champion.  Maybe not.  Either way, I made a gut call about sports and it miraculously came to fruition.

Long story short, that premise is the central idea for this article.  In the upcoming weeks you will find a myriad of articles around the web talking about people’s bold predictions.  Most of these predictions have some sort of stat to back them up.  Not me.  I am here to give you some truly outlandish predictions that have no evidence to support them other than I “feel” like it will happen.  This is not about me trying to predict the future correctly.  This is about finding that 11-year-old inside of me who just believed.  This is about having some fun and enjoying letting my imagination run wild with the endless possibilities of what could happen in a baseball season that has yet to start.  So, without further ado, here are my outlandish, completely unwarranted, and instinct-based predictions for the 2011 Major League Baseball season.

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Last night, on ESPN Radio’s Brian Kenny Show, Brian Kenny posed the following question to Jayson Stark: “Is Albert Pujols hitting the market good for baseball?”  Stark, being the baseball purist that he is, was a bit befuddled by the question until ultimately saying yes.  I tried to wrap my mind around all of the possible answers to this.  The answer I finally found was…yes.  Yes, it is a great thing for baseball if Albert Pujols lands on the open market.

If your answer to this question is no than you are probably over the age of 40 and grew up watching guys like George Brett, Brooks Robinson, and Tony Gwynn play for the same team for their entire careers.  When looking back at the game, you more than likely reminisce about “the old days”.  I have no problems with this – we progressive thinkers need folks like you to keep us grounded every once in a while.  Not because being nostalgic is of any benefit, but because you are still a fan of baseball and we all must appreciate one another as fans of the game.

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