I play in a couple of fantasy baseball leagues, and with just a third of the season left, my team in the Denslow Cup, a league that Mike, Griff, and I play in alongside many of our friends from college and high school, is tied for first place.  Because the last two pieces I have written have been a little intense, and since I’m about to head to Opening Night at Ricketts, I think something a little more light-hearted is in order.  So, without further ado, here is the CMWS fantasy team that I’d like to own if there ever was a CMWS fantasy league and the only restriction on eligibility is that players have to have played in at least one CMWS.

Catcher: Mike Matheny

Matheny won a national title with Midland in 1989 after which he took his talent to the University of Michigan, where he captained.  He played 13 Major League seasons and is currently the manager of the defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals.  He won four Golden Gloves and an N.L. pennant.

1B: Eric Hosmer

Hosmer played in three CMWS (with Florida in 2006 and Midland in 2007 and 2008) and won the 2007 MVP following the Redskins earning of yet another title.  He was taken third overall and is currently starting at first for the Royals in his second Major League season.

2B: Jemile Weeks

This one is tricky because a rule that I just made up is that the player must have played the position during the CMWS.  That comes into play here as certain players have played short in the CMWS and now are at second professionally or collegiately.  Weeks was a member of the 2004 Florida Bombers and was taken 12^th overall by the A’s after a stellar career as a Miami Hurricane.  He debuted with Oakland 13 months ago and should stick around the Big Leagues for along time.

3B: Sean Burroughs

Burroughs was a member of the Orange County Dodgers, 1997’s runner-up.  He went 9^th so San Diego the following year, won an Olympic gold medal in 2000, and debuted in the show in 2002.  He was one of baseball’s top prospects for years, had a lot of off-field trouble, and has recently been released, but he was really, really good as an amateur.

SS: Stephen Drew

Drew was a member of the East Cobb Yankees in 2001, the eventual champions.  Because of his bloodlines, there was a tremendous amount of hype surrounding him.  Shortstop is a tough position to really select just one guy.  Even in recent years, Manny Machado, Deven Marrero, Gordon Beckham, and Danny Espinosa have played short at Ricketts.  Drew went 15^th overall, was an All-American at Florida State, and is currently in his seventh season with Arizona.  Cal Ripken Jr. was left off of the team primarily because he went in the second round and was not regarded as highly as a teenager as he is now.

OF: Ken Griffey Jr., Cameron Maybin, Manny Ramirez

Griffey is arguably the best outfielder of the last 50 years, so he needs no explanation.  Ramirez is the same way but for left fielders.  Maybin won an MVP with Midland and went 10^th overall.  He currently plays for the Padres and is in his 6^th MLB season.

Utility: Gordon Beckham

Beckham won the MVP at the 2005 CMWS as East Cobb’s SS.  He was an All-American at Georgia and went 8^th overall in 2008.  Since this is a fantasy team, and since he currently plays 2B for the White Sox, the added positional flexibility he gives my team makes him all the more valuable.

P: Roy Halladay

P: Barry Zito

P: Dylan Bundy

Since he’s the only one without a long and illustrious MLB career on my list, I think this video says where he’s headed pretty clearly.

P: Zack Greinke

P: Duane Ward

Had to get a local guy in somewhere.

I think I’d win with a team like this.

The Connie Mack World Series features star-studded amateur lineups annually, but after some reflection and some searching around old programs and online, a look at the last 11 MVP’s of the Series perhaps does the event justice.  Remember that these were just the players who had the best week while they were here and were not necessarily the top prospect or even the best player on any team.  For instance, in 2003 Danny Payne won the Series MVP award as a member of an East Cobb Yankee team that also included Chris Nelson and Dexter Fowler of the Colorado Rockies.  Without further ado, here are the last 11 CMWS MVP’s beginning with 2010’s MVP, Dillon Howard of the Midland Redskins.

2010: Dillon Howard – Midland Redskins

Howard has been mentioned in pre-draft analysis here at the Sombrero before, but after his selection in the second round by Cleveland and his commitment to Arkansas in the fall, he surely lived up to the hype after his MVP performance at the 2010 CMWS.  Look for Howard to either sign for close to $2 million  (over $1 million above slot value for his spot in the draft) in the next week or so, or attend Arkansas and entrench himself in the Razorbacks’ rotation for the next three years.  He’s a stud and is rostered for the 2011 Series, so he likely has the ball in the opening round against Danville in what could prove to be his last amateur start.  Cleveland will surely have a team of guys here monitoring that start.

2009 – Deven Marrero – Midland Redskins

Marrero is currently in Cape Cod with the Cotuit Kettleers and is regarded almost unanimously as the top position player there.  His career at ASU has been brilliant, and he has the feet, hands, and arm to be an impact SS in the professional ranks.  Marrero hit .471 in 2009’s Series, but was perhaps outshined a bit at his own position by Manny Machado of the Florida Legends who was selected third overall in 2010 and is now the premier SS prospect in the Minors today.  Marrero nevertheless has posted a career line of .349/.390/.515 at ASU and has been the premier defender in the PAC-10 since he arrived on campus in Tempe.

2008: Buck Farmer – East Cobb Yankees

Farmer signed at Georgia Tech out of high school after winning the CMWS MVP as a rising senior and has been terrific with the Yellow Jackets.  In 2011 as a sophomore the righty started 16 games as GTs #2 behind first rounder Jed Bradley.  Farmer posted a 2.91 ERA with 106 K’s opposed to 31 BB’s on his way to an 11-3 mark over 108.1 IP.  He has a tight slider with a lively changeup that both project as at least 50’s, and his fastball works in the low-90’s with good arm-side run.  Farmer has a chance to land inside the first round (probably 25-40) and should not make it to day 2 considering his stuff and history of success in the ACC despite struggling a bit in the cape with Chatham this summer.

2007: Eric Hosmer – Midland Redskins

Eric Hosmer played in the CMWS as a member of the Florida Legends as a sophomore in 2006 and as a Redskin in 2007 and 2008.  His career at American Heritage in Florida was historic as he led them to a state title as a senior while garnering several All-American honors.  He played the 2008 Series after being selected 3^rd overall and refusing to sign until Midland’s summer was over.  As a result, the community of Farmington absolutely loves Eric Hosmer and will always support him in his career, which has landed him the starting 1B gig in KC for the foreseeable future.  As a rookie Hosmer has slashed .283/.335/.451 with 10 jacks.  Hosmer is going to be an all-star with a ceiling that probably doesn’t exist and a chance at the HOF.

2006: Jason Jarvis – Arizona Firebirds

Jason Jarvis was electric for the Firebirds in their only championship run to date.  He was among the tournament’s finest at the plate and on the mound, although his career post-HS was spent on the mound.  Jarvis closed for ASU in 2007 with moderate success especially when considering the role that the freshman landed.  However, Jarvis was deemed ineligible at ASU during the 2008 season due to a conflict involving an online art course.  Jarvis was exonerated of all academic dishonesty charges following an appeal, but the university shamefully refused to allow Jarvis back on the team.  Check this link out if you’re even considering attending ASU, and then don’t go. http://prof-fan.blogspot.com/2008/03/asu-baseball-jason-jarvis-declared.html Seriously.  Bud Selig for once made the right call and allowed Jarvis to enter the MLB draft a year early, and he made it as high as AA as a 20-year old starter before converting to the pen and ultimately being released last year.

2005: Gordon Beckham – East Cobb Yankees

In 2005 the city of Farmington was witness to a show to remember at shortstop in the title game between the East Cobb Yankees; Gordon Beckham and Danny Espinosa of the Trombly Braves.  It seemed to the fans in attendance that they were just trading blows at short with exceptional play after exceptional play and big hit after big hit.  Both stars are now in the Bigs after tremendous careers at South Carolina and Long Beach State respectively.  Beckham is having his second consecutive down year slashing .250/.307/.357 for the sub-.500 White Sox while Espinosa is slashing .226/.314/.420 with a shot at 20 bombs.  Regardless of where their careers ultimately lead, for me and for many in attendance on 2005’s title night, there will never be a pair of shortstops that put on a show of the same quality as these two did.

2004: Cameron Maybin – Midland Redskins

Cameron Maybin played CF for Midland in the 2003 and 2004 CMWS and dazzled both years showing obvious athleticism and baseball instincts. He was selected in the first round (10^th overall) by the Tigers in 2005 and signed for $2.65 million.  He was the centerpiece of the deal that sent Miguel Cabrera to the Tigers and now is starting in center for the Padres after being traded for Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica.  His slash line of .273/.326/.399 is a little light, but he should steal around 40 bags by the end of 2011 while playing terrific defense (4^th best among NL CF’s).  He has a chance to be an all-star at some point in his career and is outstandingly talented with room still to grow considering he’s only 24.

2003: Danny Payne – East Cobb Yankees

Danny Payne was a member of one of the more talented teams East Cobb has assembled with numerous Big Leaguers, high draft picks, and major conference signees, but Payne was the guy to walk away with the MVP hardware in August of 2003.  As a two-way performer for Georgia Tech, Payne garnered All-ACC and All-America honors and was later drafted in the supplemental round by the Padres in the 2007 MLB draft.  Payne is currently a 25-year old in the California League (High A) demonstrating above average on-base skills but little else and is probably in need of a change of scenery as he has been demoted from both AAA and AA this year.

2002: Randy Akasaka – Long Beach Cardinals

Randy Akasaka still holds the Series bomb record with 6 despite adding two teams to the field in recent years and thusly an extra round to the event.  Akasaka went on to catch at Cal State-Northridge and Cal State-Los Angeles but never was able to catch on professionally.  The Cardinals were the last team from Southern California to win the CMWS, and Akasaka along with teammates Ricky Romero (Toronto’s ace) and Danny Dorn (AAA-Reds) were a big reason why.

2001: Micah Owings – East Cobb Yankees

Micah Owings was a two-way star for the East Cobb Yankees before attending Georgia Tech.  He later transferred to Tulane who he led to the nation’s top ranking and a trip to Omaha.  Owings signed with Arizona following his selection in the 3^rd round.  He debuted in the Show as the Diamondbacks 5^th starter in 2007 and, after spending around two seasons with the Reds, is back with Arizona and in the rotation.  Perhaps the most notable aspect of Owings’ career is his frequent use as a pinch hitter relative to other MLB pitchers.  He even won the 2007 Silver Slugger.

2000: Paul Oseguera – Encinitas Reds

This is my personal favorite MVP because Paul stayed with my family during the World Series alongside Hank Blalock’s younger brother, Jake.  Paul gave up just a single run in two CG’s as a 16-year old to lead the Reds to the first title of the new millennium.  After pitching for the UCLA Bruins, Paul signed with the Giants following his selection in the 16^th round of the 2006 draft.  He battled injuries much of his college and professional careers and was released in July of 2010 after reaching as high as AA with appearances in the A’s and Giants organizations.

This is quite a list to be sure.  Who will be added to it from 2011’s Series?  My early prediction is Florida’s Albert Almora, but that requires the Legends to first win the championship.  Dark horse candidate: Mike Bernal of the Strike Zone Cardinals.

When I last wrote about my first fantasy exploits, I was losing in the first week with only three days left. My staff was performing poorly, and I was freaking out in front of my computer screen while Madison Bumgarner, Matt Thornton, and Ted Lilly tried to sabotage my team. After an awkward first week, my staff looked up the definition of “pitcher” in the Oxford-English dictionary and realized what they were doing didn’t fall under those guidelines—and they did something about it (or I made a move). We’ve been through four weeks of heated battles, and I thought I’d give the reader a breakdown of each week, including my weekly moves (henceforth referred to as “Strategery”), best hitter (“Neck Snapper”) and best pitcher (“Cash Checker”). It goes a little something like this:

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When I say this is my first week of fantasy, I don’t mean the first of the season—I mean I’ve never participated in fantasy sports before this year. Previously, I assumed that I would make too big of a time commitment just to be stomped around by guys (and possibly girls) that have done this before and have, you know, strategies and such. When fellow Sombrero contributor Rick Berdelle invited me to his league, “The Sober Valley Lodge,” I thought this was a great opportunity to finally make the plunge into fantasy. The Lodge’s settings look like this:

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It is with deep regret that I bring to you the first golden sombrero of the 2011 MLB season, mostly because he’s my favorite player.  That’s right, Gordon Beckham, the face of the Chicago White Sox for years to come, fanned four times in four at-bats on Sunday afternoon.  Poor Gordie; he doesn’t deserve such humiliation.  And of all things, a Spring Training sombrero! It just breaks my heart.

Anyway, here’s a recap of how it happened:

1^st inning: Beckham is called out on strikes against Brewers’ starter Marco Estrada

2^nd inning: Beckham strikes out swinging against Estrada

5^th inning: Beckham strikes out swinging against Estrada

7^th inning: Beckham strikes out swinging against reliever Mike Difelice

As a team, the White Sox struck out six times in the game, four of which were Beckham’s.  I don’t think it’s far-fetched to argue that this may be the only time that Beckham wears the sombrero in his career.  Still, poor Gordie.