Capricious Nature of FAAB

[Liquidhippo]

I know this has been discussed before, but FAAB remains the one thing I absolutely abhor about fantasy baseball. Complete crapshoot from the get-go. I know Greg has expressed that he doesn't like Ron Shandler's Vickrey(sp?) system. But I'm beyond frustrated with the current blind FAAB, as, in my opinion, it favors luck over skill. I've lost count of the number of players I barely missed out that would have made a huge difference in a numerous leagues I'm in.



Greg - any chance of reconsidering modifying the current FAAB system to incorporate a little more skill?



Think about it, which system would involve more skill in, say live auctions:



a) The current system in which you can tailor your bids to a specific amount. If the highest bid for Josh Hamilton is $8, you can bid $9 or up to a specified ceiling you have in mind.



b) A blind bidding system in which, everyone writes down on a sheet of paper their bid, you have no way of outbidding anyone for players you really like, other than overpaying with a ridiculously high amount.



The same thing happens with FAAB, and I'm sure many of you have seen it. The only way to ensure a pickup is to spend $500+. That ensures you of 2 quality pickups over the course of a season.



But with the vickrey system you don't have to overpay, rather you're rewarded for accurately assessing a players true value, his market value, and the potential differences between these values.



Blind FAAB as it is rewards those who lucky. Nothing more.



[ September 29, 2008, 06:00 PM: Message edited by: Liquidhippo ]

[Greg Ambrosius]

Greg, I know you don't want to hear this, but Vickrey is not the answer. It rewards players in less aggressive leagues. +$1 isn't the answer in a competition with 25+ leagues.



Maybe there is a better FAAB system than complete blind bidding, but it must not make us slaves to our computers on Sunday nights and it can't be just +$1 over the next highest bid. Sorry.