2005 NY/Chicago NL Champion Profile - Phillip McDonald

[Tom Kessenich]

It’s long been said that baseball is a marathon, not a sprint. That is especially true for fantasy baseball owners.



Taking that into consideration, any fantasy baseball title won shouldn’t be taken lightly given all the work that goes into a first-place finish. But in the NFBC, where the best of the best congregate, taking home a league title brings with it added satisfaction given the competition involved.



That’s definitely how Phillip McDonald felt after claiming top honors in the New York/Chicago NL Auction League in 2005.



“Once the season ended (finishing first) was a great feeling of accomplishment,” he said. “Playing in the NFBC has all of t he typical difficulties with winning a league – times 10.



“In local leagues there are certain people within the league that keep up with baseball moreso than others, stay active in FAAB and compete well. You tend to focus on what those teams do on a daily basis.



“However, in the NFBC, everyone stays active and keeps up throughout the season. So you have to focus on every team in the league.”



In McDonald’s league, though, it became a two-team race down the stretch with Brooklyn Blues offering a stern challenge for the league’s top prize.



“I was able to move into the top few positions in the league in June and by August there was some point separation between myself, (Brooklyn Blues) and the rest of the league,” McDonald said. “So I knew I had a good chance to win relatively early in the season.



“However, in August and September we were trading the first-place spot on a daily basis with 1-2 points separating. So there was no certainty about the outcome until the season had ended.”



As was the case with many other championship teams two of the keys to McDonald’s success were finding some great value picks on Draft Day and making shrewd in-season moves to bolster his roster.



“At the draft I was able to get what turned out to be outstanding bargains in Morgan Ensberg, Willy Taveras and John Patterson,” he said. “Also acquiring free agents before the player assumed a prominent position on their teams, such as Derrick Turnbow, Wilson Betemit, Scott Stauffer and Cory Sullivan allowed me to get quality players for less FAAB.



“This allowed me to conserve enough dollars to land a big fish at the trade deadline – which for my team was Kyle Farnsworth. In addition to acquiring a strong lineup and making timely FAAB pickups, my team was able to stay relatively healthy for most of the season.”



McDonald also said a key element in his work on Draft Day was remaining true to the pre-draft values he set for players.



“It’s difficult with 13 teams competing for players not to bid for he moon for guaranteed studs such as (Albert) Pujols,” said McDonald, who lives in Huntsville, Al. and works as a logistics manager. “However, once the prices got outside my range I would let them pass.



“The result was a starting lineup of solid players, but none of the top players at any of their positions with the exception of mark Prior, whom I was able to pick up at a bargain due to people being afraid of his injury status. I did resolve to get two quality closers at the auction where I acquired Billy Wagner and Guillermo Mota. With 13 teams and only 16 closers in the NL, it is a competitive advantage to have two in the fold.”



Mota didn’t pan out but grabbing Turnbow in free agency paid huge dividends. Moves like that were critical, McDonald said, because the competition in his league was stellar throughout the year.



He also has plenty of praise for the NFBC as well.



“The NFBC is the premier fantasy event in the industry,” said McDonald, a 15-year vet of fantasy sports. “I have participated in both seasons and have been impressed with the NFBC in terms of the first-rate service provided by Greg, Tom and the rest of the Krause crew as well as the seamless organization of activities.



“These draft weekends become events with numerous activities to occupy your time. However, the NFBC doesn’t simply put on a good inaugural show, they maintain their commitment to top service throughout the season which is a distinguishing characteristic that all of us, as participants, most appreciate.”