2020 Championship Profile - Matt Bredin

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Tom Kessenich
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2020 Championship Profile - Matt Bredin

Post by Tom Kessenich » Tue Jan 26, 2021 11:54 am

There was a great deal of uncertainty during the 2020 baseball season. Covid threw everything out of whack and those who dared take on the unique challenge in the NFBC faced obstacles unlike any they had encountered before.

To be tested like that and emerge victorious at season’s end certainly merited praise. There was no way of knowing how the season would unfold, no clear and obvious path to success.

So, for those who successfully navigated all of the twists and turns and capped off this often bizarre season with a championship there was often only one word that could best describe the feeling of winning big during such a tumultuous campaign.

Euphoric.

For Matt Bredin, that summed up his 2020 season in a simple word. His was a season of championship as he topped a field of 960 teams to win the Sprint RotoWire Online Championship and its $25,000 grand prize.

“I was very happy and thankful (to have won the title),” Bredin said. “There was a lot of second guessing during the final days of the season, a lot of worrying about my bats maybe going 0-for-40 as my Batting Average was a concern all season. But overall, it was euphoric.”

This was Bredin's second Rotowire Online Championship overall title as he also won $100,000 in our football Rotowire Online Championship in 2015. He finished with 8,842.5 points out of a possible 9,600 points, earning 92.1 percent of available points in the overall championship.

Bredin also ran away with his league title as he scored 114.5 out of a possible 120 points. He also won two other Rotowire Online Championship league titles and a Cutline Best Ball Championship league title, earning first place finishes in four of the six leagues he entered this year.

It was a helluva season but modestly Bredin was quick to acknowledge that the unique circumstances of the shortened Covid year factored into his championship season.

“Let’s be honest, the team in first after 60 games is never ahead after 162,” he said. “I am grateful to God and feel blessed and thankful. It was a lot of fun.”

No matter the number of games it takes skill to win a national championship in the NFBC. It often begins with a strong draft. Bredin’s approach with his title team was to focus heavily on pitching.

Four of his first six picks were pitchers with three starters along with closer Josh Hader. It didn’t stop there, though, as one of his later-round picks (Max Fried in the 12th) also played a key role in his championship.

“I loaded up on great pitching,” he said. “That worked out great.”

Bredin didn’t just stop with a good draft, however. He also worked the Waiver Wire successfully throughout the season.

“Framber Valdez and Tony Gonsolin helped out my pitching,” he said. “Devin Williams was unreal for all of my Online Championship teams the last 2-3 weeks of the season. I grabbed Sal Perez with 2-3 weeks left just in case I needed him. I wouldn’t have won the Online Championship without that upgrade.”

The 37-year-old Canada resident moved quickly to invest his grand prize once the season came to an end.

“I bought some hockey and baseball cards. I upgraded my 2006 Corolla to a 2009 Civic, one beater for a slightly better beater,” he said with a laugh.

Armed with those upgrades Bredin now has his sights set on defending his title in 2021. But when he looks back fondly upon his 2020 championship one player above all others will stand out.

“I honestly think it’s all about Adalberto Mondesi,” he said. “He was horrific for the first 61/2 weeks, and my team was still in the Top 10 overall.

“Once he had a big game on the Friday with 31/2 weeks to go (on my bench albeit) I thought that might be the push I needed to win the overall, as Mondy heaters always include scads of steals, and that category allows for a ton of upward movement when you get them in clumps. I will think about Mondy when I think about this team.”
Tom Kessenich
Manager of High Stakes Fantasy Games, SportsHub Technologies
Twitter - @TomKessenich

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