2008 NFBC Champion Profile - Pat Tremaglio and Kevin Sullivan

[Tom Kessenich]

1. How did it feel to win the league title?

Being involved in the NFBC from the start, it was great to finally win our league title and come in seventh overall in the country. We always felt like we had the knowledge to compete but have definitely adjusted some of our strategies over the years, it really paid off in 2008.



2. What were the keys to your championship season?

We had a pretty good draft with players such as David Wright, Berkman, Granderson, Carlos Pena, Mauer, Pedroia, Lincecum, DiceK, Jurjens, Soria, Lidge, etc. Those guys were all solid and we were aggressive on the waiver wire all season. We really tried to address our weaknesses and did a good job of filling the gaps.



3. Was there a point in the season when you began to realistically believe you could win the title?

I think about three-quarters of the way through the season we started making our push. Our team was firing on all cylinders and we made some quality late pickups like Mike Aviles, Shin-Soo Choo, and Elijah Dukes that helped us quite a bit down the stretch.



4. What draft day strategies worked out the best?

We really try to focus on hitting and taking the best player available when our slot came up on the board. We haven't had luck with taking a big gun pitcher in the early rounds so we usually try to get our staff going in the 5th/6th round, somewhere around there. That strategy has seemed to work in our favor. Also, it's really helped to have both of us at the draft together. We try to be really organized going in and develop a plan/strategy and stick close to it. There's a lot going on with the players flying off the board so it helps to have two sets of eyes and ears analyzing everything going on.



5. Did any not work out the way you planned?

We had some early injuries to overcome. Curtis Granderson got hurt right before the season and never really got going for the SBs we were looking for (luckily Pedroia and Berkman picked up the slack). We also drafted Yovani Gallardo who was good for a few starts but then missed most of the season. Those were two top 10 round picks for us that we had to overcome for significant amounts of time. We took Aaron Hill and Pedroia back to back, thinking Hill would really have a good season but he obviously had his problems after his collision with the heavyweight known as David Eckstein. We could have done a better job with stolen bases but we were able to get enough contributions to stay in the middle of the pack....which was a huge factor in the final outcome.



6. How did FAAB work for you?

We did pretty well in the bidding process. Aside from some of the guys mentioned above, we were able to get some good players...Kyle Lohse, Matt Joyce, Matt Lindstrom, Cameron Maybin, etc. We way overspent on Chris Perez and that wasn't the smartest move but you need to take the good with the bad over the season. The one that probably hurt the most was losing Kelly Shoppach by a few dollars, just missed him and he would have been a great #2 catcher for us. Also, this is one of the details of the NFBC where we think it's great to have a co-manager. We really trust each other to make decisions/bids and stick by those decisions. If one of us is on vacation or away on business, we trust the other guy to make whatever moves he thinks will benefit our team. This competition can consume you so it's nice to take a few days off every now and then and not go running to find a computer when you're away for a bit.



7. How was the competition in your league and the overall event?

The competition was great as always. Our league championship was not decided until after the play-in games for the playoffs. The season couldn't end soon enough for us at that point. We had a bunch of teams jockeying for position at the top of our league right down to the wire.



8. How long have you been playing fantasy baseball/fantasy sports?

We're both about 10 year veterans, although mostly local leagues. We have been co-owners in NFBC since the first year though.



9. Personal info - married/single, where do you live, what do you do for a living?

Pat- I'm 31 years old, live in New York City with my wife Julie. I spent the last nine years as a Superintendent/Purchasing Agent with Turner Construction Company but recently left to pursue a career in music promotion, I also created and maintain a music blog: www.thetremagazine.blogspot.com



Kevin- I’m 31 years old and live in Fairfield, CT with my wife, Brooke. I manage commercial real estate properties for an environmental engineering firm for a living but I would rather be fishing, boating or playing fantasy sports.



We've known each other basically our whole lives. Our dads were roommates in college and we're born 3 weeks apart. It's definitely helped having a co-manager that you know and trust.......we completely run the team together, it's been a great experience.