Countdown to the NFBC

[Glenneration X]

Now back on track, just 49 Days 'til we hope to catch Lightning in a bottle for our NFBC live drafts and auctions.

[Glenneration X]

48 Days 'til we need to start making our choices on who'll be manning 3B for our NFBC teams this season. Right now, the hot corner is a barren wasteland. Even our options in the early rounds come with issues....


Some can't stay away from the buffet table....




Others can't stay away from the trainer's table....




Some are questioned on whether they can ever get back to being as good as they used to be....




Others are questioned and get tested 16 times on why they aren't as bad as they used to be....




We can all just be thankful that there's one option that has no concerns whatsoever and is an absolute lock to produce. Raise your hand if you can figure out who that player might be......







Who will be manning 3B for your squad this year?

[Ando]

And with that, you've reached your new "Met Low" around here Glenn!

Thanks for the time in doing the countdown; great way to start the day!

[Winston's Empire]

SWEET... With Glenn being so high on Wright this year, he can take him # 1 in the 1000 Slow!!! 3B is thin and you will surely get a leg up on the rest of us that way. Welcome to the league Glenn!

[DOUGHBOYS]

Just a terrible time to be a Mets fan, so even more props to you, Glenn, for fighting the good fight.
Hopefully, for the good of their fans and baseball, Wilpon can be pressured out of ownership.
A good way to describe the 2012 Mets- One Wright and 24 wrongs.

[Quahogs]

Lowy, I'm surprised you didn't post this photo of you and your favorite player ! What ? bad stitch day that day ?

[Glenneration X]

Guys, you have me all wrong.

When I draft a player in a fantasy baseball draft, the city on their jersey means nothing to me. All I care about is the anticipated production. The same goes for the pictures I choose to post for the Countdown. All I care about is choosing a player that fits whatever I'm trying to say that day. If it so happens that the theme of the day is greatness on the ballfield or a great moment in baseball history and one team is steadily represented, it would solely be due to that team having more great ballplayers or more memorable moments than other teams. Stands to reason. Obviously, I can't help what that team is.

In fact if anything, the only conscious decision I've tried to make regarding the Mets is to try and avoid choosing players or moments to highlight from the team I grew up rooting for so that the sheer number of great ballplayers and moments they've had wouldn't end up dominating this thread. Though I don't recall because I've made no conscious decisions to include them, I'd have to go back and check to see if they were even mentioned at all.

[Glenneration X]

47 Days 'til the NFBC Live Draft season. Lobbyist, I know you expressed your concern on the amount of emphasis and attention placed on the Live Drafts by the NFBC and its constituency when compared to the early season online Slow Draft & satellite seasons. However, the Live Draft season is what the NFBC is about, what has helped seperate it from Online only contests, and its bread and butter. The Live Main Event and Auctions were all the NFBC was at its creation, helped grow it into the standard bearer of fantasy contests it is today, and all Slow & satellite drafts were offshoots of the Live Drafts to help support the contest and provide a way for drafters to prep for the Live Draft season. Granted, for many the slow and satellite drafts are their fantasy season, and that is great that there are various levels of leagues offered here for every type of player from $125 to $10K dependent upon how much of our kid's college funds we choose to tap into. Howerver, there's a reason why some are called ancillary leagues and contests. Who knows though. The Slow Draft Championship is a relatively new creation, only in its 2nd year. Its growth is remarkable. Perhaps someday it will reach levels, in registrations and buy-ins and with a prize structure that puts in on a level of some of the later and live Championship contests. Let's hope so.

However, keep putting your opinions out there. That's what the NFBC boards are all about. The Slow drafts themselves were a brainstorm of a player, KJ Duke, who first put the idea on the boards rather than a creation of the NFBC itself. Many other contests, rules, etc. now incorporated in the NFBC were first suggested on our boards by the players who participate and have a sense of ownership in this contest. These boards are part of what make the NFBC great. They are used to promote the contest, promote new ideas, to discuss rules, to tell stories about baseball history, to tell stories about our own personal history, to agree, to disagree, to bust balls and trash talk, and of course to post pictures . And please, don't get discouraged if a post or idea doesn't get the response or support you hoped. I did notice that frustration in a few of your posts. If an idea strikes home, others from Greg and Tom to the players themselves will chime in and agree. If it doesn't, it may be met with an opposing viewpoint or possibly no responses. I've had more than my share of posts that have resulted in the "Sounds of Silence" (2nd Simon & Garfunkel reference on this thread ). Either way, these boards represent a great community. I've never witnessed anyone who chose to be part of this community not become one. Think about it, if my boy Massotto has been accepted into it, who wouldn't be? (Actually, that's a serious question.)

Noone I've ever seen choose to be part of the NFBC community was ever excluded. If anything, they are welcomed with an arm around the shoulder. So to Lobbyist and all our new NFBC friends, welcome to the NFBC.

[Glenneration X]

One final big congratulations to Eli and the Giants, Giants fans everywhere, and especially my buds, Mr's. Jupinka and Nelson for their big wins last night. Now that the Super Bowl is in the rear view mirror, we can fully turn the page on fantasy football (outside of we addicts who started the annual Trendsetters draft last night ), and place our full focus on the fantasy baseball season ahead.


Personally, after one last football Sunday yesterday of pigs in a blanket, wings, chips, dips, big sandwiches, chilis, beers and various other forms of health foods, it's time I stop procrastinating, stop putting off the inevitable, and sit my fat ass down over the 46 Days left 'til the NFBC live draft season to finally get in some serious fantasy baseball prep.




By adding the MtM Super this weekend to my fantasy schedule that already includes the Diamond and Ultimate Auction, I'd better start prepping if I hope to cash against competition this tough. Because with so much invested in these leagues, if I don't cash, I may not be able to afford food next football season. Let's hope we don't have to face that.
46 Days left to avoid the possibility of me withering down to nothing......

[Glenneration X]

45 Days 'til the NFBC drafts for the baseball season the Houston MLB franchise will be celebrating its 50th anniversary. A lot's obviously changed for that franchise since its inception, from its team name to its home field (twice), to what it would advertise (where today would you see both a gun and cigarettes on the front cover of a baseball publication? ) Unfortunately unlike the more acclaimed, renowned, and successful MLB franchise that also celebrates its 50th anniversary this year , the Colt 45's/Astros team still has yet to win its first World Series.




The more things change, the more they remain the same. The same could be said for our great contest. The NFBC has been through plenty of changes over the years. However, as long as Greg & Tom are involved, it remains the greatest baseball contest out there.








So congratulations Colt 45's/Astros fans on your 50th season and congratulations Greg and Tom as we head into another great year for the NFBC.

Congrats also to one more team that has made the first 50 years of its franchise existence the standard for excellence.

[Glenneration X]

44 Days 'til our next chance to accomplish something in the fantasy world that everyone wants to be a part of.....








Something that puts us on a level of the great players who paved the way for us......




The great players who played alongside or against us......








And those who will one day follow in our footsteps.

[Edwards Kings]

Now you are talking! Gotta love Aaron.

Is it me, or does Mathews seem to always look like you just snagged the last biscuit off the plate just ahead of him?

[Glenneration X]

43 Days 'til our next race for the NFBC.




During a lifetime enjoying sports, I've seen some great races that ended in photo finishes.

From Michael Phelps at the 2008 Olympics....




To Craven edging out Boyer at Darlington in 2003....




To Affirmed nosing out Alydar race after race after race in 1978....




And of course most memorably, the Classic Gold Coast Bikini Sprint in 2010....




(For some reason, I was rooting for this amazing athlete. )


Still, the greatest race I've witnessed may have been in last year's NFBC, where the Pig Farmer edged out the Duke by a snout on the season's last day.....what a finish!




43 Days 'til our next race. Just remember, it's a marathon, not a sprint. Remember also to stretch, none of us are getting any younger.

[Glenneration X]

42 Days 'til we start implementing our reliever strategies for the NFBC. There's no position or category that carries more uncertainty or that is more unreliable on draft day and throughout our fantasy seasons than closers and the saves they (are supposed to) give us.


Some of us like to utilize early picks to grab one of the very few year after year studs....




Others like myself wait on the position and category due to that lack of reliability and hope to strike late gold with less sure options....



By the way, for my NYC Main Event team last season, Jon Broxton & Brandon Lyon were my two drafted closers.
By the end of May, they were both shelved for the year, but not until they blew up half a dozen times each in their attempts to bring both my ERA & WHIP into the 5's. The sad thing is that was one of the better jobs I've done over the years at addressing the position because the damage was limited to only two months.

Honestly, is there any wonder that "I HATE CLOSERS!!!!"

[Sack]

Glenn:

Don't fret, I see a guy warming in the bullpen for tomorrow's start that was known to pitch
a complete game.

[Glenneration X]

Glenn:

Don't fret, I see a guy warming in the bullpen for tomorrow's start that was known to pitch
a complete game.

Not sure what you mean Ken. I've been scratching my head all day trying to figure out who to use for tomorrow's Countdown. I just can't come up with anybody.

[Glenneration X]

I know we've all been waiting for this day. There are certain players and certain numbers that are so synonymous, so iconic, they require no prolonged introduction, no theme nor buildup to create heightened interest or anticipation. Just the memories of their greatness is enough. So without further ado, I present to you one last pitch from......

41

[CC's Desperados]

Your first love...nice job on the countdown Glenn

[Quahogs]

Hey Lowy ! you forgot one !

[Navel Lint]

Great pictures once again Glenn!!!!

I watched Seaver pitch on TV plenty of times, but only got to see him in person three or four times, and then it was mostly at the end of his career when he was with the White Sox. Not that that was a bad thing, he pitched well here in Chicago and won his 300th game as a member of the Sox.

Over the years there’s just a couple of pitchers that I have been completely mesmerized by; Jim Palmer, Steve Carlton, Greg Maddux, Tom Seaver, and now Roy Halladay. And while Maddux will always be number one in my heart, Tom Terrific is a close second.

And one last thing, although I would never want to take away the Cy Young Award from Fergie Jenkins, especially since it was his only one, it would be easy to make a great case that Seaver should have won the award in 1971. In fact, it would be relative easy to claim that ’71 was Tom’s best season.

[Glenneration X]

Thanks Shawn. You're right, Seaver remains my favorite baseball player of all time. I still remember trying to emulate his windup as a kid, hands coming together over my head before driving off that back leg toward home plate, knee barely off the ground. It's been said that Seaver's pitching motion was mechanically perfect. The results often were. See you in Vegas in a few weeks. I look forward to it.

Jupinka, Jupinka, Jupinka... . Yes, I know that Tom was Terrific with the Reds also, before throwing in a couple pretty good seasons with the Chisox as well. It's ironic that his only no-hitter and his 300th win were both thrown while wearing jerseys other than his Franchise's blue and orange. Two of my worst days as a sports fan were the Midnight Massacre when M Donald Grant traded Seaver to the Reds for a bag of balls and the day when after finally returning home years later that Frank Cashen left Seaver unprotected to be stolen by the White Sox. Still, Tom Seaver will always be synonymous with the Mets. He was the the Franchise, the greatest Met ever.

Russ, I knew you had good taste in pitchers. Though I was too young to remember 1971, it's clear from the statistics that Seaver deserved the Cy Young over Fergie that season. Unfortunately that was in the days that the voters gave an inordinate amount of weight to the Wins leader in the Cy Young voting. A decade later during the strike season of 1981, I believe Seaver also earned the Cy Young. His statistics were clearly superior to any starting pitcher in baseball that year. Unfortunately that was the season of Fernandomania. Sometimes an iconic season trumps an iconic player. If you throw in 1977 where Seaver was also Cy-worthy (though Lefty probably did deserve it that season), Seaver could have easily finished with 5-6 Cy Youngs when all was said and done. Greatest pitcher I ever saw, bar none.

[Glenneration X]

40 Days 'til we decide on the early round picks who will create the foundation for our fantasy teams. Typically we look towards the big time thumpers, a handful of aces, and of course the across the board 5-category studs to fill those roles. Last season, no player filled the latter role in our fantasy lineups better than Matt Kemp. In this season's early slow drafts, he's typically gone within the first 3 picks of the first round. Understandable considering he fell only one homer short of reaching an extremely exclusive club....





In baseball's long history, very few accomplishments have proven more difficult to reach than the 40-40 Club. It's been achieved fewer times than the 4-homer game, fewer times than the perfect game, fewer times than the 60 home run season. Unfortunately, the very exclusive list of those who've managed to reach that power/speed standard is not only filled with some of the most talented & renowned players to ever play the game....











...but players that we've found out since their achievements to be ones with the most baggage as well.






(In ARod's case, the baggage appears literal. )






Ironically, the least acclaimed player on the 40-40 list, the only one without an MVP to his name, is also the only one whose accomplishments have never been tarnished due to the discovery of chemical assistance in achieving them....








Will Kemp get there this year? The current NFBC ADP list says that fantasy players believe he's at least capable. And with his own baggage jettisoned a year ago, who knows how high the standards are that he can reach.




Ummm, not sure 40-40's worth it.






Also, as long as I'm posting pictures of pop divas today, one last goodbye to Whitney Houston. I never listen to a National Anthem before a big sporting event without thinking back to her rendition at the Giants-Bills Super Bowl. Rest in Peace.

[Glenneration X]

39 Days 'til the first of this year's NFBC "Fast" live drafts. Yesterday, the NFBC held its first Fast/Slow Draft. I read that it was a huge success, ran all 50 rounds in a remarkable 4 hours and 15 minutes, and because of that I'm considering jumping into the Friday draft newly listed on the message boards. However, I did read of one small issue. No breaks were given. Huh? 4 1/2 hours and not one break?



It reminds me of the only issue I have with the NFBC Live Events. Realistically for an Online draft done at home, you can make due with no breaks, especially if you have a laptop to drag around the house with you to take care of whatever you need to take care of. However let's face it, it's not as practical at a Live Draft. Though I've never been a part of a Live Draft that didn't allow for ANY breaks like yesterday's event, I have been at a few where the facilitators have taken it upon themselves to shorten the breaks or put it to a vote on whether to skip a break or to extend the amount of rounds before a break.


I'm not an attorney so I may be interpreting this incorrectly, but I quote paragraph 10 in rule 4 of the Main Event rules listed on the NFBC website:

Breaks: There will be a 15-minute break after Round 10 and another 15-minute break after Round 20, and we will finish the draft after the final break.


Hmmm....where in that rule does it give the facilitator jurisdiction on the amount of, timing, or length of the breaks? Ummm....I thought so, nowhere.

I know some want to get the draft over with and get home or start chatting or get on with the next thing in their lives. Still, there are many others that like the breaks to clear their heads, charge their laptops, rethink their strategies based on the draft flow to that point. More importantly, there are those who NEED the breaks for basic human functions like.....


Grabbing a drink before we get dehydrated.....






(From what I've been told, this is one of Fandango's baby pictures )


Taking care of some private business (after all, we do have some older drafters that going one round without a break for this function may be a stretch, let alone 4 1/2 hours , right Magner ).....




(And given the time to wash our hands afterwards )


And in my specific case, get a much needed ummmm breath of fresh air .....








And some, like Massotto, may just want to chat up the assistant facilitor ....




Don't get me wrong, the facilitators do a great job with our live drafts and auctions and are typically very capable and knowledgeable. I also understand it's a long day and some may be anxious to end their day with us and get home (I'd imagine especially in Mahwah after the assistant facilitator gets a taste of MtM's "game" ), but facilitators, please give us a break...literally.

[Sack]

Glenn:

Sneaky shot, but I managed to CATCH it. Very difficult to keep up with you in that you
Like to toss your 2 cents in on EVERY thread! However, this being your claim to fame thread it hit
Me like a stinky urinal!

Hate to admit this, but I agree with you. I never understand how you can wait for months
On end for a live/online draft and then want to rush through the process. I love draft day and those
Breaks are a very very important part for me in draft. I use the time to catch up, plot ahead, and sadly
As you pointed out let Mother Nature take it's natural course. If a facilitator attempts to rush you along
And/or take away your breaks........Speaking up has always worked for me. They are "working" for us, not
The other way around. If that doesn't work both Greg and Tom are usually very helpful in steering the ship
In the right direction. Great topic, good stuff, even for wise guy Mets fan like yourself.

[Quahogs]

Sack - you can't blame Lowy now... he's just so used to people getting the hell away from Queens that any mention of jetting out of town brings back painful memories of sitting in Shea and watching the jets take off wondering.. "gee, lucky dogs, they're leaving Queens, I wonder if they have real baseball where they are going ??? "