NFBC Increases League Prize In Main Event To $6,500

[Greg Ambrosius]

We are excited and proud today to announce plans for our 10th anniversary season of the National Fantasy Baseball Championship. The NFBC was started 10 years ago when Tom and I worked at Krause Publications. At the time, we had never run pay fantasy contests before, nor had anyone else at Krause Publications. We didn't know any players who competed in pay fantasy contests. But we had a vision of what we wanted to see in a live events pay contest, we had what we thought were some pretty good rules for a competitive league and we had a pretty popular magazine that could spread the word about the contest.

We were fortunate to find an industry partner in STATS Inc that believed in our plan and was able to create the web site and run the back-end engine for our contest at an affordable price. We still wound up losing tens of thousands of dollars that first year (well, maybe more than that) and then had the bright idea to venture into a live events model in football as well. We lost tens of thousands of dollars that first year in football too (well, maybe more than that), but the die-hard customers we attracted gave us hope that we were on to something special.

Turn the clock forward to the fall of 2012 and WE KNOW we have something special here. The NFBC Main Event has had a sellout each of the last 8 years and we believe that our Diamond Season is going to be bigger and better than ever before. We still are the only contest with live regional drafts and we'll again be in different parts of the country this year. The online portion of our contest has just EXPLODED and that's a good thing, but Tom and I will do everything in our power to continue to make the live events special and enjoyable. There's nothing quite like drafting in a full room of like-minded sports nuts and we will never lose site of the fact that this is what makes our contests special.

With all of that as a backdrop, it's time to unveil some of our 2013 NFBC plans and get the ball rolling. We're ready to PLAY BALL!! Are you?

Let's start with the Main Event and a few of the changes:

** We are going to increase the entry fee from $1,400 to $1,500 per team to keep it consistent with our football event. We have the lowest entry fee among the various competitors in football and we've held the line over 9 years in baseball, raising it from $1,250 to $1,400. This year an increase to $1,500 will allow us to do more with the league prizes.

It takes A LOT to win a 15-team league, so this year we want to reward NFBC Main Event league champions even more. We are using almost all of the available extra prize money from the price increase to pay off more in the leagues. Main Event league prizes will now be:

1st - $6,500
2nd - $3,000
3rd - $1,500

We believe that a $6,500 league prize makes this special. That's up from $5,000 in 2004 and up from $5,600 last year. 2nd place remains 2x entry fee, but at $3,000 that's a nice prize. Again, that's up from $1,750 when we started in 2004 and up from $2,800 last year. Third place gets money back, up from $750 in 2004 and up from $1,400 last year.

We are guaranteeing the overall prize pool based on 420 teams, up from 390 teams last year. We did finish with 420 teams last year and had a high point of 435 teams in 2009 before a rough season with Fanball and then the transition to STATS, but this is still a risky number given the holiday weekend on the Second Weekend of drafts. We think we can reach that level and more in the near future. If we do go above 420 teams this year, we'll add to the overall prize pool, which again has a GUARANTEED $100,000 grand prize and payouts to the Top 10 teams. Here's the overall prize breakdown for 2013:

NFBC MAIN EVENT:
Place Overall League
1st $100,000 $6,500
2nd $25,000 $3,000
3rd $15,000 $1,500
4th $10,000 --
5th $6,000 --
6th $3,500 --
7th $2,500 --
8th $1,750 --
9th $1,600 --
10th $1,500 --

There will be a $75 Events Fee for all locations plus Online and a $50 Co-Manager fee for live events. We will have Special Packages which will allow you to waive those fees if you take multiple Main Events or multiple Live Events. The Special Packages include:

2 Main Events - $3,000 (no Events Fees or Co-Manager fees)
3 Live Events - (Main plus Auction and NFBC XII or Super or Ultimate or Diamond, some combination)

We will also again offer a Combined Prizes package for those owners competing in the Main Event and the Online Championship. It consists of $9,500 in prizes to get folks playing both contests. Prizes include:

NFBC Combined Prizes (Main Event & Online Championship):
1st - $5,000
2nd - $2,000
3rd - $1,250
4th - $750
5th - $500

Now for the hard part, the Schedule of Events. Easter is on Sunday, March 31st this year and MLB Opening Day is also on Sunday night, March 31st. We're happy to see Opening Day back on Sunday night again, but this year it makes things a bit more difficult. With the WBC in progress in early March, it makes it tough to hold drafts 2 weeks in advance like we have done in previous years. We definitely want to host live drafts on March 22-24 and with Opening Weekend of March Madness also being that weekend we believe we can have a HUGE event in Las Vegas that weekend to celebrate our 10th anniversary season. So we've decided to have just one live event location for that weekend at this point, unless folks can convince us otherwise. We will have Online options for those who can't make the live events in Las Vegas.

We know that Easter/Passover weekend is not ideal for everyone and we've heard from folks who feel they won't be able to compete in a second Main Event if that's the only time we will offer it closer to the season. So this year we are providing a Main Event in Las Vegas and Online on Wednesday night, March 27th. That will be held simultaneously and folks will have an option to draft in the Main Event if Easter weekend is troublesome. Yes, it does provide a 3rd option for some folks who can't get enough, but that's not the goal of this additional night. We've heard from enough folks who have said that Easter will be tough and hopefully this helps.

We do know that Easter weekend is tough, but hopefully with the regional drafts we can host these on Friday and Saturday and get everyone home in time with the family. We have heard from enough folks who have said that drafting on Saturday is doable as long as they can get home at a reasonable time. We don't have everything finalized yet for New York, but Tom is talking with Hotel Pennsylvania about hosting drafts there. That is right across the street from Madison Square Garden with easy access to Penn Station. Hopefully we can get you in and out of there in plenty of time to get home. We are thinking of a full day of Auctions and NFBC XIIs on Friday, March 29th and the Mains on Saturday, March 30th. We could host Thursday night drafts and auctions if there was interest, but we're uncertain of the demand at this time.

Las Vegas is tentatively scheduled to be held at the Bellagio again. I'm working with my representative there, but all looks good for both weekends. I already have a room block there for both weekends and the weekdays inbetween ($239 on weekends/$169 on weekdays). I will be staying there through both weekends and if there is enough interest for mid-week auctions or drafts I'll secure the space. We can talk about this further, but again I've heard from folks who would rather stay during the week and do some events so that they can get home in time that weekend. I'm willing to work with everyone on this and so is the Bellagio.

Chicago is tentative at this point. We have to have a few more internal discussions. That being said, the Oakbrook Marriott is a possible destination and it was a great site for NFFC drafts in the past. Check out its location and let me know what you think (http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/c ... oak-brook/). But we need to talk this through first and make sure that the demand is there on that weekend for enough leagues to make this work.

Here is the TENTATIVE Schedule of Events at this point:

NFBC Main Event:
Las Vegas
* 10 AM PT, Saturday, March 23, 2013
* 5 PM PT, Wednesday, March 27, 2013
* 10 AM PT, Saturday, March 30, 2013

New York City
* 1 PM ET, Saturday, March 30, 2013

Chicago
* 12 Noon CT, Saturday, March 30, 2013

Online
* 1 PM ET, Saturday, March 23,2013
* 8 PM ET, Wednesday, March 27, 2013
* 1 PM ET, Saturday, March 30, 2013

We will unveil more contest details this week, but we wanted to lead off with the Main Event. Please provide any and all feedback on the price increase, prize increases, Schedule of Events or anything else and we'll take all input into consideration. We are finalizing our web site now and nothing is locked in stone. But we do feel that this is the best scenario for 2013 given the holiday weekend and the new MLB schedule. Thanks for all of your support through the last 9 years and let's make our 10th season the best one in history.

[76erfan]

I for one...love auctions and would be willing to do one Thursday March 28(after 5 pm) in NY if there was interest. NY typically has 3-4 over two weekends and with it being just one weekend...right now..the only option is to have 2 on Friday. Let's at least get a third one out there:)

[Greg Ambrosius]

The only rules change we've made with the NFBC Main Event is increasing the Innings Pitched minimum from 900 to 1,000. This will be consistent over the other national contests (Auction and Online Championship) plus the Satellite Leagues, but I will leave it at 900 IP for the Draft Champions League. I don't believe anyone is trying to dump categories there and injuries could leave some owners pressing to reach the IP minimum during the season. I don't see an issue at 900 IP for that contest. We'll discuss the IP minimum for the Super, Ultimate and Diamond shortly.

We chose not to change the Friday DL rule for pitchers because there's just not an easy solution here. We have stated many times why we don't want a streaming pitchers game and if you create one option for pitcher changes it opens holes for something else. We've just decided to leave well enough alone. Sorry for those who wanted a change.

Here are the updated rules for the NFBC Main Event in 2013:

OFFICIAL RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE NATIONAL FANTASY BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP (NFBC) MAIN EVENT
1. Overview
The National Fantasy Baseball Championship Main Event (NFBC Main Event) will consist of 28 leagues (with the right to expand to a maximum of 40 leagues), each comprised of 15 teams/managers. The NFBC regular season will extend from the first game of the MLB regular season through the final game of the regular season (including one or more season-ending MLB tie-breaker games if needed).
Teams will compete for accumulative stats in five offensive and five pitching categories, with each category weighted equally. Categories include:
For Hitters
• Batting Average
• Home Runs
• RBIs
• Stolen Bases
• Runs

For Pitchers
• Wins
• Saves
• Earned Run Average
• Strikeouts
• WHIP Ratio (Walks plus Hits divided by Innings Pitched)
The team at the end of the year with the most Rotisserie-ranking points based on cumulative statistics for the season in each league wins the league title. Teams also will have their cumulative stats positioned in an overall Rotisserie-style ranking (5x5 with each category weighted equally among all teams in the NFBC Main Event) with the top finisher overall winning the grand prize.

2. Event Location and Fees
NFBC Main Events will be held simultaneously at various live events and online on Saturday, March 23rd at 1 pm ET, Wednesday, March 27th and again in Las Vegas, New York, Chicago and Online on Saturday, March 30th at 1 pm ET. All NFBC Main Event leagues will hold their drafts simultaneously at their scheduled times. The cost per entry is $1,500 per team. There is a $75 events fee to draft at all locations and a $50 co-manager fee at each location.

3. Prizes
Prizes are awarded for league and overall standings.
Overall Prizes
1. First Place = $100,000 PLUS a NFBC trophy
2. Second Place = $25,000
3. Third Place = $15,000
4. Fourth Place = $10,000
5. Fifth Place = $6,000
6. Sixth Place = $3,500
7. Seventh Place = $2,500
8. Eighth Place = $1,750
9. Ninth Place = $1,600
10. Tenth Place = $1,500
League Prizes
1. League Champion = $6,500
2. 2nd place finisher = $3,000
3. 3rd place finisher = $1,500
Cash prizes are awarded in U.S. dollars and are awarded to the principal owner of the team. Teams can split prizes among multiple owners by filling out the proper paperwork with STATS' accounting department before season's end. In the event of a tie, cash prizes are divided evenly among those who have tied.

4. Draft
Each league will be comprised of 15 teams, and each draft will consist of 30 rounds, with each team selecting a player from the AL or NL in each round in a serpentine fashion (team 1 through team 15 in odd-numbered rounds, team 15 through team 1 in even-numbered rounds). In all NFBC leagues, you do not need to fill your 23 required starting positions with your first 23 picks; your No. 2 catcher could be selected with your 30th overall pick if you choose. Players will be selected from all 30 Major League Baseball teams and minor-league prospects are eligible to be selected on Draft Day.
Each team must start a weekly lineup of 23 players with required positions and maintain a reserve roster (which includes DL players) of seven players. There is no position requirement necessary for your reserve roster and you can change your starting lineup at the start of each week. Free agent pickups during the season will include players who are on major-league rosters at the time or players who were selected on Draft Day and later dropped. Even players who were originally selected on Draft Day, cut and then sent to the minors are eligible during the regular season FAAB bidding period as once they are a part of that league they continue to be part of the free agent listing. If the players were good enough to be selected on Draft Day, they are then good enough to remain in that league's free agent pool.
If an NFBC participant does not show up at the draft in time, a surrogate owner will be installed and that owner will use the latest Cheat Sheets from STATS's online rankings to draft players, going in order of the Top 300 regardless of position. Should that owner not show up at all, the surrogate owner would be able to pick players at required positions when those needs are obvious.
If an NFBC participant inadvertently leaves the draft with an illegal lineup (for instance, was without a middle infielder or second catcher), then the NFBC will drop the last pick made by that team (or more picks if needed) and add the last player at that position on the NFBC's final Cheat Sheet on Draft Day to make that lineup legal. The NFBC participant could replace the player who was assigned after the error was discovered during the first FAAB period. All lineups must be legal before the season starts and the NFBC will correct all roster errors that may have been missed at the draft. All decisions by the NFBC commissioner involving final rosters are official.
Time Limit for Draft: There will be a 1-minute time limit for each owner to make his/her pick during each round of the NFBC Main Event draft. If a participant does not make a selection in the allotted time, he is passed over until the next participant makes a player selection. The passed-over participant follows after the next person's pick and again has one minute to make his/her pick. Picks are official once the league facilitator announces the selection and all decisions by the league facilitator are final. In the event that a participant selects a player who no longer is available, the participant will get an additional 15 seconds by the draft facilitator to select a new player. If the participant then again selects someone who is off the board, his/her turn will be skipped and the participant will be allotted a full minute to make another selection after the next team's selection has been made.
Commissioner Decisions: All decisions made by the NFBC commissioner are final. Tough decisions sometimes must be made about eligibility rules, lineups, etc., and NFBC participants must accept the unbiased ruling of the NFBC commissioner.
Seating: Every team will have two draft spots available at the table for live events and each team will be seated in their draft order. If you do not have a co-manager, we will remove the second chair and you will have more room to spread out.
Electronic Equipment: Participants can use electronic equipment during the draft as long as it fits in the allotted draft spot at the table. There will be NO Internet connections or electrical outlets, so participants bringing laptops will have to supply their own power. Cell phones are allowed at the draft table, but we encourage participants to use them sparingly and not in a way that interrupts the draft process. We request that participants limit their usage to outgoing calls during the draft, not incoming calls, and anyone planning to remain on the phone for the entire draft needs to inform the NFBC about that ahead of time.
Smoking/Drinking: Smoking will not be allowed in the Draft Room. There will be a cash bar available in the Draft Room, but we ask that each participant drink responsibly.
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.

5. Setting Kentucky Derby Style (KDS) Preferences
The NFBC will use Kentucky Derby Style (KDS) preferences for draft preferences in all NFBC leagues. The Draft Preferences are listed as soon as you click on your team link. There you will see a list of 1 through 15 in order and an "Edit Preferences" link. Edit your list as often as you'd like and just save your preferences each time before the required deadline for this league.
Here's what KDS does: The KDS process allows owners to rank their order of preference for Draft Day, ranking their preferences 1 through 15 BEFORE the leagues are randomly selected. Some owners would rather draft in the middle, if they are selected early in their league; others like to stay near the top and others like to move down to the lower end. KDS allows that if you are fortunate enough. A sample KDS from an owner could look like this: 3, 2, 1, 7, 6, 8, 15, 14, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. If an owner wants the third pick and he is selected No. 1 overall in his league, he would choose 3 as his top option and he would then be moved to third in that league on Draft Day. NFBC officials will look at every owner's Draft Preferences after the leagues and orders are randomly selected and then announce the draft orders for each league.

6. Random League/Draft Spot Selections
The NFBC will randomly select the leagues and the draft orders of each league once all entries have been submitted by city. For instance, if the NFBC receives 30 entries for a given league, we will put all 30 names into a bin and select in order: League 1, pick 1 is John Smith; League 1, pick 2 is John Doe, League 1, pick 3 is Jane Andrews, etc. until all 30 names have been selected. We also will implement the Kentucky Derby Style (KDS) process, as described in Section 5, to allow owners more draft preference. The KDS process allows owners to rank their order of preference for Draft Day, ranking their preferences 1 through 15 BEFORE the leagues are selected. If an owner wants the third pick and he is selected No. 1 overall in his league, he would choose that option and he would then be moved to third in that league on Draft Day. NFBC officials will look at every owner's Draft Preferences after the leagues and orders are randomly selected and then announce the draft orders for each league. Once an owner has officially signed up for the contest, this feature is available at the game website under their team link. Click on the team link and you will see the Draft Order ranked 1 through 15 and the option to change those preferences next to them. If you decide not to rank your preferences, your preferred order will remain 1 through 15. Owners can change their Draft Preferences right up until the announced deadline is set.
If an NFBC league in one of the cities does not fill exactly with 15 teams, the NFBC reserves the right to fill that league with owners from one or more other host cities or owners on a teleconference to make it full. In that scenario, the NFBC reserves the right to place some of the final signups in any of the cities in that teleconference league. Early-bird signups will not be placed in a teleconference draft league if it's full in that city.

7. Roster Requirements
Maximum of 30 players at all times

8. Starting Lineup Requirements
Starting lineups will consist of:
1. 2 Catchers
2. 1 First Baseman
3. 1 Second Baseman
4. 1 Shortstop
5. 1 Third Baseman
6. 1 Middle Infielder (2B/SS)
7. 1 Corner Infielder (1B/3B)
8. 1 Utility Player (any offensive position)
9. 5 Outfielders
10. 9 Pitchers
There is a 1,000 innings pitched minimum requirement for all NFBC leagues, but no minimum requirement for the number of starting pitchers or relief pitchers on each roster. Should any team not reach the required limit of 1,000 innings pitched by the end of the season, the rankings will be altered to show that team getting 1 point in both ERA and WHIP. No other teams will switch positions in the standings, but the team that didn't reach the minimum IP will automatically earn 1 point in ERA and WHIP. All players must have played 20 games in 2012 or 10 games during the 2013 season to qualify at a certain position. Minor-leaguers who did not play 20 games at any position in 2012 but who still played at least one game in the majors last year, will qualify at the position they played the most at in the majors in 2012. Additional eligibility guidelines can be found in Section 9. If a player returns from retirement or rehab after missing the previous year, his position eligibility will be based on his previous year's eligibility. If no Week One lineup is submitted, the NFBC will determine your starting lineup. After Week One, if no starting lineup is submitted, your starting lineup will be that of the previous week.

9. Position Eligibility
The NFBC will use the following position eligibility rules in 2013:
a) Players who played at least 20 games at any position in 2012 will qualify at that position for the entire 2013 NFBC season. Players who play 10 games at a new position in 2013 will be eligible at that position after they have played there for the 10th time during the 2013 MLB regular season.
b) If a player did not appear in 20 games at any position, he qualifies at the one position he played most frequently the prior season in the majors. Designated Hitter is considered a position for these purposes (pinch-hitting is not). A player who only qualifies as a DH may only be assigned to the UT position. If a player's most games played at a position is less than 20 and tied among more than one position, the NFBC commissioner will assign eligibility at one position only.
c) Those players who only pinch-hit in the majors in 2012 will be position eligible according to their minor-league games played status in 2012. They would qualify at the position they played the most games in the minors.
d) Players who played all of 2012 in the minor leagues will be awarded position eligibility for the 2013 NFBC season based on the most games played at all levels in the minors. STATS will determine that one eligible position before Draft Day and that will determine that player's status for 2013 once he is called up to the majors. Those players who only pinch-hit or DH in the minors will only be UT-eligible.
e) The NFBC commissioner will rule on player eligibility prior to the draft as he deems necessary. Those eligibility lists are final and will be available to all owners prior to Draft Day.

10. League Management Web Address
You can access your team and league via the Internet by going to nfbc.stats.com. You will need a username and a password to access the game site. Contact [email protected] if you are signed up for the contest and do not have a username and password.

11. Lineup submission
The weekly deadline for setting your NFBC starting lineup is on Mondays. Once again this year, the NFBC will allow a flexible starting lineup deadline each Monday. You now are allowed to lock in your starters on Monday 5 minutes before their scheduled games that day. So if you have East Coast teams starting at 7 pm ET, you have to lock them into your starting lineup by 6:55 pm ET. If you also have West Coast players who don't play until 10 pm ET, you then have until 9:55 pm ET to lock those starters in. If your players don't have a game on Monday, you have until 11:30 pm ET to lock them in for the week. On Fridays, the same flexible Set Lineup procedure is in place where you can lock in your starters 5 minutes before their scheduled starting time for that day.
NFBC team owners are also allowed to switch out any hitter (or hitters) from their starting lineup and replace him with a hitter from their reserve roster on Fridays. The deadline for doing that is 5 minutes before the start of that player's game on Friday. Pitchers will not be allowed to be moved out of your starting lineup at any time during the season; what is set on Monday remains for the remainder of the week for all pitchers.
First Lineup Deadlines for Week 1: The MLB season starts on Sunday, March 31 this year. Owners can set their starting lineups for that game only and then switch starting lineups on Monday, April 1st for all of the Week 1 games. Lineups for Week 1 will lock as described above.
All lineups must be submitted on the league website.

12. Free Agents
Any player who is not on a team roster within your league and is on a major league roster or once was on an NFBC team in your league is considered a free agent for that league. Even players on the MLB disabled list are eligible to be picked up during the FAAB bidding process. The player pool is deemed closed of new free agents each Sunday at 7 AM ET before the FAAB bidding deadline and a player must have played at least 1 MLB game to be added to the pool at that time. Participants should note that MLB unsigned veteran free agents at the time of Draft Day are eligible to be picked up or bid on in all NFBC leagues.
Free Agent Bidding Process: The free agent system will be a "blind bidding" process for each individual league. Each team will start with 1,000 free agent "dollars" for the season, and will be permitted to bid for free agents on a weekly basis with a minimum bid of $1 per player. Teams will not be able to see other teams' free agent bids. The team with the highest bid on any given player will be awarded that player. The amount of the winning bid will be deducted from the winning team's free agent dollars. For each winning bid, the winning team must drop a player to make roster room for the free agent acquisition. If a team's free agent dollars go to zero, that team will no longer be allowed to bid for the rest of the season. No bid will be accepted that is larger than a team's available free agent dollars. All bids must be in increments of dollars (no cents). Only winning bids and the runner-up bids on each player will be shown after the FAAB bidding period for each NFBC league.
Bidding Time Frame: The NFBC bidding process will start the week before Opening Day and run for the first time on Sunday, April 1st. FAAB will run every week from Week 1 through Week 26 (there is no new FAAB period if there are one or more regular-season MLB tie-breaker games). Bids will be accepted on the league website from Monday at 3 PM ET until Sunday at 8 PM ET in each of these weeks. Rosters will be updated shortly after 8 PM ET on Sunday with the results of all successful bids. Starting lineups for the upcoming week must be submitted by 6:55 PM ET on Monday. Players who are on teams participating in games with a scheduled start time prior to the Monday deadline at 6:55 PM ET, will be locked 5 minutes before the scheduled start time for their game.
First and Last Free Agent Bidding Deadlines: The first free agent bidding deadline is Sunday, April 1, at 8 PM ET. The last free agent bidding deadline is Sunday, September 22, at 8 PM ET.
Conditional Bids: Conditional bids can also be offered. In the event you may lose out on a player, you can place conditional bid(s) for other players during the bidding time frame. Subsequent conditional bids will become relevant only if the previous conditional bid fails. Bids do not require conditional bids. Bids may have several sequential conditional bids. Participants should note that the computer takes the HIGHEST BIDS and processes each bid in that order if you have multiple FAAB acquisition bids. ALL BIDS WILL BE PROCESSED IN THE ORDER OF DOLLAR VALUE ASSIGNED TO THOSE FREE AGENTS, highest to lowest.
Example:
1. Acquire Jason Hammel, $19, cut Phil Hughes
2. Acquire Jon Garland, $16, cut Phil Hughes
3. Acquire Jeremy Guthrie, $2, cut Phil Hughes
Number of Bids Limit: There is no limit to the number of bids that may be submitted each week in which bids are permitted.
Tied Bids: If there is a tie bid during the season, the team that receives the player will be determined in order by:
1. Worst league standing at the time FAAB was run (Sunday night using Saturday's standings).
2. Lowest standing the previous week.
3. Lowest draft position from Draft Day.
Any tied bids during the first FAAB period will be given to the team with the lowest draft order from Draft Day, whether there were a few games played before then or not.
Commissioner Review of Player Drops: All player drops for free agents are subject to review by the NFBC commissioner and can be revoked if the dropped player is deemed too valuable to be offered to that league's free agent pool, thus damaging the credibility of the overall contest. In the case of a "star" player being dropped in a league for a valid reason, the NFBC commissioner reserves the right to allow the cut but keep the player out of that league's free agent pool for any length of time, possibly the entire season. All decisions by the NFBC commissioner will be final.

13. Trades Between Managers
To minimize the possibility of collusion, there will be no trading allowed.

14. Scoring
All NFBC leagues will use a 5x5 Rotisserie scoring system. Cumulative totals will be used for the following categories:
1. Batting Average
2. Home Runs
3. RBIs
4. Stolen Bases
5. Runs
6. Wins
7. Saves
8. Earned Run Average
9. Strikeouts
10. WHIP Ratio (walks plus hits divided by innings pitched)
Teams are ranked by comparing their team totals to the other teams in their league. The team with the best total in each category receives 15 points and the team with the worst total receives 1 point. Overall points are calculated by ranking your team's statistics totals versus all other teams in the NFBC contest.

15. Taxes
If the principal team owner's prize winnings are $600.00 or greater (or any other threshold subsequently established by the IRS), the National Fantasy Baseball Championship (“NFBC”) must file a Form 1099 with the IRS at the end of this calendar year. We will request your social security number and signature on this form. The form contains the amount paid to you and you will receive a copy of the form for tax purposes. STATS pays the principal team owner of each NFBC team that was submitted on the entry form and you are responsible for paying any taxes that result from your cash prize; please consult your income tax advisor for filing advice. In the event that the awarding of any prizes to winners of the Contest is challenged by any legal authority, STATS reserves the right in its sole discretion to determine whether or not to award such prizes. After 12 months, any unclaimed prize will be forfeited.

16. Eligibility; Registration
The National Fantasy Baseball Championship is open to individuals who are at least 18 years of age (or the age of majority in your state of residence) and are a resident of the United States of America or Canada. Notwithstanding the foregoing, residents of Washington State, Louisiana, Montana, Arizona, Iowa, and Vermont are not eligible to register or play in the NFBC. All registrations must be in the full legal name of the primary team owner, though owners will have the option to add a co-manager(s).

17. Official Rules
Registration for, and continued participation in, the National Fantasy Baseball Championship constitutes your full and unconditional agreement to these official rules (“Official Rules”) and to STATS’ decisions relating thereto. STATS’ decisions in regards to these Official Rules and all matters pertaining to the National Fantasy Baseball Championship are final and binding.

18. Refunds
Once a participant submits valid payment, no money will be refunded unless the NFBC event for which such participant has registered has been canceled. A team spot is considered filled when the entire entry fee is paid. STATS reserves the right to cancel any entries which are not part of a full league. In addition, STATS retains the right to deny, at its sole discretion, eligibility of any individual to register for any NFBC game or event and/or participate in any NFBC game or event, even after the registration fee has been paid, but in such case, the entry fee will be refunded. Under no condition shall STATS be held responsible for any loss or liability related to any expenses incurred by a denied entrant or any person affiliated with that denied entrant. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, in the event that any participant or co-manager is banned from the NFBC as the result of any violation of the Official Rules, then no refund will be given.

19. Cancellation
At its sole discretion, STATS reserves the right to terminate any NFBC game, event or league at any time prior to the completion of the season due to any acts of God, natural disasters, terrorism, change in applicable law, interruption of the season (including strikes, lockouts and/or use of replacement players), or any other situation beyond the control of STATS. In the event of any such termination by STATS, all entry fees will be refunded, with the exception of any live event fees (if such live event has already occurred).
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[Greg Ambrosius]

I for one...love auctions and would be willing to do one Thursday March 28(after 5 pm) in NY if there was interest. NY typically has 3-4 over two weekends and with it being just one weekend...right now..the only option is to have 2 on Friday. Let's at least get a third one out there:)

We also need to find a time slot for Mikey's New York Invitational Super League and the $1,300 New York Auction League. If folks could consider Thursday night in the Big Apple it's possible that we could fit in all of this. It's not going to be easy, but hopefully with enough time before the live drafts we can figure it out because we are without a Sunday New York draft and we had auctions and NFBC XIIs during that day. Good suggestion Andy.

[Tom Kessenich]

We've always had one auction in the morning on the second Friday in New York and then the $1,300 auction at 5 pm ET. I think we can stick with that this year. The keys then are figuring out when to offer another auction and the Super league. I'm not sure how many Super league players also take part in the $1,300 auction or if any did. Perhaps we could offer the Super on Friday night like we did this year. So the schedule for that Friday could be something like:

11 am ET - Auction
5 pm ET - $1,300 Auction
6 pm ET - Super League

Just tossing that out there.

[Tom Kessenich]

I looked at the owners for the Mahwah Super and the $1,300 auction and we did have some folks who played in both. Michael Lins and Roy Ericson were in both leagues. So offering those two events on the same night probably isn't plausible.

[76erfan]

i believe you had mitlof and ericcson in both the 1300 and the super.

schedule makes sense....just trying to figure out when to do the one we usually have on sundays......thats where thursday makes sense i think..and to greg's point....its early enough that people can make their calendars work i think.

[76erfan]

I looked at the owners for the Mahwah Super and the $1,300 auction and we did have some folks who played in both. Michael Lins and Roy Ericson were in both leagues. So offering those two events on the same night probably isn't plausible.

maybe you do the 1300 auction on thursday then....and a normal one on friday.....you guys will figure it out..i think the interest will be there.....

[ALL-IN JD]

Do the Super at Midnight and call it "Midnight Madness!!"

[leonem4444]

Any chance at an Online Auction this year? Would love to do one but don't think I will be able to make it to a live draft with no 1st Weekend East Coast Option. Thanks for the update, really looking forward to another year in the NFBC!

-Mike

[Tom Kessenich]

We've talked about Thursday but that's where we need all of our New York people to help us. We can offer it but only if we know people are going to come into the city on Thursday to take part. That's the key. Certainly if there's interest and we can work it out with the Hotel Penn we'll put it on the schedule. But if our New York auction and Mahwah Super league players are reading this thread, feel free to chime in with what you'd like.

[Tom Kessenich]

Another possibility - again just spitballing here - would be to do the Super on Sunday. If we started it around 11 am we'd be done well before the game that night. We'd enter the draft picks live so the rosters would be set as soon as the draft is over. Again, just tossing that out there.

[King of Queens]

Another possibility - again just spitballing here - would be to do the Super on Sunday. If we started it around 11 am we'd be done well before the game that night. We'd enter the draft picks live so the rosters would be set as soon as the draft is over. Again, just tossing that out there.

This might present some problems, considering Sunday is Easter.

[Tom Kessenich]

Another possibility - again just spitballing here - would be to do the Super on Sunday. If we started it around 11 am we'd be done well before the game that night. We'd enter the draft picks live so the rosters would be set as soon as the draft is over. Again, just tossing that out there.

This might present some problems, considering Sunday is Easter.

Yup. I know. Just tossing it out there. Didn't say it was realistic but maybe we don't have many Catholics in that league.

[76erfan]

what about a 9 am auction, a 230 pm auction(1300 dollar one?) and a 8 pm super on friday? too much?

[FFBL23]

I think you are underestimating the amount of teams in the Main Event. 390 should be no issue especially with the ability to get 3 Main event teams now. I see around 30 people going for 3 Main event teams and 420 teams should be no issue.

I like the bump to a $6500 league prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

I think you are underestimating the amount of teams in the Main Event. 390 should be no issue especially with the ability to get 3 Main event teams now. I see around 30 people going for 3 Main event teams and 420 teams should be no issue.

I like the bump to a $6500 league prize.

I like your math and hopefully that will be the case. If we grow beyond 420 teams, the overall prize pool will grow just as it has during the last 8 years when we've gone over our stated goal. Everyone wins and with the league prizes now being so strong the overall prize pool will get the next bump up. Oh boy, I'm lovin' the potential here.

[Likewhat17]

I like the increase in the league prizes, but I would much rather see $6000/$3000/$2000. At least then the third place team is rewarded with a little profit.

Also, is the plan for Chicago only to be the Easter weekend? I can't speak for everyone, but I know personally that the first weekend would work much better for me.

[Greg Ambrosius]

I like the increase in the league prizes, but I would much rather see $6000/$3000/$2000. At least then the third place team is rewarded with a little profit.

Also, is the plan for Chicago only to be the Easter weekend? I can't speak for everyone, but I know personally that the first weekend would work much better for me.

I understand what you are saying about 3rd place, but nobody ever plays for third place. And it's tough to promote the fact that we just made it better for third place teams. Winning $6,500 on a $1,500 entry fee is now a very, very solid reward for winning your 15-team league and I hope it makes the NFBC Main Event very attractive.

We could easily do either weekend in Chicago. The goal is to have one blowout weekend in Las Vegas and that would be the First Weekend. We believe New York works best on the Second Weekend and we're just not ready to return this year for two weekends on the East Coast. So, could we change Chicago? Sure, if demand warranted it. But we're only doing one weekend in Chicago and even that is still tentative.

[BK METS]

I like the increase in the league prizes, but I would much rather see $6000/$3000/$2000. At least then the third place team is rewarded with a little profit.

Also, is the plan for Chicago only to be the Easter weekend? I can't speak for everyone, but I know personally that the first weekend would work much better for me.

Absolutely NO on increasing the 3rd place prize money and decreasing 1st place. WE PLAY TO WIN THE GAME!!

[Baseball Furies]

I for one...love auctions and would be willing to do one Thursday March 28(after 5 pm) in NY if there was interest. NY typically has 3-4 over two weekends and with it being just one weekend...right now..the only option is to have 2 on Friday. Let's at least get a third one out there:)

We also need to find a time slot for Mikey's New York Invitational Super League and the $1,300 New York Auction League. If folks could consider Thursday night in the Big Apple it's possible that we could fit in all of this. It's not going to be easy, but hopefully with enough time before the live drafts we can figure it out because we are without a Sunday New York draft and we had auctions and NFBC XIIs during that day. Good suggestion Andy.

Greg,
As of now, I am planning to hold the Second Annual MTM LIVE Super Invitational Event that Friday night, March 29th in New York at the Hotel Pennsylvania as I had suggested. I am open to Thursday night as well, but I'd have to survey all the returning owners. More than likely, Friday is going to work the best especially given the post draft festivities in the city.

[rkulaski]

Greg,

I've scanned through this thread. Ever since our twins arrived this summer, I've been pretty busy so please excuse me if I've overlooked something. Are there only going to be live drafts in 3 cities this year? No live draft in St. Louis?
Also, is the NBFC XII is returning with a 1k entry fee?
Thanks.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Greg,

I've scanned through this thread. Ever since our twins arrived this summer, I've been pretty busy so please excuse me if I've overlooked something. Are there only going to be live drafts in 3 cities this year? No live draft in St. Louis?
Also, is the NBFC XII is returning with a 1k entry fee?
Thanks.

Correct Rich. The Easter weekend being one of the two weekends for live drafts is making it tougher to do five different regional drafts this year. We're going to skip St. Louis this year. And yes, the NFBC XII is returning with a $1,000 entry fee. Congrats on the twins. I hope you have them dressed in Green & Gold already!!