Hamburg Hackers Wins Week 12 Prize

[Tom Kessenich]

Congratulations to Hamburg Hackers in New York League 1, who finished first in the NFBC last week with 2,848 points.



Huge offensive weeks from Mark Loretta (.478), Magglio Ordonez (.476-2-10) and Joe Crede (.429-2-9) paced the way. Eric Bedard and Curt Schilling combined for 22 Ks on the mound while Joe Nathan picked up a pair of saves.



For finishing first last week Hamburg Hackers wins a Orlando Cabrera Autogaphed 2004 World Series baseball courtesy of Tri-Star Productions. Congratulations again to Hamburg Hackers and good luck to everyone in the NFBC this week.

[Tom Kessenich]

It’s been a tumultuous season for pitching in fantasy baseball to say the least. Rich Verost knows that as well as anyone as some of his top pitchers have struggled in New York League 1.



But last week, with Andy Pettitte buried firmly on his bench, some of Verost’s pitchers finally came through and that helped his team top the NFBC field with 2,848 points.



“All season long my pitching has been poor,” Verost said. “But this week some of those pitchers finally came through.”



Indeed they did. Among the strong performances Verost received:



Erik Bedard – 2 wins/12 Ks

Curt Schilling – 10 Ks

Brad Radtke – 2 quality starts and one win.

Joe Nathan – 1 win/2 saves/8 Ks.



Verost’s offense also came through nicely. Huge offensive weeks from Mark Loretta (.478), Magglio Ordonez (.476-2-10) and Joe Crede (.429-2-9) paced the way.



Verost admitted that going into the draft he basically had to sit back and see what was left by the time came for him to pick at the 14th spot.



“The strategy, if you could call it a strategy, was pretty much to take what they leave for you in Round 1 and 2 and then start filling in from there,” he said. “Personally, I think every straight draft is different and you have to be able to adjust and take what the table gives you.”



That’s not to say Verost doesn’t believe in being prepared. He’s an avid reader of his good friend Tom Zowner’s work on BaseballHQ.com.



“It’s a system for finding good players in salary cap games like CDM’s Diamond Challenge,” Verost said. “I use the basics of t his system and apply it to straight drafts like the NFBC.



“At any point, I can easily pinpoint what categories I’m light in and where I need to focus for the next few rounds. It seems to be working pretty good this year.”



Verost is a 44-year-old optician from Hamburg, N.J. who is married two children. He has been a part of the NFBC since its inception.



For finishing first last week he wins a Orlando Cabrera Autogaphed 2004 World Series baseball courtesy of Tri-Star Productions.