This week is one of the reasons why fantasy baseball is so enjoyable. Sure, it may cause you pull your hair out, but that's part of the allure. This week has been especially odd, as many star players have struggled. It may seem inconsequential to the outside world, and over the course of a season one week may have little bearing on a player's overall statistics, but to owners one bad week can spell mental disaster.
Take my team. I play in a 10 team 5x5 rotisserie league with some friends from high school and college. This week I saw several of my studs go up in smoke.
My first round pick, Chase Utley, has batted a mere .238 over the past week while adding just a single RBI on a solo home run. Evan Longoria, my second round pick, has been mired in an even worse slump, batting .182 with no runs scored and only one RBI over the same period.
To make matters worse, two of my top picks, Jimmy Rollins and Grady Sizemore, are occupying spaces on my bench as they recover from minor injuries. Similarly, Jacoby Ellsbury, my third round pick who just got back from the DL, has been sitting out the past 3 games because of tenderness in his side.
I guess that shows how crazy a week can be. My top five picks have either been slumping or are riding the bench for their team or mine, and yet, I have somehow lost just one overall rotisserie point.
Individual and weekly statistics absolutely matter in fantasy baseball. I pour over my players' stats on a daily basis, looking for a way to gain an edge on the competition. But certain players deserve a long leash. As difficult as it is to see my studs struggle in the short term, I know that they will come through in the end and produce for me. At least I hope so. That's what history has told me, but history does not ALWAYS repeat itself.
That's what makes fantasy baseball worth playing. The possibility of change, the opportunity for breakout, the potential for added value, the constant statistical analysis, the probability of repeated productivity, the rise and decline of perennial studs, the thrill of success, the heartbreak of defeat, and most of all, the daily struggle for inches of ground, or in my case, rotisserie points.
Feel free to email me at sandlotsabermetrics@gmail.com with fantasy questions to feature in my weekly Help Me Help You blog.
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