Who would have known?

The Dutch Ovens aren't really that bad. I mean we're not great, but we aren't horrible. We're not last in any statistical categories. In fact we're in the middle of everything. Yet we have the second worst record in the league. Does this make sense? I would think not.

If I can say one thing about the Ovens, we were consistant. If I can say 2 things, we didn't give up. If I can say 3 things, we're damn good looking. As Frank said, small victories.

And we're already looking forward to next year. We got some things in the works for a bounce back year, so get ready for a Dutch Oven explosion! Or at least not a last place finish again.

Where in the World is...New Lib?

Okay, I'm cleaning out my inbox, came across this and realized it's never been shared with the whole league. So, for those of you always wondering where the hell New Libertatia was, here ya go from Capt. Klong himself:

"As for the location of my team, that would be what is known in the real world as Gardiner's Island, which is in between the tips of Long Island's forks. The story in NFSL world is that a descendant of the famous privateer Captain Kidd found his ancestor's buried treasure on the island (where he supposedly did actually bury some loot) from an old map handed down through the generations and used it to buy the island from the Gardiner's, ending their 300+ year family reign there, and start a baseball team for the fledgling NFSL. In keeping with the pirate theme to honor his forebearer (and for the marketing potential), he renamed the island after the mythical pirate's utopia thought to be based in Madagascar. Hence, New Libertatia is born. I may have thought about this a little too much, but that should help you out."

What Would David Wright Do?

Click here. (It's on Salon.com. Hopefully, you can view it without any trouble.)

Power Rankings IV

1. Simpsonville Slayers (Last Ranking: 2)

• Opened up the biggest division lead thanks in large part to their tie fetish (If a tie is like kissing your sister, 17 ties must be, what, third base at least, right?). Neck and neck with the Shepherds but get the edge for loitering around the top spot all year. Not much should change as the two teams play Ridge and St. Olaf this week.
  

2. Westphalia Shepherds (4)

• Rung-by-rung they've climbed the ladder, finally grabbing Setauket's ankle and yanking. Really hard. Now that they're on top, time to see how long and hard they can keep yanking.
  

3. Setauket Horde (1)

• Wah wah wah...there's a Power Rankings curse...wah wah wah...it's not fair...goo goo gaa gaa...I poopied in my diaper.
  

4. Ninth Street Nine (3)

• There's something about Paul that I just don't trust. Maybe it's the fact that you can't trust him. Whatever it may be, I can see the competitive spirit reawakened and, speaking from experience, that's not good for anyone--man, woman, or pre-op trannie. Don't say I didn't warn you.
  

5. Shaolin Empire (7)

• Finally getting some breathing room from Bay Ridge...and Pequash has decided to get all up in their grill. You know, it's hard to build an empire when you can't get any alone time.
  

6. Mattituck Natives (6)

• Evidently, cruise control won't be a problem. Being in a godawful division will do that, I guess. Poor Satchel Paige. First, segregation, Now, this.
  

7. Nassau Chin Music (5)

• A merciless mauling by the Panthers has left them bloodied and clinging to a 2.5 game lead. Like Mattituck, they've had a pretty easy going of it all season. Unlike Mattituck, they have to deal with...
  

8. Riverhead Red Streaks (13)

• Big Red is on the warpath, so take cover, you young whippersnappers. This is how a real man plays make believe team owner. 2.5 games back? Oh, it's on, son--old school style.
  

9. Pequash Panthers (9)

• Further proof that it's the quiet ones you have to watch. Not too closely because it might trigger their repressed rage and the next thing you know they'll be screaming at you to put the lotion in the basket. A win this week against 9th St. will prove last week's Nassau massacre was legit.
  

10. Kohler Toilet (14)

• Smart money was always on this team to make a run. Over .500, but stuck in a tough division, this is a wild card or bust situation, folks. And it's never a good idea to bust a flowing toilet.
  

11. Hampton Bay Bambinos (8)

• They might want to look into this new thing called "momentum" because it just might help them with the bad case of mediocrity they can't seem to shake.
  

12. Bay Ridge Wopdagos (10)

• Stumbling and bumbling into 3rd place since his wedding has caused many to wonder if the team owner still has the stuffed shells to play with the big boys. Maybe he can discover a pitcher while out pricing duvet covers at Bed Bath & Beyond this weekend.
  

13. Browntown Fudge Dragons (12)

14. North Babylon Generals (11)

• For what it's worth, the best team under .500. Still within striking distance, but like a lot of teams in this part of the list, they have to do something if they hope to do anything. Oh, if you were wondering, what it's worth is a bag of dirt and a slightly used spork.
  

15. Coram Crushers (19)

• Actually, an impressive run of late especially considering where they came from (downtown WasteofSpaceville). I sense a team itching to play spoiler down the stretch and maybe buy a house in the suburbs of Respectibilicity. And if there's one thing I know, it's itching.
  

16. Philadelphia Kane Nines (18)

• News that $14 million dollar staff ace Chris Carpenter will miss the rest of an already blown season does nothing but add a few more tears to an already overflowing pot o' tears. There's always next year, but then again, there was this year and we see what they did with that.
  

17. Ridge Ducks (16)

• We waited very patiently for this team to get it together, but enough already. Maybe they're not really as bad as their record. And maybe David Wells isn't as fat as his stomach.
  

18. St. Olaf Dutch Ovens (20)

• We're not last! We're not last! Now only 31.5 games out of first place! But, more importantly, they have a 2 spot cushion from the basement in the Power Rankings. Small victories, kids, small victories.
  

19. Laurel Leathernecks (17)

• Who knew Tom was such a masochist? How else to explain starting a league just to get publicly humiliated. He could have saved himself a lot of trouble by just fellating a goat on the LIE during morning rush hour.
  

20. New Libertatia Swashbucklers (15)

• Since he's on his honeymoon, I'll ignore his team's ineptitude and say something nice: if your wife married you while you were this pathetic, she must really love you. Or you're hung like Uncle Miltie.
  

BEWARE OF THE CURSE!!!

You have seen the results of the SI and Madden curse, but nothing compares to the POWER RANKING CURSE. First it happened to Ninth Street and then to Simpsonville and now Setauket. Once named #1 DOOM immediately follows. Setauket has taken poundings since being rated #1. Beware to the next victim!!!

Your 2007 NFSL All-Star Team

Catcher
Victor Martinez
(Shaolin) 6

Jorge Posada 3
Russ Martin 3
Paul LoDuca 1




First Base
Prince Fielder (Westphalia) 12

Justin Morneau 1






Second Base
Chase Utley
(Philadelphia) 13








Third Base
Alex Rodriguez
(Bay Ridge) 13















Shortstop
Jose Reyes
(Nassau) 7

Hanley Ramirez 3
Carlos Guillen 1
J.J. Hardy 1
Derek Jeter 1








Outfield
Vlad Guerrero (St. Olaf) 11
Magglio Ordonez (Mattituck) 10
Matt Holliday (Browntown) 6

Ichiro 3
Carlos Lee 2
Barry Bonds 1
Grady Sizemore 1
Ken Griffey Jr. 1
Hunter Pence 1
Alfonso Soriano 1
Gary Sheffield 1
Carlos Beltran 1


Starting Pitcher
Brad Penny (Nassau) 9
C.C. Sabathia (Kohler) 8
Jake Peavy (Browntown) 7
Josh Beckett (Mattituck) 7
Johan Santana 6
Dan Haren 6
John Lackey 2
John Maine 2
Justin Verlander 1
Cole Hamels 1
Erik Bedard 1
Chris Young 1
Ben Sheets 1



Relief Pitcher
Francisco Cordero (Shaolin) 9
J.J. Putz (Hampton Bay) 8
Francisco Rodriguez (Mattituck) 7
Jon Papelbon (Laurel) 7

Takashi Saito 6
Billy Wagner 5
Jose Valverde 4
Scott Shields 2
Pedro Feliciano 1
Trevor Hoffman 1
Hideki Okajima 1
Joe Borowski 1

Power Rankings III

The first round of divisional play is in the books and it's time to see who's left standing. It's been watching teams beat each other up to try to get a foothold on a playoff spot. I think everyone should have a good idea of where they stand as we hit the stretch run and what they need to do to have a shot at the crown. As we're all still trying to feel each other out (out, not up, Paul), it'll be interesting to see what kind of deals get done in the next few weeks.

1. Setauket Horde (Last Ranking: 2)

• The Horde's march to the top is complete. Looking at his roster, I still have no idea how this is possible. It has to be battlefield leadership and that great fantasy baseball equalizer, intangibles.
  

2. Simpsonville Slayers (1)

• The Slayers have fought their way through the Cool Papa gauntlet and emerged still holding onto the division lead. They know it's not over yet, so it's a good thing Mauer's finally back in the fold.
  

3. Ninth Street Nine (5)

• Roy Halladay is back at the front of a talented young rotation and the 1300+ HR bats of Bonds & Griffey have come alive behind one of the most underrated right side of the infield combos in the league, Casey Kotchman and Kelly Johnson. No doubt, the Big Ticket is back.
  

4. Westphalia Shepherds (4)

• Finally had a shot at Setauket and came up a bit short, but there's another mano-a-mano down the line. Until then, the Shepherds will continue taking out their frustration on the rest of the league and trying to lock up at least a Wildcard.
  

5. Nassau Chin Music (3)

• Nassau is still the home of the biggest lead in the league thanks in large part to the unexpected offense of Carlos Pena and Hunter Pence. And Jose Reyes is pretty good, too.
  

6. Mattituck Natives (9)

• In what experts thought would be a hotly contested division, the Natives have started to put some distance between themselves and the field. Bad news for the rest of the Paige now that Magglio may finally be getting some help as Manny should start heating up and Billy Butler looks like he's going to be getting a legit chance to rake in the bigs this go-around.
  

7. Shaolin Empire (7)

• Statistically, the best team in the league BY FAR. Too bad they can't actually beat anyone. Finally came up big in battle with Bay Ridge to take control of the Larry Doby Division. Still, getting over crushing by Coram (Coram!) will take years of therapy. I hear Dr. Melfi is taking on new clients.

8. Hampton Bay Bambinos (6)

• The up and down season by the Bay continues as the stumbling Bambinos stuck it to the streaking Nine to bring them right back into the thick of the Cool Papa. I'm thinking it's Go Time for $31 million duo Howard and Soriano.
  

9. Pequash Panters (10)

• The Panthers just keep chugging along under the radar, but after serving notice during divisional play, they are lurking in the shadows of the Doby, ready to pounce.
  

10. Bay Ridge Wapdagos (8)

• First, congratulations to owner Frankie Wilders and his new bride. Losing the divisional lead is not the best wedding present he received, but welcome to married life, pal. And because Frankie was upset that his boy Justin Morneau never gets a mention, here you go: that had to be the absolute pussiest slide into home ever. Good one, MVP.
  

11. North Babylon Generals (18)

• Number 11 with a bullet. I said from the jump that this was a team to watch and they're not disappointing. The combo of a dedicated owner and star players waiting to break out still make a playoff spot a possibility.
  

12. Browntown Fudge Dragons (13)

13. Riverhead Red Streaks (14)

• Okay, so Clemens hasn't been the savior and the Chipper Jones blockbuster trade hasn't exactly shot them up the standings, but there's something to be said for treading water. They're not out of it yet.
  

14. Kohler Toilet (17)

• As disappointing as Pujols has been (for $19 million), Andruw Jones has been even worse. Still, the Toilet are getting better each week thanks to strong years by C.C. Sabathia and Adam Dunn. When all is said and done, being in the same division as the mighty Horde and Shepherds might be too much to overcome.
  

15. New Libertatia Swashbucklers (11)

• The company line was always that they were building for the future, but it looked like they might klong up for a run this year. This 4 spot tumble shows they may have been overreaching a bit. Though having Johan means they're never out of any race.
  

16. Ridge Ducks (15)

• I never know what to expect from this team. They're not bad on paper, but games aren't played on paper. Although this is fantasy baseball, so in one sense, games are played on paper. Like I said, I have no idea what to expect from the Ducks. Quack.
  

17. Laurel Leathernecks (16)

• At this point, if the Commish makes it through the season in one piece, he can count it as a success. The stress of running a Super League has taken its toll on the formerly happy-go-lucky Trader Tom (though his craptastic OF isn't helping either).
  

18. Philadelphia Kane Nines (12)

• Statistically, the worst team in the league. They've managed to put together all of 2 Steals and -17 Wins. That said, their wheelin' & dealin' GM has picked up some pretty good young talent that sets them up nicely for the long haul. And ownership can't be too unhappy that they're selling out every one of super prospect Homer Bailey's home starts.

19. Coram Crushers (20)

• Let's give them some credit. They showed a lot of heart in recent weeks and haven't given up on what has been one fugly season. There's some work to do for next year, but they're really not that far away.

20 St. Olaf Dutch Ovens (19)

• There's a lot to work with here even though nothing seemed to work this year. The few fans that still show up seem to do so for the sole purpose of chanting "David Price! David Price!"
  

Happy Father's Day

ATHLETES WITH ILLEGITIMATE KIDS

THE HEAVYWEIGHTS
Shawn Kemp - 7 illegitimate kids by 6 women. Gives his nickname of the Reign Man new meaning.
Evander Holyfield - 9 illegitimate kids. "Heck I'm not even mad, I'm impressed!"
Ex-San Antonio Spur Willie Anderson - 9 illegitimate kids. If only his field goal percentage had been as high as his impregnation rate.
Derrick Thomas - 7 illegitimate kids by 5 women. He died at 33. Let's just leave it at that.
Ray Charles - Not an athlete, but still had 9 illegitimate kids and 12 total, which is quite impressive. Being blind must have made it tough to get that condom on.
UPDATE: Don't know how we missed this - thanks to a reader for pointing this out to us - Calvin Murphy reportedly had 14 illegitimate kids by 9 women. Wow.

THE MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Larry Johnson - 5 kids by 4 women. 3 are illegitimate.
Santonio Holmes - 3 illegitimate kids by two women, before leaving college.
Former Celtic Greg Minor - 3 illegitimate kids.
Ricky Williams - 3 illegitimate kids. Maybe that's why he smokes so much weed.
Priest Holmes - 3 illegitimate kids. You best keep running Priest.

THE LIGHTNING FAST GROUP
Willis McGahee - 3 illegitimate kids in 2 years in Buffalo. Not a lot to do in Buffalo, except make babies. Lots and lots of babies.

THE GUYS YOU WOULDN'T EXPECT GROUP
Walter Herrmann
Peja Stojakovic
Wizards Coach Eddie Jordan
NHL player Daniel Alfredsson
NHL player Richard Zednik
Mike Miller

THE FAMOUS OLD GUYS GROUP
Steve Garvey - 2 illegitimate kids by 2 women.
Dr. J - 2 illegitimate kids by 2 women.
Larry Bird
Isiah Thomas
Jim Palmer
Pete Rose

THE GETTING A HEAD START GROUP
Gary Sheffield - Had 2 illegitimate kids by age 17. Added a few more later on in life.

THE THAT'S JUST WRONG GROUP
Elijah Dukes - recently impregnated a 17-year-old foster child.

THE QB KIDS GROUP
Matt Leinart - already has one, my guess is he's working hard on another.
Tom Brady - his is on the way.

GUYS WITH AT LEAST ONE ILLEGITIMATE KID
Antawn Jamison
Chipper Jones
DeShawn Stevenson
Cliff Floyd
Mark Messier
Brian Urlacher
Rae Carruth - Yes, he fathered an illegitimate kid before the incident where he had his pregnant girlfriend gunned down.
Oscar De La Hoya
Juan Gonzalez
Andre Rison
David Justice
Alonzo Spellman
Dave Meggett
Gary Payton - If the glove doesn't fit...
Stephon Marbury
Jason Kidd
Allen Iverson
Latrell Sprewell
Juwan Howard
Kenny Anderson
Scottie Pippen
Hakeem Olajuwon
Patrick Ewing
Randy Johnson - by reader request. We missed him.

Thanks to 100% Injury Rate.

The Hat's Not Fooling Anyone, Bub

Click here and check out the URL (address) of the page.

If you don't get it, click here and think about it.

(Thanks to FireJoeMorgan.com for the scoop.)

Get This Man A Plaque

Bert Blyleven has 287 career wins and 3700 Ks, yet is continually denied election into the Hall of Fame.

Maybe now he can get the respect he deserves.

A message from the GM of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos

A meesage from the GM of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos

It's been a while since a press release came out, so it's time for one. And no, this has nothing to do with the latest power rankings that have come out (we'll get to those also.)

This has to do with the latest incident involving one of our superstars, third baseman Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod to the little folk.) The New York Post is reporting today that he was photographed entering a strip club in Toronto with an unidentified blonde woman. Apparently, this woman in the photo is not his wife, but a white-trash whore (can I say whore? Sure...why not?) for likes it both ways. Of course, there is no complaint if a woman goes both ways from this general manager (as long as I get to videotape it.) Here in the general manager's office, while we do not agree with his actions, understand that it is his choice to go get some. We wish him well and hope he doesn't pull a Kobe.

The power rankings that have just came out has irked the office and sparked interest (in what, I don't know.) It is amazing that this team has been able to put together a powerhouse team on such little pitching talent. The fact that the league keeps overlooking this fact and harps on this team having Rodriguez only is troublesome. How can you forget the reigning American League MVP, Justin Morneau? After a brief slump, he has gone back to completely and utterly destroying the ball. And before he went on the DL, the STEAL (self thinking) of the draft, Shawn Hill? What he doesn't have in record (I blame the Nats), he makes up in ERA, K's, WHIP, etc.

With Jon Lester on the horizon and Howie Kendrick back to his old dominant .OPB ways, this team will be a formiable one to deal with. I hope that everyone in my division (yes, you read that right, MY DIVISION) will be prepared to be slug it out.

In other news, the Bay Ridge Wopdagos would like to announce that they are currently looking to trade Juan Pierre. Pierre was quoted as saying, "Ryan Church is better then me? YIKES! GET ME OFF THIS TEAM!" E-mail the team office for any interest.

Thanks and regards,
the GM of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos

Power Rankings II

1. Simpsonville (Last Ranking: 4)

• The double spark of the return of co-owner Mike Trudeau from the backwoods of Georgia and the awakened bat of David Wright have shot this team to the top of the heap. And they still don't have Joe Mauer back.
  

2. Setauket (5)

• Torii Hunter turning it up and looking like a late-round steal. But if they're going to hold on to first place, it's going to come down to the golden arm of Brian Bruney.
  

3. Nassau (3)

• Hanging steady in the 3 spot, and with a 16.5 game lead they may just take the rest of the summer off. But remember, half the playoff stats will be cumulative, so let up at your own risk.
  

4. Westphalia (10)

• Forget the wild card, the Shepherds are stalking the Horde for the Gibson crown--which would look at home on Prince's head.
  

5. Ninth Street (1)

• Slipped 4 spots and, more importantly, 6 behind the Slayers. Giambi's verbal implosion not helping an already tense clubhouse.
  

6. Hampton Bay (2)

• After a mini-slump (and some maxi-whining), the Bambinos turn it up just in time for the Rankings. Just check out their pretty mug at the top of the League web page.
  

7. Shaolin (6)

• Although ranked 2nd in the YTD point totals, they continue to just under-perform enough. Bats starting to come alive led by Nick Swisher.
  

8. Bay Ridge (7)

• Looking like the Doby is going to go back and forth all year. Come crunch time, putting all their eggs in ARod's basket may not be the best strategy.
  

9. Mattituck (8)

• The forgotten division leader, just sort of hanging in there despite no one really stepping up as a team leader. Billy Butler was ready yet, but Manny's bat is waiting in the shadows to join Magglio.
  

10. Pequash (18)

• Number 10 with a bullet. Hot off a big win last week, they're hot on Mattituck's heels as the Paige might turn into a dogfight down the stretch.
  

11. New Libertatia (14)

• The kids are alright. The baby Swashbucklers are aiming for a seat at the adult table this fall. And keep in mind, they do have Johan Santana.
  

12. Philadelphia (9)

• A tub-thumping by the New Lib and the injury to new closer Brett Myers don't making for a festive 3-day weekend in the City of Brotherly Love. Don't be surprised if another trade is already in the works.

13. Browntown (15)

14. Riverhead (12)

• The Reds are trying, but still haven't been able to fit all their pieces together. The Thome injury hurts and the Encarnacion demotion didn't help. When will the Rocket launch?
  

15. Ridge (20)

• Fifteen may not look like much, but considering where they were last time it's time for them to pop the cork on the Cold Duck. The trade for Zito shows their still in it to win it.
  

16. Laurel (13)

• The Commish still treading water. We all know he has a nefarious plan up his sleeve, but when will he unleash it? Maybe he's waiting to grow in his villainous mustache so he can twirl it and laugh maniacally in our faces? Or not.
  

17. Kohler (11)

• Recent 10-2 loss to St. Olaf says it all. Pujols still making $19 million.
  

18. North Babylon (16)

• The future is now as top 2 prospects Lincecum and Braun up in the big leagues. Still not counting out team with Sheffield, Wells, and Ichiro in the OF.
  

19. St. Olaf (19)

• Despite numbers from Vlad, Jeter, Youkilis, Marquis, and Verlander, they're living up to their name and stinking.
  

20. Coram (17)

• They must be naughty boys because they keep getting spanked.
  

You Dead, Dawg

According to the St. Pete Times, everyone's favorite psychotic rookie, Elijah Dukes, is, well, as psychotic as ever. Seriously, as naive as it sounds, it still amazes me how consistently athletes can avoid jail time. Here's a link to the full article.

Dukes' wife, NiShea Gilbert, 26, a teacher at Beth Shields Middle School in Ruskin, told the court in another filing Thursday that her husband threatened to kill her and sent a photo of a handgun to her cell phone.

Here's the voice mail message he left his wife:

• "Hey, dawg. It's on, dawg. You dead, dawg. I ain't even bulls-------. Your kids too, dawg. It don't even matter to me who is in the car with you. N-----, all I know is, n-----, when I see your m-----f------- a-- riding, dawg, it's on. As a matter of fact, I'm coming to your m-----f------ house."

Power Report Hi-Jinx

In the innagural season of the NFSL every week has been a new experience. Some good & some well.....Let's move on. Out of all the bitching & complaining about sometimes petty stuff, I got a real legitimate complaint.

Those power reports you put out last week Frank were the equvalent to the Sports Illustrated Jinx. When you pissed off the Ridge Ducks, you woke a sleeping Big Papi & crew. Those guys cleaned the field with me.

Please I implore you put ME at the bottom this week. Maybe Ryan fat ass Howard & Alex pretty boy Gordon will start hitting the damn ball.

Maybe my 58 HR guy goin on the Dl with the rest of my scrubs aint such a bad thing. I keep sitting Overbay & he's the only healthy guy in the entire Toronto organization.

Another thing, someone let me know when my back-up catcher is gonna put up tremendous stats again so I could start him.

Damn it I hate that.

Power Rankings

1. Ninth Street Nine

• Faith in Barry has paid off, but it's the kids like Rich Hill and Kelly Johnson leading the Grandmaster of Fantasy's comeback tour.

2. Hampton Bay Bambinos

• Surprise of the young season. 3/4 of his rotation on the DL? Ryan Howard and #1 overall draft pick Alex Gordon taking the month off? Who cares as long as Slammin Sammy's in the lineup.

3. Nassau Chin Music

• Loss of top prospect Phil Hughes a downer, but Jose Reyes and a lights out bullpen have opened up a huge 11 game lead.

4. Simpsonville Slayers

• Lackey and Haren pulling David Wright's weight so far, but loss of Joe Mauer has to hurt in the cut-throat Cool Papa Bell Division.

5. Setauket Horde

• Jimmy Rollins is tearing it up and everyone else is doing a little bit of everything.
  

6. Shaolin Empire

• Overall stats impressive, but tough match-ups taking their toll.
  

7. Bay Ridge Wapdagos

• A-Rod proving to be most underpaid player in league as he's carried team to tie for first in tight Doby.

8. Mattituck Natives

• Ted Lilly and Josh Beckett have been aces on the mound. Only a matter of time before farm stud Billy Butler is entrenched in OF.

9. Philadelphia Kane Nines

• The most active front office in the league pulled off what may be the coup of the year: JJ Hardy for Sean Casey.

10. Westphalia Shepherds

• Top pick Chris Young playing almost exactly as expected, showing power and speed and a low average.
  

11. Kohler Toilet

• Three words: Pujols is coming.

12. Riverhead Red Streaks

• Pulled the trigger for Chipper. Now needs to light a fire under everyone else.
  

13. Laurel Leathernecks

• Josh Hamilton has been an amazing story...oh, who are we kidding--did you see Dice-K's last start?

14. New Libertatia Swashbucklers

• While waiting for next year, this year doesn't look so far out of reach. Will they make a move or hold course?

15. Browntown Fudge Dragons

16. North Babylon Generals

• Really not a bad team. Still time for big money guys to step up. Team to watch.

17. Coram Crushers

• Offense was a question mark, but really hurt by Mariano Rivera and Carlos Zambrano's slow starts and that BJ Ryan injury really stings.

18. Pequash Panthers

• If only they had Brad Hawpe they might be 17th on the list.

19. St. Olaf Dutch Ovens
20. Ridge Ducks

• Two teams, four owners, a combined 38 games back. But, it's only May. Walk it off.
  

Ok

Bill is right, I apoligize. No more rants.

Enough Already!

Two owners going back and forth insulting one another is not going to solve anything. Everyone knows there has been problems with the site. Tom is very aware of this and is working to fix it. Be patient and most of all be civil.

Commishioner

Bud, if Tom is the commishioner then let him be the commish, it sounds to me like you are running things. Who chose the rules? Who chose the stat service? Who has said no to suggested changes or improvements? Will you answer any of these questions? Probably not. You have not answered many of my questions in prior rants. Instead u turn it around and make me out to have the problem. Why dont u answer my questions? Please go back and read my prior rants and answer those questions. Well, maybe I do have problems but that is my concern not yours. Your concern as C0-commisioner is getting this league running right not my mental health. Is it supposed to frighten me that you are being so controlled in your responses to my rants? What is that supposed to mean? A threat? That makes me laugh. As for the homophobe statement, that really makes me laugh. I could care less what anyones sexuality is. But I would rather not have it pushed in my face with photos of beefcake shots like u posted. Keep those on your bedroom walls. You make a statement about that but "mum is the word when someone else on this site is throwing around racist words and ideas"? Now excuse me while I go watch sesame street. By the way what is a preposition? You are a funny dude!!

ESPN problems

BUD, in reference to ESPN, they refunded all money back to participants when they had problems this year. Is the stat/league service you chose refunding our leagues money? Can u even get in touch with the guy? ESPN sent daily emails letting participants know what was going on. All I got from you was half naked pictures of Pat Burrell. When I was in the military we had a "dont ask, dont tell policy". Lets try that here. GEORGE STEINBOKINA

grandstanding

Frank (otherwise known as BUD) its not grandstanding or whining when its true. Your skipping along with your ridiculous posts like nothing is wrong when so far there's been a ton of shit wrong. It gets frustrating when you are running this league like you are king and all the other owners are a bunch of court jesters. Part of me is actually starting to get some satisfaction at watching things screw up because I know its all you to blame. I dont know you so I dont give a shit in saying what I believe is true. I dont know why the other owners aren't complaining. Maybe its because they are friends and dont want to hurt your obviously very sensitive feelings. But then again maybe they are. You wouldnt tell anyone if they were because this is a perfect league, right? BUD, take the constructive criticism while the league can still be fixed. As for not going to you or Tom directly, I have gone to Tom and he knows and has known exactly how I feel. The reason I am blogging these thoughts is because I am wondering if anyone else feels the same way. Like I said maybe its just me, but I have been told its not just me. I think thats why an important email is coming out Friday or Saturday. I look forward to your response where you will use big words with references to garbage I could care less about and to be honest half the time don't even understand. Please, BUD use those big words so you show how much smarter you are than all of us courtjesters. I implore you, listen to others and fix the league. I know Tom has put a ton of work into this and alot of heart and soul, don't ruin it by being stubborn. Your pal, GEORGE STEINBOKINA (a dumb polish kid from dumb polish farmers just trying to run a fantasy baseball team)

Bad Mojo

Missed this, probably because I had other things on my mind, but at least we're not alone in the fantasy universe. Not that it makes anyone feel better. Must be something in the water at La Rotisserie Francaise.

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It might just be me, but the web-site that is supposed to be keeping track of our league stats and scores is not showing up-to-date scores and stats for our current two week scoring period. Is this just a rough period or this a season long problem? Frank your blogs are "cute" and "creative" but how about some up-to-date information on the status of what the hell is going on with the stat web site. I apoligize in advance if its just me not knowing how to utilize the web site, but I am getting FRUSTRATED. Maybe its because I started Dimitri Young instead of Prince Fielder this period. Signed A Frustrated, concerned Owner.

Pat the Bat

Another Philly story, but I had to pass this along. From Deadspin.com:

The biggest jolt to the Phillies lineup this year, however, has to be Pat Burrell's engagement. The stories of Burrell's swordsmanship are legendary in the Philadelphia area. You can't bump into somebody within a 50-mile radius of Philadelphia who doesn't have a story. They all start the same: At a club, usually involving a 20-something stunner sidling up at the bar, then, enter ... the Bat. Next thing you know, she's got herself box seats behind home plate and is hanging out with Burrell and Jason Michaels 'til 4 a.m. doing kamikaze shots down the Jersey Shore. One friend-of-a-friend story included Pat leaving her a present the next day after one drunken libidinous night with The Bat -- his Valtrex. But an even more vintage Bat story is this second-hand gem:

The story goes: A few guys were on a business trip in Pittsburgh. A couple of the guys knew the Phils were in town, so when they all spotted Burrell at a club there one night, it wasn't a total surprise. Pat ended up taking a liking to one of the girls in their group. She thought he was hot but didn't follow baseball. He took her back to his hotel room, and a make-out session ensued until she alerted Pat that she would NOT do him. Not fazed by this, Burrell seemed to respect her chastity, and rather than force himself on her or fly into a blueball rage, he asked a simple question, glancing down at his engorged pants: "Mind if I take care of business?"

The horrified woman didn't stay the night, letting Pat, take care of his business on his own.

First Couple of Philadelphia

If anyone's interested, here's a pic of the loving couple.

It's the City of Brotherly Love--no one ever said anything about wives. Ben Franklin was a swinging bachelor, after all.

Philly-Shaolin Swish Players

The trade pistons are pumping as the Empire has struck again acquiring 1B/OF Nick Swisher and RP Jorge Julio from the Kane Nines for new RP Brett Myers and 3B Adrian Beltre. The long-haired playboy slugger (left, scoring) adds much needed thump to the Shaolin offense, while Myers gives Philly another Phillie to cry over up close and personal. When asked to comment on his new employer, Myers declined to comment before returning to beating his wife.

Huge Trade (At Least Half the Trade)

In a late night deal that will not immediately impact either team, the Coram Crushers and the Shaolin Empire swapped injured Cy Young winners, Bartolo Colon and Pedro Martinez. Colon, who can by now fit 2 Pedros and 1 Ramon Martinez in his pant leg, celebrated the news by eating his agent.

SLANDER!!! RACISM!!!

Am emergency message from the GM of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos:

As you all know, Don Imus was fired last night by CBS radio for his use of the phrase "nappy-headed hos" on the radio in describing the women's (used loosely since they would kick the crap of lil' whitey me) Rutgers basketball team. This was all because of the Reverend Al Sharpton and his use of the airwaves and media outlets (fucking n***er, fill in the stars.)

It has come to the attention of the general manager that there has been another use of slander and racism in describing this team, the Bay Ridge Wopdagos. In describing what the Bay Ridge Wopdagos should use to boost their lineup, the reference to "braicola" is slanderish and racist and unfounded. No one on the Bay Ridge Wopdagos has "braicola" to swing, since all are non-Italian.

Hence forth, these are the Bay Ridge Wopdagos' demands:

1. Changing of "braicola" to the more appropriate term, "sausage"

2. Damages in the sum of $25 (people need money to go out tonight)

3. A group of 26 beautiful women so that on the next road trip the Bay Ridge Wopdagos has, they are there to provide services to these faithful men.

To the commissioner: Please see that these demands are met otherwise I will have to get Rev. Al Sharpton on your ass like he did with Tawana Brawley (lying nappy-headed ho.)

Thank you and good night,
The general manager of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos

The NFSL Family Gets Bigger

All our best to Kane Nine owner Neal Kane and his Philly filly, Michele, on the birth of their 2nd son Michael Lawrence Kane.

Lil' MLK popped out on Friday, April 6, at 7:09 am and tipped the scales at 6 lbs. 4 oz.

Unfortunately, he is not eligible for this check.

Message from the GM of the Swashbucklers

wow. we suck.

Message from the GM of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos

As we can see, we are in our first full matchup of the year, and it feels good knowing that my players are performing exactly the way that we needed them to. I feel that our team is sending the right message out to all the other teams in the league that if you do not have the offensive firepower that we have, you will have a tough time in beating us. The long understanding that pitching wins championships was thought of by someone that never played fantasy baseball. As shown by this early matchup, pitching means nothing, hitting is everything.

On that note, it is time to welcome our newest pitchers, Antonio Alfonseca, Brandon Backe, Mike DeJean, and some other guy...welcome to the team and here is your complementry hair gel...

As Gino the Ginny would say, "They're pumping the mega mix"

In other news, the Wopdagos are sad to say that they have lost a tremendous member to their organization. I am not at liberty to say who this person is due to a gag order imposed by my lawyers.

All players (even the tremendous offensive lineup that I impose at will against you all) are on the block and trade offers will be reviewed and weighed.

Thank you.

10 yrs experience ??

Recently it was uncovered that the Westphalia Sheperds Owner Eric'Chatta Box" Bokina lied on his res'ume when he bragged of having 10 years experience in fantasy. An alert investigative reporter uncovered that in fact Bokina is a ROOKIE to fantasy !!!---After reviewing the information the commisioner has put Bokina on a 1 year probation period during which time he must not tell another FIB !---When the commisioner was asked why Bokina wasn't expelled from the league he replied "Mr. Bokina was a military Officer and therefore I feel he will eventually contribute to this league."

Fire Sale?

Big Papi and Chone are on the block and the Ducks are hearing all offers?

In a recent interview, Ducks Manager Emmanuel Lewis stated that the team was going to have to make some wholesale changes in the immediate future, and didn't rule out the possibility of anyone on the team being traded. "We've gotta get better, and quick." Said Lewis. "You can't win without pitchers, and right now, it seems all of ours are on the DL, and we've got some major holes to fill. It reminds me of when Ma'am and George Papodopolous gave me a new bike, but I didn't know how to ride it. I had to learn quick!"

In other news, the Ducks named Billy Ripken their new Hitting Coach. Ripken, better known as "Fu*k Face" for his 1989 Fleer Card, said "I'm happy to be here. If we could only get some arms, we might have a chance."

Mookie!

A recent phone conversation between Mookie Wilson and Preston Wilson.

ROSTER MOVES

I know i'm new to this but some things i just don't understand. If i have a player under contract and am paying him, why can't i send him to the minors and retain my rights to him since i'm still obligated to pay him. Also, if i release him and another team picks him up at a new salary, why is his old team obligated to pay his full salary, why isn't the new teams salary deducted from his original salary. I know this may be a bookeeping problem but you have to carry his original salary after he is dropped whether he is picked up by a new team or not. Anyone else have any thoughts on this? bmulli- REDS

Check 1: Free Agency

The first free agent bidding went very well. Thanks to everyone for submitting their bids as requested and making the process go as smoothly as possible. We may be able to submit free agent bids thru the Web site next time, but we'll get back to you about that.

Okay, on to the bids. Surprisingly, only 1 player received multiple bids: new hotshot shortstop Tony Pena. His new NFSL home? Coram . The Crushers won his rights with a bid of $2 million for 3 years. (New Libertatia's bid was $.25/1)

Everyone else got who they wanted:

Bay Ridge:
Antonio Alfonseca .25/1 (Doug Mientkiewicz released)
Mike DeJean .25/1 (Reggie Abercrombie released)
Brandon Backe .25/1 (Cesar Izturis released)
Kyle Lohse (Mark Kotsay released)

Coram:
Tony Pena 2.00/3 (Bartolo Colon on DL)

New Libertatia:
Jose Bautista .50/1 (John Grabow on DL)
Alejandro de Aza .50/1 (Freddy Sanchez on DL)
Mike Stanton .25/1 (Carlos Quentin on DL)

Ninth Street:
Juan Salas .75/1 (Jose Capellan released)
Joakim Soria .75/1 (Brandon League released)

North Babylon:
Matt Morris .50/1 (Matt Clement on DL)

Riverhead:
Robinson Tejada .50/2 (Josh Johnson on DL)

Setauket:
Brian Bruney .25/1 (Taylor Tankersley on DL)

Shaolin:
Randy Wolf .25/1 (Pedro Martinez on DL)


Mike will send out an updated spreadsheet.

Louie where r u?

U may be on to something.

Rosters

Am I the only one that finds it strange or unrealistic to watch our teams play for a week and then set out rosters. I know its "fantasy" baseball but it just doesnt seem right for me to watch ty wiggington have a 4hr game and an 18rbi week and put him in my starting lineup after the fact and sit prince fielder. Or the guy that owns johan santana sits him after he gets shelled by the ny yankees for 8 runs in 2 1/3 innings. Anyone agree with me? Or is just me. I would have brought this up earlier but I thought I was just reading the bylaws wrong. I didnt think it was possible to not set a lineup before the teams play. Feedback please. I may be crazy because I also was the one who never thought we could draft 500 players in one day, so it might just be me. Eric

I Love Ya Louie !!

Brad Hawpe was qouted as saying "I love ya Louie for believing in me so much that you thought your team was doomed without me !---"I didn't even get that much support from my own mother" !! " My mother actually told the associated Press that if I left Colorado I would NEVER hit more than 14 homers" !!

In Case You Were Wondering...

...this is the most controversial player in the history of the NFSL--the infamous Mr. Hawpe. (He's the ruggedly handsome fella on the left.)

Empire Rising

BREAKING NEWS: Staten Island Dumped

The Empire has taken its first blow of the season, but unfortunately for all involved it was in a courtroom instead of on the field. In what can only be described as an act of malicious pettiness, New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has won an injunction against the nascent NFSL squad that will prevent them from using the Staten Island name. Evidently, The Boss's high-powered legal team was able to convince the judge that use of the name infringes on his franchise's Single A Staten Island Yankees' territorial rights--just two days before the inaugural Super League draft.

Empire officials could not be reached for comment, but a source close to the team has said that management is not wasting any time in trying to rectify the situation. He also claims there is no truth to the rumor that Empire ownership was, in fact, looking forward to this decision because they have grown tired of writing out "Staten Island" all the time.

The NFSL league office has issued a statement explaining that due to the legal nature of this name change, the Empire will obviously be permitted to select a new name as long as they do so before the start of the season. After opening day, team name changes will only be allowed in special cases, if at all, to establish and preserve the tradition of the league.

Check 1 Schedule

North Babylon v. Laurel

Nassau v. Kohler

Ridge v. Bay Ridge

Riverhead v. Simpsonville

New Libertatia v. Setauket

Mattituck v. Brooklyn

Browntown v. St. Olaf

Staten Island v. Westphalia

Coram v. Ninth Street

Philadelphia v. Hampton Bay

Catching the Blues

The selection of J.R. Towles in the final round of the minor league draft has finally allowed the Folsom Blues' three young arms to pitch to a catcher as they prepare for the opening of the California Penal League season. "It's nice," said towering righty Jeff Niemann. "The cardboard cut-out was okay, but we'd spend half our time standing it back up after every pitch. It got to the point where we'd miss wildly just so we wouldn't have to do it." For his part, Towles is happy to be aboard what he feels is going to be a fun ride. "We have a lot of talent here. I'm a little worried about not having any infielders, but every team has its flaws, right?"

However, the news wasn't all good for the Staten Island Empire's farm club. A lengthy undercover investigation by the Folsom Telegraph revealed that Blues pitching coach, Ricky "Wild Thing" Vaughn, is, in fact, a fictional character. Doubts were immediately cast as to his qualifications for preparing the staff for the upcoming campaign, let alone to help the parent club later in the year. The Empire front office declined comment other than to say that they were fully confident in all their hires.

Blues manager Miller Huggins was unavailable for comment amid rumors of failing health.

Nice farm system

louie, you have a very good farm system with a nice mix of players. Thank You for actually putting the time in to research your picks and submit them in a timely fashion.

rate my farm system

be honest.....the Manatees can take criticism

1)Mike Pelfrey, RHP, New York Mets (14th overall)
2) Jose Tabata, OF, New York Yankees (27th overall)
3) Eric Hurley, RHP, Texas Rangers (54th overall)
4) Jacob McGee, LHP, Tampa Bay Devil Rays (67th overall)
5) Eric Young Jr., 2B, Colorado Rockies (94th overall)
6) Chris Marrero, OF, Washington Nationals (107th overall)

NFSL Minor League Draft: Round 6

101. North Babylon: Chris Carter, Arizona
102. Setauket: Jeremy Hellickson, Tampa Bay
103. Laurel: Josh Hamilton, Cincinnati
104. Kohler: Alexi Casilla, Minnesota
105. Bay Ridge: Alberto Callaspo, Arizona
106. Riverhead: Hank Conger, Los Angeles (A)
107. Brooklyn: Chris Marrero, Washington
108. Staten Island: J.R. Towles, Houston
109. Coram: Brian Barton, Cleveland
110. St. Olaf: Trevor Crowe, Cleveland
111. Simpsonville: Jamie Garcia, St. Louis
112. Westphalia: Matt Lindstrom, Florida
113. Ridge: Eric Patterson, Chicago (N)

114. Browntown: Angel Villalona, San Francisco

115. Philadelphia: J.A. Happ, Philadelphia
116. Nassau: Bryan LaHair, Seattle
117. Ninth Street: Sean Rodriguez, Los Angeles (A)

118. Mattituck: Tony Sipp, Cleveland
119. New Libertatia: Kurt Suzuki, Oakland
120. Hampton Bay: Jeremy Jeffries, Milwaukee

For Paul, Mike and Klong

Mission Accomplished.

2007 Minor League Draft: Round 5

81. Hampton Bay: Neil Walker, Pittsburgh

82. New Libertatia: Joba Chamberlain, New York (A)
83. Mattituck: Miguel Montero, Arizona
84. Ninth Street: Sean West, Florida
85. Nassau: Carlos Gomez, New York (N)

86. Philadelphia: Kyle Drabek, Philadelphia
87. Browntown: Dexter Fowler, Colorado
88. Ridge: Daric Barton, Oakland
89. Westphalia: Ryan Sweeney, Chicago (A)
90. Simpsonville: Blake DeWitt, Los Angeles (N)
91. St. Olaf: Glenn Perkins, Minnesota
92. Coram: Brandon Morrow, Seattle
93. Staten Island: Will Inman, Milwaukee
94. Brooklyn: Eric Young Jr., Colorado
95. Riverhead: Jeff Baker, Colorado
96. Bay Ridge: Carlos Ruiz, Philadelphia
97. Kohler: Chris Parmalee, Minnesota
98. Laurel: Daniel Bard, Boston
99. Setauket: Elvis Andrus, Atlanta
100. North Babylon: Joe Smith, New York (N)

Idea

Hey, I think i came up with a way to incorporate everything in a fair way that we should have no problem finishing. It is 16 rounds of auction draft, followed by 9 rounds of snake draft. Here are the particulars.

-100 million dollar budget
-25 players
-players 1-260 are auctioned off by Tom as the auctioneer
-we will bid using green/red cards to indicate whether we are in/out of the bidding
-until there are two people remaining, when those two will bid directly against eachother
-bids are for yearly contracts and owners assign contract length (1, 2 or 3 years) after winning bid
-only eight players can be given three year contracts
-players 261-320 are bid on auction style but are called up by the owners. So each owner will eventually call up three people during this phase.
-The rest of the draft will be done as a snake-style draft in reverse order of the minor leauge draft.
-Player salaries for this phase are defined as follows:

round player # yearly salary
17 321-340 2 mil
18 341-360 1.75mil
19 361-380 1.5mil
20 381-400 1.25mil
21 401-420 1 mil
22 421-440 .75mil
23 441-460 .5mil
24 461-480 .25mil
25 481-500 .25mil

Note: this adds up to 9.25mil so you must have at least that much remaining to be fully involved in this portion. If you don't, see below...

-contract length of drafted players are assigned after you draft them

OK, now for the tricky part...

-after the auction part (320 players taken), for every player more than 16 players you have on your team, that is one fewer than 8 players that you can give a 3 year contract to.
Ex. if you have 18 players after 320 players have been auctioned, you can only give 6 players 3 year contracts.
-once we hit the draft phase (post-320) the draft only involves teams that meet the following criteria for each round

ROUND 17: Fewer than 17 players AND no more than 90.75 spent
ROUND 18: Fewer than 18 players AND no more than 92.75 spent
ROUND 19: Fewer than 19 players AND no more than 94.5 spent
ROUND 20: Fewer than 20 players AND no more than 96.0 spent
ROUND 21: Fewer than 21 players AND no more than 97.25 spent
ROUND 22: Fewer than 22 players AND no more than 98.25 spent
ROUND 23: Fewer than 23 players AND no more than 99.0 spent
ROUND 24: Fewer than 24 players AND no more than 99.5 spent
ROUND 25: Fewer than 25 players AND no more than 99.75 spent

-An owner can have more than one pick in a round. The round will continue until 20 players are taken or no owner is eligible
-Any owner that winds up with less than 25 players, must make the highest paid player with a three year contract become a one-year contract for every player under 25 players...


well, that's my idea...is it too complicated? Have i made it clear enough? anything you disagree with? anything you wanna add? any part that you don't understand why it's been implemented?

Draft

Im making a new post to ensure everyone sees it. I completely agree with Kohler about the time that it is going to take to complete an auction style draft for 500 players. The draft probably needs to be done over a 2 day weekend. I doubt that is feasible with people coming from all over the place. I think its alot to ask for guys to give up a whole weekend to draft a team. And I for one will not give up a whole weekend to draft a fantasy baseball team. Kids, work, puppy, coaching, other hobbies, misc errands, and oh yea a wife all pull on my time as it is. Going into this I thought it would be a draft on one weekend day taking at most 12 hours which is not a problem. I voiced my concerns earlier on about the time that I thought it would take to conduct an auction style draft with 20 teams owners (actually more counting co-owners) trying to draft 500 players. But I was told don't worry about it, it will work. "Ok" I thought "I will give it a shot" but the more I think about it and hear others voice their concerns the more I realize its not going to work. Look how long its taking us to complete 6 rounds of a minor league draft. Team owners aren't prepared to make their picks for this and they know when they are going to be picking. Based on that it doesnt seem to me that all team owners in this league are taking this as a serious as I am or as committed as I am and that worries me and makes me wonder "How in the hell is the live draft going to work?" What makes anyone think these same people are going to be ready for a live draft and arent going to be the same people slowing that down as well, if they even show up. I dont mean too sound like I'm crying and moaning here but I think I am just trying to be realistic. Frank has said that if u cant give the time then it might be time to drop out. Frank, I dont know u nor what else u have going on in your life but fantasy baseball is a hobby of mine not my life. As u have seen my picks have all been made quickly except for one (I was on the road to florida to scout players at spring training) and have all been valid/half-way decent picks (if i dont say so myself). My point being that I am into this and half-way know what i am doing (remember Matt Garza?). But though I am not yet raising the white flag I am raising the yellow (caution) flag. I cant give more than 12 hours or so for a live draft on a single day and if its going to take more than that then I am out. If the rest of team owners can give that amount of time, god bless them, but I can't. I look forward to hearing what my fellow owners have to say. By the way, who is on the owners committee? This is starting to feel too much like Major league baseball (Bud Selig anyone?)

Congrats DAD !!!!!

Congratulations Todd and Ms. Sliss on the new addition to your family. Henry Shea, sounds like a future editor of the New York Times to me .Hope mommy and baby boy are doing well.

Newest NFSL Legacy

Raise your glasses to Simpsonville Slayers co-owner Todd Sliss and his wife Carrie (though, mainly to her) on the birth of their new son, Henry Shea. For those of you scoring at home, lil' Hammerin' Hank weighed in at 8 lb., 6 oz. at 3:19 pm on Monday--12 days late.

We can only hope this lackadaisical attitude will be gone when it's his turn to draft in a couple of decades.

Hey Nassau....

looks like someone read the Daily News this morning ;)

The Draft

We are now less than 1 month from D-Day. Seriously. After all the talk, after all the hype, the time is almost here to put up or shut up, to see just what you're made of in what will undoubtedly go down as a ground-breaking, some might say transcendent, fantasy baseball league.

The minor league draft is rolling along at a somewhat efficient pace. A pothole here and there have slowed the proceedings, but overall it looks like we'll be able to wrap things up in a week or so. Once completed, if anyone wanted to break down the draft (winners, losers, ranking the farm systems, etc.), that would be swell. Just go ahead and post it on here.

I hope everyone has at least started prepping for the major league portion of the draft. Draft day comes up fast and you don't want to be left holding your junk while blanking on a back-up shortstop. I've been to too many drafts where some numbnut holds everything up because he has run out of players on his list and has to frantically flip through a magazine looking for a name, any name. At the end of a long, grueling day of bidding it can happen to the best of us. trust me.

And that's just what the inaugural NFSL draft is going to be--a grind. There's no getting around it: 20 teams x 25 players each = (carry the one) 500 players. Now, I love drafts as much as the next guy, but even I expect to need a Red Bull IV by the end of the night. I am also going to assume that this isn't coming as news to anyone. We're starting a Super League from scratch. This isn't some kill-a couple-of-hours-before-American Idol-comes-on-Yahoo! draft. This is the real deal. Bring your A game and hope it's enough.

So, how are we going to pull this off, you may be wondering? This has been the biggest question mark from the league's conception. After hearing from most of you over the past few months, the consensus is that an auction is the preferred drafting style. Besides simply being more entertaining, it also prevents us from having to compromise the innovative salary-based strategy that I feel separates this league from other, lesser leagues. Of course, this hasn't prevented many of you from expressing grave concern over the feasibility of such an undertaking. Is it actually possible to draft 500 players via auction in one day? The most honest answer is, we'll see. But I think it can be done.

The biggest problem in every auction-style draft I've been in has been a lack of focus. Owners would go to the bathroom in the middle of a bid, start side-conversations about totally unrelated subjects, or be giggly drunk before picking their starting 1B. You may need to draft 10 players and it can take 2 hours or 10 minutes. It's all about focus.

So here's what we're going to do. We're going to use a real auction format. No around the room bidding. It will be a player called up and open bidding until one owner is left. And it will move fast. If you can't figure out if you want to bid on a player, no one is going to wait around for you to figure it out. You need to come to the draft prepared. If you're not paying attention and miss out on a player you really, really wanted, the other 19 owners won't be showing you much sympathy.

Players will be divided into blocks of 50 based on generic pre-draft rankings and called up randomly within those blocks. We'll take short breaks between groupings to give everyone a chance to unwind, eat, drink, and excrete. Then, back to work. Again, keep in mind this is a one time thing. Next year's draft will be more leisurely.

Tom will be in touch shortly with the Draft Day specifics and directions. Remember, this is going to be an all-day affair, so don't make plans for that night. If you can't make a one day commitment to this league, maybe you need to rethink if this is right for you. If there are any extenuating circumstances, please let us know ahead of time and we'll try to work something out. Until then, happy scouting.

2007 Minor League Draft: Round Four

61. North Babylon: Brad Lincoln, Pittsburgh
62. Setauket: Chris Volstad, Florida
63. Laurel: Jeff Clement, Seattle
64. Kohler: Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Atlanta
65. Bay Ridge: Tyler Clippard, New York (A)
66. Riverhead: Joe Koshansky, Colorado
67. Brooklyn: Jacob McGee, Tampa Bay
68. Staten Island: Donald Veal, Chicago (N)
69. Coram: Ian Stewart, Colorado
70. St. Olaf: Gio Gonzalez, Chicago (A)
71. Simpsonville: Troy Patton, Houston
72. Westphalia: Brian Bannister, Kansas City
73. Ridge: Dustin Pedroia, Boston

74. Browntown: Elijah Dukes, Tampa Bay

75. Philadelphia: Michael Bourn, Philadelphia
76. Nassau: Tyler Cummings, Kansas City
77. Ninth Street: Wade Davis, Tampa Bay
78. Mattituck: Kory Casto, Washington
79. New Libertatia: Eric Campbell, Atlanta

80. Hampton Bay: Travis Buck, Oakland

Draft Format Info

Frank will be posting a blog explaining how we plan to auction style draft--so stay tuned !

Draft format?

Hey. It was brought up a month ago about the draft format. Are we keeping it at auction style for all players or we doing half and half (auction and snake draft)?

Just making sure...I would rather just do auction the whole way, with a limit set on bidding times (5 minutes a top player, 3 minutes for lower tier players)

Worthless Card Collection

If you collected baseball cards in the 80's, you absolutely MUST go to this site:
http://www.joesportsfan.com/cardCollection.php

and make sure you roll the mouse over each card for a fun fact.

Minimum Wage

Just a reminder that from here on out, all draftees will be making the minimum ($250,000) when/if called up to the majors.

To recap: 1st rounders will get $1 M, 2nd rounders $750,000, and 3rd rounders $500,000.

2007 Minor League Draft: Round 3

41. Hampton Bay: Carlos Carrasco, Philadelphia
42. New Libertatia: Phil Humber, New York (N)
43. Mattituck: Adam Lind, Toronto
44. Ninth Street: Colby Rasmus, St. Louis
45. Nassau: Adam Jones, Seattle
46. Philadelphia: Chris Ianetta, Colorado
47. Browntown: Brandon Erbe, Baltimore
48. Ridge: Kevin Slowey, Minnesota
49. Westphalia: John Danks, Chicago (A)
50. Simpsonville: Erick Aybar, Los Angeles (A)
51. St. Olaf: Josh Fields, Chicago (A)
52. Coram: Mike Bowden, Boston
53. Staten Island: Jeff Niemann, Tampa Bay
54. Brooklyn: Eric Hurley, Texas
55. Riverhead: Clay Buchholz, Boston
56. Bay Ridge: Thomas Diamond, Texas
57. Kohler: Billy Rowell, Baltimore
58. Laurel: Franklin Morales, Colorado
59. Setauket: Humberto Sanchez, New York (A)
60. North Babylon: Lars Anderson, Boston

NFSL: DIVISONS

Again, and for the record, here is this year's divisional alignment:

Division 1: Nassau, North Babylon, Ridge, Westphalia
Division 2: Browntown, Laurel, Mattituck, New Libertatia
Division 3: Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, Coram, Staten Island
Division 4: Hampton Bay, Ninth Street, St. Olaf, Simpsonville
Division 5: Kohler, Philadelphia, Riverhead, Setauket

Any suggestions for division names?

Nice Team LOGO !!!

Hey John, Nice logo---your talented---I thought you were only good at making PIZZA !!!

On With the Draft.......Lets keep movin!

Mets Tix Cheap

Hey Mets fans there are a select # of games throughout the season where Tix range from $5 to $20 and seats are Upper Reserve not the greatest but pretty damn cheap to get in the door. SF Giants tix in late May are 9 bucks with a longshot of being at the HR record breaking game!

A message from the GM of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos

Hello all again. This is the general manager of the most storied franchise in Brooklyn, the Bay Ridge Wopdagos. I am proud to announce our new assisant general manager, Gino the Guido. You can see all that Gino has to say here: http://www.youttube.com/v/4_RzJc_nc94


We have also announced our new manager, Miss New York herself, Bethlene Pancoast, who is a resident of Bay Ridge. Unfortunately, her nose was not able to make this press conference since it is still in Las Vegas because of Homeland Security. http://www.missnewyork.org/competition-info/national-contestants.asp?state=New+York&year=2007&contestantName=&GO=GO%21

Now, I know that some of you have been looking at our minor league picks and wondering, what the hell is he doing? Rest assured, I do have my general manager of the minor league squad, the Alibaba Cameljockeys' own Shraif Adubl Jabbar Mohammed, to explain. Shraif?

(Speaking something in camel language, can't understand...)

Thanks Shraif. The applications for the Frankie Wilders Fan Club are pouring in! Thanks for all the support that you have bestowed upon me. Membership kits are in the mail now and will be arriving by draft day. Of course, if you want to wait until then, I will be bringing a limited supply of kits with me, so they will go fast! Be the first on line!

We here at the Bay Ridge Wopdagos pride ourselves in knowing what it takes to put a winning ballclub on the field. Of course, it starts with great, young talent. With that being said, let me introduce you to our first two minor league draft choices, James Loney and Felix Pie. These two young men may not come up to the majors this year, but rest assured, they will make a HUGE impact next year and the year after. Thanks guys. You may now go because its naptime and you just had your bottles.

Thank you all for attending today's press conference, and I will leave you with this:

No matter if the groundhog sees his shadow or not, it is still 7 weeks till spring.

Frankie Wilders, the general manager of the Bay Ridge Wopdagos.

2007 Minor League Draft: Round 2

21. North Babylon: Tim Lincecum, San Francisco
22. Setauket: Chuck Lofgren, Cleveland
23. Laurel: Reid Brignac, Tampa Bay
24. Kohler: Andy LaRoche, Los Angeles (N)
25. Bay Ridge: Felix Pie, Chicago (N)
26. Riverhead: Adam Miller, Cleveland
27. Brooklyn: Jose Tabata, New York (A)
28. Staten Island: Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh
29. Coram: Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles (N)
30. St. Olaf: Nick Adenhart, Los Angeles (A)
31. Simpsonville: Jacoby Ellsbury, Boston
32. Westphalia: Kevin Kouzmanoff, San Diego
33. Ridge: Luke Hochevar, Kansas City
34. Browntown: Carlos Gonzalez, Arizona
35. Philadelphia: Jeff Samardzija, Chicago (N)
36. Nassau: Hunter Pence, Houston
37. Ninth Street: Travis Snider, Toronto
38. Mattituck: Jason Hirsch, Colorado
39. New Libertatia: Fernando Martinez, New York (N)
40. Hampton Bay: Joey Votto, Cincinnati

BEER Names

Well if the Riverhead Reds really want to stick with just beer names there are two Millers in the Rockies organization--one is an OF and the other is a RHP---don't worry about the rating of "C" that Sickels gives them both, what does Mr. Sickels know anyway !!!!

MY Picks

I'm glad everyone is so proud of the talent of the players they picked in the first two rounds of the draft. As for me-I picked my players based solely on their name. A. Miller & A. Miller have to be dynamic players- they are both named after a beer. I'm going for an all beer minor league roster - so if you know of any players with a beer associated name let me know-I 'll jump right on them in the next few rounds. Well, have to go- "It's Miller Time"

Empire Statement

In what can only be described as a coup of epic proportions, the Staten Island Empire have announced the signing of legendary fantasy baseball manager Tom Emanski to lead their initial surge through the nascent NFSL. Emanski, who guided the Truth or Consequences Cactus Franks to three straight League of Champions titles, is world-renowned for his encyclopedic knowledge of the fundamentals of the game and his ability to transform his players into ball-playing machines. With this hire, the Empire leave no doubt they are throwing down the gauntlet for the rest of the league, and throwing it down with both hands.

"If it weren't for Tom, I wouldn't be the borderline Hall of Famer I am today," said "Baseball Superstar" Fred McGriff. "I whole-heartedly endorse this hiring."

Keeping with his reputation, Emanski--who will also serve as the team's hitting and pitching coach--left his own press conference early to start working out with the Empire's two stud prospects, Jay Bruce and Andrew McCutchen. Before he left, however, the newly-appointed field general did offer some insight on what the rest of the draft class--as well as the major league signings--can expect. "Anyone stepping into an Empire uniform will be stepping out of it able to eat, breath, and sleep the same tested under fire techniques used by Baseball World's back to back to back A.A.U. National Championship teams. We may not win every game, but no one--and I mean no one--will be able to throw a ball from the outfield into a garbage can at home plate better than my boys. Or your money back."

MOTIVATED OWNERS !!!

I don't have a team logo yet because my computer skills are not that good, but I'm glad to see such skilled owners !!!---GREAT LOGOS !!

Mattituck Natives Sign Stud

The newly formed expansion team Mattituck Natives are excited about their first pick of what is expected to by ownership as a fast track to a Dynasty franchise. "We are very excited to welcome Billy Butler as our first overall pick in the NFSL draft. " said Tom McCaffery, Owner of the Mattituck Natives.



file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/tomm/Desktop/Project%20Prospect.html

Ridge Ducks Announce Logo and Draft Update

The Ridge Ducks today have announced their team colors and logo. The thought here is that while a duck is traditionally a docile creature, they're smarter than most people give them, and as Co-Owner Mike Thomas said "Who doesn't like Emilo Estevez?"

"Yeah. The new Logo looks an awful lot like the Disney-Sponsored Anaheim Ducks' New Tag, but it's better than the awful Quakerjack that other Island-Based Water Fowl Squad parades around." Quipped Co-Owner Rob Serva when asked for comment. "Hey, did you get a load of the soon-to-be-Major-League-Talent we've picked up in this Minor League Draft?"

While many teams have made excellent selections on future talent, it seems the Ducks are looking to win this year, using their first two picks to grab players that they feel will make a big impact on their Major League Roster this year. By grabbing Troy Tulowitzki with their first pick, Thomas said that they've settled their SS position with a player they feel will be the next Bobby Crosby, "hopefully with a little more power." With their Second Round pick, they nailed down future Ace Luke Hochevar.

"It's going to be a tough league to compete in. You can see already the level of attention being paid to these first couple of Draft Rounds." said Serva "We'll have to wait and see how everything shakes out, but I'm looking forward to our inaugural season. We've got our eye on a manager candidate, and if all goes well, hopefully we'll be making an announcement on that real soon too."

I'm Not Saying...

...they're slow in St. Olaf, but blonde polacks tell jokes about them.

A Little Help Here

Hello Super Leaguers! I'm in kind of a bind and i'm hoping there is a kind soul who can help me. I'm heading out to Mount Airy Lodge (where all you have to bring..is your love of everything!) for the weekend and i will be technology-less until 9pm sunday

If (probably when) it is my turn to pick, could someone send up a smoke signal? I will probably be extremely annoying as i wont know who was taken. So if there is anyone who will have the patience and kind heart to contact me, i will have my cheat sheet with me and ready to go.. The Brooklyn Isotopes are appreciative of the help (718-288-7574...i'll pay for text message fees if need be)

On a side note, what time and where for draft day (March 24th right?)?...need to prepare

Thank you for your time

Name change

Forgetting at the time that the league was NF I chose NF for a team name. I would like to change to Mattituck Natives if possible. Thanks Tom

NFSL NEWS RELEASE:

Hampton Bays Bambinos Unveiled the Teams new Logo. Teams rookie owner, John Ramirez said," I feel image is a huge part of the game & draw at the ticket gate." He added,"with this many teams located geographically so close together we're gonna try & stand out." With the first overall pick of the NFSL & a winning attitude they are on the right path.

Thanks shepherd

Thanks It seems I'm now on track.

Having a hard time blogging

Anybody got any info for me. It seems everytime I want to get into the nfsl blog I have to recreate a google account from the link in Franks invite e-mail. I keep using the same information every time (e-mail & password) but there has to be a better way. Is it my computer settings or brain settings or both. Helllllp.

Draft Format

Just some thoughts on the draft format.
With 320 selections for starters alone an all auction format probably will not work. We need to establish parameters for the transition to a serpentine format.
Values for each player should be established (can get most from any sports web site; others can be determined by the commissioners based on comparable players).
Should all rosters be balanced before switching to the serpentine format? (With an auction format a team may have three selections while another team may have one).
Any other thoughts for Frank to consider before we begin?

2007 Minor League Draft: Round 1

1. Hampton Bay: Alex Gordon, Kansas City
2. New Libertatia: Delmon Young, Tampa Bay
3. North Fork: Billy Butler, Kansas City
4. Ninth Street: Brandon Wood, Los Angeles (A)
5. Nassau: Phillip Hughes, New York (A)
6. Philadelphia: Homer Bailey, Cincinnati
7. Browntown: Justin Upton, Arizona
8. Ridge: Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado
9. Westphalia: Chris Young, Arizona
10. Simpsonville: Scott Elbert, Los Angeles (N)
11. St. Olaf: Joel Guzman, Tampa Bay
12. Coram: Matt Garza, Minnesota
13. Staten Island: Jay Bruce, Cincinnati
14. Brooklyn: Mike Pelfrey, New York (N)
15. Riverhead: Andrew Miller, Detroit
16. Bay Ridge: James Loney, Los Angeles (N)
17. Kohler: Cameron Maybin, Detroit
18. Laurel: Yovani Gallardo, Milwaukee
19. Setauket: Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay
20. North Babylon: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee

Some Stuff

Reminder to check the "Comments" link after each post for, well, comments. The Garza question was answered this way.

Also, anything in green is a link. Click on it for a wonderful adventure into the depths of the Internet. Or something.

Like the pix, boys. Kris, watch out for scurvy. Although, maybe I shouldn't call you Kris anymore.

As for our sea cow friends, something to keep in mind.

Winners

The Bensonhurst Manatees will take it all!!!

Garza

Garza pitched exactly 50 innings last season..not sure what the league policy will be on that

Bewarrrrrrre

Batten down the hatches, ye scurvy bastards! Cuz the Swashbucklers are comin' for ye, and we will offer no quarter!

Yovani Gallardo, The next Dwight Gooden !!!

Matt Garza

I believe matt garza is an ineligible pick for the minor league draft. I believe he has 50 innings pitched in his major league career, and to be eligible for the minor league draft he needs "LESS" than 50 innings pitched.

Dear Mr. Selig

If you are looking for an appropriate course of action to take with regards to Barry Bonds' failed amphetamine test might I suggest four months of seclusion in Glynco, GA with nothing more than a laptop and a dial-up connection. Outside of sending Bonds to the Lids store at the local mall and not letting him out until he finds a fitted hat that actually fits his bulbous head, I think this is the most cruel and unusual punishment you could dole out.

If you don't feel this appropriate just come and see for yourself...

Just a liitle fun from a wiseass

Tick Tock- Tick Tock- Drop your c*(k fill your spots. Just seeing if this works.

Prospecting: Chris Young

Now that the top prospects are off the board (as well as some less-than-top ones--not that there's anything wrong with that), let's see who's got what.

Westpahalia seems to believe what it has is a CF stud for the next 6 years in Chris Young. They're looking at a possible "35 SB, 18 HR, .258BA, 95 runs, 58RBI for 2007". Are they close or smoking crack? Or both?