Fantasy Baseball Bible

If you want to maximize your draft and pick the best team possible, then there’s one question you should ask yourself before every pick. You can practice this during your fantasy baseball mock draft (remember to practice the mock draft on your own).

The question is, when you’re about to pick a player: “Is there a player of equal value still available in the draft and, if so, what round is that player expected to be drafted?” Okay, so that’s two questions in one. But that makes it doubly important.

If the answer to the question is yes, then you have to figure out which round that player is expected to be drafted in. If it is two or more rounds later, then you should seriously consider not drafting the player you have in mind and holding off for the latter player.

For example, in last year’s draft, it seemed odd to me that Joe Mauer was ranked so high (Yahoo average pick: 31). Here was a catcher who in 2006 batted an astounding .347, but racked up only decent numbers in other categories (86 runs, 13 home runs, 79 RBI, 8 SB), at least in terms of fantasy baseball strategy. Seeing as how Mauer batted .294 the year before, one could reasonably ask whether or not Mauer could sustain such a high average. And if not, did his other stats really make him a third round pick?

If you were to get to the third round and you were thinking of picking Mauer, it would beg the question, “Is there a player of equal value still available, and if so, where is he projected to be drafted?”

In my mind, that player was Russell Martin. In fewer games than Mauer in 2006, Martin had 65 runs, 10 home runs, 65 RBI, and 10 SB. His average was much lower at .282. But clearly that discrepancy did not justify Martin (Yahoo average pick: 179) being ranked that much lower than Mauer. Either Mauer was highly overrated or Martin was vastly underrated.

I tended to believe the latter. Thus, if Mauer was worth a third round pick, Martin surely should have been worth a fifth round pick or so. In such a case, I believe it was worth passing on Mauer and picking Martin at least a few rounds earlier than projected, which is what I did with my team last year and it paid off, as Martin went on to have a stellar year.
Where can we find such bargains in 2008? Right now, my number one player to look out for is Chris Young of Arizona. He won’t fly under the radar like Martin did last year, but if he’s slated for the ninth or tenth round because of his .237 average, bump him up at least a few rounds in your draft chart.

Others to potentially boost on your chart: B.J. Upton (2B eligibility), Ian Kinsler, and Corey Hart.

By: Gavin T

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Baseball Hitting is very challenging. Professional hitters are considered good if they get a hit 3 out of every 10 at bats. This essentially means they fail 70% of the time. With this type of rejection rate, it is easy to see why younger players can get frustrated with limited results. The good news is this will not be you if you are willing to put in some practice and apply our tips.

1. Get Lessons From a Top Baseball Hitting Instructor early in your career. A good hitting coach can help improve your swing and teach you the proper mechanics from the very start of your career. This will save you time and energy by doing it the right way first. Although the cost of the lessons may seem initially high, this will be quickly recouped when you start to see your batting average rise and begin to hit them deep.

2. Practice your Swing daily. Never let a lack of access to the batting cage or batting practice prevent you from practicing your swing. Just simply swinging the bat 100 times each day will provide loads of benefits for you. This repetitive practice will make your swing more natural and automatic in games and you will end up having some additional benefits of gradual improvements in your bat speed and arm strength.

3. Review your Swing regularly. Be sure to videotape your swing and determine if you are picking up bad habits. Also, periodically follow-up with your hitting instructor. This should be an ongoing relationship where he acts your mentor. You can provide him with the tape and he can point what he thinks maybe some things you can focus on.

4. Be loyal to your Hitting Coach. Although it may seem like a good idea to ask for multiple opinions on your swing, it is best to take advice only from one or two people. If you have chosen a top hitting coach from the start, it only makes sense to take your cues from him and follow his advice. Avoid other well intentioned advice from less experienced players and coaches if it is in conflict with your hitting coach. Remember your hitting coach’s advice only helps you if you follow it.

5. Practice Bat Speed Drills. Plyometric exercises can go a long way toward developing your fast twitch muscles. This is very important in your batting swing where bat speed is determined by how fast your fast twitch arm muscles respond. By simply swinging lighter bats, you will begin teaching your fast twitch muscles valuable muscle memory. This will translate into faster bat speed when using your regular bat in games.

6. Mental Preparation is key. Much like a pitcher must learn to block out all background noise. You too must learn to block everything else out except for the delivery of the baseball. By simply repeating a simple mantra like “See the ball” again and again while you are batting, you will find your concentration improves and the background noise is filtered out. This improved concentration will translate into more consistent hitting for you.

By: Jack D. Elliott

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