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18 Mar 2009 |
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| I play just about every fantasy sport that is offered on the World Wide Web (except for NASCAR but I’ve been tempted). I’m not sure if it is the avid sports fan in me that draws me to fantasy sports or if it is the gambling itch that I have to scratch. Whatever the case may be, fantasy games have become a big part of my reality. Out of all of those fantasy games, the one that gives me the most satisfaction is…fantasy baseball.
The majority of the American fantasy gaming community would swear up and down that fantasy football is the best fantasy game to play. It is certainly the most popular. The NFL is the most popular sport in America and is the sport that is most conscious of it’s fantasy equivalent. During every almost every commercial break of a football game is an advertisement for fantasy football. Certain stations have stats scrolling at the bottom of your screen throughout the game. Pre-game shows give you “fantasy plays” in which their experts give make predictions on who will have a good or bad game. All of which turns a nice profit for the NFL and websites alike.
The sport of baseball and fantasy baseball have taken a backseat to the NFL and fantasy football in recent years. However, that doesn’t mean that fantasy baseball is any less of a fun game to play. In my opinion, it is ten times more fun of a game to play than fantasy football and one that takes more that much more effort as well.
The Schedule
Fantasy football is based on 17 weeks of regular season games in which the players play once a week. Therefore, fantasy owners have a whole week to prepare for the next game. It is a full week of analyzing match-ups, receiving injury news, and listening to expert advice in preparation of setting your lineups. You then have the luxury of finalizing your weekly lineup just minutes before the kickoff of the first game. The challenge found in this process is minimal.
Fantasy baseball is literally a year-round game. The MLB season consists of 162 regular season games that stretch across six months. Free-agency begins a month after the world series ends followed by winter and G.M. meetings just over a month later. These are quickly followed by Spring Training. If a fantasy baseball owner is not keeping up with all of these happenings, he is left behind.
There are two ways in which fantasy baseball lineups are controlled. One way is similar to fantasy football in that you set your lineups once a week in which the deadline is the Monday of the new week. The other is a daily lineup in which you can insert or remove players on a daily basis. In the former, you must make your decisions based upon a five-seven game week worth of match-ups. In the latter, you are able to take a more in-depth look at the daily match-ups which provides a strategy all of it’s own. In both cases, the amount of effort it takes to maximize your team’s potency is far greater than that of the weekly lineup changes of fantasy football.
The Players
NFL rosters consist of 52 players for 30 teams. MLB rosters consist of 25 players on 30 teams. It is obvious that the number of NFL players greatly outnumber the amount of MLB players. But how many NFL players do you need to keep track of in order to be successful at fantasy football? A fantasy football roster usually consists of 16 roster spots for a normal 12-team league. This means it is usually the best players in the league that find themselves on fantasy rosters. We all know these players are already. So, how much homework can actually be done on them? How many people knew that Eddie Royal was going to be a stud? Exactly.
While MLB rosters don’t contain the number of players that NFL rosters do, fantasy baseball players must know who every MLB player is and how good they are (especially since the standard roto league fantasy baseball team consists of 30 roster spots). Is it important to know how good the fourth wide receiver on the Cincinnati Bengals is? The answer is ‘no’. This is because the impact he will make in one season will be minimal. However, it is important to know who the fifth starter for the Oakland A’s will be. This is because the fifth starter for the A’s has every opportunity to make as big of an impact as the number one starter does.
Knowing every player in the MLB is also extremely important when it comes to NL and AL-only leagues. How many good second basemen are there in baseball? Not too many. If you’re in an NL-only league, you have to base your draft and your season on the fact that Freddy Sanchez may be your starting second basemen. Have you ever heard of an NFC or AFC-only league? I haven’t and my guess is that we won’t hear of one any time soon.
Don’t forget about the hundreds of MiLB players that fantasy baseball players must keep track of. At any time, one of these players could become the next Ryan Braun and if you haven’t done your homework, you’ve just missed out.
The Luck Factor
The game of fantasy football is as much about luck as it is about skill. You could have the best team on paper yet can lose any given week. If your quarterback and your top receiver get shut out one week then it is going to be tough to win. Meanwhile, Cedric Benson goes for 130 yards and two touchdowns against you and you’re screwed.
Injuries can kill your season as well. Just ask all of the poor souls who had Tom Brady on their teams last year. There is nothing that you can do about injuries in football. Most of the time there is no player that you can replace an injured player with that will give you near the production that the injured player would have given. Who was left to pick up after Tom Brady went down? Kyle Orton? It is just another example of how much luck factors in to fantasy football.
Luck does not play a big factor in fantasy baseball at all. Roto leagues are set up to where the person who does their homework and knows their baseball the best wins. Injuries can hurt in fantasy baseball as well but there are options available that can still give good production if one of your star players gets injured.
Closing Arguments
The level of energy and time needed to succeed at fantasy baseball far outweighs that of the energy and time need to succeed in fantasy football. Consider the abundance of stats that fantasy baseball players must follow; it greatly outnumbers the [very] few meaningful stats that fantasy football players must keep track of.
I put in work on my fantasy baseball teams for nearly a full calendar year, every year. This is the kind of dedication that it takes to stay competitive. Most fantasy football players don’t start thinking about their teams until June at the earliest. The dedication that fantasy baseball takes is the number one reason why it is the most difficult fantasy sport to play. That is what makes it so competitive, so enjoyable, and that much satisfying when you win.
I love the NFL and fantasy football as much as the next red-blooded American male. However, the skill and dedication needed to succeed in fantasy baseball is the reason why it is the superior fantasy game. To steal a quote from Robert DeNiro playing Al Capone in the classic movie, “The Untouchables”:
Well said Bobby.
Alright football meatheads, let me hear it! Baseball guys, get my back! Which game is better? Sign up for the Premium Site today! If you're getting ready for your draft then get the edge on your oppenents with the help of Lenny, Paul, Patrick, and Tony. What other site can you have the experts right there with your during your draft? Only at Fantasy Pros 911!!! Sign up for the best deal in fantasy baseball today. Trackback(0)
Comments (15)
  written by Yomi, March 20, 2009
Fantasy Baseball is more of a skill-based game compared to Fantasy Football. Even before game-play/scoring begins, you realize that Fantasy Baseball is more in-depth. The player pool is considerably deeper, drafts are so much longer, the strategies are more complex. I feel like a lot of people have their drafts online for Fantasy Baseball. Whereas Fantasy Football, I know a lot of people that have them @ local bars, etc. Which reminds me of a pretty cool contest I saw on CBSSports.com for a trip to south florida to host your Fantasy Baseball draft party. Here's the link in case anyone's interested: http://www.cbssports.com/contests/trivia/5637
written by ChristopherMulligan, March 20, 2009
Thanks for the comment ducat. The best advice that I can give you is to watch as many baseball games as you can. It's one thing to read about the players but you get to know them by watching them.
written by Scott G., March 19, 2009
Chris,
I also think you hit it on the head. You can't be a serious fantasy baseball player without knowing all of the players and at least the top prospects. In Fantasy Football,you can compete by just knowing the better starting QB's,RB's and wide recievers. There is no comparison in skill . FF is about 80% luck.
written by ducat2, March 19, 2009
Chris,
You're dead on the mark. The knowledge I have of players in the NBA and NHL is quite good without having ever played fantasy sports. I know fantasy football has a wide variation of league formats but in most one needs only to be well versed in the skill positions and possibly defense. However, as I'm preparing for my first baseball drafts, I have discovered how little I know about the pool of major league rosters, let alone their minor league prospects. It's no wonder I'll be going into these drafts with some trepidation. And I thought I was a baseball fan. Compared to the FP911 crowd I feel like a fish out of water.
written by ChristopherMulligan, March 19, 2009
Thanks for the compliments Matt. I really could have wrote another three pages on how more intricate the game of fantasy baseball is and how basic the game of fantasy football is.
written by ChristopherMulligan, March 19, 2009
Thanks for reading D-Wrek. I'm currently playing in the MLBFO Dynasty Challenge which uses the players real life salaries with a 90 mil salary cap. Fantasy baseball players are just way more inivative than the average fantasy football player.
written by ChristopherMulligan, March 19, 2009
Thanks for the comment Barry. Get in touch with Tony Cincotta. We may still have a slot or two available in our leagues.
written by Matt Vandenbrand, March 18, 2009
Chris this article is spot on.
Though there are always a few surprise players in the NFL- Steve Slaton, Matt Cassell, the majority of the players are proven, which takes alot of the risk, and preparation out of NFL fantasy. To be successful FF, you know that you need 2 good running backs, 2 good WR, and a solid Qb. It's proven, no one defers from that dogma. Baseball, you can win a title in so many numerous ways, bats, pitching, speed, etc etc. The possibilities are endless. I've got your back Chris in this argument.
written by Kevin Orris, March 18, 2009
I'm 18- I play in person most of the time with a few friends that I've taught. I'm not a very serious player, but I enjoy it.
written by D Wrek, March 18, 2009
All great points. Another reason baseball is so great is the how indepth some of these leagues are getting, especially sim leagues like strat and my personal fav scoresheet. You really have to break the game down to win these things. Not only is offense improtant, but so is run prevention. You have to know every player and its about production not chasing empty stats like saves, wins, runs, etc. I would like to think it comes close to replicating the real game.
I havent seen a football league that can as closely replicate this. Most leagues its just a handful of offensive players from each team and even football leagues like scoresheet dont include O linemen. Of course there may be something out there I dont know about.
written by Barry Deutsch, March 18, 2009
I don't know your age. I am an old guy. But I play in a lot of leagues with guys ranging from mid 20s to 60s.
written by Kevin Orris, March 18, 2009
I love Strat, I don't know anyone else even close to my age that plays it though.
written by Barry Deutsch, March 18, 2009
I play Strat-o-Matic which is like driving with your eye on the rear view mirror, but better than anything football has to offer.
I just wish I could find some congenial guys and get into a current season fantasy league. The commercial sites just don't appeal to me.
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Tags: Chris Mulligan Fantasy Pros 911 fantasy baseball fantasy football NFL MLB Eddie Royal Cedric Benson Ryan Braun Freddy Sanchez Tom Brady
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Fantasy Football is way more enjoyable to me and my wife, since it doesn't take a lot of time each week. (And yes, I made the playoffs in all three of my leagues last year.)