FAQs re Fantasy Baseball League Formation

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From: Watson, Joseph A
Sent: Saturday, February 24, 2007 10:53 AM
To: members of the Gashouse League; personal email addresses not displayed

Subject: FAQs re Fantasy Baseball League Formation

After my earlier messages about the formation of The Gashouse League (Yahoo Fantasy Baseball PLUS league), I've had some frequent questions, including:

Oh. You mean I have to so something to join? - J. Bednar

Yes.

Like what?

1.Click on this link:
http://baseball.fantasysports.yahoo.com/b2/register/tos?league_id=1699&password=guydunlap

2. If you already have a yahoo email address, you will be asked for your yahoo account name and password.
If you don't have a yahoo email address, you will be asked to create one (it's free).

3. You will be directed to The Gashouse League's website home page.

4. You will be asked to join the league (essentially, create a team master record).

5. You will be invited to "go to the league home page" or "go straight to Yahoo's Draft Central."

6. You might wanna save the league home page to your browser's favorites menu ... so you can get back to it, readily.

Who is this Guy Dunlap person?

While, ostensibly, while this league is all about fellowship in the name of having a reason to pick through the box scores, each morning ... it's really a campaign to get Guy Dunlap (Pittsburgh Pirates) into the Baseball Hall of Fame© at Cooperstown. Guy was the favorite son hero much-loved and honored by Cuba, MO ... childhood home of siblings and league members Jeff, Greg and Susan Bednar. The kids worshipped Guy and basked in the glow of his stories of glory with the Pirates. Somehow (and this came to light during a pilgrimage and archives tour at Cooperstown, last fall), it appears the Baseball Hall of Fame© has on file each and every contract ever signed by a major league player since Moses was player-coach ... except for Guy's. Guy in the Hall of Fame©! That's our rallying cry.

What's in the league name ("the Gashouse League")?

Well. It's not a bad name. It'll look good on a trophy or tee shirt ... as "Gashouse" is a traditional Golden Age of Baseball name. The nexus of this gathering of eagles is CITGO ... a gas (albeit, gasoline) purveyor. It pains me to note there's a Redbird Flu outbreak in this league ... sufferers of same might appreciate a Gashouse Gang inference. So ... like ... the league name doesn't suck. That's about as good a case as I can make.

I don't think I've met all the others?

It's a league of nice guys (in the gender-neutral California sense of the word, Stephanie). So, some nice guy is gonna finish last. Let me do some introductions:

Bob Kostelnik. Gashouse League co-commissioner, CITGO's universal value-adder (roughly, the big cheese refineries poo-bah). Bob's son Jeff will co-manage and keep Bob from making bonehead roster moves.

Friends of Bob ... Myron Bockholt and Mark Lincecum. Myron and Mark joined a small group of us in our pilgrimage to Cooperstown, last year. I look forward to knowing them, better ... but, I recognize seamheads, when I see 'em.

Friends of Joe ... Ron Brock. Ron's an engineer in the manufacturing game and my brother-in-law (the latter honorific, I suspect he rarely advertises). Ron has to be our early league favorite (so long as he keeps Marianne his daughter involved). Regarding Marianne? Tawk about your seamhead.

Redbird Flu Bugs ... David Breedlove, Scott Gibson and Bob Mareburger. Scott's a CITGO audit muck-muck and David's a CITGO IT applications whiz (I won't call him a geek nor an auditor ... as he claims he's not an auditor any more ... but, we all know once an auditor, always an auditor). Bob's CITGO's former chief IT emperor who left CITGO to spend more time with his family. Only in Bob's case, he actually *did* leave a job to spend more time with his family!

Accountant athletes ... Je Chang and James Perry. Je and James join John and me as CITGO accountants. But, don't challenge these guys to tests of physical prowess.

CITGO Procurement Committee ... Jeff Bednar, John Butts, Geoff Gannaway, Favio Gonzalez, Ken Lloyd, Stephanie Melott, William Wallace and your humble correspondent (Joe Watson). This is the core group of insurgents causing all this trouble. These are attorneys, accountants, and engineers. Basically, your typical people without a life for whom box scores may well be the best part of the day. (Jeff's brother Greg will co-manage the Bednar entry; my son Peter is the "decider" for our team and I'm bench coach.)

This is gonna be a lot of work, isn't it?

Based on my vast experience at this (one season for Peter and me, last year) ... I'd say you can pretty much just follow Yahoo's draft board when you make your picks and just stay awake enough to make sure you've got players in each lineup spot ... dipping in once or twice a week ... and you've got about as much chance to win as the guys who don't come up for air. I'm bettin' 60% of success is your draft. You can get lost in stats developing your draft list or just take Yahoo's suggestions ... and either's as likely to turn out well. 30% of success is just making sure you've got players penciled into lineups on game days. 10% is overworking the roster during the season and outsmarting yourself making too-cute-by-half lineup moves. 100% of the fun's being involved.

Resources? Yahoo's Draft Central (which you'll get access to as soon as you sign up) has more stats and analysis than you could ever get around to. Other very good sources are www.mlb.com, www.espn.com, www.sportsline.com, www.foxsports.com.

How much do I need to ante up for this?

This is the truly diabolic part (and not unlike one's first encounter with a crack pusher). It's free. Just sign up. But, oh. The other part. First-place finisher at the end of the year gets a tee shirt from Yahoo and bragging rights. Last-place finisher gets to host this group in 2008 (at a cost of about $125.00). So, by joining up ... you're "paying" the expected value cost of taking on the risk of finishing last and hosting next year. This is designed to put incentive at the top of the standings and at the bottom ... right through the pennant chase.

When's the draft?

March 31, 2007 ... 8:00 p.m., U.S. CDT. Draft is via internet on your Yahoo Gashouse league home page ... although, I understand there may be some chance to assemble at a secure undisclosed location in Far West Houston (details to follow). (Ron, I'd let Marianne handle this if I were you. Ron's going to be in prison, that weekend.) Yahoo will establish draft order by random selection about two hours before the first pick. Draft first in the first round, you draft last in the next; draft second in the first round, you draft next-to-last in the second round ... and so on. Peter's and my 12-team league, last year, required about an hour for the twenty-one rounds.

Is this the last question?

Yup.