The Sports Watercooler

These days between rounds of the tournament are killer. I can't really get into all the other sports being played, my mind is constantly thinking about how Washington State's slow down D is really going to give North Carolina trouble. And how Villanova could easily upset Kansas.

Luckily, another favorite sporting event of mine started last night, fantasy baseball. I just had my final draft (I am in a few other leagues), and its true, the draft is always the most fun. The league I am in and will keep all of you posted on is sponsored by the writers of A List of Things Thrown 5 Minutes Ago. You should click on that link (they can see where their visits come from, so they will know that choosing little old me to be in their league was not a bad idea). And so, last night, my team, the Honey Nut Ichiros, made their debut.

I think this will be a tough league, as I already got destroyed in the draft. Its a wide arrange of people, from freelance writers (one dude writes for Rivals.com or as it's also known, every college football fan's homepage from November to February) to lawyers. I got stuck with the 2nd pick in a 12 team league, which I hate, since I had to wait so long between picks. The guys I would be targeting would always get snatched up a few picks before I came along. Plus, I have never played an ESPN league before, but you start (start!) 9 pitchers. So I placed too much emphasis on pitching as a result, and now only have 1 reserve outfielder, a DH that can't play anywhere, and a 3B who just got sent to AAA. I will make sure everyone knows how I am prevailing in that league. And for those of you who don't care, sorry I wasted the last few minutes of your life.

I know its advertised as common knowledge that no one wants to hear about your fantasy team, but I find that statement blatantly false. Its like girls talking about that chick from their high school who just had a baby out of wedlock, but the male version. Everyone has a team, and everyone likes talking about common ground. If I am in one of those forced bar conversations with like friends of friends, and this guy mentions his fantasy draft, I know we can talk for the next 30 minutes easily. Who do you have? Who is really killing you this year? Everyone has at least 20 baseball players they can discuss. And everyone faces the same dilemmas. "How far did Lackey fall due to his elbow?" is the "Did you see the Sex and the City trailer?" for guys!

So yeah, here is a brief rundown. With the second pick I picked Hanley Rameriez. I have always loved that guy, had him on my team for what is now the 3rd year. Then I had to wait a million picks so until my next one, so I napped Maglio Ordonez, who I think will have a good year. Maybe not second round caliber, but hey--you can't win your league in the first few rounds of your draft, only lose it. My pitching staff is anchored by CC Sabbathia and Dan Haren. I reached a bit and grabbed John Maine, whom I love this year (and own him in every league I am in). I was patient and waited for my closers, which quasi-backfired as I ended up with Valverde and Todd Jones (sadly, awesome mustaches don't count for more points). As for my sleepers on this team, I took Billy Butler, Dustin MacGowan, Yunel Escobar and Nat MacLouth, all fairly late.

All in all, on a scale of 1 to 10, I feel about a 6 on this team. I see a lot of weaknesses and a lot of places that I could really suffer. I got a couple guys I love (Haren, Han-Ram, Howie Kendrick, and John Maine) and some guys I think could step up this year (Soto, Manny Parra), and I accomplished my personal goal of making sure I own a Twin in every league I am in (Cuddyear).

So if you are a fan of fantasy sports or a fan of me being successful and things, keep checking for updates. If you hate fantasy sports, then you are probably going to be bored with the Sports Watercooler fairly soon.