It was the Winter of 1989, and three car poolers (Jim Hailey, Mike Howell, and Bob Barker) were driving down the road, going home, reading that mornings Dallas Morning News. There was a story about Fantasy Football in the Sport section. We all commented that playing Fantasy Sports would be fun. Football season was almost over, and we decided to play Fantasy Baseball. We then began to try to research the subject, and find more people that would be interested in playing.
Six Guys met in a small room, and began the Limestone Fantasy Baseball League. Steve Schick, John Arbor, Bob Barker, Pat Feeney, Jim Hailey, and Mike Howell. We knew nothing about it, how it worked, or how to keep score. We made up our own format, we got a Dallas Morning News, to read about the players, and we drafted. We only drafted 12 players apiece: 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, C, OF, OF, OF, DH, SP, SP, and a RP. We came up with a small set of rules and we played by them. We quickly discovered that we were not prepared for injuries. One memory of that year was the day that we discovered our first Fantasy Baseball Magazine. That's where we found out that the stat keeping, and roster keeping that Bob Barker was doing, was called a Commisioner. The League Champion that year was
Pat Feeney quit the league that year, and Bob Shoquist took over his team. We determined that we needed a larger roster that year, so we decided on 28. We also decided that we needed to be able to trade. We had had 3 categories the year before, Home Runs, Pitching Wins, and MVP, and we added RBI's, SB's, and SO's. We also chose Team Names. Steve Schick - Giants, John Arbor - Hammers, Bob Shoquist - Longballers, Bob Barker - Saints, Jim Hailey - Comets, and Mike Howell - Heat. This also began the leagues best, and oldest rivalry - Longballers and Hammers. The League Champion that year was the
Jim Hailey quit that year, and Dwight Caldwell took over his team, naming them Fat Chance. We voted in Walks and made them a category, and increased roster sizes to 30. We also decided to play weekly games, have weekly winners, and have a World Series. The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
Mike Howell quit that year, and 3 teams took over his team. Phil Harris - Red Devils, Steve Barker - Warriors, and Joe Simmons - Mega Bytes. They each drafted 10 players apiece from the Heat, and then from unprotected players off the remaining teams. Our League now had 8 Teams. The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
Joe Simmons quit that year, and Bill Barker took over his team, naming them the Wings. We decided to start paying places 1, 2, and 3. We also voted in Bob Shoquist as Treasurer, taking some of the load off of Bob Barker. The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
We expanded to 10 teams that year. Mike Howell - Heat re-entered, and Brent Savarese - Native Americans. We left some players unprotected, and they selected from those players. We also entered the Computer Age, using Quatro Pro to do Stats, and e-mail to send the results! The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
Mike Howell quit that year, and Danny Washington took over his team, naming them the Braves. Dwight Caldwell changed his team name to the Yoakam Aardvarks. We added 1 more Starting Pitcher, and 1 more Relief Pitcher that year, and added Saves as a category. The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
Brent Savarese changed his team name to the Screamin' Weasels, and Steve Schick changed his to Green Giants. We increased roster sizes to 33, and redefined what made a player a Relief Pitcher that year. The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
We entered the World Wide Web!
We once again expanded, to our present 12 Teams. Chip Tatum - Bloodhounds, and Doyle Terry - Desperados, entered the league. We once again left players unprotected, which they selected from. Bob Barker changed his team name to the Bobcats. Danny Washington sold his team after 4 weeks to John Stout, who changed the name to the Big Sticks. We decided to pay 4th Place, and also to expand from 4 to 8 playoff teams. As soon as the season ended John Stout sold the team to Jim Clark, who named them the Clubbers. The League Champion that year was the
The World Series Winner that year was the
We began the year with a new Treasurer, Dwight Caldwell, owner of the Yoakam Aardvarks. We had another team decide to leave after the end of the season, the Longballers. Bob had been with us since 1991, but he felt the game was passing him by. This also ended the Longballers - Hammer rivalry, making the Hammers - Green Giants as the longest standing rivalry. Mike Cockerham took over the Longballers team, changing the name to the Sodbusters. We added two new rules. We put a time limit on when money should be paid, and a stipulation that beginning with week 3, a position player will have to have 10 AB to be inserted into the lineup, up until the week before All-Star Break. A new rivalry occured this year between the Green Giants, and the Yoakam Aardvarks. We had two 1st time winners with the new League Champion, the
The World Series Winner that year was the
No major rule changes this year, and a triumvirate rivalry between the Green Giants, the Hammers, and the Yoakam Aardvarks, became our favorite diversion. These 3 Teams battled all year between 3rd and 5th, that went into the final week, with all 3 positions never sure till the final day! The League Champion was a continuation of a dynasty, the
The World Series Winner that year was the
No major rule changes this year, and we had an interesting year with the winner powered by the bats of Barry Bonds, Luis Gonzalez, & Sammy Sosa! The League Champion
The World Series Winner that year was the
We had a rule change this year describing penalties for non-payments by dead-line. The Challenge wasn't for 1st Place, but 2nd 3rd & 4th! The League Champion
The World Series Winner that year was the
We still have 3 of our original owners, Steve Schick, John Arbor, and Bob Barker. What used to be 6 teams is now 12. We have rivalries, especially Hammers vs. Green Giants. And most of all we have fun! Good luck next year!