After two months the frustration has been mounting, and at this point you�re like Steinbrenner after a losing streak so long that the Toronto Blue Jays are breathing down your neck. Aramis Ramirez and Roy Halladay started rolling the second you got rid of them. Curt Schilling is letting you down, and like the D-Back ace you�re ready to smash the electronic system that�s telling the umpires what should be a ball or strike. Your team is not going right, your attitude has gotten like Alex Sanchez and you want to start from scratch. Or your team is doing so wall, and you�re having so much fun - that you want to add another team to the equation. That�s when CDM Diamond Challenge Second Season comes into the equation.
The only real difference between the Second Season and Full Season challenges are that the salary cap is tightened to 28 million. At first glance that my be daunting, and many years it cuts down on the uniqueness of rosters as most teams have identified the best bargains. However this year there are so many bargains out there that there are several avenues to go, which will add to the excitement. In fact the salary cap has become less than an issue than normal, which means less moves will be needed than normal since teams are able to stay easily under the cap.
But back to the Second Season Challenge, which begins with games of this coming Monday. I have heard some comments that the four month format does not allow the best and most persistent teams to rise to the top. I tend to disagree, for it is a 17-week (actually 16 � week) contest � or thereabouts the same as an NFL season. Over the course of 105-110 games there is plenty that can transpire, and as is the case in full-season, the cream eventually rises to the top. You have to be a little more aggressive with the moves, but other than that there is not much difference.
As I go through the positional rundown, you will notice some differences as opposed to past years. I have the high-ticket items in second season on the offensive side of the ball, as well as relief pitching. Traditionally, I am an advocate on splurging with the likes of Pedro, Unit, and Schilling (rotating them based on who starts twice in a given week) while utilizing the cheaper-priced relievers to save cap space. This would go in line with my traditional theory of 21 percent of your lineup (6/28) being responsible for nearly 40 percent of the stats (wins, ERA, ratio, K�s).
A feature that will ensure you getting off to a lightning start in Second Season has to do with the interleague schedule that is in place for Weeks 10 and 11. Virtually all games in Week 10 will be in National League Parks, that means offensive parks such as Colorado, Houston, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and San Juan�s Bithorn Stadium will be in play, along with pitchers parks such as San Francisco and Los Angeles. And also, virtually all games will be played under National League rules sans the DH. In Week 11 the venues change to the AL, with the DH in place.
CATCHER � This is going down as one of the worst years in recent memory at the most offensively challenged of positions. Mike Piazza is on the shelf while the averages of Ivan Rodriguez and Jorge Posada continue to spiral downward. I would go with Mike Lieberthal and his .300 average along with Rodriguez who at least provides speed and some power. Make sure that Pudge doesn't land on the DL with his bum hand. Some will be tempted to take Colorado�s Charles Johnson since he�s at home next week, but his .236 overall average translates to something truly anemic when on the road. I would also consider Posada who has the most power (12 HR) by far at the position this year along with Minnesota�s A.J Pierzynski who will always be good for a solid .290+ average even if he does hit down in the order.
FIRST BASE � Todd Helton (1840) will get some play based on the Rockies being at home next week, but his power is way down this year (only 7 HR) although he does have 40 RBI. Meanwhile, Toronto�s Carlos Delgado will provide fantastic four-category numbers home and away (.335/43/15/51) at a cheaper price (1420). Among cheaper first basemen, I have said since March that it will be an interesting battle between Toronto�s Josh Phelps (670), Tampa�s Aubrey Huff (610), and Oakland�s Erubiel Durazo (520). Phelps falls short compared to Durazo (.270/8/36) and Huff (.291/14/30). If looking for the homers look to Huff while Durazo should get more RBI opportunities. I�m expecting Durazo to be popular as he is currently in full season and gets a slight endorsement over Huff, although Durazo will be seeing some bench time this week as he's primarily a DH.
SECOND BASE � In case he�s not valuable enough already, Alfonso Soriano was moved down into the #3 hole with the Yankees this week. Already on pace for a .320/130/45/110/40 season, he will even be worth it when CDM finally bumps his salary up to 2000 next season. Atlanta�s Marcus Giles has become a monster at just 400 with his .320 batting average and has even chipped in five steals to go along with seven HR and 30 RBI. If looking for steals Luis Castillo (1210) is always available while Jerry Hairston (foot) should be back by the All-Star Break.
THIRD BASE � It is weird to endorse two players on the same team with the same salary, but such has become the case with Texas� Hank Blalock and Mark Teixiera at 500. Blalock is a must while Teixiera is beginning to come on strong after a slow start. Teixiera may have a hard time finding AB�s next week as Rafael Palmeiro will be forced to play the field but will see enough playing time to be an asset after that. Aramis Ramirez (820) is suddenly seen his BA push .290 but his power is still missing. Aaron Boone (1010) provides power and steals but has slumped lately. Florida�s Mike Lowell (1190) is having a career year (.289/34/16/41) and will be the main attraction in the Marlin�s annual fire sale, with the Cubs being a potential destination.
SHORTSTOPS � This will again be the position that�s most set. Go ahead and spend the money (2010) on Alex Rodriguez. After that, choose between either Nomar Garciaparra (1330) who has an appetizing series in Milwaukee next weekend or Rafael Furcal (960) for runs/steals help. Those three will be on most rosters with some taking a flier on Jimmy Rollins (960).
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AFTER A LULL THE PAST TWO YEARS, SHEFFIELD IS AN MVP CANDIDATE AGAIN... |
STARTING PITCHERS � Well, Pedro�s hurt, Unit�s hurt, and Schilling�s smashing up a machine gathering data on pitches that in or out of the strike zone. But for what those three have lacked the cheaper pitchers have made up for. Leading the way is the red-hot LA pitching staff. Darren Dreifort (3.30/1.22/65 K�s in 57.1 IP) is becoming an incredible bargain at 600 and gets two starts against favorable opponents (KC, CWS) next week. Perhaps even better will be Odalis Perez (@DET, @CLE) in Week 11. Due to upcoming off days, staff ace Kevin Brown (990) will only get one start per week for the next three weeks but gets consideration for being as hot as anyone right now. As far as other teams are concerned, Mark Prior gets two starts next week � enough said. Kerry Wood gets the Yankees (minus Bernie, Nick Johnson) and it may be against none other than Roger Clemens. How much will ducets for that one be scalped for at Wrigley. Other two-starts in Week 10 include Jason Schmidt (COL, DET), Damian Moss (MN, DET), and Mike Mussina. Kevin Millwood and Matt Morris are the hottest NL starters right now, but beware of Morris starts at Yankee Stadium and Fenway in Week 11. In the AL A�s teammates Barry Zito and Mark Mulder are the top dogs. In four complete game victories this year, Mulder has thrown 96, 96, 105, and 109 pitches. Later on down the road keep an eye on Robert Person (650) who could become Boston�s closer. I would stay away from teammate Brandon Lyon (460) as well as St. Louis� Cal Eldred (750) � as closers they are just keeping the chair warm.
RELIEF PITCHERS � Trust me, you will have the cap room to do it. Plug in John Smoltz (1600) and Eric Gagne (1420). You will thank me while saving on antacids. Make San Fran�s Tim Worrell your third closer at 740. Choose between Billy Wagner (1290), Keith Foulke (1280) or Eddie Guardado as the final closer. And then there is whom to stay away from. I imagine Scott Williamson (960) and Matt Mantei (700) will still get plenty of action. But Williamson has been getting hammered on a regular basis while Mantei has battled a sore shoulder recently and has been touched up as well. Again, you�ll cut down on your Maalox usage. Also stay away from the Cubs Joe Borowski, as manager Dusty Baker plans to move Antonio Alfonseca back into the ninth-inning role unannounced in the near future. If looking for cheap saves, consider Toronto�s Cliff Politte or Montreal�s Rocky Biddle who have both done admirable jobs.
To give a final idea on how easy it will be to stay below 28 million, I will give you this sample lineup:
Those of you who had hung on to Alex Sanchez this long, you may want to see how he fares as a Detroit Tiger, where he was immediately handed over the starting center field position. His departure from the Brewers was nothing short of acrimonious as his attitude went straight south after being benched a few weeks back. One player was quoted that the team �needed to get rid of him yesterday�. Sanchez also refused to shag fly balls and was often AWOL when called upon to pinch-hit. There was also not a strong market for Sanchez (outside of the desperate Tigers), with one scout saying 'I could never recommend that guy because I can't stand watching him.' Still if Sanchez could manage to do a 180 attitude-wise he could be a source for cheap steals. Sanchez is hitting .282 on the year, an average that�s a goldmine on the Detroit roster.
In an injury that may affect others (Pujols??) in the Cardinal order, Fernando Vina was lost for 12 weeks due to a torn hamstring (ouch). Full disclosure finally came on why Eric Hinske had been in the tank all season, it turns out that he had been playing with a broken hamate (hand) bone all year. Hinske should be back in 3-6 weeks, then he can work on returning to his 2001 form. Will there be a job for Jerry Hairston after he returns from the DL??? Replacement Brian Roberts has hit two grand slams in his first week in the bigs. Delmon Young, the 17-year old brother of the Tigers Dmitri Young, put on an impressive show in a 2 � hour batting practice stint in Milwaukee, hitting balls into the second deck. Young is projected to be among the top-three picks in the June amateur draft. Canadian left-hander Adam Loewen milked the Orioles down to the last minute � and finally signed a five-year 4 million dollar major league contract. Until recently O�s management were not offering more than 2.5 million for the 6�6� Loewen who would had gone back into this year�s draft pool. That mega-signing is not good news for the GM's attempting to sign top picks in this years draft, as the agents now have big-time leverage.
Not talked about in the hoopla surrounding Roger Clemens 300th win is that he is only 15 K�s away from becoming only the third pitcher in big league history in record 4,000 punchouts. Considering Detroit is his next opponent, Clemens should perhaps walk out with a special glove saying �4,000 K�s, 300 wins� and kill two birds with one stone. Sanchez himself should be good for the Golden Sombraro in that game. For only the second time in modern history, a team opened a game with three straight home runs as Atlanta turned the trick on Cincinnati in a 15-3 rout. The previous occasion was on April 13, 1987 when Marvell Wynne, Tony Gwynn, and John Kruk turned the trick for San Diego in a game I attended. That night was better remembered for a full-blown Larry Bowa tantrum over a double-play (runner outside the basepath) call which did not end until the ump threatened to have security remove the red-faced Bowa. That one ranks second in Jack Murphy Stadium history next to Rosanne Barr attempting to sing the anthem on July 25, 1990 (was there for that one as well). To my recollection, KC manager Hal McRae (big surprise here) is the only player/manager/coach in my recollection who had to be requested by law enforcement to leave the field after being ejected.There was very little action among pick-ups/drops in the CDM game this week. The limited activity is as follows.
BUYSIt doesn�t get any better than this dream matchup, as the Tigers go west to face the Padres for the first time since the 1984 World Series. Has anyone noticed the Padres home uniforms look just like the Tigers now. AAA ball at it�s finest. Just remember to buy your 20-game package to get priority in the new park next year (lol). Matt Morris has a good chance to start twice if STL skips the fifth starter which they did last time they had the chance. AZ, SD, COL, SF, CWS and CLE will have a seventh game on Monday. CLE and KC visit Colorado, BAL and TB are in Houston, ANH and TX play the Expos in Bithorn, and NYY and TOR are in Cincinnati.
The CDM Free agent list is as follows�