Winning Your Fantasy Baseball League: Trade Laws

So, did you do your homework? Can you tell me your team’s philosophy for 2008? Can you tell me the personality of each owner in your league? Good. Now it’s time for the heart and soul of fantasy baseball, trading.

If an owner in your league is not into trading, then he should find a new hobby. Trading represents every fan’s dream to be a general manager. All of us at some point in our lives have uttered these words, “You know what I would do…I would trade…” If you are playing in a Keeper League, then trading in January and February is crucial to your success in the upcoming season. Leagues are won and lost based on what you do before the draft. Don’t fret if you are in a league that re-drafts every year; we have some stuff for in-season trading too next week. Now, let’s get to work and discuss the rules of trading in the offseason.

The Rules for Trading in the Offseason

Follow these simple rules and your team can win this season, no matter where you finished last season.

Rule 1: Take Stock

First and foremost, you must take stock of who you have on your team. I like to divide my team into three categories: Definite Keepers, The Maybe players, and The See ya later guys. Those are pretty self-explanatory categories, but let’s explain one important note. A common mistake amongst fantasy owners is that they over-value rookies and young, developing players. For keeper leagues, the young rookie or second year player should almost always be cut. Remember, you can always re-draft him. It always makes me like my chances when I see my fellow owners keeping prospects over solid veterans whose production is reliable. Let’s look at last season and Delmon Young. Sure, he had a nice rookie campaign, but he was not a top-25 outfielder. His production for the year was worthy of a later round selection during the draft. However, many owners kept him during the offseason.

So, look at your team and make your decisions. The Maybe players are tough as some represent good value and good production. The Maybe players are your real trade candidates along with your cuts. Your keepers will not be touched unless someone overpays for one of them.

Rule 2: Survey the Landscape

Successful trading is a product of good planning. Another common error by owners is to get caught off guard by a trade. The trade may involve big names who you either don’t need or can’t afford. The “Rachael Ray” owner may get you to agree to something that will totally blow up your season before it even starts. So, planning is important.

My method is to print out a copy of each team’s stats. I then go with a highlighter and mark the players who fit my philosophy for the upcoming season. Even if I like other players, I only look at the guys who fit my plan. Try to find someone on each team, but don’t force it. I like to propose at least one offseason trade to each owner to get a feel of what they are looking for in the draft. This knowledge helps us immensely later on.

Try not to mark too many guys from the same team. This does make trading a lot easier as you are really only targeting one guy which allows you to have a position of strength (It’s explained in rule 3). You should target guys who are solid, productive players. A superstar can be targeted, but remember, we are staying away from trading our definite keepers. So, most likely you are targeting guys who play every day and give you almost guaranteed stats. I also like to target guys who had a down or injury plagued year as you can get them cheaper if an owner is frustrated or is caught off guard. Someone like Vernon Wells is a good target under this category. Remember, don’t reach. There’s time for that in the draft.

Rule 3: Overpay for the One Player

It might sound crazy, but it works. Since you only have a certain number of keepers heading into the draft, you can afford to give up extra players that you would ordinarily give up during the season. Since you are targeting a specific need for your team, it is worth giving up an extra player or two (or three!) for that one piece of the puzzle. You either weren’t sure if you were keeping those guys or you were cutting them, so what does it matter?

One word of caution here, your fellow owners will think they are ripping you off by getting a package of guys for one or two players. It’s alright and it actually works to your advantage as they are more apt to deal with you later on having gotten the “better” end of the deal previously. Again, I know this goes against the grain with every other fantasy baseball publication, but it does work. Go into the draft with your strongest set of keepers. If you have to give up a couple of players you wouldn’t during the season, that’s the price you have to pay. As long as the players are not from your definite keeper list and the players you are receiving are “money in the bank” players who fit your philosophy, go for it.

Rule 4: The Throw-in Guy

This is so important for your offseason strategy. Get the other owner to take “pity” on you and throw in another player or so that he plans on cutting. This helps for the next trade as you have a bunch of guys to overpay for your next target. Most owners feel that if you trade for someone, you must keep him. Get rid of that thought now! Get that throw-in guy or two for your next trade. It will help the next owner think he ripped you off.

I put this strategy into work three years ago. An owner had Johnny Damon in the last year of a three year contract. Because we had salaries go up for each year you have the player signed, he was one of the most expensive players in the league. I knew the owner wasn’t going to keep him. I dealt my five players for Ichiro (I was building my speed so I could just draft power). As we were about to make the deal, I just asked about Damon. He said, “You can have him if you want”. I took him and a week later he was part of another package that landed me Travis Hafner. The championship team was beginning to take form.

Rule 5: Every Trade is made with your Draft in Mind

Rule five is very simple. You must know who you want in the draft. In that same season, three years ago, Manny Ramirez was the premier free agent hitter in our draft. He had played out his option year the season before and was now fair game. Since we were a bid auction league, I knew that he would go for big money. Every trade I made that offseason (six of them), even the Ichiro and Hafner deals, lowered my salary cap. I also knew that I had to keep an outfield spot open for Manny.

The typical mistake in offseason trading is usually violating this rule. Most will look at the names of the players rather than how they fit on your team. When you read the draft day advice (two weeks from now) you will see the importance of team makeup. So, in the two trade examples above, the drafting of Manny was the sole priority. Speed usually goes for a tremendous amount during a draft, especially in the American League. I knew that I could land Ichiro with the overpaying method. This along with keeping Derek Jeter and Brian Roberts assured me of placing high in steals. Now, I was focused on power and pitching. Hafner fit the bill as I didn’t want to acquire another outfielder who would block my ability to draft Ramirez. I spent the hot stove season filling out my infield corners, designated hitter, and catchers.

Rule 6: Pull the Trigger

As Rocky Balboa said to Tommy Gunn, “Your best friend is a guy named Frankie Fear”. Fear is always a part of trading in fantasy baseball. Many people do not want to make that bad trade that everyone in the league will trash you for. Or, you don’t want to make the trade that will mess up your team. If you listen to Rocky, you know that you can’t let fear burn you up. Make the trade!

Want to know what you do when you make a bad trade? You simply make another one. What happens if you make two bad trades? Make another trade. If you don’t trade you will spend a lot of time in the basement of your league.

The Final Thought

Many people will say that fantasy baseball begins during spring training or whenever the draft is held. That’s bogus and the answer of the people who finish at the bottom. The best time to get the best trade value is during the winter months. It is also crucial to draft day success. Now, go make those seemingly lopsided deals so you can win your title in ’08.

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