Early Returns: Le Parc Ben et Jarry is in the Lead

For this season, the Dave Spiwack league is down to 10 teams and has moved over to ESPN. Coming up with a good team name is always a challenge. This year's team is Le Parc Ben et Jarry. After winning the league title for the past two seasons, I didn't have high expectations for the year. But as of now, I'm in first. There's a long way to go, but I'd rather be looking down than up.


While I'm at it, I'll show a photo of the league home page. This is what you get when the owner of Hugo Chavez Ravine is the league commissioner:

NCAA Football '07 on the PlayStation 2

Here's a post that will probably interest nobody but me. For Christmas ('06) we were given a gift of a PlayStation 2 along with a few games. Because our Madden '05 (NFL Football) kept freezing up in the middle of games, I purchased a version of NCAA Football '07 (by EA Sports). The years are kind of a misnomer when it comes to these kinds of games; apparently when they say "'07", they really mean "Predictions for the '06 Season". Anyway, I've been working my way though a "Dynasty Mode" season for the Ohio State Buckeyes, who were ranked #1 before I started with them. The game apparently allows you to play several seasons with the same school, as you attempt to recruit and coach made-up players that come through your system. At this point, that doesn't interest me as much as playing a season with players I know against teams (with players) I recognize.

Also, since this is my first season, I'm still learning the game. So, if the Buckeyes lose the home opener to Northern Illinois 41-14 (some score, huh?), I figure I'm allowed to not save that result and try again. I considered that kind of result to be due more to my inexperience than to something that might reflect reality.

So, though you could say I have been cheating, the system thinks I am 11-0, with one regular-season game to go. However, it took me 3 tries to beat Northern Illinois and 2 tries to beat each of Texas, Iowa, and Northwestern. I guess you could call me 7-4.

Here are a few other items of note:

• I'm usually not able to get much of a running game going. Sometimes I'll break a long run, but I'm rushing for a lot fewer yards (and a lower average) than I would have expected.
• Conversely, the passing game is usually my most effective way to move the ball. And, none of that short stuff either. Stretching the defence and flinging it downfield seems to be most effective.
• Despite starting at #1 and winning every game, I am now #2 in the polls to Florida. (More on the Gators later.) I guess I shouldn't have allowed those two late TDs to Minnesota (resulting in a 46-44 final score). That was the week that Florida moved to #1.
• So, "next week" it's #2 Ohio State hosting #23 Michigan. Thus, the 2006 regular season final was more interesting.
• Anthony Gonzalez is the leading candidate to win the Heisman. His Heisman run started when, early in the season, Ginn starting racking up a lot of receiving yards. I wanted to spread the ball around and get other guys some stats, too, so I tried to get Gonzalez the ball when in the scoring zone. So, after 11 games, I think Gonzalez has 18 receiving TDs to Ginn's 4.
• As I mentioned, the first time I played Northwestern, I lost. The second time, QB Troy Smith got hurt early and is slated to miss a month. (So, no Smith for the Michigan game.) Troy's absence was also a hit on the running game, forcing me to rely even more on the passing game. Zwick did pass for 372 yards against Northwestern in a 35-14 win. I think Pittman rushed for 23.
  

But this whole thing isn't really real or fair. The game allows you to create and edit your own players. My son and his friend did that a while ago, where the neighbour kid is the Florida quarterback, and my son is the Gator's #1 running back. I'm not sure how, but somehow these players made it into my Dynasty Mode season such that I couldn't delete them without starting my season over. They weren't bashful when giving their players the highest possible rating in most every category, either. The only restraint I'm aware of is on some of the defensive numbers. The neighbour-quarterback's tackling and other defensive numbers are such that, if he were playing defence, he'd probably be the best player on the team, but not in the country. He said that this was necessary in case he threw an interception.

Anyway, with these two "ringers", things are slightly out of whack. The Gators are #1 and undefeated. The QB is high in the Heisman race, and if (when) I beat Michigan, I'll surely have to face them in the championship. Oh well, after that, maybe I'll start over with the real rosters.

One cool thing is the generated "magazine covers" based on the generated results of your and the other teams. Here's my son as Florida's top back:
Un(?)fortunately I don't have an easy way to transfer images, data, and video from the PlayStation to here. Maybe I should get a hobby like DFV's.

ILCF 2006 Results

So close! Here are the final 2006 results for the Internet League of Canadian Football, the oldest known continually-running CFL-based fantasy football league, which has just completed its 12th season.

Internet Cup (@ Nepean):

Nepean Killer Bunnies    21
Columbus Roaring 40's    20

Playoffs:

(@ Nepean)
Nepean Killer Bunnies    29
Surrey Stampeders        14

(@ Newfoundland)
Columbus Roaring 40's    33
Newfoundland Brigade     25

Final Regular Season Standings:

                       GP   W   L  T  Pts  PF   PA  DIFF
Newfoundland Brigade   18  14   4  0   28  633  453  180
Nepean Killer Bunnies  18  13   5  0   26  635  519  116
Surrey Stampeders      18  12   6  0   24  571  470  101
Columbus Roaring 40's  18  11   6  1   23  560  504   56
Yellowknife Ice Worms  18   8  10  0   16  535  558  -23
Steel City Stench      18   6  12  0   12  499  577  -78
Edmonton Maurauders    18   4  14  0    8  409  572 -163
Le Bloc de Gatineau    18   3  14  1    7  346  535 -189

My 2006 Baseball Awards Ballot

It looks like I'm too late to vote in this year's Internet Baseball Awards, like I did last year. With the same caveats as last year, and without further ado, here are my picks:


American League Most Valuable Player

1. BOS David Ortiz
2. CLE Travis Hafner
3. BOS Manny Ramirez
4. MIN Joe Mauer
5. NYA Derek Jeter
6. MIN Johan Santana
7. CHA Jermaine Dye
8. CHA Jim Thome
9. CLE Grady Sizemore
10. NYA Alex Rodriguez

Hafner probably would have been the MVP had he not missed the last month or so of the season and put up numbers at the same rate for 10 or 20 more than the 129 games that he played. Manny had another season of "Just Being Manny." That is, he is still one of the top hitters in baseball, and is approaching "All-Time Great" status. He played in 130 games. Like Hafner, had he played in maybe 10 more at the same rate, he would have been my MVP. This leaves us with Big Papi to win the award by default. Not that there's anything wrong with that! The Red Sox have had some good hitters in the past, including one that some consider the best hitter ever (before Bonds at least) and none have hit more homers in a season than Ortiz this year. Mauer and Jeter get definite "bonus points" for the positions they play on the field, but not quite enough to be my MVP. If Jeter had hit about 25 homers, he probably would have been my choice for MVP. If (when) Mauer hits 20, he'll be MVP. Also, how'd you like your third baseman to smack 35 homers and have 121 RBI in an off year? Yep, ARod sure stinks. I wish he were stinking on my team!


Americal League Cy Young Award

1. MIN Johan Santana
2. BOS Jonathan Papelbon
3. TOR Roy Halladay
4. NYA Chien-Ming Wang
5. CAL John Lackey

Question: How much do you penalize Papelbon for missing the stretch run? My answer: None for Cy Voting, but maybe some for MVP if you'd like. I came close to voting Papelbon #1 here, but Johan Santana gets my vote.


National League Most Valuable Player

1. STL Albert Pujols
2. PHI Ryan Howard
3. HOU Lance Berkman
4. FLA Miguel Cabrera
5. NYN Carlos Beltran
6. COL Garrett Atkins
7. PIT Jason Bay
8. PHI Chase Utley
9. ATL Chipper Jones
10. NYN David Wright

My numbers show that Pujols and Howard are in a virtual tie for the top spot in the Senior Circuit. Albert was a little better when he played, but Ryan played more. In this case, I'm going with quality over quantity. Pujols gets my vote. Miguel Cabrera is the top of a number of very good third basemen in the NL. Barry Bonds was close to getting a vote. I have his offensive season as the twelvth best in the league this year. That this year was so far below his standards shows how high those standards are. (Of course, his defence would also knock him down a bit in the MVP voting.)


National League Cy Young Award

1. ARI Brandon Webb
2. HOU Roy Oswalt
3. CIN Bronson Arroyo
4. STL Chris Carpenter
5. ATL John Smoltz

In my opinion, none of the top 4 really stand out here. I could see an argument for Webb, Oswalt, Arroyo, or Carpenter. Had Roger Clemens pitched as many innings as these guys at the same rate he pitched when he did, he'd be #1. For like the thirty-seventh time. It's harder to compare pitchers across eras than it is hitters. But if you're not already, you may need to give consideration to Rocket as the Best. Pitcher. Ever.

WORLDS CHAMPIONS Are World Champions!

I'm of the persuasion that there is nothing wrong with changing the name of your fantasy baseball team each season, if you can come up with a good name. There is also nothing wrong with keeping the same name, if you already have a good name. Since my fantasy baseball team (then called Just a Little Glass) won the Dave Spiwack League pennant last year, I decided I needed a suitable new name for the 2006 campaign. I looked to the past for inspiration, and humbly took an idea from the 1921 Cleveland Indians, naming my 2006 team WORLDS CHAMPIONS. Here's the great Tris Speaker in 1921, along with some Judge guy:


So, how did I fare this season? It was a tighter race this year than last, as the Preston Tramriders were in first place as late as 21 September. However, as you may have guessed by the title of this post, my team prevailed again:

WORLDS CHAMPIONS

2006 Dave Spiwack League Champions

How did I do so well? That's tough for me to say. I didn't think that I had great players. At the start of the season, I felt that my team was rather weak. I drafted a pitcher (Johan Santana) with the 3rd pick of the draft, which was a questionable move, but seemed to work out. If you'll look at the standings, you'll see that I got 11 points or better (out of a possible 12) in 3 of 5 offensive, and 3 of 5 pitching categories. Also, who really needs batting average?!?

One surprise source of power was Bill Hall, who started the year at short, but when Troy Glaus qualified to play SS, Hall moved over to second, while Glaus mostly played short. Thus, the middle infield combination I had for much of the season cranked out 73 homers in real life (though only 68 for me).

Here's a complete breakdown of the hitters and the pitchers. I was going to present an HTML table sorted by playing time, but unsorted images will have to do. I used more players this year, as I would sign players to play an odd Monday or Thursday game, when my starter had the day off. I'm not sure if that worked out or not.

My 2005 Internet Baseball Awards Ballot

There are still a few hours left to vote in the 2005 Internet Baseball Awards, now administered at BaseballProspectus.com. Since 1991, the IBA has been the real selector of the real baseball MVPs, top pitchers, etc. (Seriously, I feel that the IBA voters generally do a better job than do the "real" voters.) For more information on the IBA or to vote, click here.

Before I announce my votes, let me say that I don't consider the team's performance when ranking the players. I'm looking for the best players, and not the "best players on the best teams". Also, as a caveat, I don't really feel comfortable putting pitchers in my MVP rankings. I do it, but I feel as I'm just tossing one in there.

So, without additional justification, here's my ballot:

National League Cy Young Award

1. Roger Clemens
2. Andy Pettitte
3. Dontrell Willis
4. Chris Carpenter
5. Roy Oswalt

American League Cy Young Award

1. Johan Santana
2. Mark Buehrle
3. Kevin Millwood
4. Bartolo Colon
5. Jon Garland

National League Most Valuable Player

1. Derrek Lee
2. Albert Pujols
3. Jason Bay
4. Morgan Ensberg
5. Chase Utley
6. Carlos Delgado
7. Roger Clemens
8. David Wright
9. Todd Helton
10. Miguel Cabrera
    

American League Most Valuable Player

1. Alex Rodriguez
2. Mark Teixeira
3. Manny Ramirez
4. David Ortiz
5. Travis Hafner
6. Michael Young
7. Johan Santana
8. Brian Roberts
9. Vladimir Guerrero
10. Jason Giambi

(I'm less interested in "Manager of the Year" and "Rookie of the Year", so I don't vote on those.)

Comment away!

Winning Going Away

In August, I wrote an entry on the progress of my Fantasy Baseball team. Back then, I had been in first place for a few weeks, and was wondering how long it could last. Well, the answer turned out to be, for the entire rest of the season. I don't think a day went by since that post where I was out of first place, and it never got really close. More recently, my lead had been increasing, and the lead at the end of the season may be just about the biggest all year.

Why did I do so well? I suppose (in a 13-team league) drafting David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, and Andruw Jones didn't hurt the power department, and the bullpen was anchored by Mariano Rivera, Billy Wagner, and Danys Baez.

If you'll excuse me for a moment,

Just a Little Glass

2005 Dave Spiwack League Champions

Here are the detailed final standings:


Here're my team's final batting statistics:


And here are the pitchers:

Just a Little Glass -- Still in First Place

Despite a slow start, my fantasy baseball team, Just a Little Glass, team has been in first place for maybe two or three weeks now. Since there is no way to go back and look at league standings for any one day in the season, I thought I'd save a copy of the standings board for posterity's sake. (I may never be in first place again!) At the end of the season, maybe I'll post again, and we can see if I've been able to hold onto my lead.

Why have I done so well? I don't know. Getting Andruw Jones in the 6th round looks like a steal. Plus, Danys Baez and his 24 (so far) saves, seems like a good deal for a 14th round pick. At the end of the year, I'll post complete team stats.

In the list below, djl is Hudler Junta, and dfv is Preston Tramriders.

Curling Game on the Web

There's a neat (one player vs. the computer) curling game at mousebreaker.com. Some elements are missing, such as sweeping, but it's still fun and addictive. I should win almost 100% of the time; not that I do.

By the way, some of the games at that site might not be considered suitable for children (for reasons other than violence). That hasn't stopped me from letting my kids play, but maybe it should.

2004 Heisman Thoughts

I'm glad that I'm not a voter for the Heisman Trophy. Well, that's not exactly true, since I wish I was a voter for said trophy. However, I will freely admit that I am completely unqualified to vote for the award this year. But being unqualified to express an opinion hasn't stopped me before, so why should it now?

Anyway, the five finalists are:

• Reggie Bush, RB, USC
• Matt Leinart, QB, USC
• Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma
• Alex Smith, QB, Utah
• Jason White, QB, Oklahoma

I'd vote for Peterson. The times I've seen Oklahoma play, he just stood out as being the best player out there.

Roaring 40's Win ILCF Regular Season Title

I'm still amazed at my success, but my CFL fantasy football team's regular season has ended with it in first place. For the sake of posterity, here's the final 2004 ILCF regular season standings:

Standings as of week 18

                     GP   W  L  T Pts   PF   PA  DIFF

Columbus Roaring 40's 18  15  2  1  31  717  427  290

Nepean Killer Bunnies 18  11  6  1  23  718  604  114

Newfoundland Brigade  18  11  7  0  22  657  589   68

Yellowknife Ice Worms 18  10  7  1  21  667  564  103

-----------------------------------------------------------

Richmond Roughriders  18  10  8  0  20  706  625   81

Windsor Border Patrol 18   7  9  2  16  460  577  -117

Steel City Stench     18   3 12  3  9   463  566  -103

Edmonton Marauders    18   1 17  0  2   182  618  -436



Matchups for round 1 of the playoffs (Edmonton players idle)

Yellowknife at Columbus

Newfoundland at Nepean

On to the playoffs!!!

Here's the current roster, which got us through most of the season:

---

QB:	Marcus Crandell, Cal Casey Printers, BC Ricky Ray, ??
OL:	Ottawa
RB:	Antonio Warren, BC Scott Deibert, Cal
RC:	Chris Brazzell, BC Frank Cutolo, BC Winston October, Edm Tony Miles, Tor Mike Morreale, Ham Albert Connell, Cal Denis Montana, Cal
DL:	Brent Johnson, BC Clinton Wayne, Ott Roger Dunbrack, Ott
DB:	Almondo Curry, Mtl George White, Cal
LB:	John Grace, Cal
K:	Paul McCallum, Sask Sandro Sciortino, Ott
P:	Paul McCallum, Sask Sandro Sciortino, Ott
KR:	Winston October, Edm Chris Brazzell, BC