House That Hank Built
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An Atlanta Braves fan’s fantasy baseball dilemma: battling ourselves

By Alan Carpenter

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL - DECEMBER 06: In this handout image provided by Disney Parks, fireworks and confetti fly at Cinderella Castle during the Grand Opening of New Fantasyland at Walt Disney World Resort December 6, 2012 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Actress Ginnifer Goodwin, Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Tom Staggs, singer Jordin Sparks and Mickey Mouse joined dozens of Disney characters on Cinderella Castle stage to celebrate the opening. New Fantasyland is a new area in the Magic Kingdom and is the largest expansion in the 41-year history of the theme park. (Photo by Kent Phillips/Disney Parks via Getty Images)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL - DECEMBER 06: In this handout image provided by Disney Parks, fireworks and confetti fly at Cinderella Castle during the Grand Opening of New Fantasyland at Walt Disney World Resort December 6, 2012 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Actress Ginnifer Goodwin, Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Tom Staggs, singer Jordin Sparks and Mickey Mouse joined dozens of Disney characters on Cinderella Castle stage to celebrate the opening. New Fantasyland is a new area in the Magic Kingdom and is the largest expansion in the 41-year history of the theme park. (Photo by Kent Phillips/Disney Parks via Getty Images) /
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Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 of the Braves. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images)
Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 of the Braves. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images) /

It’s March – which means the Atlanta Braves begin the 2020 season in 3-1/2 weeks. It also means that fantasy baseball drafts are coming soon.

We’re going to try something new this year. We have enough Atlanta Braves writers hanging around our virtual offices that we’re going to have our own fantasy baseball league this season.

I truly have no idea how this is going to work. It may be that making trades becomes harder because perhaps we don’t really want to help somebody else. It could be that factions develop among various participants as if we’re engaged in a Survivor tribal war.

Back-stabbing is likely.  Double-crossers?  For sure.  Bragging rights?  Absolutely.

Our draft is currently set for next Thursday – March 12. What’s more:  we’re going to stream this draft – with our reactions – for the purposes of making Podcast episode 14.

I don’t know how that’s going to play, either… other than expecting lots of trash talking, complaints (and whining) like ‘you just poached my pick – again!!’.

I do expect that some entertaining hilarity will ensue at some level… and y’all will be free to laugh at our ineptitude at the process.

Personally, I’m starting to check into some draft trends in preparation for this event, for it’s not terribly obvious at all what my own first pick might be.

Among our twelve team captains, I will be drafting seventh. Right away, that eliminates any hang-wringing about whether to take Acuna or Trout as first overall.  But it does mean I should be able to get somebody pretty good.

Before I get to that, though, there’s the sheer math of it all:  12 teams, 22 players apiece.

That’s 264 player we have to select out of 764 major leaguers (30 teams, 26 per roster)… a full one-third of the entire MLB ranks.

It definitely pays to know the a lot of the players out there.  So then there’s basic research.

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