Fantasy Baseball Update

Here we are, almost three weeks into a new season, and i've been stuck at the bottom of my own ten team league for most of the time. However, after a few key roster moves, one promising trade, and some brilliant free agent acquisitions, i've been able to pull my team up by its bootstraps to fourth place.

i'm behind Paul and Dawn (neither of whom have made a single trade or free agent pick - that's good drafting) and Matt.

My offensive starters as of today are:

Catcher: Victor Martínez, Cleveland, slumping right now, but i hope he can regain his 2004 form soon.

First base: Paul Konerko, Chicago Sox, currently leading the majors with seven home runs.

Second base: Clint Barmes, Colorado, averaging .652 with 8 RBI and an on base percentage of .714 in the last week! He's currently second in the majors in both batting average and on base percentage, behind...

Third base: Edgardo Alfonzo, San Francisco, that's right, i have the number one and number two major league batting average and OBP leaders on my team. They're fucking keeping me afloat. And you know what the funny thing is, i picked up both of them after the draft as free agents. i should be a talent scout.

Shortstop: Pedro Feliz, San Francisco, tied for fourth and eleventh in runs scored and RBI, respectively.

Outfield: Jim Edmonds, St. Louis, love this guy, he's been on my fantasy team every year.

Outfield: Matt Lawton, Pittsburgh, perrenial underachiever on a mediocre team.

Outfield: Sammy Sosa, Baltimore, whom i'm a little worried about, but i couldn't say no to the trade when Victor offered him.

Utility: Adrián Béltre, Seattle, who had a monster year last year, and better deliver this year. i've noticed that former Dodgers often seem to do well during their first year with a new team.

Defensively, my brilliant pickup was Toronto rookie Gustavo Chacín, who was just sitting there in the free agent pool with three wins, nobody noticing. So i snagged him. Similarly ignored is the supremely talented, but sometimes inconsistent Dodger starter Odalis Pérez, who's having a great April.

My disappointments have been the injured Eric Gagne, who was my #1 draft pick, and Barry Zito, who seems to be having trouble adjusting to life without Mulder and Hudson. But he'll come around. So will Mike Lowell, my old standby the last couple of years. He's in the middle of the worst slump i've seen him in since i've been his fan. Snap out of it, mi borinqueño!

If i can get some save production out of Trevor Hoffman and/or Gagne comes back healthy, i might move up even more. If i don't jinx everything with this post, that is. Still, it feels good to be out of the cellar.