Busch Leaguers

As we enter the 2005 season, all hail the repeat champion Busch Leaguers. The run is much more than having a cheap Pujols (18) and Gagne (12), both of whom are entering the last year of their contracts. Jeff still has to put together a team that can win. I'll bet over half the guys in BABI would not have won the league had they started with the same guys.

Furthermore, Jeff has a hard time both at the draft (he's often targetted) and in trades (many of us are wary of dealing with him to let him improve his team, though that hasn't stopped him from picking up Pujols, Gagne and Lidge). His success is a testament to superb talent evalation skills and constant attention to improving his team.

We made one deal with him last year: we gave him Dennis Tankersley's open spot so he could activate someone off the dl for the Colorado $1 Luis Gonzalez, who we liked on draft day. Jeff offered, we accepted. Easy deal. He's actually pretty easy to deal with, because knowing that teams are wary of trading with him, he always offers reasonable deals. Right now he's offering Gagne, given that he'll never be worth more than he is right now at $12 entering his last season. Someone might bite, but I'm sure he's looking for a longer term keeper. We're satisfied with Looper, and we surely don't want to help him build for the 2006 season.

So he's on the cusp of losing the players who are the backbone of his team. Meanwhile, although he didn't win by much, here he is with another phenomenal list of keepers. Meanwhile, Mark and Lou's team are pretty well decimated, just as our team and Larry's team were the year before. Here is our best guess at his keeper list:

1. C - R. Hernandez 12-06 Solid bat at a fair price
2. MI - D. Jimenez 8-05x Nice improving player at a nice price
3. 1B - A. Pujols 18-05C Stan Musial at a bargain price
4. OF - J. Burnitz 12-05 Probably not extendable outside of Colorado. Decent profit this season, but probably won't have the numbers he had last year.
5. OF - R. Sanders 18-06 Not too big a profit, but he's reliable in 3 categories despite being 37.
6. RP - E. Gagne 12-05C Showing some wear, and the team won't be as good, but still a great bargain.
7. RP - B. Lidge 3-05 Almost sure to raise him to 13. Young stud we originally drafted at 3, then traded to Lou to get Ken Griffey. Not our best moment, but certainly not Lou's best moment to let Busch get him.
8. SP - B. Sheets 12-05 Some might extend him, particularly if he was on a better team, but we think not. Became a wonderful numbers pitcher last season.
9. SP - O. Perez 3-06 Solid starting pitcher at a bargain price. He might well extend him next year.
10. SP - J. Thomson 13-06 He might keep Harang at $1, but Thomson was a solid starter last year on a good team who surely won't go cheaper. He finally showed what he could do away from Colorado.

That's 121 players for 5 hitters and 3 starters and 2 top closers. He'll need some speed, and he'll need to fill out the power, but he's got a great core, and he can afford anyone, including a top starter (not sure who that might be) and/or Beltran. He'll have 159 for the remaining 15 players. All he has to do is lock in his profits, avoid injury, pick up a couple of cheap guys who work out for either trading purposes or for 2006, and avoid stepping on his dick, and he'll have a sure contender again. As always, he's going to be tough competition.

Jeff always has said the great thing about this game is finding the balance between this year and next year. He does it better than anyone. We are strongly against playing for next year, but it's tough not to rip your team to shreads while going for the win. We just don't know how he does it. Meanwhile, we're going to be all over him at the auction.