I can use Trumpian decisions as examples, but that would bring up politics.
And as Mark Twain said,
"Readers, suppose you were an idiot.
And suppose you were a member of Congress.
But I repeat myself."
In our part of the world, we judge draft picks and we judge FAAB bids.
Immediately.
Results don't come till much later.
But, we do it anyway.
If a drafter takes Freddy Freeman high in the second round, he could be met with...
'But Miguel Cabrera was available'
'That was way before adp'
'Two 1B, this early?'
'I would have taken...(insert players name here)
If a drafter took Mitch Haniger in the blahteenth rounds, we'd hear...
'Too early'
'Way before adp'
'Could have had Joc Pederson'
'I would have taken'....you know the drill
It's what we do.
And if we don't write it, or say it, we think it.
Yesterday, Brad Brach went for around $100 to around $400.
We pick on the high bidders as bidding too much.
Blah, blah, blah.
Look, I bid close to $200 on Brad Brach and didn't NEED him.
I felt it was worth close to $200 gamble to get a guy who ....
1. Can handle the Closing role
2. Throws damn well
3. Accumulate Saves for the present
4. Can possibly be 'The Guy' especially since Spring Training started, Britton had sat more than pitched.
(By the way, has Britain leaving Europe really changed the world?)
(I believe Britton leaving the able-bodied has a far more reaching effect, at least in our neck of the woods!)
If NEEDING Brach, I would have spent more.
Each of our leagues is comprised of 15 or 20 (partners) who have input into FAAB decisions.
None of these decisions are taken lightly.
We carefully balance our needs and wants against our budget.
Much like a household.
In most households, there wouldn't be room for Doritos in a budget that tight.
I would find a way.
For me, Doritos has gone past a want. It's a NEED.
Anyway, so if a fella bids a little or a lot on a player and the bids range dramatically, it does not make the lowest bidder smart or the highest bidder stupid.
The lower bids on Brach could come from leagues that don't feel a push for Saves.
The higher bids could come from a loss of Jeanmar Gomez, the future loss of Sam Dyson, or just using FAAB as a way of making up for drafting inequities.
A month from now, none of us will care.
Heck, a week from now, nobody will care.
Brach will be rostered and be productive.
Then, the only ones that will care, will be the Brach owners.
They will have something that 14 teams do not have, Brach.
While the 14 other teams can spend more freely.
Really, that is the only tradeoff.
IF, during this week Kenley Jansen were to go down to injury, Sergio Romo becomes Bread Brach and a new group of FAAB bidders will do the same thing this group of bidders did.
And those who pay dearly for Romo will be judged harshly.
Again.
It's the crazy way of our fantasy world.
Sometimes, I think we are just a stone's throw from joining Congress.