Leaderboard Predictions

It happens every year. Scott Carmichael and Joey Creighton finish at the top of nearly every offensive and pitching category. So now that the league has decided to switch over to a team format, will this year be different? I doubt it.

The main reason I believe they'll each have another productive season is because of what I focused on in my last article: Carmichael and Creighton are guaranteed more at bats and innings pitched because they will be playing with a limited roster for a large portion of the season. This will likely lead to more hits, runs, homers, etc. (and they're just as likely to give up more of these too).

Luke Carriere and Casey Sylvester should be able to compete with Carmichael and Creighton in many categories, but neither one has played well consistently both on the mound and at the plate like Carmichael and Creighton always do. While Carriere and Sylvester are indeed talented athletes, they're not yet on the same tier as the league's top two stars.

So with today being opening day, and the fantasy leagues now underway, here are my predictions of the league leaders in all of the categories being used in the fantasy leagues: (AB, H, R, RBI, 2B, 3B, HR, BB, K; IP, BF, W, ER, K, and BB). Batting categories are on the left, pitching categories are on the right.

Random Comments: As for triples, your guess is as good as mine. They're very rare and we might not see any this season. However, I decided to choose the "King of the Triple," Terry Creighton to lead the league once again..... I didn't have much to go on with the rookies, so don't be surprised if a few more of them show up on the actual leaderboard, especially the "negative" categories (strikeouts [batting], earned runs, batters faced, walks allowed)..... Although there are currently 36 games at 4 innings each scheduled, for a total of 144 innings, I estimated that each team would play some extra inning games (i.e. don't think I didn't notice that I had 2 Horsemen throwing a total of 123 innings)..... The most exciting race in any statistical category should be in strikeouts (pitching). Look for only a couple of strikeouts to separate the top three finishers..... If anyone in the Eastern Fantasy League wants to make me an offer for Mickey Kendall, please do so. My team's name is "That Damn Good."

As cool as it is to lead the league in a statistical category, this year it's all about winning games. The "W" is the only statistic that really matters; it's not about player ratings anymore.

Agree? Disagree? Mickey Kendall trade offers? Feel free to e-mail me at breens2@yahoo.com with your comments. Chances are I'll respond to your message in an upcoming article and to your trade offer immediately.

• Holes in the Armor (3-5-01)
• Leaderboard Predictions (3-25-01)
• April 22nd Predictions (4-20-01)
• What California Power Crisis (5-30-01)
• Looking Ahead to WB2K2 (7-20-01)