Introduction
In fantasy baseball participants manage a team of players selected from one or more teams in a league. People compete against each other in head-to-head contests or within a league structure. One of the most popular games is Rotisserie League Baseball for which a scoring system was invented in 1981. Owners of players follow their selections throughout the season and earn points based on various statistical elements of the game. The increased use of computers and the internet has transformed fantasy baseball and the activity has continued to grow. However, the number of matches and the schedule makes changing a roster more difficult than in fantasy football as there are only matches in that sport each weekend.
Baseball players are selected at the start of the season through an auction. Each owner has a fixed budget and spends that until a roster is filled. The pre-season is an important element of fantasy baseball as team managers use their experience and knowledge competitively to make their selections and with a view to beating their opponents in a game. Some leagues allow change during the season and others rely solely on the draft to determine the make-up of teams over the full season including the play-offs. There is a great deal of interest in daily fantasy baseball games and the activity is now seen as an alternative to sports betting. Fantasy games in any sport are seen as skill games and the nature of baseball means the sport is popular in this context.
Main Events
Major League Baseball (MLB)
The sport of baseball in North America is run by an organisation called Major League Baseball (MLB). There were four professional leagues in the United States and Canada which merged into a single organisation in 2000. The complete body also runs minor league baseball and assists in the management of the international World Baseball Classic tournament.
Click here for the latest MLB standings.
The World Series
This season’s World Series is being contested by 30 teams, 29 in the States and one in Canada. The regular season will comprise of 162 matches for each team. Five teams from each league progress to the post season that ends with the World Series. This is the best of seven championship decider between the two league champions. MLB has the highest total attendance of any sports league in the world.
Other Leagues
There are professional baseball leagues in Colombia, Venezuela, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, Australia, New Zealand and 17 countries in Europe where there are local fantasy games.
World Baseball Classic
Japan were ranked first in the World Baseball rankings at the end of 2014. They won the equivalent of the soccer World Cup, the World Baseball Classic, in 2006 and 2009 but only reached the semi-finals in the latest competition two years ago. The concept was introduced in 2006 with the aim of increasing the global interest and growth in the sport. The Classic is the first international baseball tournament to feature players from all the professional leagues.
Olympic Games
Baseball was played unofficially at the Olympics in several Games from 1904 but only became an official sport in Barcelona in 1992 though it was not contested in the last two Games. Cuba have won three of the five gold medals and the United States and South Korea the other two. Only six nations have won a medal of any type over the history of baseball at the Olympic Games. The host nation were always guaranteed a place while a qualifying process determined the other countries that competed.
Main Events
Fantasy Categories
Fantasy baseball games are based on the following key elements of a match:
Batting Average is the number of hits divided by the number of times a player comes into bat. It is expressed to three decimal places or more to break a tie. A season batting average of more than .300 is seen as excellent and anything over .400 is virtually impossible. The .400 hitter even over a short spell has disappeared from the sport and the highest career average in the history of MLB is .366.
Home Runs are scored when a batter completes a lap of the bases without the fielding side running him out. Most home runs are scored when the ball is hit over the boundaries in the outfield. When a home run is scored the batter is credited with a hit, the pitcher has a hit against his name and the players at the bases are given a run.
Runs Batted In are credited to the batter when his actions result in a run being scored. These runs must be scored without an error from the fielding side or the batter becoming a runner that can happen in some rare circumstances. Runs scored from a double play do not count.
Stolen Bases occur when a runner moves to a base when he is not entitled to this action. The official scorer decides if the runner should be credited with a run. Credit or blame determines the outcome. Stealing a base requires speed and excellent baseball instincts as a player must anticipate certain actions in a game to succeed.
Wins is the most basic baseball statistic as it measures how many games a player has won after some involvement. League rules determine if a player is credited with a win and in some cases a no decision is the outcome after certain actions have taken place.
Saves are credits assigned to the finishing pitcher when his side wins a game. These are winning opportunities converted by a relief pitcher that did not start the game. A team must be leading by three runs or less and the relief pitcher must play for at least three innings for a save to apply.
The Earned Runs Average (ERA) provides the average number of runs a pitcher concedes through poor pitching during a game. It is an average for the current season to date. If assessing a game and team A’s pitcher has an ERA of 2.5 and team B’s an ERA of 5.6 team A should have a significant advantage.
WHP is a measure that is calculated by dividing the total number of hits and walks by the total innings pitched. The number is a measurement of a pitcher’s record in allowing batters to reach base so the lower the better.
Player Statistics
Fantasy players use these statistics to make their roster selections:
Pitcher
Earned Run Average
Total Runs Average
Batter
Average
Bases Reached
Slugging Percentage
On-Base Percentage
Fielder
Range Factor
A full range Batter vs Pitcher statistics are also available which are relevant for daily baseball fantasy games.
