Sloppy Potatoes

Standard 5×5 vs. something more saucy

In the world of fantasy baseball, 5-by-5 leagues rule. All the magazines cater to the simple 5 offensive and 5 piching category leagues. In my work league, we use a different strategy and for baseball fans everywhere it can be a dream come true.

This exercise is not an endorsement of a perfect system or the total denouncement of the 5×5 — homers, runs, steals, RBIs, batting average and wins, Ks, ERA, saves, WHIP — just a suggestion to explore your other fantasy options.

In 5×5 leagues you get offensive players and pitchers who dominate on the absolute baseline, but by tweaking the scoring categories the complexion of the game can change considerably.

I like leagues where players are recognized for holds and total bases, while subsequently being penalized for grounding into double plays and blowing saves. Fielding percentage and intentional walks are included in this argument, too.

The thinking behind all the categories is, the baseball players that help their team win– not one-pony homerun hitters or inconsistent but high-strikeout pitchers — should dominate in these leagues.

Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler, the No. 2 fantasy performer so far this year, is a good example to see how these other categories fit in.

In a 5×5, Kinsler’s line looks like this 71 runs, 13 homers, 50 RBIs, 20 steals and a .323 batting average. Impressive numbers, but his value is a mixed bag in a more complex scoring system.

He’s got 5 sacrifice hits, the other members of the top 8 have a combined bagel in that category. He also only has 45 strikeouts, the least in the top six. However, he’s grounded into seven double plays and only has 28 walks.

Lance Berkman is another good example. His numbers are stratospheric across the board. He’s got great 5×5 numbers to go along with a cool .997 fielding percentage, 42 walks to 51 Ks and 71 runs scored. He’s also the only player with more than 200 total bases. He’s dominating in both leagues.

One of the more interesting aspects to this approach is the niche players. Eighth-inning relievers and low-pop, but smart-hitting and good defensive players can find their way onto rosters to help teams win more categories.

I’ve been blessed with a fun league full of great baseball and sports fans who are competitors and enjoy the game, win or lose. Yes, even those players who don’t change their lineup all year. At the beginning of the year I sent out a survey with a few questions about the league and there were only a few stragglers who wanted to tweak the scoring system. Nobody wanted a 5×5.

It’s not the only system, and since there are a lot of leagues and options out there I won’t say it’s the best, but we like it. Maybe yourself, or your commissioner should try something new next year, too.