Hi, I’m Thomas Seltzer. a.k.a. Doubting Thomas. I’m 64 years old and have been playing fantasy sports for only four years. So what qualifies me to write about this subject we love? I would tell you that I’ve been an avid sports fan for most of six decades and was compiling baseball statistics before most fantasy writers were born. I’m also a financial advisor, which gives me a unique perspective because there are so many correlations between the stock market and fantasy sports.
I was born in Morgantown, West Virginia. My first playground was a cemetery next to my house. I never developed a fascination with death, but I did memorize many of the names of the deceased in that cemetery. Keep in mind this was long before video games and the internet. The first sporting event I attended was a West Virginia Mountaineers basketball game at the age of four. I saw Jerry West light up the scoreboard at WVU Fieldhouse, but I don’t remember much about it.
A few years later, my family moved to St. Louis. My father and I listened to Cardinals baseball games on the radio, and he taught me how to calculate player batting averages. I’ll never forget the 1964 season when the Cardinals came from way back to win the National League pennant. The Philadelphia Phillies led the NL by 6 ½ games with only twelve to go. Somehow, the Cardinals caught them and then won the World Series against the New York Yankees.
Like many boys, my first career aspiration was to be a professional baseball player. I played the game with some success until I faced pitchers who knew how to throw curve balls. That put an end to my childhood dream. When I graduated from the University of Missouri, I moved to Texas and started my journalism career as a sports writer. My last job in the newspaper business was as the sports editor of the Shreveport Journal before I moved into financial services.
My first exposure to fantasy sports came when I played in my brother-in-law’s football league. Entering the world of player analysis and endless statistics was intoxicating and then addicting. The following year, I won my son’s football league. I have also won four public baseball league championships in four tries. Then, in my early 60’s, I decided to take a page out of Colonel Harland Sanders’ playbook and turn I began writing fantasy sports articles as a freelance writer.
I am excited to have the opportunity to write for CreativeSports. Although I haven’t taken a poll of the writers, I may be the oldest writer with the least amount of experience. While I have learned a tremendous amount about fantasy sports in four years, there is still a steep learning curve. Writers like Todd Zola have forgotten more about fantasy sports than I have learned to date. What this means to you is that I will work hard to bring interesting and valuable information.
You can follow me on Twitter @ThomasLSeltzer1 and leave comments at www.doubtingthomassports.com.
Welcome, Thomas!