After competing many years in Tout Wars, I was honored to also be invited to participate in LABR (League of Alternative Baseball Reality) several seasons ago.
One of my first conversations was with the late Steve Moyer, who devoted considerable time explaining key nuances unique to LABR to the “new guy” in the league — despite the fact that we would be competitors. I still have my initial copy of the league constitution, which I marked up with Steve’s advice.
One of the usually-minor differences between the leagues has to do with injured players. In Tout, any player (who is a part of the league in American League or National League formats) is fair game to be acquired as a free agent, whether in the minors or on the disabled list.
This latter point became most important this month.
In a rather unusual situation, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired Wilson Ramos from the Tampa Bay Rays on July 31 — despite the fact the catcher was on the 10-day disabled list due to a hamstring injury at the time. As a free-agent-to-be, the only take for Ramos was a player to be named later.
In NL Tout, Ramos was a part of the group of five free agents eligible for bidding on Sunday, August 5. As I wrote about two weeks ago, Ramos was fifth of five in terms of bidder priority, but received the fourth-highest winning bid — for $245 (on a basis of $1,000).
On the other hand, because of his injury status, Ramos was ineligible to be bid upon in NL LABR immediately after his trade into the league. Because I had the fifth-most money, I was shut out on August 5, as the four teams ahead of me in cash remaining acquired Brian Dozier, Chris Archer, Jonathan Schoop and Kevin Gausman.
While I had to bide my time for two weeks, I made sure I did not spend enough FAAB in the interim to put my top-dollar spot at risk. As a result, I knew that by bidding $19 of my $22 remaining cash, Ramos would be mine.
While it is still quite possible a good player or two might still come across to the NL from the AL via a waiver trade, it also is quite possible that player is not as good as Ramos.
Ramos stormed off the disabled list on August 15, going 6-for-9 including three doubles and a triple (not a typo) in his first three games with the Phillies. I guess his hammy is aok.
Further, my catchers are nothing to write home about: Matt Wieters and A.J. Ellis. But the reality is that I will be playing three backstops for now. My big purchase the prior week, Miami’s Martin Prado, went back on the disabled list after just one at-bat for my team. After a hamstring last time, it was a quad injury this time.
With Milwaukee’s Joakim Soria also hitting the shelf in the first few days of the week, my unlucky roster is back up to nine players on the disabled list.
That reminds me of another rules difference between the two leagues.
FAAB rebates for players deemed out for the year in Tout is a generous 100 percent of the amount originally paid — until the MLB All-Star break. Following that, the FAAB return is 50 percent.
In LABR, however, the difference is feast versus famine.
The first half situation is identical. An owner could draft a player, receive three months of production from him (April-May-June) and if he is injured in early July and out for the year, every dollar spent back in March is refunded.
However, once the All-Star break arrives, the 100 percent rebate drops to zero in LABR.
When I first joined the league, I presented a proposal to split the season into thirds (or quarters if preferred), scaling the FAAB rebates down accordingly. In my view, that both seemed a fairer return for the owner, but also more equitable over the course of the season.
What I quickly learned is that LABR likes its quirky rules and will leave them as they are, thank you.
In the case of Ramos, I am the beneficiary, so I cannot complain too much. OK, not at all.
Brian Walton was the 2009 National League Tout Wars champion, scoring the most points in the league’s 19-year history. He also holds the all-time NL Tout single-season records for wins and saves. His work can also be found daily at TheCardinalNation.com. Follow Brian on Twitter.
