Some Of Last Year's Hitters Are Slumping

If you have Russell Martin or David Ortiz on your team, you're probably pretty frustrated.

David Ortiz now has a personal season high batting average of .121. He is 7 for 58! This is not good. The fact that he could increase his batting average by hitting 1 for 5 two games in a row shows how poor he's doing, although I would definitely settle for any hit from Ortiz right now. Fantasy owners and Red Sox fans alike are extremely frustrated, and rightfully so. Ortiz, who batted a season average of .332 last year with a postseason batting average of .370 had a 0 for 17 stretch over five games. Whatever you do, though, don't you dare drop him. Ortiz is only a Utility player in the fantasy league anyways, so I would recommend benching him for now until he starts to find his groove.

Russell Martin, who was a 2007 Silver Slugger Award winner, is only batting a .208. His 2/4 game yesterday against the Pirates is the only reason he's above .200. He was only hitting a .184 before this game, although he hit his first home run two days ago as well. This is very good news for Martin owners. He is finally beginning to get into a groove. He is now 5 for 12 in his last three games with a home run. Look for Martin to continue this streak. I hope no one actually dropped him during the beginning of the season. Those owners who picked him up off of the waivers list will have a lot of smack to give the owners who dropped him.

So for now, hold on to these gems. Russell Martin is now just beginning to find his groove and David Ortiz will find his very soon. It won't be long until Ortiz becomes the walk-off king once again.

Fantasy Baseball is a Drug

Which is more addictive? Crack cocaine or Fantasy Baseball? I would argue that the answer is actually fantasy baseball. Fantasy sports are the ultimate drug. It's socially acceptable to be addictive to fantasy baseball but not to crack cocaine. If my professor catches me selling Clay Buchholz (BOS - SP) for Johnny Cueto (CIN - SP) in my league during class, I might get a snicker, or called out, or I might even get some advice. If I'm caught selling crack cocaine in the school's bathroom, I will go directly to jail.

Baseball is played daily. Games are constantly being played, starting early in the afternoon and lasting sometimes way into the night. There is plenty to keep a baseball fan busy. I could get into a daze staring at the Yahoo! StatTracker. They say drugs have physiological effects on those who use it. Fantasy baseball may result in an extreme state of euphoria as your team does incredibly well. It could also lead to intense anger and aggression as your team plummets to the bottom as twenty or thirty points are lost cause your team ERA is over 20 and BA is a .087 with your best hitters going 0/4.

Once you start your fantasy league, you are instantly hooked. Even before opening day, the fantasy website has made it to your favorites or may even be your homepage. The great Hot Dog said,

It's every man's dream to run a major sports team...Why do you think middle-aged men are so willing to coach?

Well put Hot Dog.

So then how do you cope with the addiction? The answer is: there is nothing to cope with. Fantasy baseball rocks. It's my crack cocaine. I need my fix.