Fantasy Baseball

I have the #1 pick in the my league's fantasy draft this year. All the experts and statistics point towards me selecting Albert Pujols when the clock begins ticking. But, honestly, I am not a huge fan of his and I hate the idea of spending my time trying to keep up with the Cardinals. This puts me into quite a dilemma.

Hanley Ramirez is typically regarded as the second best player on most draft boards. I like him a lot and do enjoy following the Marlins, but will they put up the kind of offensive numbers I will need to compete in the league? I don't know. It is a question that may come back to haunt me.

Then I have to take into account the market I'm in. I don't get the baseball package, so when I sit down on the couch to watch a game, it's usually the Cubs or Braves. That provides me a huge incentive to draft players from those teams so I can enjoy my television watching experience. Having specific guys to root for coming into my living room each week provides the necessary excuse to put off the chores around the house or yard work to watch.

Finally, what about a healthy A-Rod? Who doesn't want a Yankee on their squad? They are on television all the time and he is such a media extravaganza that the Internet and papers are full of stories on him throughout the year which makes for endless trash talking fodder for me or my opponents. Having his statistics as the backbone of my team should make it competitive, but is #1 too early. Most experts and analysts would say yes.

So much is riding on the #1 pick that you can't afford to miss. Statistically Albert Pujols is the sure bet. But, Fantasy Baseball is about more than winning. It's about connecting to the game we grew up loving as children. It's about building connections to yesterday's heroes, today's stars and tomorrow's idols. The heart cannot be ignored when filling up your roster.

In the end, following your head and drafting based on statistics is the only way to truly succeed if you are building a roster designed to win a league championship. However, when it comes to sports, the heart can't be ignored. When the clock starts on draft day and all are awaiting my pick, logic and historical data say I will select Albert Pujols. Unfortunately, I have too big a heart and it throws logic out the window.