Southpaw's Blog of Happy Goodness

My fantasy golf column, "Tips From A Hooker," which I thought might be meeting its end, is alive and well! Though now it is in blog form!
You can check it out here: http://tipsfromahooker.blogspot.com/

For some iPhone goodness, check out the The Apple Phone Show podcast!

The RIAA is not all record companies! It's only the big names: Sony, Universal, EMI, Warner.
This is a good little column talking about who the RIAA really is. Do your part and DO NOT support these companies. They and the RIAA are trying to control the future of music and how you listen to it.
Support independent artist and labels!!
Faces Of The RIAA - Consumerist

Here are a couple of other ways to get a few FREE CDs and some Cheap High demand CDs.

First suggestion, sign-up for the BarterBee trading service. I don't recommend you actually use the service, as it is bland and mainly has a bunch of flicker CDs. But you get 5 points for signing up, which can get you one decent CD for free, or two lesser CDs, if you get two cheaper CDs.
Signup through this link, so I can get a free CD for the referal. BarterBee.com

Another service is called ChanceXchange. It's a free, honor system, service that offers music, books, movies and misc. You get a free trade for signing up and listed a couple of items.
I had to request about 4 CDs before someone finally sent me one. So, it's not the reliable service, but you can get a free CD out of it.
If you want to join ChanceXchange, let me know so I can send you an invite, and I'll earn another Free CD as well! Click here to e-mail me: I WANT TO JOIN ChanceXchange!

A good way to get some high demand CDs for cheap is the good ole' BMG Music Club. 12 CDs for the price of 1. Lots of good greatest hits CDs, and some fairly newer stuff (Death Cab, Snow Patrol, The Fray, etc etc.) Plus they run specials almost monthly, so you can get some good CDs for around $5-$7 usuaully.
If you are interested in joining BMG please use my referral link, as I get 5 CD for everyone I refer, or I can e-mail you an invite as well. BMGMusic.com

Want to match your fantasy golf skills against me and other TalentedMrRoto.com readers? Would you like to do it for free? Then join us in any of the following leagues:

ESPN Best Ball Challenge:
Sign-up page: http://games.espn.go.com/bestball/group?groupID=1295
Group: TalentedMrRoto.com

Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Golf:
Sign-up page: http://golf.fantasysports.yahoo.com/golf
Click on the "Sign Up" button to create a team. After completing registration, or if you already have a team, click the "Create or Join Group" button and follow the path to join an existing private group. Then, when prompted, enter the following information...
Group ID#: 16689
Password: golf

PGATour.com Salary Cap Cup:
Sign-up page: http://pgatour.fanball.com
In order to join this private league, you'll be asked for your league's ID number and password.
League ID: 581
Password: golf

PGATour.com League Championship League:
Sign-up page: http://pgatour.fanball.com/games/championship/
In order to join this private league, you'll be asked for your league's ID number and password. League ID: 2316
Password: golfball

I'm in the Virtual Waiting Room, waiting for my chance to purchase St. Louis Cardinals World Series tickets!

The Virtual Waiting Room just shows you how far and advanced technology is. You see, I'm waiting virtually, but the simulation is so good, I feel as if I'm waiting in real life as well!
Wow! Technology!!

Went to some noodle wrestling for a friends party.

I am so going to celebrate this next year!
Who's joining me?
No Pants Day is May 4th, 2007

Coin Slot Cream
This was one of the funnier SNL skits I've seen in awhile!

And so it begins....

 

It's the beginning of the baseball season. I national holiday in my opinion. I celebrated properly by having a day off work, and firmly planting my butt on the couch and watching as much baseball as possible.

 

I meant to post more over the weekend, but Saturday was the day of my big draft for my local league.

The draft is seriously one of my favorite days of the year. We usually start around 11am, and end up drafting until 5-6pm. We take the occasional break to grab some fresh air, food and more beer, as well as make fun of each others teams.

The thing I love about the league is it is a "set salary" league. Meaning, we use The Sporting News Fantasy magazine price lists for our player prices. It's a standard $260, 23 player, 5x5 setup.

 

With the set salaries, it's really a challenge to put together a team. It's a lot more like being a General Manager in my opinion, because basically you have players that already have contracts (i.e. dollar values) and you have to stay within budget.

There are a lot of different draft strategies in our league. I would say my approach is one of the more unique. I am a value guy. I go for cheap guys first. I'm basically looking for bang for the buck. It's been a solid approach for me, as I've finished in the top 3 the majority of years I've been in the league.

This year the player pricing was a little different. TSN did a nice job of making prices more consistent, and not letting any players slip through the cracks. For the most part, the player pricing was up for the young guys and budget guys. This didn't play well for my strategy, but I think I did ok overall.

 

Anyway, enough blabbering. Here is a look at my draft for this season, in the order drafted.

 

1	Bonds,Barry $25
2	Ray,Chris $10
3	Barfield,Josh $5
4	Hermida,Jeremy $13
5	Santana,Ervin $12
6	Jacobs,Mike $11
7	Maholm,Paul $1
8	Nady,Xavier $6
9	Mathis,Jeff $6
10	Brazelton,Dewon $1
11	Conine,Jeff $6
12	Gonzalez,Adrian $1
13	Betancourt,Yuniesky $3
14	Seo,Jae $7
15	Marquis,Jason $9
16	Sullivan,Cory $13
17	Zimmerman,Ryan $13
18	Verlander,Justin $1
19	Estrada,Johnny $9
20	Zambrano,Carlos $23
21	Rollins,Jimmy $28
22	Lee,Derrek $35
23	Foulke,Keith $14

 

My first thought on my draft was and still is, "I can't believe I drafted Barry-Freakin'-Bonds!"

I don't like Barry, and I really wanted Josh Willingham in the first round, but he was taken the pick before mine. For $25, I thought Bonds was too good of a gamble. If he plays 110-140 games, he will probably be a $30-40 player That's what I'm hoping for at least. My fear is, he will take a lot of days off and won't get the ABs to make him worthy of a roster spot.

 

My next six picks (Ray $10, Barfield $5, Hermedia $13, E. Santana $12, Jacobs $11 and Maholm $1) I really like, and think I could get great value from.

X Nady I'm not sure about. I have faith, but I hear enough doubters out there, that I'm not as sold on him as I once was. But for $6 I'll give him a go. The same goes for Jeff Mathis. I hope he gets enough ABs to make him worthy.

D. Brazelton was not a pick I planned on. With the recent developments in the S.D. rotation, and considering he was only $1, I figured I would give him a flyer.

The Conine pick I thought was a good pick. With Javy Lopez not playing 1B (at least not yet,) I think Conine will see a lot of ABs. If he sees ABs he will hit. A good gamble for $6 I think.

A. Gonzalez is going to win the San Diego 1B job. Klesko's injury is going to give him a chance to show what he can do, and once Klesko comes back, I think the Padres will soon realize that Gonzalez deserves the job.

Y. Betancourt was a pick that came out of leftfield. At the time, everyone was drafting high dollar players, and had been all draft. With the shallow pool of quality low dollar players, I figured I would grab who I could. Betancourt fit that bill, a starter and only $3. I have no idea what to expect from him, and honestly my guess would be I am looking to replace him here in a few weeks.

Jae Soe for $7 in Dodger Stadium...love it!

Jason Marquis $9, contract year, pitches for the Cardinals....Love it!

C. Sullivan $13: A little power, a little speed, and some Coors goodness.

R. Zimmerman $13 - I was shocked that Zim was still there at this point, and couldn't let him pass another time. If he lives up to what he's shown in spring training, this pick will be a steal.

J Verlander $1 - He kind of slipped past me until this point. I can't say American league, rookies that play for the Tigers excite me much, but for $1 I'll buy in to this kids potential. Now the question is how long will last on my team.

J Erstrada $9 - I think Erstrada is going to have a bounce back year. If so $9 is a great value.

At this point I had a ton of money left, and was going into spending mode. First stop C. Zambrano $23. If his arm doesn't fall off, like his other teammates', then I think Zam will be one of the better pitchers in baseball.

J. Rollins $28 - I needed a MI, and wanted some speed. Rollins give you a little bit of everything, so he fit the bill nicely.

D. Lee $35 - Power, Speed, RBIs, and an improved Cubs offense. I know he had a career year last year, but maybe he can do it again?

and finally.... Keith Foulke $14 - This pick left me with $8 of cap room. Foulke is a risk, but I think he could be a great value.....or waiver fodder in a couple of weeks.

 

Overall, I like my draft. I have a lot of gambles and question marks, but for the most part they are all good gambles. The great thing about our league is there is always some decent players on the waiver wire, especially if you have the cap room. Which I do.

My main concern right now is my pitching. I missed out on a couple of high dollar pitchers I wanted early, but I think of all the budget guys I grabbed I ought to have a couple of diamonds.

 

 

 

 

 

It is draft day!

It's almost baseball season. My favorite time of year!

I've decided to start updating this blog more often, and turning it into a
baseball blog of sort. Don't worry, I'll keep posting other things as well, but
I'm going to use it as an outlet for my random daily thoughts on baseball, and
in particular fantasy baseball.

Tonight was the draft for the final TalentedMrRoto.com Yahoo! Plus league. I
oversee/commish all of the leagues for the website, and with that I also play in
them. This league is a Roto league, with 20 players, and 30 players per team
(600 total players drafted.) There are also some additional stat catagories, to
spice things up. Those are: R, HR, RBI, SB, CS, K,
E, AVG, OBP, SLG, W, L, CG, SV, HR, K, SB, HLD, ERA, WHIP

I had the ninth pick overall in the draft. Overall, I'm pretty happy with my
team. Here is how I drafted:

Swingin' Southpaws
Round Pick Player
1 -9 J. Bay
2 -30 A. Jones
3 -47 R. Howard
4 -68 B. Lidge
5 -85 T. Glaus
6 -106 A. Burnett
7 -123 W. Taveras
8 -144 M. Mulder
9 -161 A. Rowand
10 -182 A. Benítez
11 -199 J. Barfield
12 -220 C. Guillén
13 -237 R. Zimmerman
14 -258 Lu. González
15 -275 J. Marquis
16 -296 J. Mathis
17 -313 M. Lieberthal
18 -334 X. Nady
19 -351 P. Maholm
20 -372 L. Niekro
21 -389 A. Otsuka
22 -410 D. McPherson
23 -427 J. Conine
24 -448 A. Hill
25 -465 Ja. Johnson
26 -486 T. Lilly
27 -503 C. Izturis
28 -524 A. Sisco
29 -541 L. Bigbie
30 -562 R. Rincón

I had a couple of DL picks, that I will replace with waiver wire players here shortly. Overall, I love my offense. My pitching is a touch weak I think, but only time will tell. I think it should be a top tier team.

Guess who has mobile blogging?

If this site doesn't make you happy, then you are probably dead!
Welcome to the Red Heel Sock Monkey Shelter!

If you don't know his music, do yourself a favor and check it out. He was a Guitar GOD!
R.I.P. Link Wray.

New, fun Google search!

Google Blog Search

So I have been reading about PodCasting, and think I would like to get into this.
My question is how in the heck can I do it?
I've done a little research, and most of the info I have found hasn't been very helpful.
Does anyone have an easy guide, or program/software package to help a newbie PodCast?

Thanks for your help in advance!

Watch any MLB game on April 4 or 5 through the internet. Click here to sign up.

I think Mark Cuban is kind of a nut, but I mean that in a good way. He is very passionate about what he believes in, and I respect that. I also respect one of his latest projects: MGM vs Grokster.

Yup, that's right, Cuban is helping fight the RIAA!
He has earned some new respect from me!

I wanted to let everyone know that we have setup some free Yahoo leagues for people! check it out here: The Talented Mr. Roto Yahoo Fantasy Leagues!

Get the latest status on Abe Vigoda: abe vigoda status

A week ago I got my free iPod! Thanks to everyone who helped!
I tell you, it is nice to have so much music in such a small space!

Now I am trying to get a free iPod Shuffle and Mini Mac!
So signup here!
FreeiPodShuffle.com - Get a FREE iPod Shuffle!
FreeMiniMacs.com - Get a FREE Mini Mac!

I also need to pimp my new Fantasy Golf column.
Yes, there is really fantasy golf! In fact at the bottom of the column is info on how to join a free league!
Give it a read, join the league, and let me know what you think!
Check it out here: The Talented Mr. Roto > Tips from a Hooker

For all of you Fantasy Baseball fans, here is the best way possible to get ready for the upcoming season!
This draft kit blows away anything I have seen in the past. I really mean it!
I have a couple of columns in the kit, but what I did is nothing compared to the other info in the kit!
Check it out here: Talented Mr. Roto > 2005 MLB Draft Kit

Is anyone really suprised? Lego Porn!

IF this ain't the coolest thing ever, I don't know what is! Church Sign Generator

Make your own virtual snowflake! Make-a-Flake

It's like having your very own secret decoder ring!! Text-to-Binary (and back!) Converter

eBay item 5535890757 (Ends Nov-22-04 17:22:07 PST) - Virgin Mary In Grilled Cheese NOT A HOAX ! LOOK & SEE !
So I just saw the above e-bay action. The only question I have is does this come with chips and a pickle? Because all good grilled cheese sandwiches come with chips and a pickle.

Get a live look at Mount St. Helens!!
OregonLive.com: Volcano Cam

This actually works, and it's kind of cool!
How to Fold a Shirt

Ok, I am still trying to get my FREE iPod! Com'on people! Help me out here! :-)
FreeiPods.com - Get a FREE iPod!

If you have any doubts about the legitimacy of this, check out these articles:
Wired News: Making Free IPods Pay Off
Freeipods.com at Forever Geek
Geek.com Geek News - Free iPod, no catch

I forgot to post this the other day, but here it is, my latest column. It's kind of lame, I must admit. It's hard to write about fantasy baseball this late in the season. Regardless, I hope you enjoy it!
The Talented Mr. Roto > Out In Left Field: Views from a Southpaw's Perspective

Check out this neat little tid bit on Elvis Costello's new CD: Elvis Costello on Anti-Piracy

Need a gmail address?

Let me know, and I might hook you up!

Here is my weekly column for Talented Mr. Roto.com. Enjoy!
Out in Left Field: Views from a Southpaw's perspective

Just in case you were wondering if Free iPods.com was legit, here is a nice little write-up in Wired.
Wired News: Making Free IPods Pay Off

So, if you want to sign-up, might as well do it through me!!
Sign-up HERE: FreeiPods.com - Get a FREE iPod!
Thanks!

Who wouldn't want a free iPod?
FreeiPods.com - Get a FREE iPod!

I finally got my picture up in the columnist section of TMR.com. You can also find the full archives of my weekly column there. Enjoy!
Talented Mr. Roto > MLB Articles

I kind of forgot about this, but Southpaw's Blog of Happy Goodness is now a year old.

Thanks to everyone who has visited and contributed to the site!