Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice
For a deeper understanding of fantasy baseball players and how to survive in the many types of fantasy baseball leagues, look no further than "Tumbling Dice," KFFL's exclusive column from Mastersball writer Lawr Michaels. The Tout Wars and LABR vet pursues knowledge that will affect your fantasy baseball team, whether you play in a rotisserie, head-to-head or simulation game like Strat-O-Matic or Scoresheet.
2013 Fantasy Baseball: Tumbling Dice with Lawr Michaels, of MastersBall.com
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: When Rebuilding Sucks (05/21)
 | Lawr's industry-league performance has been hot out of the gate, but his continuing, painstaking rebuilding efforts have been less enjoyable. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Three for Three (05/14)
 | The Zen Master's teams are doing well, but he's not sure whether they'll keep it up. He shares how he combats that uncertainty by analyzing a pitching staff headed by Justin Verlander. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Timing Is Everything (05/07)
 | The Zen Master, Lawr Michaels, has 5 general principles for making trades in redraft rotisserie leagues, and he hopes they're of help to you. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Second-Guessing Second-Guessing (04/30)
 | Lawr Michaels talks about ditching an irritating practice, in fantasy baseball and life. A recent crossroad, however, brings back a painful roto memory. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Rebuilding Green (04/23)
 | Sometimes rebuilding takes longer than expected. Lawr may have to take a step back and recycle his plan in one league thanks to a heap of injuries. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Slow ... and Rock Steady (04/16)
 | The Giants' No. 5 starter is far from exciting in rotisserie or head-to-head baseball, but he -- like a number of unsung "heroes" -- is valuable nonetheless. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Beware the Arms of April (04/09)
 | Lawr had to grin and bear Matt Cain's epic disaster Sunday. Early in the MLB season, fantasy owners have to absorb such pain. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Fun With Position Battles (04/02)
 | The Zen Master contemplates some playing-time situations that are far from resolved, and he does well to predict the winners of the ABs, in the long run. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Auction Dos and Don'ts (03/26)
 | Want Ryan Braun? Go get him. The Zen Master likes to play in different formats, but he enjoys his auctions - and has several superb tips for them. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Playing It down the Middle? (03/19)
 | Plenty of players qualify at multiple positions, but what's that worth? The Zen Master has some favorite roto Swiss Army knives. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Focusing on All Formats (03/12)
| The Zen Master shares the empirical benefits of playing in different fantasy baseball formats. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Prices Go Up, Prices Go Down (03/05)
 | How do rotisserie and head-to-head baseball players approach risk management? The Zen Master uses Adam Eaton and an alternative so that we keep the zero-sum game in mind. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Hitting Prospects, Ultra Style (02/26)
 | The New York Yankees' Tyler Austin is among 8 prospects the Zen Master says to keep in mind, despite their lack of pomp. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Pitching Prospects, Ultra Style (02/19)
 | Jose Fernandez appears on Mastersball's Top 250 prospects list, but deeper options should catch your eye because of their skills. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: A Halladay and a Prayer (02/12)
 | The Zen Master has found that a rebuilding effort in one league doesn't necessarily provide a blueprint for such a challenge in another. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Save Me, Jeff Suppan (02/05)
 | Building your core in keepers is fun. However, Lawr reminds us that in order to follow the rules, sometimes you need to visit the Island of Misfit Fantasy Baseball Toys. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Playing by the Rules (01/29)
 | Welcome back, Lawr Michaels! The first Tumbling Dice of 2013 brings football lessons over to baseball: Know your settings. |
2012 Fantasy Baseball: Tumbling Dice with Lawr Michaels, of MastersBall.com
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: XFL X-ray (Rebuild, Part II) (09/25)
| The XFL has Lawr on the edge of his seat with his freeze list. In his last Dice of the season, he reflects on what he - and hopefully the readers - learned from strategy pieces. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Pitching and outfield help (Rebuild, Part 1) (09/18)
 | Lawr is starting to think about his 2013 freeze lists. In one of his leagues, he has a decent infield, but for the rest of the squad, he's facing a daunting task. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: When Everything Goes Right, Wrong (09/11)
| The Zen Master became a seller at the deadline, but his team's performance since prompted him to question the decision, initially. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Valentine's Daze (09/04)
 | Rotisserie baseball players can learn a thing or three from how the Red Sox, Dodgers and Athletics have handled their business. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Axing Tradewinds (08/28)
 | Lawr questioned his moral fantasy fiber and then sought - and made - a deal that wouldn't weigh on his roto conscience. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Striking out swinging (08/21)
 | The motives for making fantasy baseball trades always make sense when those swaps are made. Looking back on them, however, can often show disastrous results, as it did for Lawr and two other squads in AL Tout Wars. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: You ain't going nowhere (08/14)
 | Lawr needs a vacation from his vacation, during which his Tout and LABR teams also decided to take theirs. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: I'm a League-aholic (08/07)
 | Sometimes, you need to tell yourself you're in too many leagues. Todd Zola confronts his workload and decides how to handle it. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: My own private schadenfreude (07/31)
 | The Phillies weren't the only ones selling Shane Victorino. Lawr's rebuilding effort is bringing him some sadistic humor, inspired by his German roots. |
- Diary of a Fantasy Madman: Game Change (07/30)
 | Zach experiences firsthand the negative impacts of correction, changing leagues and how physique can impact a player's movement. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Almost exactly sort of where I want to be (07/24)
| Sometimes, being NEAR the top is just as comfortable as being at the apex this late in the year. Lawr knows he has room to move up in AL Tout Wars. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Halla-deal? (07/17)
| Before his trade deadline, the Zen Master shopped the Phillies' returning ace, with an eye toward the future. Any takers? |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Stumbling Forward! (07/10)
 | The futures of many heralded prospects are still bright, even if rotisserie baseball players can barely see their lights. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: The Pause That Is Supposed to Refresh (07/03)
 | The Midsummer Classic is right around the corner. Time to be honest with yourself: Are you ready to move on, or are you all-in? |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: First-Round Woes and Woo-Hoos! (06/26)
 | The Zen Master examines how meaningful first-round picks have been in a couple of his big-time mixed leagues. Do those picks matter? |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: How much pitching is too much? (06/19)
| Lawr stands among the many fantasy baseball players ravaged by starting pitcher injuries. How's he coping? In fact, is he? |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: The Deal With OBP (06/12)
 | Joey Votto, the perfect ... leadoff hitter? Rotisserie players can take a lot away from the lessons that other games teach. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: The Joy of Rebuild (06/05)
 | The Zen Master discusses the rewards of putting together teams that may contend for years and wonders if there's an ulterior motive. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Too much pitching? Never! (05/29)
 | Pitching wins, and Lawr's arm depth is keeping his LABR and Tout Wars squads afloat. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: A Good Trade (05/22)
 | Sometimes fantasy baseball players forget the cost of the pursuit of victory, but the Zen Master parts with a possible future hot cornerstone to remind us. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Stats or Instincts? (05/15)
 | Lawr reflects on what an important source told him about his fantasy baseball strategy, and how it has applied in 2012 |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Rethinking Freakout (05/08)
 | It may be tempting to take a decent package for the Angels' struggling superstar and a host of others off to slow starts. Don't. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Dump City (05/01)
 | Lawr can rebuild. He has the technology ... and the know-how. Balancing salaries, age and talent, he navigates the long-term XFL market. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Early Plotting (04/24)
 | The Zen Master acknowledges the stage but asserts that it's not too soon to begin planning ascension in your fantasy baseball league's standings. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: All mixed up (04/17)
 | Lawr Michaels reflects on past successes and analyzes his future chances of getting back on track in this week's Tumbling Dice. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: The Paradox of Last (04/10)
| Even the Zen Master can't resist tracking his fantasy baseball teams' stats daily, but his ability to maintain perspective is what keeps him in it six months from now. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Tout Turnabout (04/03)
 | Lesson from the Zen Master: If you aren't willing to try something new, you probably aren't willing to do what it takes to win your fantasy baseball league. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Mixed-Up Mixed Draft (03/27)
 | The Zen Master wonders why studs in mixed fantasy baseball leagues cost less than they do in AL or NL rotisserie leagues, like they did in Tout Wars. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: The Line of Least Resistance (03/20)
 | Lawr tries to explain how to skin a cat - err, find more than one way to win a fantasy baseball league, using one of his deep keeper leagues as an example. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Baseball wasteland (03/13)
 | In deep fantasy baseball leagues, it's not often that you strike gold, but, as the Zen Master relates, we consider it a worthwhile venture to seek it nonetheless. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: LABR pains (03/06)
 | The Zen Master shares his wisdom regarding early nominations - and reminds rotisserie baseball players not to forget about their own teams when playing that game. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Slower (and tastier) than mock turtle (02/28)
 | Slow fantasy baseball drafts reveal biases and bargains. Lawr takes notice of the cheap but intriguing fliers in his latest. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: To ADP or not to ADP? That is the question. (02/21)
 | Is there a benefit to using the data that average draft position provides? What is it, then? |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Broken hearts and baseball bats (02/14)
 | The Zen Master doesn't mind a trumpet like Cory Luebke - come again? - but he had his heart set on a beautiful six-string. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Strat-O-Gee? (02/07)
 | It's freeze time for the Zen Master in a couple of leagues. He finds himself in two drastically different positions and uncertain if he'll be able to benefit from either of them. But Alex Gordon is a keeper. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Mocking in the free world (and other tales of pitching hope and woe) (01/31)
 | Look at ALL ... THAT ... PITCHING. The Zen Master combs through a couple of slow mock drafts to reveal a couple of maxims that fantasy baseball players can't forget. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: (I love a league that has a) slow draft (01/24)
 | In his latest draft, the Zen Master opts for the "sure thing" instead of Troy Tulowitzki, a player he took in a similar position only a few years ago. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Sirius-ly drafting (01/17)
 | The results of the first official fantasy baseball draft of 2012 - yep, the Fantasy Sports Trade Association's premier roto league has already begun, and it counts - are in. The Zen Master, as always, has some astute observations, and they'll certainly be of help to the rest of us. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Tout starts swinging (01/10)
 | Lawr Michaels imagines the draft and roster possibilities resulting from one of Tout Wars' recent rule changes. |
- Fantasy Baseball Tumbling Dice: Rules Go Round (01/03)
 | KFFL welcomes back Mastersball for the 2012 season. Lawr Michaels kicks things off with his meditation on a rule change and high hopes for his disappointing 2011 core. |
2011 Fantasy Baseball: Tumbling Dice with Lawr Michaels, of MastersBall.com
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