This week I took part in a few fantasy baseball drafts. Unlike football and some basketball leagues, fantasy baseball is more than a weekly commitment. It requires much attention and focus because games happen every day except for some holidays. No, Green Key isn't an official holiday, at least not for the whole nation. Yet.
I began thinking about what other sports would warrant my participation in their respective fantasy leagues. Hockey? Tennis? Golf?
Then, I had an epiphany. Dartmouth should have a fantasy league. I'm not talking just one particular sport. I'm talking a Dartmouth sports-wide league. All of the Spring teams in one pool, students get to choose individual teams and win weekly matchups based on their successes or failures hopefully more of the former.
Let me explain. For example, if Student X chooses baseball and over the weekend the team wins three games, then three points are awarded to Student X. If Student Y chooses men's lacrosse and those hard-nosed men go 1-1 after losing a gut-wrenching game, then he or she will receive one point. In this scenario, if Students X and Y were matched up, Student X would win, but so would I for coming up with this brilliant idea.
I will now proceed with a mock draft, utilizing my personal draft-day strategy, which has proved to be somewhat successful in past years. I've yet to win any of the fantasy leagues I've played in, but I've been runner-up in at least three. You know what they say: "First is the worst, second is the best. Unless you lose at pong then you are the worst."
Pre-draft:
A couple sets of pushups get my blood flowing. So does listening to Taylor Swift. Anyway, I proceed to call another student playing in this league and tell him he has next on table right now if he heads over to a particular house. Yeah, I suddenly have the first-round pick. The student who went to play pong? He probably has fourths or something.
Round 1: Baseball
I'm looking for a dynamite team in the first round. A cornerstone of my squad that won't let me down, and, if the team doesn't perform, I will defend it until my last breath. I choose the Dartmouth baseball team. Did I mention that preseason Ivy League awards count for double the points? I promise I'm not rigging this league just so I can win.
Round 2: Women's Lacrosse
The need for another top-notch team here is vital. For some reason (I had no part in this happening), students believed intramural teams were a part of this league. They're not. I'm seen giggling in a corner. I choose women's lacrosse a nationally-ranked top 10 team that took care of No. 8 Notre Dame and No. 6 Syracuse on their respective home-fields without even breaking a sweat. How big should the trophy for this league be?
Round 3: Women's Tennis
After the first two rounds, my draft game plan starts to be executed. Do I roll the dice on a team that won its first two matches against Ivy League foes, setting them on the path to the conference crown? Most definitely. I choose the Dartmouth women's tennis team. I think naming the trophy the "Curious Jorge Trophy" sounds pretty damn good.
Round 4: Sailing
"With his fourth-round selection in the 2010 Dartmouth Spring Sports Fantasy League Draft, Curious Jorge selects the Dartmouth sailing teams from Hanover, N.H." This was my sleeper pick. In last week's "Rec League Legends," my fellow colleagues did not even mention the sailing teams. Blasphemy. The women's sailing team is ranked 10th in the nation and is poised for a strong run this season. On the other hand, the coed team isn't looking too shabby itself, ranking 18th in the nation.
I don't want the teams not selected for my squad to be deterred in any way. In this hypothetical draft, many teams were chosen by the time my picks were made. Either way, I would still win this league. If you want to join, do it at your own risk of getting embarrassed. Also, one more thing: you're on the clock.
