HOW LOW CAN YOU GO (aka THE MAILBAG)?

I've got no money.
-Jack, NY

I'm pretty good at finding cheap fantasy stars Jack, but I don't think there are too many players available in your current price range.

HI!!!!
-Phoebe, Maryland

Helllllllllllllllooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwww, Phoebe!

Please help!!! I am a huge Jeter fan, but Furcal is doing better! Who should I pick?!
-Matt, NJ

See, The Wiz would probably say part of the fun in playing fantasy sports is picking up players from your favorite teams, but I'd disagree. If you're trying to win, you've gotta take the best players available (there are exceptions, of course... as a Yankees fan, I refuse to draft any Red Sox players). I'd take Jeter right now, but only because Furcal has missed the last five games with a back injury. When he was healthy, Furcal was ahead of Jeter in almost every statistical category, including fantasy points (158 for Furcal, compared to only 97 for Jeter). And he's almost a million dollars cheaper! Actually, if you're looking to get more bang out of your buck while Furcal is out, leave Jeets on the sideline and consider picking up Washington's Christian Guzman ($3,500,000), who's already got 120 points this season.

I don't think the Low Budget All-Stars should be paid THAT low. If I were them, I would demand a raise.
-Cole, Kansas

SHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! What are you doing Cole!? If they ask for a raise, you guys won't need an expert on Low Budget All-Stars, and I'll be out of a job. You know what means? It means back to the ballroom for yours truly. Or worse... back to working for The Wiz.

What would be the best outfield I could get with 18,670,000?
-Matthew, Ohio

Great question. Hmmm... with that much money, I'd pick up Pat Burrell ($6,600,000), Chris Young ($5,900,000) and Josh Hamilton ($5,250,000). Those three outfielders have combined to produce 466 fantasy points (though you might want to keep an eye on Hamilton, who's injury-prone, and Young, who's... well, young).

Cliff Lee ($3,300,000) is very good. But not as good as Chien-Ming Wang ($7,500,000).
-Taylor, Missouri

I disagree. Career-wise, Wang has proven he's the better pitcher. But Lee is the better pitcher right now, and he's also $4 million cheaper than New York's sinkerball specialist. Even if Wang ends up being a better hurler in 2008, he'll never be a Low Budget All-Star.

Can I have your autograph?
-Unknown

Is this another NBA question? Is that you, David? You can't fool me! Sure, you can have my autograph... after you send in yours!

How do they afford those big houses?
-Damaris, New York

With those big home runs.

I read your Low Budget All-Stars article and realized I had quite a few players listed in your article. Do you agree with me that a hitter's most important stat (in this fantasy league) is his OPS and a pitcher's most important stats are his WHIP and ERA?
-Kevin, Virginia

For those that don't know, you can determine a hitter's OPS by adding hits, walks, number of times he was hit by a pitch, and total bases together, then dividing that number by the hitter's total number of at bats. Math-wise, it looks like this:

AB(H + BB + HBP) + TB (AB + BB + SF + HBP)/ AB(AB +BB + SF + HBP) = OPS

WHIP, which determines how effectively a pitcher performs, is determined by adding hits and walks allowed, then dividing that number by the total amount of innings pitched:

BB + H/ IP = WHIP

Now, if you look at those equations, then look at the scoring system for SIKIDS.com's fantasy baseball system, you'll notice that our league awards fantasy points in almost every category used to calculate OPS and WHIP. So yes, I think OPS and WHIP are an excellent way to determine the top players in our fantasy league. However, I wouldn't call it the most important stat. It depends on how they're used. OPS and WHIP are often used to measure a player's performance over long stretches of the season. That means a player could be stuck in a really bad three or four game slump, but it may not be reflected in his OPS/WHIP.

One thing I like to do when picking my team for the week is to look at each player's most recent 10 game log. Those 10 games will normally tell me if a player is hot, if he's cold, how close he's coming to the numbers he's been putting up on the season, and whether or not I should pick him up. Give that strategy a try and let me know how it works out for you.