Ever since I was a kid, one of my favourite things to do has been to rank stuff using arbitrary statistics that I make up. It is in this spirit that I present you with the Batter's Box Bonanza.
Even though I'm a huge ball fan, as everyone here is, I've never played fantasy baseball until this year (those in the Carter division, I'm the Harlem Harlots. Watch out. I have Dan Wheeler.) Instead, over the past few years, a few friends and I have engaged in mini-competitions, sort of along the lines of fantasy baseball, but way less complicated. They're fun, and they don't require much work.
Some of those contests have been around Batter's Box in some shape or form as well - predicting division winners, major award winners, etc. However, they always seem like the kind of thing that you only hear about twice a year - when the contest starts, and when the winners are announced (if at all). And some people might prefer it that way, and that's cool. However, I'm the kind of guy who likes to stay updated about the predictions I made at the beginning of the year.
Okay, so what exactly is the Batter's Box Bonanza (heretofore referred to as the BBB)? Well, I only came up with this idea recently, and the idea's been swirling around pretty turbulently* in my head since then, so I can't say for sure - but in its essence, it's a series of mini-contests that require little work to participate in. However, it will be different from similar Batter's Box endeavors in a number of ways. First, there will be more contests. Second, for some of the bigger ones that last all season, regular updates will be provided, hopefully along with some Pretty Pictures™. Third, all the individual Baby contests will be conglomerated into a big collective Mommy competition and there will be an Ultimate Winner at the end.* Fourth, I have no idea at this point what shape they will take, but I'd really like to award some form of prizes that don't require me spending any money (the Batter's Box No-No-Prize?).
*Please send me any suggestions/feedback! Despite the fact that I'm the best contest creator in the world, the previous sentence fragment is entirely false. Which means that you probably have some good ideas that would be fun. And as BB's "Contest Guru" it's sort of my job to run such contests, and run them well.
*I'm also thinking about categorizing all the contests into a few categories so there can be Categorical Ultimate Winners as well.
Now, the first contest (Stay tuned! It will be very appearing in a very short time... approximately one paragraph!) involves predicting team's records - but that doesn't mean all these contests are going to be strictly baseball. I mean, they will all be related to baseball, but one might be "who can think of the best nickname for Jeter that involves the word juice" or something equally inane. For those contests, I reserve all judging rights, and if you don't like it, well you can go throw a ball at a barn with your left hand for a while.
Contest #1 - Record Predictions
Okay, as promised very recently (last paragraph), here's the first contest: Predict every team's record. The winner is the person with the lowest average deviation (if you do better than a deviation of 5 wins, you've done very well - PECOTA was around 5.1 last year, my friends and I ranged from 5.3 to 5.9). Now WAIT a sec! Before you stop reading and just post your predictions below, that's not how I want to do it - I have a spreadsheet template that will make my life way easier. So here are two ways to submit your guesses.
1) Fill them in on a Google document I've created. This is preferable.
2) If you don't have a Google account and don't feel like making one, or don't like Google Docs, I'll e-mail you the spreadsheet template and you can send it back to me.
Whatever option you choose, the first step is to post your e-mail address here, tell me how you want to submit your predictions and I'll 1) invite you to "collaborate" on the Google Doc or 2) send you the file. I'll keep this open for 48 hours or something.
Note - if you choose the Google Docs option, make sure the e-mail address you give me is your gmail address. Also, don't be confused if the spreadsheet is already filled in when you get there - that's the last person's predictions. Just type over it, since I can go back to any point of the document's editing history.
P.S. This doesn't mean that other Rosterites won't continue to do their thing when it comes to this kind of... uh, thing. Magpie still has dibs on "Snakes and Ladders". So if you don't like me but still need to get your Pointless Contest fill, have no fear.
And stay tuned... contest #2 will be coming to a Batter's Box near you in the next week, and then constantly throughout the season.
Even though I'm a huge ball fan, as everyone here is, I've never played fantasy baseball until this year (those in the Carter division, I'm the Harlem Harlots. Watch out. I have Dan Wheeler.) Instead, over the past few years, a few friends and I have engaged in mini-competitions, sort of along the lines of fantasy baseball, but way less complicated. They're fun, and they don't require much work.
Some of those contests have been around Batter's Box in some shape or form as well - predicting division winners, major award winners, etc. However, they always seem like the kind of thing that you only hear about twice a year - when the contest starts, and when the winners are announced (if at all). And some people might prefer it that way, and that's cool. However, I'm the kind of guy who likes to stay updated about the predictions I made at the beginning of the year.
Okay, so what exactly is the Batter's Box Bonanza (heretofore referred to as the BBB)? Well, I only came up with this idea recently, and the idea's been swirling around pretty turbulently* in my head since then, so I can't say for sure - but in its essence, it's a series of mini-contests that require little work to participate in. However, it will be different from similar Batter's Box endeavors in a number of ways. First, there will be more contests. Second, for some of the bigger ones that last all season, regular updates will be provided, hopefully along with some Pretty Pictures™. Third, all the individual Baby contests will be conglomerated into a big collective Mommy competition and there will be an Ultimate Winner at the end.* Fourth, I have no idea at this point what shape they will take, but I'd really like to award some form of prizes that don't require me spending any money (the Batter's Box No-No-Prize?).
*Please send me any suggestions/feedback! Despite the fact that I'm the best contest creator in the world, the previous sentence fragment is entirely false. Which means that you probably have some good ideas that would be fun. And as BB's "Contest Guru" it's sort of my job to run such contests, and run them well.
*I'm also thinking about categorizing all the contests into a few categories so there can be Categorical Ultimate Winners as well.
Now, the first contest (Stay tuned! It will be very appearing in a very short time... approximately one paragraph!) involves predicting team's records - but that doesn't mean all these contests are going to be strictly baseball. I mean, they will all be related to baseball, but one might be "who can think of the best nickname for Jeter that involves the word juice" or something equally inane. For those contests, I reserve all judging rights, and if you don't like it, well you can go throw a ball at a barn with your left hand for a while.
Contest #1 - Record Predictions
Okay, as promised very recently (last paragraph), here's the first contest: Predict every team's record. The winner is the person with the lowest average deviation (if you do better than a deviation of 5 wins, you've done very well - PECOTA was around 5.1 last year, my friends and I ranged from 5.3 to 5.9). Now WAIT a sec! Before you stop reading and just post your predictions below, that's not how I want to do it - I have a spreadsheet template that will make my life way easier. So here are two ways to submit your guesses.
1) Fill them in on a Google document I've created. This is preferable.
2) If you don't have a Google account and don't feel like making one, or don't like Google Docs, I'll e-mail you the spreadsheet template and you can send it back to me.
Whatever option you choose, the first step is to post your e-mail address here, tell me how you want to submit your predictions and I'll 1) invite you to "collaborate" on the Google Doc or 2) send you the file. I'll keep this open for 48 hours or something.
Note - if you choose the Google Docs option, make sure the e-mail address you give me is your gmail address. Also, don't be confused if the spreadsheet is already filled in when you get there - that's the last person's predictions. Just type over it, since I can go back to any point of the document's editing history.
P.S. This doesn't mean that other Rosterites won't continue to do their thing when it comes to this kind of... uh, thing. Magpie still has dibs on "Snakes and Ladders". So if you don't like me but still need to get your Pointless Contest fill, have no fear.
And stay tuned... contest #2 will be coming to a Batter's Box near you in the next week, and then constantly throughout the season.
