An update from the Commisioner ... 

Recently, names were placed in the Cup to determine the draft slot order between Heller and Jess who were tied in the 2011 final standings.  Heller's name was drawn and elected to take the 4th-overall draft slot.  To avoid this situation in the future I have come up with a tiebreaker system for draft slot ties:

Tiebreaker # 1:  The team with the most "10's"
Tiebreaker # 2:  The team with the most "10's plus "9's" (to include 9.5's)
Tiebreaker # 3:  Total Runs Scored

If by some grace of God two teams are still tied, then we'll go back to the drawing names out of a hat/Cup.

One other change ...
The upcoming 2012 season will have a quicker waiver system.  Instead of waiting two days we will wait just one.  The length of waivers is simply too long and this will hopefully spur more action on the wire.

Remember, off-season trading is allowed and encouraged.  If you trade keepers and/or draft picks, it must be an even amount and any player traded must be kept (or transitioned) by his new team.  If you guys need your rosters or any other information don't hesitate to ask.  To check if your guy is eligible to be transitioned go to:  http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/ and click on the specific team on the left side of the page.  Once you click on the team, click on the 2012-2017 link.

After the new year I will start to figure out a draft date that works for all. 

Please note that the MLB season begins on Wednesday, March 28 with a Mariners/Athletics series in Japan, so we need to perform the draft ahead of this series.

I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

CK Commish
Michael Bier

Mike Bier, Bier's Chuggernaut, 1999-2012
(Four-time champion: 2004-2005, 2007, 2010)
AOL IM: LeetchMB2; Yahoo IM: MBier35

Mike Fagan, Mojo' Risin', 2000-2012
(Two-time champion: 2003 & 2009)
AOL IM: MisterMet02; YahooIM: MisterMet0286

Brian Heller, Team still TBA, 2011-2012
Yahoo IM: BKSH00

Jess Kryscio, EastBurg Bombers, 1996-2012
(Four-time champion: 1999-2000, 2002, 2006)
Yahoo IM: Kryscio23

Brad Miller, Slap Bet Champions, 2007-2012
Yahoo IM: BMiller1203

Bill Proussalis, Greasy Palms, 1997-2012
(Two-time champion: 2001-2002)
AOL IM: Proussalis08; Yahoo IM: Bill11735

G.C. Rice, It's Cadillac Time!, 1999-2012
AOL IM: SlyD182; YahooIM: Slyd182

Adam Rouse, Big Rouse Machine 2010-2012
Yahoo IM: Rousea24

Mike Trainor, The Mooseknuckle, 2004-2012
AOL IM: Ceorock1; YahooIM: Ceorock35

ANATOMY OF AN ELITE FANTASY OWNER
Here are the most crucial parts to making up a championship fantasy owner.  Do YOU have all the right parts?

22.0%  Tenacity
21.4%  The draft
18.2%  Good information
13.8%  Player evaluation
  8.8%  Trading
  7.5%  Patience
  2.5%  Creating a balanced team
  1.9%  Boldness
  1.9%  Developing and implementing a plan
  0.6%  Fighting the urge to over manage
  0.6%  Luck