Fantasy Nostalgia? Did you start Roto in the 90's?

[Sticky Spice]

I guess fantasy baseball is old enough now that we can be nostalgic about it.

Just think about how it was PRE INTERNET

You think we like Baseball Tonight now? It was a religion when internet use was rare. Fortunately I lived on the west coast so I could usually sleep halfway decently until (literally) I heard the paper hit the front stoop. Back then stats reports were snail mailed weekly - oh the agony! Technology is GOOOOD!

I remember my first year was in 1993. I did really well understanding offense thanks to collecting baseball cards. I took chances on expansion players in Galarraga and Bichette and a new Yankee Paul O'Neill. I bid Daulton up to $30 and there were cheers all around for the first $30 bid of the day. That's practically a starting bid nowadays It took me three years to get the hang of pitching, but we won't talk about that.

Tell me some of your nostalgic memories from the 80's/90's and how you did in your first year

[prodpaul]

Didn't play Roto but we did play Earl Weaver baseball and MANUALLY (about 2hours) entered the Players Stats for the Computer to sim. Cool Graphics kept stats standings and all. We even held drafts in the lobby of our dorm. Man those were fun days was it really 12-13 years ago

[BeSquare]

I started in 1988. We had a five-team league, using only the N.L. East teams at that time. Seems like Delino DeDhields was the big catch at that first auction. Anyway, we had no stat service. I would get the morning paper and compile our stats by hand from the daily boxscores. It was a great start, and I've enjoyed roto ball ever since.

[trevisc]

I didn't play until yahoo had fantasy baseball. I'm not sure what year that was..

[princethomas]

Mydad and his buddies played in 86 and 87. I was 11. They all went to the sports bar and drafted and met there every week to do stats and make trades and stuff. Hed let me come a long sometimes I was a stat nut as a little kid.

Last year I played on Yahoo for the first time. Im 28 one of my friends in the league is 21. I told him about my dad and he was freakedout. He thought that the fantasy baseball was pretty much invented with the internet.
-T

[Moondog]

1988 was our first year and we drafted 1 player at each position, a right handed SP, a left handed SP, and a closer.

We manually did the stats, usually about twice a month, and got the stats from the Sunday Detroit News.

I recall picking Dave Stewart, Jim Abbott, and a pick that killed me and I still hear about it to this day....SAM HORN.

We had 10 teams and the draft was always a blast.

[Cornbread Maxwell]

Jim Abbott - nice. The one armed wonder. I went to school with his brother. Talk about a success story.

[jbird669]

When I started Roto, I was in 7th greade (1992). I went home after school and did stats by hand!!! Then I wrote the results once a week real nice, made copies and handed them to the owners. In the summer, I did it before anything else, and since we all hung out, I handed them the reports. I was mad happy when the 'Net came along!

[OldeTowneTeamGuy]

I started fantasy baseball back in '87 with an outfit from upstate NY called Baseball Fantastic. Crazy how you'd mail your starting lineup in weekly with any free agent additions and trades made throughout the week.

In that day you had to call other guys on the phone to talk trade. As a 13 year old playing in the league my parents weren't happy when the phone bill came rolling in; neither were the other players when they found out they were losing to a 13 year old.

[Madison]

First league I ever played was early 90's and we did everything through snail mail. Oh the agony now that I look back at it.

Mailed in our starting rosters and free agent moves every week. Got standings in the mail every week. Biggest thing was to just keep track of who was currently availiable in the free agent pool.

Now with the internet, everything is so much faster and easier. Couldn't imagine doing it the old way again.

Almost forgot, there was a fee for playing when I started. Something small, like $20. I don't remember exactly, but it did cost money, and with the internet, it became free. Just another way the internet has made fantasy baseball better.