Can a Team be Too Good?

[jake_twothousandfive]

Is there a point at which you should stop trying to make your team better?

I'm afraid the competitive balance may have been ruined in my favorite league this year. It's a money league and only an 8 teamer (so everyone's team is pretty stacked). Via few trades and a good draft a team has reached a state far beyond anyone else's in my league and even with it being as early as it is in the season they've already created large gap between themselves and the rest of the field.

I'm not trying to suggest that this team is untouchable and couldn't be drailed by injuries or some prolonged slumps. But I would very much like to have a fun time in this league. Nobody likes a runaway and I'm afraid it could drive teams away and reduce the activity level of the league overall (which has been outstanding to this point).

Maybe it's not as good as I think. The pitching has been great but is nothing incredible and they'll have to drop someone (probably Sheff) to get Rollins off the DL. But overall his offense is pretty rediculous.

What do you guys think? Should we ask this owner help out a struggling team by knowing giving them a good deal and making his team worse? So that we could all have more fun in the league this year.

Batters
C - Geovany Soto (ChC - C)
1B - Prince Fielder (Mil - 1B)
2B - Chone Figgins (LAA - 2B,3B,OF)
3B - Alex Rodriguez (NYY - 3B)
SS - Edgar Renteria (Det - SS)
OF - Lance Berkman (Hou - 1B,OF)
OF - Ryan Braun (Mil - 3B,OF)
OF - Grady Sizemore (Cle - OF)
Util - Travis Hafner (Cle - 1B)
BN - Gary Shieffield (Det - Util)
BN - Alex Rios (Tor - OF)
BN - Corey Hart (Mil - OF)
DL - Jimmy Rollins (Phi - SS) DL
DL - Howie Kendrick (LAA - 2B) DL

Pitchers
SP - Roy Halladay (Tor - SP)
SP - Carlos Zambrano (ChC - SP)
SP - Roy Oswalt (Hou - SP)
RP - Mariano Rivera (NYY - RP)
RP - Brandon Lyon (Ari - RP)
P - Tim Lincecum (SF - SP)
P - Adam Wainwright (StL - SP)
P - Edinson Volquez (Cin - SP)
BN - Brett Myers (Phi - SP,RP)
BN - Chad Billingsley (LAD - SP,RP)
BN - John Maine (NYM - SP)
DL - Rafael Soriano (Atl - RP) DL

[red_sox_fan]

What do you guys think? Should we ask this owner help out a struggling team by knowing giving them a good deal and making his team worse? So that we could all have more fun in the league this year.

Hell no! You said it yourself, it's a long season and anything can happen.

[Spartans Rule]

Hell no.

Since I've been watching the NFL Draft today, I'll quote Herman Edwards: "You play to win the game!"

I've never understood why "competitive balance" is the goal of any league. The goal is to compete with others to build the best team. Obviously this guy's doing a good job of that. Why should he be punished? If you want "competitive balance", just have the commish divide up all the players into even teams. If you want to compete, then compete.

If a guy running away with the league will make others inactive, your league isn't very good to begin with. There's other places to compete for besides first.

[MTUCache]

In a gamesmanship sense, no, absolutely not. You compete to win, to test yourself and to beat your opponents. Of course you don't want to handicap and penalize a team for being too good, it only encourages mediocrity and eventually complete apathy.

In a "meta-game sportsmanship" sense (yes, I'm completely making this up), I suppose so. You don't want your league to end up falling apart with half of the teams not even checking after the first month and the entire league dying. It's a lot less satisfying when you win leagues like this as well. You'd like to compete against everyone elses' best, not a bunch of teams nobody has set lineups in for a month.

But, at this point in the season, barely 10-15% of the way in, a lot can happen. If you're conceding the season to this guy right now, you obviously don't have nearly the competitive spirit that most of the guys in my league have. They'd probably be conspiring behind my back to try and merge a team full of all-stars and take me down (as lame as that is, at least they're trying).

No, no team is "too good" one month in. You can't have nearly enough cushion to make up for even two or three season-ending injuries on a team like that. You've still got a lot of work to do in order to keep that thing rolling. And a lot of luck too.

[Nemyar]

My team was pretty ridiculous last year, due to trading Hardy for Rollins early and picking up Zambrano on waivers among other things, but I still only won the league by a few points. I had 106 and the guy in second place, naturally the one who drafted A-Rod, had 103 and there was a third guy who was a bit behind us but at least relevant (12 team league). So IMO, no matter how good your team is, there are still plenty of players out there for other teams to be able to compete against you, so I'd never stop trying to improve my team.

Generally, the bad owners you take advantage of to improve your team will probably be taken advantage of by other shrewd owners... I think. Not sure how you get a totally otherworldly team without taking advantage of another owner, as waivers aren't likely to separate your team from the rest of the teams by such a great margin.

[jake_twothousandfive]

Well this is actually my team. I was considering making my team worse so that we could have more fun. But I guess I'll just let it go and see what happens.

[jondunc]

There is no such thing as a team that is too good. Only league's that aren't competitive enough.

[A Fleshner Fantasy]

No way should he have to give someone up. If he does, then whatever happens in the league no longer matters, because he has basically already won, based on what he is being forced to do. That's like advocating collusion within a league!

[Snakes Gould]

theres absolutely no way in the world you should suggest this guy give a bad team some players. for starters, its a money league so thats an instant no. i hope this is your team we're talking about.

[fezzik]

Not big fan of the pitching...for an 8-teamer the offense is very good, but I don't see the pitching holding up over the course of the season...weak RP's...even the SP's seem only average to me for an 8-teamer. Nothing to get too worried about...and of course nobody should be giving up...and he shouldn't be pawning off his bats...that's silly.