Rookie looking for advice

[duke_kun]

This is my first season of Fantasy Baseball and I'm one of 2 rookies in a 10 team Yahoo league and this is the year it becomes a keeper league (retaining 7 players at the end of this year). We're a 6x6 for scoring categories and I'm currently in 8th though teams #4-9 are pretty bunched up.

Here's where my roster sits right now:

C - Mike Napoli
1B - Conor Jackson
2B - BJ Upton
3B - David Wright
SS - Orlando Cabrera
OF - Brad Hawpe
OF - Pat Burrell
OF - Corey Hart
UTIL - David Ortiz
BN - Shane Victorino
BN - Andre Ethier
BN - Edwin Encarnacion
BN - Jhonny Peralta
DL - Josh Willingham
DL - Jorge Posada

SP - CC Sabathia
SP - Carlos Zambrano
SP - Josh Beckett
SP - Cliff Lee
RP - Mariano Rivera
RP - Francisco Cordero
P - Todd Jones
P - Alan Embree
BN - CJ Wilson
BN - Jonathan Sanchez
BN - Scott Olsen

My ERA has been hammered d/t Sabathia's miserable start and also thanks to Chad Billingsley's horrific start (I dumped him and picked up Lee)
I've been alternating Peralta and Cabrera at SS to pick up some SB's with Cabrera when Peralta's bat's been cool, and likewise switching Encarnacion during Wright's slump.

Any and all advice would be welcome on strengths/weaknesses, possible moves, etc.

[duke_kun]

Still looking for thoughts and advice on my team, but also wanted to update a change to my roster:

With Brad Hawpe going to the DL and Josh Willingham's back problem stretching on indefinitely, I've dropped Willingham and moved Hawpe to my second DL spot (the other still being Posada), and I picked up David Murphy.

[shoelessjoetara]

Being that this year it becomes a keeper league ,you will have some young talent to help you out. Picking up Murphy was a great move. You will need to pick up some young pitching to go with your young offensive talent. Look at picking up Kershaw to bring in some youth if he hasn't been picked up yet. Since this is now becoming a keeper league you will have to make a decision, contend this year or contend for years after because the younger unpolished talent won't get the numbers like the vets. This team though looks like it can contend this year and with the younger proven talent will help in years to come. You may have an advantage over a lot of other guys in your league even though you may be a rookie. Good Luck. Please help me out

viewtopic.php?t=347920

[shoelessjoetara]

Thanks for the reply. I was able to get Bailey, Scherzer and Kershaw because I play in a CBS Sportsline league and all players are available on the WW after our draft. Three days later all players are free agents and anyone can pick up anyone they want. I took a chance about three or four weeks ago and picked up Kershaw, Scherzer, Bailey and Colon. I also picked up John Danks on waivers around that time. I was able to get Lincecum last year and I reaped the benefits so I wanted to make sure I wouldn't miss out on those guys. I have much more depth because of those moves. You asked if you should pick up Bailey, well since it is a keeper it depends on who you would have to drop. He has struggled recently so I am just holding on to him hoping he comes out of this funk. If I was you, I would drop Embree and take a chance on Bailey to add some young talent. A piece of advice, I would never sit Wright. Play him throughout the year. You don't want to be sitting him and he breaks out in a big way.

[duke_kun]

Roster update:

My 3rd spot on the Waiver Priorities wasn't high enough to snag Kershaw. Unbelievably the guy with #1 passed though!

I was going to drop Olson if my waiver claim went through but since it didn't I dropped Olson and picked up Jered Weaver instead.

[shoelessjoetara]

Weaver was a good pick up. I posted a private message for you. If you want we can talk like this instead of blocking up our own topics.