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by **Doughhead** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 4:21 pm

I'm pursuing a strategy and was wondering if the fantasy community would see it as unethical. Here's the gist of it:

I'm in a roto league and am a currently in a very tight battle with one other team for the title (I have a slim lead going into today). There's a very good chance that the whole thing will come down to wins, a category in which we're currently tied. I will be maxing out on my innings today, so I loaded up my lineup today with as many starters as possible. Now here's where the ethics question comes in: I just dropped all those spot starters that I had picked up (and any other spare parts on my roster) for the top probable starters for tomorrow, solely to keep them away from the other guy, as I obviously won't be able to use them myself.

There are still a number of probables available, but none of them are at all attractive options. Is it wrong to play keep-away like this? Is it wrong to pick up players that you know you won't use simply to stop others from benefiting from having them in their lineups? When I first decided to do this, it seemed very clever. Now I feel like the rest of my league might see it as a cheap move. Thoughts?

by **baseball77** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 4:35 pm

I don't think its unethical and you would be kicking yourself if you dropped them and then he ended up winning W's because he picked some of them up. In the championship, you gotta do what you gotta do to win. Good strategy.

by **BitterDodgerFan** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 4:41 pm

yeah i think it's messed up to pick up starters you have no intentions of using. i try not to do that. it's okay i think to pick them up in advance before you make a decision to start them and then deciding you'd rather not start them the next day. but if you know you aren't gonna start them, i don't think you should pick em up at all.

by **Giambis** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 4:51 pm

I think it's pretty shrewd. I don't have a problem with it, but that's mainly because I don't think the guy chasing you should be able to beat you and win an entire league on the strength of a few spot starters that he's going to throw in on the last day. I don't think what you're doing is within the "spirit of the game" (whatever that means), but I also don't think him spot starting and going for the hail mary on the last day is either. So I say, "well played, sir."

by **Thursday** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 4:56 pm

"Hello? You play to win the game."

Any strategy that moves you towards a title is legal, ethical, etc. As long as you aren't hacking into other players' accounts or, as a commisioner, locking other players out of their teams, then you can do it. Do what it takes to win 100% of the time. I honestly find it hard to believe that anyone would have a mindset to the contrary.

by **BitterDodgerFan** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 5:02 pm

thinking about it again, i have to say that if a lot of money was on the line, like hundreds or thousand+ dollars, i might actually pick up starters to prevent my rival from getting them. but if i had zero innings left and it's that obvious what my plan is, there would probably be an outcry from the league.

by **Doughhead** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 5:15 pm

BitterDodgerFan wrote:thinking about it again, i have to say that if a lot of money was on the line, like hundreds or thousand+ dollars, i might actually pick up starters to prevent my rival from getting them. but if i had zero innings left and it's that obvious what my plan is, there would probably be an outcry from the league.

Yes, there are a few hundred bucks on the line. And yes, I expect an outcry from a few managers. But I guess when it comes down to it, I think I have the right to use my roster to my advantage. In this case, the most advantageous move is to roster players that may otherwise benefit my opponent, even though they won't be directly helping my team.

by **JTWood** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:07 pm

IMO, if there's no rule against it, it's fair game.

This is competition, and if you didn't think of it first, tough luck.

by **rb11** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:33 pm

I would do the same thing......but to play devil's advocate there technically is a rule in yahoo (assuming you use that to host) that says that players can only be picked up if you plan to use them......not 100% on that but I remember hearing/reading it a while back.

by **bigh0rt** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 9:19 pm

Interesting that I actually considered this today. I woke up this morning tied for first at 111.5 pts in Behrens' Roto Arcade Pro-Am, with my innings cap having already been reached, and the team I was tied with not. He picked up a load of pitchers yesterday, and with something like 3.1 IP left on his cap, rattled off, currently, 47.1 IP, 33 Ks, etc. etc. -- he's gained 6.5 points, to my 0.0 right now. The thought crossed my mind yesterday about picking up all the guys, going for the block, I guess you could put it. But I decided it was against the spirit of the game, and to see if he would do what he then proceeded to go do. If I get 2nd because of it, so be it.