Should I punt steals?

[Pete O]

My 10 team league counts traditional 5X5 categories plus OBP and Total bases for a total of 7 points per week in a H2H league. Pitching cats are traditional 5X5 cats plus save percentage at 1.25 points each cat per week. My team is terrible in steals but pretty strong at everything else. We need 2 starters at each infield spot, 5 OF, 5 starting pitchers, and 2 relievers. Here's my team:

1B: Giambi Sweeney
2B: Kent Hudson
SS: Nomar(DL), Rollins, Greene
3B: Huff Ensberg
C: Estrada Olivo Mauer(DL)
OF: Vlad Mags Sosa Wells Berkman
SP: Vazquez Brown C. Zambrano Sabathia Harden Pineiro
RP: Percival Guardado

My question is should i trade an OF with power for a steals guy or just go foward with this team and deal with the fact my steals will be low.

[fiz]

in that kinda league you really should get some steals, is figgins on the wire? maybe trade for pierre...im not a fan of punting categories...its makes it so much harder to win the league...

[Lofunzo]

It's not as hard to win steals in H2H. Last year, Pierre basically won it for me each week. If you are killing in the power cats, then try dealing a bopper for Pierre. Maybe even Crawford as you can get him cheaper. I just deal Damon for him.

[PresHabib]

It's funny that when I was first reading the title of your thread and your first post, I thought "I don't want this guy to trade for pierre" and the two subsequent posts both said to do that...they are not wrong, I just think that that easy solution is by far the most difficult to pull off.

Would YOU trade Juan Pierre? I wouldn't, because no matter what I wouldn't give up a guy who dominates one category the way Pierre can dominate steals. Perhaps I exaggeate (actually no, i AM exaggerating) but my point is that Pierre would be so expensive to acquire that you seriously hinder your chances at winning other categories.

Instead, go for CHEAP steals. Brian Roberts is a cheap steal guy and hasn't stolen a base (i believe) since two days after he stole 4 in one day, when he stole two. The dude still has wheels and will steal plenty, but right now market is low on him as he is not necessarily free from "flash in the pan" status after that huge game because he hasn't done too much since...but he will, so he's someone to look at.

Likewise is Carlos Lee. Did you know he stole 18 bases last year? Me neither! But he did, and he's been terrible so far so you can buy him REAL low...I was actually able to pluck him off the waiver wire which was incredible.

Johnny Damon is another option...30 SB's in Boston each year so far, why will that change? I don't like that he doesn't do so much else though, ESPECIALLY in the first half of a season.

Basically, what I like to do is get guys who contribute to all categories...Beltran obviously, but don't overlook Bobby Abreu, who is known to me and my roomate as "Poor-man's Beltran". I may not be a lock to win any one category every week, but I've got like an 85% chance to win them all, rather than mortgaging myself to a 50% chance to win homers/rbi but locking up the one category of steals.

If you ask me, this list of guys will help you more than targeting Juan Pierre because you don't have to decimate other areas of your team.

Figgins
Alex Sanchez *
Dave Roberts *
Mike Cameron
Endy Chavez
Rocco Baldelli
Randy Winn

* Sanchez and D. Roberts might be tough because some people realize that they ARE Juan Pierre...if not though, MUCH cheaper.

I think this is the path you should follow.

[Lofunzo]

I'm not sure how many years he has been playing FB but I have noticed that new managers don't see the value in steals. I picked up Pierre from the WW last year and he won me a lot of $$. I would go for someone like Crawford, who can be had for much cheaper than Pierre.

[Pete O]

I guess my main question then is, who do I replace? And, are any of these steal guys worth the OF i have straight up?