Keeper Limit Question (Yes? No?)

[Andy1234]

I had an earlier post with a bunch of questions, and I wanted to break it off and discuss one specific question.

Should there be a limit on the number of years a player can be kept? If so, what should the limit be?

I can see pros and cons for each, I would like to get opinions on how each has worked out in some of the leagues that Cafe members have participated in.

Please state which one (or both) you have played in, and then let me know your preference and why you prefer one over another.

[Andy1234]

We play in a 10-12 man league with 16 starting spots (23 total). 5x5 roto scoring with a snake draft. If that effects anyone's opinion.

[Chiefscards]

This will be my 4th year in a 20 team keeper. 23 player rosters, 10x10 H2H league.

We keep 8 players. We get 4 lifers, 3 one year players and a rookie. The lifers we can keep as long as we want. The one yr players we have to either trade, drop, or promote to lifer the following year.

I've played in 3 other keepers, and this one is by far the best. The fact that we have atleast 3 keeper quality players at the end of the year that we need to move promotes a lot of trade activity in the off season.

[Andy1234]

Thanks for the reply, anyone else have an opinion?

[Dans]

We play in a 12 team 5x5 with 14 starting hitters and 9 pitchers (plus 2 bench). We keep a max of 10 each season.

Best way to do it (just my opinion) is to have each player's auction salary attached to them. After you keep a player for 2 years, you can either release him, sign him for 2 more years at his salary plus $5 or sign him for 3 more years at his salary plus $10.

The max you can keep a guy would then be 5 years, but the price increases.

You want to reward people for making good draft picks but at the same time, it's not great for the league if someone drafts the next Pujols for a buck and then gets to keep him for a buck forever.

[The Natural]

I'm in a 16 team league 14 hitters, 9 pitchers. We can keep as many as we want as long as we are under the cap. We have a set schedule for raises each year. The longer you keep a player the less of a raise you have to give him for the next year. I like this format except I think the raise should always be the same. Every year the auction gets less exciting because teams are keeping more players that are below their expected price.

I'm in another league, 14 team, 40 man roster. We use contracts in this league. When a contract on a player is up he becomes a restricted free agent and can be bid on during the off season auction. The prevoius owner then has an option to match the top bid. I realy like this format.

There are several ways to set up rules on keepers. They all have benefits. It just depends what your preference is. I like auction leagues because you don't necessarily have to limit the number of keepers if you use salary increases or contracts.

[Andy1234]

One last BUMP, to see if I can get any more opinions.