Two things are important for the first month of the fantasy baseball season:
- Pitcher over Batter
- Patience
In April the weather is still pretty cold in most places and these conditions favour the pitcher. They will strike out more batters than in warm conditions but they will also walk more players as they seem to have control issues.
Of course this is no automatic formula for success, considering that guys like CC Sabathia or Cliff Lee got roughed up in their respective season debuts, but in April I am more likely to start a pitcher whom I would not start in August.
Derek Lowe had a fabulous season debut against the Phillies in Philadelphia. I had no doubts about starting him but in a couple of months I’ll be more reluctant to start my pitchers when they play at Citizens Bank Park.
Partly connected with my first point you have to be patient with your batters in the first month. They will have more strikeouts than usual and some will have a lower batting average than projected. Don’t worry, this is likely to improve, just like the temperatures will.
A lot of adding and dropping is already going on in my leagues. Emilio Bonifacio of the Florida Marlins and Jordan Schafer of the Atlanta Braves have been popular pick-ups in my leagues. I won’t argue, both players have been extremely productive in the first week of the 2009 season but can you already tell that they are better than Carlos Guillen or Conor Jackson? It may turn out to be a good addition but I need to see at least 100 at-bats from a player before I give up on them or believe they are no one-week-wonder.
Every year I benefit from other players committing these mistakes and this year might just be like every year.
| 
