The Z Files: Salary Cap Drafts in a Remote Setting

Much of the discussion to date had focused on snake drafts. It's high time we shifted gears and gave salary cap drafts some attention.

Before going on, you may have noticed the fantasy sports industry is displaying more social awareness and is avoiding certain words and phrases some may find insensitive. Finding alternate means of saying owner, ownership, etc. has become commonplace for well over a year. Last fall, ESPN, CBS and Yahoo changed the name of their football auctions to salary cap leagues and are doing so with baseball as well. There are other terms, such as handcuff and references to weapons, being phased out. Recently, the hosts on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio have been asked to follow suit. We're all creatures of habit, thus it will take a little while to completely vanquish these words and phrases from the lexicon, but we'll get there.

I've written a lot about salary cap drafts in this space over the years so instead of rehashing the material, here are some links.

Money Management and Auction Strategy

Auction Dynamics and Budget Splits

Reading the Market

The Z Files: How To Create an Auction Budget

Auction Strategy Primer

The Z Files: The Flaws with Auction Pricing

Last year, since it was clear most salary cap leagues would be unable to meet in person, I shared some tips for remote auctions.

The Z Files: Online Auction Tips

Unfortunately, it's apparent the same will be true this spring. Having not only experienced a few more remote salary cap drafts but also administered several for Tout Wars, there's a couple of things I'd like to add to the above series of tips.

1. Don't overdo it

Unless you're a seasoned veteran using the online room, it's best not to try to track the festivities via other means like our own draft software, Rotolab, or your own version. The rosters and budgets will be tracked by the online room, but of course many use the software for guidance, adjusting bid prices, etc. Obviously, if you're comfortable updating the software without missing out on what's going on in the room, go for it. However, if you're fairly new to either, there is a good chance you miss out on several players of interest.

That said, you still need a means of identifying bid parameters in a timely manner as well as tracking who is available with an eye towards making sure you spend all your budget. What works for me may not work for you, but here is what I do.

I set up four pieces of paper with columns for each position. The draft-worthy players fit on two pages with the reserves populating the other two. The players are tiered in $5 blocks. That is, all the players I expect to earn $41-$45, $36-$40, $31-$35, all the way down to $1-$5 are listed in the appropriate box. I don't care if the third player listed in the $21-$25 shortstop box is projected to earn $24 while the third player in the corresponding second base tier is priced at $22. All players in the same block and across the tier are close enough for jazz.

There tiers are perfect for the method described in The Z Files: How To Create an Auction Budget, listed above. I may not know the exact tier, but when I player is nominated, it doesn't take long to find him, get an idea of the bid range and see how he fits within my budget. The only bookkeeping involves crossing him out or highlighting his name. Piece of cake.

If you're comfortable with Excel, you can track the players easily using CTRL F and highlighting the name. Again, the key is being able to find the player and get the bid range as seamlessly as possible. In a live draft, you can obviously make bids verbally as you're crossing out the name. Online, you need to leave yourself ample time to transition from the paper/Excel tab into the draft room without hurting your ability to bid.

2. Don't get cute

There are strategic advantages of jumping into a bit late. While it can still be done in a remote setting, cutting it too close is dangerous. The technology is very good, but there are still occasional lags and the proper way to handle the countdown is the site has the final say. If you thought you got your bid in before "sold" but the remote room does not see it that way, you're out of luck. Personally, I don't tempt fate. If there is someone I want, I don't get cute; I get my bid in well before the end of the count.

3. Have fun

The biggest regret I have after administering Tout Wars weekend last year was not having a video conference component. Granted, this is a bit of revisionist history, as Zoom and the like was nowhere close in popularity to what they became over the summer. Still, it was around but it never crossed my mind to arrange a private room where the league could enjoy some level of camaraderie. There are some even holding their salary cap draft entirely over Zoom, without a remote room to track rosters and budgets. It's obviously not the same as being live, but the ability to hear familiar voices and see friendly faces is a welcome respite.

Apologies for the abbreviated offering this week, I have the American League LABR auction this weekend and I'm a bit behind in my prep.