By Chris Goudey
Contributing Writer
WagerWeb MLB Baseball Odds

If you are still in contention to win your fantasy baseball league title, the All-Star break was the time to determine your end-game strategy. We are now slightly more than halfway through the season, and you should know if you have a shot at winning. If you do still have a chance at the title, there are several things you can do to help your chances.
The first thing you need to take a look at is your current rank in each specific category, and how far you are from moving both up and down within that category. For instance, if you are in sixth place in wins but could move up to second with just 2-3 more, then that is something to target. Likewise, if you are barely ahead of three other teams in stolen bases, it is imperative that you focus on that and make sure you have enough speed so you don’t lose precious points in that category.
At this point in the season there isn’t going to be a ton of help available on your league’s waiver wire, so the best way to acquire the help you need is via trade. Let’s say most of your closers lost their job or were hurt early in the year, so you are last in saves. If you are really far behind the teams just in front of you, it would be wise to just punt the category altogether and trade whatever closers you have left for help elsewhere.
If you need help in the other pitching categories, a solid starter is going to help you much more than holding a closer. Good starting pitchers eat up innings, so they will help your ERA/WHIP much more than a closer will. Also, if your league counts strikeouts, then that’s a fourth category you can get help in. Trade those closers for help in other categories.
Likewise, if you are strong in steals and think you can maintain your rank while trading a steals source, target a good power hitter if you need help there. A team with a lot of power and good numbers in HR/RBI is probably lacking in steals, so a trade where both teams are getting what they need makes a lot of sense. Batting average and runs scored can be acquired from power hitters and speed guys, so there is no real advantage either way. Obviously if you are low in average, runs and steals, a player like Ichiro is perfect for you, as he will be among the league leaders in all three. A player like Albert Pujols will get you the help in every category except steals, but he will obviously be much harder to trade for.
One more thing you can do to find a trade target is to look a player’s career numbers for the second half. There are lots of players who are much better in the second half than the first historically, so you might find a diamond in the rough if you do your research. All of the major sports sites and MLB.com have this information. The other thing you can do is to read the daily player notes on many roto-based sites or in USA Today. These notes will give you updates on playing time and injuries that can be crucial as we get down the stretch.
Trading is a delicate thing, especially if you are in a league with friends. Obviously you want to get the best of the trade, but at the same time you don’t want to develop a reputation as someone who is difficult to deal with. The best trade is one that helps both teams, but you just a little bit more than your trading partner. You want to try to make sure the person is getting value, but you don’t want to hurt your bottom line, which is your chance to win the title. If you’re trading with someone who is above you in the standings, don’t give them what they need to beat you. Usually you’ll want to try to trade with someone who is below you in the standings so they don’t hurt you long-term. As a rule I try to put myself in the other team’s shoes when I offer a trade. I look at their standing within each category and try to make sure they’re getting something they need. There’s no point in offering a closer to a guy who already leads the league in saves. It’s just a waste of time and will get you a bad reputation.
The stretch run is about to begin, and while the real pennant races are beginning to heat up so is your fantasy race. Be smart about what you need to do to get yourself over the top, and hopefully both you and your favorite team will be holding the trophy at the end of the season
Chris Goudey
WagerWeb MLB Baseball Odds