I will try to answer some of the comments already made but I encourage those of you who have not weighed in to do so:

1. Yes I am biased towards youth and talent rather than proven performance and team need. UNM teams are usually imperfect and having been abandoned well behind the league leaders in terms of talent. The best way to catch up is to trade for young players with high ceilings and to disregard need and go for overall talent. Once a new manager takes the team he can take that talent and fill the needs as he sees fit.

2. It has been said that the system is broken because the number of UNM teams is not going down. Actually the number is not going down because we are not marketing the product. We are not marketing the product because as we have seen this playoff season it does not work. Why would I spend limited funds to market a product not ready for prime time? We are working on the administrative part of the equation and hoping we can have a decent product to market in the very near future.

3. UNM teams are improving. Take a look and you will find that in general the teams are peppered with good young prospects, ample picks and a decent talent base. There are very few hopeless teams and the UNM trades have been a big part of this trend.

4. No UNM trades with Managed teams! Some active and successful managers who have no trouble making trades with other managers believe they are at a disadvantage if they cannot make UNM trades. This disadvantage is hardly reflected in their PB records but if the truth were told their difficulty in making trades stems from their approach. They refuse to believe that I do not agree with their assessment of value. These claims of unfairness are never accompanied by examples of these awful injustices. The “perfectly fair” offers to the UNM teams were they published for all to see would make some of the membership blush I’m afraid…

5. I am beginning to solicit help from a very few managers in order to better prepare the UNM teams for the coming season. The idea of league commissioners is not going to work for two reasons: 1. I doubt that I can find 37 dedicated commissioners and I will still have to input the trades. 2. I do not trust most PB managers to do a good enough job of evaluating the needs of the UNM teams. I intend to do the best job I can improving the UNM teams, but reserve the right to stay involved with the process.

6. Consistency? The idea that one manager making trades over a couple of seasons could gauge the overall consistency of the UNM trades based on the relative success of his teams’ offers is ludicrous. I do not claim infallibility but my aims are fairly consistent.

7. No #1 picks or superstars traded. Why not? If trading top picks or superstars is the best way to increase the talent base and prospects of an UNM team I will do so. Given my bias as described in #1 above, it is fairly rare that I trade a #1 rookie pick or a superstar.

8. I am sorry that I traded Pujols in K15. I made a hasty trade and it was a mistake but the team is still kicking and not destitute. (Chattanooga in K15)


Mike Bravard (PB)