Now that the off-season is nearly upon us, I'd like to offer some ideas for teams to consider as a method of improving. On this board we see alot of call for short term fixes...give losing teams higher draft picks, etc. to make the leagues more competitive. I feel that is rewarding incompetence. I have picked up bad teams and built them into consistent contenders. It can be done, but only with patience and long term planning (just like the real thing!).

If you are looking for a team that is solid from year to year (and are currently a losing team), you need to save your rookie picks (especially rounds 1 and 2), and draft the best prospects considering your team's current players.
Generally, position players are more likely to develop according to plan, while prospect pitchers fail to pan out more often (especially due to injuries). So I'd suggest trying to get top prospects for your starting 8. I tend to try to get the best available prospect, even if he's not too useful for the upcoming season. Too often, a borderline prospect who had decent AB's and results in his rookie year gets drafted ahead of a much better prospect that hit .179 in 35 AB's (and might be 2-3 years away from getting good playing time and results). Again, if you look to make up several holes in your starting 8, you might get two prospects this year, add another two next year, and the following year or two they start to gel together making your team solid from year-to-year.
As you start to assemble your starting 8, you start looking to get a pitching staff. Starters are always in short supply. I favor drafting pitching prospects when you have a solid starting 8...or get such an early pick that you will risk it on a starter (like a Prior, etc.). Generally, relief pitching is always available in the free agent draft...so not as high a priority in the rookie draft. Also, many relievers bounce around from year to year...good one year, and mediocre the next (small sample size I suspect, i.e. they only pitched 40 IP, so maybe they got lucky and ended up with a 2.45 ERA, next year not so lucky and they have a 5.45 ERA.).
Often, I look to have a solid hitting attack, and get middle of the road starters...and will have a competitive team. Over time, you develop an ace, or trade a prospect to get one, and you get a better pitching staff.
I favor power hitting, high OBP, hitters over speed. I don't see PB as effectively rewarding good defensive teams like real baseball does.
Some teams favor another approach. I call this the bipolar approach. Teams will sandbag one year, get better draft picks, then try to draft some better picks, then try to have a winning year. Then sandbag a year, and repeat. TO me, it seems like a waste. The sandbag year is a loss of time, and fun. When you see a team go from 1st to last, then make a run at 1st, to last...you can bet they are sandbaggers. So a good year only comes every other year. My plan leads to annual winning teams, and being in the hunt every year.
Just some ideas...
Like to hear some of yours.
Have a good off-season.

By the way, preparation is the key to identifying to top prospects...no easy way around it. I often get some of my top 40 prospects in rounds 4 and 5 of the rookie draft. They are often solid prospects that are a few years away, but sometimes they really click quickly (especially round 4,5 pitching prospects).