One of the most underrated aspects of this time of year
(March Madness) is how many facets this country has, just as represented in the
NCAA tournament field. Every year it happens: as I’m filling about my bracket,
I exclaim: “This is a university?” My enduring memory of this is the March
Madness Selection Sunday show (which I used to look forward to eagerly all year
as the kickoff of March Madness, but don’t anymore partially due to the
advancements of the internet as well as the Fighting Illini not making it to
the Dance very often) and understanding which teams are in, and where they’re
going, like the Catamounts of Vermont going against the Jack Rabbits of South
Dakota St., or Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks, etc. This year is no different,
as there’s some new teams I’ve never heard of (and I’ve been following the NCAA
for about 15 years) like the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, the Delaware Blue
Hens (Delaware is a state?) and the Cal Poly Mustangs. Long live the NCAA
Tournament.
The safe pick (and smart one, IMO) is Florida, IMO. Everyone
on ESPN picked Michigan St. and had Louisville going very far, but one of those
4 seeds might get upset in the first round! Arizona I think is the “value”
pick; haven’t got any press at all despite being a 1 seed and terrific season.
This time of year I understand it’s also “Madness” for
aspiring medical doctors……especially people from my high school, this was the
year that they “got matched” for a position after years and years of schooling…….let’s
see, it’s been 9 years since I graduated from high school. A testament to the
amount of dedication it takes to get through med school, and as I understand it
they’re still not done…….2 years of residency awaits. It reminds me of how
different people’s paths converge, as some close friends from high school are
now entering almost a completely different world, something foreign to me that
I might not ever understand. Even if one lives in the same city as another, or
in the same apartment complex, or in the same room, even, as roommates, the
lives they lead can be completely different due to there being so many people
in the world, so many different lives that one could lead, it’s almost unfathomable.
I often embrace this when I go on
vacation or like on a ski trip or something to another state……..there’s such a
big world out there, it’s good sometimes just to get out of one’s little bubble
and branch out, explore, see how others lead their lives.
Finally, this “little fish in a big pool” concept applies to
fantasy baseball too. No matter how deep one’s league is, there’s ALWAYS going
to be players still out there that can still be fantasy factors. I’m in a
14-team league with 21 roster spots (so almost 300 players are already
rostered) but there are still consistently players who contribute from the
waiver wire all the time. Last year, my first 2 additions off the waiver wire
were Daniel Murphy and Matt Carpenter, who led tremendously successful seasons.
This year, there are intriguing candidates on the waiver wire who can make big
impacts like Justin Smoak, Mike Moustakas, Josh Reddick, Tim Hudson, etc., etc.
Some of these players WILL make a significant impact on the fantasy season; we
just don’t know who those are going to be yet, but it’s pretty satisfying to
find out, especially if you are pre-emptively able to pick them up. So the
lesson is, even if you messed up at your draft last weekend, don’t give up: it’s
a big world out there on the waiver wire, embrace the enormity of the fantasy
world and the real world.
Fantasize on,
Robert Yan
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