SBI Fantasy MLS Corner

By CASEY CANNON

Hello and Welcome to the Soccer by Ives Fantasy Corner – now with 700 billion to spare!  Every week I dig through statistics, news, and rumors to provide the reader with the kind of fantasy advice that only someone who is apparently qualified to be Vice-president can provide.  I write this Monday night before the official injury reports come out, so don’t be grumpy if I tell you to pick a hurt player.  For information on MLS Fantasy Football go to http://fantasy.mlsnet.com/.

Last week my picks were sadly hit and miss.  I suggest taking three from the Crew, which to my delight was a good call (unless my reader took Frankie Hejduk).  I recommended taking three from San Jose, but RSL had a surprise in store.  I recommended avoiding Toronto, saying the Maple Leafs may get one – only one – goal.  Toronto got their one goal and held Houston to a draw. 

On the individual side, I recommended Joe Cannon for a keeper.  Sorry, that didn’t quite work out.  To make up for it I called out Huckerby for a value pick, and his two goals earned that title.  Jeff Larentowicz was my overpriced warning, and he was indeed overpriced for his 90 minutes played and zero points earned.  For the week I went 3.5/6.  Hopefully, things will go better this week.

Team Picks

Take Three – Columbus Crew. Playing at home against LA this week, expect every Crew player on the field to score at least one goal.  This week at Crew Stadium there is a special give away.  Each of the first 1000 fans though the gates will have a GBS assist dedicated to them.

Take Three – New York.  The Red Bulls are at home against Toronto.  Toronto won’t score on the road.  Isn’t Frank Yallop Canadian?  Did the Maple Leafs miss an opportunity?  Oh well, I am sure the boys north of the border are happy with their front office. 

Avoid – LA.  Their defense is a joke, and otherwise they just haven’t looked that good.  This is a team that is ready to pack it in for the season.  The only player who might show up to play – Edson Buddle.  He might be motivated to get some revenge on his old team, but more likely he will join the slide to the mediocre depths.

Two Up, Two Down

This week it there is a Texas theme to Two Up, Two Down.  Trending upward is Cowboy Jeff Cunningham.  Up 1.76 points per game over the last few weeks, the Cowboy Jeff and his new team seem to be a good fit. His teammate El Vaqueiro Andre Roche is also on the rise in Dallas.  Over the last few weeks his points per game have gone up 1.27. 

Down in the big D is Dominic Oduro.  Oduro has watched his playing time and his scoring dry up this season.   Down .7 points per game over the last month, Odoro needs a trade or an injury to be a good fantasy pick. 

Further south, Bobby Boswell has gotten lots of press about solidifying the Houston Defense.  But over the past month his points per game is down half a point, and he is now barely in the top 100 field players.  Ignore the press clippings, this Houston player is on a downward slide.

Individual picks

Keeper – Jon Busch.  This is an all or nothing pick.  Chicago can’t score, so if they give up just one this will be a very disappointing pick.  Still, I don’t think the Wizards can be counted to score on Chicago.   

Value – Darren Huckerby.  Just leave him from last week.  He earns over 12 points a game, and only costs $22,420 per point.  I don’t know why he is still underpriced, but go ahead and pick him up while he is cheaper than bank stocks.

Overpriced – Fred.  His team is a disaster.  He earns 2.6 points per game and costs 366,000.  Finding Fred on your team Monday morning must feel like going through puberty in reverse. 

Tune in next week, when I compare MLS players to their politician counterparts.