Changes for the Better


It's been more than two months since I posted anything on this site.  I realize that's a long time, but it took that long to re-evaluate what I wanted to do with LongGandhi.com.  After winning AL Tout Wars last year, there has been some pressure to move toward making this more a fantasy baseball site and I wasn't sure that was the direction I really wanted.  There was also some pressure - admittedly it came from within - to seize the moment and write a fantasy baseball book to try an capitalize on my success. 

But that's just not me.  Yes, I review what each player did last year and yes, I do my own projections.  But I haven't felt compelled to make fantasy baseball a year round avocation, which is pretty much what you have to do if you want to be in the business of fantasy baseball - that is, have a company that makes money telling people how to win.  I do offer a largely unique scouting perspective - as opposed to a rhetorical and/or statistical one which you find on most of the other baseball sites - but I'm not convinced that is marketable enough to make this a business.  The differences between rhetoric and actual scouting, unfortunately, are too easily blurred so that most people have a difficult time distinguishing the two.

That said, in addition to what I write on this site, I will be writing exclusive fantasy baseball columns for the Talented Mr. Roto this year, appearing bi-weekly.  So if you want fantasy advice from me, that is the place you're most likely to find it.

What I intend to do with this site is make it more interactive.  Here are the first two changes you'll be seeing over the next month or so:

-  I'm going to establish Hall of Fame lists and message boards.  These will be my lists of the top candidates (anywhere from 25-100 depending on the topic), but readers will have a forum in which to extol their candidates for admission.  For example, there will be a Baseball Hall of Fame list of the players I think merit the honor.  Most will already be in the Cooperstown museum, but there will be some who are in the museum that aren't on my list and others who should be there (like Ron Santo) who've been unjustly ignored.  It's my way of fixing an honor that has been on more than several occasions diminished by politics.  Readers will be able to comment on my selections as well as forward their own candidates and explain why their's deserve the honor.  Topics will include football, basketball, athletes in general, movies, musicians/bands, PC games and just about anything else that sounds fun to list and discuss.

- I'm not sure how this will go, but I'd like to offer a place for people to publish their own work.  Granted, successful candidates will have to pass editorial scrutiny, and topics will have to be broader than "my sleeper and bust list", but there are a lot of people out there with insightful ideas about baseball - both fantasy and real.  I want to hear them and give you a platform to display your intellectual wares.  I will set up a special section on the home page for your work.  As an incentive, financial compensation (albeit modest) will be included.  Send inquiries/submissions to: longgandhi@yahoo.com. 

Over the next two weeks, I'll be previewing all of the teams by division, focusing on the impact of each team's winter acquisitions.  After that, I'll be in Florida for Spring Training, where I'll post frequent updates/observations about the games I attend.  I've scheduled to see 8 in six days, so there should be plenty to report.

Thanks for your patience.  There are more possible changes in the works, but they have not yet crystalized to the point where details should be released.   In the meantime, I hope you will enjoy and participate in the direction LongGandhi.com is headed.  Thanks again.

Trace