I'm guessing he would not even come close to satisfying the requirements since everyone called those 2 players poor defensive players when they were only a few points off.

The guy I'm playing at SS right now will make you all laugh and he's not even that great of a bat. My team is a mess. I inherited it and I'm a complete newbie (played like 3 seasons 6 years ago, but barely paid attention back then)

http://whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=3454102. He's the joke I'm trying to play at SS.

Move him to 3B/2B.   He's can handle either. 

That is a tough place to be in.

His d is pretty sub par for a SS, and his bat isn't great either, but is light-years better than the other two guys..
Someone might have a better answer, but if I couldn't find an adequate SS in FA i'd probably play Oliver there, and make landing a SS in IFA or the draft a high priority.

My thinking is this:

I'm not going to really compete for a playoff spot, so let's use this season to learn just how much damage a guy like Oliver at SS does. He amassed 33 errors last season at SS, and 8 mins plays. There's a thread somewhere that tries to determine how many runs that'll cost you over a season. Compared to 30+ errors by James at SS a few seasons ago, and I think the difference of 3 more errors and more minus plays is more than compensated for by his much better bat. He has averaged  .769 OPS during his career, and while he has declined some, I'd still expect him to be over .700 OPS this season, which is a bunch better than James will do. 

A last option may be to find a FA who is about equal to Oliver defensively but who has a much better bat. That would probably be the lesser of 4 evils, if it is an option at all. 

Problem is if you look at my pitchers, you'll see that my rotation is an absolute joke... with no promising prospects on the horizon either... 

Also remember this, in most cases an owner leaves a team because he knows it is going to be an uphill battle to get them back into contention. So taking a team that won only 58 last season, and only one season in the last 10 over .500, you must resign yourself to the fact that it is going to take a couple or 3 seasons to get that team back in shape. 

I see you went big to acquire Manuel, and he does have a great bat, but realistically one great bat isn't going to turn around a 100 loss team. You've got him for 5 seasons so , perhaps before his contract is up, you can get this team turned around.

I'd make a list of areas that need improving and try to prioritize them and then try to acquire what you could to fill them one season at a time. Manuel is a very good center piece to build around.

Good Luck.

Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Eugene Gardner can probably play SS as well as anyone you have now.

Posted by bglick on 1/29/2013 9:45:00 PM (view original):
Problem is if you look at my pitchers, you'll see that my rotation is an absolute joke... with no promising prospects on the horizon either... 

Right, IMO I would address pitching sooner than the SS. Of course a great defensive SS can make your pitchers better, so it really depends on what options are available first.

with 58 wins last season you probably have a good draft pick. Work from there, and see if there is a great P available for you to draft. You can usually grab a great defensive SS in the draft also if you rank him high enough to grab him by the 2nd or 3rd round.  That'd be my goal at this point.

3rd pick should land a decent SP.

I'd be leery of the world to begin with when an owner has only 39 wins and isn't booted, it probably isn't the greatest of private worlds, IMO.

I don't have a 2nd/3rd/4th/5th round pick.

I signed A Hahn as a catcher and Manual and 2 pitchers who were all type A free agents (I signed Hahn and Manuel first), I heard that 4th and 5th round picks are unlikely to make the big league roster so I figured might as well get some help in the short term when I signed 2 other pitchers). 

I thought I should build around Poole and Garko considering there both 24/25 rather 31 like manuel. Figured I could trade Manuel down the line for more prospects, but should I keep him and build around my outfield essentially? 

Just figured a contract like that was for a center piece. I didn't look at the other guys.

I think you should familiarize yourself with the "average defensive ratings" page.

Position followed by range/glove/arm strength/arm accuracy/pitch calling:
 
C  10/30/75/75/50
1B  40/40/40/40/0
2B  80/75/55/65/0
3B  65/70/75/70/0
SS  80/85/85/85/0
LF  55/55/50/50/0
CF  85/85/60/65/0
RF  65/50/70/65/0

So if you look at RF, for example, Garko's arm is fairly weak for a RF. He'd be above average in LF, but I don't like that weak of an arm in RF. He is a solid hitter.
Poole, is below average in CF too. His bat is good enough, although I prefer a higher Eye rating for my Power hitters.

Obviously, their age and bat makes them long term useful pieces. With the four Type As and Poole and Garko, you have a reasonable shot at competing. Problem with thinking you'll trade Manuel "down the line" is he is 31 and signed for 5 years and he isn't cheap.

I admire the effort you made at fielding a competitive team, and you may be able to get a WC, who knows.

If it was getting near the trade deadline and it was pretty clear that you weren't going to get a spot you MAY be able to get something worth trading him for, but each season that passes will make him less and less valuable to other owners, as he will begin to decline more and more as he ages. He should be a solid contributor for the duration of his contract though, and you definitely have a good chance of filling in the missing pieces before his contract expires, so unless someone made a great offer for him I wouldn't even consider trading him.

Additionally if ever you are contemplating trading him it is very important to post that fact in world chat. There is no better way to get the best deal that you can for a great player than to announce to the whole world that you are accepting offers for him. When you do that inevitably, you will get several offers, and inevitably half of them will be down right insulting, but you should get a few very strong offers also. I also like to make mental notes of which owners offered fair deals, and which ones attempted to rob me.

Sometimes if an owner thinks he is set for a title run and would like one more impact bat he will trade multiple good prospects to acquire that "final piece".
That is the kind of deal I would be looking for, otherwise I'd keep him around as long as I could.

Well that's what I meant about Manuel. Problem with Manuel is that he can only play lf/1b/dh which means I have to Garko at right and Poole at center. And keeping Manuel over them seems dumb considering they are way younger. I mean I basically have below average ratings at every spot in my lineup.

I've seen the average ratings a bunch but my team has so many holes I can seem to reach them at any spot due to having to compensate for other positions. I could theoretically just play some really defensive players but then my bats would be terrible.

My idea with Manuel was basically what you suggested trade him at the deadline for prospects. Otherwise build around my outfield. The type a pitchers I got are not that good. Neither is a starter both are sub/cla.

I appreciate your help btw. Thank you and any other advice you could share would be great

You aren't likely to get value at the deadline.    If you plan on dealing him, start shopping now.

In most worlds I've played in, trade deadline value is as good as FA signing period value.

I'd understand if it was for a guy in the last year of his contract, who has questionable signability or something, but otherwise why would that be the case in your experience Mike?

I mean I have a hole at SS and my entire pitching staff. Wouldn't it be smart to try to trade Manuel to pick some 2 or more pitching prospects?