Fantasy Baseball Dispute No. 8170-T: SportsJudge Court Approves NL-Only Trade of Bay for Capps & J. Hairston (Time Stamped July 27th)

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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -	x	Index No. 8170-T Trade Date: July 27, 2010 Date Posted: August 2, 2010 League Type: NL-ONLY ROTO Dispute: TRADE REVIEW Judge: MARC EDELMAN TRADE BETWEEN PHIRE & KENNY POWERS APPROVED
COMMISSIONER OF CAMPIONS CUP LEAGUE Petitioner, - against - PHIRE & KENNY POWERS Respondents.	: : : : : : : : : :
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Commissioner of the Campions Cup League brings this claim in the SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Baseball Disputes to resolve a fantasy baseball dispute involving the status of a proposed trade of Phire players Jason Bay (OF, New York Mets) and Chris C. Carter (LF, New York Mets) to Kenny Powers for Matt Capps (P, Washington Nationals) and Jerry Hairston Jr. (IF/OF San Diego Padres).

This trade was time stamped on 7/27 at 2:47 P.M. – before Jason Bay was placed on the disabled list and before Matt Capps was traded to the Minnesota Twins. The trade was viewed with these concepts in mind.

The Law on Upholding a Trade

In this court, it is the general rule that any fantasy baseball trade shall be upheld as long as the trade adequately benefits both teams. (See Public Opinion No. 101, Big Red Rockers v. Big City Bombers). Where a league constitution provides alternative criteria for reviewing a trade, the alternative criteria may supersede the general rule. (See Public Opinion No. 409-T, Commissioner of Campions Cup League v. Cartman).

The Campion Cup League Constitution, at issue in this case, has perhaps the strictest trade restrictions that this Court has ever seen. According to the Constitution, “Only the current season’s value (and past season values) of the players may be considered in the equality of any trade. The future freeze value or contract value cannot be considered as an element in the fairness of a trade.”

The Constitution also has the following restriction, “Only trades that are clearly equitable will be permitted. Trades that leave an impression of even marginally pushing the envelope shall be rejected.” As such, the ruling of Big Red Rockers v. Big City Bombers will not be used to decide this trade, and instead the trade will only be accepted if both sides of the trade are equal in value without taking into account future projections. (See SportsJudge.com Blog Opinion No. 8160-T, Commissioner of Campions Cup League v. Phire & Shazam).

The Proposed Trade

The proposed trade is a 2-for-2 trade:

PHIRE proposes to send to Kenny Powers (2010 statistics in parentheses):

· Jason Bay (.259 Avg., 48 Runs, 6 Home Runs, 47 RBI, 10 SB)

· Chris C. Carter (.244 Avg., 7 Runs, 2 Home Runs, 12 RBI, 0 SB)

Kenny Powers proposes to send PHIRE:

· Matt Capps (3 wins, 27 saves, 39 K, 2.68 ERA, 1.30 WHIP)

· Jerry Hairston Jr. (.251 Avg., 41 Runs, 7 Home Runs, 42 RBI, 8 SB)

The Analysis

As previously stated, pursuant to the Campions Cup League Constitution, this trade will only be accepted if both sides of the trade are equal in value without taking into account future projections as per the league constitution. (See SportsJudge.com Blog Opinion No. 8160-T, Commissioner of Campions Cup League v. Phire & Shazam). Under this strict standard, this court has not upheld a single trade in the Campions Cup since June 2007, when the SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Baseball upheld the blockbuster trade of Carlos Beltran for John Smoltz.

This trade nevertheless meets this high threshold for approval. According to most forms of statistical analysis, the main players in the trade (Jason Bay and Matt Capps) provide nearly identical value, albeit at different positions and with Jason Bay having a greater upside.

	Yahoo 2010 Rank (Actual)	Yahoo 2009 Rank (Actual)
Jason Bay	236	26
Matt Capps	116	389

In addition, despite the strong 2010 statistical results of Jerry Hairston Jr. (statistics that thus far almost match Bay’s abysmal performance), these numbers seem to be somewhat of a positive aberration in light of Hairston’s overall career numbers. While this court thinks that Hairston is a clear upgrade for Phire over Chris Carter (especially given Hairston’s speed and positional flexibility) we do not believe the upgrade is enough to make the trade inequitable, especially given that the Padres, at the time, were widely rumored to be close to trading for numerous offensive players that would relegate Hairston Jr. back to the lesser reserve role that he was originally signed to play (court’s note: The Padres have since traded for SS/3B Miguel Tejada and OF Ryan Ludwick), and the primary Campions Cup objectors to this trade had actually been contending that Kenny Powers was getting the better end of the trade by acquiring Bay and Carter (court’s note: Even with the Capps trade risks, we were quite surprised by this argument).

Further, beyond the equitable nature of the actual players traded, there is also great reasonableness in the fantasy trading partners. Kenny Powers and Phire have very little incentive to conspire against the league in making this deal. Kenny Powers and Phire are in second and fourth place respectively – 1.5 points apart from each other in the standings. Phire is in a dead heat with the current third-place team, Highlanders, for saves. The addition of Capps could provide a critical two-point swing in the standings. Meanwhile, Kenny Power is currently tied with the first-place team in runs and is only five RBI ahead of the third-place team (Highlanders). While trading Capps may cost Kenny Powers one point in saves, gaining Bay will likely help Kenny Powers to gain/protect points in these two important offensive categories.

Indeed, this court notes that there is some substantial risk with both players given Bay’s recent head injury and the likeliness, at the time, that Capps would be traded to a team where he would no longer be a closer.

However, even despite all the uncertainty, the court still finds this trade equitable in light of the players traded and the parties involved.

Holding

Based on the foregoing, the SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Baseball upholds the trade of Phire players Jason Bay (OF, New York Mets) and Chris C. Carter (LF, New York Mets) to Kenny Powers for Matt Capps (P, Washington Nationals) and Jerry Hairston Jr. (IF/OF San Diego Padres).

Fantasy Baseball Dispute No. 8168-T: Court Approves 8-Player Blockbuster Featuring Miguel Cabrera

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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -	x	Index No. 8168-T Date: July 31, 2010 League Type: Rotisserie, 5x5 Dispute: TRADE REVIEW Judge: Stacey Evans TRADE BETWEEN ACE AND GARY & HAPPYSCRAPPY IS ACCEPTED
COMMISSIONER OF THE EP RULES LEAGUE Petitioner, - against - ACE & GARY & HAPPYSCRAPPY HEROPUP Respondent	: : : : : : : : : :
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The Commissioner of the EP Rules Fantasy Baseball League brings this claim in the SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Baseball Disputes to determine the status of a fantasy baseball dispute involving the proposed trade of Ace & Gary players Miguel Cabrera (1B, Detroit Tigers), Torii Hunter (OF, Los Angeles Angels), Ricky Romero (P, Toronto Blue Jays), and J.J. Putz (P, Chicago White Sox) to the HappyScrappy HeroPup for Ryan Zimmerman (3B, Washington Nationals), Ichiro Suzuki (OF, Seattle Mariners), Jered Weaver (P, Los Angeles Angels) and Roy Oswalt (P, Philadelphia Phillies).

The SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Baseball Disputes accepts the proposed trade.

The Law on Upholding a Trade

In this court, it is the general rule that any fantasy baseball trade shall be upheld as long as the trade adequately benefits both teams. (See Public Opinion No. 101, Big Red Rockers v. Big City Bombers). A trade reasonably benefits both teams if it allows both teams a reasonable chance of moving up in the standings. (See Unpublished Opinion No. 468-T, Commissioner Gary B. v. Ever-Lastings and 2 Legit 2 Quit). However, where a league constitution provides alternative criteria for reviewing a trade, the alternative criteria may supersede the general rule. (See Public Opinion No. 409-T, Commissioner P.K. v. Cartman). As the League Constitution at issue has no restrictions on trade reviews, the holding of Big Red Rockers will be used and this trade will be accepted if it adequately benefits both teams.

If the league is a keeper league, as is the case here, this Court will also consider a team’s likely performance in future years, especially with respect to the team currently ranked lower in the standings (See Unpublished Opinion No. 3704-T, Commissioner Paul Schultz v. Snakes & Blutos). This Court recognizes that team owners may have different strategies in terms of short-term and long-term goals; and that while one team may try to maximize its chances of winning prize money this year, another team may play for the future (See Unpublished Opinion No. 3731-T, Commissioner v. Muleskinners & Southsiders).

The Proposed Trade

The proposed trade is a 4-for-4 trade:

Ace & Gary proposes to send to HappyScrappy HeroPup (2010 statistics in parentheses):

· Miguel Cabrera (.350 Avg., 72 Runs, 25 Home Runs, 89 RBI, 2 SB)

· Torii Hunter (.286 Avg., 56 Runs, 16 Home Runs, 64 RBI, 8 SB)

· Ricky Romero (8 Wins, 3.46 ERA, 124 K’s, 1.31 WHIP, 0 Saves)

· J.J. Putz (5 Wins, 1.42 ERA, 43 K’s, 0.76 WHIP, 2 Saves)

HappyScrappy HeroPup proposes to send to Ace & Gary:

· Ryan Zimmerman (.295 Avg., 56 Runs, 17 Home Runs, 53 RBI, 2 SB)

· Ichiro Suzuki (.308 Avg., 39 Runs, 3 Home Runs, 27 RBI, 23 SB)

· Jered Weaver (9 Wins, 3.19 ERA, 155 K’s, 1.09 WHIP, 0 Saves)

· Roy Oswalt (6 Wins, 3.42 ERA, 120 K’s, 1.11 WHIP, 0 Saves)

The Analysis

In short, this trade helps both teams. The trade moves one of baseball’s best keepers (Miguel Cabrera) from a team in prize money contention to a team outside of contention. It also moves substantial 2010 talent to the team in prize money contention.

Beginning with the deal’s primary pitchers, there is no question that Jered Weaver is a better pitcher than Ricky Romero. Currently, Jered Weaver ranks 1^st in the AL in Strikeouts, 4^th in the AL in WHIP and 11^th in the AL in ERA. By comparison, Ricky Romero is tied for 8^th in the AL in Strikeouts, 31^st in the AL in WHIP, and 18^th in the AL in ERA. Jered Weaver’s statistics makes him a potential “third keeper” for some EP Rules clubs, but not a dominant keeper. By contrast, Ricky Romero, while solid, is certainly not keeper caliber.

Moving to the trade’s secondary pitchers, Roy Oswalt ranks 13^th in the NL in Strikeouts, 8^th in the NL in WHIP, and 24^th in the NL in ERA. In other words, he is solid but not spectacular. Meanwhile, J.J. Putz puts up the stats of one of baseball’s better middle relievers and an asset in the E.R.A. and WHIP categories. However, as a middle reliever, Putz only contributes to two categories, while Oswalt is an asset in four. Neither player is a likely keeper for 2011.

Shifting now to the offensive side of the trade, Miguel Cabrera is the deal’s shining gem. Cabrera currently in contention for the American League Triple Crown, and will likely be a major contributor in four offensive categories for years to come. Not only is he an almost certain keeper, but he is one of the EP Rules league’s top keepers. By signing Cabrera, HappyScrappy Hero Pup gets a superstar to build around for many years to follow.

By contrast, Torii Hunter, Ichiro, and Ryan Zimmerman are also very solid hitters, however, none are premier keeper options. While Zimmerman may have some keeper value due to his position (third base) and young age, his statistics still do not place him in the same category as Cabrera.

Holding

Based on the foregoing, this court accepts the proposed trade from Ace & Gary of players Miguel Cabrera (1B, Detroit Tigers), Torii Hunter (OF, Los Angeles Angels), Ricky Romero (P, Toronto Blue Jays), and J.J. Putz (P, Chicago White Sox) to the HappyScrappy HeroPup for players Ryan Zimmerman (3B, Washington Nationals), Ichiro Suzuki (OF, Seattle Mariners), Jered Weaver (P, Los Angeles Angels) and Roy Oswalt (P, Philadelphia Phillies)

Fantasy Football Dispute No. 5299-T: SportsJudge.com Court Upholds Trade but Requires Pre-Payment of Next Year's Entry Fee

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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -	x	Index No. 5299-T Date Rendered: Nov. 18, 2009 League Type: Keeper Dispute: Trade Review Authoring Judge: Marc Edelman TRADE APPROVED SUBJECT TO PREPAYMENT BOND
COMMISSIONER Petitioner, - against - SEND IT IN! & JAMESON Respondent	: : : : : : : : : :
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The SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Football is faced here with the question of whether to uphold the trade of Wes Welker for Donald Royal and Earl Bennett. The trade was made by two teams, each seemingly out of playoff contention. The league's entry fee is $500/club.

General Rules for Upholding a Fantasy Football Trade:

The general rule of the SportsJudge.com Court of Fantasy Football is to uphold any fantasy football trade that reasonably benefits both teams. See Big Red Rockers v. Big City Bombers, Index No. 101 (August 14, 2004).

In examining whether a team derives some benefit from a trade, the standard requires the Court to consider not only the quality of the players involved, but also the context of the trade. See generally Team Anadrol v. Vegas Baby & Flathead Yankees, Index No. 955-C (Nov. 4, 2007). The surrounding context includes factors such as team rosters and the current standings. See Commissioner v. Parkstarz & Fuall, Index No. 5877-T (Nov. 12, 2009).

The Proposed Trade:

Here, the proposed trade has Send It In! (3-7, 3 games out of playoff spot) trading Wes Welker (Round 4 WR, 64 catches, 662 total yards, 4 touchdowns despite missing early weeks with injury) to Jameson (4-6, 2 games out of playoff spot) for Earl Bennett (Round 15, 35 catches, 454 total yards, 0 touchdowns) and Eddie Royal (Round 9, 27 catches, 253 total yards, 0 touchdowns).

The League's Keeper Rules:

Given both teams are near mathematical elimination, this trade must be considered in light of the possibility of these teams making further trades before the deadline, as well as league keeper rules, which state as follows:

KEEPERS

1.A franchise may keep players that were on the franchise's roster at the end of the previous year. However, in order to keep a player the franchise must give up a draft pick at least three rounds earlier than the player's draft round in the previous year. Players drafted during the first three rounds of the previous year may not be kept.

2. If a franchise wishes to keep two players at the same former draft round then the next earlier draft round must be given up. A franchise may not keep players if there is no legal draft round available. For example, in order to keep two 6th round picks the franchise would have to give up a third and a second round pick in the new draft; or for example, a franchise may not keep two players who were drafted in the fourth round during the previous year because there would only be one draft round, the first, available.

3. Each year, one (1) week before the draft, each owner will provide a list of players as keepers for the upcoming draft. Each owner may save any or all players on the current roster, except of course players drafted in the first three rounds.

4. A player who was not drafted (A free agent) the previous year is assigned a previous year draft round of 15. To keep such a player, a franchise must give up a 12th round pick. Also, the values that are assigned for each player will not change for any reason during the football season. Any drafted player that is cut during the year and picked up later in the year will still maintain their draft round value. For example, if you drafted Warrick Dunn in the 7th round and cut him early in the season and then picked him up later in the season, he will still have a draft round of seven.

Analysis:

Wes Walker's real value is in the possibility of his being re-traded before the deadline--something that will not be difficulty given his talent. In terms of keeper value, Wes Welker, pursuant to league rules, may be protected in exchange for a first round draft pick. However, that is almost certainly not going to happen given that all of the players picked in the first three rounds of the 2009 draft must return to the draft pool at the end of the season.

Bennett and Royal may have an angstrum more keeper value than Welker, but not clearly anything more. While Bennett's strong perfrormance last week might be a sign that he is beginning to click with his old college quarterback in Jay Cutler, one 93-yard game in two years in the NFL is not in itself a strong indicator of anything.

This leaves the court somewhat confused on the merits for this trade. On one hand, Send It In! might be making this trade because of the very slightly higher keeper value in Bennett and Royal. However, without knowing the parties or circumstances, or even whether Send It In!'s level of future commitement to the league, this trade could also be one of the many frauds that take place in fantasy sports called "Swap and Run." Under the "Swap and Run," a team that is already eliminated for playoff contention will trade a player with value for another player that may seem to have a very small amount of value ("token consideration" or "fake consideration" for you lawyers), but in reality just be trying to move assets off his team.

Without any further evidence, this court needs some way to ensure this trade is not a "Swap and Run" but rather that Send It In! is really optimistic about the prospects and keeping Bennett and/or Royal (or at least more excited about them as keepers than of keeping Welker).

Thus, given the low but unavoidbale risk of the "Swap and Run" taking place here, this court will protect against such a fraud by requiring Send It In! to pay a 50% nonrefundable deposit toward the 2010 season should Jameson trade Welker to a contender before the deadline.

Should either party reject this additional term, the trade would be deemed withdrawn.

Holding:

Based on the forgoing, the proposed trade is upheld. However, given the low but unavoidable risk of the "Swap and Run"fraud taking place here, this court will protect against the risk of fraud by requiring Send It In! to pay a $250 (50%) non-refundable deposit toward the 2010 season should Jameson trade Welker to a contender before the deadline.

.

Fantasy Baseball Dispute No. 3183-T: Court Approves Trade of Reyes & Valverde for Vazquez, Peralta & N. Cruz

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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -	x	Index No. 3183-T Date: May 21, 2009 League Type: 11-Team MIXED 5x5 Roto Dispute: Trade Review Judge: Brett Smiley
COMMISSIONER OF BALLS AND STRIKES LEAGUE Petitioner, - against - DURO SIN VASE IN YOUR GRILL!! and 2SWEET 4LIFE, Respondents.	: : : : : : : : : :
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Petitioner, by and on behalf of the members of Balls and Strikes League seeks review of a trade that was executed between Respondents Duro Sin Vase in your grill!! and 2SWEET 4LIFE. The league should allow the trade of Jose Reyes (NYM, SS) and Jose Valverde (HOU, RP) for Javier Vazquez (ATL, SP), Jhonny Peralta (CLE, SS) and Nelson Cruz (TEX, OF) for the reasons set forth below.

THE LAW & BACKGROUND

In the absence of a league constitution stating a contrary rule, this Court applies a standard that asks whether a trade adequately benefits each of the teams (See Public Opinion No. 101, Big Red Rockers v. Big City Bombers). Where a trade could realistically enable both teams to move up in the standings, it is presumed that both teams adequately benefit (See Unpublished Opinion No. 468-T, Balls & Strikes League v. Ever-Lastings and 2 Legit 2 Quit). Indeed this league well knows this Court’s standard of review.

In examining whether a team derives some benefit from a trade, the standard requires the Court to consider not only the quality of the players, but also the context of the trade. In addition, one of the fundamental rules that this court honors is that each owner/manager in a league, by virtue of their participation in a league, has the discretion to manage their team as he sees fit. Trades between teams on opposite ends of standings are always highly scrutinized by league members—and rightfully so. And while struggling teams should actively seek to improve through trade, those teams are not excused to make objectionable trades.

Nonetheless, in this Court’s view, this particular trade is not unreasonable and satisfies the adequately beneficial standard. The trade must be upheld.

THE PROPOSED TRADE

The proposed trade is a 3-for-2 swap, as follows:

Duro Sin Vase in your grill!! proposes to send to 2Sweet 4Life (current 2009 statistics in parentheses):

• Javier Vazquez (ATL, SP) (4 wins, 73K, 3.39 ERA, 1.10 WHIP)
• Jhonny Peralta (CLE, SS) (15 runs, 1 HR, 17 RBI, .264 Avg.)
• Nelson Cruz (TEX, OF) (19 runs, 8 HR, 23 RBI, 4 SB, .271 Avg.)

2Sweet 4Life proposes to send to Duro Sin Vase in your grill!! (current 2009 statistics in parentheses):

• Jose Reyes (NYM, SS) (18 runs, 2 HR, 15 RBI, 11 SB, .279 Avg.)
• Jose Valverde (HOU, RP) (0 wins, 2 SV, 11K, 5.63 ERA, 1.25 WHIP)

ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION

Most would agree that the “best player in the trade” is Jose Reyes. Most people would be right. He remains a consensus first round draft pick. He has shown to be streaky at times, but in a rotisserie league such as this one, that matters little. Reyes’ stolen bases are there, but the rest of his numbers have not caught up yet this season. The Court takes judicial notice of the fact that the trade was executed prior to the news that Reyes re-aggravated a calf injury, and does not factor that into its decision.

Meanwhile, Javier Vazquez has been very successful so far in his first year with Atlanta. Maybe it’s the National League hitters, or maybe it’s just the raucous fans in Atlanta. In any event, his K/9 ratio is outstanding and the ratios are solid. Elsewhere, Peralta has been underachieving based on his numbers from last year where he hit 23 home runs and recorded 89 RBI to go along with a .276 batting average. Nelson Cruz was pegged by many to have a “breakout year” and after getting off to a torrid start he’s cooled off quite a bit. But the season is still young. As for Valverde, he should return to his closer role upon his return (although LaTroy Hawkins has been serviceable in his stead), although Rotowire.com reports that “Valverde's ETA is still several weeks away. Don't expect to see him on the hill until mid-June at the earliest.”

Here, 2SWEET 4LIFE is ranked third to last K’s and WHIP; he’s sixth in wins and next to last in ERA. Based on that alone, and considering the league’s rules limiting a team’s starting pitcher starts to 180 (making quality count much more than quantity), and upon reviewing 2SWEET’s roster, it appears he needs a solid starting pitcher. Vazquez would help him out immensely and should boost his position in each of the aforementioned pitching categories. 2SWEET is already third-to-last in stolen bases, and so the loss of Reyes, whose greatest contribution is stolen bases, would have a marginal effect on 2SWEET’s position there. 2SWEET is clearly addressing his greatest need.

In addition, 2SWEET gets Peralta who will aid his power if the Indians slugging infielder, as expected, eventually manages to get himself going. Nelson Cruz should contribute at utility as well. When Manny returns from his estrogen-use hiatus it might put 2SWEET in a position to move an OF. And Valverde is no sure thing to get healthy and finish the year as closer, either. But the deal would leave 2SWEET with only one actual closer and two speculative, used-to-be closers. The loss of Valverde has questionable impact.

Some might argue that 2SWEET “could have gotten more” for Reyes. Maybe that’s true, but maybe it’s not. An owner can’t pull teeth and is entitled to make the moves he sees fit to alter his team into a more competitive squad. All in all, this Court feels that this trade is adequately beneficial to both teams.

HOLDING

For all of these reasons, the league should uphold the trade.

Fantasy Football Dispute No. 2259-T: SportsJudge.com Court Upholds Uneven Trade Because Parties Too Slow to Challenge

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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -	X	Index No. 2559-T Date: December 4, 2008 League Type: 12 TEAM H-TO-H, NON-KEEPER Dispute: TRADE DISPUTE Judge: MARC EDELMAN THIS TRADE DOES NOT ADEQUATELY BENEFIT BOTH TEAMS REMEDY TO OVERTURN TRADE FAILS AS UNDULY SLOTHFUL
COMMISSIONER Petitioner, - against - TEAMS 1, 2 & 3 Respondent	: : : : : : : : : :
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Petitioner, the league commissioner, brings this claim in the COURT OF FANTASY FOOTBALL, seeking to determine the status of a proposed three-way trade between TEAM 1, TEAM 2, and TEAM 3 that was originally made over three weeks ago, on November 13, 2008. At the time the trade was made, TEAM 1 and TEAM 2 were both in playoff contention. TEAM 3 was already mathematically eliminated. This league is a non-keeper league.

The parties to this suit charged the court to answer three very specific questions?

1. Was this trade fair for all three teams?

2. Was TEAM 1’s receiving of Gonzalez and Rivers for Cooley and Ward fair?

3. What is the appropriate remedy?

The Law on Upholding a Trade

In this court, it is the general rule that any fantasy baseball trade shall be upheld as long as the trade adequately benefits both teams. (See Public Opinion No. 101, Big Red Rockers v. Big City Bombers). Where a league constitution provides alternative criteria for reviewing a trade, the alternative criteria may supersede the general rule. (See Public Opinion No. 409-T, Commissioner P.K. v. Cartman). However, where no league constitution exists, the default rule fully applies.

The review of a trade should be based on a reasonableness standard at the time the trade was made. (See Public Opinion No. 409-T, Commissioner P.K. v. Cartman) (redacted section). This means the court will place itself in the shoes of the parties at the time. It will not Monday Morning quarterback the deal based on subsequent events, such as injuries.

Finally, this court applies all equitable doctrines of law, including the Doctrine of Laches. The Doctrine of Laches states that a party is barred from bringing a claim as a matter of fairness if the party is unduly slothful in doing so, and a remedy at the later date would be improper. While this court is not ready to per se bar this claim, it acknowledges that it will be very difficult to fashion a meaningful remedy given the extended delay before the plaintiff brought the claim (the trade was consummated on November 10 and the dispute was not submitted until December 3). Given the amount of time the league has waited for the eggs to scramble, it has become all that much harder to now unscramble them. Recognizing the many subsequent free agent moves that the respective teams have made (or not made), there is no way to simply unwind this transaction.

Analysis of the Proposed Trade

The proposed trade is a three-way deal with players mixed and matched between TEAM 1, TEAM 2, and TEAM 3. Because the trade is complex, it must be reviewed separately from the vantage point of each team to determine whether each team adequately benefited from the deal.

Did TEAM 1 Adequately Benefit?

In this deal, TEAM 1 traded away Anthony Gonzalez (WR – Colts, No. 48 ranked WR according to Yahoo!) and Phillip Rivers (QB- Chargers, No. 6 ranked QB according to Yahoo!). He received Chris Cooley (TE – Washington D.C. Football Team, No. 5 ranked TE according to Yahoo!) and Hines Ward (Steelers – WR, No. 14 ranked WR according to Yahoo!).

In making this trade, Cooley (No. 5 ranked TE according to Yahoo!) immediately becomes a starting tight end for TEAM 1, replacing Heath Miller (No. 22 ranked tight end according to Yahoo!) in his starting lineup. This marks a substantial upgrade for TEAM 1 at that position. Meanwhile, TEAM 1 does not downgrade anywhere else in the process. Gonzalez was merely an end-of-bench reserve for TEAM 1, and the acquisition of Ward (who actually should start for TEAM 1) far more than offsets that loss.

Meanwhile, even though Phillip Rivers (No. 6 ranked QB according to Yahoo!) would be a very good starting fantasy quarterback for most other teams, TEAM 1 already has Jay Cutler (No. 5 ranked TE according to Yahoo!). While it is impossible to predict with certainty which of the two players TEAM 1 was starting at the time, a switch from Rivers to Cutler is at worst a wash for TEAM 1. So, barring an injury to Cutler, losing Rivers is not much of a loss.

In other words, TEAM 1 gains one and probably two starters in the deal. He loses nothing but depth. Therefore, he more than adequately benefits.

Did TEAM 2 Adequately Benefit?

In this deal, TEAM 2 traded away Tim Hightower (RB – Cardinals, No. 26 ranked RB according to Yahoo!), Brady Quinn (QB – Browns, unranked according to Yahoo!) and Hines Ward (WR – Steelers, No 14 ranked WR according to Yahoo!). He received Phillip Rivers (QB – Chargers No. 6 ranked QB according to Yahoo!).

Upon first glance, it seems like TEAM 2 gave up a lot of value to only get decent value in return. However, it is clear from his team roster that TEAM 2 also adequately benefited. Prior to the trade, TEAM 2 had a gaping hole at quarterback with the “three-headed non-monster” of Chad Pennington, Brady Quinn, and Carson Palmer. After the trade, he now has a bona fide starting quarterback in Rivers. In addition, the players TEAM 2 gave up were all likely reserves for him. The way I see the TEAM 2 depth chart, both before and after the trade, Brandon Jacobs and Steven Jackson are the starting running backs, Steve Slaton is the starting flex, and Larry Fitzgerald and Santana Moss are the starting wide receivers.

In other words, TEAM 1 gains one starter in the deal, and he loses nothing other than depth. Therefore, he more than adequately benefits.

Did TEAM 3 Adequately Benefit?

In this deal, TEAM 3 traded Chris Cooley (TE – Washington D.C. Football Team, No. 5 ranked TE according to Yahoo!). He received Tim Hightower (RB – Cardinals, No. 26 ranked RB according to Yahoo!), Brady Quinn (QB – Browns, unranked according to Yahoo!), and Anthony Gonzalez (WR – Colts, No. 48 ranked WR according to Yahoo!).

Although Chris Cooley is only one player, his loss is substantial to TEAM 3, as TEAM 3 does not have a back-up tight end. In addition, Cooley is having an exceptional year especially in terms of receiving yards. Given this is a deep, twelve-team league, it is very likely that TEAM 3 will find an adequate replacement for Cooley, much less any tight end, on the free agent waiver wire.

Meanwhile, the only player from the trade likely to crack TEAM 3’s starting lineup is Tim Hightower at running back, and, even there, Hightower is only a slight upgrade over Warrick Dunn (No, 29 ranked RB according to Yahoo). To further illustrate this point:

· TEAM 3 has Brett Favre as his starting quarterback (No. 11 ranked QB according to Yahoo! and improving weekly). Even as of the date of trade, November 10, Brady Quinn was not a likely choice to supplant him there.

· TEAM 3 has at wide receiver/flex Muhsin Muhammad (No. 32 ranked QB according to Yahoo!), Donald Driver, No. 26 ranked WR according to Yahoo!), and Marcus Colston (a 2007 Pro Bowler who in just his second week back from injury caught seven passes for 140 yards on the day before the trade was made). Anthony Gonzalez was not going to replace either of them.

In other words, TEAM 3 gets a slight upgrade at running back with the roster switch from Warrick Dunn to Tim Hightower. However, in the process he gives up one of the game’s elite tight ends, Chris Cooley. Plus, his team does not have a backup. The argument here that TEAM 3 benefits is exceedingly weak. Furthermore, making matters worse, given this is a non-keeper league and TEAM 3 was already mathematically eliminated at the time of the trade, calling into question his motives for even making this deal.

There is a bona fide question as to whether any trade TEAM 3 made could have ever allowed him to adequately benefit. While many play fantasy football for pride, and the league rules allow eliminated teams to make trades, there is no reason to void the trade just because TEAM 3 was eliminated. However, given how incredibly weak the argument is that TEAM 3 benefits from this deal, and given the fact that TEAM 3 was already mathematically eliminated from competition, these two reasons combine as sufficient for the court to conclude that TEAM 3 did not adequately benefit.

If this trade had been submitted to this court in a reasonable amount of time after it was consummated, this court would have reversed this trade. However, given the Doctrine of Laches, the delay makes that remedy infeasible.

Specific Questions

To now address the three specific questions this court was charged to answer:

1. Was this trade “fair” for all three teams?

No. While this trade adequately benefited TEAM 1 and TEAM 2, the trade did not adequately benefit TEAM 3.

2. Was TEAM 1’s receiving of Gonzalez and Rivers for Cooley and Ward “fair”?

Because the court applies the “adequately benefit” standard that evaluates a trade based on the gestalt, and this trade did not (and could not) have actually occurred because Cooley and Ward were on different fantasy teams, this court chooses not to address this issue. I believe the analysis above is sufficient.

3. What is the appropriate remedy?

Normally this trade would be overturned, however, based on the delay in filing a complaint, that remedy seems unfair under the Doctrine of Laches. There is no justifiable reason why it took the parties that were unhappy with this trade 22 days to file a complaint. This court will not overrule a trade more than three weeks later.

Nevertheless, because this trade provided what amounts to “free reinforcements” to TEAM 1 and TEAM 2, these shall not be allowed at first crack at the next set of reinforcements. Therefore, while it is only a minimal remedy, TEAM 1’s waiver priority should be reset to 12th. TEAM 2’s waiver priority shall be reset to 11th.

Holding

This trade does not adequately benefit all teams involved; however, because the league was unduly slothful in bringing this claim, the trade cannot be overturned. Therefore only a minimal equitable remedy is possible.

As that minimal, equitable remedy, TEAM 1’s waiver priority shall be reset to 12^th and TEAM 2’s waiver priority shall be reset to 11^th.

Finally, as a side note, this court recommends your league either pass a rule next year that prevents teams that are mathematically eliminated from making trades, or, in the alternative, push up the trade deadline to prevent a reoccurrence of this problem.