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Hot Stove Hysteria

By Tim Dierkes [November 5, 2007 at 9:53pm CST]

I saw MLB.com and Bleed Cubbie Blue doing their free agent frenzies, and I felt a strong need for an MLBTR version of that contest. I'm calling it Hot Stove Hysteria, which sounds like some sort of disease from the early 1800s. I'm not technically minded or incredibly creative, so this contest will be a synthesis of the ones at MLB.com and BCB (but with an MLBTR twist).

As MLB.com does, you'll choose the teams 15 pre-selected players will end up with. You'll also assign a confidence level to each player, ranking from 15 to 1. So if you're most confident Curt Schilling will sign with the Cardinals, use your 15 on that. You then tally up all the points for the correct choices only. You can only use a number once - you can't assign two 7s, for example.

I wanted my version to be extra tricky, so I left out a few big names whose options are already limited to 2-3 teams. So, no Mike Lowell, Jorge Posada, or Mariano Rivera. Sorry. My other twist is that I'm including trade candidates in Hot Stove Hysteria.

Below are the 15 players.

Alex Rodriguez
Torii Hunter
Barry Bonds
Aaron Rowand
Carlos Silva
Kyle Lohse
Andruw Jones
Kosuke Fukudome
Francisco Cordero
Jose Guillen
Hiroki Kuroda
Johan Santana
Miguel Cabrera
Miguel Tejada
Coco Crisp

You can include Retirement instead of a team name, and you certainly choose a player's current team for free agents or trade candidates. Make your entry in the comments with in this format:

Alex Rodriguez - Angels - 15.
Torii Hunter - Rangers - 14.
Barry Bonds - Padres - 13.

Remember, you assign the numbers based on your confidence level. The deadline is November 12th at midnight CST; enter in the comments. The prize? Big-time bragging rights and a baseball book to be determined.

By the way, if you own/work for a company and would like to sponsor Hot Stove Hysteria by offering up a prize (deemed cool by me) then drop me a line. Any sponsors will be recognized, linked to, and thanked in at least two posts.

Note: Curt Schilling was removed in favor of Jose Guillen, since he seems about to sign already. This will be the only replacement.