Originally created many moons ago by examinerebb, this league makes any franchise a contender, and a better group of owners can't be found on the site. There is much good-natured banter in the draft thread and the league chat, so bring your sense of humor. The rules are simple:

1. Each owner chooses a franchise. Franchise draft order is in inverse order of win percentage from the previous season for non-playoff teams, then inverse order of win percentage of non-World Series playoff teams, with the WS runner-up picking 31st, and the WS champ choosing last. New owners will be assigned the draft position of any previous owners who are not returning, with the first to sign up receiving the highest slot, and so on.

2. Each owner chooses five players he/she wishes to protect from that franchise (1969-2011) and submits that list via sitemail to me. Those players are the exclusive property of their respective owners.

3. After all lists are submitted, they will be posted and a three round modified Rule V draft will be held, with draft order being inverse order of each franchise's Rule V win percentage through all legs from which we have data (the worst teams pick first).  Many thanks to schwarze for compiling this data.  Each owner selects one unprotected player from any active franchise but their own (player seasons for franchises that were not chosen are not eligible). That player is also theirs exclusively. No more than two players may be taken from any one franchise in any one round.

4. At the end of the first and second rounds, each owner will choose an additional player they wish to protect. You will end up protecting seven in all, while drafting three. These ten players must appear on your roster. The rest of the roster is filled by players from your franchise during the given time period (1969-present day).

$120 Million Cap
No trades
No WW
No DH
No AAA

No clones (same player, same franchise - if a player played for more than one franchise, he is available once for each franchise)
If a player split time between multiple teams in a season (as listed at WIS) his full season is available once for each team
SLL limited to current series
Stadium must have been used by your franchise for at least one full season between 1969 and 2011
Tiebreaker for draft positions will be run differential from the previous season, worse differential picks first

For those new to the Rule V fold:

There is much good-natured ribbing during the draft (we try not to be too player-specific, so as not to influence the draft, but sometimes the temptation is too much). Do not take it personally. Pick a draft strategy and stay the course, regardless.

Glossary

He Who Must Not Be Named (HWMNBN) - A former player/manager/dirtbag for the Cincinnati Reds (and later, Philadelphia Phillies and Montreal Expos) who defiled the grand game of baseball. No Rule V team has ever won a title with him, so heed jose's warnings about karma. I would imagine Lady Karma grows weary from teaching the same lesson over and over, as the ruler with which she raps offending knuckles seems to grow with each passing season.

The Single Most Overrated Pitcher of All Time (TSMOPOAT) - Nolan Ryan

The Single Most Overrated Position Player of All Time (TSMOPPOAT) - Cal Ripken, Jr.

Vegas - jose can u c - Our Rule V Prediction King

Updated franchise records courtesy of schwarze, franchises already selected are highlighted in red.

Here is the new franchise rank after the completion of season 35.  The best and worst seasons have been removed.

							Prev	Prev
Rank	Franchise	Years	_Wins_	Losses	Wining%		Wining%	Rank	Diff
1	Rays	3	199	287	0.4095		0.4095	1	0
2	D'backs	6	407	565	0.4187		0.4187	2	0
3	Tigers	7	506	628	0.4462		0.4462	3	0
4	Pirates	9	678	780	0.4650		0.4650	5	1
5	Blue Jays	13	992	1115	0.4708		0.4638	4	(1)
6	Rockies	8	617	679	0.4761		0.4735	6	0
7	Twins	17	1321	1434	0.4795		0.4774	7	0
8	Angels	10	783	837	0.4833		0.4863	9	1
9	Padres	14	1102	1166	0.4859		0.4858	8	(1)
10	White Sox	4	317	331	0.4892		0.4892	10	0
11	Orioles	11	873	910	0.4896		0.4960	13	2
12	Red Sox	16	1272	1321	0.4906		0.4906	11	(1)
13	Phillies	17	1355	1402	0.4915		0.5017	16	3
14	Brewers	16	1276	1318	0.4919		0.4963	14	0
15	Rangers	12	959	986	0.4931		0.4992	15	0
16	Giants	16	1296	1297	0.4998		0.4924	12	(4)
17	Mariners	17	1389	1366	0.5042		0.5060	17	0
18	Braves	17	1389	1365	0.5044		0.5108	20	2
19	Expos	17	1392	1365	0.5049		0.5064	18	(1)
20	Mets	16	1320	1273	0.5091		0.5072	19	(1)
21	Indians	17	1410	1345	0.5118		0.5152	22	1
22	Marlins	12	998	948	0.5128		0.5185	23	1
23	Cubs	12	1008	936	0.5185		0.5129	21	(2)
24	Royals	15	1274	1157	0.5241		0.5241	25	1
25	Cardinals	17	1446	1309	0.5249		0.5187	24	(1)
26	Reds	11	945	837	0.5303		0.5358	27	1
27	Yankees	15	1293	1137	0.5321		0.5256	26	(1)
28	Dodgers	15	1306	1125	0.5372		0.5372	28	0
29	A's	16	1412	1181	0.5445		0.5445	29	0
30	Astros	17	1525	1230	0.5535		0.5530	30	0

Here is the order for this season's franchise draft:

* new owner
# playoff team last leg
& WS Runner-Up
@ WS Champ

1. tridentric 43-119 .265
2. spoonfed 53-109 .327
3. jstewart281 60-102 .370
4. schwarze 69-93 .426
5. Cheno5 69-93 .426
6. moneybonn 71-91 .438
7. specsman 74-88 .457
8. ff09 74-88 .457
9. mussopini23 77-85 .475
10. sinfonian11 77-85 .475
11. llcoach 78-84 .481
12. jose can u c 79-83 .488
13. Robin4 80-82 .494
14. Disco Dogs 86-76 .531
15. deathdealer* 91-71 .562
16. holleybard 96-66 .593
17. shaybee# 83-79 .512
18. mllama54# 87-75 .537
19. marlowe# 92-70 .568
20. sgsmith# 100-62 .617
21. newarkwilder# 101-61 .623
22. alleyviper# 102-60 .630
23. rbow923& 103-59 .636
24. tjefferson@ 99-63 .611

Owner list for easy sitemailing:  tridentric; spoonfed; jstewart281; schwarze; Cheno5; moneybonn; specsman; ff09; mussopini23; sinfonian11; llcoach; jose can u c; Robin4; Disco Dogs; deathdealer; holleybard; shaybee; mllama54; marlowe; sgsmith; newarkwilder; alleyviper; rbow923; tjefferson

Franchise Draft Results (officially begins Friday 3/30 10am EDT)

1. tridentric San Francisco Giants
2. spoonfed Oakland Athletics*
3. jstewart281 Los Angeles Dodgers*
4. schwarze Boston Red Sox*
5. Cheno5 Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals*
6. moneybonn New York Yankees*
7. specsman St. Louis Cardinals*
8. ff09 Toronto Blue Jays*
9. mussopini23 Houston Astros*
10. sinfonian11 Seattle Mariners*
11. llcoach Atlanta Braves*
12. jose can u c Cleveland Indians*
13. Robin4 Arizona Diamondbacks*
14. Disco Dogs Pittsburgh Pirates*
15. deathdealer San Diego Padres*
16. holleybard Detroit Tigers*
17. shaybee Milwaukee Brewers*
18. mllama54 Baltimore Orioles*
19. marlowe New York Mets*
20. sgsmith Cincinnati Reds*
21. newarkwilder Chicago White Sox*
22. alleyviper Minnesota Twins*
23. rbow923 Philadelphia Phillies*
24. tjefferson Kansas City Royals*

* third round keepers sent

Division Alignment

NL East: Braves, Expos, Mets, Phillies
NL Central: Astros, Cardinals, Reds, Pirates
NL West: Dodgers, Giants, Padres, Diamondbacks
AL East: Yankees Red Sox, Orioles, Blue Jays
AL Central: Tigers, Brewers, Indians, White Sox
AL West: Athletics, Mariners, Royals, Twins

We'll harken back to pre-wildcard days for our alignment in the American League.  The Twins and Royals will head west, with the Brewers using their American League heritage to play in the AL Central.

Player Draft Round One (schedule begins Tuesday 4/3 10am EDT)                         Off the Board

1. Robin4 - Arizona Diamondbacks: Mark McGwire - STL
2. holleybard - Detroit Tigers: Rickey Henderson - OAK
3. Disco Dogs - Pittsburgh Pirates: Orel Hershiser - LAD
4. ff09 - Toronto Blue Jays: Fernando Valenzuela - LAD                                                Los Angeles Dodgers
5. alleyviper - Minnesota Twins:  Pedro Martinez - NYM
6. deathdealer - San Diego Padres: Nolan Ryan - HOU
7. newarkwilder - Chicago White Sox:  Craig Biggio - HOU                                           Houston Astros
8. mllama54 - Baltimore Orioles:  Tony Gwynn - SDP
9. schwarze - Boston Red Sox:  Fritz Peterson - NYY
10. rbow923 - Philadelphia Phillies:  Cal Ripken, Jr. - BAL
11. shaybee - Milwaukee Brewers:  Carl Yastrzemski - BOS
12. tridentric - San Francisco Giants:  Paul O'Neill - NYY                                              New York Yankees
13. sinfonian11 - Seattle Mariners:  Willie Stargell - PIT
14. llcoach - Atlanta Braves:  Lenny Dykstra - PHI
15. Cheno5 - Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals:  Jimmy Rollins - PHI             Philadelphia Phillies
16. marlowe - New York Mets: Ichiro Suzuki - SEA
17. jose can u c - Cleveland Indians:  Bob Gibson - STL                                              St. Louis Cardinals
18. tjefferson - Kansas City Royals: Rico Petrocelli - BOS                                           Boston Red Sox
19. specsman - St. Louis Cardinals:  Joe Nathan - MIN
20. sgsmith - Cincinnati Reds:  Tim Hudson OAK                                                          Oakland Athletics
21. moneybonn - New York Yankees:  George Foster - CIN
22. jstewart281 - Los Angeles Dodgers:  Mark Texeira - ATL
23. spoonfed - Oakland Athletics:  Bert Blyleven - MIN                                                  Minnesota Twins
24. mussopini23 - Houston Astros:  Carlos Beltran - KCR

Second Round (timed schedule starts Thurs 4/5 10am EDT)

1. Robin4 - Arizona Diamondbacks: Nomar Garciaparra - BOS
2. holleybard - Detroit Tigers: Kevin Brown - LAD
3. Disco Dogs - Pittsburgh Pirates: Don Sutton - HOU
4. ff09 - Toronto Blue Jays: Steve McCatty - OAK
5. alleyviper - Minnesota Twins: Larry Dierker - HOU                                                    Houston Astros
6. deathdealer - San Diego Padres: Eric Gagne - LAD                                                 Los Angeles Dodgers
7. newarkwilder - Chicago White Sox:  Ben Sheets - MIL
8. mllama54 - Baltimore Orioles:  Cole Hamels - PHI
9. schwarze - Boston Red Sox:  Dave Righetti - NYY
10. rbow923 - Philadelphia Phillies:  HWMNBN - CIN
11. shaybee - Milwaukee Brewers:  Kevin Mitchell - SFG
12. tridentric - San Francisco Giants:  Bobby Murcer - NYY                                         New York Yankees
13. sinfonian11 - Seattle Mariners:  Ted Simmons - STL
14. llcoach - Atlanta Braves:  J.J. Putz - SEA
15. Cheno5 - Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals:  Roy Halladay - PHI               Philadelphia Phillies
16. marlowe - New York Mets:  Larry Gura - KCR
17. jose can u c - Cleveland Indians:  Darrell Evans - ATL
18. tjefferson - Kansas City Royals:  Willie McGee - STL                                             St. Louis Cardinals
19. specsman - St. Louis Cardinals:  Brian Giles - PIT
20. sgsmith - Cincinnati Reds:  Jimmy Key - TOR
21. moneybonn - New York Yankees:  B.J. Ryan - TOR                                               Toronto Blue Jays
22. jstewart281 - Los Angeles Dodgers:  Andruw Jones - ATL                                 Atlanta Braves
23. spoonfed - Oakland Athletics:  Jacoby Ellsbury - BOS                                          Boston Red Sox
24. mussopini23 - Houston Astros:  Jason Kendall - PIT                                            Pittsburgh Pirates

Third Round (timed schedule starts Mon 4/9 10am EDT)

1. Robin4 - Arizona Diamondbacks:  Jim Edmonds - STL
2. holleybard - Detroit Tigers:  Jose Rijo - CIN
3. Disco Dogs - Pittsburgh Pirates:  Adrian Gonzalez - BOS
4. ff09 - Toronto Blue Jays:  Mario Soto - CIN                                                              Cincinnati Reds
5. alleyviper - Minnesota Twins:  Jose Reyes - NYM
6. deathdealer - San Diego Padres:  Gary Sheffield - LAD
7. newarkwilder - Chicago White Sox:  C.C. Sabathia - CLE
8. mllama54 - Baltimore Orioles:  Willie Wilson - KCR
9. schwarze - Boston Red Sox:  Tim Burke - MON
10. rbow923 - Philadelphia Phillies:  Jonathan Papelbon - BOS                          Boston Red Sox
11. shaybee - Milwaukee Brewers:  Andy Messersmith - LAD                               Los Angeles Dodgers
12. tridentric - San Francisco Giants:  Edgar Renteria - STL                                  St. Louis Cardinals
13. sinfonian11 - Seattle Mariners:  Gary Sheffield - SDP
14. llcoach - Atlanta Braves:  Cecil Cooper - MIL
15. Cheno5 - Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals:  Fred McGriff - ATL
16. marlowe - New York Mets:  Rich Aurillia - SFG
17. jose can u c - Cleveland Indians:  Will Clark - SFG                                            San Francisco Giants
18. tjefferson - Kansas City Royals:  Jim Thome - CLE                                           Cleveland Indians
19. specsman - St. Louis Cardinals:  Rico Carty - ATL                                           Atlanta Braves
20. sgsmith - Cincinnati Reds:  Mariano Rivera - NYY
21. moneybonn - New York Yankees:  Andrew Bailey - OAK
22. jstewart281 - Los Angeles Dodgers:  Jay Bell - PIT
23. spoonfed - Oakland Athletics:  Brady Anderson - BAL
24. mussopini23 - Houston Astros:  Miguel Tejada - BAL                                      Baltimore Orioles

List of keepers (bold) and draftees (italics)

Robin4 - Arizona Diamondbacks: Matt Williams, Luis Gonzalez, Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling, Brandon Webb, Mark McGwire - STL, Steve Finley, Nomar Garciaparra - BOS, Ian Kennedy, Jim Edmonds - STL

holleybard - Detroit Tigers:  Justin Verlander, Willie Hernandez, Alan Trammell, Miguel Cabrera, Magglio Ordonez, Rickey Henderson - OAK, Placido Planco, Kevin Brown - LAD, Doug Fister, Jose Rijo - CIN

Disco Dogs - Pittsburgh Pirates:  Barry Bonds, Roberto Clemente, Dave Parker, Freddie Sanchez, Doug Drabek, Orel Hershiser - LAD, Zane Smith, Don Sutton - HOU, Rick Reuschel, Adrian Gonzalez - BOS

ff09 - Toronto Blue Jays:  Roger Clemens, Carlos Delgado, John Olerud, Jose Bautista, Roberto Alomar, Fernando Valenzuela - LAD, Mark Eichhorn, Steve McCatty - OAK, Tony Fernandez, Mario Soto - CIN

alleyviper - Minnesota Twins:  Kirby Puckett, Joe Mauer, Rod Carew, Chuck Knoblauch, Johan Santana, Pedro Martinez - NYM, Francisco Liriano, Larry Dierker - HOU, Lyman Bostock, Jose Reyes - NYM

deathdealer - San Diego Padres:  Ken Caminiti, Kevin Brown, Randy Jones, Jake Peavy, Mike Adams, Nolan Ryan - HOU, Gene Tenace, Eric Gagne - LAD, Mark Loretta, Gary Sheffield - LAD

newarkwilder - Chicago White Sox:  Frank Thomas, Albert Belle, Wilbur Wood, Keith Foulke, Chet Lemon, Craig Biggio - CHW, Bobby Jenks, Ben Sheets - MIL, Charles Johnson, C.C. Sabathia - CLE

mllama54 - Baltimore Orioles:  Mike Cuellar, Jim Palmer, Chris Hoiles, Melvin Mora, Ken Singleton, Tony Gwynn - SDP, Mike Mussina, Cole Hamels - PHI, Roberto Alomar, Willie Wilson - KCR

schwarze - Boston Red Sox:  Pedro Martinez, Derek Lowe, Roger Clemens, Wade Boggs, Fred Lynn, Fritz Peterson - NYY, Carlton Fisk, Dave Righetti - NYY, John Valentin, Tim Burke - BOS

rbow923 - Philadelphia Phillies:  Steve Carlton, Curt Schilling, Mike Schmidt, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Cal Ripken, Jr. - BAL, Bobby Abreu, HWMNBN - CIN, Tug McGraw, Jonathan Papelbon - BOS

shaybee - Milwaukee Brewers:  Teddy Higuera, Rollie Fingers, Prince Fielder, Robin Yount, Ryan Braun, Carl Yastrzemski - BOS, Mike Caldwell, Kevin Mitchell - SFG, C.C. Sabathia, Andy Messersmith - LAD

tridentric - San Francisco Giants:  Barry Bonds, Willie McCovey, Tim Lincecum, Juan Marichal, Jason Schmidt, Paul O'Neill - NYY, Pablo Sandoval, Bobby Murcer - NYY, Matt Cain, Edgar Renteria - STL

sinfonian11 - Seattle Mariners:  Edgar Martinez, Ken Griffey, Jr., Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, Felix Hernandez, Willie Stargell - PIT, Bret Boone, Ted Simmons - STL, Rafael Soriano, Gary Sheffield - SDP

llcoach - Atlanta Braves:  Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, Kevin Millwood, Chipper Jones, Hank Aaron, Lenny Dykstra - PHI, Gary Sheffield, J.J. Putz - SEA, Billy Wagner, Cecil Cooper - MIL

Cheno5 - Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals:  Pedro Martinez, Dennis Martinez, Vladimir Guerrero, Tim Raines, Jose Vidro, Jimmy Rollins - PHI, Gary Carter, Roy Halladay - PHI, Steve Rogers, Fred McGriff - ATL

marlowe - New York Mets:  Dwight Gooden, Tom Seaver, John Olerud, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Ichiro Suzuki -SEA, Mike Piazza, Larry Gura - KCR, Edgardo Alfonso, Rich Aurillia - SFG

jose can u c - Cleveland Indians:  Albert Belle, Kenny Lofton, Gaylord Perry, Manny Ramirez, Roberto Alomar, Bob Gibson - STL, Omar Vizquel, Darrell Evans - ATL, Rafael Betancourt, Will Clark - SFG

tjefferson - Kansas City Royals:  George Brett, Bret Saberhagen, Kevin Appier, David Cone, Zach Greinke, Rico Petrocelli - BOS, Darrell Porter, Willie McGee - STL, Roger Nelson, Jim Thome - CLE

specsman - St. Louis Cardinals:  John Tudor, Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Albert Pujols, Joe Torre, Joe Nathan - MIN, Jose DeLeon, Brian Giles - PIT, Ozzie Smith, Rico Carty - ATL

sgsmith - Cincinnati Reds:  Tom Seaver, Joe Morgan, Eric Davis, Johnny Bench, Barry Larkin, Tim Hudson - OAK, Joey Votto, Jimmy Key - TOR, Kevin Mitchell, Mariano Rivera - NYY

moneybonn - New York Yankees:  Catfish Hunter, Ron Guidry, Rickey Henderson, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, George Foster - CIN, Robinson Cano, B.J. Ryan - TOR, Bernie Williams, Andrew Bailey - OAK

jstewart281 - Los Angeles Dodgers:  Don Sutton, Clayton Kershaw, Bill Singer, Matt Kemp, Mike Piazza, Mark Texeira - ATL, Adrian Beltre, Andruw Jones - ATL, Hideo Nomo, Jay Bell - PIT

spoonfed - Oakland Athletics:  Jason Giambi, Dennis Eckersley, Vida Blue, Mike Norris, Catfish Hunter, Bert Blyleven - MIN, Eric Chavez, Jacoby Ellsbury - BOS, Mark Ellis, Brady Anderson - BAL

mussopini23 - Houston Astros: Lance Berkman, Jeff Bagwell, Mike Scott, J.R. Richard, Roger Clemens, Carlos Beltran - KCR, Don Wilson, Jason Kendall - PIT, Billy Wagner, Miguel Tejada - BAL

Ok after yet another last place finish, let's try the 

SF Giants

LA Dodgers are now owned by me, not Magic Johnson

Updated.

a run on california

The west coast is the best coast, I guess.

bump