MLB109173 - There's a great story of baseball lore (which some have said isn't true, but baseball fans never let the truth get in the way of a good story) where Rickey Henderson, after playing with John Olerud on the Mets in 1999, was reunited with him on the Mariners in 2000 after signing with the team halfway through the season. Supposedly, Henderson went up to Olerud during batting practice one day and asked him why he wore a batting helmet for BP, to which Olerud explained to him that he'd had an aneurysm earlier in his career. Henderson said, "There was a guy I played with on the Mets that wore a batting helmet for BP." Which forced Olerud to remind Rickey that they were teammates on the Mets.

 

Whether it's true or not, it's a great (and believable) story. There are many examples of players reuniting as teammates in their careers after spending time apart. And thus, another theme is born!

 

Here are the rules:

 

Select two players who were teammates in two different, non-consecutive seasons (1945-present) in their careers. Then draft a team of players who were teammates of those players in those two seasons - spun to any season in their careers. For example, Derek Lowe was teammates with Russell Martin from 2006-2008 on the Dodgers and then again with the Yankees in 2012 - you can make your team out of the '06 Dodgers and '12 Yankees, the '07 Dodgers and '12 Yankees or the '08 Dodgers and '12 Yankees. $120MM cap. DH AL only. No waiver wire. AAA - average. Name your team incorporating your teammates' names. Stadium must be one of the home stadiums from the two years you use.

 

Info that doesn't fit in the theme summary:

(1) No clones

(2) No trades 

(3) Your main players must be on your roster - again, twisted to any season in his career; you can send these players to AAA once the season starts, but they must be on your initial roster.

(4) The Rickey-Olerud connection above wouldn't work - despite the fact that they were apart for a few months, they played together in consecutive seasons. HOWEVER, some of the more astute baseball-reference.com geeks might point out that Rickey and Olerud also played together on the 1993 Blue Jays. So you could do '93 Jays and '99 Mets or '93 Jays and '00 Mariners.

(5) Any pair of teammates/seasons used will be unique to the league and any future seasons - for example, in the scenario above, if someone used Rickey-Olerud '93 Jays-'99 Mets, no one else would be able to use that relationship. And since Al Leiter was also a teammate in those years, no one can use Leiter-Henderson, Leiter-Olerud or any other combination that would use the '93 Jays and '99 Mets.

(6) You don't have to decide AL (DH) or NL (no DH) when you claim your team - but when you enter your team in the league, let the Commish (ssupfoo) know which league you want either in the forum or by sitemail. Only entering the league claims your spot in either league. If one league fills before the other, the only option will be what's left. First-come, first-served on AL vs. NL.

 

CLAIM YOUR PLAYERS IN THE FORUM! You must claim your players in the forum. If you enter a team that uses players that someone has already claimed in the forum, your team will be put back into the draft center. NOTE: Claiming a team in the forum only entitles you to that teammate relationship - it doesn't necessarily entitle you to a spot in the league - that's first-come, first-served. As the league gets close to filling, make sure you get your team in so you don't get shut out.