Reynolds has nearly filled for Season 41 and needs just 1 more good owner to get started tomorrow. Here's a detailed look at our available team:

NL South: Mostly stuck in 70-80 win neverland for quite a few seasons now (with a couple tanks and a 91-win campaign 3 seasons ago thrown in). Like many teams in that rut, they tried to free-agent spend themselves out of it with predictable results. They have 3 contracts I wish they didn't: CF Benny Mather ($12.6MM), Closer Duane Levis ($9.1MM, but at least he's a pretty good pitcher) and CF/2B Nick Burke ($20MM - not a bad player for a good defender, just wildly overpaid). Except for Garabez Mercedes (their #1 overall pick from Season 37), the rest of the roster is solidly mediocre.

That's the bad news.

The good news is a little harder to spot, but it's there just below the surface:

1. Committed ML payroll for this season is only about $59MM, not too bad for a floundering team with 3 bad contracts (there are quite a few arb cases coming up, but I'm assuming all those guys will be released);

2. Mather and Levis are FA's after this year, freeing up another $21.7MM next season;

3. Burke's contract is done after next season, freeing up another $20MM;

4. Garabez had a nice rookie season with 104 RBI and has 2 more years at the minimum;

5. The team drafted well for the last 3 seasons, signing #1's Samuel Bacsik (18 overall), Fausto Albaledejo (20 overall), and Jack Smoak (9 overall), so they have 3 pretty good ML pitchers in the MiL pipeline;

6. They have the #14 pick in this year's draft, so they won't lose that one even if they dip into FA for a Type A.

7. They won the division last year (yes, with 76 wins), so the rest of the NL South is in more disarray than this squad.

Options For Where To Go With This Mild Mess

Option #1 - Soft Tank: Shoot for 65 wins so if you end up with 60 you don't look too bad. Limit FA pickups to the last day of free agency and the best leftovers of Spring Training. Set prospect payroll to 20, pick either HS or College and bump to 14; start driving the other one to 0. Try to grab an IFA. Nurture your prospects. Effective, but boring.

Option #2 - Take a shot at contending through free agency, especially since you only lose a #2 pick when you sign a Type A. Go for 2-3 Type A's and fill in with leftover FA's (always the best value plays in HBD). This likely prohibits any IFA bids this year, so prospect budget is 6. *** Note: at first glance, it looks like a bumper crop of FA pitchers this year, but use your own judgement.

Option #3 - Tear down and remake in your own image. Mercedes and the 3 pitching prospects could perhaps be tradable for 2 upper-level star players. 2 stars plus the 3 big contracts + some savy pickups from the FA bargain bin might get you 80 wins.

I don't know, use your imagination...what's the most innovative plan you could come up with?

About Harold Reynolds
Reynolds has high-level play and accomplished owners. No specific rules - no special salary caps or min win requirements. Rebuilding is OK, but stay competitive. Tanking is highly frowned upon. Contact commish topoftheworl or me (blanch13).