There are many ways to run your baseball league if you're the commissioner. Fantasy baseball took off in popularity as the Internet became more popular, and that's no coincidence. You had to be a dedicated ultra-fan to catalog box scores every day.
There had to be a better way, and the Web came along and made everything easier. Many sites have come and gone, and the number of sites are down in 2011, with the big boys dominating the fantasy baseball traffic these days. A look at them and several of the smaller, no-frills competitors in the business. (Note: These are not an endorsement.)
Yahoo!
Yahoo changed its price structure in 2010, and for the better. Leagues are now free, with a few premium add-ons for a cost. They have an iPhone app in development, two versions of its baseball management tools, and the Stattracker is now free. No auction support, however.
Yahoo is getting a little more customizable, but it's not quite as customizable as the other big two, ESPN and CBS Sports. Can't track league finances, either, which is something the others do. No keeper league support, either.
ESPN
ESPN is where I go to prepare for my drafts, as their tools for draft prep might be the best. They've been in the stat service biz for a while, and appear to be ironing out the bugs. Some still won't forgive after a distastrous, buggy 2007 rollout.
But the price is still right for ESPN for all of its leagues: Free.
They added auction capability in 2010, and is the best free service that's the most customizable. You can't do AL- or NL-only leagues, however.
CBS Sports
It's the priciest (now $179 per league, same as 2010), but they've refined this site for 18 years now. (Disclosure: I've had a team on Sportsline for more than 10 years.)
And they've made a really cool addition - a free MLB Gameday subscription for every team in the league. That's streaming radio play by play for every team and customized highlights that used to be worth even more than the price of the league.
It's easily the most customizable as well.
You can do a lot worse, but the price tag is the highest. CBS also offers free leagues for those who don't have a league to join.
The Smaller Guys
While the bigger companies pay MLB for all of the extras on its sites, these are more of the no-frills variety. But you'd be much more likely to get the technical support and help from these smaller companies than the media conglomerates above. And the prices are a little better than Sportsline or Yahoo.All-Star Stats
The price rose $5 per team for 2011 to $45 (which is a little pricey), and is definitely designed for serious players. If you want to run a very complicated league with salaries and contracts, this might be an option. They've been around since the 1980s, so they should know what they're doing. They also tout their privacy policy, and don't use advertising to support themselves. It's affiliated with RotoWorld.com. No live auction support, though.
RotoWire
It's $89 for the entire league (unchanged for the past three years). This service has been around since 2001, and has very similar features to the bigger sites, with just as many features. No auction support, however.
Your Fantasy Team Sucks
No, I'm not poking fun at your fantasy abilities, but perhaps this site is. Aside from the childish name, this site offers a robust package that's comparable to the more expensive sites. It costs $89 per league (unchanged for past four years). Has just about all features anybody would want, except for AL- or NL-only league support. It does support auction drafts.
