Text Box: Text Box: Good morning Gents! We are in the middle of the initial Free Agent draft of the TSFL, and I could not imagine things working any smoother than they are. A big reason for this is the quality of owners we have in this league; honestly, I have not been in a league with more hardware in the trophy cabinet than this one, and the wealth of experience that exists here should serve us well. While everyone deserves a line about their value to this league, I want to give a special shoutout to Don Merlenbach, whose consistent prodding made this all possible (most of us know what a prodder Don is J ); Pat Crew, who has been invaluable in sharing some of the more inner workings of the game, and taking valuable time from basking in paradise to being the APCF–whisperer, and guiding me in the right direction; and Chuck Halling, who has heard me whine like a little girl at a Barbie party, and has managed to put together a top-notch website that should only get better in time (like a fine wine in a box). Please take no offense if I didn’t mention your name above; it takes a village to run a great league (you can get by with a well-tanned belt with regards to children), and we are well on the way to being one of the best leagues in the hobby. Now….on with the show! LEAGUE STUFF... Normally, this is where I will post musing about last week’s games, but since we haven’t played any games yet, let’s revisit some other draft related stuff. Slack will be the main form of communication in the league; it declutters the email box, puts all the information in one place for at least the next 90 days (the website is where things that need to be kept longer will be parked), and allows for some of the dialogue that I think makes this game fun. In short….Slack is your friend, and I would utilize both the desktop and app version for your phone, if I were you. That said, we do need to move some of the more random subjects to the random thoughts football channel, which I hope will be richly used. I anticipate that probably 10-20 of us will pontificate on football, cigars, bartending and grilling dead creatures (if I listen to Dan and Pat talk a bit more, I will probably be able to map the South side of Chicago, up to the point of figuring out where Leroy Brown resides), but I don’t want those postings to overcome the draft results, postings related to the league, etc. If there are any 10 Commandment items, I will post them in the commissioner message channel, and there is always the group email for those items that warrant it. Also, be aware once we pick a franchise, there will be roster limits that I will address further in the next newsletter; just be aware that with regards to PR/KR, so long as the guy has 10+ returns, he will be considered unlimited, but that doesn’t mean he has 10 durability; if the guy only played 10 games in RL, expect the same thereabouts in our league. Backups are your friend. Also, I will be talking to Pat about it more, but we will look into doing the same with K/P (thinking 15+ being unlimited, but that is me just spitballin’), but again…if LEAGUE ETIQUETE... Every league has a personality, and I do have an intended tone for this one; we are not doing God’s work, and nobody is going to go to our funeral and speak of the leagues that we have won. In a perfect world, every owner we currently have will be here 20 years from now; but alas, life happens, and this is a hobby. The key here gents is communication; that and common decency with regards to your fellow owners. There are small incentives to fill in as a sub, and published punishments as well, though I have no desire or intention of ever implementing them. I will probably get more grief from guys for my not penalizing someone than I will for doing it; I tend to enjoy a good sob story, so I will bend over backwards to assist. There may be an occasion where something happens; if so, the worst thing will be to take the guy that we have on the On-Deck Circle, make them the new owner, and slide that previous owner onto the On-Deck Circle, who will be back running a team once he is available and a team opens up. What won’t be tolerated is disrespect of other owners, at least publicly (what you think amongst yourselves is your own business). One thing that is disrespectful in my book is not respecting the time/effort of your fellow owners; in short, work on scheduling your games promptly, communicate with either myself, Pat or Don, and if not able to play, get a sub to fill in for you. THERE WILL BE NO SIMMING OR PLAYING AGAINST THE COMPUTER UNLESS DON, PAT OR MYSELF HAVE EXPRESSLY GIVEN PERMISSION. Yes, that is all caps for a reason; we have great owners, who enjoy the game, and more than a couple of willing hands. It’s not all that hard, and we all know how much difference simming games is than real play. It’s not fair to guys running competing teams, and has effects down the line with respect to the playoffs and seeding. Again….communicate and do so early, and all should be easy from there. Lastly…keep in your thoughts and prayers… Ed Ponichtera (team 5) has been battling with COVID for the better part of a week and is recently admitted to the hospital because of it; I had Marc Latini (the guy who was in the On-Deck circle) step up and take over drafting. Going forward, he will take over that team until either 1) Ed is back up and running or 2) we conclude the draft. If Ed is still recovering when we get through the draft, Marc will assume the team and Ed will move to the On-Deck circle; otherwise, Ed will take the team back over when he gets back shortly. No disrespect at all to Marc, but let’s hope Marc is just filling in and goes back to the On-Deck circle; that said, thank you Marc for stepping in. JR Commissoner's NewsletterTALES FROM THE FRONT PORCH