The Bargain Hunter Returns
Greetings, fellow bargaineers!
As you know, the summer represents the offseason for Bargain Hunting. Even I do not have the proper permit that allows for any legal hunting this time of year. But come Saturday, it is open season again, and I have already begun testing out my gear and taking a bit of target practice to prepare myself for another season on the hunt. It feels great to be back! Rotoworld is ramping up for Week 1 now, you can already begin checking out our in-season content with Rob Allen's By the Numbers column.
If you have read my column in the past, or if you are brand new to it, the concept is simple:
I am here as your guide every week to track down the best players to add to your fantasy team that are available for a budget price. In previous seasons, this column focused on the salary cap leagues like Yahoo but with the Yahoo game on hiatus, it was time to move the focus of the column onward.
It is with great pleasure then to announce that the new column will now be focusing on draft leagues, such as Fantrax.com and PlayTogga.com, as well as salary cap leagues and the classic FPL.com experience. The idea is that bargains can be found in all formats.
With salary leagues, it is business as usual for the Bargain Hunter. Every week, I will offer at least one player at each position that should be considered a budget play, which will help you fit as many top-notch players into your squad as you can.
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With the FPL.com game, I will be pointing out a few inexpensive prospects that emerge each week. This area will be limited to a select few, as a good prospect for the FPL.com game needs to be starting for at least a few weeks in order to justify spending a transfer in most cases.
The major focus of the new Bargain Hunter will be the ever-growing popularity of draft leagues, and I will be bringing you the best picks to look for on the waiver wire. Any player obtained through waivers is a bargain right? In leagues without a free agent budget, players plucked through waivers don't cost a thing, except your position in the waiver claim process. However, there are draft leagues that use a free agent budget (I am participating in one with other industy experts over at Fantrax.com) which then calls into question, "How much should I bid?". Well, I cannot offer you an exact amount a player is worth sacrificing your budget on unfortunately, because the budget you are given at the beginning of the season can vary league-to-league. What I can do is divide the waiver prospects up into categories:
One Week Buys - when a regular is suspended for a match, ineligible to face his parent club as a loanee, or he fill-in looks to deputize for only a week while the regular nurses a minor injury, this is where to find some replacements. They should only be looked at when you really need help at a position that week alone, and not looked at as long term plays.
Short-term Buys - when a regular faces a multi-game suspension, an injury layoff lasting 2-5 weeks, international commitment, etc., this is where you look for players that can offer more beyond one week but do have a limited shelf life in most cases. Worth using a waiver claim or spending a bit more of your free agent budget (FAAB) than the One Week Buys
Long-term Buys - when a regular is either facing a month or more out or has lost his spot seemingly to someone better, these are the players that emerge as potential long-term investments and are therefore the most valuable of the group and worth paying up considerable FAAB for.
Keep in mind, when addressing draft leagues, salary cap leagues with unlimited transactions and the FPL.com game, the value of a player will be different according to the format. A One Week buy as mentioned above carries far more value in a salary cap league with unlimited transactions because that player can easily be swapped out the following week with no harm done. Yet, in the FPL.com game, a One Week Buy carries far less value, because transfers are limited to one, possibly two a week without it costing you, so to "rent" a player for a week in that format is all but ill-advised.
Also, keep in mind hunters, that I want nothing more than to be your guide to winning your league, but my column will be running on Tuesdays, so you must take into account what can possibly change between Tuesdays and your weekly deadline. An injury in training to a player on a Thursday can create a new bargain opportunity that is better than all the ones listed on Tuesday. For that reason, I urge you to not only keep up with fellow Rotoworld staffer Ben Dinnery's injury news but to follow me on Twitter as well. When new information comes to life later in the week, I will be tweeting out some emerging prospects and will have a wrapup of those supplemental picks every Friday. I can be found @FuzzyWarbles.
The column will begin next week officially and should have plenty to offer immediately. With the transfer window still open for the season's first four gameweeks, there are bound to be several additions and subtractions around the league to create many bargain opportunities. Until then, allow me to throw a few names out there that have value to beign the season...
GK - Wayne Hennessey (CPL) - Crystal Palace will be without Julian Speroni for as long as the entire month of September which gives Hennessey a chance for a run of starts. He would be particularly helpful in Weeks 1 and 3, when the Eagles will play away to Norwich City and be home to Aston Villa, respectively. He goes for the bare minimum in FPL, 4.0, so if you planned on filling the 2nd keeper slot with a player you never intend to use, you may as well make it Hennessey as he is the only 4.0 GK who will start. If you have Speroni in draft leagues or you have a keeper with very tough fixtures in Weeks 1 and 3, then you may want to add Hennessey if there is space on your roster. He will likely give way as soon as Speroni returns, so consider that if you need to drop someone of worth.
DEF - Matt Targett (SOU) - With Ryan Bertrand sidelined for what is expected to be the first few weeks of the season, Targett looks to fill the left back role for Southampton in his absence. He is owned by less than 8% of Fantrax leagues and is priced at the minimum 4.0 in the FPL.com game. He is likely very cheap in salary leagues as well. The Saints have a nice early run of fixtures, so whether Targett plays two, three or four games before Bertrand's return, he should carry some value. Southampton open the season away to Newcastle. Hard to say what the Magpies are capable of, but if it is anything like last season, they could easily come out flat and the Saints sneak a road clean sheet.
DEF - Joe Gomez (LIV) - This is by no means a guarantee. Like with any position battle over the summer, it usually comes down to seeing the Week 1 teamsheet to know who the manager has backed, but from all indicators this preseason, Joe Gomez has a very good shot at supplanting Alberto Moreno for Liverpool's left back spot. Gomez has been getting selected in Brendan Rodgers' stronger XIs this summer, including the last test in Helsinki. Perhaps Gomez and Moreno will be rotated, perhaps he cannot hold his spot down for very long if he wins it in Week 1, but the upside here is too good to ignore. If you look at Liverpool's home fixtures early on, you must see the clean sheet potential on hand. They host Bournemouth, West Ham, Norwich and Aston Villa in the first seven gameweeks. You could ignore him now and have nothing to worry about if he doesn't get the start in Week 1, but if he DOES start, you will be paying more money out of your FAAB and you run the risk of getting beaten out by a higher waiver priority. For FPL.com players and salary cap leagues with unlimited transfers, go ahead and use a "wait-and-see" approach.
MID - Rolando Aarons (NEW) - Like Gomez, I cannot guarantee that Aarons has a permanent place in the side, or that he is even a guarantee to start Week 1. But with his ownership at 17.5% in Fantrax, there is too much talent there to see him overlooked this much. He has been getting regular time on the left in preseason and the only other option the Magpies really have over there is Yoan Gouffran, who had all of last season to prove that he is in need of competition. Aarons has the potential to cause havoc in this league, with a nice combination of pace and physicality. He really should be owned in all draft leagues with more than 10 teams, but even in a 10-team league, if your worst player doesnt hurt to drop, replace him now with Aarons. He can be waited on in FPL and should be monitored very closely in salary cap leagues with unlimited transactions.
MID - Jordon Ibe (LIV) - Those in draft leagues are already hip to Ibe, he has an ownershio of over 50% at the moment, but he deserves mention here for FPL.com and other salary-based games. He should be going for super-cheap and will start on the right wing to begin the season. His pitch time may be reduced when Roberto Firmino establishes himself in the side but Rodgers has already been on record to state that Ibe is set to see some serious minutes this season. For that reason, he makes for a promising 5th midfielder in your fantasy team.
FWD - Cameron Jerome (NOR) - Nothing flashy here, but in a draft fantasy league where regularly starting forwards can be difficult to come by, Jerome is only owned in 25% of Fantrax leagues. He is the clear striker for Norwich City, and while the Canaries aren't exactly know for a lethal attack and Jerome hasn't exactly dazzled in his previous top flight exploits, he is bound to return something in scoring formats like Fantrax and PlayTogga, where a goal isn't always needed to accumulate some points. Not to mention that Norwich have a pretty friendly fixture list to begin the season. You can dismiss his prospects in FPL.com and will want to spend more cash on a more reliable forward in cap leagues with unlimited transactions, but his ownership in draft leagues is lower than that of the likes of Steven Fletcher, Andy Carroll, Shane Long and Gabby Agbonlahor -- all of whom are just as likely to be on the bench most weeks as they are of starting. You cannot score points on the bench. Jerome at least offers you a horse in the race.
So there you have it. A little peek at what is to come this season. There will be some tinkering with the format to be sure as the new approach to the column rounds into shape, but check back in next Tuesday for the post-Week 1 edition. Happy hunting.
