Ultimate fantasy source. (Fantasy).(fantasy baseball play tips)

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Many fantasy leagues, including Yahoo!'s popular public game, have an innings limit for pitchers. Owners must locus more on quality than quantity and pick and choose where they want those innings to come from. That requires strategy:

Check your rotation regularly. This seems pretty basic, but owners sometimes go weeks without adjusting their rotation. To win, you must be diligent and check your team, especially if you have innings to track.

Start guys in favorable situations. Again, pretty obvious, but owners must remember to check where upcoming starts are being made. For instance, don't go with an average starter at Coors Field. Also, check out the matchups. If a guy has a history of doing poorly against the Cardinals, bench him. It also is wise to keep track of how well or poorly a pitcher has been performing.

Look at middle relievers. Middle relievers likely won't carry your wins or saves categories, but they can boost your ERA and WHIP. Also, their versatility is nice. Plug in middle relievers on your starters' days off. A good middle reliever has more fantasy value than a run-of-the-mill starter. Don't overload your team with them, but having one or two is a smart move. They don't eat many innings and help you in the meantime.

Seek balance. A good mix of starters and relievers is a must. Too many starters will burn your innings quickly, and too many relievers will force you to fall short.

Grab pitchers on good teams, You are better off having the Mariners' No. 3 starter than the Pirates'. You might say "duh!" to that, but it becomes even more important with an innings limit, in which you must pick and choose your starts. If the Yankees are playing, say, the offensive-minded Rangers, you might be concerned about starting Andy Pettitte. But at least you know the Yankees have a good shot at winning that game, whereas Pittsburgh's Josh Fogg against Montreal is more of a question mark.