Although more people are likely to play Fantasy Football than Fantasy Baseball in any given year, Fantasy Baseball is where it all started. Players can go to ESPN, Yahoo, or a number of other sites and play in free leagues. The two largest DFS (Daily Fantasy Sports) companies are FanDuel and DraftKings. Fantasy Baseball is much different than Fantasy Football in that in order to be successful in a league, you have to be dedicated.
When it comes to DFS, Fantasy Baseball can be an incredibly fun and profitable venture. As anybody who has done it will tell you, DFS, no matter football, basketball or baseball, is not he same as drafting your Fantasy Football Team and then making weekly changes. DFS requires first an understanding of what type of DFS Game that you're getting into. Here's a quick primer since this is the weekend when Daily Fantasy Baseball really heats up!
Daily Fantasy Baseball Tournaments
These tournaments on the DFS sites require anywhere from a $2 to up to $1,000 investment. The higher the investment required the lower the number of players in the tournament. For example, if you want to play in a $2 DF Baseball Tournament, you're likely to end up battling around 50,000 to 60,000 other players for a prize pool of around $100K. If you want to invest over $1,000 into a tournament, you could end up playing against only 325 to 30 other players for a prize money of $20,000 to $30,000. It depends on the DFS site.
As with all DFS contests, you have a salary cap, usually around $30,000 to $50,000, that requires you to sign daily players for that day's contest in which you've entered.
Daily Fantasy Baseball Leagues
Most DFS sites are offering the DF Baseball League option. This is a cool option. I wouldn't suggest playing in one of these DF Baseball Leagues unless you are a seasoned Daily Fantasy Baseball Pro. The investment into these league contests requires money. For example, just looking on my FanDuel account for April 8, I see that to enter a 10-Player League where the Top 3 wins, it's going to cost me $5,300 for the entry fee. The prize pool is $50,000. If I believe in my skills and my contest bankroll allows me to do it, why not?
If you aren't confident enough in your skills, a good idea might be to try and build your skills in the low entry fee tournaments before trying your hand in the DF Baseball Leagues. Playing Daily Fantasy Baseball requires a true understanding of baseball itself. Baseball is much more entailed than football due to the fact that all players except the pitcher in American League games play both offense and defense.
Daily Fantasy Baseball Head Heads
In a DF Baseball Head to Head contest, one player competes against a single other player. Since there are only two players the competition is a lot lower than it is in a DF Baseball League or a DF Baseball Tournament. But, also to be expected, the entry fee into a DF Baseball Head to Head Contest can be much higher. I've seen Head to Head contests that require a $500 to over $1,000 entry fee. You can also play in $1 dollar, $2 dollar, or $5 dollar DF Baseball Head to Head contests. These are fun skill games that you can get into with a friend.
Daily Fantasy Baseball 50/50, Double-Up and Multiplier
These DF Baseball games can make daily players a lot of money. In a 50/50 contest, DF Baseball Players have a 50/50 chance of winning. If 6 players are in the game, 3 players get paid out. In a Double-Up, you can double-up your entry fee. If it cost you $5 to enter, you can use your skill to win $10 out of the prize pool. Multipliers give you a shot to multiply your money. For example, if you enter a 5x multiplier for $5, you can win up to $25.
Baseball season is here. With it are Daily Fantasy Baseball contests. Most DFS sites offer a number of different contests. Make sure to study each one to find DF Baseball contests at your skill level before diving in with your hard earned dollars.
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