There are several ways to acquire free agents in fantasy baseball. Most high stakes leagues use the Free Agent Acquisition Budget (FAAB) system. The National Fantasy Baseball Championship (NFBC) uses this format.
Each team gets a budget of $1,000 imaginary dollars to use for the season. Each week, you bid on the free agents and the highest bidder wins. It's a blind bidding system and there are no $0 bids. The minimum bid is $1 and once you run out of money no more adds can be made. FAAB runs each Sunday night.
As someone who has been an analyst in the fantasy industry for almost 15 years, FAAB is the hardest thing to develop a strategy for. There's no simple breakdown. It varies from league to league.
In some leagues, several owners will be very aggressive and spend heavily. In others, it will be the opposite. The first few FAAB periods can help you gain an idea of how your league is. You could ask several analysts here at Fantasy Alarm what to bid on a player and all of could say 10-15 percent. In one league the player could go for 22 percent and another might be eight percent. There will be times you feel as if you overpaid and others where it seems like a bargain was had.
There's no science when it comes to FAAB. Success comes with experience. Budgeting the money is essential. Early season injuries can cause an aggressive approach. If you really need a player to fill in then being a bit more aggressive is the way to go. Even if you have no injuries, never skip a FAAB period. I know it's difficult in the summer and people take vacations, but missing one FAAB period in a high stakes league could cost you. Always look at the waiver wire even if there's no glaring need.
Use the free agent pool to fix your weaknesses. For example, if you come out of the draft light on saves, take shots on some relievers that show good skills or have a struggling closer in front of them. I jumped early on Héctor Neris in 2019 and was able to get him cheaply. Unfortunately, a lot of them won't work out. Just make sure you don't spend a big portion of the budget on a shaky reliever. A lot of people waste FAAB on relievers since most teams are chasing saves.
Always put in small bids on a potential player with upside if you have a player that's expendable. Even if you don't have a glaring weakness, always look at what's available on the waiver wire every week.
Team needs can change quickly and on a weekly basis. That will often dictate where you will spend your money and how much to bid. Being aggressive and not waiting on proof is also important. Being ahead of the curve is integral. After seeing one good start from Lucas Giolito in 2019, I was able to land him in a NFBC auction at a cheap price. If I waited one more FAAB period, he would have gone for a much higher price.
Another key for being successful in FAAB in high stakes is looking two to three weeks ahead. Streaming two-start pitchers with favorable matchups is important. If you wait until the week of on the Sunday prior to get a two-start pitcher, the price will be much higher since everyone is aware of the good matchups. While weather, postponements and changing the starting rotations can alter those pitchers starts, it's a shot you must take. If you do that, it's possible to get that pitcher for $1-$20.
While the team needs and place in standing can determine how much FAAB you have left, try to budget $100 for the final month. It won't always work out, but many teams have little money left in the final month. By leaving this amount, it puts you in a spot to land the players you want.
In high stakes leagues, the difference is the bidding is very aggressive. There are no players going under the radar. Almost every player is aware of the talent on the rise. If there's a player early in the season that shows potential, don't be afraid to be aggressive. Getting a player in April can help the whole season as opposed to getting someone midway through the season that contributes for half. There's no time to wait for proof. If you take that approach, the player will be on another team in the league.
Always put in a lot of conditional bids. Don't assume you will get the top choices. Usually, I put in around 10 bids dropping one player. Obviously, I only put in players that I want on my roster. Some weeks there might only be 3-5 conditional bids. A lot of the lower bids are $1-$5. In the 12-team format, there should be a lot of changing in roster spots at the back end of the roster. It's more difficult to do in a 15-team league since the free agent pool is thinner.
There's no guidebook that helps you master FAAB. Even the top players are trying to get better at it all the time. A lot of it comes with experience and intuition. We can always help here at Fantasy Alarm, so don't be afraid to ask questions.