Underbid?

In a couple of leagues, Texas catcher (?) Max Ramirez was only bid on by one team. Rodger said:

I got Max Ramirez for the minimum bid of $1!

That AA line this year is impressive, but he's already 23.

Anonymous was surprised by the same phenomenon.

I got him for $8. We are a two-catcher AL-Only. After checking all the rosters, there was no way he'd go for the minimum.

I was wrong. No one but myself bid on Ramirez. Future value alone mkaes him more valuable than the #2's on other rosters.

I also found it surprising that only one team bid on Ramirez in my league as well. Like Anonymous says, there are a number of second string catchers who are ciphers - or worse - sitting on rosters of A.L.-only leagues: Kevin Cash, Toby Hall and Rob Bowen jump out at me, and two disabled catchers, Victor Martinez and Gerald Laird, weren't replaced this week.

There are few reasons that players like Ramirez don't get bid on.

Salary cap issues: In leagues with salary caps, some contenders are already closing in on their cap maximum. Bidding $11 on Ramirez, even if it's feasible, will push a team hard against the cap. Figuring they'll have to flip a player like this for pennies on the dollar, teams simply take a pass.

Not a keep: In some leagues, there's a minimum salary for FAABed players the following season. At $5 next year, Ramirez might be a no-brainer. At $10, he's not as certain. At $15, there aren't too many catchers - rookies or no - who are worth it. In my league, the limit is $10, which is why Ramirez's owner bid $11...he probably figured someone else would bid $10 and wanted to make sure he got him.

Saving money for later: If a team has already spent a good amount of FAAB, they might be waiting for someone better, whether its from the "other" league or from the minors.

Already locked in at catcher: This explanation ties into the salary cap explanation. Contenders who have already made a dump trade or two may have filled in at catcher. I have Jason Varitek and A.J. Pierzynski, and while Varitek is having a soft season, I at least know he's going to play the rest of the way. Ramirez? Who knows?

All of these reasons aside, I still think there should have been more play for Ramirez. He's a catcher-eligible with power potential, and even if he gets sent down in a couple of weeks, he's worth the flier. You can hoard your money all year, but at some point you're going to have to spend it. The cap issues are only going to get more frequent, and hoarding your money won't pay if you wind up spending a minimal amount at the end and $30-40 in your pocket.

UPDATE: Looking over at LABR A.L., Ramirez was only bid on by two teams there. He also went for $11, with the next highest bid at $7. The winning bidder replaced Kevin Cash, while the runner up was attempting to replace Gerald Laird.