Theoretically Bud Light could become the Official Beer of Fantasy Football by ESPN.com or even NFL.com, both big players in the fantasy football universe.

What’s next, Coors Light becoming the Official Beer of Checking Your Fantasy Team Constantly on Sundays?

**UPDATE** Miller Lite is apparently also a proud sponsor of Fantasy Draft Week on ESPN.com

Before yesterday’s moves, my team looked like this:

C: Buster Posey
1B: Adam Dunn
2B: Brandon Phillips
3B: Alex Rodriguez
SS: Hanley Ramirez
OF: Ichiro Suzuki
OF: Matt Holliday
OF: Jason Heyward
Util: Alfonso Soriano
Bench: Johnny Damon
Bench: Matt Wieters

SP: Adam Wainwright
SP: Ubaldo Jimenez
SP: Mat Latos
RP: Leo Nunez
RP: Kevin Gregg
P: Juan Gutierrez
P: Chad Qualls
P: R.A. Dickey
Bench: Ted Lilly
Bench: Barry Zito
Bench: Joe Blanton

A quick side note: I traded Stephen Drew, Francisco Liriano and Cole Hamels for Hanley Ramirez and Ted Lilly on May 16th and then Phil Hughes for Kevin Gregg on July 30th.

Yesterday was the beginning of the roster overhaul. Here’s how it broke down:

- Dropped Juan Gutierrez for Aaron Heilman after the former was placed on the disabled list.

- Dropped Chad Qualls for Hong-Chih Kuo

- Dropped Hong-Chih Kuo for J.A. Happ (Happ was available because he’s been hurt for so long)

- Dropped Joe Blanton for Carlos Zambrano (he’s returning to the starters role and I thought he might be worth the risk due to his high strikeout rate this year)

- Dropped Johnny Damon for Mike Lowell (another injured player who was still available, but should be getting some playing time thanks to the injury to Kevin Youkilis)

But then the real action started.  While I was making these moves, I was presented with the following trade proposal:

Derrek Lee and Tim Lincecum for Alex Rodriguez and Adam Dunn

While the guy in my league wouldn’t know this, I absolutely hate Derrek Lee in fantasy baseball.  I’ve had him once before and he just ruined my team, plus I always feel that his owners always think he is better than he is.  Look, I know he hit .335 with 46 HRs and 107 RBI in 2005 and I also know he’ll never do it again.  No thanks.

I countered with Alfonso Soriano for Tim Lincecum hoping that his glut of pitchers would allow him to do this (he also owns Roy Halladay, David Price, C.C. Sabathia and Matt Cain, to name a few).  My offer was firmly rebuffed, as expected.

His counter was an interesting one, offering me Carlos Pena and Tim Lincecum for Alex Rodriguez.  It was a pretty fair offer, but I had no interest in adding Pena’s .212 batting average despite his homerun numbers.  My other problem at this point was that if I traded Rodriguez (who hit his 600th career homerun as we were negotiating), I would be empty at third base, clearly not an ideal position.  It was at this time that I tried to see if Evan Longoria might be available.

I emailed the guy who had Longoria and asked him if he’d be interested in one of my pitchers, assuming he’d be most interested in Ubaldo Jimenez or Adam Wainwright.  While he’s been awesome this year, I was hoping that Jimenez would be the one he liked more, but alas, he wanted Wainwright.

While I thought it might come down to it, I wasn’t thrilled about trading Wainwright for Longoria.  The former was the #4 ranked player overall in our league and while I don’t really like to rely on rankings, it’s a tough thing to ignore when it’s a top-five player.  Luckily for me, my potential trading partner hinted that he might be interested in a combination of Mat Latos and a hitter for Longoria; now we’re getting closer.

I offered up Latos and either Heyward or Holliday, neither of which I really wanted to trade, but might be willing to give up for Longoria.  I naturally preferred to give up Heyward, he wanted Holliday, which I eventually balked at.  However, he decided to roll with the young guys and agreed to trade me Longoria for Latos and Heyward.

Separately, I was IMing with another guy in our league who was talking about how Jacoby Ellsbury was returning soon but that he was so frustrated with his injuries that he wanted him gone.  I offered him Barry Zito and the deal was accepted.  Just like that.  It couldn’t have been easier and I think it was a good move for both of us (which is my way of saying that it will help my team and I don’t care what happens to his team).

Back to the A-Rod deal.  Our negotiations kept going back and forth, with me looking for a closer in addition to Lincecum.  While I like Lincecum a lot, I didn’t think trading him straight up for Rodriguez was a good deal; luckily, my trading partner felt the same.  I told him I was looking for a closer and he offered me either Carlos Marmol, Huston Street or Bobby Jenks; I jumped at Marmol and proposed Marmol and Lincecum for Rodriguez.  At that point, we were close, but not quite there.

“How about adding Wieters?” he asked.  With Buster Posey playing most days and filling my catcher position, I was more than willing to give Wieters up.  And with that, we had agreed to exchange Alex Rodriguez and Matt Wieters for Tim Lincecum and Carlos Marmol.

With the other moves I made earlier in the day, my team now looks dramatically different than it did a few days ago:

C: Buster Posey
1B: Adam Dunn
2B: Brandon Phillips
3B: Evan Longoria (previously Alex Rodriguez)
SS: Hanley Ramirez
OF: Matt Holliday
OF: Ichiro Suzuki
OF: Jacoby Ellsbury (previously Jason Heyward)
UTIL: Alfonso Soriano
Bench: Mike Lowell (previously Johnny Damon)
Bench: Open (previously Matt Wieters)

SP: Adam Wainwright
SP: Ubaldo Jimenez
SP: Tim Lincecum (previously Mat Latos)
RP: Leo Nunez
RP: Kevin Gregg
P: Aaron Heilman (previously Juan Gutierrez)
P: Carlos Marmol (previously Chad Qualls)
P: R.A. Dickey
Bench: Ted Lilly
Bench: J.A Happ (previously Barry Zito)
Bench: Carlos Zambrano (previously Joe Blanton)

Will it win me a championship?  I sure hope so.  A pitching staff anchored by Wainwright, Jimenez and Lincecum seems liks it should be solid enough and with three legitimate closers,one more than most teams in the league, I should be able to jump in that category.  If this were a keeper league, obviously the moves would most likely not have happened, but since it’s only a one-year league, it’s much easier to roll the dice.

Things seem to already be moving, as the guy formerly in second place dropped three points last night and combined with my 1.5 point gain, I am not firmly in second place only eight points back of first.

Quarterbacks:

1. Matt Schaub

2. Ben Roethlisberger

3. Tom Brady

4. Joe Flacco

5. Peyton Manning

6. Drew Brees

7. Aaron Rodgers

8. Brett Favre

9. Kyle Orton

10. Jay Cutler

Flacco has also been a tremendous surprise so far in 2009, especially given that many fantasy analysts heavily stressed Ray Rice, La’Ron McClain and Willis McGahee going into this season because of the Baltimore Ravens’ run-happy offense.  But there is Flacco in the top five.

Brett Favre and Kyle Orton are also surprise attendees in the top-10, especially in front of 2008-fantasy star Jay Cutler.

Running Backs:

1. Adrien Peterson

2. Maurice Jones-Drew

3. Ray Rice

4. Chris Johnson

5. Ronnie Brown

6. Thomas Jones

7. Cedric Benson

8. DeAngelo Williams

9. Michael Turner

10. Ahmad Bradshaw

Bradshaw is the biggest surprise on the list given that Brandon Jacobs came into the season with expectations of double-digit touchdowns.  But so far this season, the Giants have relied more on Bradshaw, who is paying dividends for those who grabbed him late in their drafts.

Wide Receivers:

1. Andre Johnson

2. Steve Smith

3. Randy Mos

4. Hines Ward

5. Reggie Wayne

6. Larry Fitzgerald

7. Marques Colston

8. Mario Manningham

9. Roddy White

10. Chad Ochocino

The biggest surprise on this list is Steve Smith, mostly because it’s the Giants’ second-year wideout and not previous top-fantasy performance Steve Smith from the Carolina Panthers.  Mario Manningham, also with the Giants, is another surprise, especially considering that the Giants have two receivers in the top-10 and yet Eli Manning is only the 12th best fantasy quarterback to date (and is less than four points ahead of David Gerrard).

Tight Ends:

1. Owen Daniels

2. Dallas Clark

3. Heath Miller

4. Antonio Gates

5. Kellen Winslow

6. Brent Celek

7. Visanthe Shiancoe

8. Tony Gonzalez

9. Vernon Davis

10. Chris Cooley

Not too many surprises here, except maybe that Jason Whitten is not on the list, with only 259 yards and a single touchdown so far in the season.  The Cowboys passing game continues to struggle in 2009 and Whitten has taken the biggest hit to his fantasy production.

I am ignoring kickers and defenses because we all should; they are all basically the same, don’t try to say otherwise.

So there you have it.  Matt Schaub is the top fantasy producer through week six.

Or is he?  KingMorland.com will conduct a comprehensive study on week-to-week fantasy production to be sure that Schaub is actually the real-deal.  It’s easy to have 14 touchdowns when 11 of them come in three games; did those three weeks beat out the other top competitors?  Come back another time and find out for sure.

Quarterbacks

1. Drew Brees
2. Aaron Rodgers
3. Tom Brady
4. Philip Rivers
5. Peyton Manning
6. Tony Romo
7. Matt Schaub
8. Donovan McNabb
9. Jay Cutler
10. Matt Ryan
11. David Gerrard
12. Trent Edwards
13. Kurt Warner
14. Ben Roethlisberger
15. Kyle Orton
16. Matt Cassel
17. Eli Manning
18. Brett Favre
19. Jake Delhomme
20. Joe Flacco

Running Backs

1. Matt Forte
2. Maurice Jones-Drew
3. Adrian Peterson
4. Donald Brown
5. Chris Johnson
6. DeAngelo Williams
7. LaDanian Tomlinson
8. Frank Gore
9. Brian Westbrook
10. Brandon Jacobs
11. Michael Turner
12. Steve Slaton
13. Kevin Smith
14. Steven Jackson
15. Clinton Portis
16. Pierre Thomas
17. Ryan Grant
18. Ronnie Brown
19. Marion Barber
20. Beanie Wells

Wide Receivers

1. Calvin Johnson
2. Larry Fitzgerald
3. Andre Johnson
4. Steve Smith
5. Randy Moss
6. Greg Jennings
7. Roddy White
8. Marques Colston
9. Anquan Boldin
10. Vincent Jackson
11. Reggie Wayne
12. Terrell Owens
13. Dwayne Bowe
14. Eddie Royal
15. Wes Welker
16. T.J. Houshmandzadeh
17. Chad Ochocino
18. Lance Moore
19. Hines Ward
20. Bernard Berrian

Tight Ends

1. Jason Whitten
2. Tony Gonzalez
3. Dallas Clark
4. Antonio Gates
5. Greg Olsen
6. Dustin Keller
7. Chris Cooley
8. Kellen Winslow
9. Visanthe Shiancoe
10. John Carlson

Defenses

1. Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Tennessee Titans
3. New York Giants
4. New York Jets
5. Baltimore Ravens
6. Chicago Bears
7. San Diego Chargers
8. Washington Redskins
9. New England Patriots
10. Indianapolis Colts

Kickers

They are all the same.

2. Kevin Garnett (2)
Though he doesn’t want to touch the ball for a game winning shot, he is more than happy to grab the rebound and kick it out for a game winning assist.

3. LeBron James (8)
The new triple-double machine of the NBA, how long until he averages one for a whole season?

4. Kobe Bryant (3)
Moves down again, not because of his lack of play, but because of great play by others.

5. Yao Ming (5)
An 86% free throw shooter out of the center position is amazing.

6. Chris Paul (11)
He is slowly becoming the best point guard in the league.

7. Dwight Howard (13)
Moving up significantly thanks to his increased scoring. He may pass Yao this year as the best center in the NBA.

8. Steve Nash (6)
Losing his spot as best point guard in the NBA, but can still dominate the assist category with Amare and Marion on the wings.

9. Caron Butler (NR)
Getting many more looks now that Arenas is out, Butler’s scoring was the only thing holding him back from being a top-10 fantasy player.

10. Tim Duncan (9)
20 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks per game will get you in the top 10. He’s even shooting 70% from the line!

11. Dirk Notwiztki (5)
Moved down because he doesn’t shoot as many threes, but he still fills it up every night.

12. Marcus Camby (17)
Well on his way to another Defensive Player of the Year Award, the only question is if he can make it through a whole season.

13. Paul Pierce (12)
Garnett may be getting most of the hype, but with the game on the line, they want the ball in Pierce’s hands.

14. Deron Williams (18)
Another fantastic point guard; the battles between Williams and Paul for the next decade will be great to watch.

15. Carlos Boozer (14)
His 35 and 15 nights are great, but can he play any defense?

16. Tracy McGrady (10)
Back from an elbow injury and playing well. If his back holds up, he will be a beast this year playing alongside Yao.

17. Josh Smith (20)
He is a monster defensively, but offensively he is a big question mark. He will hit a couple of threes, but at the same time shoot 5-18.

18. Vince Carter (16)
Came back from an ankle injury and is playing well again. Don’t underestimate his ability to finish the year averaging 25-5-5 again.

19. Baron Davis (NR)
Nothing like a game against the Knicks to really get you going. Davis is a great talent, who just needs to stay healthy.

20. Antawn Jamison (NR)
Similar to Caron Butler, it was consistent scoring that kept Jamison out of the Top 20. With Arenas gone, it’s time to step up.

Dropped from the Top 20: Gilbert Arenas, Amare Stoudemire, Allen Iverson

Honorable Mention:
Manu Ginobili
Kevin Martin
Allen Iverson
Amare Stoudemire
Rashard Lewis
Andre Iguodala
Ray Allen
Jason Kidd

Previous week’s ranking in parentheses

1. Shawn Marion (1)
The team has been struggling a little bit, but Marion has still been filling the stat sheet.

2. Kevin Garnett (2)
The guy has been the definition of a beast, logging a double-double in every game so far.

3. Kobe Bryant (3)
Still getting his stats despite not being happy and he’s even winning a couple of games. Moves down only because Garnett has been so good.

4. Yao Ming (NR)
Yao is now the premier center in the NBA and not having him in the top 20 previously was simply foolish on my part.

5. Dirk Nowtizki (4)
He’s still getting burned for the loss in last year’s playoffs, but he’s coming back with a vengence.

6. Steve Nash (6)
The engine that makes the Suns run is still running and gunning like he’s still 29.

7. Gilbert Arenas (5)
His knee is clearly bothering him early on, but it’s only a matter of time before Agent Zero gets out of his funk and takes it out on everyone that’s been doubting him so far this year.

8. LeBron James (9)
Somebody forgot to tell LeBron that after last year’s Finals appears and this summer’s FIBA Americas Tournament that he was supposed to start slow.

9. Tim Duncan (10)
The big fundamental keeps filling up the stat sheet with what seems like 20 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks every night.

10. Tracy McGrady (NR)
Somehow I underestimated Yao and his teammate T-Mac, but with the way he has been playing so far, watch out for this tandem.

11. Chris Paul (11)
21 assists in one game??? If you own Paul, you own assists.

12. Paul Pierce (16)
It’s clear that KG and Ray Ray want to help P2 win, but it’s also clear that he’s ready to do the work himself.

13. Dwight Howard (17)
The only guy who will give Yao a run for his money as the best center in the NBA, is there anything this guy can’t do?

14. Carlos Boozer (13)
He’ll have his 30 and 15 nights, but is 1 block really too much to ask for?

15. Amare Stoudemire (7)
The knee is clearly bothering him; is he really only going to play one out of three games all season? I doubt it, but he definitely isn’t playing every game.

16. Vince Carter (8)
He was an injury risk to start and now he’s clearly living up to that belief.

17. Marcus Camby (NR)
When he’s healthy, he’s a beast…and right now, he’s healthy.

18. Deron Williams (18)
If you don’t have Paul, but do have Williams, you should be good to go on assists.

19. Allen Iverson (NR)
The scoring of Carmelo Anthony, but with steals, assists and threes? I’ll take it.

20. Josh Smith (NR)
How did this guy miss my first list? He’s a defensive MONSTER and will even put in a couple threes for you.

Dropped from the top 20: Chris Bosh, Luol Deng, Andre Iguodala, Jason Kidd, Baron Davis

Also receiving votes:
Ray Allen
Jason Kidd
Baron Davis
Andre Iguodala
Chris Bosh
Antawn Jamison
Caron Butler
Manu Ginobili
Kevin Martin
Rashard Lewis

1. Shawn Marion, F, Phoenix Suns
Marion has been a top fantasy player for the past five seasons and this year should be no different, despite his apparent frustration with being a third wheel to Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire. But you know what? This is fantasy, so who cares how he feels? Marion puts up solid numbers across all stat categories, which is why he is here at #1.

2. Kobe Bryant, G, Los Angeles Lakers
Though his scoring is his best attribute, Bryant contributes consistently over more categories than pretty much everyone except Marion.

3. Kevin Garnett, F, Boston Celtics
His scoring may go down because he actually has legitimate teammates now, but rebounds and assists should only improve. With more long range shooters, Garnett should get some easier looks inside too, which will increase his field goal percentage.

4. Dirk Nowitzki, F, Dallas Mavericks
He may be higher on the list if he was eligible at the center position, but Dirk is still a statistical beast. He didn’t shoot quite as many threes last year as previous years, but he is rebounding and playing defense better than he ever has.

5. Gilbert Arenas, G, Washington Wizards
Arenas was having a monster fantasy year until he got hurt last year. If he and Caron Butler can recover from late-season injuries, Arenas should have another big season. His ability to get to the hoop or shoot from 30-feet makes him a big-time scorer in the league and he is also an excellent defender, finishing fifth in the league in steals despite only playing 74 games. Hibachi!

6. Steve Nash, G, Phoenix Suns
Notice how many highlights there are of Amare Stoudmire and Shawn Marion throwing down alley-oops? Ever notice who throws them all? Probably, which is why you know Steve Nash deserves to be this high.

7. Amare Stoudemire, F/C, Phoenix Suns
Though off-season knee surgery may slow him a bit at the beginning, Stoudemire had a breakout season last year following micro-fracture surgery and will only look to gain more attention if Shawn Marion is sent packing.

8. Vince Carter, G/F, New Jersey Nets
Not many people realized how big of a season VC had last year, possibly because he plays for one of the most boring teams in the league. I can’t wait until they move to Brooklyn.

9. LeBron James, G/F, Cleveland LeBrons
Surprised to see LeBron this far down this list? Maybe it’s because he shot under 70% from the line and was near the top of the league in turnovers. After carrying his team to the NBA Finals last season, and then helping Team USA win the FIBA Tournament of the Americas, he has to be a little tired.

10. Tim Duncan, F/C, San Antonio Spurs
He doesn’t shoot much, but when he does, it usually goes in. Not to mention his impressive rebounding numbers and excellent shot blocking figures.

11. Chris Paul, G, New Orleans Hornets
He was hurt for some of last season, but you have to remember how great he was before it happened. Expect an above-solid year for Paul.

12. Chris Bosh, F/C, Toronto Raptors
The Raptors are looking to take a leap into the Eastern Conference elite this season and it will be squarely on the shoulders of Chris Bosh to get them there. Don’t expect him to disappoint. And also don’t forget he is only 23.

13. Carlos Boozer, F/C, Utah Jazz
He’s been a huge surprise ever since he joined the league, look for Boozer to increase his impressive scoring and rebounding figures this season.

14. Luol Deng, F, Chicago Bulls
Deng had a near breakout season last year and this time around I think he takes the next step. He is slowly becoming the go-to guy for this team and the scoring tandem of Deng and Ben Gordon should be a fierce one to contend with for the other Eastern Conference teams.

15. Andre Iguodala, F, Philadelphia 76ers
Iguodala took over this team after they traded Allen Iverson and he will still be the focal point this year. He is an extremely athletic wing who could be a top 5 or 10 player if he developed a legitimate three-point shot.

16. Paul Pierce, F, Boston Celtics
Pierce was already a legitimate fantasy player, but his scoring will most certainly suffer thanks to the incoming Garnett and Ray Allen…not that he’s complaining, he should get more assist opportunities and will stay active on the defensive end.

17. Dwight Howard, C, Orlando Magic
Howard already had the rebounding numbers and the blocks were coming along nicely. Look for his scoring to increase this year thanks to more open looks created by Rashard Lewis and a newly developed touch from the free throw line.

18. Deron Williams, G, Utah Jazz
Williams is set to take the leap this season, write it down.

19. Jason Kidd, G, New Jersey Nets
Similar to Steve Nash, you will pretty much always see Kidd on the passing end of an alley-oop. He looked amazing during the FIBA Tournament and there is no reason to expect his distribution numbers to go down.

20. Baron Davis, G, Golden State Warriors
With Jason Richardson gone, Davis will have to do more of the scoring, which I bet is perfectly fine with him. If the playoffs are any indication how good he can be, he may crack the rankings top-10 by mid-season.

Also receiving votes:
Allen Iverson
Yao Ming
Caron Butler
Carmelo Anthony
Ray Allen
Gerald Wallace
Marcus Camby
Kevin Martin
Manu Ginobili
Leandro Barbosa

Out with injuries:
Elton Brand
Dwyane Wade

Utley, acquired in a trade on May 11th for John Smoltz and Joe Borowski, was hitting .359 with 53 runs scored, 11 home runs, 52 rbi and 4 stolen bases for the team before going down with a broken wrist. According to Ken Mandel of Phillies.MLB.com, Utley took part in running and fielding drills last week, but did not throw. He is scheduled to meet with hand specialist Randall Culp, where he could be cleared to starting hitting again. If that is the case, he could be back in two weeks.

Pence, added on May 18th for Stephen Drew, was hitting .338 with 25 runs scored, 6 home runs, 17 rbi and 5 stolen bases before going down with a chipped bone in his right wrist. He was scheduled to begin hitting off of a tee yesterday, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Renteria, acquired in a trade last week along with Jake Peavy for Ichiro Suzuki, Jim Thome and Dontrelle Willis, never even played a game for Tiene Leche?. He suffered a sprain right ankle and was immediately put on the DL.

Soriano went down with an injury last night in a game against the New York Mets. He left the game after trying to go first to third on a single with a strained right quad and is scheduled to have an MRI today. He could be out anywhere between two weeks to a month. Soriano was acquired on June 3rd by trade, along with Bartolo Colon for Barry Bonds, Adrian Beltre, and Billy Wagner. The outfielder was hitting .296, with 41 runs, 12 home runs, 28 rbi and 10 stolen bases for Tiene Leche?.