Play into trading partners to get maximum returns

By this point in the Major League Baseball season, many of the early anomalies have washed out and we are better positioned to manage our fantasy rosters. That’s why I typically advise waiting until now to make trades. Handling the human element of tradi

few quick tips to help keep the process in perspective:

-It’s all about your trading partner, not you. He doesn’t care about your needs. So it’s important to do research in reverse.

First, look for teams that can use a commodity you can part with. Then narrow down your list to those owners who also have something you need.

As an example, let’s say you have to replace Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and have outfielders you can deal. Identify the teams that need an outfielder. Of those, look to see which ones might have a spare shortstop.

In this way, you can better sell your potential trading partner on the benefits of a deal.

-Eval-ate every trade’s full roster impact. Uneven trades can work, and there is merit to the idea that the team receiving the better player wins the deal.

However, you can’t fully evaluate a trade unless you look at all of the moves you need to make to square up your roster.

Let’s say you are offered Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton for Los Angeles Angels lefthander C.J. Wilson and Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Shane Victorino. This seems like a nobrainer.

However, it becomes questionable if the best replacement pitcher available on your bench or in the free agent pool is the caliber of Chicago Cubs left-hander Paul Maholm. The real trade is Wilson and Victorino for Hamilton and Maholm.

You then have to ask yourself whether you can absorb that much of a pitching downgrade.

-D-mp trades are fine. These types of deals — in which one team trades a player of great value for cheap speculations — often create the fiercest debates among fantasy owners. However, unless there is evidence of blatant collusion, most trades are defensible.

Most arguments against dump trades cite their disproportionate standings impact. A first-place owner hates seeing his hard work go for naught when the second-place team gives up a couple of prospects to get an impact player.

However, trading for the future is common in Major League Baseball. Last July, the Phillies acquired outfielder Hunter Pence from the Houston Astros for four minor leaguers. In many fantasy leagues, that might have been grounds for a veto.

But that’s part of the game. It’s not like the National League East rival Atlanta Braves could have cried foul over the Pence acquisition. They went out two days later and traded their own prospects to the Astros for outfielder Michael Bourn. Chat with BaseballHQ.com founder Ron Shandler every Wednesday at 11 a.m. ET at fantasybaseball.usatoday.com