How My Drafts Went
By: Andy Wheeler
First off, I apologize to any readers that are looking for my opinion on the wheels coming off the Flyers bandwagon or the Sixers inability to close. Maybe you want to hear all about millionaires vs. billionaires or the Black Clouds hanging over the Phillies right now. Nope.
We did talk about all that on today's podcast.
As promised this is another article on Fantasy Baseball because…TIS THE SEASON PEOPLE!
How were my drafts? Well they went very well. At least I think they did. I'll know in about 20 weeks. This is why I love Fantasy Baseball. If you want to see your real team make moves…or think you know about baseball in any way…it's time to join a league!
I'm in 2 very different leagues…and the scoring is the same…with very minor variations.
Here's the breakdown of both drafts and my thoughts as we go.
2 weeks ago was my first draft. It was in the "The Battle for Second"…hence forth known as the BF2.
26 Roster spots with C, 1B, 2ND, SS, 3B, Middle infielder, Corner Infielder, RF, CF, LF, DH, 8 pitchers with a minimum of 3 Relievers.
I will break down by the roster with the round I picked them after the name. Guys on the bench are in italics
BF2 League:
C - Miguel Montero 20th
C - Jesus Montero 18th
1B - Ryan Howard 3rd
2B - Brandon Phillips 5th
3B - Michael Young 7th
SS - Starlin Castro 12th
MI - Dan Uggla 6th
CI - Placido Polanco 13th
LF - Angel Pagan 15th
CF - B.J. Upton 9th
RF - Jason Heyward (Keeper 17th)
DH - Justin Upton 8th
SP - Justin Verlander 2nd
SP - Tim Lincecum 1st
SP - Cole Hamels 4th
SP - Brett Anderson 11th
RP - John Axford 10th
RP - Aroldis Chapman 14th
RP - Brian Fuentes 19th
SP - Clayton Richard 25th
SP - Jorge De La Rosa 22nd
SP - Justin Masterson 26th
SP - Jonathon Niese 21st
SP - Rick Porcello 24th
SP- Michael Pineda 16th
RP - Evan Meek 23rd
So this draft I wanted to get good starting pitching, a steady offense and I all but punted on bullpen. Probably not smart but for the most part, I'll be able to find some saves out on the wire…but elite starters don't just fall off trees.
I think possibly that I have the American and National League leaders in Strikeouts with Verlander and Lincecum…but the possibility of a good season from Cole Hamels and Brett Anderson has me very excited about my starters.
I think the Upton brothers, and drafting both of them are probably mistakes…but they have so much talent they have to do something positive don't they? I could have gone in other directions with both these picks…but I'll take talent and upside over steady 9 times out of 10.
I got stuck with a Shortstop I didn't want in Starlin Castro just because he's unproven, but he has potential. I love Michael Young and think he'll have another solid year…but that's the problem with this team.
With a few exceptions, my offense really is the slow and steady type. I don't have many guys that are going to go nuts offensively, I just have a bunch of guys that are going to plug along. That could end up being a weakness in weeks my starting pitching doesn't carry me. Over all I think I'll be good…but the moves I make from here on out are going to determine what happens with this team.
I've already released Rick Porcello and pick up Jose Contreras in an attempt to pick up some saves. This team is far from a finished product. I made some serious mistakes not picking people at certain times…I let Brandon Morrow slip past me even though I knew I should have taken him in the 6th round…but Uggla was too hard to pass up.
I did get Michael Pineda, which is going to be huge since he's a keeper for me. 6'6 with a 100 mph fastball! If you didn't know who he was remember the name…he's going to be awesome. (I HOPE!)
Now to the CBS 3 league.
C – Carlos Ruiz 22nd
1B – Kevin Youkilis 3rd
2B – Brian Roberts 12th
3B – Pedro Alvarez 17th
SS- Juan Uribe 14th
MI – Martin Prado 5th
CI- Adam Dunn 7th
LF – Angel Pagan 13th
CF – Adam Jones 19th
RF- Shin-Soo Choo 6th
DH – Carlos Pena 15th
C – Jesus Montero 26th
2B – Dustin Ackley 25th
LF – Manny Ramirez 20th
SP – Brett Anderson 9th
SP – Matt Garza 11th
SP – Felix Hernandez 1st
SP – Ubaldo Jimenez 2nd
SP – Jeff Neimann 21st
RP – Brian Duensing 24th
RP – Craig Kimbrel 10th
RP – Joakim Soria 4th
SP – Brandon Morrow 8th
SP – Adam Wainwright 23rd
RP – Ryan Madson 18th
RP – Chris Sale 16th
This was about as good a draft I could have hoped for. Better even than I thought possible. The one glaring flaw that my team will have is a ton of K's among the hitters. Between Alvarez, Uribe, Dunn and Pena we're talking close to 800 or 900 k's. That's not good.
However my offense has tons of power. It could be a lot of fun to watch.
This league I really concentrated on getting guys that I've either always wanted to own, guys I've always owned or guys that I really like this season. I tried to do that in both leagues, but the first draft is always the hardest to navigate.
Chooch I wanted to own on at least one team this season, and this was the team. I also love the fact that I have a Choo and a Chooch on the team.
I've always wanted to own Brian Roberts if he was healthy…and I saw Carlos Pena win a few weeks for people last season. I think he's going to be ridiculous at Wrigley Field!
Guys that are in either league with me know which guys always end up on my teams. Back in the day it was a Mark McLemore. These days it's Adam Dunn, Michael Young, Ubaldo Jimenez and Choo always seem to end up on one team or another.
But this year I really wanted to own Youkilis and I got him. I also like Adam Jones and Martin Prado quite a bit so I went with them as well.
My pitching in the CBS 3 league could end up being even better than the BF2 league because I got Morrow and Garza later than I should have.
I got trapped into taking Juan Uribe because I was desperate for a short stop, but he ends up being a pretty decent player for me because he has multiple position eligibility.
Manny Ramirez is a total guess but he could be good for some good first half numbers.
I also did a much better job on my bullpen with this team. I always have wanted to own the "Mexicutioner" Joakim Soria. And Craig Kimbrel is probably going to end up being the closer of the future for the Braves. His K to BB rate is absolutely insane…so I took the chance.
Now some people may look and see that I drafted Adam Wainwright, and yes I know he's hurt. Anybody in either league that you draft from the 16th round on you have control of for 4 years as long as you keep them on your roster.
When I saw that my team was turning out pretty good, I took a shot on Wainwright in the 23rd. I'll stash him away and play a roster spot short all season and have an ace ready to go next season.
CBS 3 is a better team for me than the BF2, that much seems pretty clear to me…but both teams have the chance to end up being pretty good. Tell me what you think!
Back to normal writings from here on out folks!
Follow me on Twitter @TheAndyWheeler
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