It’s that time again. 16 teams entered the live online draft for the BaseballGB Fantasy League. Here’s what happened round-by-round in the draft last Friday night, alongside a review of the resulting rosters.
Arriving about half an hour before the draft started, I found my Orpington Isotopes were picking 9th out of 16. Could have been better, but could have been worse. After consulting my mock drafts (I did three, picking early, middle and late) I began jotting down a few notes for the opening rounds. I was hoping Hanley Ramirez would make it to me. If he didn’t, I’d go for the next best hitter available. I was grateful Hanley made it to me as I was able to fill the tricky SS position straight away.
The only minor surprise in round one was Kershaw going fourth overall to Bits & Bytes, ahead of McCutchen. As a Dodger fan, it would have been tough to pass up on Kershaw had I been picking earlier, but I always try to get a bat first. Still, if you are going to take a pitcher, you take the best.
The Mighty Slugs and London Bananas end up with nice combos, with Gomez and Fielder a speed and power mix for the Slugs while London fills two tough positions in SS and CF with Tulo and Ellsbury. Darvish is the second SP to go, followed by Strasburg and, surprisingly, Tanaka. If the new Yankee turns into the next Darvish, this pick will look very good, but personally I wouldn’t want Tanaka as my ace if more established pitchers (Wainwright, Verlander, Price, King Felix) are available, but if he has a great rookie season, fair enough.
I think about taking Wainwright with my second pick, but looking further down the list, I’m confident there will still be an ace available in round three, so I happily grab Puig here to fill CF. I have taken two boom or bust type players early, but the thought of those two in my lineup is hard for this Dodger fan to resist. I had considered Longoria here as 3B is a bit of a problem position after the top names go.
The brilliantly named Jesmond Dennings kick off round three with a punt on Pujols, while there is a run on starters. Matt nabs Scherzer, while Lee, Jose Fernandez and MadBum all go in succession. That leaves me with a choice of Verlander, Price and Sale, so I opt for the Tiger. Â The RBIs cause a surprise with the pick of Granderson. If he’s healthy, he provides pop at CF, but with Marte and Choo still available, I’d have gone for them and kept Grandy up my sleeve for later on in the draft.
I really like the Marte pick here by the Bananas. He put up great numbers last year, but still doesn’t seem to get the credit he deserves, what with being a Pirates and playing alongside the excellent McCutchen. More shortstops fly off the board, as Segura, Reyes and Desmond go, while Kimbrel is the first closer selected, being drafted by Enfield. I’ll worry about saves later, as I’m thinking about my next hitter.
I’d highlighted Zimmerman, Holliday, Ortiz and Adrian Gonzalez for this round, hoping one of them would make it to me. Much to my surprise, Alex Rios was still available when it was my turn, so I happily nabbed his power/speed combination. My mouse did hover over Greinke for a bit, but Rios was too good to pass up.
I was hoping to get a second starter this round, and my hopes were raised when Gerrit Cole was still around, only to see the Super Sox beat me to him. It would have been great to get Cole, but Jordan Zimmermann is not a bad alternative. We start to see a couple more closers go, while there is a mini-run on CFs with Heyward, Hamilton and Gardner. It’s hard to know what to expect from Billy, as he has lightning speed, but will he hit enough to be able to swipe bases? The Gardner pick is a surprise too. as good a player as he is, he is a bit one-dimensional, and would probably have been available much later in the draft. If I’d needed a CF at this point, I’d have gambled on Kemp or Josh Hamilton.
The problem position of 3B one I need to fill sooner rather than later and I wonder if Carlos Santana, switching positions to 3B, will make it to me. The Riverkings step in, so it leaves me with a choice of three: Machado, Alvarez and Sandoval. Alvarez has the best pop by far, but the low average is off-putting. I opt for Machado and hope he can fully recover from his injury last year. Alvarez goes with the very next pick. Beck ‘Nams and Iron Men gamble of healthier and more productive seasons from Kemp and Hamilton, while six of the 16 picks in this round were SPs.
Pitching dominates the start of round seven, with six hurlers taken at the start of the round – nine in a row overall – and I start to think about getting a closer. Romo is the best available, so I grab the Giant. Had I not already filled two outfield spots, I’d have been very tempted to go with Werth here, so tip of the hat to the Bananas. I like the picks of Fister and Beltran here – Carlos should enjoy the short porch at Yankee Stadium.
First base is a bit of a hole in my team. With it being a deep position, I was prepared to wait to get one but feel I really need one this round, especially with Butler and Abreu going. Belt, Rizzo and Adams are all available, as is Victor Martinez. I’m really tempted to grab Wacha, but stop myself and do what I hope is the sensible thing, hoping Belt can build on a strong finish to 2013. Rosario and Gyorko, two other hitters I had on my wish list for the next round, are snapped up by Norwich and Northfleet while Batteries Essential takes Wacha. The gamble on Hart by the RBIs could lead to big power numbers, but considering Hart missed all of 2013, I wouldn’t have taken him quite this early.
My wish list shrinks even more this round as I see Phillips, McCann and Soriano all taken. I consider going for a second closer but it seems a bit early and there are still plenty of options left which I’d accept as a second reliever. The best hitters available are both outfielders, so I weigh up Cruz and Brown and hope Nelson enjoys hitting at Camden Yards. Northfleet make a nice pick with Gray, while it’s interesting to see a set-up reliever in Clippard drafted ahead of closers. The RBIs get a nice power boost at SS with Hardy, while another JJ groans after drafting Medlen, only to learn afterwards of his injury problems.
I’m surprised Rafael Soriano is still available when it’s my turn in round 10 and, although I didn’t plan on getting two closers this early, it seems too good an opportunity to pass up even though I had been very tempted with Cueto. Enfield goes early for holds again, adding Melancon, while Norwich cause a surprise with Brad Miller. Desmond Jenning is drafted, but not by Jesmond Dennings.
Johnny Cueto’s name had been hanging around at the top of the rankings for a while, and just when I think he’ll make it to me the Super Sox nab him. I switch to filling the gap at 2B with Utley. His 30HR days may be behind him, but if he can hit 18HR again this year, I’ll happily take that from a 2B. Northfleet take the 30HR power of Moss, while more middle infielders are taken: Castro, Cabrera, Lowrie and Johnny Peralta. I start planning ahead for a third starter, but Weaver and Kuroda go…
… as do Masterson, Lynn, Sabathia and Burnett. Fortunately my target of Archer is available, so I waste little him in adding him to my rotation. Garza, Dickey and Santana go soon after in a pitching heavy round. Will Victor Martinez make it to me in the next round to fill my UT spot?
Northfleet nab V-Mart, which gives me a headache in this round. I had planned on waiting for a catcher until late on, but decide on going for Wieters’ power here, even if the average makes me wince a bit. Maybe Jason Castro would have been the better choice, but he is grabbed by the Mighty Slugs. Corbin is drafted by Jesmond, although since the draft he has been ruled out with injury. We see some gambles taken on older players (Teixeira and Howard) while the Riverkings go for Castellanos, who will add 3B eligibility and hit somewhere in the middle of the Detroit lineup.
I still have a gap at UT to fill, but no-one really stands out at this point in the draft. I know from doing my mocks there are later-round options which I can live with, so rather than reaching down the list of hitters now, I decide to add to my rotation. I’ve no idea which Ubaldo I’ll get this year, but I like him as my fourth starter. Three more catchers (Ramos, Gattis and Gomes) are drafted, Norwich takes a flier of Houston rookie Springer and Enfield adds Alex Guerrero, who has 2B and SS eligibility, but will likely start the season in the minors. The fielding may need work, but he can hit.
Seven relievers are drafted this round, but I decide to add to my rotation again, taking AJ Griffin… only to find out he’s picked up an injury, news which only broke a short time before the draft started and which passed me by. Hopefully it will not be a long-term injury, but he will not be ready to start the season. Still, at least it’s only a 15th round pick for a fifth starter. Pierzynski’s a nice value pick here for Jesmond. The Bananas take Beachy, who is also hurt, while Batteries Essential nab a 2B I really like in Walker. Another Walker, Seattle prospect Taijuan, is added by the Slugs.
The Slugs then add another promising young arm in Yordano Ventura. I can’t ignore the UT hole any more, so opt for Nava here. This leaves me needing a bench hitter, a starter and two set-up relievers with my remaining picks. Northfleet and Jesmond get good value picks with Gallardo and Tillman.
It’s no surprise to see plenty of pitching in round 17 as teams fill out their rotations and grab set-up relievers. Hawkins, who will start the year as Coloradio’s closer, is nabbed by Jesmond, proving you can wait for saves until the very late rounds. I go for Brian Wilson, who will be Jansen’s set-up man. Hopefully this will mean plenty of holds and the odd save should Jansen need a day off.
I think about adding my final starter here, particularly Hudson, but there are a number of SPs on my list I would happily take, so I decide to wait and grab the next reliever I’d targeted in Doolittle. Iron Men grab Colon, who should enjoy life in the Mets’ spacious stadium against NL lineups, while Roark could be an inspired pick by Enfield if he clings on to his spot in the Washington rotation. Eaton and Rasmus are nice late-round CF options.
Ibanez had been on my list for my bench hitter, but is grabbed by Bits & Bytes. I decide to go for Carter’s power, although his low average is a concern. Hopefully between him and Nava I can have a workable platoon at UT. The Angels grab the Cards’ top prospect in Taveras, Matt should enjoy seeing Davis run wild in Detroit and Norwich take Avisail Garcia, an intriguing hitter. I’d like to see what he can do over a full season.
In the final round I get my sixth start in Leake, who I think is underrated in the Yahoo rankings. There’s a mix of veterans (Morneau, Byrd, Quentin, Pagan) and rookies (Paxton, Baez and Wong).
On the Orpington Isotopes
Overall, I’m pretty happy with my team. I don’t have the big power hitters you would expect at the infield corners, but there’s extra pop in the middle infield. I really like my outfield and the top of the rotation. The rest of the rotation could go either way, especially Ubaldo, and then there’s the Griffin injury to deal with. But the bullpen looks solid.
On the rest of the field
Here are my thoughts on the other teams:
Jesmond Dennings: Picking first can be a blessing and a curse, but a very strong batting lineup with nice blend of youth, experience, speed and power. Pitching staff may be lacking a true ace and could use a set-up reliever or two, but a very good effort.
Cheddar Chasers: Very strong infield and the outfield’s pretty good too. If Tex is back to his old self, they’re in business. Strong overall pitching staff, could get stronger if Hunter claims the Baltimore closer role.
Northfleet Knights: Very solid across the board offensively. Pitching staff needs wins from Shields and saves from Soria. If they get them, look out.
Bits & Bytes: Two top aces and two closers make the pitching staff high in quality if not quantity. Lineup may be lacking power, as only one player hit 30+ HR last year.
Norwich No II: Plenty of pop with seven 20+ HR players and strong outfield. Not sure about Miller at SS. Two top closers in Chapman and Jansen, but roation lacking a true ace.
Angels Of Ash Vale: Strong pitching staff led by two aces. Lack of power may be an issue but there is good speed.
Batteries Essential: Going for young arms at the top of the rotation. Will need to add rotation depth. Lineup of mashers and a couple of speedsters. Average may suffer.
Weston Super Sox: Pretty solid across the board. Average may be a problem, but decent power and speed. Strong roation and closers, but more pitching depth and set-up relievers needed. Plenty of batting trade bait in the bench.
Richie’s RBIs: A lot of gambles here. Need Hart, Josh Johnson and Granderson to be healthy and Tanaka to be worth early pick. 3B needs an upgrade and rotation depth may be an issue.
Iron Men: Pretty steady across the board. Like the outfield. Will hope for more power from Josh Hamilton and Abreu. Decent pitching depth.
NE Riverkings: Strong rotation, power spread amongst lineup but maybe lacking 30HR bat.
Beck ‘Nams: Really good rotation depth despite Medlen injury. Bullpen needs some work, but can use SP surplus as trade bait. Lineup fairly steady. Could be really boosted by a healthy Kemp.
Enfield Butchers: Lineup should compete for good average. Need a 2B or SS until Guerrero arrives. Bullpen strong, but may regret taking two closers and two set-up men early in draft.
London Bananas: Really solid lineup could look even better if Howard rebounds. Speed to burn with Ellsbury/Marte combo in strong outfield. Injury to Parker to contend with, but rotation and bullpen still strong. Very good effort from 15th in draft order.
Mighty Slugs: Power impressively spread throughout lineup and should be strong contenders in average too. Pitching staff maybe lacking top-tier ace but decent enough depth. Just the one closer.
As the new season begins, so does my weekly round-up of the games scheduled to begin before midnight U.K. time.
