2011 Draft Results: Middle Infielders Targeted

Draft Results

Second base and shortstop continue to be shallow positions in fantasy baseball, with the upper tiers separating themselves from the middle and (God forbid) lower tiers pretty drastically. Only 16 positionally eligible players (9 2B; 7 SS) rank in the top 100, according to MockDraftCentral.com. So if you miss out on some of the upper-to-middle tier players, you could find yourself in a whole mess of trouble filling those roster slots all season long with whatever player is available on waivers and providing some level of fantasy value in return.

All five leagues I participated in this offseason utilized an extra roster spot for either middle infielders (MI) or infielder (IF), forcing team owners to go even deeper into this pool of players and hoping the ones they picked do more good than damage to their teams.

First, here are the results of my SLOW, online auction at the 2B, SS and MI positions over at CouchManagers.com:

• Troy Tulowitzki ($39)
• Neil Walker ($5)
• Freddy Sanchez ($1)

I was aggressively involved in the bidding for both Hanley Ramirez and Tulowitzki until Ramirez went over the $40 mark and Tulo's other suitors seemed reluctant to take him into the $40 stratosphere. Honestly, if I was willing to go to $41 on a player it wouldn't have been Tulo. I was ready to jump back in on HanRam or change my focus towards Pujols and take it all the way up to $50. With Tulo on my roster to start the season, I'm a very happy camper.

Neil Walker was a definite target of mine and I was happily surprised he flew under the radar for just $5. But more on him in a bit. Freddy Sanchez was simply filler at the MI position that will hopefully hit near his .298 career average and give me 7-10 home runs.



Let's take a look at the players I was able to draft in each of my online snake draft leagues (draft pick in parenthesis):

• Dustin Pedroia (25), Elvis Andrus (72), Neil Walker (144), Yunel Escobar (192) and Miguel Tejada (289)
• Brandon Phillips (51), Stephen Drew (107) and Omar Infante (247)
• Derek Jeter (64), Aaron Hill (105) and Ty Wigginton (301)
• Elvis Andrus (78) and Neil Walker (162)

The Second Basemen: Dustin Pedroia was the guy I wanted in every league but was only able to pull off owning him in one. I'm very anxious to see the kind of numbers he can put up in that revamped, powerful Red Sox lineup. Brandon Phillips was a pick that I didn't want to make but his ADP on MockDraftCentral.com is currently 36.82 and getting his projected .270/90/20/80/20 at a +14 draft difference was too hard to pass up. Aaron Hill should give me 20 HR/70 RBI but with what batting average? Greater or less than .250? Neil Walker was my backup plan to missing out on Pedroia and that worked out for me in three of five leagues. A full season in the bigs could produce a .280/80/15/90/10.

The Shortstops: Somehow I wound up drafting Elvis Andrus twice without even trying. He was on my radar for runs and stolen bases and was too hard to pass up. I'm hoping his average stays near .280, though. Andrus was not my primary target as shortstop, though. I really wanted Jose Reyes in as many leagues as possible because I was banking on a return to fantasy dominance in this, the ever so important "contract year". Derek Jeter was another target of mine, despite the lack of confidence the fantasy baseball community seems to have in his abilities. We're talking about a player in a "down year" (in 2010) batting .270 and scoring 111 runs and just one season removed from batting .334 (in 2009). He may not be an MVP candidate but there's nothing stopping him from being a top 5 shortstop. Stephen Drew was a panic pick for me because there was a run on shortstops and I got caught up in the action. I'm already regretting it because he's yet to make an appearance this season due to injury and I'm stuck scrounging through waivers for a body to plug in.

The Backups: Omar Infante (2B/3B/OF) and Ty Wigginton (1B/2B/3B) were both targeted for their position eligibilities. If your league has a max games limit, having players on your roster that can fill in a game here and there for your stars will maximize your scoring opportunities. Yunel Escobar played better in 2010 after his trade to the Blue Jays and could be in line for a nice bounce-back season. Miguel Tejada (3B/SS) could benefit offensively from playing on a team that is expected to win a lot of games and, at pick 289, there's very little risk. I don't expect to keep both Escobar and Tejada on the same roster for very long. I'll keep whichever starts off hottest.

Going into a draft with a plan is great, especially for the more shallow roster positions like the middle infielders, but things can change very quickly and knowing when to hold steady, reach for a player or hit the panic button can make a huge difference to overall look of your roster.

What strategies did you use when it came to drafting players that qualified at the middle infielder positions? What unique settings does your league have in place that made some players more favorable than others? Do you change strategies based on a classic rotisserie league versus a head-to-head scoring league? Please feel free to comment on my players or share your personal experiences when looking back on your draft(s) outcomes.

COSFBA League Member Blogs About His Draft Experience

Draft Results

While recruiting members for the three COSFBA-sponsored fantasy baseball leagues I decided to run this year, I looked to Twitter and baseball blogs (large and small) for participants. Once someone agreed to join, I offered them the opportunity to blog about their experiences within the leagues. John Venrick joined the COSFBA Blog/Twitter League III and decided to write an article about his draft. John is on Twitter and has his own personal blog. Enjoy!

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I was recently invited to a league by the author of this website, and I jumped at the opportunity, thinking that regardless of how the league went, it would be nice to make tangible connections in the community. I have in the past made comments about preferring roto leagues to head to head leagues, but I do like the head to head leagues like this where categories are scored, and it allows for playoffs if you are into that. It would be nice to say that I looked for consistency given the weekly matchups, but I think that tends to be something of a crapshoot.

It's a 10x10 league with OPS, XBH, RC, BB, and TB as extra batting categories and on the pitching side we lose K's but gain K/9, K/BB, BAA, QS, OBA, and HD. On the batting side of things, I thought that there was greater value in power (though I did still try to compete in steals), and as the pitching goes I tried to get high K guys and focus more on Holds than Saves as I think people tend to forget they have equal value in a league that scores both (plus your hold guys might get you the occasional save here or there). Before I dive in to the nuts and bolts of the draft itself, one last thing I would say is that I was impressed about the turnout given that it is an online draft. I don't remember what teams were on autodraft, so that won't make it into my analysis.

Round: 1
(1) BEONDECK Tweets - Albert Pujols 1B
(2) MLB Dirt - Hanley Ramirez SS
(3) Team E - Evan Longoria 3B
(4) Generic generics - Robinson Cano 2B
(5) Fantasy Farm System - Carl Crawford LF
(6) The Outfield Grass - Adrian Gonzalez 1B
(7) COSFBA NitTwits - Ryan Braun LF
(8) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Joey Votto 1B
(9) Team Kranepool Socie - Troy Tulowitzki SS
(10) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Miguel Cabrera 1B
(11) NY VENOM - Jose Reyes SS
(12) Double G Sports - Carlos Gonzalez LF
(13) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Roy Halladay SP
(14) Team DeSando - Josh Hamilton CF
*****
My thinking here was that there would be plenty of opportunities to grab an outfielder, but second base is not very deep, and really my thinking was that I was hoping to grab Evan Longoria. I was surprised to see Votto go ahead of Cabrera, though I might have made that call as well. I hate the Reyes pick. He won't be on any of my teams, and he certainly wouldn't be my first pick. I don't know if I would have taken Cano in a 10 team league, as Pedroia would likely be available in round 3 of a league that size, but I was not confident of such here.



Round: 2
(15) Team DeSando - Felix Hernandez SP
(16) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Kevin Youkilis 1B
(17) Double G Sports - Mark Teixeira 1B
(18) NY VENOM - Tim Lincecum SP
(19) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Matt Holliday LF
(20) Team Kranepool Socie - David Wright 3B
(21) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Matt Kemp CF
(22) COSFBA NitTwits - Alex Rodriguez 3B
(23) The Outfield Grass - Jon Lester SP
(24) Fantasy Farm System - Cliff Lee SP
(25) Generic generics - Ryan Zimmerman 3B
(26) Team E - CC Sabathia SP
(27) MLB Dirt - Nelson Cruz RF
(28) BEONDECK Tweets - Prince Fielder 1B
*****
I thought here that if I didn't grab Zimmerman I was going to regret it, once again due to position scarcity. I also think Zimmerman is going to be a stud. I feel like 26 is early for Sabathia though I was surprised to see pitching was going a bit earlier than I was expecting it to. I like David Wright at 20 quite a bit, not very much into Teixeira at all. I understand last year was a down year overall, but he always starts slow and not putting it together at all seems to be a risk.

Round: 3
(29) BEONDECK Tweets - Dustin Pedroia 2B
(30) MLB Dirt - Shin-Soo Choo RF
(31) Team E - Adrian Beltre 3B
(32) Generic generics - Andrew McCutchen CF
(33) Fantasy Farm System - Joe Mauer C
(34) The Outfield Grass - Ryan Howard 1B
(35) COSFBA NitTwits - Adam Dunn 1B
(36) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Justin Verlander SP
(37) Team Kranepool Socie - Mat Latos SP
(38) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Justin Upton RF
(39) NY VENOM - Buster Posey C
(40) Double G Sports - Jason Heyward RF
(41) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Ian Kinsler 2B
(42) Team DeSando - Dan Uggla 2B
*****
Here I was thinking that I should start getting some steals, though I briefly considered changing gears once Choo went off the board and trying to get a ton of power (with Dunn being my target), but I decided that balance would be the way to go. I also like Upton in this round. Even without the injury uncertianty, Latos went too early, and Ian Kinsler sucks. I would have loved to have ended up with Dan Uggla, and had I been thinking of him when I made my first round pick, I would have gone about it differently. Braun and Uggla seems better to me than Cano and McCutchen or Upton.

Round: 4
(43) Team DeSando - Clayton Kershaw SP
(44) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Tommy Hanson SP
(45) Double G Sports - Chris Carpenter SP
(46) NY VENOM - Justin Morneau 1B
(47) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Jayson Werth RF
(48) Team Kranepool Socie - Matt Wieters C
(49) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Jacoby Ellsbury CF
(50) COSFBA NitTwits - Jose Bautista 3B
(51) The Outfield Grass - Billy Butler 1B
(52) Fantasy Farm System - Ichiro Suzuki RF
(53) Generic generics - Dan Haren SP
(54) Team E - Victor Martinez C
(55) MLB Dirt - Alex Rios CF
(56) BEONDECK Tweets - Hunter Pence RF
*****
This pick seemed got a reaction from some of the people in the room, because I did reach a bit. I like Haren to be my ace because he tends to go a bit late and usually produces elite whip and K numbers, and last year he had a nice second half, which tends to be what people like the least about him. I like grabbing Haren here more than I like spending one of my earlier offense picks on someone slightly better. The difference between Haren and Halladay is not as great as the difference between one of the first round hitting talents and Jayson Werth, just to pull a random name. That being said, I do like the Werth pick here, and I like Bautista a bit as well. I would be very worried about Morneau.

Round: 5
(57) BEONDECK Tweets - Brian McCann C
(58) MLB Dirt - Brandon Phillips 2B
(59) Team E - Ubaldo Jimenez SP
(60) Generic generics - Jay Bruce RF
(61) Fantasy Farm System - Chase Utley 2B
(62) The Outfield Grass - Jered Weaver SP
(63) COSFBA NitTwits - Shane Victorino CF
(64) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Cole Hamels SP
(65) Team Kranepool Socie - Andre Ethier RF
(66) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Zack Greinke SP
(67) NY VENOM - B.J. Upton CF
(68) Double G Sports - Josh Johnson SP
(69) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Mike Stanton RF
(70) Team DeSando - David Price SP
*****
I needed an outfielder, and I think that Jay Bruce is going to have a breakout year, though it was hard to pass up Weaver. There is no way I take Stanton where he went. If McCann falls to 60, I probably grab him. He's really the first catcher I really consider grabbing, and honestly I am more looking towards someone like Soto or Montero most of the time.

Round: 6
(71) Team DeSando - Derek Jeter SS
(72) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Martin Prado 2B
(73) Double G Sports - Curtis Granderson CF
(74) NY VENOM - Matt Cain SP
(75) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Aramis Ramirez 3B
(76) Team Kranepool Socie - Ike Davis 1B
(77) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Aaron Hill 2B
(78) COSFBA NitTwits - Elvis Andrus SS
(79) The Outfield Grass - Carlos Santana C
(80) Fantasy Farm System - Kendry Morales 1B
(81) Generic generics - Paul Konerko 1B
(82) Team E - Brian Wilson RP
(83) MLB Dirt - Michael Young 3B
(84) BEONDECK Tweets - Rickie Weeks 2B
*****
I knew I needed power from my 1b slot, and I wasn't wanting to settle for the likes of Derek Lee. This seemed like as good a round as any for closers to start going. I don't like the Michael Young pick, I would rather wait and take the risk for someone like Mark Reynolds. I am a huge fan of Aaron Hill, the most unlucky player in baseball last year. Crazy unlucky. I also don't like Jeter here or at all. Why are people so certain that a 37 year old with declining skills is going to have a bounce back year in any regard?

Round: 7
(85) BEONDECK Tweets - Jimmy Rollins SS
(86) MLB Dirt - Heath Bell RP
(87) Team E - Chris Young CF
(88) Generic generics - Carlos Marmol RP
(89) Fantasy Farm System - Joakim Soria RP
(90) The Outfield Grass - Roy Oswalt SP
(91) COSFBA NitTwits - Drew Stubbs CF
(92) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Nick Swisher RF
(93) Team Kranepool Socie - Gordon Beckham 2B
(94) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Alexei Ramirez SS
(95) NY VENOM - Mariano Rivera RP
(96) Double G Sports - Yovani Gallardo SP
(97) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Delmon Young LF
(98) Team DeSando - Max Scherzer SP

Round: 8
(99) Team DeSando - Colby Rasmus CF
(100) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Wandy Rodriguez SP
(101) Double G Sports - Corey Hart RF
(102) NY VENOM - Francisco Liriano SP
(103) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Ben Zobrist 2B
(104) Team Kranepool Socie - Craig Kimbrel RP
(105) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Matt Thornton RP
(106) COSFBA NitTwits - Adam Lind DH
(107) The Outfield Grass - Michael Bourn CF
(108) Fantasy Farm System - Casey McGehee 3B
(109) Generic generics - Ted Lilly SP
(110) Team E - Chad Billingsley SP
(111) MLB Dirt - Kelly Johnson 2B
(112) BEONDECK Tweets - Brett Gardner CF
*****
I grabbed Marmol here because I thought if I am going to get a closer now I am going to get the one who could get a crazy elite K/9, and Lilly gets some K's along with another elite whip guy which allows for the possibility to go for high K guys with more questionable control later. I like Thornton from a ratio perspective, he's a closer I would be happy to have in most instances, and Kelly Johnson seems like a nice value. Stubbs could be 30/30 (not that I think he will be), so that's another nice pick. I would rather have Alexi Ramirez than Jeter at any slot. These two rounds seemed to have a lot of nice picks, also digging McGehee here. Would much rather have him than Young.

Round: 9
(113) BEONDECK Tweets - Francisco Rodriguez RP
(114) MLB Dirt - Stephen Drew SS
(115) Team E - Carlos Quentin RF
(116) Generic generics - Aubrey Huff 1B
(117) Fantasy Farm System - Torii Hunter CF
(118) The Outfield Grass - Juan Pierre LF
(119) COSFBA NitTwits - Neftali Feliz RP
(120) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Angel Pagan CF
(121) Team Kranepool Socie - John Axford RP
(122) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Bobby Abreu RF
(123) NY VENOM - Pablo Sandoval 3B
(124) Double G Sports - Geovany Soto C
(125) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Rafael Furcal SS
(126) Team DeSando - Pedro Alvarez 3B

Round: 10
(127) Team DeSando - Shaun Marcum SP
(128) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Carlos Ruiz C
(129) Double G Sports - Jonathan Broxton RP
(130) NY VENOM - Vernon Wells CF
(131) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Miguel Montero C
(132) Team Kranepool Socie - Trevor Cahill SP
(133) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Clay Buchholz SP
(134) COSFBA NitTwits - Tim Hudson SP
(135) The Outfield Grass - Jonathan Papelbon RP
(136) Fantasy Farm System - Joe Nathan RP
(137) Generic generics - Adam Jones CF
(138) Team E - Brett Anderson SP
(139) MLB Dirt - Matt Garza SP
(140) BEONDECK Tweets - Hiroki Kuroda SP
*****
These two rounds were frustrating. I wanted Stephen Drew at 116, and he went two picks before I could snag him, and I thought one of Soto or Montero would make it back to me at 137. I think Jones and Huff will be fine, but I was hoping to fill different needs. Arrgh. I like Papelbon less than Nathan even with the injury in the equation. Garza has had an awful spring and I would be worried about him (and as a Cubs fan I am anyway).

Round: 11
(141) BEONDECK Tweets - John Danks SP
(142) MLB Dirt - Adam LaRoche 1B
(143) Team E - J.J. Putz RP
(144) Generic generics - Ian Desmond SS
(145) Fantasy Farm System - Vladimir Guerrero DH
(146) The Outfield Grass - David Ortiz DH
(147) COSFBA NitTwits - Jonathan Sanchez SP
(148) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Starlin Castro SS
(149) Team Kranepool Socie - Josh Beckett SP
(150) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Carlos Lee LF
(151) NY VENOM - Daniel Hudson SP
(152) Double G Sports - Alcides Escobar SS
(153) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Andrew Bailey RP
(154) Team DeSando - Nick Markakis RF

Round: 12
(155) Team DeSando - Carlos Pena 1B
(156) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Austin Jackson CF
(157) Double G Sports - Howard Kendrick 2B
(158) NY VENOM - Chris Perez RP
(159) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Brian Roberts 2B
(160) Team Kranepool Socie - Ryan Raburn LF
(161) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Mark Reynolds 3B
(162) COSFBA NitTwits - Neil Walker 2B
(163) The Outfield Grass - Chone Figgins 2B
(164) Fantasy Farm System - Colby Lewis SP
(165) Generic generics - Huston Street RP
(166) Team E - Jeremy Hellickson SP
(167) MLB Dirt - Rajai Davis CF
(168) BEONDECK Tweets - Ian Stewart 3B

Round: 13
(169) BEONDECK Tweets - Brett Myers SP
(170) MLB Dirt - Brandon Morrow SP
(171) Team E - Derrek Lee 1B
(172) Generic generics - Ryan Dempster SP
(173) Fantasy Farm System - Jhoulys Chacin SP
(174) The Outfield Grass - Jose Valverde RP
(175) COSFBA NitTwits - Gaby Sanchez 1B
(176) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Francisco Cordero RP
(177) Team Kranepool Socie - Rick Ankiel CF
(178) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Ricky Nolasco SP
(179) NY VENOM - Grady Sizemore CF
(180) Double G Sports - Chase Headley 3B
(181) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Ryan Franklin RP
(182) Team DeSando - Daniel Bard RP
*****
Danks is a good pick here, and I like Pena's power at 155, particularly if one can absorb the avg risk. I needed a SS, and I don't feel too good about missing on Drew. Hopefully Desmond can be decent. Street was going to be my last closer, and I didn't want to add someone like Cordero or Kevin Gregg with their whip issues. Dempster gets me nice K's, and a fine ERA, with a whip that won't kill me. I wouldn't be inclined to grabbing Sizemore, but that pick looks good compared to Ankiel just a couple of picks before.

Round: 14
(183) Team DeSando - Manny Ramirez LF
(184) Juuuust A Bit Outside - C.J. Wilson SP
(185) Double G Sports - Phil Hughes SP
(186) NY VENOM - Johnny Cueto SP
(187) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Brian Matusz SP
(188) Team Kranepool Socie - Edinson Volquez SP
(189) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Rafael Soriano RP
(190) COSFBA NitTwits - Michael Cuddyer RF
(191) The Outfield Grass - Mike Napoli C
(192) Fantasy Farm System - Erick Aybar SS
(193) Generic generics - Travis Snider LF
(194) Team E - Jason Bay LF
(195) MLB Dirt - Madison Bumgarner SP
(196) BEONDECK Tweets - Sean Rodriguez 2B

Round: 15
(197) BEONDECK Tweets - Andres Torres CF
(198) MLB Dirt - Jaime Garcia SP
(199) Team E - Asdrubal Cabrera SS
(200) Generic generics - Jordan Zimmermann SP
(201) Fantasy Farm System - Ricky Romero SP
(202) The Outfield Grass - Mitch Moreland 1B
(203) COSFBA NitTwits - Ian Kennedy SP
(204) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Kurt Suzuki C
(205) Team Kranepool Socie - Michael Pineda SP
(206) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Bronson Arroyo SP
(207) NY VENOM - Carlos Beltran CF
(208) Double G Sports - Jair Jurrjens SP
(209) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Brad Lidge RP
(210) Team DeSando - J.P. Arencibia C

Round: 16
(211) Team DeSando - Gio Gonzalez SP
(212) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Joel Pineiro SP
(213) Double G Sports - James Loney 1B
(214) NY VENOM - Omar Infante 2B
(215) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Jon Garland SP
(216) Team Kranepool Socie - Bill Hall 2B
(217) Jim Joyce's Eyes - A.J. Burnett SP
(218) COSFBA NitTwits - Joel Hanrahan RP
(219) The Outfield Grass - Lance Berkman 1B
(220) Fantasy Farm System - Edwin Encarnacion 3B
(221) Generic generics - Tsuyoshi Nishioka 2B
(222) Team E - Drew Storen RP
(223) MLB Dirt - Luke Scott DH
(224) BEONDECK Tweets - Placido Polanco 3B
*****
More frustration. CJ Wilson or Phil Hughes were supposed to fall to me here. Zimmerman in the next round made me feel a little better. Snider should be fine. Napoli is a good pick, especially if he can get up to somewhere around 500 AB. Burnett is terrible, and I want no part of him. Luke Scott is another pick I like.

Round: 17
(225) BEONDECK Tweets - Frank Francisco RP
(226) MLB Dirt - Denard Span CF
(227) Team E - Freddie Freeman 1B
(228) Generic generics - Hong-Chih Kuo RP
(229) Fantasy Farm System - James Shields SP
(230) The Outfield Grass - Jose Lopez 3B
(231) COSFBA NitTwits - Jorge De La Rosa SP
(232) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Marlon Byrd CF
(233) Team Kranepool Socie - Luke Gregerson RP
(234) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Jake McGee RP
(235) NY VENOM - Seth Smith LF
(236) Double G Sports - Jonny Venters RP
(237) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Brandon Lyon RP
(238) Team DeSando - Chipper Jones 3B

Round: 18
(239) Team DeSando - Kevin Gregg RP
(240) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Chris Coghlan LF
(241) Double G Sports - Scott Rolen 3B
(242) NY VENOM - Jose Tabata LF
(243) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Ryan Madson RP
(244) Team Kranepool Socie - John Lackey SP
(245) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Aroldis Chapman RP
(246) COSFBA NitTwits - Rafael Betancourt RP
(247) The Outfield Grass - David Freese 3B
(248) Fantasy Farm System - Dexter Fowler CF
(249) Generic generics - Chris Sale RP
(250) Team E - Leo Nunez RP
(251) MLB Dirt - Yunel Escobar SS
(252) BEONDECK Tweets - Travis Wood SP

Round: 19
(253) BEONDECK Tweets - Jim Thome DH
(254) MLB Dirt - Fernando Rodney RP
(255) Team E - Danny Espinosa 2B
(256) Generic generics - Sergio Romo RP
(257) Fantasy Farm System - Juan Uribe 2B
(258) The Outfield Grass - Hideki Matsui DH
(259) COSFBA NitTwits - Edwin Jackson SP
(260) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Anibal Sanchez SP
(261) Team Kranepool Socie - Chris Capuano SP
(262) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Mike Adams RP
(263) NY VENOM - Wade Davis SP
(264) Double G Sports - Cody Ross CF
(265) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Ty Wigginton 3B
(266) Team DeSando - Jake Westbrook SP
*****
Here is where I wanted to start wrapping up holds. I think I ended up with some nice relievers here. I wish I had thought of Mike Adams. He's a good one. This deep into the draft there aren't a ton of bad picks, but I can't fathom Lackey going before Edwin Jackson, who while inconsistent is also someone with a ton of upside relative to Lackey. Madson is another nice pick here, and Rolen could pay some nice dividends at this point in the draft.

Round: 20
(267) Team DeSando - Tyler Colvin RF
(268) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Ryan Theriot SS
(269) Double G Sports - Ben Francisco LF
(270) NY VENOM - David Aardsma RP
(271) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Chris Iannetta C
(272) Team Kranepool Socie - Reid Brignac SS
(273) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Justin Smoak 1B
(274) COSFBA NitTwits - Matt Capps RP
(275) The Outfield Grass - Raul Ibanez LF
(276) Fantasy Farm System - Jake Peavy SP
(277) Generic generics - James McDonald SP
(278) Team E - Johan Santana SP
(279) MLB Dirt - Brandon League RP
(280) BEONDECK Tweets - Franklin Gutierrez CF

Round: 21
(281) BEONDECK Tweets - Gavin Floyd SP
(282) MLB Dirt - Randy Wolf SP
(283) Team E - Nate McLouth CF
(284) Generic generics - Coco Crisp CF
(285) Fantasy Farm System - Garrett Jones 1B
(286) The Outfield Grass - Matt Joyce RF
(287) COSFBA NitTwits - Brian Fuentes RP
(288) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Matt Guerrier RP
(289) Team Kranepool Socie - Alex Gordon LF
(290) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Evan Meek RP
(291) NY VENOM - Ervin Santana SP
(292) Double G Sports - Joaquin Benoit RP
(293) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Rick Porcello SP
(294) Team DeSando - Grant Balfour RP

Round: 22
(295) Team DeSando - Yadier Molina C
(296) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Nyjer Morgan CF
(297) Double G Sports - Peter Bourjos CF
(298) NY VENOM - Alfonso Soriano LF
(299) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Scott Downs RP
(300) Team Kranepool Socie - Josh Thole C
(301) Jim Joyce's Eyes - J.A. Happ SP
(302) COSFBA NitTwits - Michael Morse RF
(303) The Outfield Grass - Scott Baker SP
(304) Fantasy Farm System - Dallas Braden SP
(305) Generic generics - John Buck C
(306) Team E - Mike Aviles 2B
(307) MLB Dirt - Johnny Damon LF
(308) BEONDECK Tweets - Alexi Ogando RP

Round: 23
(309) BEONDECK Tweets - Octavio Dotel RP
(310) MLB Dirt - Jason Kubel RF
(311) Team E - Magglio Ordonez RF
(312) Generic generics - Carlos Zambrano SP
(313) Fantasy Farm System - Cameron Maybin CF
(314) The Outfield Grass - Javier Vazquez SP
(315) COSFBA NitTwits - Russell Martin C
(316) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Bobby Jenks RP
(317) Team Kranepool Socie - Kila Ka'aihue 1B
(318) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Logan Morrison LF
(319) NY VENOM - Marco Scutaro SS
(320) Double G Sports - Juan Rivera LF
(321) Juuuust A Bit Outside - A.J. Pierzynski C
(322) Team DeSando - J.J. Hardy SS
*****
I needed some more starting pitching, and McDonald has nice upside while if I get the Zambrano from the second half of last year I am set. I like Hardy at this spot, but thought I needed the pitching more. I like Crisp, and Buck is fine considering I took my catcher at 305. I don't trust Russell Martin at all, as someone who has owned him in the past couple of years, and I wonder if Pierzynski is going to last the year as the starter. I like Scott Baker this late, and a flier on Ogando seems like a good move too.

Round: 24
(323) Team DeSando - Carlos Gomez CF
(324) Juuuust A Bit Outside - David Murphy LF
(325) Double G Sports - Julio Borbon CF
(326) NY VENOM - Domonic Brown RF
(327) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Josh Willingham LF
(328) Team Kranepool Socie - Danny Valencia 3B
(329) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Jhonny Peralta SS
(330) COSFBA NitTwits - Brandon Belt 1B
(331) The Outfield Grass - Kevin Slowey SP
(332) Fantasy Farm System - Miguel Tejada SS
(333) Generic generics - Alexi Casilla 2B
(334) Team E - Jason Bartlett SS
(335) MLB Dirt - Jonny Gomes LF
(336) BEONDECK Tweets - R.A. Dickey SP

Round: 25
(337) BEONDECK Tweets - J.D. Drew RF
(338) MLB Dirt - Kyle Drabek SP
(339) Team E - Pat Burrell LF
(340) Generic generics - Erik Bedard SP
(341) Fantasy Farm System - Brian Duensing SP
(342) The Outfield Grass - Tim Stauffer RP
(343) COSFBA NitTwits - John Jaso C
(344) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Kevin Kouzmanoff 3B
(345) Team Kranepool Socie - Jorge Posada C
(346) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Brett Cecil SP
(347) NY VENOM - Freddy Sanchez 2B
(348) Double G Sports - Michael Brantley CF
(349) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Mark Buehrle SP
(350) Team DeSando - Felix Pie LF

Round: 26
(351) Team DeSando - Matt LaPorta 1B
(352) Juuuust A Bit Outside - David DeJesus RF
(353) Double G Sports - Mark Lowe RP
(354) NY VENOM - Derek Holland SP
(355) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Bud Norris SP
(356) Team Kranepool Socie - Matt Diaz LF
(357) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Jack Cust DH
(358) COSFBA NitTwits - David Hernandez RP
(359) The Outfield Grass - Carl Pavano SP
(360) Fantasy Farm System - Jay Gibbons LF
(361) Generic generics - Kyle Farnsworth RP
(362) Team E - Yuniesky Betancourt SP
(363) MLB Dirt - Joel Peralta RP
(364) BEONDECK Tweets - Chris Johnson 3B

Round: 27
(365) BEONDECK Tweets - Daric Barton 1B
(366) MLB Dirt - Nick Hundley C
(367) Team E - Brennan Boesch RF
(368) Generic generics - Yorvit Torrealba C
(369) Fantasy Farm System - Brad Hawpe RF
(370) The Outfield Grass - Cliff Pennington SS
(371) COSFBA NitTwits - Aaron Harang SP
(372) Jim Joyce's Eyes - Skip Schumaker 2B
(373) Team Kranepool Socie - Brendan Ryan SS
(374) Fire Eric Bruntlett - Brandon Beachy SP
(375) NY VENOM - Xavier Nady RF
(376) Double G Sports - Kyle McClellan RP
(377) Juuuust A Bit Outside - Todd Helton 1B
(378) Team DeSando - Will Venable RF
*****
Now we are to the last portions of the draft. I actually set up my last few picks and left the room, as I needed to leave, but I got the only players I dragged aside, so I feel good about that. I like Bedard's upside and hope this is the year he finally stays healthy. Farnsworth should provide some back up in case one of my holds guys gets injured. I wanted a second catcher so that I can hopefully always have one who is actually in the lineup on any given day. There isn't really a ton to say about these last few rounds other than I was surprised that the talent went as deep as it did. Barton might not be great, but he's going to play every day and get a decent amount of walks, and Hawpe could put it together. Overall I feel fairly good about this team, and the draft was a good experience. Here are the rosters if you want to check them out: http://games.espn.go.com/flb/leaguerosters?leagueId=60852

2011 Draft Results: First Basemen Targeted

Draft Results

If you are new to the world of fantasy baseball, you should be very aware that first base is traditionally a position of great depth filled with some of the most impactful players. Heading into the 2011 season, this still holds true. MockDraftCentral.com is showing 10 of the top 50 players being drafted currently qualify as first basemen. If your league uses a corner infielder (CI or 1B/3B), extra infielder (IF), designated hitter (DH) or even a utility slot (UTIL) or two, there's a great opportunity to add one or more of these highly coveted players.

I went into all of my drafts having some players within the different tiers of first basemen as targets but draft position was really going to determine who I grabbed in the early rounds and how that would shape my entire roster. I wound up drafting 1st, 6th, 8th and 7th in my four snake drafts which meant three of my four drafts would have a lot of familiar faces...so I thought.

But before getting to the snake draft results, I wanted to talk about my online auction draft, which had me aggressively biding for the players I deemed "must have" and produced some interesting results:

• Adam Dunn, CHW ($30)
• Paul Konerko, CHW ($20)
• Mitch Moreland, TEX ($4)
• Dan Johnson, TB ($1)

I was in on all of the big name first basemen (Pujols, Miggy, AGon, etc) early but wound up bailing when I realized the prices were going to go a lot higher than I was willing to go. That strategy allowed me to focus in on and win such big names as Tulo ($39) and CarGo ($34) and drop down into the next tier of players and outbid everyone for a nice Dunn/Konerko duo to fill my 1B and CI roster slots. Moreland was a definite "sleeper" target while  Johnson was simply a late-round flier to add some possible depth to my bench, IF he wins the starting job in Tampa Bay. There were 390 players drafted in this league, so I fell pretty confident in what I was able to acquire and look forward to putting this plan into action.


Snake drafts definitely allow you to focus in on player tiers a little easier than an auction because most people are choosing from the best available ranked players (minus the ones you know will be autopicked). And here are the results of my four snake drafts for players that currently qualify at first base (draft pick in parenthesis):

• Albert Pujols (1)
• Kevin Youkilis (23), Adam Dunn (34) and Brandon Belt (314)
• Adam Dunn (36), Ike Davis (204) and Brandon Belt (316)
• Adam Dunn (35), Gaby Sanchez (175) and Brandon Belt (330)

Okay, so I may have a man-crush on Adam Dunn. What's not to love about a guy that can crush 40 bombs in his sleep? The possibility of a devastatingly low batting average will always be there but I try to balance that out on my roster with a player that might offset the two categories where Dunn won't help you much these days (batting average and stolen bases). I believe so heavily in this strategy that one of the first fantasy baseball articles I ever had the opportunity to write was titled "Surviving Adam Dunn" in August of 2008.

The league where the only first baseman I drafted was the best one, Pujols, was a lot shallower than the other three and I was able to grab the versatile Michael Young (97) for my CI slot and heavily invest in quality outfielders in the early rounds; Matt Kemp (24), Ichiro Suzuki (48), Jayson Werth (49) and Hunter Pence (73).

Heavily investing three very late-round picks in Brandon Belt ("sleeper"?) seemed worth the upside risk of him becoming this season's Buster Posey. There's still a chance he will break camp with the Giants and receive a ton of playing time but, if not, June could be more realistic for his arrival. Either way, I was willing to take a shot to see how the first few weeks of the season play out and whether or not Belt will bring me any value on this relatively inexpensive investment.

Ike Davis and Gaby Sanchez are similar offensive players (.270/20/80) and the best available to fill a roster need in the middle rounds. Period. I may not be overly excited to own either but I think, at the end of the year, their steady production will prove to be valuable to the overall success of my teams.

Similarly to my catcher targets, my teams have a lot of commonalities on purpose. One, it makes it easier to manage multiple teams when it comes to injuries or slumps and two, these are the players I am most interested in following. The goal of all of my teams is to win (especially the one money league I decided to join) but I also enjoy having fun as a fan of the game of baseball.

What strategies did you use when it came to drafting players that qualified at first base? What unique settings does your league have in place that made some players more favorable than others? Do you change strategies based on a classic rotisserie league versus a head-to-head scoring league? Please feel free to comment on my players or share your personal experiences when looking back on your draft(s) outcomes.

2011 Draft Results: Catchers Targeted

Draft Results

This season, I participated in five fantasy baseball leagues of varying types of formats but, for the most part, the players I targeted were pretty much the same. Now, that doesn't mean that I got all the same players in all five leagues but there were some commonalities.

I also want to go on record as saying I think two-catcher leagues of any type are ridiculous. Why as a commissioner would you want to force managers to carry what in my opinion are statistically the worst offensive bunch of players in the game? That being said, the first draft I participated in this season was an "experts" league with an online auction draft and wouldn't you know it...a two-catcher league. The difficulty level was escalated by the fact there are 13 teams and 30-man rosters per team (equals at least 26 catchers being drafted).

My strategy for this league was to get involved in the bidding for the two catchers I valued as being the best (as do most), Joe Mauer and Buster Posey, and hope to walk away with one and spend a little money later in the draft on a guy like Miguel Montero or Carlos Ruiz. Both Mauer and Posey were thrown out early and I was pretty aggressive in the bidding as planned, assuming each would go in the $20-$30+ range in this format. Well, when the dust settled, here's what my two-catcher strategy yielded:

•  Mauer ($24) and Posey ($20)

Now, I'm not shedding any tears over having this duo on my roster, unlike the owner who's rostering Josh Thole and Devin Mesoraco (um, who?). I regret being so aggressive and using $44 of my $330 budget (13%) on a position I was hoping to get bargains but I'm very excited to see what these two can do, offensively, this year.



My four remaining drafts (three of which I am the commissioner) were all single-catcher formats but I went in to each with the strategy of trying to get an upper-to-middle tier catcher early, depending on my draft position, and grabbing a second catcher at the end of the draft for bench depth and spot starts. Here's what that strategy wound up producing (draft pick in parenthesis):

• Miguel Montero (145) and Russell Martin (264)
• Miguel Montero (146) and Carlos Ruiz (359)
• Geovany Soto (120) and Russell Martin (329)
• Russell Martin (315) and John Jaso (343)

In all four of these leagues, I went in targeting Soto as my primary catcher but he only fell to me once. My backup plan for a starter was Montero and that worked well for me twice. I can live with that to start the season. My biggest failure at catcher came in my last draft of the season. Soto, Montero and even Ruiz were all gone before the 140th pick and I passed on Mike Napoli with the 190th pick, only to see him taken with the 191st pick.

So I am left hoping Montero and Soto provide me with with enough offensive production to make the backup catcher a position I don't have to carry the entire season. My problem is that I am heavily invested in Martin returning to some level of his old self. Will having Joe Girardi and Jorge Posada as influences be a good or bad thing? I'm hoping he can provide a .270/60/10/60/10 line at the bottom of the Yankees lineup. I guarantee you I won't be in the Russell Martin business very long if it looks like he won't be effective. I'll be searching the waiver wires for who's hot and dumping who's not.

How did you go about drafting catchers this season? Do you have a preference for one or two-catcher formats? In hindsight, did you overly invest in specific players across multiple drafts like I did? Use the comments section to share your thoughts of my catcher targets and your strategies during your 2011 drafts.