2013 SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio – Experts Draft

I just keep doing fantasy baseball drafts don’t I? Seems like every time I wake up I get my bowl of cereal, my Red Bull (sometimes there is vodka in it), answer a plethora of tweets and emails, and then I end up being in a draft of some kind. Which draft am I talking about in this article? It’s the SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio draft, populated by the genius minds of the network. How did my team turn out? Before I get to that, here are the rules.

12 team mixed league
5×5 scoring
14 hitters, nine pitchers
six reserve rounds (also one DL spot)

Here’s the club.

C: Mike Napoli (9th round), Jarrod Saltalamacchia (18)
1B: Adam Dunn (15)
2B: Martin Prado (6)
3B: Miguel Cabrera (1)
SS: Hanley Ramirez (2)
MI: Andrelton Simmons (21)
CI: Kevin Youkilis (17), Lance Berkman (26)
OF: B.J. Upton (3), Shin-Soo Choo (4), Austin Jackson (5), Melky Cabrera (14), Juan Pierre (16), Dayan Viciedo (22), Rajai Davis (27)
UT: Brandon Belt (20)

STARTING PITCHERS: James Shields (7), Yovani Gallardo (8), Zack Greinke (10), Tim Lincecum (11), James McDonald (23), Wandy Rodriguez (24), Edinson Volquez (25), Francisco Liriano (29 – DL)

RELIEF PITCHERS: J.J. Putz (12), John Axford (13), Chris Perez (19), David Hernandez (28)

It’s important to note a couple of salient points before I dig into my team.

This league has one DL spot. That was part of the reason I wasn’t worried about taking Liriano with my last pick. I’ll stick him on waivers and add another arm in week one.

This league was done on a service that has very lenient rules for positional qualification. Take the case of Prado. He should only qualify at outfield (119 games) and 3B (25), but in this league he also qualifies at shortstop (13) and second (10). I say it all the time, but it’s vital to know the rules of your league, and in this league the following players qualify at more than one spot:

Ramirez: 3B, SS
Prado: 2B, 3B, SS, OF
Napoli: C, 1B
Dunn: 1B, OF
Youkilis: 1B, 3B

No on to the offense.

Napoli and Saltalamacchia might hit a combined .240, but both should go go deep at least 20 times with Napoli having 30 HR upside if he can get 500 at-bats at first base for the Red Sox.

I had the #3 pick and was worried that Ryan Braun and Miguel Cabrera would go 1-2 leaving me to pass on Mike Trout at #3. Luckily Trout went #2 overall so I could draft Cabrera. Dunn is a batting average disaster, but he’s nails in HR, RBI, runs scored. He’s hit at least 38 homers with 92 RBIs and 79 runs scored in eight of nine years. Youkilis should see a nice bounce back at third base in Yankee Stadium, and Berkman was also a late round add who is just one season removed from hitting .300 with 30 homers. Belt has 15/15 talent, and this might be the year he finally lives up to his billing.

Everyone keeps hating on HanRam. Give me that 20/20 talent that qualifies at two spots. I’m a big believer this year. Simmons is likely to bat leadoff for the Braves this season in what could be a potent lineup. I don’t love Simmons this year, but I’ll take that talent in the 21st round. Prado is my starter at second. I’ll take that .300 average and potential 15/15 upside without hesitation.

My outfield is solid. Upton could go 20/40. Choo could go 20/20. Jackson could go 15/25. I’ll take that as a top-3. My fourth is Melky Cabrera. I’m not quite sure how he performs coming back from his PED suspension, but after proving himself to be a .300 hitter the past two years, I took a shot (more on the reason for that below). My 5th outfielder is Juan Pierre. Forty steals and 80 runs, not to mention a .280 average, seem doable. Viciedo never walks, but that’s a 25 homer bat, and I have no idea why Davis was still there in the 27th round. I’ll trade him to someone who needs some speed.

On the hill…

I went earlier for pitching in this draft that I normally do. Why? Because it was where the value was. I didn’t jump into the mix early, the 7th round was my first arm, but look at my top-4: Shields, Gallardo, Greinke and Lincecum. Do you honestly think that each of those four men can’t strike out 200 batters while winning 15 games? People are worried about Greinke’s arm. He was worth taking a shot on in the 10th round (his current ADP is inside the top-60). I picked him up at selection #118. Lincecum? I’ve long been on record expecting a bounce back (see – Is Lincecum Washed Up After Years of Dominance?). Behind that foursome I have another big arm in McDonald, and Wandy Rodriguez is a solid 6th starter. I also added another potential big K arm in Volquez in the reserve rounds. In the pen I also did something I rarely do – I ended up with three closers. I took Putz/Axford because of the value I felt they held, and then much like with Greinke, I just couldn’t pass up Perez in the 19th when others were seemingly afraid to take him cause he might miss the start of the season. I thought Perez was a great value in the 19th round, side issue be damned. Don’t forget that Perez had 36 and 39 saves the last two years. I also tabbed Hernandez as a middle reliever, one who would likely take over if Putz were injured.

Some final thoughts.

I have batting average drains in Dunn, Napoli, Saltalamacchia and Upton. I offset that with the likes of Prado, Miguel Cabrera, Choo, Jackson and Melky Cabrera. I added two all speed guys in Pierre/Davis to help me strongly in steals (not to mention the potential 20 thefts guys like Ramirez, Simmons, Upton, Choo and Jackson). I’ve got youth – Belt, Simmons – and age – Youkilis and Dunn. I really like the balance of this offense.

On the mound, I like it. My top-4, if healthy, will be better than any other top-4 in this league. If my three relievers stay healthy, that’s 100 saves. For not taking a starter early, and not taking a reliever until the 12th round, don’t you think my staff turned out pretty well? Me too.

For the full RESULTS OF THE DRAFT click on the link.

* Don’t forget to pick up your copy of the 2013 BaseballGuys Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide which is now available. Nearly 150 pages of insight to help you dominate the competition in 2013.

By Ray Flowers

Player Profile: Elvis Andrus

Elvis Andrus is a somewhat polarizing player in fantasy baseball. Some people love his speed. Others think there isn’t much to separate him from Alcides Escobar. Others think the Rangers might be better off trading him and letting Jurickson Profar have at it (as of now it appears that Profar will begin the year in the minors with Andrus playing shortstop and Ian Kinsler holding down the fort at second base). In what follows I’ll given the pro’s and con’s with Andrus as we try to ferret out what his true value should be heading into 2013.

PRO

Andrus has been a very durable player. During his four year big league career he’s played at least 145 games every season and has hit 150 games played the last two years.

Andrus has hit .275 for his career. That’s not a huge number by any means, but it’s about .020 points better than the league average so there needn’t be any worry about him in this measure. It should also be pointed out that he’s seen his average climb from .265 to .279 to .286 the past three years. Also, he’s been extremely consistent in the BABIP category. For his career his BABIP is .317. The last three seasons that mark has been .317, .312 and .332. Again, consistency which I really like to see. For his young career his line drive rate is 21.6 percent. In three of his four years the mark has been at least 21.9 percent (the only year it was below that was 2010 when it was still at the big league average at 19.3 percent). Andrus is also a rock star at knowing what he is good at and sticking with it. What he does well is keep the ball out of the air. For his career his ground ball rate is 57.4 percent. In his four seasons that mark has been between 55.8 and 61.1 percent. Again, consistency. As a result his 2.72 career GB-rate, a total he exactly matched last season by the way.

Andrus has speed. Some will points out that he stole “only” 21 bases last year, and for a guy who swiped 33, 32 and 37 his first three years that is disappointing. But is there anyone out there who legitimately thinks he couldn’t steal 30 bases again this season? Come on now. How about these facts? His total of 123 steals the past four years is the most in baseball for a shortstop (three more than the oft injured Jose Reyes). Andrus is one of 17 men in baseball who has stolen at least 20 bases in each of the past four years. He’s also the only shortstop in baseball who belongs in that club.

Andrus scored 72 runs his first season, but over the past three seasons he has scored 88, 96 and 85 runs. The last three seasons he is one of 10 men who have scored at least 85 runs in each season. He is the only shortstop that can make that claim. Over the last four years only one shortstop has scored more runs – Derek Jeter (401 to 341). Andrus is third in runs scored the past three seasons at the position – Jeter (294), Reyes (270) and Andrus (269).

CON

He’s yet to hit .290 in a season.

He’s never hit seven homers in a season. In fact, he’s gone deep just 14 times in four seasons. He’s completely deficient in the homer category and that isn’t going to change.

He’s never been an RBI machine. In his first two seasons he knocked in a total of 75 runners. The last two seasons he’s at least improved a little bit up to 60 and 62 RBIs. Still, that’s just not a number anyone wants to see from their starting fantasy shortstop.

He only stole 21 bases last year after 3-straight years of 30 steals.

CONCLUSION

Don’t know about you, but doesn’t the “pro” section look to be a lot more substantial than the “con” section with Andrus? There are some players, think Juan Pierre/Ben Revere/ Brett Gardner etc., that are extremely talented in one respect or another, but totally disappointing in another faze of the game. It’s just how it works folks. Instead of bashing Andrus for his lack of power, a completely fair point to bring up by the way, why don’t we celebrate what he is – a durable, young player who steals bases and scores runs with the best at his position. Andrus has also been an extremely reliable/steady player from year to year without the wild swings that some players throw out there. Andrus also owns a skill set that says his career .275 batting average is totally legit while there might still be a .300 season in his bat and legs. Is he an extremely different player than Alcides Escobar who I referenced at the top of this piece? No he isn’t. Can you get Escobar at a cheaper cost on draft day? You certainly can if you judge the answer by the NFBC ADP information. However, remember this. Personally, I don’t mind paying a little bit extra for stability/predictability. It’s possible that the better play in ’13 will end up being Escobar, but as I noted in his Player Profile there are more questions with Escobar than Andrus. For me, I’ll take a shot on Andrus, especially if he falls a bit on draft day, because I get the felling that there just might be a pretty impressive season in the cards for the Rangers’ starter at shortstop.

* Don’t forget to pick up your copy of the 2013 BaseballGuys Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide which is now available. Nearly 150 pages of insight to help you dominate the competition in 2013.

By Ray Flowers

Fantasy Beat – PEDs

Justin Fensterman and Trevor Ray discuss some key trades this season and the effect PEDs in fantasy: Melky Cabrera, Bartolo Colon.

Also, baseball only talk about players that have switched teams this year – Hanley Ramirez, James Loney, Also Chase Headley, Juan Pierre

LISTEN TO THE AUDIO.

Around the Horn: August21, 2012

(1) Athletics deal to add Stephen Drew. Can he prove his skills are intact?

(2) Sean Rodriguez sent to minors for Rays as Luke Scott is activated from DL.

(3) Alejandro De Aza sent to DL. Dewayne Wise to fill in.

(4) Brewers rotation about ready to get jumbled due to IP concerns and returning Shaun Marcum.

(5) Juan Pierre better than expected.

(6) Troy Tulowitzki still improving. Hopes to return in September.

(7) Eric Young Jr. to avoid the DL. Has been white hot at dish.
*** NOTE: The Rockies changed their minds and did end up placing Young on the DL after this video was recorded.

(8) Carl Crawford to have Tommy John surgery – season is over.

By Ray Flowers

Around the Horn: August7, 2012

(1) Ben Revere has a 20 game hitting streak. Stealing bases like crazy.

(2) Justin Morneau – is he back to being a force?

(3) Ryan Doumit getting it done at the plate.

(4) Eric Young Jr., stolen base demon. Could playing time follow?

(5) Mike Trout = amazing. What else can I say?

(6) Buster Posey best hitter on planet?

(7) Ben Sheets thinks it’s 2007. Over at Fleaflicker though, people are still wary.

By Ray Flowers

Fantasy Beat: 1 Step Forward 2 Steps Back

Justin Fensterman and Trevor Ray discuss the problems people can run into while trading. Like we said last week everyone is trying to trade right now but there is nothing more frustrating then getting close to a trade only to have it never get done….

Ryan Braun, Aramis Ramirez, JD Martinez, Alcides Escobar, Paul Konerko, Juan Pierre, Jim Johnson

Listen to the Audio.

You Gotsta Know

How good has Antonio Bastardo been this season for the Phillies? Amongst NL relievers he is first in batting average against allowing a mere .119 average. He’s also 8th in K/9 at 10.93 while his 1.99 ERA is 10th. Amazingly, he’s been even better of late with the strikeout ball. Over his last 7.2 innings he’s posted 15 Ks leading to an unheard of 17.60 K/9 mark in that time.

Emilio Bonifacio leads the NL with 31 hits since August 23rd. Yes, I’m just as shocked as you are. Emilio also leads the NL with 40 infield hits, just three behind the major league leader Juan Pierre (43). The good news continues with Bonifacio as he leads NL leadoff batters, minimum 50 games in the leadoff spot, with a  .381 OBP. He’s also third at the spot in batting average at .306, behind only Starlin Castro (.333) and Jose Reyes (.330). I know, totally out of nowhere has been this effort, and as a result, everyone who took a stab at him off waivers in mixed leagues ended up with one hell of a player.

Ryan Doumit and the Pirates face the Dodgers for the next four games. This year Doumit has hit .583 against the Dodgers (7-for-12) and in 33 games in his career against the club he is batting a resounding .358 with 22 RBI in 33 games. Doumit is also locked in right now. He’s picked up 15 hits in his last 33 at-bats that has led to a .455 average and .1,258 OPS in the month of September. What are you waiting for? Grab him if he is on waivers right now.

Danny Espinosa has hit a poor .231 this year helping to drain his value. Still, the second sacker has scored 64 times, knocked in 60 runs, and stolen 14 bases. He’s also hit 19 long balls. While that last number doesn’t jump out at all, it’s a borderline historic number actually. I know it’s hard to believe, but only two second basemen in the history of baseball have hit 20 homers in their first season. The only two second baseman to have hit 20 in their inaugural campaigns are Alexi Ramirez (21 in 2008) and Dan Uggla (27 in 2006).

Justin Turner of the Mets is batting .385 in September (15-for-39), the 7th best mark in the NL. Just another hot name to ride if you’re desperate. By the way his teammate, Jason Bay, is hitting .340 in that time, 15th best in the NL. He returned to action last night after missing a game with a sore shoulder.

Looking for an arm to considering streaming? Take a gander at the Cubs’ Randy Wells. Yes he’s an uninspiring option on the surface, but that doesn’t mean that he isn’t pitching well right now. In fact, over his last eight starts he’s 5-0 with a 3.02 ERA. The only other pitchers with at least eight starts, five wins and no loses since August began are the soon to be AL Cy Young winner Justin Verlander (8-0) and the Yankees’ Ivan Nova (6-0). I wouldn’t lead you wrong would I?

By Ray Flowers

Injuries and Random Musings

After the last couple of days where I’ve hit the “attach” button in email about nine zillion times sending out player capsules for designated hitters and catchers (thanks to all of you for your continued support), I thought I’d give myself a break and break down some of the more intriguing stories on the diamond with a particular focus on injuries.

* Adam Wainwright is done for 2011 as he’ll need Tommy John surgery. With a recovery time frame of 12-18 months, it’s not at all certain that he will be back on the hill for Opening Day 2012. Not only is that an obviously crushing blow to the Cards, it’s also a massive damper in the fantasy game which brings up two points.

(1) As much as I love doing mock drafts, having a draft for a league that you are actually going to play out before the month of March is crazy. In fact, you might want to push back your draft to late March because some big player is always hurt in camp leaving a gaping hole on the roster of the person who took that player. This year it was the Wainwright owner. Last year it was Joe Nathan who hosed me in my AL-only league leaving my team, well, to put it bluntly, screwed.

(2) The injury to Wainwright is reason #736 why drafting a pitcher in the first couple of rounds of a fantasy draft is such a risk. Any player can be injured at any time, but the chance of a catastrophic injury to a pitcher is far greater than one to an every day player.

* Just for the hell of it. Vernon Wells, who no one seems to like in fantasy or the real world (that is unless you are in the Angels’ front office), had three more RBI last year than Jayson Werth (88 to 85).

* Say it with me — I’m scared when health challenged players are already having problems early in camp. Some thoughts.

Justin Morneau: He’s progressing in his return from his concussion, even hitting live pitching the past two days which brings up two questions. (1) What the hell is live pitching? Is there “dead” pitching? (2) How bad are things with Morneau that we legitimately get happy hearing that he did something about 137.2 million kids have done the past two days. The Twins say he is still on pace to make the opening day roster, so we’ll all continue to send Justin happy thoughts. For more on Morneau click on Circling the Bases, my weekly column that will be featured at Rotowire.com.

Brian Roberts: He said he tweaked his neck while sleeping (apparently staying up late to watch infomercials about the Ab Crunch 7000 can make your neck sore). He’s missed a couple of days and could return to the field on Friday. Still, after all of his setbacks last season with his back, consider me exceedingly nervous with the talented second sacker.

Grady Sizemore: The 28 year old outfielder ran sprints this week for the first time since having microfracture surgery on his knee. Now we get a report from Buster Olney that it appears likely Sizemore will begin the year on the DL because he’s just not ready to go. I don’t know about you, but this guy scares the bejeus out of me and that’s hard to do because of my love of horror movies.

* Can anyone help me to understand why I’m borderline obsessed with Kristen Stewart of Twilight fame? She’s attractive sure, but it’s not like she is a bombshell or anything, and half the time she looks like she has been puffing on the magic dragon. Still, when she is on the screen I just can’t take my eyes off her.  By the way, I saw all three of the Twilight movies with my girlfriend at the time, and while I may not be a 16 year teen in throws of hormonal upheaval, I will admit to liking them – at least a little bit.

* Don’t forget about Alex Gordon on draft day. Ned Yost, Royals’ manager, is impressed with how Gordon has looked after working with hitting coach Kevin Seitzer this offseason. This is likely Gordon’s last shot to earn a full-time role with the Royals, a shocking admission for a guy who was taken 2nd overall in the 2005 Draft. I won’t reach for Gordon, but in rounds 25 and up in mixed leagues he’s as worthy as most of the riff raff that will be called out.

* Just for the hell of it Part II. Juan Pierre led the majors last year with 18 caught stealing which happens to be the same steal total that Hunter Pence and Justin Upton posted.

* And finally a parting shot. Remember sample size people. Don’t make the mistake of simply looking at a month of games, or a handful of starts from a pitcher, and think you’ve got it all figured out. Anyone can look good, or conversely horrible, if you take a quick snapshot. You want proof?
This pitcher went 0-5 with a 7.82 ERA and 1.82 WHIP In August.
Who is this hurler?

The answer will likely shock some. It is Tim Lincecum who won 16 games, posted a solid 3.43 ERA, had a 1.27 WHIP and had 231 Ks to lead the NL. By the way, The Freak rebounded after his atrocious month of pitching to go 5-1 with a 1.94 ERA and 0.94 WHIP in September.

Sample size people.

By Ray Flowers

K-BAD 2011: PART II

Yesterday in K-BAD 2011: PART I I laid out the parameters of one of the experts leagues I’m participating in this year. In addition to giving the lay of the land, I also ran through my first 10 selections. Today, I’ll continue to run through my team focusing on picks 11-20.

Note: All comments were written in real time meaning they were penned right after the choice was made (the draft is a “slow draft” type setup where people have two hours to make a selection as we are all squeezing in the draft during our busy work days).

For a review of the whole draft see the K-BAD Homepage at KFFL.

Round 11-8: Juan Pierre, OF, White Sox
I went for the value pick, even though that wasn’t at all my plan. I didn’t really need the steals, but this choice should allow me to finish at, or near the top in the category barring injury. Maybe Pierre’s solid average in a ton of at-bats can also help to offset the poor marks of Adam Dunn and Mark Reynolds.

Round 12-5: Chad Billingsley, SP, Dodgers
I wanted to take Pablo Sandoval in the 10th and 11th rounds, and told myself I would take him here if he was still available. He was, but I went with the consistency of Chad Billingsley instead. You know I’m playing to win when I take a Dodger over a Giant.

Round 13-8: Howie Kendrick, 2B, Angels
I already have two second base eligible players, but Zobrist can play OF so it’s not an issue. Kendrick fills my need for batting average help as well – something I need with Dunn/Reynolds (a situation I also tried to address with the selection of Pierre that I mentioned above).

Round 14-5: Carlos Lee, 1B/OF, Astros
Amazingly consistent with 11-straight years of 24 homers, 80 RBI, Lee’s multi position eligibility (OF/1B) led me to calling out his name even though I still need a catcher. Hopefully I’ll be able to address my backstop with my next selection.

Round 15-8: Yadier Molina, C, Cardinals
I considered taking a catcher in the 13th and 14th rounds before finally pulling the trigger. I’d have preferred Carlos Ruiz taken one pick before me, but Molina is a solid option and honestly, there is nothing more than a hair’s difference between the two this season.

Round 16-5: Ricky Nolasco, SP, Marlins
Everyone has gone closer crazy the last couple of rounds leaving this potential top-25 starting option on the board. If he could ever put everything together, he could be top-15 starter. You can read more about my thoughts on Nolasco in Hot Stove: Holliday Dealings.

Round 17-8: Joel Hanrahan, RP, Pirates
I don’t know if he will close or not (I think he will), but the arm is live and over his last 33 appearances he had a 13.50 K/9 and 4.0 K/BB. NOTE: It was announced two days after I  made this pick that Hanrahan would indeed open the year as the team’s closer. For more on why I thought Hanrahan was a great reliever to target make sure to read Radiant Relievers.

Round 18-5: Scott Baker, SP, Twins
I agonized over this pick, not because I don’t like Baker, but because of trying to figure out how I would fill out my catcher and shortstop position if I took him. It’s one of the problems with “slow drafts” – you have too much time to ponder your choices.

Round 19-8: Jason Bartlett, SS, Padres
I don’t love this pick, but I think Bartlett was the best SS left on the board and he’s the guy I’ve been targeting since I made the choice to pass on SS earlier. I’ve written this before, but I really don’t think, at the end of the day, that there will be much difference between Starlin Castro, who was taken in the 14th round in this draft, and Bartlett in terms of fantasy production in 2011.

Round 20-5: Leo Nunez, RP, Marlins
This is the type of guy you end up having to take a chance on when you don’t roster the top flight closers. I feel good enough about my offense to roster the risk. If he hadn’t struggled at the end of the year, he likely would have been taken at least five rounds earlier. After all, Nunez had a 9.83 K/9 mark, a 3.38 K/BB ratio and a strong 1.79 GB/FB ratio. If he repeats in those three categories this season, he should be able to rack up another 30 saves.

In Part III of this series I’ll review my final eight selections and give a few closing thoughts on the draft.

By Ray Flowers

Mock Draft: Points Based System

Average Draft Position data is all the rage at this time of year as everyone is scouring drafts to see how others evaluate players. However, the overwhelming majority of that ADP data is derived from standard 5×5 scoring formats. What about those points based leagues that seem to be growing in popularity? Today, I’ll relay how a recent draft in this setup went for me (special thanks goes out to SportsIllustrated.com which asked me to participate in the mock draft. For those of you who aren’t aware, I write a weekly mailbag piece for SI.com that appears on Wednesday’s, and I also write a Monday column for them about fantasy hockey for those of you who are fans of the ice).

League Setup

The league is a 12 teamer, though in a bit of a change there is only one starting catcher, three outfielders, no corner and middle infielders, and there are set spots for the pitchers.

Hitters: C, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, OF, OF, OF, UT
Pitchers: SP, SP, SP, SP, SP, RP, RP
Bench: Five spots
Rosters set once weekly.

Despite that, what really sets this league apart from others is the scoring system. This league is a points based setup with the following parameters.

OFFENSE

* Single (1 pt), double (2 pts), triple (3 pts) homer (4 pts)
* The following all net one point: walk, HBP, run, RBI
* You get two points for a stolen base.
* If you are caught stealing it’s a (-1), and strikeouts are (-0.5).

PITCHING

* 7 points for win or save.
* 3 points for a quality start or inning pitched
* 0.5 points for a strikeout.
* (-1) point for a walk, earned run, hit allowed, hit batter.
* (-5) points for a loss.

Given this scoring setup starting pitchers that win games and pitch a lot of innings are worth a ton, and that explains why 10 starting pitchers were drafted in the first 34 picks and 14 in the first 48 overall on the draft. This points out what I always talk about – you have to know the scoring system and positional setup of your league when you attempt to evaluate players. In addition to the fact that pitchers went early, catchers went late. Why would you dive in early on catchers if you only need to start one? Moreover, speedsters like Juan Pierre and Michael Bourn have a ton of value in 4×4 and 5×5 leagues, but in this setup 50 steals only nets you as many points as 25 homers (100 each). Actually, that isn’t true. Don’t forget you are awarded a point for runs and RBI which means that 25 homers actually equals 150 points (100 for homers, 25 for runs, 25 for RBI). Of course, that doesn’t count the other runners the batter might knock in on the homer. That’s why I was able to grab Pierre in the 20th round at the 230th pick even though his 5×5 ADP is something like 135 – the scoring system simply dictated that Pierre wasn’t as valuable in this league.

My Team

C: Kurt Suzuki (12th round)
1B: Miguel Cabrera (1)
2B: Chase Utley (2)
3B: Casey McGehee (11)
SS: Jimmy Rollins (6)
OF: Matt Holliday (3), Shane Victorino (8), Hunter Pence (9)
UT: Howie Kendrick (18)
SP: Dan Haren (4), Tommy Hanson (5), Chad Billingsley (7), Ryan Dempster (10), Ricky Nolasco (14)
RP: Jonathan Broxton (13), Matt Thornton (15)
Bench: James Shields (16), Joel Hanrahan (17), Gavin Floyd (19), Juan Pierre (20), Jhonny Peralta (21)

Some general thoughts.

* Jhonny Peralta isn’t exciting, but given the shallow bench in this league his 3B/SS eligibility is a big factor.

* My relievers are highly skilled but uncertain to rack up saves. That’s what happens when you draft this early, you just aren’t sure about roles. However, as you know from How to Evaluate Relievers piece I like to target skills over roles anyway. Also, I almost grabbed Brian Duensing as my last pitcher. Why? Because in this league he qualifies as a starting pitcher and a relief pitcher. Remember, check those rules (I went with Hanrahan because I truly believe he will close for Pirates and have a strong season).

* I really like the offense, except for third base. There’s nothing wrong with McGehee, but last season is as good as it gets, and I don’t know if there is anything more he can given in the HR or RBI columns. Still, he was the best option left at the time, and I don’t regret passing on Michael Young to add Dempster in this format.

* My starters are strong. Last season’s numbers, in this scoring format, would equal some big points totals for Haren (12 wins, 216 Ks, 235 IP), Hanson (10, 173, 202.2), Billingsley (12, 171, 191.2) and Dempster (15, 208, 215.1). Heck, even Shields was pretty solid in those three categories (13, 187, 203.1).

So there it is. Remember to check those rules and positional parameters when putting together your cheat sheet – certain setups can really alter the value of certain players.

FINAL NOTE: Here is a review of the entire draft which took place at CBS Sportsline.

By Ray Flowers