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Subject: RIBC 2011: Draft Rationales

Posted by: Guru - [330592710] Mon, Mar 14, 2011, 22:18

This thread will be for managers in the RotoGuru Invitational Baseball Challenge to provide the rationale for each pick.

Here are the ground rules:
1. Only managers in this league should post here. If you want to provide feedback (either from other league managers, or from those not in the league), put it in the discussion thread. (Non-conforming discussion in this thread will be deleted.)

2. Try to keep the pick rationales in the same order as the draft. We'll attempt to keep this thread 2 rounds behind the actual draft. With the lag, most comments should not have an impact on the draft in progress. However, if there are aspects of your pick that you feel need to be kept under wraps, feel free to protect that information. In particular, please avoid mentioning the names of any players who are still undrafted at that time of the post.

Please post your (2 round lagged) comments at the time you make your pick. For example, you should post your comments for your round 1 pick when you make your round 3 selection. If you are not ready to post at that time, then create a "placeholder" so that the next person is able to go ahead in sequence. When your post is ready, simply post it in the draft discussion thread and a moderator can copy it over.

If possible, please draft your rationale at the time your are making that pick. Not only does that allow you to remember your thoughts "in the moment", but it also makes it simple to copy and paste it when it is due, avoiding unnecessary delays and/or placeholders.

If your rationale is due and intervening placeholders have not been inserted, please insert them before posting your rationale. Simply post something like

for Guru
2.03 Jacoby Ellsbury, OF, Bos

This makes it easy for me (or any moderator) to splice the eventual rationale in the proper place.

3. If you are providing rationales after a placeholder has been inserted for that pick, then post it in the draft discussion thread, and someone will copy it over.

4. Once the draft is over, each manager is also encouraged to provide a general draft recap, at which time you can discuss your overall strategy, mention any undisclosed factors, comment on what worked out well and what didn't, etc.

The general format should be:
1.01 Alex Rodriguez, 3B, NYY
Several sentences of rationale.

In addition, along with your first player rationale, please comment on your rationale for your selection of draft order.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:50

for JKaye
1.01 Albert Pujols, 1B, StL
I did consider Hanley, but it was a mere formality. At the end of the day, a quick glance here settles any debate, positional scarity or not: http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/pujolal01.shtml

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:51

for mjd
Not used to getting a decent draft slot draw. So I figured I’d take advantage by choosing the highest possible slot available (2nd), securing one of 2 consensus top picks in every mock draft or preseason player rankings that I’ve seen. After the first 2 picks, the rankings get a bit jumbled as to the order, depending on which rankings sheet you look at and personal preference. Some of them I like just fine, but others IMHO, have question marks. Not having a clue who might fall to me with a later pick, I decided to go with what I felt was the safest bet.

1.02 Hanley Ramirez, SS, FLA
Not a bad consolation prize. Position scarcity, consistent production in all 5 hitting cats, and the fact that at 27, Ramirez should be hitting his peak made this an easy selection. MI and SS in particular, look to become a desert wasteland very soon in the draft. as verified by a couple of picks already made. The fact that Tulo has moved into the top 5 picks in most drafts I’ve seen despite his injury history and the Coors effect (humidor be damned) and the early second round pick of Uggla (early IMO), only reinforces my choice of the second pick to get a 5 tool MI.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:51

for loki
Draft Pick
With the 4th pick I had intended to pick #8 to be able to have a higher pick in the 2nd round and not get caught by a position run. However when MBT did not check in, it gave me the opportunity to draft Pujols, Ramirez , or Cabrera (or possibly Tulowitski) . I ultimately chose #3.

1.03-Miguel Cabrera, 1B, DET
I had to decide between two excellent players each of whom carried some risk. Cabrera could easily put up Pujol’s numbers (with the exception of SBs), but he has substance abuse problems including his DUI arrest in February. This has not affected his play in recent years, but the potential is there for him to be the Charlie Sheen of MLB. Tulowitski has health issues, but he has put up great numbers at a thin position. I went with the better player taking the chance that Cabrera will not have a meltdown in the course of the season.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:52

for Uptown Bombers
1.04 Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Col
I took the 4th spot in the draft with Tulo in mind. If he was not available, I would have gone Miguel Cabrera. I like taking a MI early in these drafts. Tulo’s injury risks give me cause for concern, but his 2nd half last year was so ridiculous that I couldn’t resist plugging him into SS and starting to build my team around him. Not much else to say about him. There were a number of quality players that I felt rated evenly, but getting to fill SS with these kinds of stats pushed him to my top of my list.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:53

for Gurudan
1.05 Joey Votto, 1b, Cincy
Waited for a bit to see what happened, and would have taken Tulowitski if available, but had to choose between Votto and C Gon. C Gon's only advantage is SB's. Votto is top 10 in all our categories.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:54

for slackjawed yokel
1.06 Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Bos
I selected the 6th pick, when 4-16 were available. After the top two, the next handful of guys are pretty much even. In retrospect, I could have dropped a number of spots and gotten Crawford, Longoria, or Halladay - who were all guys I debated selecting here. In the end, I went with Gonzalez thinking he'll put up some huge numbers now that he's out of Petco and has the Green Monster staring back at him. If not for concerns with his shoulder, I would have him ranked second or third overall, so I'm willing to take a chance here to see if it pays off.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 13:55

Pick 7
My choices were 5, or 7 and higher. I thought about taking #5 just in case either of the two top shortstops slid through, but then decided that was too unlikely. With pick 5, I figured I’d get either Cabrera of one of the two Gonzali. I didn’t think I cared that much among the three, so I deferred to pick 7 in order to stay close to the middle of each draft round, hoping to do a little better on the return trip. As it turns out, though, I think that picking between slackjawed yokel and coldwater coyotes is going to be brutal.

1.07 Carlos Gonzalez, OF, Col
Very happy with this pick. A 5-cat player, I’ve seen his ranking for last season as high as #1 in this format. While some of the pundits think a repeat season is a stretch, he’s only 25, so I’ll take that gamble.

The only other player I strongly considered was Carl Crawford, in order to get those extra steals. I finally decided that the extra power provided by Gonzalez was a worthy tradeoff.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 14:23

for coldwater coyotes
1.08 Carl Crawford, OF, Bos
If I couldn't get picks 1 or 2 then any pick would have been OK. The more I think about it the better I feel about Crawford, he gives me 50 steals with .830 OPS. I no longer have to worry about the steals category.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 14:40

Pick #9
Either #5, or 9-16 were available. I strongly considered taking #12, because I had a dozen hitter targets and wanted a higher round 2 pick, but then I figured that the managers in this league would crush me and break my heart in every odd-numbered round, so I went with #9. Naturally, when my pick came up in Round 1, I wanted to trade down to 12 or 13.

1.09 Evan Longoria, 3B, TB
Last year was my first year ever playing RIBC. I drafted Evan Longoria with my first pick, and won the mostly dormant AA league I played in. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I wish he still had Carl Crawford in front of him, something which certainly gave me pause, but he should provide slugger numbers from the hot corner and throw in 10-12 steals.

for filthy
1.10 Roy Halladay, SP, Phi
Top available draft choice was 10th, and that seemed like a safe place to land Halladay so I took it. Top goal for the draft is to draft Halladay, and now top goal for the season is to not trade Halladay to Holt.

Most years, I draft Halladay, have a killer start in pitching, a horrible start on offense, and then I trade him, and my pitching crumbles.

30 wins for Doc in 2011, this is the year. Not realistic but if I could pick one guy to do it, it's Roy Halladay. 150K, 15W, 3ERA, 1.15WHIP is the worst case scenario. 200K, 20W, 2.5ERA, 1.05WHIP is more believable. Love knowing that 20% of my innings are gonna go to this guy.

for ywk
1.11 Robinson Cano, 2B, NYY
Actually, I was a bit surprised that he was still there when my first pick came around. I originally thought about picking corner fielders 1B/3B with my first pick but the availability of Cano made my life a bit easier as I always buy into the theory of choosing players at positions of less depth early.

Graydog
ID: 260361718
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 19:25

pick #12

I believe I had the choice of 10 to 16, I didnt see any difference between 10 and 12 so I took 12 hoping to get a better pick in the 2nd round. 12 is borderline for me in terms of being on the end of the draft, hopefully this doesn't hurt in the long run.

1.12 Kevin Youkilis, 3B, Bos

Other than Braun was the only batter left in my top 12. Went with Youkilis instead of Braun because of the lineup he is in and the position he plays, will have to make up the Stolen bases later.

holt
ID: 3044420
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 20:34

for kokeshi777
1.13 Ryan Braun, OF, MIL
I really wanted to start the draft with Halladay and I thought he would fall to 13. When it got to me I thought Braun and Wright were the two best players on the board I decided to with Braun because I had never owned him in a league before.

holt
ID: 3044420
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 21:03

Pick 14: I was last in picking order so I had no choice, but number 14 is fine. I have no problem with it.

1.14 Josh Hamilton, OF, TEX

Won't be surprised if he hits the DL at some point. As long as he only misses 15-30 games then he is totally worth picking here. Last season's .411 OBP and .633 slug are just too much to ignore. A healthy Hamilton can carry a team the way Pujols does.

I kind of considered Pedroia briefly but he would have been a reach here, in my opinion. I didn't expect Pedroia to slide to my 2.03 pick but I thought there might be a small chance. Actually I considered all of the other 8 guys that go in this area of the draft and I just couldn't get too excited over any of them. I guess Teixeira would have been a good pick here, assuming his babip and OPS bounce back this year. Thought about M Holliday a while, and he did slide back to me at 2.03. Getting a few steals from your big bats is nice.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:07

for s R
Pick #15: #14 or #15? No significant difference.

1.15 David Wright, 3b, NYM
Wright can still hit for power. He can still steal 20-25 bases. As the No. 3 hitter in the Mets’ lineup, he should be in line for a big year in 2011.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:08

for MBT
As luck would have it I got the first pick in the positional draft. But then I had a death in the family and wasn’t able to take advantage of the opportunity. My family all lives in Iowa and my parents have minimal technology available. So by the time I was able to get online 11 slots had already been taken. My first preference would have been either 1st or in the middle of the pack. Since both of those options were off the board I decided to go with the end corner at 16. The best part of this position is that I have plenty of time between picks and I knew drafting might be an issue. The bad part of course is that I have to wait 32 picks between selections.

1.16 Dustin Pedroia, 2B, BOS – His SB may be down a bit due to the screw in his foot, but the average and little bit of pop will be right back where they should be in 2011. A loaded Boston lineup doesn't hurt either. At a thin position, he has the best track record and I didn’t want to get stuck with a third tier MI this year.

2.01 Alex Rodriguez, 3B, NYY – Not exactly my first choice here. When David Wright was falling I thought I might get lucky, but then he was snatched up at 1.15 and I felt I needed to go to the next best available 3B due to the weakness at the position this year. A-Rod did manage a 13th consecutive season with at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs in 2010 so it’s hard to argue with his consistency, but I can’t forget that he’s not much younger than me and that’s disconcerting. I considered taking Zimmerman at this point, but the supporting cast in NY eventually won me over.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:09

for s R
2.02 Mark Teixeira, 1B, NYY

I'm looking for Tex to rebound this season and get back to his career averages. I like his high on-base percentage in the middle of a loaded lineup in one of the game's better hitter's parks.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:09

for holt
2.03 Matt Holliday, OF, Stl
I was really tempted to reach for N. Cruz but Holliday was a much safer pick. He'll contribute in all 5 categories. Fewer steals than Cruz but should have a better OBP, and has a lot more track record to rely on. Considered Fielder quite a bit but I think Holliday is a better match for my 1st pick of J Hamilton. I probably won't draft anyone with a ton of steals so if I can build them 10 at a time then that's the way to go (when possible).

Only 3 more SP's were off the board when my 3.14 pick came back around so I think I made the right move here.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:10

for kokeshi
2.04 Felix Hernandez, SP, Sea
I am a Seattle homer I love Felix, and he is about to win about 4 straight Cy Youngs.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:10

for graydog
2.05 Prince Fielder, 1B, Mil
Left a cue of Holliday, Fielder and Zimmerman 2 picks before. I really debated about Zimmerman over Fielder, I already had Youkilis and taking another of the few safe options at 3B may have helped me simply because it might have hurt another roster or two. However I went with the guy who has put up these numbers averaged over the last 4 years: 98, 111, .395, .549 with a major down year last year.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:11

for ywk
2.06 Ryan Zimmerman, 3B, Was
I took Ryan Zimmerman here because he could be the best position player that was still available then though he does not have strong supporting cast around him. And the impact of the arrival of Werth along with the departure of Dunn on him remain to be seen.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:11

for filthy
2.07 Ryan Howard, 1B, Phi
Not a fan of banking so heavily on Philly so far. I wanted Bautista and if I was near a computer I would've overrode the queue pick. All of the Bautista hate I've been reading all offseason led me to believe he would slide a bit here, but settling for Ryan Howard isn't so bad.

Might've saved myself from myself once all the smoke clears. Kinda buying low on Howard too, and he should make for a nice offensive anchor. Nobody spitting out their drink at my first batter selected this year! Hopefully...

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:12

for kdl212
2.08 Nelson Cruz, OF, Tex
It was Cruz or Dunn here. I liked the guarantee that Dunn seems to offer, but I wanted to avoid the need to draft [undrafted powerless base stealer], so I went for Cruz's power + steals. Also, I've decided that I'm going upside every time I face such a choice in this draft. If I don't chicken out of that plan later and actually get most of that upside, I might have a chance to compete. If I get what's more likely, than it was a fun first try in the big leagues.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:12

for Coldwater Coyotes
2.09 Adam Dunn, 1B, ChW
In this format Dunn with a .935 OPS ranks higher at 1B than Fielder or Howard so I have a very good pick and more than compensates for taking Crawford, and his relatively low OPS, as my first pick.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:13

2.10 Jose Bautista, 3B, Tor
As I approached this pick, my short list was Bautista, Mauer, and Dunn. I really thought Mauer would disappear, and I was very tempted to take him here. But when I’ve taken a catcher early in prior years (several times), it’s always turned out disappointing – and although I don’t have many hard-and-fast rules for these drafts, I had pretty much decided I would not take as early as the second round. So I’m going to defer on him.

Bautista was the top ranked 3B-eligible player last season, and while no one expects him to repeat his gaudy 2010 numbers, there have been five third basemen drafted already. It seems like I’m already getting a decent discount, and he’s ony age 30. If I could get 100-100-.365-.535 this year (vs 109-124-.378-.617 in 2010) then I think I’m getting great value here, particular at a position that is already thinning. Through 9 games of spring training, he has an OPS north of 1.300. I’m jumping in!

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 22:58

2.11 Tim Lincecum, SP, SF

Last season, my offense was dominant, but I had trouble in pitching - particularly ERA and WHIP. So, I wanted to anchor my staff with a top starter. With Felix off of the board earlier in the round, I had the choice of the next level of aces (Lincecum, Lester, Lee). It came down to Lincecum and Lester, and I ended up going with Lincecum basically because he plays in the NL west instead of the AL east. I'd be happy with either one, but too many advantages go to the SF pitcher (home games in a pitcher's park, facing opposing pitchers, not having to regularly face the daunting lineups in the AL east, etc) for me to pass him up.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 23:29

for gurudan
2.12 Dan Uggla, 2B, Atl
I had other options, but power at MI is a no brainer. Remember davey johnson? nuff said.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Tue, Mar 15, 2011, 23:38

2.13. Matt Kemp, OF LAD
I was awful tempted to take Mauer here but in the end decided that Mauer and Tulo together was an injury disaster waiting to happen. So I took Kemp, who contributes across the board. Last year was a little disappointing, but I’m expecting that to be reversed and something from Kemp that looks a lot closer to his numbers from ’09 and ’08 than ’10.

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 07:50

2.14-John Lester, SP, BOS
I usually wait until rounds 3-5 to draft a starting pitcher and this is the earliest that I have ever taken one, but I decided that I wanted to have a strong foundation in pitching instead of scrambling the way I have in the past. I debated between Lester and Lee. Lee was very tempting because of his trade back to the NL, albeit to a hitter’s park, but I chose Lester because of his strikeouts.

JKaye @Work
ID: 57235169
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 10:35

for mjd
2.15 Cliff Lee, SP, Phi
Having to wait 30 players between picks here is the downside of picking so high, but I gotta say that I was somewhat stunned by a few of the mid to late 1st round picks. But these draft rankings are pure speculation based on multiple factors, so they very well could be spot on. I don’t usually like to draft pitching this early and despite the seemingly deep pool of SPs this year, I’ve been seeing them fly off the draft boards early, so I decided to grab me a studly one here. Especially since I expected him to be picked by now. I like that Lee turned down more money to return to Philly. He’s pitched very well there in the past, despite the Citizen’s Bank bandbox. And what I like about him best is the fact that he throws strikes. Less than 1 BB/9 innings is remarkable. Those nibbler type pitchers drive me crazy. Again, a bit of a different strategy for me, but the way this draft is progressing, I’m adjusting on the fly. Was set to grab an OF here, but with 3 slots until my next pick, all 3 OF I was looking at were still available, so I went with Lee.

JKaye @Work
ID: 57235169
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 10:38

2.16 Joe Mauer, C, Min
I read Guru's rationale on Bautista, and I agree on two counts:
1. I was surprised to see Mauer still around
2. I would have taken Bautista in Guru's spot

But by pick 32, I feel like I am actually getting value with Mauer. I don't know what SLG he will give me, but his .469 SLG in 2010 and .451 SLG in 2008 (9 HR each season) are adequate with a .400 OBP from a C, and a middle of the order contribution in R+RBI. His upside (.500 SLG) can't be completely discarded, either.

3.01 Jose Reyes, SS, NYM
Reyes was a player I targeted in this spot the moment I officially settled on Pujols over Hanley. While I chose Pujols' overall impact instead of getting a top tier SS in Hanley, it did not eliminate the fact that SS is the most scarce position (including C, in my opinion). Reyes does not come without risk of course, but despite not being near 100% last year, he scored 83 runs and stole 30 bases. Hopefully, with more AB Reyes can steal 40 and score 85-90 runs. That's a far cry from 60 SB and 100+ runs, but that's why he is available at #33 nowadays.

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 10:46

Placeholder for mjd33333:

3.02 Justin Upton, OF, AZ
Another somewhat unexpected pick. When my 2.15 pick came up, my queue consisted of Lee and 3 OFs—Choo, Upton, and McCutchen. So by picking Lee at 2.15, I was guaranteed one of the 3 OF at 3.02. Choo has been a consistent 20/20 guy 2 years running, so I feel like he’s hit his ceiling, especially playing in his current lineup. The other 2 are younger players with higher ceilings, but not without question marks of their own. I chose Upton because although he’s only 23, he’s more of a proven player. He did have some injury problems last year, but with a bit more patience and a higher contact rate, a 30/20 season is not an unreasonable expectation. I like his chances to contribute to all 5 cats and after seeing him play, love his bat speed.

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 10:47

3.03 Victor Martinez, C, DET
This pick was another change in draft strategy. Instead of waiting until the late rounds and picking a catcher that usually hurts my team, I decided to pick Martinez. He will be primarily a DH in Detroit and as barring injury could play over 150 games. I had Mauer ahead of Martinez, but he was taken a few picks earlier.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 11:08

for Uptown Bombers
3.04 Ian Kinsler, 2B, Tex
Back to the injury prone with this pick. Oh well. The IF spots are flying fast and after missing out on the good 3B options I figured I might as well nab a 2B before I miss out on those too. Also considered Choo and Heyward, but with an OF already on board, I though it wiser to fill some other roster spots. If Kinsler can log a relatively health season, then I am going to be very happy with my MI spots this year.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 11:08

for gurudan
3.05 Jimmy Rollins, SS, Phi

SS is limited, and would have preferred Reyes, but he was gone. I just hope Rollins can last the whole season.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 12:32

for slackjawed yokel
3.06 Shin-Soo Choo, OF, Clev
I made a list two picks before mine of the top five guys I was considering, and remarkably, all made it to me (making my job all that more difficult). Would probably have taken Cliff Lee or Jon Lester to get two workhorses (after just getting Lincecum) at the top of my rotation, but wasn't really surprised when they were taken in the interim since my previous pick. Of the five position players I had to decide between, I ended up being torn between who I saw was the best allaround player available (Choo), and the player who has the most value at his position (Posey). Decided it was too early to be basing my selections on position scarcity, and needed someone who would contribute in all categories including steals while being in the lineup every single day. Choo has shown steady improvement over the past couple seasons on some already very solid numbers and is on the threshold of being one of the top fantasy outfielders.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 12:33

for Guru
3.07 Jason Heyward, OF Atl
As I prepared for this pick my short list came down to (in no particular order) Kinsler, Choo, and Heyward. Buster Posey was a consideration, but I’ve decided to continue to stay away from taking catchers early. Kinsler disappeared before I figured out if I would have gone there, so the choice came down to Choo or Heyward with just one pick left before me. They seem to have very similar projections, with Choo getting a slight nod due to steals. Heyward probably has more upside given his young age, but at 28, Choo should be in his prime.

So I’d have taken Choo if Slackjawed Yokel hadn’t nabbed him – an aggravating event that I expect to continue many times over the next couple of weeks. In this case, I’m very content to “settle” for Heyward. Projected stats: 90-90-14-.395-.490.

This may seem a bit early for Heyward based on many published cheat sheets, but his OPS numbers make him much more desirable than he would be in a more traditional BA-HR format.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 12:33

for coldwater coyotes
3.08 Jayson Werth, OF, Wash
I am not so happy about this pick. I felt he was the best available in value but I probably should have looked at Prado or Zobrist who would have filled the difficult 2B position. Lets hope this doesn't come back to haunt me.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 12:37

3.09 Justin Morneau, 1B, Minn
In high school, I took a hard foul on a fast break and crashed into the gym wall. I had a headache for a week after the game, didn’t receive a single scholarship offer to play college basketball, went undrafted in the 1995 NBA draft (for which I had declared myself eligible) and was never again able to reliably dribble with my left hand. If Justin Morneau is anything like me, I should not have drafted him here. Many regrets after making this pick--I wanted Kershaw, but thought it was too early--but he's got upside.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 16:19

for filthy
3.10 Adrian Beltre, 3B, Tex
Really wish I could've landed Kinsler here. Beltre was second in line though, gotta love that Texas offense. Here's to Beltre proving the contract year myth wrong. Third is shallow, or I would not have even considered Beltre until much later. If he lands in a nice spot in the Texas lineup, he could be a gem.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 16:19

for ywk
3.11 Andrew McCutcheon, OF, Pit
I lined up players including Shin-Soo Choo, Heyward, Morneau, and McCutchen as my first four players in my queue before going to sleep. I guess it is not bad getting McCutchen here at least he could provide my team with some steals or even 20-20 though he is still in the process of developing his power.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 16:20

for graydog
3.12 Buster Posey, C, SF
All of my other targets had fallen in this round. It came down to Kershaw and Posey for me. I felt that Posey would not slip to my next slot and Kershaw might but if he didn't there were still lots of valuable SP's available.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 16:21

for kokeshi
3.13 Chase Utley, 2B, Phi
I really didn’t like anybody for the spot in the draft I was. Utley’s knee scares me and seems like the kind of injury that can nag him throughout the year but I decided to gamble on his upside.

holt
ID: 12551616
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 18:04

3.14 Clayton Kershaw, SP, LAD

Definitely time for my SP1. Kershaw was the highest on my board. Lots of K's, improving whip, hopefully he'll continue getting more innings and wins as his control improves. Sabathia and J. Johnson were a couple others I considered (Sabathia made it back around so I nabbed him too!). I did have to pause and think about taking Phillips or Weeks. It was tempting but I think Kershaw will have more impact for my team.

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 19:17

for s R

3.15 Jacoby Ellsbury, OF, BOS
Ellsbury stole 70 bases two years ago and 50 the year before that. He might even have some power potential and teaming up with Carl Crawford at the top of the lineup, he could score runs as well.

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 19:18

for MBT:

3.16 Derek Jeter, SS, NYY – What’s a better combination? Peanut butter and jelly or A-Rod and Jeter? Personally, I prefer PB&J but this is baseball. Shortstop is beyond thin this year. Other than Tulo and Hanley it’s a complete crap shoot as to who will be in the top 5 SS at the end of the year. Jeter may be getting older, but he’s consistently good and I’d much rather have solid consistency at this point in the draft rather than try to get cute with the trendy pick.

4.01 Billy Butler, 1B, KC – Why did I make this pick? I’m still not sure. There are a lot of other guys I should have taken with this pick, but I think I panicked a little when I saw how bad things were looking at 1B. I’m not going to complain about his % because they’re solid, but his counting stats leave a lot to be desired. If I can get 80 runs and 80 RBI out of him I should be happy, but this is a pick where I should have aimed higher. This could end up being the worst pick of my draft for where I had to take him.

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 19:20

for s R:

4.02 Brandon Phillips, 2B, CIN
Phillips has the speed and the power to be a 30-30 player, but he has only done it once in his career. Playing in a hitter friendly park with a potent lineup around him, he should be able to get back on track in 2011.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:12

for holt:

4.03 CC Sabathia, SP, NYY
I was expecting to take an infielder here (R Weeks most likely), but sR and MBT took four hitters in a row and passed Sabathia back to me. In my mind I was thinking I should bite the bullet and take the highest rated MI left on my board (Weeks) but the next tier of MI's didn't look much worse than Weeks/Prado/Zobrist so I figured no rush on MI. This gave me the freedom to go back and drool over Sabathia's statistical record. Easy pick. He's still only 30 yrs old, and he took some weight off over the winter and claims his endurance is much improved. 20 W's, 200 K's, 3.00 ERA, sub 1.20 whip. All good. He puts up those numbers year after year.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:15

for kokeshi:

4.04 Kendrys Moeales 1B, LAA
Very similar to round 3 I there was a big drop off after him at first and decided to take the risk. I am not feeling that great about this pick in hindsight.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:18

for graydog:

4.05 Josh Johnson, SP, FLA
After going with Posey last pick, I wanted an SP here. I thought Johnson had the highest upside of the guys I was looking at although there is always risk with young pitchers. Hopefully he can give me close to one K per inning an era around 320 and a whip of 116

mjd
ID: 10230119
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:23

for ywk:

4.06 Ubaldo Jimenez, SP, COL
I could have taken another position player here. Instead, I reverted back to the similar route I took last year---having two SP1 to anchor my rotation. With Josh Johnson just slipping through my fingers, I took Jimenez. I don't think he could be as consistent as Wainwright or Lee nor expect he could be duplicate the same dominance as he did in the first half last year. Sub 3.00 may be a stretch, but hopefully he could make significant contributions at least in categories of Win/K.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:33

for filthy:

4.07 Brian McCann, C, ATL
Really considered Kershaw last time around, and he is gone, and there's still a top tier catcher around. As much as I want to focus on middle infield and add another arm, I can't pass up Brian McCann.

Dependable even when dealing with constant vision issues. Kinda regret trading him last year as well. Braves have a potentially lethal lineup this year, and I am banking on McCann finally putting together a full great year.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:36

for kdl212

4.08 Cole Hamels, SP, PHI
Ever since 1990, when I first played imaginary baseball, I have dreamed of owning Cole Hamels on my imaginary baseball team. Today, that dream became a reality. Nothing to say about this pick, really - I sensed a starting pitching run coming, Hamels offers good ratios, Ks, and a chance at 20 wins. It can't hurt to sit in the dugout and talk pitching with Halladay, Lee and Oswalt all season long.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:38

for coldwater coyotes
4.09 Carlos Santana, C, Cle
A make or break pick, I had no intention of picking him before the draft began. He has no proven track record and as such it is a ridiculous risk to take him in the 4th. round. However if he performs as many experts predict then I will be more than happy. Plus I fill the tricky catcher position with a potential star.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 16, 2011, 23:39

4.10 Rickie Weeks, 2B, Mil
Guh! Would’ve taken Carlos Santana here. Oh well.

Weeks seems like pretty good value as well. With three middle infield spots to fill, I ought to get started. Assuming he puts together another healthy year, (he played in 160 games last year), I’m looking for 100-70-15-.350-.470.

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 00:22

4.11 David Price, SP, TB

There were actually a number of pitchers I liked in this spot - enough that I almost opted to get a position player hoping one would make it back to me. However, picking 6th/11th, I'm less inclined to take this risk; and with Weeks off the board there wasn't a position player really sticking out for me. Instead I went with Price who really came into his own last year and is now solidified as the ace on a good TB squad. If he even comes close replicating his performance from last year, I'll be very happy with this pick. In fact, if he just stays healthy the entire year and approaches 180+ K's I won't be disappointed.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 05:17

placeholder for gurudan
4.12 Jered Weaver, SP, LAA
He was on top of my q, because i wanted starting pitching, and was afraid to wait. I believe he is extremely undervalued.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 05:17

4.13 Justin Verlander, SP, DET
This is earlier than I usually like to take my first SP, but I really felt that Verlander presented good value at this point. None of the offensive players jumped out at me, and I figure I get one of the guys I am looking at next round. There are still a lot of SP available that I liked, but taking one here puts me good position to start building a good staff, and I liked Verlander just a little better than the others.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 09:25

for loki:

4.14 Yovani Gallardo, SP, MIL
I decided to pick another starting pitcher and wanted one who would have good strikeout potential. I had targeted Weaver and Verlander in that order, but they were picked at 4.12 and 4.13. I thought that Gallardo met my criterion.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 09:25

4.15 Martin Prado, 2B, ATL
An auto-pick. Spent the previous evening compiling a queue and narrowing it down to an infielder for this slot. I’m starting to like life picking near a turn, especially with the round specific feature. Really saving wear and tear on my refresh button. Was hoping to get this pick in before the last pick Monday night so I could post my second pick rationale, but I’m picking position specific with these next 2 picks so setting up auto-picks was not a problem, as I’m not an early riser even living on the east coast.

Happy that Prado was next on my list. Living in the Braves TV market, I’ve watched him develop I the last 2 years. Not spectacular in any one cat, but bats at the top of the order and won’t hurt you in any of them either. Bonus is his 2B, 3B eligibility and will qualify in the OF in week one, as he’s slatted to man LF this year. Never hurts to have some versatility in a non DL league to help out when the injury bug hits. First in a 2 man queue with Kelley Johnson.

JKaye
Leader
ID: 01372359
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 09:51

4.16 Joakim Soria, CL, KC

I knew I would be taking a closer here, to start the run (or be among first handful). It came down to 4 guys: Soria, Rivera, Bell, and Wilson.

Saves are hard to project, but Soria managed 43 on a bad Royals team last year, so i'm not too worried about him trailing other guys in that category. At the end of the day, his 3 year consistency narrowly edged out Bell and Wilson in ERA/WHIP terms, and his age gave him a slight reliability edge over Mo.

5.01 Mariano Rivera, CL, NYY

The advantage to picking #1 (besides picking first overall) is the double picks that mean you can take your 2nd choice too.

I had the idea to take two closers in a row as the pick approached, and followed thru with Mo. Closers seem as uncertain as ever this year, so I thought getting 2 studs and not having to worry about it was a good way to go. Mo is getting up in age obviously, and each coming year could be the one he hits a wall. But I am hoping he has (at least) one more elite sub-1 WHIP and sub-2 ERA season in him.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 10:05

5.02 Hunter Pence, OF, HOU

Another auto-pick while sleeping in. First guy in a queue of 3 other OF. Pence is another reliable guy who can help out in all hitting cats. I’ve had him on one team every year now for several years and he’s served me well each time. Thought about another infielder here, maybe even another SS or MI, but didn’t see one as reliable as Pence that I liked. JKay started what will undoubted become a run on the top tier closers, but I hate closers and will not pay this high a price for one while there is still so much hitting talent left to be had.

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 13:22

5.03-Ben Zobrist, 2B, TB
JKaye picked two closers at 4.16 and 5.01, but I resisted the temptation to join a closer run deciding to wait until late in the draft as I usually do. I was not sure in which direction to go at this time, and I was influenced by Guru’s pick of Weeks in the 4th round. I factored position scarcity with the fact that Guru knows significantly more than I do in picking players, and I decided to draft a second baseman. Zobrist will give my team power and speed at a thin position. He is also eligible at the1B and OF positions

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 14:01

for Uptown Bombers
5.04 Aramis Ramirez, 3B, ChC
This pick has me nervous, but I wanted a CI of some kind. Since 3B looks thinner than 1B this year, Ramirez was my choice. There were some OF’s available that I imagine would be the better choice at this point but I did not want to wait too much longer on the corners. More of last year’s post- ASB stats than pre-ASB stats and this pick will have paid off. Hopefully Aramis doesn’t stink up the joint and comes up smelling roses. (Is Aramis even still a brand of cologne?)

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 14:01

for gurudan
5.05 Alex Rios, OF, CWS
I'll probably regret this choice, because I think I had better options, and could have waited, but time will tell. This guy is surprising sometimes, and was best man at an aquaintance's wedding.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 14:02

for slackjawed yokel
5.06 Carlos Marmol, RP, ChC
I may be in kind of an 'over-correcting' mode. Last year, I think I led by a large margin all of the hitting categories (except for steals). It was my pitching that killed me - I lagged in strikeouts and in ERA and WHIP. So, here it is the fifth round and I just picked my third pitcher. Marmol actually had 138 k's last year in 78 innings. With him, Lincecum, and Price anchoring my staff I should have a good head start in averaging close to a strikeout per IP. Coming into this pick, there was a hitter I was interested in, but I made up my mind to go with a closer if any had come off the board, and the first two were already picked. (it was only later that I realized both closers were taken by JKaye. Had I realized this, it might have been interesting to see how long we could have left him spinning in the wind... but instead I complied with his attempt at creating a closer run)

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 14:03

5.07 Brian Wilson, RP, SF
Most years, I’ve taken a closer in round 4. This year, I was seriously considering waiting until round 6, although there is a distinct possibility that a run could be just about to get underway.

If I had taken a hitter, it would probably have been Kelly Johnson as my second MI. I don’t expect Johnson to last another round, but I think I’ll get started on closers now.

Brian Wilson should be a good relief anchor, with solid ratios, strikeouts, and saves. Since I tend to wait later than most teams to add starting pitchers, I need to assemble a solid relief corps to keep my ratios under control. Although I failed in that regard last season (ranking 3rd to last in WHIP), I’m going to assume that was the aberration and continue with the strategy that has served me well for most years.

Plus, I’ve had a beard on my own face for 35 years. Might as well have one on my pitching staff, too.

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 14:24

for coldwater coyotes
5.08 Dan Haren, SP, LAA
I have Haren as the third SP on my cheat sheet so it was a pleasant surprise to see him fall to the 5th round. I am now feeling much better about this draft after my reckless pick of Carlos Santana in the 4th round.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:28

for kdl212
5.09 Heath Bell, RP, SD
I'm beginning to not like being in the middle of the draft. I feel compelled to join the beginning of probable runs. I'd rather be at the ends, pick closer together, and pick without regard to runs. I considered Kelly Johnson (who I had last year from the 15th round) and Stephen Drew, and talked myself out of Tommy Hanson or Carpenter, each of whom is probably more important to the success of my team as a whole than one closer who throws 60 innings.

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:53

For RocketRichard

5.10 Kelly Johnson, 2B, ATL
If only Weaver or Verlander were still around, I might have deviated from my plan to build a decent middle infield this year. But I gotta get a move on, if I want to avoid trading all of my stars for shortstops this year. Johnson or Drew, and I'm going for the one who had the amazing year last year, and hoping that he is not one of those every other year type of guys. Probably should have chosen the shortstop, but can't go wrong with getting second out of the way either.

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:54

for ywChiou

5.11 Stephen Drew, SS, ARI
Shortstop is also widely perceived as lack of depth. As such, I tried to get one right here and debated between Alexi Ramirez and Drew, both of whom would play at hitter-friendly parks and may have similar stats by the end of the season. For no apparent reason, I chose Drew over Ramirez though the latter would play in a better lineup. Hopefully, Drew could finally "break out."

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:55

for Graydog

5.12 Jonathan Papelbon, RP, BOS
I really struggled with this slot. All of the middle infielders I had targeted had been taken. I figured I could wait the 8 slots until my next pick and take one there. I also seriously considered Andre Ethier or a SP. I think this is the first time I have ever drafted Papelbon. I think his value is equal to or greater than the relievers already taken and is less of a risk than most of the next tier. I expect his numbers to be between 2009 and 2010. (edit) missed Alexei Ramirez would have taken him if I knew he was available.

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:56

for kokeshi777

5.13 Zach Greinke, SP, MIL
I’ve always liked Greinke and think he is going to be just as good or better than some of the pitchers taken in round 3. Once again I am gambling on health but he is supposed to only miss a couple starts.

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:57

for holt

5.14 Francisco Rodriguez, RP, NYM
Nothing fancy here. Closers can be difficult to trade for in this league, and just as difficult to grab as FA's. Supply and demand. I don't punt saves so this was the time to draft one. There were some other closers I actually preferred, but I figured K-Rod has the highest probability of having a closer job all season. There were at least a half dozen other RP's who would have been an equally valid pick here.

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:58

for S r

5.15 Andre Ethier, OF, LAD
If Ethier stays healthy this time around, he should hit close to 30 home runs and drive in around 100 runs.

MBT
ID: 191142515
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 16:58

5.16 Chris Carpenter, SP, STL – This didn’t quite go as expected, but half a plan is better than none. I was expecting to take Greinke and Carpenter with these picks. Carpenter is a solid guy and despite his reputation for being injury prone he’s been rather healthy over the past two years. Another of the STL pitchers is out for the year so that leaves Carp as the ace with that monster offense behind him.

6.01 Mike Stanton, OF, FLA – Wasn’t expecting to take Stanton with this pick. He was third in my Q so I guess there was a little expectation, but looking at other rosters I was really expecting the two pitchers to fall. Stanton is pure upside, I’m hoping he gets a little more control over his bat and can knock in about 25-30 HR this year making him a worthwhile SLG and RBI player.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:18

for s R
6.02 Tommy Hanson, SP, Atl
In his sophomore season he lowered his walk rate and his WHIP. I believe Hanson is right on the cusp of being a star, but the lack of run support prevented the righty from taking the next step. With the addition of Dan Uggla to the Braves lineup, there should be more runs for Hanson, along with more victories.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:18

for holt
6.03 Jay Bruce, OF, Cin
I definitely wasn't planning to take another OF here but when I noticed Bruce was still on the board I didn't have much choice. Last season he had a .353 obp and .493 slug, and people are still asking when he is going to have his break-out season. Too much upside to ignore in the 6th rd.

I really needed a MI more than I needed my 3rd OF but I looked at the MI's left on the board and just couldn't get behind any of them, compared to Bruce. The next MI's drafted were Alexei, Beckham, Andrus, and Furcal, so just going best player available made sense.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:19

for kokeshi
6.04 Joe Nathan, RP, Min
I was feeling pressure to get in on the closer run and I looked at all the closers and thought Nathan was the best bet. All signs are he is back.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:20

for graydog
6.05 Alexei Ramirez, SS, CWS
Was happy to get Alexei here. I thought the shortstops left were very risky. Alexei will probably hurt my obp numbers but will hopefully make up for that with solid contributions in the other categories.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:20

for ywk
6.06 Francisco Liriano, SP, Min
Tried to get another SP1 here. Latos, Cain, and Liriano were under consideration. Despite some "possible" shoulder problems, I picked Liriano because Latos may be subject to Verducci effect while Cain may be working too much in the past three seasons and dealt with elbow inflammation.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:21

for filthy
6.07 Colby Rasmus, OF, StL
This might be where my list starts to stray from other people. My queue remained mostly intact between picks, and I love that Rasmus was still around for me. If he sticks batting 2nd this year, and has actually matured somewhat, Rasmus could be a monster.

Need to look at some arms again soon, need a number 2 starter, a closer of some sort, still need a shortstop and there is never enough offensive depth. Rasmus makes for a nice anchor to the outfield.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:22

for kdl212
6.08 Gordon Beckham, 2B, CWS
The last two days have been good ones professionally, so I was in a great mood as I walked home from the train station on the 17th. Then I started thinking about this league, and the baseball season about to start, and I got real excited. Then I checked in on this draft, and remembered that I draft Gordon Beckham in the 6th round. For what it's worth, I drafted 2010 2nd half Beckham, not first half Beckham. If Beckham is the best man at a wedding you attend in the near future, please pass that on to him.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:22

for coldwater coyotes
6.09 Roy Oswalt, SP, Phi
My SP2. For some reason he is always underrated but I would consider him a possible SP1. More than pleased with this pick.

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:23

6.10 Paul Konerko, 1B, ChW
I don’t have a 1B yet, and I’d like to get good power out of this position, so I don’t want to wait too long. Konerko looks like pretty good value here. Can he really be age 35?! He’s come off a monster career year, and I don’t expect that to repeat. I have him ranked #11 among all hitters in 2010 in this format, but as a 6th round pick, he obviously doesn’t need to be anywhere near that prodigious. But I can hope, can’t I?

How about something like 80-95-.360-.520? That would be awesome for round 6.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:55

for Slackjawed
6.11 Pedro Alvarez, 3B, PIT
I was really tempted to grab another pitcher here in Latos or Cain, but managed to resist. Need to start getting position players as all I have is a 1B and an OF. In my option, Alvarez and Sandoval offered similar value here - I ended up going with Alvarez thinking he has more to offer in the power categories.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:56

for gurudan
6.12 Neftali Feliz, RP, TEX
Would have held out for a closer, but the rush for closer in this round was intense, so i thought i shouldn't wait.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 20:56

6.13 Mat Latos, SP, SDG
SP#2 gives me a solid foundation in the pitching categories since I have passed up on the elite closers. Latos defined himself as an Ace last year and while he is young with no proven track record, I have little doubt that Latos will post numbers close to last year. Good ratios, good K’s, pitcher’s park – all signs that made me choose him over Cain. I knew I wanted an OF with speed, but I had 4 of them lumped together and figured one would survive the turn at the top of the draft.

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 21:44

6.14-Grady Sizemore, OF, CLE
This is most likely going to turn out to be my worst pick of the draft or it could turn out to be a steal. Unfortunately the latter is more likely. I had Sizemore in my keeper league for the past 3 seasons and am still enamored of him. Although this year this season he was not a “keeper,” and I picked him up after the beginning of that draft but with a much later pick than in RIBC. The reports out of Spring Training have all been positive, and I thought that he might not get back to me so I drafted him at 6.14.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 22:00

6.15 Pablo Sandoval, 3B, SFO

Would have loved to set the auto-pick here again and sleep in, but I had to get up early for me and therefore shouldn’t hold things up too much. Plus I needed to see the 2 picks before me to see which direction I would go in with this set of picks.
If not for all the hard work that a slimmed down Kung Fu Panda put in this past offseason, I would have never even considered him . Plus they could’ve changed his nickname to Fat Bastard. But by all reports, he’s looking good and tearing it up in the Cactus League, so far, so I anticipate his production to rebound closer to his 2009 numbers. First base eligibility further helps the roster flexibility of my team.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 23:41

for JKaye:
6.16 Mark Reynolds, 3B, BAL

I am very happy to take Reynolds here at #96 overall. 3B is always something I like to target earlier rather than later in RIBC and this is easily the longest I've waited to get one in the several years doing this format. I think Reynolds is basically a marbled statue out there in plain sight but with the face of the elephant man.

The Ari->Bal ballpark switch is a wash offensively, and last I checked Bartolo Colon was in the running to be the Yankees fifth starter. The AL East is good, but there are plenty of 4-hour 9-8 games in that division so I don't worry about the league switch at al either.

Regardless of where he played, Reynolds has power. The .433 SLG will rise, as he re-coups the 40 points of AVG his unusually low BABIP of .257 stole from him. Obviously, he is a terrible contact hitter, striking out 42% of his AB's last year. But a 330/475 3B with
3yr averages of 88/95 R/RBI is what he is. In some ways his overall inconsistency has shaped a somewhat predictable player, albeit with a wide range of outcomes (much of that huge upside). He's 27, and will fluctuate during his prime.

7.01 Shane Victorino, OF, Phi
I had a handful of OFers on my short list, mostly SB guys. Out of Ichiro, Upton, CYoung and Victorino, I chose Victo, who has more power than Upton, much more power and an even wider RBI gap vs. Ichiro, and a more established baseline than Young. I also considered Swisher to boost my OBP credentials, but went for speed.

mjd
ID: 10230119
Thu, Mar 17, 2011, 23:44

7.02 Shaun Marcum, SP, MIL

Though about taking my 3rd OF here or maybe really set in some league wide panic by taking my 3rd MI, but I really like this guy having been traded from the brutal AL East to the more civilized NL Central and with all the hype about it, I doubted that he would be around again in 30 picks.

Nice recovery from September 2008 Tommy John surgery. Marcum set personal bests in starts (31), strikeouts per nine innings (7.60) and walks per nine (1.98) in 2010, a remarkable combination of durability, dominance and control that few pitchers get to experience so quickly after such an operation. And despite residing in the AL East on a team that was not the Rays, Red Sox or Yankees, Marcum managed a 3.64 ERA and 1.15 WHIP, and to break down his numbers further, he actually was 12-2 with a 2.74 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 21 starts against every other team. I historically don’t usually draft any pitching by now, let alone 2 SPs, but obviously I’ve drunk the Kool-Aid, at least on Marcum.

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 00:51

for loki
7.03 Ichiro Suzuki, OF, SEA
I decided to draft speed with this pick, and I was looking at Rajai and Juan Pierre until I realized that Ichiro was still available. At Mock Draft Central his ADP was 31 and MDC Expert ADP was 39, so he seemed like a good 99th pick in our draft. My only concern was why someone else did not draft him already, but I went with the masses chose him at 7.03

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 00:52

7.04 BJ Upton OF, OF, TAM
Steals, pure and simple. Upton has been one of those guys frustrating fantasy managers and real life fans for a few years. Although he had been built up as a great combo power/speed player, his low OPS so far in his career speaks to untapped potential. He is young, so while I can hope that “this is the year it all comes together,” more realistically I would be content with 40 SB and similar career averages.

100

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 08:57

for gurudan
7.05 Casey McGehee, 3B, Mil
I had him top remaining 3rd baseman, so I took him, since I needed one.

101

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 08:58

for Slackjawed Yokel
7.06 Drew Stubbs, OF, Cin
I had a list of three players I was considering here. Stubbs, BJ Upton, and Matt Cain. I see Upton and Stubbs as being very comparable - speed, power, and low average. After Upton went off the board along with Ichiro, I felt I had to grab an outfielder here before the pool got too shallow. Referring back to my draft last year, in order to really be successful, you need to have some huge value picks - ie, selecting players several rounds after they should have been picked based on their eventual production. I was successful last year in getting Votto at the end of the second, Choo at the beginning of the 5th, Weeks in the 7th, and Beltre in the 11th, for example. Each of those guys has gone much earlier in this year's draft, and I'm hoping Stubbs fits that mold this year (a 30-30 season isn't out of the question, though a 25 hr-35 sb is more likely).

102

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 08:59

7.07 Matt Cain, SP, SF
I am usually content to wait until round 8 or 9 to take my first starter, but Cain looked like too much value at pick 7.07 to pass on. He’s not quite the strikeout pitcher that the premiere pitchers are, but he has had a very tidy WHIP over the past two years (1.08 in 2010), and with his starter’s innings, that can make a huge impact on my team WHIP. He’s the 23rd starting pitcher taken in this draft. RotoWire ranks him #11 among starters; Baseball HQ has him in the top 10. Maybe he’s fallen because of elbow inflammation earlier this spring, but I haven’t seen any reports that suggest it is a big deal.

I almost took him in round 6, but decided to stick with the plan and get a power hitter. Typically, I’d be taking a closer here, but I don’t find any of the available closers to entice me over Cain.

103

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 10:55

for coldwater coyotes
7.08 Matt Thornton, RP, ChW
I had planned to take my first closer with this pick. Thornton seems to have secured the closer role. Broxton was my other possibility but why did take the risk when Thornton is so solid.

104

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 10:55

for kdl212
7.09 Elvis Andrus, SS, Tex
Finishing out my starting middle infield before the pickings resemble Buddy Biancalana and Ricky Gutierrez. Grabbing 40 steals at the expense of slugging percentage. It's better that this comes from a MI slot than an outfield slot (I guess).

105

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 10:56

for filthy
7.10 Rafael Furcal, SS, Atl
I was beginning to worry that I'd be struggling through shortstop again this year if I didn't land Furcal here. This was assuming Latos or Cain didn't fall, they didn't and I am pretty pumped to have Furcal. He is still elite, but he still might leave me struggling through shortstop again. At least it's not Jose Reyes, which was my second goal of the season: to have a decent shortstop not named Jose Reyes. Goal accomplished. Will still be needing to get some early insurance on Furcal though.

106

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 10:56

for ywk
7.11 Aubrey Huff, 1B, SF
I wanna get my first baseman here and as top options were long gone I turned to Huff, who just had a surprising year in 2010. He might be having a ceiling of 25/90 while his OF eligibility undoubtedly is of some help as I don't think I have a good draft this year.

107

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 10:57

for graydog
7.12 Max Scherzer, SP, DET
Strongly considered Aaron Hill but I thought that Scherzer provided safer value. If he produces what he did last year that will be ok value but (obvious statement) hoping for more.

108

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 10:57

for kokeshi
7.13 Chris Young, OF, Ari
The team needed some speed and I thought it was a reach to for any of the true burners left. Young was a nice compromise.

109

MBT
ID: 191142515
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 13:16

For Holt

7.14 Aaron Hill, 2B, TOR
This was a bad moment in the draft for me. I still had no MI, so something needed to be done. I took a look at the grid and didn't see Furcal's name, so I did some research on him, then typed his name in, and then I saw he was auto-picked 4 picks before mine. That sucked.

I also didn't have any 1B, so I checked to see if there were any left worth taking in the 7th rd. The only one I came up with was Huff, so I typed his name in, and of course he was already taken (two picks before mine). That was so crappy.

Checked out SP, seriously considered Billingsley and Morrow (two of the next three SP off the board) but figured there was enough talent left that I could wait.

Looked at 3b, Michael Young was the only one I saw that would be reasonable in the 7th rd, but there are questions regarding playing time and the possibility of him being traded (he's not a great hitter outside of Arlington).

Figured I had to bite the bullet and take a middle infielder after all. All of the SS left are a joke. Forget it. Of the 2B left, Raburn was my favorite, but I figured 7th rd was too early and that I might have a chance at getting him later. That pretty much narrowed my choice to Hill and Roberts. Both very questionable guys. I ended up taking Hill due to fewer health questions. Now I pray the predictions of a bounce-back season come true. If I weren't rushed for time, I think a better pick would have been any random closer, Morrow, or Billingsley.

An .800 OPS is certainly possible, but a .700 OPS is also possible...

110

MBT
ID: 191142515
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 13:17

For s R

7.15 Michael Young, 3B, TEX
Last year, Young’s walk rate dipped and he struck out more often, leading to a substantial decline in his percentages, but he still scored 99 runs. The Rangers might play Young all over the infield, but being a full-time DH should help him concentrate solely on hitting.

111

MBT
ID: 191142515
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 13:18

7.16 John Axford, RP, MIL and 8.01 Houston Street, RP, COL – This is more or less a one two punch at the saves category. I had a feeling that a closer run was going to happen very soon and I was right. Nine closers went in the next 18 picks so I guess my timing was pretty good. In order to stay in the middle of the pack in saves in this league you have to get an established closer. In order to get to the top of the saves category you have to pick up two and sometimes three closers. Looking at the available RP at this point in the draft Axford and Street have the fewest competitors for their jobs. I seriously looked at Broxton and would have grabbed him had either Axford or Street not fallen back to me at this point.

113

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:22

for s R
8.02 Brett Anderson, SP, Oak
Elbow inflammation cost Anderson nearly half the 2010 season, but when he toed the bump he was outstanding. If he can make 30 starts or more this year, Anderson could easily produce like an ace.

114

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:22

for holt
8.03 Chris Perez, RP, Cle
Pretty simple pick here. Just wanted a second decent closer before they were all gone. There were several others I could have chosen. I just figured Perez had the most job security of the bunch.

115

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:24

for kokeshi
8.04 Jose Valverde, RP, Det
Once again reacting to the closers going off the board, thought Valverde was the best remaining.

116

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:25

for Graydog
8.05 Ryan Raburn, 2B, Det
This could turn out to be a terrible pick, I definitely reached here. I really felt I needed a second baseman however. I debated about Brian Roberts but in this format injury prone guys can be a big burden. Hopefully Raburn can live up to the hype.

117

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:26

for ywk
8.06 J.J. Putz, RP, Ari
I was kind of forced my hand here. Putz should be having no problem shining in the desert so long as he can STAY HEALTHY. That might be a big question mark, which is evidenced by he may be starting the season on DL because of back spasm (I was speechless after reading that news piece).

118

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:26

for filthy
8.07 Brandon Morrow, SP, Tor
Morrow was still on my queue from the Furcal pick. I got back just in time to see Broxton picked. I really would've liked to join the closer run at this point, but my initial hunch might turn out better? Morrow was pitching at the most ridiculous elite level before being shut down last season. If it all clicks again and he does that for a whole year, he could put up one of those Pedro type of seasons.

Looking for 180IP, 12W, 200K, 3.80/1.15. Hoping for 180IP, 17W, 240K, 3.0/1.0. Here's to Morrow not falling apart!

119

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:27

for kdl212
8.08 Brad Lidge, RP, Phi
Don't know what to say about picking a closer. I've become convinced that the best way to win a league is to wait on drafting closers, target upside hitting for 10 rounds instead, and get lucky by finding 30+ saves from 2 different guys in the last 10 rounds or the waiver wire. This does not explain why I have spent 2 of my first 8 picks on closers.

120

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:27

for coldwater coyotes
8.09 Jonathan Broxton, RP, LAD
As I had looked at Broxton in the last round and as he was still available I took him. Not a well thought our plan and I will probably regret it. However the run on closers continued after this pick so I feel better.

121

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 19:28

8.10 Andrew Bailey, RP, Oak
I had planned to take my second closer by this time. There’s been quite a run on them lately, and I think I’d better not defer any longer.

I had hoped that either Putz or Valverde would slide to me, but no such luck. Bailey is coming back from surgery and may miss the opening of the season, but I think he offers the best chance to get me saves and favorably impact my ratios.

122

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 20:00

8.11 Carlos Pena, 1b, ChC

Heading into this pick I was wavering between picking up another closer and going with Pena. There were still a few closers remaining who have a solid lock on the roles, and in retrospect I'm wondering if I should have gone in that direction. However, Carlos Pena may be a pick I appreciate later. He's good in this format as his average is awful, but he's historically had a decent OBP and a high SLG (with the noticeable exception of last year). I've owned him for several years in G20, and suffered last year through countless 0-4's and 1-5's, but maybe a change in scenery is what was in order.

123

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 20:07

for gurudan
8.12 Francisco Cordero, RP, CIN
As the closer pool shrinks, I felt compelled to take a closer.

124

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 20:07

8.13 Chad Billingsley, SP, LAD
This is the most starting pitching I have ever drafted this early, so I will be interested in seeing how this shapes out over the rest of the draft and season. It was not really my plan coming in to focus on SP early, but since I keep on passing on closers, it makes sense to try and build up the other pitching stats as best as possible. Billingsley is solid and though there are a good amount of SP’s with comparative value, I am pretty sure I am drafting offense next round. By the time it comes back to me in round 10, I am not sure how many of those pitchers will still be available. The OF’s I am looking at are pretty similar, so I bet one of them is still there next round and I preferred Billingsley to some of those other pitchers.

126

mjd
ID: 10230119
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 20:50

for loki:

8.14 Franklin, Ryan RP, STL
Franklyn was one of the few remaining closers with some degree of job stability. Too many closers were off the board to delay any further.

127

mjd
ID: 10230119
Fri, Mar 18, 2011, 21:05

8.15 Chone Figgins 2B, SEA

As Thursday evening progressed, I debated what to do with this set of picks. I considered MI, CI, and closer. Since I successfully avoided the top tier closers, they are pretty much picked over and I can grab one after the turn in 3 picks. Looks like most everyone has veered off their cheat sheets for a bit and are drafting for position need with scarcity being taken into consideration. Obviously I have, as Figgins is not my 127th ranked player being taken with this 127th pick. Best value is certainly to be had at OF, as they have been passed over for pitching, mostly closers, and a few other infielders, mostly MIs. I thought that I’d grab my 3rd MI with the added value of 3B eligibility after 5 games. No one really tickles my fancy of the mediocre batch that is left. I do think that Figgins will rebound a bit after last year’s disappointment. He did do better later in the later part of the year to salvage a total disaster. I always seemed to be short on SBs every year, so at least Figgins should chip in his usual 35-40 and maybe put up some better numbers after moving back to his best suited position.

Considered a few others, but they were not without flaws of their own. Not real excited about this set of picks.

128

JKaye
Leader
ID: 01372359
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 07:46

8.16 Nick Markakis, OF BAL

I thought the caliber of OFers on the board made it a good time to round out the position. Markakis is a solid all around player and I think 85-85-360-460-10 is a reasonable expectation. RIBC masks his pure HR totals, which may continue to be low. His doubles power gives him a respectable SLG.

9.01 Corey Hart, OF, MIL

Hart had a great year last year. Not sure if he can duplicate 100 rbi but the Brewers have a good looking offense with Weeks in front of him, and Braun, Fielder and McGehee behind, so I think he can be a solid contributor in R and RBI, with perhaps a 340/475 OBP/SLG.

129

mjd
ID: 10230119
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 10:34

9.02 Brandon Lyon, RP, HOU
I’ll spare you my yearly rant why I hate closers, but every season, about half of the closers who start out the season with that job will lose it eventually due to injury, ineffectiveness, or a combination of the two. EVERY YEAR. Even a proven top of the line guy like Broxton lost his job last year. Yeah, the best ones can help out with good percentages and nice K/9 numbers, but Lyon is being drafted for saves only. He’s got a big contract, no real competition for his job, and even though the Stros aren’t expected to wow anyone with offensive numbers this year, their pitching staff may be somewhat underrated. Plus it’s a proven fact year after year that decent closers even on the worst of teams can get plenty of saves.

130

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 11:05

for loki
9.03 Delmon Young, OF, MIN
Young had an OPS of .826 to go along with 21 HRs, 112 RBIs and 77 Rs in 2010, and it appeared that he was reaching the potential that was expected from a number one draft pick. If I am right, then there is chance for an even better season. The risk is that he suffered a turf toe injury earlier in Spring Training, but if this does not hamper him, he was a good 9th round pick.

131

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 11:05

9.04 Curtis Granderson, OF, NYY
At this point, I’ve decided to forget that saves even matter. I don’t think the remaining closers will help my team as much as some of the offensive options still available. I would have selected Delmon Young, but he went just before my pick. Young’s RBI output is projected higher than Granderson’s and an eyeball test of my team says I need RBI. Granderson did go on a second half tear last year, so maybe he has become adjusted to the new Yankee Stadium and make use of its favorable conditions for lefties. Toss in 12-15 SB and Granderson presents a solid addition as OF#3.

132

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 11:23

for gurudan
9.05 Buchholz, Clay SP BOS
I thought with pretty good stats in 2010, he should be able to win at least 15 games in the #2 starting position with the red sox.

133

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 11:27

9.06 Leo Nunez, RP, Fla

Before they were all gone, I wanted to get another closer who has a lock on the job. I'm not particularly excited about the pick, but I felt I couldn't wait another round to get my second closer. I should probably have taken Franklin with my previous selection, but was thinking he may have made it back to me.

134

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 12:02

9.07 Geovany Soto, C, ChC
Led all catchers in OPS (.890) in 2010, but lost some time in the second half of the season with a shoulder sprain. Offseason surgery hopefully corrected the issues. With health, could be a top tier catcher.

I had him in his disappointing sophomore season, which hopefully turns out to be the aberration. If not, I guess you can “fool me twice.”

135

kdl212
ID: 48201323
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 13:24

for coldwater
9.08 Ted Lilly, SP, LAD
I had planned to take 3 pitchers in my first 9 picks. Lilly is reasonably reliable, should be good for 12+ wins with a very low WHIP.

136

kdl212
ID: 48201323
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 13:27

9.09 Jason Bay, OF, NYM
If everything goes wrong, Bay will be sitting next to Morneau on my bench all year debating whether that ringing that they both hear in their ears is real.

137

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 15:53

for filthy
9.10 Mike Aviles, 2B, Kan
Getting the Furcal insurance early. Or ideally, filling MI early. I didn't like any of the closers left really, Lilly just went, some really good outfielders getting picked, but I had to reach for the guy I want. Waiting usually backfires in this draft.

Aviles had a big callup in 2008, started slow in 2009 and got hurt early. Missed April in 2010, was average in May for his first full month of at bats. His next full month of at bats wasn't until September and he was excellent, 5 category stud excellent, and I am hoping that Aviles can show some of that excellence for 2-3 months. There will likely be an injury or two, and a slump or two, but a shortstop who can have 20R/6HR/14RBI/6SB in one month is worth the reach. I might even be as bold as to label him this year's Bautista.

138

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 15:54

for ywk
9.11 Joel Hanrahan, RP, Pit
Got my second closer as most of the closers to start the season had been taken. I could have chosen another position player with my 9th pick but I guess I was on a panic mode then. Hopefully, he could hold up and maximize the opportunities as they may be hard to come by in Pittsburgh.

139

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 15:54

for graydog
9.12 Craig Kimbrel, RP, Atl

140

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 15:55

for kokeshi
9.13 Brett Gardner, OF, NYY
I thought the team needed steals, runs and obp Gardner was a great fit.

141

holt
ID: 3044420
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 18:01

9.14 Luke Scott, 1B, Bal

Seems like I get Luke Scott every year. He's been very consistent throughout his career. A typical Scott season would be fine.

2010: .368 .535
career: .354 .503

142

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:35

for s R
9.15 Ian Desmond, SS, Was
As a rookie last year, Desmond posted decent totals, but he needs to do something about his walk rate that resulted in only a .308 on-base percentage last year. He's one of the few players with an upside at the SS position.

143

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:37

for MBT
9.16 Vlad Guerrero, OF, Bal
The fact that Vlad managed to keep his OF eligibility was a huge factor in this pick. I needed somebody who was going to give me a source of RBIs and not hurt me in the % categories. The Orioles' rebuilt lineup should lead to plenty of RBI opportunities for Vlad, so there's some upside. However, given his age and history of back issues he’ll be on a short leash.

10.01 Jonathan Sanchez, SP, SF
Sanchez had a 5.30 ERA over the first two months of the 2009 season, but in the second half of that season he put up a 3.83 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. The big thing about Sanchez is his K rate. In the second half of ’09 it was 10.4 and in ’10 it was 9.5. You just don’t see those numbers in the 10th round of a fantasy draft. I’ll take the warts if he can continue to strike people at those rates.

144

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:37

for s R
10.02 Fernando Rodney, RP, LAA
Rodney finished the 2010 season as the Angels' closer, and he is the front-runner to start the season in the ninth-inning role.

145

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:38

for holt
10.03 Brian Roberts, 2B, Bal
Definitely an injury risk here, but he's good value this late in the draft. If he hits the DL, he hits the DL. I'm lucky if I finish a season with 40% of my draftees anyway. Roberts helps me with steals, which I desperately need, and his OPS should be much better than any other MI that were left (assuming he stays healthy). Worth a shot.

I really really wanted to draft Swisher here. I don't think he should have still been available (Graydog took him two picks after this one).

146

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:38

for kokeshi
10.04 Mike Napoli, C, Tex
Napoli has always been a guy who I thought could break out if he would stop getting his at bats jerked around. Now that he is going to Texas and getting away from Scoscia and his hate of all catchers not like he was I think he could give me a slugging % well above .500 and good all around production.

147

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:39

for graydog
10.05 Nick Swisher, OF, NYY
My first outfielder taken with pick 165. I find there is lots of value late in drafts for outfield so I often wait to draft outfielders. Swisher should be helped in 4 categories as long as he is healthy regardless of where he bats in the order.

148

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:39

for ywk
10.06 Adam Jones, OF, Bal
Jones is talented but has not been realizing his potential just yet. As I spent last two picks on closers, I grabbed Jones as my second OF though he may hurt my OBP category because of lack of plate discipline but I wish to see some improvement in his other offense categories such as HR and SB.

149

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:40

for filthy
10.07 Drew Storen, RP, WAS
I've neglected the closer run long enough. They were all looking ugly a couple rounds back, but now there's only 1 or 2 with jobs remaining, and I don't wanna leave this draft with nothing.

Storen might lose the job early, his team doesn't win much, so he only got a few chances during his audition. I hope that keeps him from losing the job too early. Best case scenario is he starts the year like Capps did last year.

150

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:41

for kdl212
10.08 Adam Lind, OF, Tor
Justin Morneau insurance, and maybe I get lucky and he slugs .500.

151

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:41

for coldwater coyotes
10.09 Vernon Wells, OF, LAA
Not a good decision. Somewhat of a mistake as I had a number of other OFs ranked higher. I should have taken Rajai Davis or Pagan.

152

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 19:42

10.10 Daniel Hudson, SP, Ari
There are no hitters that are attracting me at this time (but I might have taken Swisher if he had lasted to here), so I turned to look at pitching. One name that stood out near the top of the available starters ranked by several different sources was Dan Hudson. He has the type of profile that I’ve had some success with: young(24), good control, pitches in the NL, strikes out almost one batter per inning. Looks like a good candidate for my SP2.

153

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 20:11

for Slackjawed
10.11 Starlin Castro, SS, CHC
I was unable to check in on the draft all day, so when I checked in after getting home, I saw I was on deck with Guru up. So, I had a lot of work to do in marking off the selections and finding best available players and who met my needs. Seeing I had yet to get a middle infielder, that was my top priority. I ended up narrowing it down to Castro or getting another pitcher in Dan Hudson. I checked back in to draftime after completing my research to see that Guru had already taken Hudson. That made my decision for me. I had thought I might be able to get Ian Desmond later in the draft like I did last year, but looking at Castro, I think he has a lot more upside than Desmond. However, Castro won't even by 21 until next week, so he's still probably a couple of years from reaching his potential.

154

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 20:11

for gurudan
10.12 Tim Hudson, SP, ATL
This may be a reach, but starting pitching seems to be my undoing each year, and i don't see an experienced pitcher like him being too bad.

155

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 20:12

10.13 Howie Kendrick, 2B, LAA
I need CI’s, but the ones being taken around this point in the draft aren't particularly interesting to me and the ones I prefer are lasting a few more rounds. So I guess I will roll the dice and hope for the best in round 12. The MI pickings are thinning out and I’d like one who can contribute in SB’s without killing my team in OPS. And that about sums up Howie Kendrick’s profile. He has some upside considering all the hype he has garnered in past years. He finally stayed healthy enough for a full season so I am hoping for a slight improvement from last year’s numbers. For MI #3, that feels about right. He’s also eligible at 1B in case I need that flexibility at some point this season, though I hope I don’t have to count on him for a CI spot for any long period of time.

156

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 20:25

10.14-Rajai Davis, OF, TOR
91 SBs over the past 2 seasons, the potential to hit .300, and a .423 SLG in 2009 makes Davis more than a one category player. He was the best speed player left, so I went with him in the 10th round.

157

mjd
ID: 10230119
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 21:26

10.15 Carlos Quinton OF, CHW

Looking over my squad to this point, I feel like I could use a bit more power. With Dunn manning the DH spot for the Pale Hose this season, Quinton will have to play in the OF full time to stay in the lineup. He already has a history of injuries, never having eclipsed the 500 AB mark in his career, so this only further adds to that risk. But if he can manage 450 ABs, he should approach 30 HRs that should translate into a .500 and change SLG%. Decent upside for the risk at this stage in the draft.

158

mjd
ID: 10230119
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 22:40

For JKay

10.16 Colby Lewis SP, TEX
Last year, I did not draft a SP in the first 9 rounds, but ended up 3rd in RIBC AAA. While one year does not make a trend, it did give me confidence that the strategy can be effective. So using that logic I waited. Lewis fits the profile of the type of guy who can lead my rotation. High K rate, good team. Wins are hard to project but that was the deciding factor between Lewis and Wandy - quality of team.

11.01 Josh Beckett SP, BOS
Beckett's #'s were awful last year. But I used the same logic to draft him as Lewis- K's, W's, hopefully an ERA in the 3.75-4.0 range and a WHIP under 1.30. Most sites have him rebounding to those levels. Beckett has also been an ace before, so it's nice to at least have some pedigree when drafting a SP in the 11th round.

159

mjd
ID: 10230119
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 22:42

11.02 Kevin Gregg RP, BAL

Should have set the auto-pick before going to bed, but my daughter came home from school this weekend to celebrate her birthday and celebrate we did, so I forgot to hit the button. Sorry for that. I hate wasting almost 3 hours of clock time, especially on a damned closer pick.

This is about where I normally pick closers. Actually, I don’t like picking them at all, but I also don’t like punting cats, so I’ll grab one of the last ones who appear to have the job, at least to start the season. Hopefully, his percentages won’t hurt me too bad in the daunting AL East. But the O’s have a talented, abet young SP staff and Gregg did convert 37 out of 43 attempts for the Jays last year. Would have preferred to grab another SP here, but that talent pool is deep enough to wait another 29 picks.

160

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Sat, Mar 19, 2011, 23:43

11.03-Ryan Dempster, SP, CHC
At this point in the draft I only had 2 SPs. So many were being drafted that it was time to pay attention to to pitching. I liked the consistency of Dempster as well as his Ks.

161

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 06:59

11.04 Angel Pagan, OF, NYM
As a Met fan, this will give me something extra to root for as I watch the games. Pagan likely put up his career year last year, but he is still young and should be in his prime so the drop off should be only slight. My other consideration was Bobby Abreu, also expected to decline as he ages. I was concerned the Abreu drop off would be precipitous. Pagan contributes across the board. In particular, I feel really good about SB’s at this point.

162

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 07:30

for gurudan
11.05 Manny Ramirez, OF, Tam
I needed OF'S and had watched an ESPN piece on Manny in training for this season. I was very impressed. The fact that he is one of the best rbi guys the last 20 years made me want to take a chance.

163

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 07:30

for Slackjawed Yokel
11.06 Bobby Abreu, OF, LAA
Well, I almost went in what could fairly accurately be called a completely opposite direction. I had decided on Jeremy Hellickson, but went back through the available players, and saw Abreu as the most highly ranked. So, instead of getting an up-and-coming pitcher in his first full season, I picked a grizzled veteran in his 15th. His numbers do seem to be on the decline, but for an 11th round pick getting 80 runs/rbi and 20 stolen bases is too much to pass up. I'll see how quickly Hellickson goes of the board... maybe he'll make it back to me.

164

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 07:31

11.07 Michael Bourn, OF, Hou
My short list for this pick was Abreu and Pagan. When Uptown took Pagan, I thought for sure that Yokel would nab Abreu. Like clockwork!

I still need two middle infielders, but don’t see anyone that I think warrants an 11th round pick. On the pitching side, there are some starters that I’m interested in, but with two on my roster already, I’d rather work on hitting here.

My choice came down to the Torii Hunter or Michael Bourn. I have Hunter as the best power hitter available, and Bourn as the best base stealer. So far, I think I have a pretty decent power foundation, but my steals are lagging. If I want to get full value out of my first round pick (Carlos Gonzalez), I can’t let his 20+ steals get wasted in a category that gets punted.

I really dislike taking one-trick ponies like Bourn – but it should give me more flexibility in assembling the rest of my hitters. I’m hoping that with experience, he can develop more plate discipline and bump up his OBP a bit, but as long as he stays healthy and gets the green light, I think he’ll fulfill his purpose.

165

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:49

for coldwater
11.08 David Ortiz, DH, Bos
I love this pick. OPS of .875 and 85 RBI for an 11th pick is tremendous. I will take the inconvenience of having a DH only player.

166

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:50

for kdl212
11.09 Dexter Fowler, OF, COL
The first pick I wanted back, though not because I'm down on Fowler. Leadoff hitter, Coors, should score 90 runs and steal 20 bases. But it was Fowler or a second starting pitcher, and given the greater depth available in the OF, I wish now I'd gone with a second starter. I felt especially so after the guys I had on my list (Wandy, Danks, Gonzalez and Hughes) all went before I could pick again. Still, I'm happy with the potential out of the 2 starting pitchers I got in the next two rounds, but they're riskier than what I could have had.

167

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:51

for filthy
11.10 Wandy Rodriguez, SP, Hou
My team really needs speed and outfielders, and there are plenty left, and plenty flying off the board. Too bad Wandy Rodriguez stands out way too much. The second half he had last year was beyond awesome. Based on some previous work by his pitching coach, I believe that Wandy has turned the corner, rather than had a lucky second half. No disrespect to the rest of the NL, but I think Wandy will compete for the Cy this year. Will lose to his RIBC teammate though, of course.

168

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:51

for ywk
11.11 John Danks, SP, ChW
Danks is my third SP selected. He has good offense behind him so I guess winning ball games may not be difficult for him. I could only hope they do not come at the expense WHIP and ERA.

169

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:52

fpr graydog
11.12 Torii Hunter, OF, LAA
Hunter is getting older but has shown the ability to stay healthy and still swip the odd bag. Should be very helpful in RBI,and hopefully slugging while having some value in runs and OBP. Had really hoped for Pagan, Abreu or Manny to but Hunter was next in my queue.

170

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:52

for kokeshi
11.13 Gio Gonzalez, SP, Oak
I was going to take the best starter available at this spot. I like gonzalez’s k and think he has the chance to breakout.

171

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:54

for holt
11.14 Jeremy Hellickson, SP, Tam
No hesitation on this one. Can't believe he made it back around to me. Hellickson is 23, has been given the proper chance to develop at all levels in the minors, and has dominated at every stop. He has a nice arsenal of pitches and great control (1.05 whip in the minors). His 36.1 with the Rays last season were pretty strong (33 K, 8 BB, 1.10 whip, 4-0). I think it's a stroke of luck that he fell to 11.14. I've been burned by young pitchers like this before, many times. I have a lot of confidence in Hellickson though. Someone like Romero or Garza may have been a safer pick but I like to take a stab at players who can outplay their draft position once in a while.

172

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:55

for s R
11.15 Carlos Lee, OF, Hou
He is still capable of jacking 20+ homers and can be used at first base, so his versatility is a plus. With all of the young, speedy talent on the Astros, Lee should be able to get his numbers up this season.

173

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:56

for MBT
11.16 Denard Span, OF, MIN
Man crush alert!! I’ve liked Span for several years now, but last year was a bit disappointing. He’s hovered in the .380 - .390 OBP range, but for some reason he dropped all the way down to .331 last season. I’m betting on him returning to previous levels and last year was an aberration. I’m looking for 85-90 runs and 25 SB this year.

12.01 Ike Davis, 1B, NYM
Here’s a note about Davis from September 2010 “He has now gone 28-for-71 (.394) over his last 21 contests with eight doubles and three home runs.” Here’s another note about Davis posted 3 days earlier “Davis struggled mightily after the All-Star break…” Davis is streaky no doubt, but he has monster upside if he can keep it together for an entire season. I needed someone to cover my corner and possibly take over at 1B if Butler doesn’t work out and Davis fits that bill nicely.

174

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:56

for s R
12.02 Phil Hughes, SP, NYY
He's still capable of performing like he did in the first half last year and is still an ace in waiting. He should be a little more prepared to handle the workload in 2011. I think he's a bargain here.

175

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:56

for holt
12.03 Neil Walker, 3B, Pit
Walker was on my short list for a few rounds. Figured it was now or never. I picked up Walker as an FA when PIT called him up last season and never regretted it. I remember him to be a consistent hitter. He started at a nice pace and kept it up all season.

In 2900 minor league AB, he only had a .763 OPS, so there's no guarantee here. He may be over-valued on some of the cheat-sheets out there. One thing though - he had an OPS of .951 in AAA last season (189 AB) before being called up. So maybe at the age of 24 something just finally clicked for him. Who knows? The MI talent left at this point in the draft is almost non-existent, so I'll take the chance that last year's .811 OPS was for real. 3B eligibility doesn't hurt either, seeing that I didn't have and 3B yet (I much prefer him as a 2B though).

176

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:57

for kokeshi
12.04 Ian Stewart, 3B, Col
This pick has left me feeling very unsatisfied. Once again I am taking somebody with a minor injury concern and Stewart has never really put it all together. However I was feeling pressure to fill my 3rd base slot and he plays in Colorado.

177

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:57

for graydog
12.05 Frank Francisco, RP, Tor
My 2nd pick in a run of 4 picks that were from a long queue which i knew i would be unable to check. wanted one more "for sure" closer. Frank was one of the last available. Dealing with a slight injury and Jon Rauch in the rear view but he should get the most save on the Jays.

178

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:58

for ywk
12.06 Jose Tabata, OF, Pit
Tabata at 11th round with many holes on my roster remaining to be filled? Second Pirates OF on my team? I must be not totally awake when making this pick. Period.

179

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:59

for filthy
12.07 Travis Snider, OF, Tor
Drafted Snider last year, and it didn't turn out, but I need an outfielder pretty badly right now, and I still like Snider a lot. Speed and relief can continue to wait. This is going to be a young outfield.

180

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 18:59

for kdl121
12.08 Ricky Nolasco, SP, Fla
Having delayed picking a second starter until now, and watching more reliable and desirable players fall off the board, I couldn't put it off any longer. As fangraphs put it, "Nolasco is the anti-Matt Cain, continuing to boggle the minds of sabermetricians everywhere by annually underperforming his skills." Maybe this year he puts it all together. I'd be happy if he has 2 awesome months, and is average for the other 4.

181

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 19:00

for coldwater coyotes
12.09 Tsuyoshi Nishioka, SS, Min
All indications are that he has good speed and will get on base but power will be iffy. Reports from spring training are glowing about his fielding.

182

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 19:02

12.10 Michael Cuddyer, 1B/3B/OF, Min
Unbelievable. I was planning to take Nishioka here. I really thought this was a safe round to get him. I should know better.

I’m going with Cuddyer for a couple of reasons. He’s among the top hitters available in the counting stats – at least, excluding those with significant injury or age concerns. But just as importantly, he has position eligibility at 1B, 3B, and OF, which should be useful in getting some extra GP when other players have an off day, or when covering for an injury. Projections seem to hover around 80+ runs and 90-ish RBI. No material steals, and the averages are nothing special, but should be around my team averages, I hope.

I looked at pitching options, but didn’t see anyone who I had to have. If Hellickson or Wandy had lasted to this spot, I might have taken them. But they didn’t. I’ll get a pitcher in round 13, in all likelihood.

Maybe I’m taking Cuddyer a round or two early, but after missing out on Nishioka (who was admittedly a risk anyway), I’m probably on tilt and I’m not going to defer.

184

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 19:12

12.11 Ricky Romero, SP, Tor

Okay, lesson learned. I guess I should have known this a long time ago, but I have to realize if I'm even considering a guy I need to pick him then; as there are 15 other managers who are all essentially on the same page as me. In my last pick when I went with Abreu (time will tell if he stays productive/healthy), I was strongly considering Hellickson, while also looking at Wandy and Danks. Those guys were all gone in half a round after I passed on them. So, when this pick came around, I really felt I needed my third starting pitcher. There were two guys I was looking at - Cahill and Romero. Both are young pitchers two full years in the bigs. Each showed considerable improvement in their second seasons, but Romero's 56 more K's tipped the scales in his favor.

185

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 19:26

for gurudan
12.12 Andres Torres, OF, SF

186

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 19:26

12.13 Jhoulys Chacin, SP, COL
I expected to draft 1B here but I continue to convince myself to go in other directions. I was eyeing Hughes, Nolasco, Romero, and Chacin as potential picks and when all but Chacin went off the board this round, I decided to bump SP#4 up in my priority. Chacin was dynamite last year and if he can avoid the dreaded sophomore slump, then he should be in store for another great year. His K’s/9 separated him (and the other pitchers I was eyeing this round) from what I see as the next group of pitchers and with 2 teams above me holding just 2 starters, I figured Chacin might disappear.

187

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 20:44

12.14- Derrick Lee, 1B, BAL
I drafted Lee to fill the CI roster spot and to help with the power categories. His wrist injury seems to be resolved, so it seemed safe to draft him.

188

mjd
ID: 10230119
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 20:58

12.15 Huroki Kuroda SP, LAD

Pretty safe pick here despite Kuroda being 36 years old. Has increased his K/9 rate 3 years running, has equitable L vs R splits, and throws ground balls at a 50 % rate in a pitcher’s park. Was hoping that one of Wandy, Gio, or Hughs might fall to me, but despite their higher potential upside, I had all 4 ranked very close with about 2-3 other SPs.

189

JKaye
Leader
ID: 01372359
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 21:20

12.16 Danny Espinosa, 2B, WAS

Espinosa has decent upside for a pick here, and should play everyday for the Nats. I may regret not addressing 2B earlier, but do have some hope that Espinosa can emerge as a viable starter in a 16 team league.

13.01 Gavin Floyd, SP, CWS

I think Floyd will pitch with a very good offense behind him, and has been fairly consistent the past three seasons. His WHIP jumped to 1.4 last year but was 1.3 and 1.24 the prior two seasons. The jump was partially due to a higher than normal BABIP. His CTL has been stable and GB rate improving, so I think there may be just a little bit of upside potential here (3.75 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 15 Wins).

190

mjd
ID: 10230119
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 22:11

13.02 Adam LaRoache !B, WASH

Always liked this loose swinging lefty, but not as much in a Nats uni, which is probably why he is still here to be picked in the lucky 13th round. That and the fact that he can be a frustratingly slow starter, so early patience may be warranted. But come stretch time he’s been able to turn it up and finish his year with consistently acceptable numbers. His usual 25 HR and 95-100 RBI would work for me at this draft spot.

192

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 22:25

13.03-Brett Myers, SP, PHI
Back to SPs again. As with Ryan Dempster whom I drafted at 11.03, Myers has both consistency and good Ks which I look for in SPs

193

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 22:33

13.04 Gaby Sanchez, 1B, FLA
All three teams picking after 12.13 took a SP and 2 took a 1B. My first choices for those positions were Chacin and Laroche. I’m left to wonder then if I played it right by taking Chacin last round since Laroche was gone. In either case, Sanchez was my second choice at 1B at this point, so I’m not particularly worried about it. He’ll hit in the middle of a pretty good lineup, should have plenty of RBI opportunities and post an OPS around .800.

195

Guru
ID: 330592710
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 23:11

for gurudan
13.05 Matt Wieters, C, Bal
I was going to wait til the end for a catcher, but felt the list was about to demand taking all catchers from one team. Wieters has been a bust so far in his career, but should play regularly. Wish i had Joe Mauer

196

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Sun, Mar 20, 2011, 23:36

13.06 Trevor Cahill, SP, Oak

I was seriously considering Cahill when I chose R. Romero in the 12th round. I'm still very thin at middle infielders (with only one), but I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I will continue to be thin at middle infielder no matter who I pick up at this point. I decided instead to bolster my pitching staff Cahill put up very solid numbers last year with 18 wins, a sub 3.0 ERA and a 1.1 WHIP. His only drawback is his low strikeout numbers, but I can deal with that in my fourth starter.

197

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 00:10

13.07 J.J. Hardy, SS, Bal
I had planned to take a starter here, but as I looked around at the hitting options, I decided that J.J. Hardy made more sense. The ranks of middle infielders are dwindling, and I still need two. League wide, we need to start 48 MIs, and only 30 have been drafted.

As long as he’s healthy, Hardy should provide decent support in runs and RBI, while not killing my ratios – something like 70-70-.340-.450.

198

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 09:59

for coldwater
13.08 Madison Bumgarner, SP, SF
Solid SP4 with upside. I really should have picked a MI here but my instincts tell me that at least 4 strong SPs are needed in this format.

199

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 10:00

for kdl212
13.09 Edinson Volquez, SP, Cin
Another pitcher coming back from injury that offers tantalizing potential, but is more likely to disappoint. Thought about filling a CI/MI slot here, but the pickings were very uninspiring.

200

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 10:00

for filthy
13.10 Daric Barton, 1B, Oak
Team need is really starting to cry out to me, but I just can't deny these names that are still out there. Barton could lead the majors in walks this year, and this is an OBP league. Not bad, I still needed a CI. Couldn't decide between Aardsma or League, missed both, and I almost went with Morrison here, but I prefer the American League infielder. Somewhere along the line I will realize that I need outfielders and pitching again.

201

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 10:01

for ywk
13.11 Jaime Garcia, SP, StL
I planned on taking Bumgarner/Chacin/Myers here---but they were all off the board even before I was on deck. Garcia was impressive last year as a rookie, and thus would be subject to sophomore slump (if any). Hopefully he could turn in another solid year as my #4 SP.

202

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 10:01

for graydog
13.12 David Aardsma, RP, Sea
After seeing I drafted Aardsma and Francisco I wish I had designated an auto picker. Definitely Did not want both. Now I have 4 guys who should get some saves and hopefully provide me some value for future trade.

203

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 10:02

for kokeshi
13.13 Asdrubal Cabrera, SS, Cle
Needed a shortstop and Cabrera seemed to be the best on left on the board.

204

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 10:02

for holt
13.14 Scott Rolen, 3B, Cin
Rolen really helped my team out last year. He was unbelievable before the break. I was a little surprised that he fell this far, considering who else was left.

I guess when people think of Rolen, the image of an injury-prone old guy pops to mind, and rightly so. But, he's also a guy who won a gold glove last year, went to the all-star game, and had an .855 OPS. Before the all-star break he was one of the most feared hitters in the league (17 hr, 57 rbi, .361, .548). After the break, he was hobbled by various aches and pains and spent some time on the DL, but still played the year out well enough to finish 14th in the MVP voting.

I'll be lucky to get 120 games from Rolen this year, but this is the 206th overall pick. I'll take it. As the season goes on, I'll find some options.

205

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:28

for eserel
13.15 Matt Garza, SP, CHC

Matt Garza had the finest year of his career in 2010 and set career bests in almost every significant category. While being a fly-ball pitcher might hurt him during the summer months at Wrigley Field, I think what he gains in the switch will more than make up for a few extra homers allowed due to park factors.

206

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:30

for mbt
13.16 Austin Jackson, OF, DET
I needed to fill in my OF slots and Jackson was the highest on my list. He had an outstanding rookie season scoring over 100 runs and 27 stolen bases. My squad’s a little slow so adding Jackson should help my overall numbers. I’m just keeping my fingers crossed that he doesn’t get a sophomore slump.
14.01 Raul Ibanez, OF, PHI
I know, the guy’s getting a little long in the tooth, but I wanted to continue to add RBIs and SBs to my team and I needed to fill in my outfield. If I can get 80 RBIs and a mid .300 OBP I’ll be fine with this pick. I’m starting to think I’m going to take out some retirement insurance on this team.

207

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:30

for eserel
14.02 Brandon League, RP, SEA
David Aardsma had hip surgery, may be back in April. Brandon League will close in the meantime. Even if Aardsma does return in April, he's a midseason trade candidate, so League could have value all year.

208

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:31

for holt
14.03 CJ Wilson, SP, TEX
I guess this is a sign of how the balance of power has shifted from hitting to pitching over the past few seasons. A guy has a line of 15 W, 3.35 era, 1.25 whip, 170 K's, and he gets drafted #211 overall. I almost over-looked him as I assumed he was off the board but I took a little time to go over things and sure enough, there he was. I scraped the internet to figure out why everyone was shunning him and couldn't really find anything, other than the fact that he doesn't have an amazing minor league record and he was only so-so as a closer. Maybe he's a flash in the pan. Wouldn't be the first time. Worth a shot. It was either him or Miguel Montero. Yawn.

I considered Logan Morrison here, but i really thought of him as someone to safely grab around rd 15 or 16 or so. Figured I could slip him through to my 15.14 pick. Guru screwed that up at 15.07. Kind of makes me feel bad. Morrison is exactly the kind of player I like to target in a league like this. He gets buried in all the cheat sheets because everyone uses HR instead of SLG. Oh well. Maybe he'll slump and get cut to the FA pool.

I didn't care much for Guru taking Minor in the 18th either. That was unexpected. And now I see he has just taken Lowrie in the 20th. son of a bitch! Whatever rd you think someone will go in, best subtract two from that.

209

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:32

for kokeshi
14.04 Ervin Santana, SP, LAA
Needed a starter and I thought Santana was the best available.

210

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:32

for graydog
14.05 Jason Kubel, OF, MIN
This guy does not seem to get much love but I like the lefty power bat. Hopefully my team stacks up in a way that I can sit him against some lefties. Had an off year last but I believe can return to 2009 totals.

211

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:33

for ywk
14.06 Freddie Freeman, 1B, ATL
I may have pulled the trigger too quick here, which is not uncommon throughout my draft this year. I picked Freeman as my CI though in retrospect I should have drafted Rauch to boost my SV.

212

filthy
Sustainer
ID: 568191312
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 13:36

14.07 Peter Bourjos, OF, LAA

Bourjos might not even end up with a full time job. He might end up with more steals as a pinch runner though. The speed on this kid is gaining quite a reputation. Hooray for working on bunting! I might have lucked into a nice speed option even though I waited too long in my own mind.

Overall, starting to feel like outfield and RP are going to be the weaknesses this year.

213

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 14:36

for kdl212
14.08 Chase Headley, 3B, SD
Lame pick, but the #3 hitter in any lineup should be able to offer 70/70, and Headley might throw in 10 stolen bases. The pickings were looking slim at 3B, and I already had a second 1B or I would have taken Moreland. Thought about going with Montero/Posada/Suzuki here, but situated in the middle of the snake, I didn't want to start a mini-run on catchers, since there were 4 or 5 that looked the same to me, and not that many teams without catchers on either side of me.

This middle part of the draft sometimes bores me: it's way too early to draft longshots like [undrafted] and [undrafted] -- indeed, almost every pick seems like it's a round or two too early.

214

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 14:37

for coldwater coyotes
14.09 Jon Rauch, RP, Tor
I need 2 closers but one of the two I have taken, Broxton, is a real question mark so I was prepared to pounce on a chance to pick up a back up. News that Rauch would be closing for a few weeks and might keep the job permanently was tempting. However I should have taken a MI.

215

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 14:38

14.10 Ian Kennedy, SP, Ari
Wow. For a change, my intended pick wasn’t snatched away at the last moment.

When I decided to take J.J. Hardy last round and wait until this pick for my next starting pitcher, my short list for starters was Bumgarner and Kennedy. When coldwater coyotes immediately took Bumgarner, I got worried. But Kennedy made it through all 17 picks.

Kennedy has the type of profile I like when filling out my starting staff – relatively young (26), decent K/IP ratio (1.0+), preferably pitching in the N.L., and showing decent projections by multiple services. A repeat of Kennedy’s 2010 stats would be just fine, although a few more wins wouldn’t hurt.

216

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 16:23

for Slackjawed
14.11 Jonny Venters, RP, ATL
Word out of Atlanta is that Venters may be sharing the closer role with Kimbrel. In RIBC, it's common for people to load up on middle relievers, I wanted to grab one early who in addition to having >1.0 K/IP, a sub 2.0 ERA also stands to get me double-digit saves.

217

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 16:24

for gurudan
14.12 Clayton Richard, SP, SDG
Pitchers park on a pitching team. # 2 starter in the rotation says to me give it a shot.

218

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 16:24

14.13 Miguel Montero, C, ARI
Last year I went with Victor Martinez early in the draft and actually liked how the strategy played out. So I was tempted in round 2 to draft Mauer, but ultimately passed, hoping he might slip to round 3. Once that didn’t happen, I decided to be patient on the C spot (though I flirted with Soto in round 9). So here in round 14, taking Montero seems right. Most projections like him ranked @ 10th and I don’t really like many of the catchers after him as much. MJD needs a catcher and I’d be upset with having to settle for one of the others, so rather than risk that, I’ll take Montero now. As an aside, I have a lot of west coast players on my team and as an east coaster, I hope that doesn’t end up becoming a nuisance.

221

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 17:04

for loki:

14.14 Juan Pierre OF, CWS
With this pick I planned on drafting a closer that would either be replacing one that was injured or one that would be sharing closing duties. However League, Rauch and Venters were picked before me so I went in another direction. Although there were still 2 RPs remaining who could do this, I thought that Pierre was a better value. He has stolen an average of 46 bases in the past 3 years as well as having a good OBP.

222

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 17:05

14.15 Johnny Cueto SP, CIN

Targeted Pierre and Cueto here, not having a preference for either and loki made my choice for me by taking Pierre. By now, the big SB guys are about tapped out and the decent K/9 guys are dwindling also. Not 10 minutes after making this pick, I was flipping through the channels and saw on the MLB network crawl that Cueto was pulled after the first inning of a 4 inning scheduled stint for shoulder tightness. Just great.

The 25 year old has progressed in all areas slowly but surely over the past 3 years. Perhaps we’re looking at a breakout season or a lingering arm issue leading to lots of other potential bad things. Actually, I have him ranked a bit higher than I’m taking him here, so I’ll assume some risk at this point and hope for the best.

223

JKaye @Work
ID: 57235169
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 17:08

14.16 Kila Ka'ahihue, 1B, KC

Some sites have very optimistic projections for him. I figured I'd take a chance at pick 224 that they are right. I know Kila has patience and power, so with every day AB, he may emerge as a viable CI in RIBC.

15.01 Sean Rodriguez, 2B, TB

It's unclear exactly how much SRod will play out of the gates, but I think he is just as valuable as some of the other MI available, even only playing 80% as often. If he ever does get 100% PT, he could be a solid MI option.

224

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 17:47

15.02 Coco Crisp OF, OAK

This oft injured OF had the second most SBs after the ASB to the above mentioned Juan Pierre, though he should post a 50-60 point increase in OPS over Pierre. Probably the last of the one cat speed guys left that can guarantee 25-30 SBs when in the lineup. Hopefully, his DL trips won’t overlap my other injury prone OF, Carlos Quinton.

226

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 19:26

15.03-Kyle Farnsworth, RP, TAM
I had wanted a closer with 14.14, but I picked Juan Pierre because I felt he was a better value than the remaining closers. However I had forgotten about Farnsworth who hopefully will get his share of saves as part of a CBC team. In any event I only had one mediocre closer at this time and needed another.

227

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 20:40

for Uptown Bombers
15.04 Moreland, Mitch ,1B ,TEX
My quest to find value at CI late in the draft continues. Hopefully this young guy who I knew very little about until a few days ago turns out to be a contributor. Actually, I still know very little about him, but he is having a good spring, plays in a hitter friendly park, has some room for growth with a full season of AB’s, and seems to have won himself the starting spot. I considered Aroldis Chapman, just because I thought that would be fun, but decided it was a bit early for that.

228

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 20:41

for gurudan
15.05 Omar Infante, 3B ,FLA
Best utility guy in the business. Good OBP and supposed to start.

229

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 20:43

15.06 Marco Scutaro, SS, Bos

I've got to address only having a single middle infielder. Each round, I'm seeing players who could have been a good fit to plug into my lineup go off the board. So, I went with Scutaro who looked to be the best available at the time - will get in the lineup daily, and offers some flexibility in that he's eligible at both 2b and ss. I had actually settled on picking Infante when I got the email that it was my chance to pick. When I typed his name in Draftime, he wasn't showing up; so, I checked the list again only to see Infante had gone with the prior pick.

230

Guru
ID: 330592710
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 21:38

15.07 Logan Morrison, OF, Fla
Probably worth more in this format than a traditional 5x5, as his OBP is about .100 above his BA. Projected stats are 80-65-5-.380-.430, and at age 23, could have some upside. I’ve got him as the best available hitter at this point.

231

kdl212
ID: 48201323
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 23:29

for coldwater coyotes
15.08 James Loney, 1B, LAD
I had planned on taking Kila Kaa.... for my CI but he went in the last round. Loney gets on base and is good for a few steals.

232

kdl212
ID: 48201323
Mon, Mar 21, 2011, 23:38

15.09 James Shields, SP, TB
I was starting to feel like the wheels were coming off this draft at this point. I didn't feel like I had a plan, just a bunch of names of interesting people I had no business drafting before the 20th round. I considered gambling on a closer in waiting, but my experience is that in the first 2 weeks of the season the first person I drop when an injury occurs is that middle reliever I drafted. I don't think it's wise to draft AL east starting pitching as a rule, but there was James Shields in my queue. It was too early for Bedard, though I was sure I wanted to take that risk (I took that foolish plunge 2 rounds later).

As I try to write this rationale, it's clear to me I'm looking at 12th place as a bet case scenario.

234

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:09

for filthy
15.10 Chipper Jones, 3B, Atl
Will bat cleanup whenever he plays. Probably be rested, but used as a pinch hitter a couple times a week. But Chipper is not my starter, he is a backup CI, so anything he does is gravy.

At the expense of building on pitching depth, but I still am unsure where to begin on my next tier of pitching depth at this point anyways.

Morrison, Crisp, Venters, Rauch all would have been considered were they around. Joyce, R Soriano, Chapman, Kuo were also on my queue at the time.

235

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:10

for ywk
15.11 Yunel Escobar, SS, Tor
He was in Bobby cox's dog house lasy year and never managed to get out of it. Hopefully change of zip code may help him bounce back. I picked him as my MI.

236

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:10

for graydog
15.12 David Freese, 3B StL
Health is the biggest concern here. If healthy Freese should be able to produce positive OBP, Slug, and should have many RBI chances behind Holliday, Pujols and perhaps Berkman. He is also having a great spring which never hurts someones value.

237

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:11

for kokeshi
15.13 Ty Wigginton, 3B, Col
With injured or injury prone players at 1st base, second base and third base Wigginton was the perfect back up.

238

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:12

for holt
15.14 Brian Matusz, SP, Bal
I remember drafting Matusz on some teams last year and having to cut him due to pitching like crap. He's been a highly rated prospect for a while, with really impressive minor league and college stats, fwiw. After he started out poorly last year, there were some writers who basically said that he was never really that good and that he didn't have the stuff to ever be anything more than a mid to back of rotation pitcher. He shut them the f up by going 7-1 with a 2.18 ERA after Buck Showalter took over.

I've already gone over the L Morrison thing, but if Moreland had still been around (Uptown bombers 15.04) I would have had a difficult choice here.

239

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:12

for s R
15.15 Reid Brignac, 2B Tam
He should perform better than the average shortstop in SLG category and his OPS could prevent him from making a significant impact. Finally ready for full-time, Brignac should contribute.

240

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:13

for MBT
15.16 Jake McGee, RP, Tam
"Closer in waiting" according to the TB Rays. Who knows, maybe I'll get 15 saves out of the guy and his other numbers are solid. His only competition includes Kyle Farnsworth, who went 13 picks earlier. I'm liking this pick in the 15th round.

16.01 Ryan Theriot, 2B, StL
Not an ideal pick, but I needed another MI at some point. He won't screw up my ratios and he's had periods of 20+ stolen bases. He's projected to lead off in St. Louis, but he'll have to turn things around to keep the job. I had been looking at Scutaro and Infante only to see them go back to back a few picks earlier.

241

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:14

for s R
16.02 Matt Capps, RP, Min
Matt Capps had a career year in 2010, his 42 saves were a career high and he still posted decent strikeout numbers with a low-walk count. His value is really hurt by the impending return of Nathan…

242

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:14

for holt
16.03 Jorge Posada, C, NYY
I'm paying zero attention to all the middle relievers being drafted. Not bothering to track them. My experience has been that injuries force you to cut them for roster space way before they ever get a chance to get any saves. Besides, it's usually good to zig when everyone else is zagging, I guess.

Posada isn't a catcher anymore. Maybe being the primary DH will give his numbers a boost this year. He should gain 1B eligibility at some point, which should be helpful. The other catchers I was looking at were Ianetta and Ruiz. I figured that being a DH, Posada would get more AB's than the other two. I was hoping I could still get Ianetta or Ruiz later in the draft but neither lasted long. This might finally be Ianetta's year. I expect Posada's OPS to remain over .800 this season. Kind of curious as to how he'll be affected by moving away from catching.

243

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 10:15

for kokeshi
16.04 Carlos Beltran, OF, NYM
Staying with the high upside injured theme of the draft. Beltran is still only 33 and a couple years removed from top level outfield production.

245

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 12:54

for graydog
16.05 Anibal Sanchez, SP, Fla
Felt I needed another pitcher here. In hindsight Zimmerman may provide more value but most projects i have read are similar. I decided to go with the guy with more experience albeit also more injury history.

246

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 12:55

for ywk
16.06 Kurt Suzuki, C, Oak
He is one of the numerous mistakes I have made in the draft. I should have picked Ruiz as my catcher. Actually, I have been putting this Cal-State Fullerton product on my team three years running.

247

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 12:55

for filthy
16.07 Matt Joyce, OF, TB
My outfield list was really getting bare at this time and I still need a 4th. Quite glad that Joyce made it back to me. Great second half last year with a 3/4 timeshare. If he starts hot, could bat 5th and avoid being platooned.

Rays traded EJackson for him at one point, and 2011 is Joyce's turn to prove the Rays front office is brilliant yet again.

248

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 12:55

for kdl212
16.08 Chris Iannetta, C, Col
I know some folks who play the lottery every week, and like clockwork they pick the same numbers. I've even heard a likely urban legend that some guy who had been playing the same 6 numbers every week for years missed one week because he was in the hospital, and his six numbers came up that week.

Perhaps motivated by the same irrational impulse as my friends to expect different results to follow from doing the same thing over and over again, every March I participate in imaginary baseball drafts, and every year I end up selecting Chris Iannetta as my catcher, thereby guaranteeing another 300 at-bat season of unfulfilled promise.

249

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 12:56

for coldwater coyotes
16.09 Edwin Encarnacion, 3B, Tor
I wanted a MI but nobody at this stage of the draft was obvious. Encarnacion was the last 3B on my list so lets hope he stays healthy for the season.

250

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 12:57

16.10 Sergio Romo, RP, SF
I had planned to wait another round or two before going after setup relievers. But with my top closer, Brian Wilson, out with a mild oblique strain, I thought I had better handcuff his presumptive backup now. Even if Wilson is good to go on opening day, Romo should provide good value, striking out more than a batter an inning with useful ratios and an occasional vultured win or save.

251

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 14:22

for Yokel:

16.11 Marlon Byrd OF, CHCI'm suddenly a lot less excited about my picks. I guess that'll happen when there are at least 64 starting outfielders in the league. Byrd with this selection is my 4th outfielder. Looking for someone who plays every day and contributes in runs and rbi's.

252

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 14:26

for gurudan:

16.12 Jordan Zimmermann SP, WAS
I thought it was Ryan Zimmerman. LOL. Spring's best pitcher.

253

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 14:29

for Uptown Bombers:

16.13 Chris Coughlan, OF, FLA
This was first point in the draft where I felt unprepared and it results in this Coghlan pick. I had to throw together a queue before heading off to work and didn’t have the time last night or this morning to do it properly. I placed Edwin Encarnacion at the top of the list and would have been much happier with him as back up to the oft-injured Aramis Ramirez. He didn’t last and so I get Coghlan, who had a great rookie year, slumped last year and then got the clichéd “throw a pie in your teammates face and tear your knee up” injury. He’s due for a bounce back, but he’s already hurt and so who knows. Oh well, this gives me something to write about come draft recap time.

254

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 14:35

for loki:

16.14 Chris Johnson, 3B, HOU
I still needed a 3B, SS and MI, and to say the pickings were slim was an understatement. Johnson had a very good 2nd half of 2010 and is having a good spring. He has sleeper potential.

255

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 14:39

16.15 Brian Fuentes RP, OAK

Almost took a SP here to make up for my poor timing on the Cueto pick, but decided to maybe take advantage of another injury situation. The hits keep on coming for the fragile A’s bullpen and with scheduled closer Andrew Bailey’s continuing elbow problems, Fuentes is in prime position to cop a few saves. Even though a dreaded visit to Dr James Andrews was good news for Bailey, this is a situation that very well could play out
throughout the entire season. I was planning to draft a set up RP “closer in waiting” type after the turn, as I expect a run on these guys to start very soon, but I purposely wait on closers, just for this reason. And Fuentes just shot to the top of my draft list despite his propensity to work in and out of trouble that could damage my WHIP.

256

JKaye @Work
ID: 57235169
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 15:13

16.16 Rafael Soriano, RP, NYY
17.01 Daniel Bard, RP, Bos

Each of these set-up men will play an important role on my team. Soriano should provide elite K, ERA and WHIP numbers while giving me a very good insurance plan for Mariano. I see Guru did a similar thing attaching Romo to Wilson. Not sure how often I've seen teams successfully execute the "handcuff" strategy in the draft (it's very hard timing wise sometimes) but that's two very high level combos in RIBC 2011.

Bard is a potential closer-in waiting should Papelbon get hurt or traded. Among all non-Closer RP, Bard may have the highest total value when you factor in skill and opportunity. Kuo may be a better pitcher purely by the numbers, while countless others are closer to saving games than Bard currently is. But if given the chance, I will have a potential top 5 or 6 closer in the 17th round.

257

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 15:39

17.02 Alroldis Chapman

Even though I still have a few holes in my lineup, I’m going to continue the middle reliever streak because by the time I pick again in 29 spots, the best of these guys will be long gone. My toughest choice is which one will have the most value for my specific team. I debated several here, and chose the flame throwing Cuban. In addition to his 100+ mph heater, he also features an unhittable slider. But like most young hurlers, he struggles with command at times. However, his command issues were mostly as a SP in the minors, and right now he’s slated to set up Cordero in Cincy, if not take over the slot, should Cordero falter or succumb to injury. Regardless, he should help to mitigate any damage that Fuentes might do to my team WHIP while providing ERA help and an impressive K/9 number.

258

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 15:49

17.03-Ryan Madson, RP, PHI
I wanted a RP who would take over as a closer if the current closer were injured and would help with ratios. Madson was one remaining who met these criteria.

259

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 17:19

for Uptown Bombers
17.04 Edwin Jackson, SP, ChW
The Coghlan pick really bothers me when I see Chapman taken a few picks after him. Chapman was 3rd in my queue for the 16th round and I can’t really remember why I decided to put Coghlan ahead of him. I wish I had taken Chapman in the 16th and then Jackson in the 17th and just passed on Coghlan altogether. As for this pick, I wanted another SP with the potential for good K rates and there were fewer of those around since the last time I addressed pitching. I expect a fair deal of pitchers will come off the board before I pick again, so I narrowed my focus on Jackson. He has shown flashes throughout his career and put together a nice all around stat line last year. I’m hoping that was a sign of maturity and growth for the once highly touted prospect.

260

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 17:19

for gurudan
17.05 Juan Uribe, 2B, LAD
Another fairly productive versatile player

261

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 17:20

for slackjawed yokel
17.06 Hong-Chih Kuo, RP, LAD
Jumping on the set-up man bandwagon… Kuo took over the closing role at the end of last year, although they've given the job back to Broxton. I expect him to vulture a save chance or two, but mainly chose him for his very low ratios (except for his k to IP ratio... which was amongst the highest of the guys I was looking at).

262

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 17:21

17.07 Josh Willingham, OF, Oak
Wow – what a run on relievers! Did I start that when I took Romo?

It’s tempting to continue to chase, but if there is one thing that I’ve learned and relearned in RIBC leagues, it’s that relievers tend to be unpredictable. It only takes a bad game or two to screw up those otherwise stellar ratios. So while I’ll want to draft a few more, I’m not going to overpay while there is still value at other slots, particularly when I’m still filling out my starting hitters.

Willingham is a guy I’ve been watching for several rounds. He’ll be in Oakland this year – not exactly a hitters park – but coming from the Natinals, that still might be an upgrade. And he can possibly get some extra ABs as a DH. Health is probably the biggest risk, but I think I’ve waited long enough, and the upside of a healthy Willingham could be really potent. Billy Beane generally knows what he’s doing.

263

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 17:55

for coldwater coyotes
17.08 Alcides Escobar, SS, Kan
I finally take my second MI and there isn't much to get excited about Escobar. A few SBs are all I can expect.

265

kdl212
ID: 42239514
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 19:32

17.09 Erik Bedard, SP, SEA
I was surprised my the middle reliever run, especially because I had a Q of 6 of them and they all disappeared before this pick. So, I decided to get my 65 innings with decent ratios from Erik Bedard, who has the bonus of offering the chance to substantially outperform his draft position

267

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:20

for filthy
17.10 Chris Sale, RP, ChW
Three starters and one reliever after 16 rounds is starting to get scary. Especially when the one reliever might not even close, and my top 3 relief options have all been drafted since I last picked.

Gotta get back in on the reliever train again. Chris Sale doesn't get the closer job out of spring, but he could easily flip spots with Thornton at some point in the season.

I will settle for the nice K/9 and rates if he settles in as a setup man.

268

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:21

for ywk
17.11 Carlos Zambrano, SP, ChiCubs
I thought about targeting a RP with this pick. Unfortunately, my home country hero Hong-Chih Kuo was gone several picks earlier. Thus, I turned my attention to Erik Bedard, who seemingly recovers very well from the surgery and has a strong spring. But he just disappeared before my eyes. Big Z finished his last season strong though I do not anticipate he will be performing at that impressive level throughout this year. But so long as he could keep his temper in check I think my investment in him could give me a nice return.

269

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:21

for graydog
17.12 Lance Berkman, 1B, StL
Is one year removed from 73, 80, 7, 399, 509. Of course there are concerns about age, health, playing outfield. At pick number 284 I see some real value. Batting behind Pujols and Holliday should provide lots of RBI chances and Berkman is one of the all-time OBP leaders.

270

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:22

for kokeshi
17.13 Jhonny Peralta, SS, Det
Needed a middle infielder and Peralta’s multi position eligibility helps back up my injured players.

271

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:22

for holt
17.14 Time Stauffer, SP, SD
This pick was Stauffer all the way. 4th overall in the 2003 draft, but seemingly a slow bloomer. He was out last year from May 9 to July 9 due to appendicitis, but otherwise he had a 1.85 ERA and 1.08 Whip in 82.2 IP. That includes 6 mostly dominating starts to end the season. In his 7 total starts he gave up more than 1 earned run only once. He has some kind of talent, and pitching in San Diego is great (except for wins maybe).

272

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:23

for s R
17.15 Will Venable, OF, SD
Last year, in his first full season in San Diego, we saw that he can run. San Diego has Venable in their leadoff hitter discussion; the lefty bat hit a .341 on-base percentage from the lineup perch. If they change plans, he has middle-of-the-order ability, too.

273

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:24

for MBT
17.16 Javier Vazquez, SP, Fla
Back in the National League and we all know what that means, improved numbers! His K rate never seems to drop significantly and his ERA is almost guaranteed to improve by moving to the Marlins lineup. I'd like to get a 3.80 ERA and 170 Ks out of him this year.

18.01 Travis Wood, SP, Cin
Still looking to round out some starting pitching and Wood had a very nice second half last year. 80+ Ks in a little over 100 innings makes for nice ratios and kid had a 1.08 WHIP last season. He’s in a bit of a log jam of pitchers in Cincy, but he should make his way through the mess.

275

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:24

for s R
18.02 Ben Francisco, OF, Phi
Sleeper pick. Ben Francisco is off to a great start in Spring Training and the right field job is all his. When he gets 400+ at bats, Francisco is a 15 homerun guy with 60+ RBI.

276

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:25

for holt
18.03 Cliff Pennington, SS, Oak
This is nothing to be proud of. I was at my brother's and didn't want to delay the draft. Still didn't have a single SS on my roster so just made a hasty pick. I'm hurting in the SB dept, and if memory serves Pennington had 29 steals last year. That's about all I can say about him. Shortstop who steals bases. I thought about grabbing Drew or Venable. Still not sure why I didn't.

277

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:25

for kokeshi
18.04 Justin Smoak, 1B, Sea
Needed a corner guy, probably let the Seattle bias influence the choice.

278

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:26

for graydog
18.05 Magglio Ordonez, OF, Det
Line-drive machine is projected to hit 3rd in a line-up that should score some runs. With these last two picks I wanted some OBP help and I believe I have accomplished that goal. Getting a player with potential to help in 4 categories this late in the draft is a bonus.

279

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:26

for ywk
18.06 Luke Gregerson, RP, SDG
My first non-closer RP. Could be in line for SV if Heath Bell got traded away.

280

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:27

for filthy
18.07 Tyler Clippard, RP, Was
This may be the year my closer luck runs out. Gotta cheat and get some insurance just in case. I don't see any great options in the Nats pen, but I believe I have the best two.

Still don't know if that is good or bad.

Lots of K's from Clippard either way at least. Really snoozed on Stauffer, he was drafted before I even knew I wanted to draft him.

281

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:28

for kdl212
18.08 Erick Aybar, SS, LAA
My fear, or hope, is that Aybar matches or exceeds the production I'll get out of my 7th round pick, Elvis Andrus.

This leaves only the DH slot open for my starting hitting lineup.

282

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:28

for coldwater coyotes
18.09 J.D. Drew, OF, Bos
My final OF and I am more than happy with the pick. OPS of .840 with 70 RBIs can be expected from at least 500 abs.

283

Guru
ID: 330592710
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:28

18 10 Mike Minor, SP, Atl
I still need a middle infielder to round out my hitting lineup, but here is probably a better chance that I’ll find a serviceable free agent in the first week of the season than that I’ll find someone to draft in round 18 who will be any better.

My pitching staff is still lean, with 3 starters and 3 relievers. I only have about 60% of my allotment of 1350 IP taken care of. I’ll probably enter the season with 5 starters and 6 relievers, although that depends on how things go.

To be sure, Minor is a speculative pick, since he’s not even assured of making the major league roster. But he has the skills to make a positive impact if me makes the Atlanta rotation. I suspect there are at least a few other RIBC managers who have him on their radar, and the only one who can have him is the first one to jump.

And if he starts the year in AAA, then I’ll have someone to drop in favor of an early free agent pickup.

284

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 22:50

18.11 Carlos Ruiz, C, PHI

For the game of chicken I've been playing for filling in my last couple of starting offensive spots, I'm not too disappointed in settling for Ruiz. He had a .400 OBP last year. He only seems to play around a 115 games a year, so he doesn't offer much in turns of counting stats, but I'll take his percentages.

285

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 23:10

for gurudan
18.12 Bronson Arroyo, SP, CIN
He led Cincy to the promised land last year, but could be a bust this year. It's late I'll roll the dice.

286

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 23:11

18.13 Evan Meek, RP, PIT
Like most, I like to target a few MR around this point in the draft. Meek is a closer in waiting should Hanrahan falter. That possibility adds the small value Meek holds in round 18.

287

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 23:26

18.14-Alexi Ogando, RP or SP, TEX
Orgando could be a MR and help with ratios, or he could be a closer if Feliz is changed to a SP or he could be in Texas’ starting rotation.

288

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 23:30

18.15 Jorge De La Rosa SP, COL

Decent K numbers attracted me to De La Rosa, as my 5th SP. Another historically slow starter, so again my patience may be tested, but he has improved his ERA and WHIP the last 3 years to acceptable levels despite pitching in the Mile High City.

289

JKaye
Leader
ID: 01372359
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 08:13

18.16 Michael Morse, 1B/OF, Was

Morse was a guy that slipped under the radar of my rankings, but he was recently named the starting LF for the Nats. I especially like his duel eligibility which is crucial in RIBC with the thin bench. He had a good power stretch at the end of last year (.344/.519, 36 R, 41 RBI in 266 AB), and if he comes anywhere close to duplicating that type of success again, he will probably find himself in my starting lineup daily (not that he will know or care, but still).

19.01 Domonic Brown, OF, Phi

Brown had surgery on March 10, with recovery time of 3-6 weeks. The worst case of that timetable puts him back in action sometime in late April. At this point in the draft, I am willing to gamble on 5 months of a potential ROY candidate. Tons of risk of course, but OF are always easy enough to find on waivers should he be delayed, or fail to produce in his first full season.

290

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:16

for mjd
19.02 Matt LaPorta, OF, Cle
Looking for bench depth through the ruins.

Starting job? Check. Multi-position eligibility? Check. Warm body with a pulse? Check. Welcome to my team, kid, but don’t get too comfortable.

291

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:16

for loki
19.03 Alex Gonzalez, SS, Atl
I still needed a SS and MI, and I liked Gonzalez the best among those remaining.

292

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:17

for Uptown Bombers
19.04 Mike Adams, RP, SD
Another pick similar to Meek, this is a potential closer in waiting should anything happen to Bell. Even if that doesn’t happen or Gregerson gets the nod, Adams brings value in k/9 and the ratios.

293

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:18

for gurudan
19.05 Marcus Thames, OF, LAD
This guy is all upside with 500 ab's supposed to be starting leftfielder.

294

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:18

for Slackjawed Yokel
19.06 Freddy Sanchez, 2B, SF
I was debating between a handful of forgettable middle infielders that I'm not even going to bother naming, as the others may end up being undrafted. Such is the penalty for not grabbing any stud middle infielders, and being forced to grab a starter in the 19th round. In the end, I thought Sanchez was the lesser of the various evils I was considering. Around a .400 Slg and .330 Obp is all I'm hoping out of this slot, and the other options I looked at weren't even meeting this.

295

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:19

19.07 Joaquin Benoit, RP, Det
A solid setup man. First in line for saves in Det if Valverde falters. Last year’s numbers (for Tampa) were absurd: 75 K in 60 IP, 1.34 ERA, 0.68 WHIP. Nothing in his history suggests that this is likely to repeat. But those numbers leave a lot of margin to regress and still be useful.

296

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:26

for coldwater coyotes
19.08 Alexi Casilla, 2B/SS, MIN
I find it impossible to take 3 solid MIs in a 16 team draft. I have tried to compensate by focusing on power from the rest of my batters such as taking Ortiz. I hope Casilla can deliver 25 SBs.

297

kdl212
ID: 361121615
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 10:32

19.09 Nate McLouth, OF, ATL
I couldn't be happier with this 19th round selection - he's 29 and in 2008-2009, he averaged 100 runs, 80 RBI, 21 SB at .350/.460. Lord knows what happened to him last year - I'm banking on some rare form of athletic amnesia.

Feeling good about the upside potential of my Iannetta-Bedard-Aybar-McLouth-Gordon string of picks. Given my performance in the middle rounds of the draft, I need the end game to go my way.

299

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:04

for filthy
19.10 Hideki Matsui, DH, Oak
Matsui was great in the second half last year. A recurring theme to my draft so far, hopefully it pays off. A little worried about the move to Oakland's offense, but he wasn't exactly in a great situation to end last year either.

Ideally Matsui, CJones, and my backup MI will be rotating as my Util.

Realistically, I am building up some valuable depth for my offense.

Recently donated to the Japan relief effort, hoping for a great season from all Japanese ML players as well. These guys will all give their nation extra reason to be proud this season. Ichiro and Matsui will hopefully end up as two of the biggest steals of our draft. (One team will agree with me at least!)

300

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:04

for ywk
19.11 Clay Hensley, RP, Fla
He should be backing to the setup man role at the beginning of the season and MAY recapture the closer position should Leo Nunez struggle as the season progresses. Take him as a handcuff to Nunez as he has proven he is capable of closing the door.

301

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:05

for graydog
19.12 Eric Young, 2B, Col
Speed gamble here, I haven't drafted anyone who is going to steal 20 bases as I kept missing out on the players I had targeted. Hopefully he can wrestle playing time from Jose Lopez (who I also wanted to draft as it seems they may platoon to start but jkaye got him first). A trade could also be in order that could boost Young's value.

302

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:06

for kokeshi
19.13 Franklin Gutierrez, OF, Sea
Needed another outfielder and Gutierrez brings a little speed and consistency.

303

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:06

for holt
19.14 Seth Smith, OF, Col
I've always wondered what Smith could do if given a starting job. Looks like I'll find out. One set of projections I've been using has him ranked as the #29 outfielder using our league settings. I don't know how likely that is, but he's worth a shot.

There were a lot of players I liked that went off the board before this pick. Drew, Morse, Smoak, Ruiz, and a few others. I like Smith though. He's only 28, plays in Colorado, is a good +.800 OPS candidate, and might get a few steals.

304

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:07

for s R
19.15 John Lackey, SP, Bos
Lackey is tabbed as the No. 2 starter for Boston and pitched well for the most part this spring. He’s been such a consistent pitcher over the years that I see a nice bounce back in 2011.

305

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:08

for MBT
19.16 John Jaso, C, Tam
This is an OBP league and getting a catcher who knows how to take a walk is essential. I was going to grab Soto, but was beaten to the punch so I went for the upside of Jaso. What’s the worst that can happen? I dump him for the latest catcher of the week.

20.01 Dustin Ackley, 2B, Sea
Ackley has primarily played MI during his minor league career so it surprised me that Yahoo has him listed as an outfielder. He’s likely to start the year in the minors, but I can’t see how they can keep this kid down for very long. He’s got good plate discipline and he’s known to have a little pop in that bat as well. Not a bad investment this late in the draft.

306

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:09

for s R
20.02 Miguel Tejada, SS, SF
He is going to be the man at shortstop for the Giants this season, and this team should offer him more chances to drive in runs than Baltimore or San Diego did last year.

307

holt
ID: 352302314
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 15:39

20.03 Cameron Maybin, OF, SD

Post-hype sleeper pick. Maybin looks decent this spring. There are some predictions that this is the year he stops playing like crap. Probably not, but my team is slow and I hear SD plans on giving everyone a green light this season, so this is just a random stab at some steals. Probably should have gone with Lowrie with this pick.

308

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 21:42

for kokeshi:

20.04 Scott Baker SP, MIN
Needed a fifth starter and I think Baker just had an off year last year If he gets that whip back to just below 1.2 which is the pitcher he looked like the last couple years he is a good value.

309

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 21:45

for graydog:

20.05 Jake Peavy SP, CHW
Current injury appears to be minor, there is talk today that he could be ready early April. I am hoping for 150 innings of contribution in all 4 categories. I figured he is worth the risk at this point in the draft.

311

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 21:52

for ywc:

20.06 Jack Cust OF, SEA
As we are in an OBP league, Cust does have some values. Actually, I originally targeted Hideki Matsui with my 19th pick, prompting me to tweak my plan (if any) to grab another reliever. Hope he could draw more walks rather than swing for nothing.

312

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 21:59

for filthy
20.07 Jason Bartlett, SS, SD
Haven't considered MI in quite a long time. Have filled every other spot, just need a backup MI and/or backup C.

Bartlett sticks out like a sore thumb and immediately goes to the top of my queue. LOVE the b.u.t.t feature on the draftime queues this year!

If Bartlett is one of those every other year types, then I hit the jackpot. If he hits like last year, he will make for decent MI insurance.

Lowrie, Motte, Pineda were nice options that I passed on. Hensley and EYJr were solid choices that I didn't get to consider.

313

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:00

for kdl212
20.08 Alex Gordon, 3B, somewhere between Omaha and Kansas City
It's the 20th round, so it's time to gamble. The KC Royals have the most stacked minor league system in all of baseball, but someone you probably haven't heard of is this guy. His given name is Alexandros Gordonopolous, but he shortened it to Alex Gordon when he came to U.S. from Crete 18 months ago. Some scouts think he could some day do many of the same things as Royal legend George Brett, such as put on his own pants and eat chicken for dinner and lose his temper. As for hitting at the major league level, we'll just have to wait and see. He's got a starting gig to begin the season.

314

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:00

for coldwater coyotes
20.09 Alfonso Soriano, OF, ChC
Coming to the end of his career but still good for .815 OPS and 74 RBI. Solid reserve for my bench and will be available to replace the JD Drew during his inevitable weeks off.

315

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:01

20.10 Jed Lowrie, 2B/SS, Bos
Lowrie isn’t slated to be a starter, but will apparently be the primary backup at 1B, 2B, 3B, and SS for the Red Sox, so he should get plenty of work. I am one of the few managers still needing a MI, and while it’s tempting to wait even longer, I think Lowrie has the potential to be a significant coup in round 20 if he can get regular playing time. Besides, it’s not like any of the alternative available starters are going to get dramatically better stats playing full time. Lowrie’s projected .360/.470 averages won’t torpedo my team ratios, either.

From the comments of some other managers after I made this pick, it sounds like my timing was spot on.

316

Slackjawed Yokel
ID: 47227122
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:05

20.11 Sean Marshall, RP, ChC

Now that my lineup is filled, I can work on filling in the gaps. I'm still projecting to be short of total innings pitched, so I looked at what was out there for starters and relievers. The starters are, as expected, fairly well picked over. However, there still looked to be some solid options from relievers. In Marshall, I get a strong set up man who got 90 K's last year while sporting a 2.7 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. Plus he'll act as some insurance for Marmol who was the first reliever I selected earlier in the draft.

317

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:11

for gurudan
20.12 Brandon Belt, 1B, SF
yahoo's golden rookie

318

Uptown Bombers
ID: 318502217
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:12

20.13 Placido Polanco, 2B/3B, PHI
A useful addition to the bench. At this point in his career, Polanco is far from the most productive player, but he still plays for a potent offense in a hitter friendly park. Dual eligibility at 2B and 3B help for some roster flexibility.

319

loki
SuperDude
ID: 4211201420
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:29

20.14-A.J. Burnett, SP, NYY

The Yankees have a new pitching coach, Larry Rothchild, who may be able to get Burnett back to his pre-2010 form. This late in the draft Burnett poses little risk with the potential for high rewards. The Yankees have named Burnett their number 2 starter so perhaps they think so also.

320

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 22:51

20.15 Jason Mott RP, STL

Filling out an RIFC pitching staff, you need set up guys and MRs to stay under the 1350 IP limit. These guys can be a bit of a double-edged sword. Hopefully, they can help damage control with the percentages and add a K/inning.

For the Cards, Franklin looks to have a stronghold on the closer’s job with Mott being the primary set up guy. But I look at Tony La Rusa as the Bill Belichik of MLB. Should Franklin go through a rough patch, just about anyone, including Mott, could be the next closer.

322

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:34

for JKaye
20.16 Michael Pineda, SP, Sea
Pineda looks like he will nab a rotation spot, which is likely more than half the battle for him in terms of being relevant in fantasy. He had a fantastic year at AAA last year and is poised to make a run at AL ROY. His solid K/BB ratio and the benefit of pitching in Seattle could make Pineda a breakout SP in 2011.

21.01 Jose Lopez, 3B, Col
I'm not thrilled with Lopez, who was terrible in 2010, but the fact that he is moving to 2B and to Colorado gives him a little boost in value. He now becomes my default backup 3B as well as a MI/CI candidate. Not a great pick by any means but considering the remaining options, I am hopeful he will re-find the stroke in Coors that made him relevant in 2009.

323

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:35

for mjd
21.02 Dan Johnson, 1B, Tam
See LaPorta, Matt. Though Johnson actually may be more valuable in the stronger Rays lineup and have a better chance to stick on my team if he contributes his projected OBP and SLG percentages. Additional 3B eligibility a plus in an otherwise shallow position.

324

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:35

for loki
21.03 Jake Fox, DH, Bal
Fox is having a terrific spring and has hit 8 HRs. He is a late round gamble, but if he continues to hit, he could start and be eligible at C, 1B and OF.

325

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:36

for Uptown Bombers
21.04 Juan Rivera,OF, Tor
Some more roster flexibility, as Rivera has dual eligibility. After a down year, I’m hoping Rivera bounces back to something useful. Hopefully last year was not the beginning of a serious drop off. Something inbetween ’09 and ’10 stats would be fantastic.

326

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:37

for gurudan
21.05 Taylor Buchholz, RP, NYM
This guy was lights out 2 years ago in colo. Hope he can recapture that stuff. This spring 9 ip no er's

327

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:37

for Slackjawed Yokel
21.06 Johnny Damon, OF, Tam
In my previous rationale, I stated that my lineup was filled. Well, in retrospect, I still had an open utility position - d'oh. So, I was looking for someone that could contribute. Damon may end up being that player - despite his advanced age (it pains me to say that, as I'm actually a bit older than he is), he still gets on base regularly and should score a good number of runs. Maybe he'll be re-energized now that he's back in his old AL-East stomping ground.

328

Guru
ID: 330592710
Wed, Mar 23, 2011, 23:38

21.07 Koji Uehara, RP, Bal
Even if not the established closer, he should get some save opps. Probably overachieved last year with sub-3.0 ERA, sub-1.0 WHIP, and 55 Ks in 44 IP. Probably would not have lasted to round 21 except for elbow soreness which has caused him to miss almost all of spring training. He did throw in a minor league game yesterday, though, and should be ready in early April, if not on Opening day.

329

kdl212
ID: 42239514
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 00:36

for coldwater coyotes
21.08 Kyle McClellan, SP, STL
Will be starting on a very strong team. Unlikely to go more than 120 innings during the year but could be this year's CJ Wilson.

330

kdl212
ID: 42239514
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 00:37

21.09 Takashi Saito, RP, MIL
Next in line, 9k/9.

331

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 09:56

for filthy
21.10 Jordan Walden, RP, LAA
My queue took a beating for adding Bartlett to the top. Must fill out the staff now, and maybe get a backup catcher at some point.

Pineda, Motte, Saito were who I had been hoping for. I still need 1-2 more tickets in the closer lottery, and the volatile Rodney doesn't really seem to have an immediate threat looming.

If Walden can match or improve on his 15.1IP, 20 baserunners, 23 strikeouts audition, then he might steal the job by May.

332

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 09:57

for ywk
21.11 Kenley Jansen, RP, LAD
He should be in the mix of competing for SVs should Broxton falter, and could be at least offering some help in WHIP and K.

333

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 09:57

for graydog
21.12 Derek Holland, SP, Tex
I dont know alot about Holland other than he is pitching well in the spring and appears to have a starting spot in Texas.

334

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 09:58

for kokeshi
21.13 Grant Balfour, RP, Oak
Needed a middle reliever, and I don’t really trust Fuentes to hold down the closing job if Bailey is injury gets more serious.

335

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 09:58

for holt
21.14 Travis Hafner, DH, Cle
Nothing fancy here. Hafner had an .826 OPS in '09 and .824 in '10. He can help me out if he continues hitting at that level.

336

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 09:59

for s R
21.15 Octavio Dotel, RP, Tor
Digging for saves I find him. Now's not a good time to trust Dotel to a bench spot.

337

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:00

for MBT
21.16 Matt Lindstrom, RP, Col
Looking to handcuff my Houston Street pick with this one. Lindstrom’s ratios stink so he probably won’t see the light of day on this team unless something happens to Street. I was also targeting Saito in this round, but he was swept out from under me a few picks earlier.

22.01 James McDonald, SP, Pit
What can I say about the next big Pittsburgh phenom? The kid struck out 61 in only 64 innings last year, that’s a pretty nice return on investment. Even if his stats were a fluke and he turns back into a pumpkin this year I can pick up waiver wire fodder at this point in the draft.

338

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:00

for s R
22.02 Tyler Colvin, OF, ChC
Colvin has the power and wheels for stardom. But the sad part is that the Cubs have four viable outfielders and just three starting spots, so Colvin will be fighting for his at-bats.

339

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:01

for holt
22.03 Brett Wallace, 1B, Hou
He's a starting 1B with a decent minor league track record. He needs to have a good April or I'm going to cut him. He showed decent power and average in the minors but he doesn't draw a lot of walks. If major league pitchers keep carving him up (.615 OPS 144 AB last season) he will be off my squad pronto.

340

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:01

for kokeshi
22.04 Bobby Jenks, RP, Bos
Just looking to fill out the bullpen.

341

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:02

for graydog
22.05 Bill Hall, 2B, Hou
I wanted another MI, Hall also gives me some OF flexibility. He hit 18 home runs in just 344 Ab last year. Hopefully with a full time gig he can give me solid power numbers from MI.

342

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:02

for ywk
22.06 Ivan Nova, SP, NYY
Well, I could not imagine me taking NYY's pitcher as I never root for them. However, considering a large part of my pitching staff remains a big question mark I tried to add some insurance to it as Nova has been in the starting rotation to begin the season.

343

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:02

for filthy
22.07 Juan Gutierrez, RP, Ari
Holland, Balfour, and Dotel might turn out to be nice picks. Gutierrez had been at the top of my queue before I replenished around the 19th round.

After I picked Walden, he moved back to the top again. Putz is hurting, and there are a few good options in the Dbacks pen this year. Gutierrez ended the season converting some chances though, so I'd think he's the favourite to fill in.

I was 4/5 in last year's bullpen lottery, with 2 safe picks, 1 slight favourite, and 2 underdog picks. (HBell, Jenks; Aardsma; Lindstrom, Downs) Hoping to go 3/5 this year with no safe picks, 1 slight favourite, and his hedge. i.e. zero chance of hitting 5/5.

I've never drafted an offense that I liked so much though, so if I go 0/5 I'll manage.

Time for a couple starters, Morrow is looking like he will start the season on the DL. SON OF A DIDDLY!!!!

344

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 10:03

for kdl212
22.08 David Murphy, OF, Tex
In the Texas outfield are two guys with an injury history (one of whom, Cruz, is on my roster) and a center fielder who apparently isn't very good with the glove, so there's talk Murphy will get extra playing time even if Hamilton/Cruz stay healthy. And if they trade Young, maybe he gets DH time. If he gives me 400 at bats at .350/.450 with 10 stolen bases, I can't complain.

345

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 12:04

for coldwater coyotes
22.09 Wade Davis, SP, TB
Ended last season very well. Strong potential. I like picking SPs at the end of drafts who have high upsides.

346

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 12:04

22.10 Aaron Harang, SP, SD
I’ve had Harang in my queue since the 17th round, but always ended up going elsewhere. Now I’ll take him as my SP5 (unless my SP4 Mike Minor ends up getting sent down to his namesake).

Harang moves from Cincy to San Diego, and I’m hoping that the spacious park will help resurrect his declining numbers. His above average K-ratio helps me. Playing for the Padres may not be particularly conducive to racking up wins, however.

If he blows up early, I’ll just recycle him back into the free agent pool.

350

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:12

for Slackjawed Yokel
22.11 Orlando Hudson, 2b, SD
We're approaching the final stages. I'm not particularly comfortable with my stable of middle infielders, so I'm trying to get some depth. Looking at the rosters, there's still some teams without all three starting MI's. So,I wanted to go ahead and grab Hudson here. Reports have him batting third in the lineup.

351

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:13

for gurudan
22.12 Arthur Rhodes, RP, Tex
Another boss middle reliever. Led me to a 2nd place finish last year. I played football in high school with another Autie Rhodes.

352

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:14

for Uptown Bombers
22.13 Kyle Drabek, SP, TOR
I knew I wanted to draft 6 starters so this round I began to look around at who was left that I liked. I spent most of the round convincing myself to pick UNDRAFTED but then later decided to take Drabek, who presents much more upside. Drabek was less than sensational last year after his call up, but he was a major prospect and has been pitching well this spring. Perhaps this is not the year that Drabek starts to put things together, but in round 22 the risk is minimal. If Drabek lives up the billing of his minor league numbers and reputation then I will have gotten lucky.

353

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:14

for loki
22.14-Bobby Parnell, RP, NYM
Parnell replaced Francisco Rodriquez after his meltdown and suspension last year. If the Mets trade him or if he is injured, Parnell could close.

354

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:15

for mjd
22.15 Chris Young, SP, NYM
With Cueto probably on the DL to start the season, I thought I’d take a stab in the dark and draft Young to have him on hand to spot start in the cavernous Citi Field.

355

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:16

for JKaye
22.16 David Dejesus, OF, OAK
The Oakland offense should be improved this year and I expect Dejesus will be right in the middle of it. I have a feeling he will be a stable player for me, with limited upside.

23.01 Rafael Betancourt, RP, COL
He was my top RP remaining. He won't compete for saves but his underlying numbers should benefit my pitching staff.

356

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:17

for mjd
23.02 Jerry Hairston, Jr, OF, Was
Couldn’t decide on an infielder or an outfielder for this spot, so I took the combo platter. Hairston will begin the season as the backup MI for the Nats, but I’ll use him as bench depth for OF, as well. Given enough ABs, he’s capable of producing double digit HRs and SBs. Actual playing time, and replacement production will be the key to sticking with my squad vs being dropped for an undrafted waver wire flavor of the week.

357

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:17

for loki
23.03-Macier Izturis, MI, ANA
Needed my last MI, and Izturis was the best of the least.

358

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:18

for Uptown Bombers
23.04 Brad Hawpe, 1B/OF, SD
A late round flier for RBi and SLG. Moving to Petco will likely hurt his stats, but the splits show that Hawpe was not simply the product of Coors. Outside of last year, Hawpe has put up pretty good road OPS and power.

359

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:18

for gurudan
23.05 Russell Martin, C, NYY
I need a backup catcher.

360

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:19

for Slackjawed Yokel
23.06 John Buck, C, Fla
I already have Ruiz as my starting catcher, but thought I might like some insurance. Buck is a decent option, so I may be able to ride the hot hand. Buck offers more power than Ruiz but nowhere need the on base percentage.

361

Guru
ID: 330592710
Thu, Mar 24, 2011, 23:20

23.07 Brandon Beachy, SP, Atl
When I drafted Mike Minor, I expected him to be the 5th starter in the Braves rotation. Since then, Beachy has gotten that role instead. As an undrafted player, he’s emerged faster than expected, with a good (albeit limited) spring training of 2 runs and 10 Ks in just 10 IP. We’ll see how it plays out.

362

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 00:10

for coldwater coyotes
23.08 Mark Trumbo, 1B, LAA
News about Kendrys from the Angels does not look very promising. Trumbo should get plenty ABs during the first few weeks of the season. High upside but could easily go the way of Chris Davis.

363

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 00:11

for kdl212
23.09 Joel Peralta, RP, Tam
Looking to take a flyer on one more relief pitcher who might get save opportunities or who will be a prime candidate to drop early. Kyle Farnsworth simply cannot hold the job down, and someone else will have to get a chance. Maybe it will be Peralta. And maybe he runs with it. More likely, I turn Peralta into the remarkably undrafted [undrafted] before opening day even arrives.

364

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 00:12

for filthy
23.10 Jon Niese, SP, NYM
I hope that Niese has recovered from the inning buildup last year. He started to really fade, but hopefully nothing mentally or physically was damaged when the Mets let him get hit around to end the season.

If the inning buildup gets him to top 200 innings this year, and those innings look more like the June/July version of Niese than the August/September version then I will be very happy.

But seriously, who lets a young lefty start seven times in a month?!?? They're gonna turn a potential Lilly into a Zito if they ride this kid hard again this year. Maybe Billy Beane is ahead of the curve once again though, ride those arms while they're fresh and build up their value so someone else is paying them big bucks once they break down. Either way, I don't think my team has as much to lose as the Mets do. I get to redraft next year, hopefully in the same league...

I was strongly considering Murphy, Harang and CYoung behind Gutierrez last time. If Niese didn't last, I was debating between Porcello and Cecil.

Luckily they all lasted, cause this draft has been flying! My queue is a trainwreck behind the top 3.

365

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 00:13

for ywk
23.11 Jeff Baker, 2B, ChC
Tried to get another MI here just in case. Baker could be starting 2B for Cubs and may be a flier if he can get regular at-bats.

366

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 00:14

for graydog
23.12 Michael Brantley, OF, Cle
Is going to lead off in Cleveland to start the year. If he can get on base like he has in the minors and at the end of last year should provide me with plenty of steals and runs.

367

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 00:14

for kokeshi
23.13 Danny Valencia, 3B, Min
Another flier corner guy hoping he keeps up what he showed last year and is a good value here.

368

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:51

for holt
23.14 Russell "the Muscle" Branyan, 1B, Ari
I don't think Arizona wanted him as a starting 1B but he's hitting like Babe Ruth this spring. I don't think he's left them much choice. I've had Branyan on a lot of teams before and he's a good one to start as long as he's healthy. It's recently been announced that he made the team, but it's not yet clear how many AB's he'll get. I need CI depth so I'll take a shot here.

369

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:52

for s R
23.15 Mark Lowe, RP, Tex
Digging for saves... If Feliz is taken out of the closer role for the regular season...

370

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:53

for MBT
23.16 Thole, Josh, C, NYM
He’s been named the starting catcher with the Mets and he’s been raking all spring. He’s not a power bat, but at catcher I’m just looking for someone who can provide a good OBP and maybe get 50 runs and 50 RBIs. I always end up with 50 games of unused playing time at the catcher position so I like to pick up a second catcher to start on off days.

24.01 Garland, Jon, SP, LAD
Nothing fancy, just a NL West pitcher in a pitcher friendly home park. He’ll be a spot starter for me, but he should be good for 15 wins, 130 K, and 3.70 ERA. His WHIP leaves a lot to be desired as it is traditionally over 1.30, but once again at this point in the draft I can always go swimming in the FA pool.

371

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:54

for s R
24.02 Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C, Bos
He is penciled in as the starting catcher for the Red Sox for the season. Since he will bat in the bottom of a stacked lineup he will get RBI opportunities with the players above him on base.

372

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:55

for holt
24.03 Brent Morel, 3B, ChW
Kind of like Brett Wallace. Decent prospect with a starting job, decent minor league stats, but doesn't take enough walks. I really don't expect him to pan out and I'm not planning on being very patient with him.

373

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:56

for kokeshi
24.04 Juan Miranda, 1B, Ari
Was hoping to get some late round power at 1st, if Branyon gets injured (which is not unlikely) Miranda should get close to full starting time.

374

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:56

for graydog
24.05 R.A. Dickey, SP, NYM
I think that if Dickey was not a knuckballer he would have been drafted earlier. Doesnt strike out many but if he can locate that knuckler the way he did last year he should be useful in era and whip, if not someone on the waiver wire will be added.

375

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:57

for ywk
24.06 Alberto Callaspo, 3B, LAA
Similar to Baker, he could be earning the starting gig in Anaheim and could provide decent OBP and some SB theoretically. Another flier here I guess.

376

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:58

for filthy
24.07 Rick Porcello, SP, Det
Just covering bases I guess. Last round I went with the guy who faded in September. This round, I'll go with the guy who had a nice September. 28IP, 2BB!!

The K's might even show up as Porcello gains confidence and experience. The pedigree is there, and there is much less pressure this time around now that Scherzer has arrived and leapfrogged him.

377

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:58

for kdl212
24.08 Carlos Guillen, 2B, Det
Never mind. Now Carlos Guillen will be the first person I drop, as soon as I can, in order to pick up the remarkably undrafted [undrafted]. When I was making the pick, I was looking for a backup 2B, but I think I'm just going all-in on Beckham.

378

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:59

for coldwater coyotes
24.09 Jeff Niemann, SP, Tam
His ranking has gone this year as a result of last year's injury. He could well take a large step forward in 2011. Another SP with good upside potential.

379

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 11:59

24.10 Santiago Casilla, RP, SF

It’s looking like both of my bay area closers (Wilson and Anderson) may start the season on the shelf. I also have Sergio Romo, but it’s sounding more like he may remain in a setup role, with either Casilla or Affeldt getting the Wilson-less save opps.

Just trying to avoid going 0-for-April in saves.

380

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 16:47

for Yokel:

24.11 Garrett Jones OF, PIT
It sounds like Jones may be the odd man out in Pittsburgh. His numbers did show a big decline after earning every-day duties a year ago. I like that he's eligible at CI and OF, so offers me some flexibility. He may be in a platoon situation, which may be something I can take advantage of as well. Nothing wrong with selecting a guy at these late stages who had helped me out in the past.

381

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 16:50

For gurudan:

24.12 Mark DeRosa OF, SFO
In previous years he's been productive. He's versatile, so hope he's recovered from injuries.

382

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 16:53

For Uptown Bombers:

24.13 Kevin Jepsen RP, LAA
At this point, the draft was moving too fast for to keep pace. I set a queue for round 23 but had no clue what players I was targeting after that. After a flurry of picks, I had no time before or during work to figure things out. I knew I wanted another MR and just took one that came to mind as having good K rates.

383

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 16:56

For loki:

24.14 Matt Belisle RP, COL
As with 22.14 I wanted a RP who would close if an injury occurred to the starter. Houston Street has this history, and if injured, Belise should close.

384

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 16:58

24.15 Will Rhymes 2B, DET

Apparently Rhymes will begin the season as the starting 2B for the Tigers. How long he keeps it remains to be seen. He’ll bat in the 2 hole and if he posts a decent OBP, he will score plenty of runs and contribute a few SBs. Can never have too many options at MI.

385

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:02

For JKay:

24.16 Kerry Wood RP, CHC
Wood had a very good 2nd half for NYY last year and will now serve as set-up man for Marmol (along with Marshall). Would not surprise me to see him contribute a handful of W and SV, and hopefully his WHIP stays low enough to make it worth it.

25.01 Derek Lowe SP, ATL
Lowe is a reliable starter slated to pitch opening day for Atlanta. It's the 25th round so that is about as much reason as I need.

387

mjd
Leader
ID: 501381415
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:06

25.02 Ryan Hanigan, C, CIN

With (undrafted., old, and oft injured) on the team, who knows how many ABs Hanigan will get per week. This will be my second consecutive season drafting a catcher in the last round and once again I may be playing musical catchers, but it worked last year, so why no?. Hanigan does sport a decent career OBP number and could very well hang around for a while.

388

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:06

for loki
25.03-Ryan Ludwick, OF, SD
It was between another RP who would take over if the starting closer was injured and someone to help my anemic power categories. I am hoping for a bounce back season from Ludwick. If he can come close to his 2008 and 2009 seasons, he will be a bargain in the 25th round.

389

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:07

for Uptown Bombers
25.04 Chris Davis, 1B, TEX
I’ve been keeping an eye on him ever since my Mitch Moreland pick because I research that, I read how well Davis was playing in the spring. As of now, he has no spot in the lineup, but any of a few things could change that: Young gets traded, Moreland struggles, UNDRAFTED gets replaced. Since I’m just trying to take a stab in the dark at cheap power numbers, I figured this pick made some sense.

390

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:08

for gurudan
25.05 Cody Ross, OF, SF
With 2 trades i'll own the entire frisco team.

391

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:08

for Slackjawed Yokel
25.06 Desmond Jennings, OF, TB
I took a flyer here on a guy currently in the minors. He stole 37 bases and reached base at a .362 clip in AAA last year. Whether I hold on to him by the time he gets called up midyear will depend on the health of the rest of my roster.

392

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:09

25.07 Jeremy Affeldt, RP, SF
[repeat of 24.10]
It’s looking like both of my bay area closers (Wilson and Anderson) may start the season on the shelf. I also have Sergio Romo, but it’s sounding more like he may remain in a setup role, with either Casilla or Affeldt getting the Wilson-less save opps.

Just trying to avoid going 0-for-April in saves.

393

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:09

for coldwater coyotes
25.08 Sean Burnett, RP, Was
There are reports that Burnett could be used as a co-closer. Worth taking a gamble on in round 25.

394

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:10

for kdl212
25.09 Jim Thome, DH, MIN
Absurd numbers last year at the age of 63. (1.039 OPS! 48 runs and 59 RBI in 275 at-bats!) Since I own Morneau, and it's not clear he's going to be an everyday player in April if he's even on the roster, maybe Thome gets regular at-bats. I suspect that he is really Jacob's other friend, the "Man in the DH slot," and he will agelessly crush baseballs every year for the next 1,000 years.

Nearly drafted [undrafted] and [undrafted], each of whom I was shocked to still see available when I, for the first time this draft, looked through the entire list before making this pick. I was relying on the fact that you all are much more thorough about this, with updating spreadsheets and whatnot, and that no one had slipped through any cracks. I think I was wrong.

395

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:11

for filthy
25.10 Brett Cecil, SP, Tor
And back to the September fades. Not as good as Niese but nearly the same story. Lower K's and facing tougher offenses, but wasn't abused as badly. And (please please please!!!!) with a much better offense supporting him again this year.

Cecil has been roughly matching David Price's career, one year later, all throughout their rises. I hope the trend continues.

Love the Thome pick, I went with him in the last round last year, and it would've paid off if I wasn't impatient. Was debating also on: Norris, Arencibia, Johan, DiceK.

Nice drafting everybody. Fun times.

PS: Go check out Seattle Zen's rationales in one of the AAA leagues, excellent reads.

396

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:12

for ywk
25.11 Phil Coke, RP, Det
Would he be another C.J. Wilson? or just be one of the players I put on the waiver wire this season? Actually, on many occassions I was clueless in the draft, which may be evidenced by many of my selections including this one.

397

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:13

for graydog
25.12 Michael Gonzalez, RP, Bal
Needed another RP.

398

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:13

for kokeshi
25.13 Yadier Molina, C, StL
Needed another catcher for when Napoli sits on the bench, I thought Molina would be the best bet left to play regularly.

399

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:14

for holt
25.14 Wilson Betemit, 3B, KC
He's only eligible at 3B right now, but he may pick up some more positions by the end of the year. He doesn't have a regular starting role, but his OPS was pushing .900 in over 300 PA last season. He plays for the Royals. They will need to get his bat in the lineup somehow. He's fairly versatile and the Royals have some sh*t hitters so I'm thinking he should get over 300 AB again.

It's hard to take any of these late rd picks seriously. Looking back through rationales of previous years, the vast majority never pan out, and the ones that do usually get cut early and picked up by another team before it's clear that they're having a good year.

400

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:14

for s R
25.15 Bud Norris, SP, Hou
If he can get his ERA down into the low fours, The 'Stros view Norris as a workhorse for there.

401

Guru
ID: 330592710
Fri, Mar 25, 2011, 17:15

for MBT
25.16 Mike Moustakas, 3B, KC
Here he is, Mr. Irrelevant, well I hope not anyhow. The guy hit 36 HR last season in the minors and the Royals can only keep this kid down for so long. I expect to see him up by late May and I could use the backup at 3B considering A-Rod's injury history. If he doesn't get called up or I need the spot earlier than expected I can always drop him for a more established player. I debated between him and another player who's starting on the DL, but Mous has the higher upside.

Forum: basePage 20114Subject: RIBC 2011: Draft Rationales

Forum: base
Page 20114
Subject: RIBC 2011: Draft Rationales