BRAGGING RIGHTS 2013: Felipe's Dreadful Draft Experience

Jay Bruce will be counted on to provide power and run-production in 2013.
(photo courtesy of Mike McCann's FIELD OF FOTOS)

Felipe M

I have been playing in a keeper league for the last 10 seasons or so.  The League is Mardi Gras Madness.  My team name: Black Hole Army named after the villains of this video game:

Sunday night was the draft from hell for my keeper league's annual draft.  Aside from the fact that the league’s draft module kept breaking down on us, it seemed every time I was getting ready to draft somebody, another owner would swoop in and swipe that player out of my hands.  So I ended up selecting a lot of players that I really was not excited to have on my team, but these will be the guys I will be going to war with in this 2013 season:

KEEPERS

• Carlos Santana--C
• Edwin Encarnacion—1B
• Ian Kinsler—2B
• Ryan Braun--LF
• Allen Craig--RF
• Jay Bruce--DH
• Jason Motte--P

I actually like these players as they were the core to my run at the title last season only to fall short in the championship game.  Santana is an elite backstop and still young enough to fulfill potential.  Encarnacion and Craig had breakout years last season and their respective teams consider them part of their future.  Kinsler is still one of the best 2B in all of baseball.  Braun is arguably one of the best hitters in the league.  Meanwhile, Bruce can supply points by the truckloads due to his power bat and Motte can rack up the saves because of his power arm.  Unfortunately, Motte is expected to be placed on the DL to start the season with elbow issues—bummer.  Recently picked up Mitchell Boggs off waivers to offset the Motte injury. 

So coming into the draft, I have a few positions on offense to fill out, but I would have to focus on pitching, pitching, and pitching.  Will this strategy pay off?  It would have to because technically, coming into this draft, I have no pitchers.  Here are the results:

DRAFTED PLAYERS

• Martin Prado—3B
• Jordan Zimmerman—P
• B.J. Upton—CF
• Desmond Jennings—CF
• J.J. Putz—P
• Huston Street—P
• Brandon McCarthy—P
• Tommy Milone—P
• Tim Hudson—P
• Andy Pettitte—P
• Jedd Gyorko—3B
• Danny Espinosa—SS
• Gavin Floyd—P
• A.J. Griffin—P
• Ricky Nolasco—P

Clearly, other than Zimmerman (whom I was thinking of keeping instead of Motte until I read reports of ‘Z’ having issues with a “dead arm” earlier in the spring), a lot of the starting pitchers that I drafted this year are not my type of pitchers.  But what can I do?  All elite pitchers were kept by other teams coming into this draft.  So I was stuck selecting pitch-to-contact pitchers with good control.  Not very happy with the pitching staff, but I did what I could under the circumstances. 

I’m also not very happy with being stuck selecting both B.J.Upton and Jennings, but in the 3^rd and 4^th round, they seemed to be the best and most explosive players available in those two rounds. I’m not high on either one of them, but hopefully the gamble on picking the low patience/contact rate hitters will pay off in the end.

As you guys should know by now, I really like Prado and I even attempted to trade for him in the offseason, but couldn’t make a deal in time to beat our league’s offseason trade deadline.  So when I saw him available with the 11^th pick overall, I did away with my “select nothing but pitchers” strategy and jumped all over the very steady, high patience/contact rate hitter.  He also qualifies at LF so the versatility is an added bonus.

Putz and Street are two of my favorite relievers in the game and somehow, I’m always lucky enough to at least have one of these pitchers in one of my teams for the last three seasons.  In my Yahoo! league, I had both of them on my team, en route to a championship game loss.  I had Street in this keeper league last season as well.  So I was more than happy to see these two closers available to bring some sort of respectability to my pitching staff.

Not happy with the Espinosa pick, but he was my “last line of defense”shortstop.  I was actually going after Elvis Andrus in the 3^rd round, but he was immediately grabbed in the middle of the 2^nd round.  Ian Desmond was my second choice, but somehow, he also got picked up in that same round as well.  I was so desperate for a SS, I was even thinking of picking Derek Jeter, but our resident New York Yankee fan picked him up in the 13^th round.  Guess I’ll be keeping a very close eye on the waivers this season for another shortstop.

Before picking Espinosa, I rolled the dice and reached forGyorko.  As you guys should know, I’ve been excited about Gyorko for awhile now.  Whether I reached too early for him is debatable, but seeing how there were only a handful of players that I would consider selecting before him, I think I made the right choice going with Gyorko’s upside.  And he will eventually qualify at 2B as well and I have Prado manning 3B for now so Gyorko will be riding my bench for awhile until he shows that he can handle big league pitching.

Not really happy with my team, especially my pitching staff, but the best part about it is that it forced me to step out of my comfort zone and go after pitchers I would have never considered drafting in years past.  Last year, I did a good job in picking the pitchers that fit my paradigm as to what a fantasy pitcher should be.  The result last season?  I had the worst pitching staff in our league last year (I still don't know how I reached the championship game in 2012, but that's baseball).  So hopefully, this change in thought will bring me different results and put me over the hump and help me earn that elusive baseball title. 

I really like the batting lineup I have assembled: Encarnacion and Craig are not flukes, I feel this is Santana’s year to blow up, Gyorko and Prado at the hot corner, Jennings and Upton sharing duties in CF, Espinosa is a 15/15 guy, Bruce can light up the scoreboard with his power, and of course, they will all be led by Kinsler and Braun throughout the season. 

So that’s my team—what’s yours?

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CATCH!: 2013 Early Pre-Rankings--LF

New uniform, but Hamilton still packs that same, sweet-swingin' bat of his.
And he also comes with a lot of baggage.
(photo courtesy of Mike McCann's Field of Fotos)

Felipe M

To view our 3B pre-rankings, click here. 

Since I play in a league that requires to draft a LF, CF, and RF, I thought I would rank the outfield in this manner.  

TOP TIER

1. Ryan Braun: Another year of PED allegations is haunting yet another offseason for Braun.  However, until there is something more concrete, apropos to possible punishment by the Commissioner's Office, there simply is no reason to drop Braun from the top spot.
2. Mike Trout: Phenom extraordinaire, Trout has proven to live up to the hype that was bestowed upon him last season.  Would like to see him improve his approach at the plate, but the raw projections are predicting another huge year for the young Angel.
3. Carlos Gonzalez: Injury concerns are always a concern for CarGo, but he's only 27 and is ready to enter his prime of his career.  Just like Trout, would like to see more patience at the plate, but his raw numbers alone, along with his age, are good enough to place him in this tier.
4. Josh Hamilton: Well, let's see: wrong side of 30, injury-prone outfielder, bad 2012, second half, choked in the postseason, and there's always that chance that he can be easily swayed to revert back to a dark past (alcoholism, drug addiction, etc.).  Nevertheless, when he has all of those issues under control, the guy can definitely rake.  However, as one will notice, he's not even the best LF on his own team.

SECOND TIER

5. Matt Holliday: Just like Hamilton, Holliday can still rake, but unlike Hamilton, he's proven to be a gamer as he has been able to play through a variety of injuries that would derail an average player.  However, at 33,  those injuries might be catching up to him.  Add to the fact that he struck out more times than ever in 2012 and his BB:K was it's lowest since 2007 and I just feel obligated to warn you, the reader, to be wary of this guy.  However, he's a "safe risk" to have on your team, but  a risk nonetheless.  If I were stuck in a situation where Holliday was the best player available in my slot, I would highly likely go after a younger, up-and-coming player at that position to hand-cuff with Holliday.
6. Yoenis Cespedes: Cespedes proved to be a major factor last season with the Oakland A's. He could threaten to have a 20/20 season in 2013, but the potential, raw, power numbers that he can produce is enough of a reason to draft this player.
7. Alex Gordon: Gordon has turned around his career after it looked like he would become a "bust" for the Kansas City Royals.  His raw, counting stats are nothing to brag about, but a respectable contact rate to go along with a projected OPS between .820-.840 makes Gordon a solid pick at this position.
8. Martin Prado: Like mentioned before for the 3B, there is nothing flashy about Prado, but what he lacks in power, he more than makes up for it in versatility, superb contact rate, and a stout patience at the plate. 
9. Josh Willingham: His power is never in question as he has proven to possess ample amounts of it at three, different, pitcher-friendly  ballparks.  Age is a concern as he recently turned 34 years-old and injuries are magnified with Willingham; more than the other 30+ year-olds who've had a history of injuries.  However, when healthy, Willingham is a legit source of power of the 30/100 variety.

THIRD TIER

The rest of the field:

• Desmond Jennings (who can put up good, solid numbers, but low on-base% and OPS means many slumps and struggles.
• Melky Cabrera (PED use)
• Mark Trumbo (even in the OF, there are better options than this strike-zone illiterate)
• Brett Gardner (speed, but no power)
• Shane Victorino (age, decrease in production)
• Jason Kubel (age, decrease in production)
• Carl Crawford (injuries, dramatic decrease in production)
• Michael Morse (power, strikes out too much, jury is still out)
• Carlos Quentin (power, but injury concerns)
• Logan Morrison (power, but injury concerns)
• David Murphy (solid numbers, but in platoon system)
• Ichiro Suzuki (speed, but lacks power, age has sapped his contact rate)
• Juan Pierre (speed, but lacks power, age concerns)
• Ryan Ludwick (power, but age concerns)
• Lucas Duda (good potential, but awful on defense)

As you can see, the Third Tier at LF is larger than the other positions, but doesn't provide greater depth at the position, per se.  It offers a good mix of power and speed, but for a lot of these players, except for Jennings, the attributes are always exclusive from each other.  There are a lot of question marks with all of these players, but at their best, they can become solid players.  At their worst, they can cost you the season. Choose wisely.

Keep an eye on:

• Starling Marte (until I see that he's been officially named the starting LF for the Pittsburgh Pirates, I'm not ready to move him up to the Third Tier yet.  And even so, he will struggle mightily in 2013).
• Matt Joyce (in daily leagues when he's hitting against right-handers)
• Jonny Gomes (in daily leagues when he's hitting against lefties)

More fantasy baseball content is available here.

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CF rankings are available here. 

CATCH!: 2013 Early Pre-Rankings--3B

Will Longoria stay healthy this season?
(photo courtesy of Mike McCann's Field of Fotos)

Felipe M

Catchers can be seen, here.

1B are located here.

2B are available here. 

SS are ready to view here. 

TOP TIER

1. Miguel Cabrera: MVP, Triple-Crown Winner: what more can be said?

2. Adrian Beltre: He will be 34 this year.  He can still rake, however. Should be good for another 30/100 season.

3. David Wright: Mr. Met is a solid player to have at this position.  He can even steal 15+ bases.  The difference between him and Beltre is that the latter has slightly better contact skills.

4. Evan Longoria: So young and full of talent.  If only he could stay healthy.  If he does stay healthy, you can expect a 30/100 season, .300 average, and a .935 OPS.

5. Ryan Zimmerman: Just like Longoria, Zimmerman is starting to get a reputation of being injury-proned.  However, when healthy, he can provide plenty of power and just enough contact on the ball to help with the batting average.

SECOND TIER

6. Aramis Ramirez: At 35, we know what we're getting in Ramirez.  He also has a reputation for being a slow-starter and/or a player who seems to produce the most when the pressure is off of him.  He can be very productive, nonetheless.

7. Chase Headley: Last year, around this time, many projected Headly to hit 10 homeruns,   SLG% .392, and an OPS of .742.  He ended up with 30 homers, SLG% .498, and produce an OPS of .875.  I don't think he'll go on that power surge again, but Petco is supposed to move in their fences.  He is also good for 15 stolen bases.  20/90 and .820 OPS is more realistic.

8. Brett Lawrie: A lot of publications have Lawrie in this slot, but be forewarned: he's still undergoing development.  A lot of the hype comes from his untapped potential and 20/20 projections, but he still is undisciplined at the plate and had a groundball rate of 51% in 2012.   He does provide solid contact skills, but needs to provide more power. 

9. Hanley Ramirez: We've mentioned how much of a headache Hanley can be on our SS list.  Depending on what you need, he can still be a 25/25 player, but provides relatively low on-base% and OPS.

10. Pablo Sandoval: The World Series MVP will be on high demand in most drafts this year.  However, there are some concerns with this "Panda": injuries, playing for the Giants and their massive ballpark, and his weight.  Despite those concerns, Sandoval is only 26 and ready to enter his prime years and has the ability to hist 25+ homers and provide massive OPS.  

11. Martin Prado: Probably the "safest" player on the list: he's versatile, garners lots of at bats, and has great patience at the plate, and superior contact skills.  He won't provide much power, but he does have on-base skills and can still be a 15/15 player.

THIRD TIER

The rest of the field:

• Kevin Youkilis
• David Freese
• Todd Frazier
• Kyle Seager
• Will Middlebrooks
• Michael Young
• Mike Moustakas
• Manny Machado

Keep an eye on:

• Lonnie Chisenhall
• Matt Dominguez
• Nolan Arenado

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