Need some advice

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on this baseball draft i'm joining friday night.

Who would be the best players to pick? Should I go for pitchers first or offense.

I'm paying 100 bucks to get in this draft and i've never been in one before so any advice would be helpful.

I'm guessing Matt Kemp or Clayton Kershaw would be good number 1 draft picks.

what posistions are the best to pick early?

[Wade8813]

I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on this baseball draft i'm joining friday night.

Who would be the best players to pick? Should I go for pitchers first or offense.

I'm paying 100 bucks to get in this draft and i've never been in one before so any advice would be helpful.

I'm guessing Matt Kemp or Clayton Kershaw would be good number 1 draft picks.

what posistions are the best to pick early?

Haha, you probably should have started researching this a while ago. ESPECIALLY if you're paying money for it

What format are you playing in? I'll give you advice for "normal" leagues, but if you're in something drastically different it may not apply (normal being 10-12 team mixed league with 5x5 scoring). This year, pitchers usually aren't getting taken until at least the 2nd round. It's not because pitchers aren't good, but because a lot of pitchers did really well.

Kemp is popular, but usually isn't being taken #1 (although he might be a fine choice). Miguel Cabrera is usually #1, although I don't know if his recent (fairly minor) injury changes that. Shortstop is the most important position to fill, but Tulo doesn't get picked first usually.

One thing to keep in mind is that Utility slots mean that top hitters in positions that are otherwise unimportant are suddenly more valuable. If you're in a 10 team league and you see that there are eleven 3rd basemen you're okay with, you might think you should wait until a really late round to take one, but if Bautista gets drafted as an OFer and one or two of them get taken as UT players, suddenly you'll have to take one sooner.

You can usually get a decent closer pretty late in the draft, plus they're often pretty inconsistent, so it's usually a good idea to wait on them.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

Thx Wade, I will keep that info in mind. I'm a co-owner so i'm hoping my partner knows what he's doing. All I know is we have like 2 mins to make a pick. And we have 9 people playing and thier a bunch of blackjack dealers so I probaly got into something over my head with this one.

[Wade8813]

2 minutes to pick is pretty standard. But it definitely means you have to be ready to go. I wouldn't worry about them being blackjack dealers, but yeah, you're definitely over your head (although like you said, maybe your co-owner can compensate. Although if you two don't have a good means of communicating set up, that might not help as much as you'd hope).

You have very limited time, but try to create a rough list of your top 9 players at each position (with a few extra at positions with the best hitters).

Look at the popular websites to get a vague idea of where players are being taken (ESPN, Yahoo, CBS). A lot of the stuff they say isn't that good, but their list of approximately when players are being taken can give you a good starting point.

Also, maybe if your teammate is good at the normal drafting, you could contribute in a slightly unorthodox way, if you're 100% on top of recent injuries or something.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

This was my team and my co-manager was there but I pretty much made the decisions.

C. Joe Mauer.....I'm hoping he has a good year.
1B. Prince Fielder
2B. Rickie Weeks
SS. Dee Gordan.......I'm gonna start sitting him for Jeter if I get blown out in stolenbases
3B. Mark Reynolds.....I usually start Danny Murphy but I might trade an outfielder for a top tier thirdbasemen if I can get right deal.
OF. Matt Kemp
OF. Josh Hamilton
OF. Hunter Pence
DH. Andre Ethier
UT. Yoenis Cesepedes......This has been a tough decision whether to play Cepedes Pence or Ethier.
UT. Derek Jeter
UT. Danny Murphy....He can play 1B,2B and 3B.

SP. Roy Halladay
SP. Cole Hamels
SP. Matt Cain
SP. Madison Bumgarner
SP. Anibel Sanchez
SP. Chris Sale
RP. Mariano Rivera
RP. John Axford

I thought those alltime drafts were fun but this draft has been really fun. It's a 6x6 league and so far in my first week I went 9-2-1 and so far this week i'm 10-1-1.

This could be begginers luck for me but I really like this team and I dont think any of the other teams can compare to this one. I think my pitching staff is by far the best. I'm somewhat happy about my Dee Gordan pick because I didnt even pick up a thirdbasemen or shortstop until the final rounds which enabled me to pick better starting pitching. Cespedes has bee a nice surprise too.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I dropped Mark Reynolds and picked up Gio Gonzalez who pitched a great game for me last night. Aramis Rameris was dropped so now I may drop Chris Sale and pick him up.

Currently im in first place with a 20-3-1 record and this week i'm 8-0. Not that anyone cares but i'm proud of my team after my first two weeks.

Hopefully Matt Cain does well tonight vs Cliff Lee. He's my only starter tonight whereas he has 3 going. Lee, Garza and Zimmerman.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I am now 28-7-1 and this week im 7-3 vs this weeks player after day 1. Bumgarner pitched well and both Mariano and Axford got saves for me tonight. I am now benching Dee Gordan for Derek Jeter. I will be dropping Rickie Weeks and picking up Jose Altulve and hopefully I can pick up Chase Utley from the dl. currently i'm 7 and a half games up.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

Was curious if you could choose two secondbaseman which two would you take. This is for my fantasy team.

1. Michael Young...plays multiple positions
2. Howie Kendrick
3. Rickie Weeks....I would think he'll heat up.
4. Neil Walker...having a good year
5. Jose Altulve..../allstar
6. Danny Murphy...muliple positions
7. Chase Utley..currently on my team
8. Ben Zobrist...currently on my team....plays outfield too.

These guys are all available in my league right now. I was hoping anyone who is more experianced in fantasy baseball would have some advice.

[Ben Grimm]

Was curious if you could choose two secondbaseman which two would you take. This is for my fantasy team.

1. Michael Young...plays multiple positions
2. Howie Kendrick
3. Rickie Weeks....I would think he'll heat up.
4. Neil Walker...having a good year
5. Jose Altulve..../allstar
6. Danny Murphy...muliple positions
7. Chase Utley..currently on my team
8. Ben Zobrist...currently on my team....plays outfield too.

These guys are all available in my league right now. I was hoping anyone who is more experianced in fantasy baseball would have some advice.

I liked Altuve alot from the start of the season. For an end run, though he's probably not there anymore - I'd say Utley just for his potential.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I liked Altuve alot from the start of the season. For an end run, though he's probably not there anymore - I'd say Utley just for his potential.

I kept Ben Zobrist and he's been ok, Altulve or Walker woulda been better pickups. Somebody just picked up Walker after his 5 rbi game but Altulve is still out there. I like Zobrist because he always gets a walk and has more homerun potential. Helps my ops out.

[Ben Grimm]

I kept Ben Zobrist and he's been ok, Altulve or Walker woulda been better pickups. Somebody just picked up Walker after his 5 rbi game but Altulve is still out there. I like Zobrist because he always gets a walk and has more homerun potential. Helps my ops out.

If it's not a keeper league, go for broke IMO. Zobrist has moments where he's a stud and then you don't see him for 2+weeks. But he's very stable for the most part compared to what you find this time of year.

Don't want to come off snide, but either you're in a 6-team league or an 8-team league with many morons. There's absolutely no other way to explain getting Hamilton, Fielder, Kemp, Halladay, Hamels, Mauer thru 6 rounds.

If your leauge is that dumb to let you take it - best of luck, you'll do very well.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

If it's not a keeper league, go for broke IMO. Zobrist has moments where he's a stud and then you don't see him for 2+weeks. But he's very stable for the most part compared to what you find this time of year.

Don't want to come off snide, but either you're in a 6-team league or an 8-team league with many morons. There's absolutely no other way to explain getting Hamilton, Fielder, Kemp, Halladay, Hamels, Mauer thru 6 rounds.

If your leauge is that dumb to let you take it - best of luck, you'll do very well.

Yeah I was thinking the same thing on how dumb some of the picks they made. This is my first year and even my partner was trying to do some really goofy pickups, thank god I talked him out of it. Yeah we're in first place as of now. But I made a really dumb move today by picking up Wei Yin Chen vs the Royals. They killed him today.

It's a 8 man league

[Sports]

When starting pitchers, play pitchers that are pitching twice in one week and not necessarily the best pitchers in the league.

MotionSportsLab.com - Web-based swing analysis.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

When starting pitchers, play pitchers that are pitching twice in one week and not necessarily the best pitchers in the league.

MotionSportsLab.com - Web-based swing analysis.

Yeah lately I've been trying to do that but every pitcher I pick up seems to get killed. I really have problems trying to choose which pitchers to pickup. I really thought this Wei Lin Chin would do well but he put me on the ropes with my era and whip now. Least he gave me some stikeouts but now I gotta hope one or two of his guys gets hit hard.

[Ben Grimm]

Wanna see sick? One of my leagues is a 12-team NL only. We have waiver pick-ups and drops every Sunday and Thursday night. This is what was claimed when I woke up this morning...

8/10/12 2:28 AM ET - Steve Clevenger C CHC - Claimed off Waivers
8/10/12 2:28 AM ET - Tony Cruz C STL - Claimed off Waivers
8/10/12 2:28 AM ET - Raul Valdes RP PHI - Claimed off Waivers
8/10/12 2:28 AM ET - Jose Mijares RP SF - Claimed off Waivers
8/10/12 2:28 AM ET - Brandon Barnes CF HOU - Claimed off Waivers
8/10/12 2:28 AM ET - DJ LeMahieu 2B COL - Claimed off Waivers

How's that for some exciting talent?!?!

[Ben Grimm]

At the end of this year, I have to figure out what I have that's protectable in future years and what I can just let go.

I'll put down how each of my keeper leagues work and maybe somebody can add some advice. I'll pop them up by season's end. One league is a 10-team AL-ONLY and the other is 12-team NL ONLY. NL is an auction format while AL is a draft, so along with league size, everything's different between the two.

I'll either start a new thread or simply post it here in a month or so. Thanks in advance for any and all that can lend some insight.

[Ben Grimm]

Okay, here's my NL-only team that's left as possible players to come back next year. It's a 12-team NL league, so naturally it's fairly thin and your roster resembles a ML roster more than a typical fantasy one. Players listed with (3rd) as their year are in the final year of their deal and can be extended for 2 more seasons. But to do so, you have to add $5 to his current $$ amount for this coming season and add another $5 for each of the next two years. SO, if I have a player listed at $10 (3rd) and extend him, he'll be $15 next year - and $20, $25 for each of his next two extended seasons. I'm allowed to keep 7.

I think I know who it'll be, but any advice is always helpful in finalizing my decision. We don't need these in until 2013, so it's early. But thought I'd get a jump on things. Also, you'll see some players listed at $10 and say "wtf". Most of these players were $1 pickups, but to retain them, they automatically become $10 in value. Snider must be kept unless he's moved back to the AL. He was an interleague pickup during the trade deadline. Also, Stanton has one year left on his deal and can't be extended since he's been extended once already.

3B Chase Headley $15 (2nd)
SS Hanley Ramirez $41 (2nd)
OF Travis Snider $4 (2nd) - must be kept
OF David Dejesus $13 (2nd)
OF Chris Heisey $6 (3rd)
OF Giancarlo Stanton $20 (3rd) - cannot be extended
OF Jayson Werth $27 (2nd)

1B Matt Adams $10 (2nd)
CI Willie Bloomquist $11 (2nd)
CI Matt Gamel $10 (3rd)
OF Aubrey Huff $9 (2nd)
OF Reed Johnson $1 (2nd)
OF Oscar Taveras $13 (2nd)

P Jhoulys Chacin $10 (2nd)
P RA Dickey $6 (3rd)
P Javy Guerra $15 (2nd)
P Jeremy Horst $10 (2nd)
P Kyle Lohse $1 (3rd)
P Shaun Marcum $18 (2nd)
P Sean Marshall $1 (3rd)
P Craig Stammen $10 (2nd)
P Julio Teheran $8 (2nd)
P Ryan Vogelsong $6 (2nd)
P Tyler Thornburg $10 (2nd)

Thanks for any and all opinions I receive. I'll put my AL team up soon.

[Ben Grimm]

Well, I lost Dickey to the AL - that hurts. Lohse is looking for a new team, and now I have to hope it's San Diego as I don't want him to go to the AL, but also don't want him pitching in a bad park - unless it's with a team that can win 85+ games.

As of now, these are the only players I see worth keeping...

3B - Headley ($15)
OF - Snider ($4)
OF - Stanton ($20)
OF - Johnson ($1) should get himself 150+ ABs and was worth about $5 last year
P - Lohse ($1) hoping he signs with a NL team
P - Vogelsong ($6)
P - Marshall ($1)

That's my 7 at $48. That leaves me with enough cash to get 2 top NL players in the draft. With Headley and Stanton on board, maybe I go with a monster bat (Kemp & Braun being a couple available) and one arm (last year I got Cain for $22 while other "aces" went for $35-$45).

Gonna pop my AL team next. And I understand there's no replies, but I get a better sense of things once their written out, so this gets my gears grinding.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I ended up coming in 2nd place, lost on the last day of the year due to a Ichiro Suzuki stolen base. I won my football league though.

[Ben Grimm]

I ended up coming in 2nd place, lost on the last day of the year due to a Ichiro Suzuki stolen base. I won my football league though.

Grats! Always nice finishing in the money (that is if you're in a money league and 2nd pays out of course).

I had maybe my best football draft ever this year, and slowly watched my team drop down to 4th due to injuries (McCoy, Harvin & indirectly - Fitzgerald).

[Ben Grimm]

My AL-only league turns in keepers today. I'm considering a move. I have the first pick in the draft, but may trade down to acquire some later picks.

[Ben Grimm]

I wasn't very thrilled with my protected players this year as I went from having a surplus to being thin after a deadline deal last season as I made a push for the money - moved both Desmond Jennings (15th round) & Victor Martinez (16th round) plus others for non-keepable types (Konerko, Kinsler, etc). It probably bit me in the butt as I finished one spot out of the money and likely would have finished there anyway without making the move.

My protects submitted were (Round - Name - Position):

7th - Alex Gordon OF
9th - Mike Moustakas 3B/CI
10th - Matt Moore SP
12th - Eric Hosmer 1B/CI
13th - Mike Trout OF
30th - Manny Machado 3B/CI

Alex Gordon & Eric Hosmer's contracts were extended for a 4th season. In doing so, a player's draft round gets cut in half. So Hosmer went from being a 25th round player in his final year to a 12th round player with two years left.

I just finalized a trade today in which I send picks #1, #17 & #48 to a team and in return I get picks #6, #11 & #38.

This was tough as both Cabrera and Cano would fit nicely in any lineup. But I'm already a bit heavy on corner infielders, and can still have somebody like Fielder fall to me at #6 if I choose to go that way. The key was the latter picks. The #11 is a huge upgrade over the #17 as things start thinning out a bit by pick 13-14 and this allows me to get a very solid middle infielder while still having my own 2nd rounder to maybe take a SP (Sabathia/Weaver type as Verlander, Felix & Price will be gone. The #38 I'm receiving gives me two 5th round selections. In our league, anybody drafted from rounds 5-30 may be kept, so this gives me two players inside the top-40 with which to hit. Last year, I tried getting cute and took Oakland's Jemile Weeks - I won't be doing that again.

My first 5 rounds worth of picks now are #6, #11, #16, #32, #33 & #38.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

Thats a pretty intense league Ben. I thought my league last year was intense but it doesn't compare to that. Is your Yahoo working? Johnshoemaker's Yahoo is working for him now.

[Ben Grimm]

Thats a pretty intense league Ben. I thought my league last year was intense but it doesn't compare to that. Is your Yahoo working? Johnshoemaker's Yahoo is working for him now.

It's nothing compared to my NL-only league which has 12 owners. This one only has 8, so there's some flexibility. I'm looking at my protect list in the NL and I'm getting sick...

I haven't even tried Yahoo since last fall as the only way to tell for me is to actually join a league. By then, if it's still not working on draft day, it only hurts those in the league.

[Ben Grimm]

Three hours until my first draft of the 2013 season. Should be great fun as I only really see these guys twice a year (same group also is a fantasy fb league). Our host has a beermeister in his den where we draft on a 16' table and has a good wireless connection. We each bring something to stock his fridge/chip cabinet and pre-order pizzas so they arrive near the halfway mark of the draft which usually takes 3-4 hours.

Those who didn't understand or agree with my moving of the first pick are now realizing why I did it. The talent (bacause of who's kept) shows a cutoff of top players right around pick #13, which is why I wanted that #11. We'll see how it works as I'm hoping to see Jose Reyes fall there, but may have to use my #6 on him because the guys picking behind me (#7-10) like those speedy guys and both have SS open.