NFBC Message Boards

What the hell, we haven't talked enough about the MLB Post-Season, so I'm going to throw out a bunch of questions and see what folks are thinking these days. Jump on in if you have some thoughts:

Is Alex Rodriguez done as a meaningful MLB player?
He looked COMPLETELY lost at the plate this post-season. 12 Ks in 18 ABs against right-handers is pathetic. He also had plenty of chances to drive in runs with runners at third base and less than 2 outs and couldn't even put the bat on the ball. His focus was more on girls in the stands than on a tight ballgame. So what do we do with him in 2013?

In the recent Doughboys' email draft, A-Rod went 132nd overall, 9th round, 12th pick. And that was BEFORE all of these post-season failures came to light. Would you even pick him that high?

Are the Yankees done as we know them?
A-Rod could be shipped out of town, the way they handled him this post-season. Mariano Rivera is coming back from injury. Jeter may not be ready for Opening Day. Cano had the biggest post-season meltdown in history. Is this team getting too old to contend or what? Was this a Red Sox like meltdown that will carry into the next season?

Does MLB need instant replay?
I'll jump in right away: YES. C'mon, the technology is there and the Little League World Series makes good use of it for crying out loud. Trust me, a replay decision can be made and corrected much more quickly than watching a manager go out to second base and jaw with an umpire for 2 minutes. Just correct the wrong call and move on in less than a minute. It's time MLB uses replay for the post-season and even during the regular season. GET THE CALLS RIGHT NO MATTER WHAT. Not on balls and strikes, but on obvious plays at first, second and pop-ups. And eliminate the infield fly rule 230+ feet from the plate!!

Where do you take Mike Trout?
He went No. 1 in the Premature Draft. Would you take him that high?

Where does Josh Hamilton land this off-season?
Any thoughts on where the best free agent will play in 2013? I'm not making a guess.

Will a Catcher and a Starting Pitcher go in the first round of NFBC drafts this year?
If so, they could be Stephen Strasburg and Buster Posey. Would you take either of them or both of them in the first round?

Do you trust anymore:
Troy Tulowitzki?
Jose Bautista?
Evan Longoria?
Jacoby Ellsbury?

Where do you take Bryce Harper?
Third Round? Fourth Round? Lower? He went 37th in the NFBC Premature Draft. Is that too high or too low?

Where does Tim Lincecum go this year?
From Cy Young and Top 30 overall pick to middle of the pack. Lincecum went in the 11th round, 12th pick (162) in the Premature Draft. Would you take him higher or lower than that? Could he be the bargain we're all looking for in 2013 or is his career on the steep downslope for good?

Answer one at a time and let's get the baseball conversation going. NFBC drafts are right around the corner!!

Greg Ambrosius wrote:Are the Yankees done as we know them?
A-Rod could be shipped out of town, the way they handled him this post-season. Mariano Rivera is coming back from injury. Jeter may not be ready for Opening Day. Cano had the biggest post-season meltdown in history. Is this team getting too old to contend or what? Was this a Red Sox like meltdown that will carry into the next season?

The Yankees are the only team I know that could pick up Ichiro Suzuki and lower the average team age per player!

Great questions, Greg. Not sure why this post is being ignored.

A-Rod - Done? Hardly. The great ones always have a little more in the tank. Looking for 150+ games? Not going to happen, but between DH and third, 130 is not out of the quesiton. Kind of brings "Chipper" disease to the picture. He will not last to the end of the 9th round next March unless he gets hurt during Spring Training (a possibility). I do not think he makes it out of the third round.

For our purposes, the Yankees will be the Yankees. Even more concerning than Jeter is CC. The latest reports have that the elbow ligament is fine, but you never know. Cano will be fine. Granderson is getting his eyes checked. Gardener will be there. Tex is far from done. Still play in Yankee Stadium. I find it hard to bet against them.

Trout is not in a class by himself, but it does not take long to call the role. Sophomore slump? Naaah. I am buying in big time because of all those stolen bases. Top five easy, though if I had the #1 pick I would have a hard time picking him over Miguel Cabrera and Ryan Braun.

Josh Hamilton is coming to Atlanta. The Braves go cheap in center, then use that Chipper/Lowe money to land Josh. Yeah, right!

As a rule, no pitchers or catchers will go in the first round, but anything can happen. KJ Duke might get it in his mind that Posey/Mauer back-to-back would be just wierd enough to win. That guy is crazy and will try anything once!

Tulo has a good (not even great) spring training and goes near the end of the first round/early second in most drafts.
Bautista goes before Tulo.
Longoria looks healthy in spring and goes mid/late second round (though not by me...sooooo burned!).
Ellsbury is the toughest one to gauge. Could last until the fourth round.

So trust? Yes, but at a discount.

Bryce Harper will be in the second round by the time March comes along, especially with all those East Coast drafters.

Somebody else will have to gamble on Lincecum's motion, elbow, and lost velocity. I would take Hanson over him even without the homey discount.

only in your league will a rod not make it out of 3rd round. period

I have a completely different take on Cano...

He hit,..what,... .630 the last 2 weeks of the season?

I look at his slump in the playoffs as a return to the mean.Take his .085 and mix it in with his .635 and (without the exact at bats in front of me)...guess what??? He hit .300 over that time span.

Meh....I could be wrong.

headhunters wrote:only in your league will a rod not make it out of 3rd round. period

So, you think second?

Its early, but I will bet you a beer on it. A-Rods ADP will be 45 or less.

Edwards Kings wrote:

headhunters wrote:only in your league will a rod not make it out of 3rd round. period

So, you think second?

Its early, but I will bet you a beer on it. A-Rods ADP will be 45 or less.

I'll take that bet too Wayne and you can buy me that Corona in Las Vegas!! I don't see it for ARod like you do.

You lose, Wayne.
ARod hasn't played 130 games in the past two years. Why will he do it the next when older?

ARod was the 11th 3B off the board in the Pre-Mature. This was before his post season woes.
Some of the 3B taken behind him look better to me.
Freese, Middlebrooks, Moustakas, Seager, and Machado, all behind him.
Third base is NOT a weak position this coming year. This also drives ARod down lists.
ARod went in the ninth round of the first draft, the 12th round of the second draft.
If wanting him in the third round, he'll be available to you in 100% of leagues.
Guaranteed.

One nice thing about ARod...ARod has a streak that signals spring is here. I don't know whether it is an agent of his, or maybe a friendly press person, but without fail, ARod always shows up to Spring Training in the 'best shape of his life'.
This happens with other players as well, but not every year like ARod.
It has become part of spring for me and I'll almost expect that same blurb when he retires and just pays a visit.

Me against the world! Cool! I like it!

I figure 3B will be the last position I draft as I am not as enamored with the third base options past the top six or so, but I am thinking A-Rod cracks a few in spring training, steals a few, and up the boards he screams.

And by the way...can we put this "Which league is better?" to rest. Three consecutive all-star game wins and five of the last seven World Series (four of which were 4-1 or 4-0)!

GO NATIONAL LEAGUE!

And to think, the AL gets Houston! YEEEEHAWWW!