NFBC Content League

[Chest Rockwell]

Greg asked me to post first from the content league tonight because I had the first pick.



I think the goal of this is to not only evaluate individual teams but also the dynamics of a draft.



I will try my best to establish a format others can follow as each of my fellow drafters will be posting each day for the next 14 days.



MY Team

C Kenji Johjima SEA R11 P1 Comment

C Jason Kendall OAK R19 P1 Comment

1B Justin Morneau MIN R2 P15 Comment

1B Ryan Shealy KC R15 P1 Comment

1B Nick Johnson WAS R27 P1 Comment

1B James Loney LA R29 P1 Comment

2B Tadahito Iguchi CHW R10 P15 Comment

2B Orlando Hudson ARI R16 P15 Comment

SS Jose Reyes NYM R1 P1 Comment

3B Aramis Ramirez CHC R3 P1 Comment

3B Wilson Betemit LA R25 P1 Comment

OF Torii Hunter MIN R7 P1 Comment

OF Raul Ibanez SEA R8 P15 Comment

OF Pat Burrell PHI R13 P1 Comment

OF David DeJesus KC R17 P1 Comment

OF Randy Winn SF R20 P15 Comment

OF Reed Johnson TOR R22 P15 Comment

OF Matt Kemp LA R24 P15 Comment

P Mariano Rivera NYY R4 P15 Comment

P Jake Peavy SD R5 P1 Comment

P John Lackey ANA R6 P15 Comment

P Matthew Cain SF R9 P1 Comment

P Todd Jones DET R12 P15 Comment

P Anthony Reyes STL R14 P15 Comment

P Dan Wheeler HOU R18 P15 Comment

P John Maine NYM R21 P1 Comment

P Cliff Lee CLE R23 P1 Comment

P Ricky Nolasco FLA R26 P15 Comment

P Tim Lincecum SF R28 P15 Comment

P Braden Looper STL R30 P15 Comment





Best picks on my team IMO



Cain Round nine

Reyes round fourteen

Hunter round seven



Worst picks on my team IMO



Ibanez round eight

Dejesus round seventeen



My overall strategy and plan-



First I went Reyes at pick one overall- I just felt like with Furcal and Figgins's injury that speed was even more king. Apparently the team at pick 2 was not big on Pujols either as they passed.



At the first turn my goal was to hopefully get at least one of Bay, Abreu, or Wells b/c IMO outfield is so thin later on. Got very close on all 3 but none were there. Went Morneau who I love to repeat and a rock solid Aramis Ramirez.



2nd turn- I projected reaching for Hideki Matsui if I missed OF at the turn or hoping for Fielder. Someone else reached on Matsui and even though Dan Kenyon for the firt time in 100 drafts missed Fielder he was gone too. Had a tough decision between Peavy and Webb or Rivera and Papelbon. Went Peavy and Rivera, if I had it to do over again I would go Rivera and Papelbon.



3rd turn- To me Lackey is too good to pass there and build the start of a good staff- no OF in first 6 rounds while I do not love Tori Hunter he is good value at round 7.



4th turn- Ibanez is solid but he is not an 8th round pick 80% of the time, I contend with the supply/demand of this draft it was not terrible. Matt Cain total steal



5th turn- Good value with Kenji- not so sure I love Iguchi.



6th turn- Todd Jones and Pat the bat- all 2nd closers have warts mine more than most but he did have a great 2nd half. I actually like Burrell there.



Overall observations on my team- good starting pitching, lots of non sexy offensive guys, and the back of my outfield could use some help.



Overall impressions on the league- Starting pitching went a little earlier than usual- but good value in middle rounds, less relievers picked than ever. The thing I found most interesting is how this group laid off of stashing away phenom pitchers. Adam and Andrew Miller undrafted, Sanchez undrafted, and Homer Bailey and Lincecumm lasted very late.



Please feel free to give feeback on the team I drafted- and tomorrow you will hear from John Dean who drafted out of the 2 spot and stoled my pick 3 different times.

[SluggoJD]

Good job Chest, and enjoyed the draft tonight.



I'll post my summary tomorrow.



John

[eddiejag]

I THINK this is a very balanced team.

Two very good catchers B+

Infield is rock solid , agree with Reyes 1st , you get the steals and short stop out of the way,

infield A

Two closers , not a big Jones fan , but if you can squeeze one more year , saves are saves.

I also love Wheeler , Lidge coming off a horrible season is now coming off a horrible spring, Wheeler i could see getting 5 to 10 and maybe more.

CLOSERS B

Outfield isnt bad , im a Dejesus guy and if healthy he will score 100 runs with good bavg, and Randy Winn as your 5th outfield is fine.

OUTFIELD B

STARTING PITCHING , PEAVEY and LACKEY are STUD PITCHERS ,CAIN is a sleeper on everybodies list and i love A REYES and MAINE is another guy with some upside.

PITCHING B+

OVERALL this will be a top three team , if injuries dont come , and playing the waiver wire when needed. Eddie G.

[Vander]

This draft was supposed to be fun, yet it was the toughest one I was in. These guys really know what they're doing. I'm afraid I'm still the minor leaguer trying out for the big club. I'll post my team in a few days. My catchers are absolutly the worst I've ever had. IE Barajas and Torrealba. Yuck.

[Nutty Scrats]

Originally posted by Vander:

This draft was supposed to be fun, yet it was the toughest one I was in. These guys really know what they're doing. I'm afraid I'm still the minor leaguer trying out for the big club. I'll post my team in a few days. My catchers are absolutly the worst I've ever had. IE Barajas and Torrealba. Yuck. I have to agree that it was one of the toughest draft I ever have been in and the best part was it only took 3 hours for 15 owners and 30 rounds. Pretty amazing but when you have everyone on the same page and know what their doing Im not totally suprised. Great job and it should be a fun year. I just hope I didn't embarrass myself too much with my team! LOL

[Greg Ambrosius]

Yours truly also competed in this league last night and I promised that I'd make this an annual event with me competing. We'll probably do this in football this year as well. I had a blast and it was as good a group of owners to draft with as we could have gotten. A lot of smack talking during the draft and solid picks all the way around. The entire draft took exactly three hours, which was perfect.



I may post my roster today to give everyone something to enjoy. This was definitely a tough draft, but a late season draft is definitely more defined than a draft two weeks earlier. Yes, you have injuries to contend with, but everyone has to make the tough decisions (yes, I did grab Figgins and will contend with the injury!). We'll analyze our draft strategies in this league, our FAAB pickups during the year and keep the chatter going positively on the Message Boards all year long. That's the goal of the Content Panel and this draft/league will give us plenty of fodder to achieve that goal.



Look for my roster once I get through all the e-mails. It's going to be a contender for the title!!!

[Greg Ambrosius]

I have to ask Greg Morgan about his draft last night: If Johan Santana had dropped to you at No. 5 in the first round, were you going to start out with Santana, Carpenter and Oswalt? I have a feeling you were going to and see if the strategy could work. Let me know if I'm wrong, but I look forward to your analysis of last night's team.

[mgk2004]

Greg,



You mentioned in a different thread, that:



"The same thing will happen with tonight's Content Panel league. You'll have to e-mail me your starting lineups after the draft and then I'll set them after rosters are set on Monday night or Tuesday."



Since it is within an hour or so of the first pitch for Week #1, does it look like the Content League will be entered in time for us to set lineups, or do you want us to e-mail you lineups? And if you want us to e-mail you lineups, are you going to send us an e-mail to "reply to" (to make it easier for you to track), or should we just them?



Thanks!

--- Mike

[Greg Ambrosius]

Originally posted by mgk2004:

Greg,



You mentioned in a different thread, that:



"The same thing will happen with tonight's Content Panel league. You'll have to e-mail me your starting lineups after the draft and then I'll set them after rosters are set on Monday night or Tuesday."



Since it is within an hour or so of the first pitch for Week #1, does it look like the Content League will be entered in time for us to set lineups, or do you want us to e-mail you lineups? And if you want us to e-mail you lineups, are you going to send us an e-mail to "reply to" (to make it easier for you to track), or should we just them?



Thanks!

--- Mike STATS won't get this league up until tonight or tomorrow at the earliest. I trust everyone to set their lineups tomorrow and I'll e-mail the group to do just that. If you drafted Carpenter in the second round, I trust you'll still start him in Week 1 even after last night. This is a good group of guys and we all knew that drafting on Sunday night would cause a slight delay.



So just hold tight and tomorrow you can set your lineup and we'll backtrack the stats. All will be fine.

[Edwards Kings]

Leadoff home run by Grady Sizemore. Nice!

[Greg Ambrosius]

Originally posted by Edwards Kings:

Leadoff home run by Grady Sizemore. Nice! I like that for my LABR team, but I wanted Rollins-Sizemore last night. You took four of my guys on the turn last night, including Sizemore. I won't forget that!!

[Greg Ambrosius]

Okay, I hate to jump ahead of the other owners in the order of posting our teams and our strategies, but I thought it would be fun for all of our participants to see how the guy who runs this contest actually drafts. It's not a work of art, trust me, but these other owners didn't take it easy on me!! In fact, Wayne Edwards at the turn was downright brutal to me!!



Okay, first of all, the idea of the Content Panel was to create meaningful content on the Message Boards all year long. I selected 15 volunteers to help me way back in the fall and promised a league at the end of the year with a cash prize to the winner. My goal with this league is to openly discuss our strategies in this league and the other leagues that these guys are in and to continue having good content on the boards all year long. Sometimes our boards digress into simpleton smack talk and my hope is that we can provide strategies from the Content Panel even after Draft Day.



As for my team last night, I already blame Tom. He pulled 14 out of the hat (actually, the computer) for me!! I can't believe that guy couldn't look the other way and just say I had the first pick!! Nah, just kidding. Actually, I liked the bottom of the draft and it was fun to start new position runs ahead of the curve.



Okay, first to my team, coming from the 14th hole:



1. Jimmy Rollins, SS (14th overall)

2. Miguel Cabrera, 3B (17th)

3. Joe Mauer, C (43rd)

4. Joe Nathan, RP (47th)

5. Delmon Young, OF (73rd)

6. Scott Kazmir, SP (77th)

7. Richie Sexson, 1B (103rd)

8. Chone Figgins, 3B/OF (107th)

9. Jered Weaver, SP (133rd)

10. Dontrelle Willis, SP (137th)

11. Frank Thomas, DH (163rd)

12. Tom Gordon, RP (167th)

13. Gary Matthews Jr, OF (193rd)

14. Ray Durham, 2B (197th)

15. Austin Kearns, OF (223rd)

16. Paul Lo Duca, C (227th)

17. Jason Jennings, SP (253rd)

18. Chin ming-Wang, SP (257th)

19. Troy Tulowitzki, SS (283rd)

20. Akinori Iwamura, 3B (287th)

21. Luis Gonzalez, OF

22. Chad Billingsley, SP

23. Noah Lowry, SP

24. Joe Blanton, SP

25. Juan Encarnacion, OF

26. Miguel Montero, C

27. Emil Brown, OF

28. Fernando Rodney, RP

29. Sean Casey, 1B

30. Matt Morris, SP



Best picks on my team:



Jimmy Rollins 1 (tossup between him and Sizemore)

Figgins Round 8 (yes a gamble, but one worth taking)

Troy Tulowitzki 19



Worst picks on my team



Jered Weaver 9 (I'm ALL IN with his comeback this year)

Chad Billingsley 22 (now in the pen, my bad)

Emil Brown 27 (damn, where did all the outfielders go?)



My overall strategy and plan-



First of all, three quick observations: 1) The outfield depth truly was as tough as some folks had said on the boards last week. I really struggled to fill out five starters and honestly I'll struggle this month to even have five starting outfielders with Figgins on the DL. I locked up my infield early, but the lack of quality outfielders later surprised me. 2) I knew the starting pitchers would go quickly, but thought I could handle it. Instead, I got locked out of quality starters earlier than expected and hopefully won't kill my ERA and WHIP with my final starters. And 3) I definitely struggled in the final rounds. Even though I know my players well, I wasn't as current with my updates on the last 100 players and I didn't get good enough value at the end. I had sleepers targeted for later and they were all gone before the 26th round. I didn't get a single one of my sleepers as I just waited too long on them. Can't do it with a savvy group like this.



Okay, as for my strategy, I liked drafting at the bottom and was happy with any of the top 17 players. I thought I'd get Ortiz and Berkman, but wanted Rollins and Sizemore. I didn't think Rollins would last until 14 and was glad to start off with a steals guy and a high average guy (Cabrera).



3-4 Mauer fell to the end of the third round, but I almost took Rafael Furcal there. I knew I'd take Nathan or K-Rod in the fourth round and had my choice, taking Nathan as the first closer. The run started and I'm glad I jumped in first.



5-6 I wanted Delmon Young here and wanted my first starting pitcher at the turn. I went for upside with Kazmir, who is now my staff ace.



7-8. Needed power and Sexson was there. Could handle the BA with Cabrera and Mauer and then gambled on Figgins. If he's healthy for the last 21 weeks of the season, I'll be happy. Hey, at No. 107, don't you have to take him?



9-10 I couldn't wait any longer for starting pitchers and had hoped that Bedard would fall. I may have gambled too much here with Jered Weaver and Dontrelle Willis, but hopefully they'll give me 300 strikeouts.



11-12 I definitely need more power and the Big Hurt helps here. I definitely wanted to get ahead of the curve on the second closer run and grabbed Gordon for hopefully 75 saves between him and Nathan.



13-14 Matthews is another gamble, but as the leadoff hitter he could pay off. I had no second baseman at this point and had to take Durham, despite my better judgement.



15-16 Kearns could pan out and Lo Duca was a worthy second catcher before the pickin's got too slim.



After this I realized I was mighty weak on starting pitching and took some chances with Jennings, Wang and Lowry. I never quite got in for a setup man who could become a closer, although Rodney could get a handful of saves for me. I whiffed on that final outfielder, taking Luis Gonzalez and knowing that Juan Encarnacion will miss the same amount of time as Figgins. Dumb move.



Whoever set this up as 15 teams and 30 rounds should be ashamed of themselves!! It's too tough!! Nah, it was all good fun and I look forward to a fun, fun season. Hopefully, this team can be competitive enough if I'm active enough in free agency. Best of luck to my peers as I will fight to the finish.

[SluggoJD]

Hi all,



John Dean here, with a recap of our tough Content League draft from last night. I had the #2 slot, next to Chest, who started this thread off last night with his great analysis. Mike Konemann followed me at #3, and it didn't take long for me to realize I was sandwiched between two sharks... but I was ready



Since this was just a 15-team event, and not the Main Event, my strategy going in was significantly different. I knew that drafting a great offense after taking Santana 1st would be a challenge, but I firmly believe Santana is the best player in baseball, pitching is 5 out of 10 cats, and I wanted to see what would happen if I drafted him early on. With all this in mind, I set out to draft an incredible pitching staff, yet a good enough offense to compete.



C - Pierzynski

C - Napoli

1B - Nomar

2B - Cano

3B - Atkins

SS - Hardy

CI - Chavez

MI - Burke

OF - Bay

OF - Cuddyer

OF - Freel

OF - Murton

OF - Edmonds

U/bench - Wilkerson, Church, Betancourt, Broussard, S. Green



P - Santana

P - Sheets

P - Sabathia

P - Maddux

P - Lilly

P - Francis

P - Ryan

P - Jenks

P - Gagne

P/bench - McCarthy, Villanueva, Gallardo (tucked away)



ROUND BY ROUND



1st - Santana

2nd - Bay for power, some speed

3rd - Atkins for power



4th - Sheets - I had a feeling Chest might grab Sheets before my 5th pick, and I wasn't afraid to take a 2nd ace, even though Sheets is risky. I also did not believe he would take 2 closers back to back, so I figured I would get Ryan or Papelbon after the turn.



5th - Ryan

6th - Cano



7th - Sabathia - I thought "why not" so took a 3rd ace lol. Actually, I was ready to take Hunter here, but Chest beat me to him.



8th - Cuddyer - always an 8th round target of mine

9th - Jenks - did not want to grab a lesser closer later

10th - Freel - figured it was too early to blow off SBs

11th - Nomar - targeted in advance for this round



12th - Pierzynski - adequate for 1st catcher. Was all set to take Ensberg here, but Mike grabbed him first.



13th - Burke - might have been too early



14th - Maddux - I strongly believe he's got one more good year left in San Diego



15th - Chavez - never, ever thought I would draft him, but had to find someone with potential and quick.



16th - Lilly - another target of mine.



17th - Gagne - he's cursed me 2 years in a row, but this time I have 2 closers ahead of him, and heck...it was the 17th round!



18th - Murton - snatched him just in time.



19th - Edmonds - 30 HR potential in 19th round...couldn't pass him up.



20th - Francis



21st - Napoli - 2nd catcher, figured he was the best of the rest at the time.



22nd - Wilkerson

23rd - Hardy



Followed by Church, McCarthy, Betancourt, Broussard, Shawn Green, Villanueva, and Gallardo.





Best picks? IMO Santana, Nomar and Murton

Worst picks? Perhaps Freel, Gagne and Wilkerson.





The result? Well, only time will tell, but I believe my pitching came out second to none, AVG, runs, and HRs should be fine, RBIs so-so, and weak in SBs.



Regardless, I had a lot of fun last night, with a great group of guys who really knew their stuff, and that's what mattered most.



Thanks for reading,



John



[ April 02, 2007, 08:32 PM: Message edited by: SluggoJD ]

[SluggoJD]

LOL Greg, you cheater. Yea, it was really tough, but you guys had me cracking up a lot.

[KJ Duke]

Who wishes they hadn't left Felix Hernandez for me near the end of the 5th round as the 17th pitcher taken? Greg, would you have nabbed him next if I didn't?



[ April 02, 2007, 10:06 PM: Message edited by: KJ Duke ]

[Edwards Kings]

I gotta tell you this was a by the book draft. You could map out the different strategies that were being used for the most part and I could not see any "mistakes". Some picks raised an eyebrow or two, but by the end, it made sense.



Chest Rockwell's bit of an Uncle Charlie that he threw by taking Reyes made perfect sense. Coming back around the corner he may not of had his perferct targeted player to get, but Morneau and A. Rameriz with Reyes gives a perfect Power/Run Production/Speed cocktail to anchor his offense. Rivera was a bit of a surprise (taken over Ryan), but who wouldn't like to have the Hall of Famer on their team. Then he anchors his SP with Peavy/Lackey. Top tier. No dropped balls in this draft (OK, Ibanez is a stretch) and I was HOPING DeJesus would make it back to me. I think that was the right spot for that pick and he could easily be Top 10 round talent. Great draft IMHO.



[ April 03, 2007, 07:49 AM: Message edited by: Edwards Kings ]

[Edwards Kings]

Then, of course, there is our fearless leader. I have not done too well in the NFBC and then to go into my highest profile draft with Greg Ambrosius bookending every pick you make...well, that is pressure. I was surprised that Rollins made it to Greg and I hoped he would think he could sneak him by me as I have talked about on these boards more bangers than balance in these positions. But NOOOO! Rollins is gone and a great pick it was. Then to get Cabrera in Round 2 was a steal that is my fault. I thought six of the next eight picks for Greg were risks, but in a league like this, risks with huge upside. Sexson in the seventh was not a gamble and a hell of a pick as that is a lot of power in that round. Figgins was hanging out there (like the perverbial unwanted "guest" in the punch bowl) and I had the feeling we all saw him and were waiting to see which one of us would blink first. Greg had the guts and I think that pick will pay off...BIG.



Greg did get frozen out of many of the OF spots (one of the disadvantages of drafting on the end...you think there are a ton of players out there then BAM! all gone). But OF has so many guys who produce pop up on the FAAB due to injuries, minor leaguers brought up, fourth OF getting larger roles, et al, that he should pick up the one or two he needs.



I have a feeling I will be looking up at Greg in the standings all year. And as you know, the view is always better for the lead dog.

[Edwards Kings]

John, I really did not think you would take Santana second. That is a gutsy pick. Yes...best pitcher in baseball, but what a hole offensively. But I think you pulled it off.



Your pitching staff ended up deep and wide (especially your top four SP). You will probably make some pitching bench moves, but Sheets has already shown why he was worth the risk.



I gotta tell you, I like you offense! Akins, Chavez (a steal in the 15th), and Nomar is a sweet corner situation. Your MI is all up and comers. Catchers (especially with AJ getting 450 AB now that Hall is out) are solid. With the exception of Edmonds (good luck ), your OF should just be hitting there primes. And SB may surprise you if Burke can use his speed, Bay fulfills his speed potential, and Freel forgets about the long-ball. Good offensive bench, too. I think Wilkerson and Church could see a lot of time.



Another great draft. Man, it is going to be a long year.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Originally posted by KJ Duke:

Who wishes they hadn't left Felix Hernandez for me near the end of the 5th round as the 17th pitcher taken? Greg, would you have nabbed him next if I didn't? Yes indeed. He was going to be the ace I was targeting in that round. After yesterday, I wish I had King Felix instead of Kazmir.

[sranaghan]

Greg, I like your offense but that pitching is gonna kill you some days...good luck......

[Liquidhippo]

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

I have to ask Greg Morgan about his draft last night: If Johan Santana had dropped to you at No. 5 in the first round, were you going to start out with Santana, Carpenter and Oswalt? I have a feeling you were going to and see if the strategy could work. Let me know if I'm wrong, but I look forward to your analysis of last night's team. Interesting you should ask that. I tried basically the exact same strategy in the 2004 NFBC when we took Schilling, Wood, & Schmidt with our 1st 3 picks. Yes, you CAN do that and still end up with a strong offense.



In all honesty, I had no strategy going in. At least not at first. The plan was to get my waiver picks for all of my leagues done ahead of time so that I could develop a strategy for this draft. That didn't happen. I obsessed over my waiver pickups all day, changing the order, changing bid amounts, adding/deleting potential waiver pickups right up until 7pm. and then the draft was already under way!



My first 5 picks:



1 - Crawford

2 - Carpenter

3 - Oswalt

4 - Sheffield

5 - Patterson



Johan would have been an option only if Soriano, Reyes, and Crawford were already gone. I decided focus on category scarcity, namely, steals. Ideally I was hoping that either Reyes(yeah right) or Soriano would fall to me. It almost happened, but I ended up with a choice of Crawford/Howard/AROD. SB's are just so hard to come by, Howard obviously will steal zero, and AROD only had 15 last year. I had to go with Crawford.



In round 2, I was hoping that one of: Jeter/Hanley/D.Lee/Suzuki would fall to me. Didn't happen.



At that point, none of the remaining bats on the board did enough for me. I just hated to take another OF with that position being so deep. The top tier of SS was gone, plus I expected Guillen to be there in the 4th.



So I said to myself, ok, everyone's going with offense, I'll go with pitching. Hence, Carpenter & Oswalt at 2/3.



All set to take Carlos Guillen with the 4th pick, but Perry beat me to it. Give me the Shef.



5th pick - wanted to lock up another chunk of steals, so I grabbed Corey Paterson



picks 6-10:



6 - Giambi

7 - Smoltz

8 - Posada

9 - Pudge

10 - Beltre



With my sixth pick, I felt I needed to grab Giambi before that 'tier' was gone. Smoltz I had as a 5th rounder on my sheet, so I just couldn't let him slip by, and with Carpenter/Oswalt/Smoltz, I felt very good about the front end of my rotation.



8 & 9 I took Posada and Pudge, given my pitching focus early, I couldn't afford to end up with an Ausmus. I had planned to take Piazza, but he went in the 6th.



10 - Beltre - solid offensive production with upside.



11-15



11 - AJ Burnett

12 - Josh Beckett

13 - Curtis Granderson

14 - Brandon Inge

15 - Joel Zumaya



Pitching, pitching, and more pitching. Just when I'm set to take some offense, my target get's snatched. This time Dan Uggla. So, rather than take an inferior player at the position, I decided to solidify the middle of my pitching staff. Burnett and Beckett are nice to have as the #4 & #5 in your rotation. Zumaya added an absolutely wicked curve making it just not fair for hitters if he can locate it. He'll provide a nice ERA WHIP stability without hurting too much in K's.



16-20



16 - Bobby Crosby

17 - Tim Hudson

18 - Marcus Giles

19 - Placido Polanco

20 - Josh Hamilton



16 - Time to take a SS before all the SS with upside are gone. I need Crosby to stay healthy.



17 - Finally got Tim Hudson in one of my leagues. He's on a mission this year and makes a nice #6 on the starting rotation



18 - Overall, I'm not crazy about Giles, but in the 18th round I thought it was a good value....plus I needed a 2b.



19 - Placido Polanco - good BA, decent Run production.



20 - Josh Hamilton - OF with upside



Picks 21-25



21 - Kip Wells

22 - Scott Shields

23 - Jose Valentin

24 - Elijah Dukes

25 - Russ Ortiz



21 Kip Wells - just filling out my staff with a decent value for round 21



22 - Scott Shields - ERA & WHIP.



23 - Jose Valentin - MI depth



24 - Elijah Dukes - had to grab this guy before someone else did, has 20/20 .300 potential.



25 - Russ Ortiz - as someone mentioned during the draft, the Giants are selling advertizing on his fastballs this year. I'm hoping this will distract hitters leading to some decent K's.



Picks 26-30



26 - Shannon Stewart

27 - Brandon Morrow

28 - Trot Nixon

29 - David Eckstein

30 - Chad Durbin



I'll post more on the draft later, gotta run.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Originally posted by sranaghan:

Greg, I like your offense but that pitching is gonna kill you some days...good luck...... Actually, it will kill me most days!! Dontrelle looked solid yesterday, Kazmir not so solid. Jennings and Blanton go today. I just need to be VERY active in free agency and hopefully pick up some new starters. Not easy, but such is life when you dive into offense too much.

[sranaghan]

yep...it is a tough tough draft...whomever wins this thing is usually deserving...not many flukes...im amazed how hard it is to come away with a good roster....I think everyone is used to other formats where you get great teams.....

[mgk2004]

I’m not sure if there is an exact plan for the order that we suppose to present our summaries, but I had the third pick in the Content League, and it is Day #3 since the draft, so I think I am suppose to go now! So, here goes …



By way of introduction, my name is Mike Konemann, and I am a Cheesehead (I think one of the steps to recovery is admitting it). I happen to have stumbled into this league, as I frequently read the message boards, and happened to check out the thread on the Content League at the time Greg was trying to get it closed. I volunteered to take a spot if somebody was needed, and the timing was such that one more person was needed to close it out, so I was lucky enough to get that last spot! And I appreciate the opportunity to compete against some of the NFBC elite!



There will be some parts in the following that sound a little whiny. Actually I am just poking fun at myself for some of my choices. This draft was a great experience, and it should be an entertaining year! I have woven in some of the Opening Day frustrations that befall some of us (all in good fun) …



My draft picks won’t make any sense unless I start with my overall strategy. I have been experimenting with the “no SP” approach. I would definitely not do this in the Main Event, but I think it has a chance to finish in the money in 15 team leagues. So, my pitching goals for my final roster consist of four closers, zero starting pitchers, and seven or eight middle relievers that are #2 closers on their respective teams.



I assumed that Pujols and Reyes would be gone in the first two picks (or maybe Pujols and Soriano). That turned out to be a horrible assumption! I really wanted speed with my first pick, so I planned my draft completely around picking Crawford at pick #3 (or Reyes if he somehow fell to me). When Reyes and Santana went with the first two picks, I only had about a minute to decide if I should stick with my plan (perhaps looking like an idiot by passing on Pujols), or take Pujols and make adjustments as the draft developed. I decided to go with Pujols. In hindsight I wish I hadn’t, as my “Pujols team” that I ended up with projects with slightly worse stats than my projected “Crawford team” that I had prepared to draft, and I ended up with a few guys that I had no intention of taking.



So, this is going to sound to sound like sacrilege, but I think my worst pick in the draft was Pujols at #3! As I type that it sounds ridiculous, but I had spent a ton of time preparing for rounds 2-15 assuming that I had Crawford’s 50 SB in round #1. Now I had to try to make up those 50 SB on the fly against the best fantasy baseballers in the world! That is the biggest lesson learned for me here – Stick to the Plan!



So, here is my team …

code:C Mike Piazza OAK R6 P13

C Ronny Paulino PIT R15 P3

DH Jim Thome CHW R4 P13

1B Albert Pujols STL R1 P3

3B Morgan Ensberg HOU R12 P13

CI Kevin Youkilis BOS R17 P3

2B Howie Kendrick ANA R7 P3

SS Miguel Tejada BAL R3 P3

MI Orlando Cabrera ANA R10 P13

OF Bobby Abreu NYY R2 P13

OF Willy Taveras COL R5 P3

OF Dave Roberts SF R8 P13

The following three will platoon two OF spots:

OF Chris Duncan STL R16 P13

OF Geoff Jenkins MIL R19 P3

OF Rondell White MIN R25 P3



P Takashi Saito LA R9 P3

P Bob Wickman ATL R11 P3

P Salomon Torres PIT R13 P3

P Jorge Julio FLA R14 P13

P Mike Gonzalez ATL R18 P13

P Bob Howry CHC R20 P13

P Todd Coffey CIN R22 P13

P Rafael Soriano ATL R23 P3

P Matt Capps PIT R24 P13

P Matt Lindstrom FLA R28 P13

P Joel Pineiro BOS R30 P13



OF Kelly Johnson ATL R21 P3

OF Kevin Mench MIL R27 P3

3B Andy Marte CLE R26 P13

2B Craig Biggio HOU R29 P3 [/QUOTE]Round #1: In the first round I went with Pujols, as described above. As others have emphasized in their posts, with Furcal’s and Figgins's injuries, speed was at an even higher premium, so my gut tells me I should have taken Crawford. So now my hopes rest on whether Pujols can meet his projections. That means that somebody (Rolen?) is going to have to provide enough protection so pitchers have to pitch to Pujols. I really think that Pujols’ numbers will be down this year, potentially sinking my team. I love Carl Crawford, but I hope he has a down year so that I do not regret not picking him!



Turn #1: At the first turn my goal was to get Abreu (five categories) and a SS. Abreu got to me, and at pick #3 I had a choice of Tejeda or Furcal. If Furcal was healthy I would have taken him (to chip away at the stolen bases I lost by not taking Crawford), but with Furcal’s bum wheel, I went with Tejeda.



Turn #2: I had planned on taking Thome and Dunn had I taken Crawford first. But having taken Pujols, I didn’t need power as much as speed at this turn, so I took Thome and Taveras. I realize that Taveras is a bit of a reach at pick #5, but I like him to have around 40 SB this year (which I really needed here). Naturally, game #1 Taveras goes 0 for 4 with 4 strikeouts and Thome goes 0 for 4 – yikes! At the same time Dunn hits homeruns his first two times up! (I am guessing Dunn will hit 0.290 with 50 HR this year because I did NOT take him). I realize it is a marathon and not a sprint, but I feel like a marathon runner starting out with a big old blister on my foot!



Turn #3: I have been in three previous drafts, just missing on Piazza each time as he has moved up the draft boards. So, I was going to take Piazza at this turn even though it would be a bit of a reach. I also planned on taking one of the bunched 2B (Kinsler, Kendrick, Barfield). I ended up with Piazza and Kendrick. All three 2B were available. This was a coin toss to me, and I settled on Kendrick, partly because of his projected batting average. So, then as I am watching the Angels/Rangers game on ESPN Monday night, Kinsler hits a homerun, and my guy Kendrick looks absolutely clueless going 0 for 4. Hopefully it was just opening day jitters for him, but he looked over-matched. Again, it was only one game, but I felt another blister coming on! So, already I’m thinking of chopping off my foot like the crazy Russian’s arm on 24!



Turn #4: I was still behind in SB because of not taking Crawford, so I took Dave Roberts here. I’m not a big fan of taking leadoff hitters of National League teams, but if he can stay healthy enough to steal 30+ bases I guess I can live with the putrid HR and RBI he will/won’t give me. I had no intention of making this pick until the SB pinch got me. I had planned on taking a 3B (Teahen or Huff) at pick #8, but needed the SB. For my pick #9 at this turn I took Saito. I love the Saito/Broxton combo, and planned to take Broxton in round #18, but Dan Kenyon took him round #17 – that may come back to haunt me!



Turn #5: At this point I am about 30 SB shy of the SB total I am looking for, and I still need a MI, so I took SS Cabrera. I’m not crazy about him, but at pick #10 I think it was the right pick for my team as it was developing. (At this point I was cursing not taking Crawford in round #1). Had I not needed the SB, I was targeting Wigginton as my MI a few rounds later. At pick #11 I took Wickman, and secured the Atlanta saves later by taking Gonzalez and Soriano. Or so I thought I had secured the Atlanta saves. Who gets the first Atlanta save? Well, Chad Paronto of course! Why didn’t I see that coming? Boy do I love fantasy baseball!



Turn #6: Still don’t have a 3B, as I screwed up by not taking one at pick #8. There were two left I was considering in Ensberg and Blalock. Since I had taken Blalock in a previous league, I took Ensberg this time – that is probably not the best strategy, but I usually try to avoid having too many eggs in the same basket. I still need two more closers, so I took Torres at pick #13, which is about right for him. (Although with Benitez being on a mission this year, I maybe should have taken him. He was taken by Dan Kenyon a few picks later).



Turn #7: Still needed one more closer, and not much was left, so at pick #14 I took Jorge Julio (would have taken Dempster but he went the pick before). Just before this pick I was checking on the waivers in my other satellite leagues, and saw that Julio went for $336 in a league in which I hoped to get him. So, I took him here to ease some of that pain (although he is a candidate to really screw the old ERA and WHIP). At pick #15 I took Ronny Paulino, as he had been a rare catcher hitting third throughout the spring in his team’s lineup (I know that it is Pittsburg, but if he hits THIRD – he has to accidentally drive in and score a few runs)! Turns out that Paulino hit fifth on Monday and he went 0 for 5 …



That put us half way through the draft, and most of the rest of the draft was filling in gaps/backups.



Overall observations - two teams punted saves, and two teams (including mine) picked four closers. So, I should finish near the top in Saves/ERA/WHIP, and dead last in Wins/K’s. That was planned. I hope to finish in the top five in all five offensive categories (subject to injuries). However, injuries are a real possibly, as I have a lot of relatively “old guys” (Abreu, Thome, Piazza, Roberts). Since Thome and Piazza are DH’ing they should (hopefully) avoid long-term injuries. Abreu is projected to steal 30 bases, which I would love, but at 33 that probably won’t happen. So, I need Roberts (who is 34) to steal his projected 35 bases! Yikes!



My master plan here is to lull everybody to sleep by falling to the back of the pack and then come on like Seabiscuit down the stretch! That wasn’t my original plan, but after Monday’s opening games that is the revised plan!



Good luck to everyone!

[SluggoJD]

LOL MGK2004...Mike, if Pujols at #3 is your worst pick, the rest of us are doomed.



Nice one,



John