DraftBuddy.com

Fantasy Baseball and Fantasy Football Draft Tools

  • Member Login
  • Register

     

  • Fantasy Football
  • Fantasy Baseball
  • Draft Buddy
  • Rankings
  • News
  • Stats
  • Draft Buddy
  • Rankings
  • News
  • Stats

NFBC Post-Draft Recap

March 21, 2011 By Rick Leave a Comment

I completed my National Fantasy Baseball Championship (NFBC) satellite league draft last Wednesday night, and I have to say it was a rather painful affair – not the team I drafted but the draft itself.

I participated in five mock drafts at Mock Draft Central to prepare for this draft, and was expecting to finish in the same two to two and half hour session it usually took for the mocks. For this draft we needed more than four hours to complete 30 rounds. With a 9:00pm start time, I was still awake after 1:00am. The draft was definitely cutting into my beauty sleep.

We had too many owners who seemed unprepared to make their selections when it was their turn, which was surprising. There also seemed to be too many times when owners would hold their pick to the last of the 90 second clock, trying to create some sort of drama. Hopefully that experience is not normal for other NFBC drafts. Now that the draft is over though, it is time to evaluate my squad.

NFBC uses the Kentucky Derby Style of selecting draft positions, which means each owner ranks what draft pick they would like, and a random selection runs through the preferences of each owner to determine the draft order.

I was hopeful I would end up with a draft slot in the middle of the pack to get a pick every 20 choices or so. Unfortunately I had some bad luck and I found myself at #14, maybe the hardest draft slot of them all.

The only good thing about the 14th slot is that I can watch the team selecting 15th, and make my choices based on what they are likely to do (or not do) with their back-to-back picks. For instance, since he selected Jimmy Rollins in the fourth round, he was very unlikely to select a SS with any pick until at least the middle of the draft. Knowing this, when I was ready to select a SS, I could do it on the second of my two picks after the short turn rather than have to move with the first.

Here is my roster, including the 7 reserve picks:

Draft Results By Round
Round Pos Player
1 3B David Wright
2 1B Ryan Howard
3 SP Jon Lester
4 OF Jason Heyward
5 1B Kendrys Morales
6 SP Roy Oswalt
7 2B Aaron Hill
8 OF Delmon Young
9 RP Jonathan Broxton
10 OF Vernon Wells
11 OF Grady Sizemore
12 RP Jose Valverde
13 SP Javier Vazquez
14 2B Ryan Theriot
15 SP Ian Kennedy
16 C John Buck
17 C A.J. Pierzynski
18 OF Nate McLouth
19 SP Clayton Richard
20 SS Cliff Pennington
21 1B Garrett Jones
22 SP Jon Garland
23 OF David DeJesus
24 SP Tommy Hunter
25 SP Mike Pelfrey
26 SP Daisuke Matsuzaka
27 SP Phil Coke
28 3B Danny Valencia
29 SP Joe Saunders
30 OF Scott Podsednik
Draft Results By Position
Pos Player (Round)
1B Ryan Howard (2)
1B Kendrys Morales (5)
1B Garrett Jones (21)
2B Aaron Hill (7)
2B Ryan Theriot (14)
3B David Wright (1)
3B Danny Valencia (28)
SS Cliff Pennington (20)
OF Jason Heyward (4)
OF Delmon Young (8)
OF Vernon Wells (10)
OF Grady Sizemore (11)
OF Nate McLouth (18)
OF David DeJesus (23)
OF Scott Podsednik (30)
C John Buck (16)
C A.J. Pierzynski (17)
SP Jon Lester (3)
SP Roy Oswalt (6)
SP Javier Vazquez (13)
SP Ian Kennedy (15)
SP Clayton Richard (19)
SP Jon Garland (22)
SP Tommy Hunter (24)
SP Mike Pelfrey (25)
SP Daisuke Matsuzaka (26)
SP Phil Coke (27)
SP Joe Saunders (29)
RP Jonathan Broxton (9)
RP Jose Valverde (12)

It is a very solid lineup, deep in power hitting and power arms. My team lacks speed, saves, and ratios, which might end up being the difference between first and second in this league. No trading is allowed (to prevent collusion), so I will have to hope my team stays healthier than others and make any adjustments from the waiver wire.

I’m not going to go through all 30 rounds, because you would find something else to read before we hit Aaron Hill, but I will hit some of the highlights and some of the lowlights.

After five mock drafts, I found the eight elite first basemen (Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera, Joey Votto, Adrian Gonzalez, Mark Teixeira, Ryan Howard, Prince Fielder, and Adam Dunn) and the four elite third basemen (David Wright, Alex Rodriguez, Evan Longoria, and Ryan Zimmerman) went fast and the drop off was substantial afterwards.

Seeing what was realistic, I figured that if I could nab Ryan Howard and David Wright with those first two picks I would be in an optimum position, but it was all up to the rest of the league. When they fell to me at picks 14 and 17 overall, I knew I was well on my way to a great team. They both provide good power while Wright will give me stolen bases from an unusual position.

When all the power arms were disappearing as I helplessly watched 26 players fly off the board from my second to third pick, I was thrilled to see that one of my top three choices was still waiting for me: Jon Lester. Following the wrap around, I saw that Jason Heyward was still available and I jumped on that like nobody’s business.

As the draft progressed, I didn’t take as many pitchers early as I had planned to, but I did get Roy Oswalt in the sixth round. Since I participated in a mock draft the night before, I saw that some real pitching bargains developed in the teens and more could be found in the twenties. I did add a top starter in Javier Vazquez and closer in Jonathan Broxton, but I mostly concentrated on building a stout offense.

When Kendrys Morales and his still-healing leg fell to the fifth round, I saw a chance to separate myself from the pack and add a second power hitting first baseman to cover my corner infield slot. When I grabbed Hill in the seventh round and Delmon Young in the eighth, I was well on my way to dominating the league in homers and RBI.

Hitting bargains that I found included Vernon Wells in the 10th, Grady Sizemore in the 11th, Nate McLouth in the 18th and Garrett Jones in the 21st round. Pitching bargains really didn’t fall into my lap quite as much, but I do like some of my end-game pitching grabs which included Jon Garland in the 22nd, Tommy Hunter in the 24th, Mike Pelfrey in the 25th, Daisuke Matsuzaka in the 26th, and Joe Saunders in the 29th rounds. None will be superstars this season, but all will be good plays in the right matchup.

My secret weapon for the catcher position was Russell Martin who was selected right before I was about to pick him for myself. I did end up with John Buck and A.J. Pierzynski in the 16th and 17th rounds.

The last ten rounds were filled with bargain picks and depth chart filler. I found David DeJesus waiting for me at 23 to help with my batting average, and Scott Podsednik at 30 to give me a boost in steals if he comes back healthy.

The draft didn’t go exactly as I planned, but I like my team and my chances. I didn’t want to punt saves and steals, while not overpaying for each category either. I have enough guys to get a few points in each. If my guys stay healthy and the risks pay off, I should have a say in the league title at the end.

Filed Under: Fantasy Baseball

National Fantasy Baseball Championship Post-Draft Review

April 1, 2010 By Rick Leave a Comment

I completed the National Fantasy Baseball Championship satellite league draft and I have to say it was a rather painful affair. We needed four hours to complete 30 rounds.

I participated in a mock draft at the NFBC site and was expecting to finish in a similar two hours and 15 minutes that the mock draft took. But, it wasn’t meant to be. One guy lost his internet connection and he had to finish the last 16 rounds using a moderator to submit his picks via phone calls.

Plus many owners seemed unprepared to make their selections when it was their turn. Too many times owners would hold their pick to the last of the 90 second clock, trying to create some sort of drama.


Draft Results and Review

Now that it is over, it is time to evaluate the winners and losers. The draft got started off with an odd twist. In a flashback from 2005, Alex Rodriguez went with the first overall pick.

The guys picking second and third must have been elated when they unexpectedly found themselves with Albert Pujols and Hanley Ramirez. Like many drafts, there were a number of odd picks made, but the A-Rod reach was the strangest.

Here is my roster, consisting of 23 starters and 7 reserves.

Draft Results By Round
  1.08 (8) 1B Prince Fielder, MIL
  2.08 (23) OF Justin Upton, ARI
  3.08 (38) 3B Pablo Sandoval, SF
  4.08 (53) 1B Justin Morneau, MIN
  5.08 (68) 3B Chone Figgins, SEA
  6.08 (83) SP Javier Vazquez, NYY
  7.08 (98) SS Alexei Ramirez, CWS
  8.08 (113) RP Rafael Soriano, TB
  9.08 (128) C Kurt Suzuki, OAK
10.08 (143) OF Carlos Beltran, NYM
11.08 (158) RP Huston Street, COL
12.08 (173) SP Tim Hudson, ATL
13.08 (188) SP Aaron Harang, CIN
14.08 (203) OF Delmon Young, MIN
15.08 (218) SP Rick Porcello, DET
16.08 (233) OF Cody Ross, FLA
17.08 (248) OF Corey Hart, MIL
18.08 (263) SP Derek Lowe, ATL
19.08 (278) RP Neftali Feliz, TEX
20.08 (293) SP Fausto Carmona, CLE
21.08 (308) 2B Luis Valbuena, CLE
22.08 (323) SP Bronson Arroyo, CIN
23.08 (338) C Rod Barajas, NYM
24.08 (353) SP Kenshin Kawakami, ATL
25.08 (368) 2B Akinori Iwamura, PIT
26.08 (383) DH Carlos Guillen, DET
27.08 (398) C Rob Johnson, SEA
28.08 (413) OF Daniel Murphy, NYM
29.08 (428) RP LaTroy Hawkins, MIL
30.08 (443) DH Pat Burrell, TB
  
Draft Results By Position
C Kurt Suzuki, OAK   9.08 (128)
C Rod Barajas, NYM 23.08 (338)
C Rob Johnson, SEA 27.08 (398)
1B Prince Fielder, MIL   1.08 (8)
1B Justin Morneau, MIN   4.08 (53)
2B Luis Valbuena, CLE 21.08 (308)
2B Akinori Iwamura, PIT 25.08 (368)
3B Pablo Sandoval, SF   3.08 (38)
3B Chone Figgins, SEA   5.08 (68)
SS Alexei Ramirez, CWS   7.08 (98)
OF Justin Upton, ARI   2.08 (23)
OF Carlos Beltran, NYM 10.08 (143)
OF Delmon Young, MIN 14.08 (203)
OF Cody Ross, FLA 16.08 (233)
OF Corey Hart, MIL 17.08 (248)
OF Daniel Murphy, NYM 28.08 (413)
DH Carlos Guillen, DET 26.08 (383)
DH Pat Burrell, TB 30.08 (443)
SP Javier Vazquez, NYY   6.08 (83)
SP Tim Hudson, ATL 12.08 (173)
SP Aaron Harang, CIN 13.08 (188)
SP Rick Porcello, DET 15.08 (218)
SP Derek Lowe, ATL 18.08 (263)
SP Fausto Carmona, CLE 20.08 (293)
SP Bronson Arroyo, CIN 22.08 (323)
SP Kenshin Kawakami, ATL 24.08 (353)
RP Rafael Soriano, TB   8.08 (113)
RP Huston Street, COL 11.08 (158)
RP Neftali Feliz, TEX 19.08 (278)
RP LaTroy Hawkins, MIL 29.08 (428)

It is a very solid lineup, deep in power hitting and power arms. My team lacks speed, saves, and ratios, which might end up being the difference between first and second in this league. Because no trading is allowed (to prevent collusion) I will have to hope my team stays healthier than others and make any adjustments from the waiver wire.

I’m not going to go through all 30 rounds, because you would find something else to read before we hit Chone Figgins, but I will hit some of the highlights and some of the lowlights.

My initial plan for the eighth pick included a short list of Ryan Braun, Matt Kemp and Miguel Cabrera. I altered that slightly not long before the draft. I wanted to take Troy Tulowitzki or Kemp in the first round, to get a good power/speed guy to start me out.

But Tulo he was gobbled up with the sixth pick and Kemp was snatched with the seventh. When the dust settled, I went with Prince Fielder to provide a good average and drive in a lot of runs, but there were no steals to be found here worth mentioning.

In the second round, I was thinking about taking Jimmy Rollins but his speed seems to be disappearing as he ages and the injuries have been mounting in recent years. Justin Upton looked like a good player to offer me power and a little speed as other options like Carl Crawford and Grady Sizemore disappeared before I could get them.

I continued my power run in the next two rounds with Pablo Sandoval and Justin Morneau. These two picks tied me down at the corner infield positions, leaving me little flexibility as the draft progressed, but you cannot deny the power. I found a little speed in the fifth round with Chone Figgins and plan to slot him at second base as soon as he gains eligibility.

As I progressed, I didn’t take as many pitchers early as I had planned to. Since I participated in a mock draft the night before, I saw that some real pitching bargains developed in the teens and more could be found in the twenties. I did add a top starter in Javier Vazquez and closer in Rafael Soriano, but I mostly concentrated on building a stout offense.

Some of the early picks I am happy about are Figgins in the fifth round to play 2B after the top second basemen came off the board, Kurt Suzuki in the ninth round, and Morneau in the fourth round.

In rounds 10 to 20, I grabbed a lot of pitchers and outfielders that I hope will have bounce back seasons: Carlos Beltran, Huston Street, Tim Hudson, Aaron Harang, Delmon Young, Corey Hart, Derek Lowe, and Fausto Carmona. If they produce the way I expect, I should be looking good in September.

The last ten rounds were filled with bargain picks and depth chart filler. I found Luis Valbuena waiting for me at 21 to backup 2B and SS, Rod Barajas in the 23rd to be my second catcher (we start two), Kenshin Kawakami and Bronson Arroyo at 24 and 25 to provide rotation depth, and I took a chance on Carlos Guillen and Pat Burrell making late career surges as designated hitters at 26 and 30.

The draft didn’t go exactly as I planned, but I like my team and my chances. I didn’t want to punt saves and steals, but I have enough guys to get a few points in each category. If my guys stay healthy and the risks pay off, I should have a say in the league title at the end.

Filed Under: Fantasy Baseball

National Fantasy Baseball Championship Pre-Draft Strategy

March 31, 2010 By Rick 1 Comment

Today I make my first foray into the National Fantasy Baseball Championship, competing in a 15-team, 5X5 rotisserie scoring mixed (American and National) satellite league.

I have to wonder what I am getting myself into. I prefer and usually only play in leagues with fantasy point scoring as they seem more like real baseball to me than playing for categories. But, since roto leagues are more traditional for fantasy baseball, and this is a high profile competition, I figured I would give it a shot. Let’s see what damage I can do to my reputation.

Since this is only a satellite league, my real goal is to learn the ins and outs of NFBC to go for the big prize next year. If you haven’t heard of the NFBC before, its annual main event awards a $100,000 grand prize to the overall winner of 405 teams (27, 15-team leagues), plus it has a number of other live and online league options.

I have some past success playing rotisserie, but the biggest roto success of my career was some time ago. I won a 3,000+ team competition back in 1999. The prize, after arguing with the less than honest contest administrator, consisted of a few team jerseys and sports memorabilia, highlighted by a lithograph of the first (and only?) meeting between Ted Williams and Babe Ruth, signed by Ted Williams. That gem still displays in a prominent place in my den to this day.


Strategy

The draft is a snake draft and I am slotted in the eighth spot. Since I pick eighth in every round (seven to the left of me, seven to the right), I will always have 14 picks before my next turn, giving me ample opportunity to plan out my next pick.

Draft Buddy will be my best friend for those few hours, as it will help me keep track of every player taken in the draft as well as tracking category stats to see how I am doing against the competition. This will let me know what categories I need to go after, and what categories I am already heavily invested in and can ease off on later in the draft, to strike a nice balance across the board.

At the eighth pick, I can hope beyond hope for Ryan Braun, although I doubt he will be there. Matt Kemp will also be a strong possibility, but it may require one of the first seven owners to pick Tim Lincecum or go against the norm for Kemp to fall to eighth. The third and likely choice for my first pick and stud player to build around is Miguel Cabrera.

On the return trip in the second round, I’ll be looking hard at Jimmy Rollins, given the shortstop position drops off rather dramatically after the top guys are gone.

My overall strategy is to get a good infield and a few stout pitchers. I will be happy taking an infielder off the second tier of each of the four infield positions and maybe grab a first tier catcher if one hangs around too long. The league uses two catchers, so I’m going to try to make the second starter a quality guy, grabbing a player in the third tier because once you get past that you are getting little to no production.

Outfield bargains can usually be found throughout the draft and I plan to fill out my roster with a few of those. I know I won’t get any five category guys that late, but good help can be found with patience.

I want to get three good pitchers to ride for the season and plan to be aggressive with strikeout guys. While I don’t expect a Roy Halladay to fall into my lap in the third round, I do plan to pursue Josh Beckett and Javier Vazquez types to eat up innings, pile up wins, and strike out batters.

A stud closer is also on my to-do list to help fill out my saves category. A Jonathan Papelbon-type of guy will help all my categories as well as allowing me the freedom to wait longer for other bullpen arms. After that, I will probably go with eighth inning guys who will pick up the occasional save, but are very reliable in the ratio and strikeout departments.

How all of this pans out is anyone’s guess. With 14 other competitors after top quality players too, I may have to change my plan mid-draft. Since everyone has the ability to find studs in the first few rounds, the ability to adapt in the middle of a draft and to find the bargains as they develop is what wins fantasy titles.

Preparation is the key. I feel prepared, as I’m sure everyone competing in this league will feel heading into the draft. I’ll report back post-draft to review how it panned out and weigh my chances to win this league.

Filed Under: Fantasy Baseball

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • Next Page »
  • Fantasy Baseball
    • Draft Buddy Software
    • Last Player Picked
    • Rankings
  •  
    • Articles
    • News
    • Stats
  • Fantasy Football
    • Draft Buddy Software
    • Rankings
    • Projections
  •  
    • Articles
    • News
    • Stats

Copyright © 2020 Draft Buddy • Privacy Policy