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Jun 12, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; A major league baseball rest in the grass prior to the game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Contributors from the Call To The Pen website recently drafted an MLB dynasty fantasy league. How did each team do?
While MLB fantasy drafts are in full swing this weekend in preparation for the open of the MLB season on Sunday, April 2nd's triple header for opening day.
Call To The Pen contributors came up with the idea during the 2016 season to do a dynasty fantasy baseball league this offseason. Benjamin Chase coordinated setting up the league with Fantrax, and this will be a comprehensive review of that draft now that it's complete.
First, let's take a look at what exactly the rules behind the league are:
The League Rules
– Every roster in this league consists of 40 players.
– A player who is on the DL can allow an owner to expand his roster beyond 40 only while that player is on the DL.
– Any player in the majors, minors, or foreign leagues was eligible for this initial draft. From opening day, no player unsigned on opening day who had never played in the major leagues will be eligible until the next season's 5-round re-draft.
– Scoring is traditional 5×5 roto with batting average, runs, home runs, runs batted in, and stolen bases for hitters along with wins, saves, strikeouts, earned run average, and WHIP for pitchers.
– Rosters were the same as the original roto league, with the exception of one catcher instead of two. C, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, CI, MI, 5 OF, Util, 9 P
Other rules are more league applicable and not really something that matters with this particular review!
Reedies, owner Jason Reed
Roster
C – Yadier Molina, Francisco Cervelli
1B – Josh Bell, Victor Martinez, Steve Pearce, Mitch Moreland
2B – Brian Dozier, Ryan Schimpf, Brandon Phillips
3B – Justin Turner, Jose Ramirez, T.J. Rivera, Joshua Lowe
SS – Brandon Crawford, Zack Cozart, Fernando Tatis, Jr.
OF – Mike Trout, Lorenzo Cain, Max Kepler, Jacoby Ellsbury, Denard Span, Ronald Acuna, Blake Rutherford, Melvin Upton, Jr., Tyler Austin, Socrates Brito
P – Jake Arrieta, Julio Teheran, Michael Fulmer, Felix Hernandez, Tony Watson, J.A. Happ, Adam Ottavino, Tyson Ross, Ryan Madson, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Bartolo Colon, Robert Stephenson, Brock Stewart, Mark Appel
Top choice – So Jason may have had the easiest decision of any pick in the draft. First pick overall, Mr. Mike Trout.
Trout is only 25, and at his age, he has more hits than all-time hit leader Pete Rose had at the same age, more home runs than all-time home run leader Barry Bonds had at the same age, and more runs scored than the all-time leader Ricky Henderson had at the same age.
Technically, this is Trout's age 25 season even, and he's already at that sort of pace. He's the easy #1 choice.
Excellent value – Jason went after primarily prospects late, but one that could provide some value in 2017 is Dodgers pitcher Brock Stewart. Stewart jumped from high-A to the majors in 2016, and while he's an older prospect after being a senior sign draft pick, Stewart has elite control and could offer the Dodgers an excellent 6th starter in AAA.
Elite Prospect – At the time he was selected, picking Josh Bell in the 11th round made perfect sense, but now with injury issues threatening the start of his season and his defense already questionable at first base, Bell may be a guy who sees more impact going forward than this season.
Bell still possesses an excellent bat that should allow him to have great batting average and good power production.
Pitch Slap, owner Brendan Dlubala
Roster
C – Buster Posey, Evan Gattis, Austin Hedges
1B – Jose Abreu, Mark Canha
2B – Logan Forsythe, Brandon Drury, Jed Lowrie
3B – Todd Frazier, Matt Chapman
SS – Francisco Lindor, Matt Duffy, Delvin Perez
OF – Mookie Betts, J.D. Martinez, Randal Grichuk, Corey Dickerson, Albert Almora, Lourdes Gurriel, Clint Frazier, Michael Saunders, Luis Robert, Nick Williams
P – Gerrit Cole, Vince Velasquez, Sonny Gray, Matt Harvey, Blake Snell, Arodys Vizcaino, Trevor Rosenthal, Jeanmar Gomez, Jake McGee, Patrick Corbin, Ryan Dull, Derek Law, Jaime Garcia, Sandy Alcantara, Braxton Garrett, Tyler Jay, Domingo Acevedo
Top choice – Betts broke through and had a big season last year, nearly going 30/30 with 40 doubles (though the doubles don't matter for fantasy). Betts will work in a good lineup to allow him to have solid run/RBI production with his high-end batting average.
Excellent value – While his health is the reason he was still there in the 39th round, when Jed Lowrie has been healthy, he has been one of the more productive middle infielders in the game.
Lowrie is healthy currently, and he has a starting position in Oakland at second base, or at least the strong side of a platoon at the position, which should allow for some decent numbers for a late pick.
Elite Prospect – Brendan went an interesting route with his prospects as two of his first three prospect eligible players were guys who haven't really had a chance to show anything as a professional yet.
Lourdes Gurriel was signed by the Blue Jays to a deal that caught most off guard for how team-friendly it was in light of recent Cuban signings. He has the pedigree to move quickly through the Blue Jays system.
Luis Robert is as of yet unsigned, but in talking with a scout who works in the international market, I got the response that if he had to take an outfielder without a single major league at bat, he'd pick Robert over any player in the entire minor leagues. That's pretty high praise.
Bum Dingers, owner Jason Burke
Roster
C – Gary Sanchez, Jacob Nottingham
1B – Greg Bird, Dan Vogelbach
2B – Hernan Perez, Neil Walker
3B – Manny Machado, Rafael Devers, Jae-gyun Hwang
SS – Alcides Escobar, Gleyber Torres
OF – George Springer, Andrew Benintendi, Keon Broxton, Manuel Margot, Michael Conforto, Aaron Altherr, Jake Bauers, Peter O'Brien, Daniel Palka, Jarrett Parker
P – Julio Urias, Alex Reyes, Lance McCullers, Jr., Ken Giles, Greg Holland, Jon Gray, Sean Manaea, Francis Martes, Carson Fulmer, Luke Weaver, Tyler Beede, Frankie Montas, Brent Honeywell, Yadier Alvarez, Andrew Triggs, Michael Feliz, Kendall Graveman, Logan Shore, Antonio Senzatela
Top choice – Manny Machado is a no-doubt superstar player. At #3, Machado could be an interesting decision after he did not run at all in 2016 and the Orioles also didn't steal.
Machado currently has dual eligibility at third base and shortstop, and that is certainly valuable, and he is only 23. Machado in a dynasty could be interesting after 2018, when he'll likely be elsewhere once he hits free agency.
Excellent value – Just recently named Oakland's opening day starter, Kendall Graveman may not be a sexy pick in fantasy drafts, but he is only 26, and he's a guy who will offer solid, though not spectacular, ratios.
Getting a guy who should give 30+ starts to a dynasty team in the 36th round is an excellent value that late.
Elite Prospect – Jason went young throughout his draft, especially on the pitching side, and it should be noted that this draft started in January, so at the time of the Alex Reyes selection, he was still in line to open the season in the rotation for St. Louis.
From rounds 4-6, Jason likely thought he was drafting a foundation for his squad with Benintendi, Urias, and Reyes. Instead, Reyes will be out all of 2017, it sounds like Urias will start 2017 in the minors, and Benintendi is the one guy he's got to lean on in that group.
Bobby Scales, owner Josh Mayer
Roster
C – Wilson Ramos, Tony Wolters, Devin Mesoraco
1B – Carlos Santana, Dominic Smith, Pedro Alvarez, Byung Ho Park
2B – Jason Kipnis, Jose Peraza, Kolten Wong
3B – Kris Bryant, Maikel Franco, Mike Moustakas
SS – Trevor Story, Andrelton Simmons, Nick Gordon
OF – Giancarlo Stanton, David Dahl, Ian Desmond, Ender Inciarte, Mallex Smith, Raimel Tapia
P – Zack Greinke, Rich Hill, Robbie Ray, Matt Shoemaker, Joe Musgrove, Ivan Nova, Michael Wacha, Chris Devenski, Eduardo Rodriguez, Luis Severino, Shelby Miller, Hector Rondon, Bruce Rondon, Amir Garrett, Sean Newcomb, Justus Sheffield, Mike Soroka, Homer Bailey
Top choice – With the fourth selection, Josh went with Cubs superstar Kris Bryant.
Bryant has multiple position eligibility in many systems, which is a huge advantage with his incredible offensive production. Of course, that he's already an MVP and just turned 25 in January makes him a tremendous guy to own in a dynasty league.
Excellent value – He's been injured plenty lately, but with just Ramos at catcher, Josh grabbed a great option in Devin Mesoraco. There's been nothing official from the Reds yet about his opening day status, but he's made consistent progress this spring.
When Mesoraco is healthy (which has not been often, frankly), he is one of the best offensive catchers in all of fantasy baseball.
Elite Prospect – While he picked a number of young MLB players, Josh didn't select a guy who was truly a prospect until Amir Garrett in the 30th round.
Garrett will likely end up opening the season in the Reds starting rotation, and he's one of the best young lefties in the entire game, though he's seemingly flown under the radar due to his later start to his career after a college basketball career.
The Freak Show, owner Adam Tabakin
Roster
C – Tom Murphy, Cameron Rupp
1B – Miguel Cabrera, Bobby Bradley
2B – Jose Altuve, Robinson Cano, Ian Kinsler, Ben Zobrist
3B – Adrian Beltre, Evan Longoria
SS – Orlando Arcia, Chris Owings, Willy Adames, Kevin Maitan, Isan Diaz, Kevin Newman
OF – Ryan Braun, Justin Upton, Matt Kemp, Joc Pederson, Rajai Davis, Anthony Alford
P – Johnny Cueto, Francisco Rodriguez, Brandon Maurer, Adam Wainwright, Jim Johnson, Mike Montgomery, Francisco Liriano, Jeremy Hellickson, Brandon Kintzler, Matt Strahm, Brad Brach, Mychal Givens, Darren O'Day, Will Harris, Kolby Allard, Cal Quantrill, Sean Reid-Foley
Top choice – Adam took over this team after the original owner left his team behind, starting drafting in round 11. He didn't make the Jose Altuve pick, but it's a solid one for sure.
Altuve may not be a guy who steals 50+ bases any time soon again after he was moved to 3rd in the batting order last season, but his move should allow for him to drive the ball more and add more RBI and possibly even more power than he's shown from his 5'6″ frame.
Excellent value – Baltimore had one of the most impressive bullpens in baseball last season, and while Adam didn't have the closer, he did lock down the three primary setup men in the 27th-29th rounds of the draft.
Elite Prospect – The first prospect eligible player that Adam selected was Colorado catcher Tom Murphy, who was in line to start behind the plate for the Rockies before an unfortunate injury.
His next pair of prospects could be an elite pairing with Willy Adames in the 30th round and Kevin Maitan in the 31st round. Adames is likely to be in AAA in 2017, so he's close, and Maitan is barely 17 years old, so he's likely three or more years away, but both have very high offensive ceilings and should offer a good trade chip if nothing else.
Elysian Fields, owner Benjamin Chase
Roster
C – Mike Zunino, Andrew Susac, Carson Kelly
1B – Brandon Belt, Cody Bellinger, Lucas Duda
2B – Matt Carpenter, Ozzie Albies
3B – Alex Bregman, Hunter Dozier
SS – Jurickson Profar, Freddy Galvis
OF – Starling Marte, Byron Buxton, Adam Jones, Nomar Mazara, Colby Rasmus, Brett Gardner, Kyle Tucker, Alex Verdugo, Juan Soto, Gerardo Parra
P – Clayton Kershaw, Jon Lester, Edwin Diaz, Danny Duffy, Matt Moore, Cam Bedrosian, Garrett Richards, Nate Jones, Carl Edwards, Jose Berrios, Reynaldo Lopez, Mike Foltynewicz, Matt Bush, Anderson Espinoza, Max Fried, Fernando Romero, Joe Kelly, Adrian Morejon
Top choice – In a dynasty, an elite starter is a difficult thing to find, and a guy like Kershaw is one of those guys you have to gobble up when you have the chance.
Of course, the risk when you take a guy like Kershaw is the hitting talent left on the board.
Excellent value – The value came from injuries, but Gerardo Parra in the 38th round could end up a solid value as he plays plenty at first base and outfield while Desmond and Dahl heal up (barring anymore injuries for what seems to be a snake bit Rockies franchise in 2017).
Elite Prospect – The first prospect taken by Ben was Ozzie Albies, though there was plenty of young guys selected ahead of him, just not prospect-eligible.
Ben's Braves prospect knowledge and prospect knowledge certainly weighed in this selection, but seeing Albies return in spring from a broken elbow to flash the solid power he showed last year on top of the elite contact and speed he has could leave a lot of dynasty owners very happy by season's end that they have Albies on their roster
MoneyBallz, owner Ehsan Kassim
Roster
C – J.T. Realmuto, Travis d'Arnaud, Austin Barnes, Bruce Maxwell, Jason Castro
1B – Hanley Ramirez, A.J. Reed, Rhys Hoskins
2B – Roughned Odor, Javier Baez
3B – Kyle Seager, Joey Gallo, Trevor Plouffe, Rio Ruiz
SS – Jonathan Villar, Addison Russell, Franklin Barreto
OF – Bryce Harper, Marcell Ozuna, Yasiel Puig, Jorge Soler, Jason Heyward, Steven Souza, Alex Gordon, Trayce Thompson, Jake Fraley, Kike Hernandez, Tim Tebow
P – Aaron Nola, Jameson Taillon, Carlos Rodon, Adam Conley, Carter Capps, Anthony DeSclafani, Zack Wheeler, Steve Cishek, Koda Glover, Matt Andriese, A.J. Cole, Ty Blach
Top choice – When Ben went for Kershaw, Ehsan was probably very excited to get a chance to grab Bryce Harper right behind him.
Harper has only had one uber-elite player where he was the best fantasy player on the planet, but he's shown to have solid fantasy production in other seasons as well, and he even added in the element of running in 2016 with Dusty Baker managing and using his athleticism to steal 21 bases.
Harper revealed his 2016 was played through injury, so it's quite possible the 24 year old could put up monster power numbers again with a manager that will help him run plenty when he's not trotting.
Excellent value – When he made the pick, Rio Ruiz was really a prospect with solid pedigree and AAA experience, but with the way he's handled himself offensively and defensively this season, Ehsan could have nailed down a starting MLB third baseman in the 40th round.
Elite Prospect – I bet you thought I was going Tebow here…
Ehsan really stayed away from guys eligible for prospect lists until the 25th round and then he picked back to back guys that are very intriguing when paired together.
Franklin Barreto could be up this season for Oakland in the middle infield, and while he'll likely never win a Gold Glove defensively at short, he can still handle the position – or second, or center, or…
Koda Glover is a flame thrower in Washington who has impressed even codgy Dusty Baker this spring, something very rare for a rookie to do. He'll not be the opening day closer, but if he can produce, he'll get a chance if the job opens up.
Marty Bergen's Axe, owner David Hill
Roster
C – Chris Herrmann, Francisco Mejia, James McCann
1B – Tommy Joseph, Ronald Guzman
2B – Starlin Castro, Ian Happ, Nick Franklin, Willie Calhoun
3B – Anthony Rendon, Ryan Healy, Yunel Escobar
SS – Xander Bogaerts, Marcus Semien, Jhonny Peralta
OF – Michael Brantley, David Peralta, Leonys Martin, Andrew Toles, Lazaro Armenteros, Roman Quinn, Alex Dickerson, Luis Alexander Basabe
P – Madison Bumgarner, Stephen Strasburg, Chris Archer, Craig Kimbrel, Wade Davis, Masahiro Tanaka, Dellin Betances, Raisel Iglesias, Kyle Barraclough, Neftali Feliz, Lance Lynn, Josh Hader, Clay Buchholz, Chad Kuhl, Norge Ruiz, Nathan Eovaldi, Shintaro Fujinami
Top choice – MadBum was the second pitcher off the board, and for a dynasty league, he's certainly shown the consistency to be a guy to buy into, and he's coming off of his best season.
Bumgarner is 27 and he's already thrown 6 straight 200+ inning seasons. One of the "benefits" of the Giants not having a long postseason run in 2016 is that Bumgarner avoided his recent extra 20-50 innings that each postseason has brought to his workload.
Excellent value – He's not flashy, he likely won't give you double digit power or speed, but Yunel Escobar is out there nearly every day with a solid batting average and hits near the top of the lineup.
Escobar has a career .283/.351 BA/OBP line, and he offers solid run production. While he's 34, so he doesn't likely have a ton more time, Escobar can offer consistent production in a deep league for a couple more years.
Elite Prospect – David built his team through MLB players until the 22nd round, when he began a run of 5 prospects.
His first two were two guys that could definitely set his team on the right direction if they can max out their high level of talent in catcher Francisco Mejia and lefty Josh Hader. Mejia showed his exceptional contact ability in his 50-game hitting streak last summer while Hader has an elite arm that would be a big asset in the bullpen if he fails as a starter.
Team Haswell, owner Kevin Haswell
Roster
C – Welington Castillo, Jeff Bandy
1B – Edwin Encarnacion, Albert Pujols, Jefry Marte
2B – Dee Gordon, Brett Lawrie
3B – Nolan Arenado, Eduardo Nunez
SS – Didi Gregorius
OF – A.J. Pollock, Nelson Cruz, Carlos Gonzalez, Mark Trumbo, Khris Davis, Yasmany Tomas, Melky Cabrera, Matt Holliday, Jayson Werth, Shin-soo Choo, Delino DeShields, Ben Revere, Billy Burns
P – Rick Porcello, John Lackey, Jerad Eickhoff, Jeff Samardzija, Drew Pomeranz, Dylan Bundy, Gio Gonzalez, Hisashi Iwakuma, Fernando Rodney, Chris Tillman, Junior Guerra, Scott Kazmir, Mike Leake, Joaquin Benoit, Drew Storen, David Phelps, Mike Fiers
Top choice – His WBC struggles notwithstanding, Nolan Arenado is one of the most impressive young players in fantasy.
He has hit 40+ home runs for two seasons now with 130 or more RBI in the past two years as well. All that power, and he'll turn just 26 in mid-April.
Excellent value – With an odd injury to their presumed closer, the Cincinnati Reds have an opening at the back of their bullpen. A 35th round flyer on Drew Storen may yield nothing, but it could yield a closer on a poor team, and frequently closers on bad teams yield a surprising amount of saves.
Elite Prospect – Interestingly, Kevin did not select a single player who is prospect eligible, which means he'll have a number of guys he'll have to adjust for the minor league minimum before opening day. Right now, this area is an incomplete.
Parch Players, owner Michael Parchinsky
Roster
C – Jonathan Lucroy, Matt Wieters
1B – Chris Davis, Kendrys Morales, Chris Carter, C.J. Cron, Rowdy Tellez, Adam Lind, Mark Reynolds, Ryan Zimmerman
2B – Daniel Murphy, Joe Panik
3B – Yangervis Solarte, Adonis Garcia, Wilmer Flores
SS – Ketel Marte
OF – Yoenis Cespedes, Jackie Bradley, Jr., Carlos Gomez, Eric Thames, Howie Kendrick, Nick Markakis, Ben Gamel, Brett Phillips
P – Max Scherzer, Zach Britton, Kyle Hendricks, Alex Colome, Marco Estrada, Addison Reed, Ian Kennedy, Josh Tomlin, Robert Gsellman, Jason Hammel, Steven Brault, Ariel Miranda, Hunter Strickland, Dan Altavilla, Brad Hand, Pedro Baez
Top choice – Max Scherzer was the third pitcher off the board, and many could argue that he could make a strong statement for the top overall value before injury issues popped up with him this spring.
He's reportedly on track to make his first turn in the rotation, and at 32, he's turned into one of the most consistent strikeout artists in the game, tallying 230+ K's for 5 straight seasons.
Excellent value – Michael's going to have some roster maneuvering to do due to a roster rule that requires a minimum amount of players in the minor leagues, but his picking of MLB players frequently allowed him to unearth some late gems.
The guy to keep an eye on is Brad Hand in San Diego. Maurer is no sure thing for the full season, and Hand is a guy who seemed to flip a switch last season, allowing him to become much more dominant, striking out over 30% of hitters he faced.
Elite Prospect – Still eligible for prospect status, Robert Gsellman is one of few prospect-eligible players on the drafted roster. He's possibly not going to end up in the starting rotation in New York, but his added velocity in 2016 along with his excellent breaking pitch could lead to Gsellman being the next big Met starter to push the team into the playoffs.
Team Koonce, owner Justin Koonce
Roster
C – Stephen Vogt, Derek Norris
1B – Wil Myers, Joey Votto, Mike Napoli, Brandon Moss
2B – DJ LeMahieu, Jedd Gyorko, Devon Travis
3B – Jake Lamb
SS – Corey Seager, Brendan Rodgers
OF – Hunter Renfroe, Kevin Pillar, Jarrod Dyson, Mitch Haniger, Jesse Winker, Bradley Zimmer, Corey Ray, Kyle Lewis, Tyler O'Neill, Angel Pagan, Dylan Cozens, Paulo Orlando
P – Kenley Jansen, Roberto Osuna, Andrew Miller, Cole Hamels, Kenta Maeda, Kevin Gausman, Drew Smyly, Daniel Norris, Jose De Leon, Tyler Thornburg, Tyler Anderson, Jeff Hoffman, Brad Ziegler, A.J. Puk, Ricky Nolasco, Chad Green
Top choice – At the 11th overall selection, you can't do much better than a shortstop with family pedigree in the game, elite production in his rookie season, and just 22 years old on opening day.
Corey Seager is a guy who should profile as a 30 home run hitter with a solid average at his best, and he showed better at short than many figured he would, showing he could stay there for at least the reasonable future.
Excellent value – With his job location up in the air at the time, Derek Norris slipped to the 39th round in this draft, and now that he'll likely have a job until Ramos returns from injury, it looks like a wise pick in the 39th round.
Elite Prospect – In the 12th round, Justin selected Hunter Renfroe, who will be taking over in San Diego in the outfield this season.
Renfroe has the traditional right field profile with big power and a big arm, though his walk rate is low enough to be concerning about how successful he'll be right away at the major league level.
He is a guy who could hit 20+ home runs in his rookie season.
New Team 3, owner Jason Evans
Roster
C – Willson Contreras, Zack Collins
1B – Freddie Freeman, Casey Gillaspie, Luis Valbuena
2B – Jonathan Schoop, Jorge Mateo
3B – Nick Castellanos, Jose Reyes, Travis Shaw, Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., Brock Holt
SS – Carlos Correa, Amed Rosario
OF – Kyle Schwarber, Stephen Piscotty, Adam Duvall, Aaron Judge, Josh Reddick, Curtis Granderson, Matt Joyce, Derek Fisher, Bubba Starling
P – Yu Darvish, Jacob deGrom, Jeurys Familia, Kelvin Herrera, A.J. Ramos, Tyler Glasnow, Joe Ross, Hector Neris, Shohei Otani, Zach Davies, Brandon Finnegan, Tyler Chatwood, Mauricio Cabrera, Seth Lugo, James Kaprielian, Zack Burdi, Triston McKenzie
Top choice – Jason went with Carlos Correa, and that's hard to argue with at 12th overall in a dynasty draft, though there were some concerns with his 2016 that he may be a bit less than the superstar fantasy player folks were projecting him as.
Correa's most interesting discussion will be whether he should remain at short or move to third, as he did for Puerto Rico.
Excellent value – In the very last round, Jason snagged corner infielder Luis Valbuena. While Valbuena is hurt to open the season, he's the type of guy that is criminally underrated and very valuable in a deep league like this for the power he offers, especially with the injury concerns of Albert Pujols.
Elite Prospect – Jason picked Tyler Glasnow, and then he started a new discussion in the league when he selected Shohei Otani of Japan with his 17th round selection.
The world truly missed out when Otani was not cleared to play in the World Baseball Classic this spring, but it seems a matter of when, not if, Otani will come to the major leagues, and his selection led to a vote of the league as to whether to allow drafting of unsigned players in the offseason draft each year.
Backdoor Sliders, owner Matt Weyrich
Roster
C – Russell Martin, Sandy Leon
1B – Paul Goldschmidt, Adrian Gonzalez, Yuli Gurriel
2B – Jean Segura
3B – Jung Ho Kang, Nick Senzel, Pablo Sandoval
SS – Troy Tulowitzki, Asdrubal Cabrera, Danny Espinosa
OF – Charlie Blackmon, Billy Hamilton, Dexter Fowler, Domingo Santana, Victor Robles, Mickey Moniak, Cameron Maybin, Joshua Palacios, Lonnie Chisenhall, Andrew Stevenson
P – Justin Verlander, Jose Quintana, Mark Melancon, Tanner Roark, Steven Matz, Shawn Kelley, Michael Kopech, Steven Wright, Jason Groome, Ervin Santana, Jeremy Jeffress, Mitch Keller, Erick Fedde, Sean Doolittle, Edinson Volquez, Matt Manning, Felipe Rivero, R.A. Dickey
Top choice – Matt's first selection was Goldschmidt at #13. Goldy is one of fantasy's best assets, even if Jim Leyland doesn't think so!
Goldschmidt is a guy who provides good average, top-shelf power, double-digit steals, and he has an excellent walk rate, allowing him to tally plenty of runs. If he can just get his team to get on base in front of him, he could also load up on RBI.
Excellent value – In the 39th round, the Backdoor Sliders may have found a steal in Felipe Rivero. While most teams are not fans of lefty closers, Rivero is on one team that already has a lefty shutting things down in Tony Watson, and Rivero could have a very good opportunity to take over the closer job if anything were to happen to Watson. In the meantime, his wicked stuff should allow for very good stats.
Elite Prospect – Technically, the first "prospect" drafted by Matt was Yuli Gurriel, though he's really a prospect only by technicality.
From rounds 18-24, Matt secured 3 of the elite 2016 draft picks along with two other top 25 prospects when he selected Kopech, Robles, Moniak, Groome, and Senzel.
Team Schmid, owner Andrew Schmid
Roster
C – Salvador Perez, Yan Gomes
1B – Anthony Rizzo, Brad Miller, Kennys Vargas
2B – Josh Harrison, Derek Dietrich
3B – Eugenio Suarez
SS – Elvis Andrus, Jorge Polanco, Jose Iglesias
OF – Odubel Herrera, Gregory Polanco, Kole Calhoun, Kevin Kiermaier, Jay Bruce, Travis Jankowski, Austin Meadows, Hyun Soo Kim, Scott Schebler, Avisail Garcia
P – Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Aroldis Chapman, Cody Allen, Danny Salazar, James Paxton, Michael Pineda, Tyler Skaggs, Alex Wood, Archie Bradley, Yohander Mendez, Wei-Yin Chen, Grant Dayton, David Paulino, Corey Knebel, Jonathan Holder, Matt Boyd, James Shields
Top choice – There are a number of elite first basemen out there, but only one got a World Series ring last season, and that's Rizzo.
Rizzo has been consistently productive for fantasy owners over the last three years, and he's just 27 years old. Over the last three years, he's averaged a .285/.386/.527 slash line with 92 runs, 32 home runs, 96 RBI, and even 8 stolen bases.
Excellent value – With injuries catching multiple players this spring, the Tigers could choose to sell off veterans early in the season, and if he doesn't win a job out of spring, then Matt Boyd certainly would have a starting role once the veterans are moved as he'll likely be the default "fill-in" starter in AAA if he isn't in the opening day rotation. Solid pick in the 39th round.
Elite Prospect – It was the 25th round before Andrew selected his first prospect-eligible player, but he went big with his first one, selecting outfielder Austin Meadows.
While the Pirates were attempting to move McCutchen this offseason, they were repeatedly not willing to include Meadows in discussions for a starting pitcher when they talked trade with the Rays and White Sox.
Meadows very well may have a similar offensive upside to what McCutchen has produced.
Team Fustor, owner Nick Fustor
Roster
C – Yasmani Grandal, Jorge Alfaro, Blake Swihart, Tyler Flowers
1B – Eric Hosmer, Justin Bour, Trey Mancini, Sam Travis, D.J. Peterson
2B – Trea Turner, Dustin Pedroia, Raul Mondesi, Sean Rodriguez
3B – Josh Donaldson, Miguel Sano
SS – Aledmys Diaz, Adeiny Hechavarria
OF – Christian Yelich, Andrew McCutchen, Hunter Pence, Tyler Naquin, Carlos Beltran, Brandon Nimmo, Rymer Liriano
P – David Price, Dallas Keuchel, David Robertson, Jake Odorizzi, Taijuan Walker, Trevor Bauer, Lucas Giolito, Huston Street, Collin McHugh, Matt Wisler, Brett Cecil, Alex Meyer, Aaron Blair, Jimmy Nelson, J.T. Chargois
Top choice – To secure a talent like Josh Donaldson with the 15th overall selection is sweet, but then to pair him on the turn around with Trea Turner is a very nice 1-2 punch to start a dynasty team with, providing plenty of power and speed to a dynasty lineup for what should be a long time.
Excellent value – Jimmy Nelson has been a guy whose career has been up and down, but his curve has always been one that is tough to square. If he could simply step up his control, he could take the next step as a starter, and that's a good gamble with a 38th pick.
Elite Prospect – The first prospect drafted by Nick was a guy who has had a bit of a rough road lately in Chicago White Sox prospect Lucas Giolito.
Giolito was rated as highly as a top 5 overall prospect last offseason by some sources, and he was certainly considered among the top 5 pitching prospects in the game.
Something was off in his time with Washington, but he's with a well-reputed pitching coach that could truly get the most out of his elite arm.
San Mateo Padres, owner Simon Rose
Roster
C – Brian McCann, Christian Bethancourt, Chance Sisco, Tucker Barnhart
1B – Joe Mauer, Danny Valencia
2B – Yoan Moncada, Cesar Hernandez, Tyler Saladino
3B – Martin Prado, Jeimer Candelario
SS – Dansby Swanson, Tim Anderson, J.P. Crawford, Drew Jackson
OF – Adam Eaton, Jose Bautista, Charlie Tilson, Lewis Brinson, Eloy Jimenez, Eddie Rosario, Adam Frazier, Dalton Pompey, Chris Young, Jon Jay
P – Noah Syndergaard, Chris Sale, Aaron Sanchez, Carlos Martinez, Seung Hwan Oh, Sam Dyson, Marcus Stroman, Jharel Cotton, Alex Cobb, Dan Straily, Chase De Jong, Riley Pint, Kevin Siegrist, Blake Treinen, Brady Aiken
Top choice – Because he was at the turn, I'll pair Simon's first two picks into one as he went with Syndergaard and Sale as his first two picks, locking down a very solid 1-2 for his rotation.
In dynasty, an elite starter is a rarity, so to secure two could be a huge leg up for Simon, especially as the rest of his team tends to lean fairly young, especially on offense.
Excellent value – The Nationals haven't named a closer yet, but they're also not likely to be locked into the guy they name, meaning Blake Treinen could nab some saves at times throughout the season. Pretty solid for a 35th round selection.
Elite Prospect – Simon decided to "go big or go home" with his youth on his team, getting three of the top 6 prospects in all of baseball according to the Call To The Pen top 125 list from January.
He nabbed Dansby Swanson and Yoan Moncada in the 4th and 5th round and then Eloy Jimenez in the 26th round. While only Swanson will open the season in the majors, within 3-4 years, he could have quite a core of hitters there.
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