Dork Christmas is over, and now we get to tear through our rosters to figure out how much heartburn we are in for this year. Some of us came out much better than others, and some of us will have to live with paying $17 for Ichiro in a league that doesn't count runs. Andrew and i aren't overly excited about our rosters, but we definitely feel like we are in a good position to win the league. Wow, I can't believe I just said that and I have Rich Harden on my team... maybe I had more to drink that I thought.
We won't bore you with every pick, since the draft took about 6 hours, but we are set on going over our best/worst picks. Much like Matthew Berry's annual Love/Hate list it isn't about a pick being bad in general, its about the value paid. Lets take Jacoby Ellsbury (Optimator Man Crush) for $22, this is a repeat of the Ichiro situation mentioned earlier. Of all of the powerless OF who steal 30+ bases Ellsbury is definitely the best, but spending a whopping $22 for a .300 hitter who will steal between 50-70 bases (and do nothing else) isn't the greatest idea. The reverse is true for best picks, like $10 for Cole Hamels. He isn't the greatest pitcher out there, but for $10 he could be a serious steal (and was) and propel your team to the top. We broke down our picks for worst/best into the top three in no particular order, but some of the worst are significantly more putrid than others.
Worst : Hold your nose, these guys are going to drop a deuce on your fantasy season.
OF Nyjer Morgan (WAS) - $4. The only thing worse than spending $22 on a .300 hitter who steals 50-70 bases is spending money on a guy who does almost nothing at the plate (3-39 .307). Morgan's owners are basically paying $1 per 10 steals, and that is about all you can expect from him.
OF Vernon Wells (TOR) - $1. This is easy, paying anything for Wells is a huge mistake. Wells hasn't had a decent season since 2006 (32-106 .303), but he continues ripping off fantasy owners (not to mention the Blue jays) year after year.
2B Rickie Weeks (MIL) - $9. Hands down worst pick of the draft. I believe Brandon Phillips was available at this point, but someone elected Weeks and people bid on him! This is an indefensible move, at least Morgan showed some signs of life (Hit .351 once traded from Pirates to Nationals) and Wells is a professional con artist, but Weeks is just flat out horrible. Weeks is a career .247 hitter and his "best" season was 2008 (14-46 .234) which featured a seductive 66BB and 19SB. Bottom of the league here we come!
Thankfully Andrew and I didn't land any of the worst guys, but we didn't escape personal worsts. Andrew took on P Jason Frasor (TOR) for $1 hoping he turns into a solid closer, and due to the complex rules of our league I couldn't get Buster Posey for $1 and went with C Rod Barajas (NYM).
Pray you don't see one of these faces on your roster.
Best : These are the "How did he get X for that much?!" guys, you feel stupid for passing on them.
3B Chipper Jones (ATL) - $3. Jones is a career .300 hitter coming off a .264 stink bomb in 2009. He isn't the Chipper of old, but he should hit 20HR (only once since 1993 has he hit less than 20, and it was last year), and he was one of only five players to walk more than 100 times in 2009.
OF Ryan Ludwick (STL) - $3. 20HR and 90-100 RBI for $3?! This pick also doubles as Andrew's personal best.
1B Billy Butler (KC) - $1. Butler could turn out to be the steal of the draft, and I'm thankful he is on my team. How a guy who hammered out a 21-93 .301 last year fell through the cracks is beyond me, did I mention he is only 23? If Butler puts up a 30-100 .300 I may need to make room for a new Man Crush. This pick made up for losing Brad Hawpe to Andrew for $7.
A total of $7 for these guys?! Weeks went for $9, just think about that...
At first glance it looks like three teams in our league will be in the best position to win, but if the past is any indication all hell should break loose. I'm just happy I didn't spend all my money on pitchers that will spend most of the season on the DL with ailments I didn't know existed.
We won't bore you with every pick, since the draft took about 6 hours, but we are set on going over our best/worst picks. Much like Matthew Berry's annual Love/Hate list it isn't about a pick being bad in general, its about the value paid. Lets take Jacoby Ellsbury (Optimator Man Crush) for $22, this is a repeat of the Ichiro situation mentioned earlier. Of all of the powerless OF who steal 30+ bases Ellsbury is definitely the best, but spending a whopping $22 for a .300 hitter who will steal between 50-70 bases (and do nothing else) isn't the greatest idea. The reverse is true for best picks, like $10 for Cole Hamels. He isn't the greatest pitcher out there, but for $10 he could be a serious steal (and was) and propel your team to the top. We broke down our picks for worst/best into the top three in no particular order, but some of the worst are significantly more putrid than others.
Worst : Hold your nose, these guys are going to drop a deuce on your fantasy season.
OF Nyjer Morgan (WAS) - $4. The only thing worse than spending $22 on a .300 hitter who steals 50-70 bases is spending money on a guy who does almost nothing at the plate (3-39 .307). Morgan's owners are basically paying $1 per 10 steals, and that is about all you can expect from him.
OF Vernon Wells (TOR) - $1. This is easy, paying anything for Wells is a huge mistake. Wells hasn't had a decent season since 2006 (32-106 .303), but he continues ripping off fantasy owners (not to mention the Blue jays) year after year.
2B Rickie Weeks (MIL) - $9. Hands down worst pick of the draft. I believe Brandon Phillips was available at this point, but someone elected Weeks and people bid on him! This is an indefensible move, at least Morgan showed some signs of life (Hit .351 once traded from Pirates to Nationals) and Wells is a professional con artist, but Weeks is just flat out horrible. Weeks is a career .247 hitter and his "best" season was 2008 (14-46 .234) which featured a seductive 66BB and 19SB. Bottom of the league here we come!
Thankfully Andrew and I didn't land any of the worst guys, but we didn't escape personal worsts. Andrew took on P Jason Frasor (TOR) for $1 hoping he turns into a solid closer, and due to the complex rules of our league I couldn't get Buster Posey for $1 and went with C Rod Barajas (NYM).
Pray you don't see one of these faces on your roster.Best : These are the "How did he get X for that much?!" guys, you feel stupid for passing on them.
3B Chipper Jones (ATL) - $3. Jones is a career .300 hitter coming off a .264 stink bomb in 2009. He isn't the Chipper of old, but he should hit 20HR (only once since 1993 has he hit less than 20, and it was last year), and he was one of only five players to walk more than 100 times in 2009.
OF Ryan Ludwick (STL) - $3. 20HR and 90-100 RBI for $3?! This pick also doubles as Andrew's personal best.
1B Billy Butler (KC) - $1. Butler could turn out to be the steal of the draft, and I'm thankful he is on my team. How a guy who hammered out a 21-93 .301 last year fell through the cracks is beyond me, did I mention he is only 23? If Butler puts up a 30-100 .300 I may need to make room for a new Man Crush. This pick made up for losing Brad Hawpe to Andrew for $7.
A total of $7 for these guys?! Weeks went for $9, just think about that...At first glance it looks like three teams in our league will be in the best position to win, but if the past is any indication all hell should break loose. I'm just happy I didn't spend all my money on pitchers that will spend most of the season on the DL with ailments I didn't know existed.
