Friday, March 7, 2008

Middle Earth Draft Analysis - Round 1

I've decided, for nobody's benefit, that I'll be offering a round-by-round commentary of the pre-draft in our baseball keeper league. Some background information for those of you not in the league:
  • The league contains twelve teams, each of which has the option of keeping up to 8 players from the previous season. There are no limitations on which players can be kept.
  • If an owner chooses to keep fewer than 8 players, they receive a supplemental pick after every round, starting at the first, for each empty keeper spot.
  • The league uses standard 5x5 rotisserie rules (runs, HR, RBI, SB, batting average, wins, saves, K, ERA, WHIP).
  • You can view the keeper lists here, but I won't be going over them.
  • My team is Riders of Rohan. I'll be making comments on my picks along with other highlights.
Alright, here we go, the results from round 1:

Round 1
1. Mercer AutoWreckers - Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Padres
2. The Usual Suspects (from Vandelay Industries) - Francisco Liriano, SP, Twins
3. Dunedain Rangers - Ryan Zimmerman, 3B, Nationals
4. Those Guys - Javier Vazquez, SP, White Sox
5. Riders of Rohan (from The Usual Suspects) - Delmon Young, OF, Twins
6. Howard's Heroes - Gary Sheffield, OF, Tigers
7. Cleveland Enforcers - Chad Billingsley, SP, Dodgers
8. DamKnights - Adrian Beltre, 3B, Mariners
9. Feisty Mosquitos - Takashi Saito, RP, Dodgers
10. Akron Pronks - James Shields, SP, Rays
11. Stewies SexyParties - Jason Bay, OF, Pirates
12. The Usual Suspects (from Riders of Rohan) - Rickie Weeks, 2B, Brewers

Supplemental Round 1
A. Vandelay Industries - Fausto Carmona, SP, Indians
B. Dunedain Rangers - Howie Kendrick, 2B, Angels
C. Cleveland Enforcers - A.J. Burnett, SP, Blue Jays

Best Pick(s) - Gonzalez was a no-brainer #1 overall, he's good and young, and has already proven himself to be a consistent power hitter. Beltre may end up as the most valuable player taken in the first round.

Worst Pick(s) - Sheffield is a puzzling pick in the first round of a keeper league draft, with so much young talent still available. Liriano is exciting, but is awfully risky.

Riders' Pick(s) - I traded up to get Delmon Young, and in retrospect I believe I paid too high a price. Still, his upside is enticing, and even if he only matches last year's statistics, he'll be a solid producer.

Overall Analysis - Listen, with plenty of time to pick and a thick pool of talented players to choose from, it's tough to make a mistake in the first round of a draft, even when it's after eight rounds worth of players have been removed from the draft pool. Even the "worst picks" have merit, and could turn out plenty good. Will the second round offer the same results? Stay tuned.

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