For this week’s article, I’m going to break down Tuesday’s mock draft in Howard Bender’s Mock Draft Army, hosted by RealTime Fantasy Sports. The draft took place at 8:00pm EST and featured fellas like Howard Bender, Ron Rigney and myself. It was a 10-team 5x5 roto league. Here is my thought process on my picks and what the player can provide this season.
For a link to the entire draft board, check it out here: https://www.rtsports.com/baseball/draft-board.php?LID=519883&UID=fantasybaseball.
Pick 1.2: Jose Altuve
Rare five-category contributor and the reigning MVP. Yes please. After Mike Trout went off the board, this was a no-brainer.
Pick 2.9: Aaron Judge
The runner-up MVP at 19th overall? YES PLEASE! Following up Altuve with 50+ home run potential from Judge is a hell of a way to start a draft. Judge’s shoulder shouldn’t be a concern following offseason surgery, making him an easy selection at this spot.
Pick 3.2: Jose Ramirez
After hitting 11 homers, stealing 22 bases and hitting for .312 in 2016, Ramirez silenced his doubters by hitting 29 long balls, swiping 17 bags and hitting .318 last season. Will he hit 29 homers again? Probably not, but multi-positional eligibility with a likely 20/20 campaign and a batting average comfortably in the .300s is something I couldn’t pass up. I continued to bulk up my batting average, without giving up other offensive categories.
Pick 4.9: Carlos Carrasco
Back-to-back Indians for me and seeing as Carrasco is my pick to win the AL Cy Young this season, it’s a no-brainer that I grab my ace here at the end of the fourth round. I was debating between him and Yu Darvish, but Carrasco is higher on my board. Barring injury, he’s good for 200+ innings with potential for close to 240 strikeouts. Fantasy ace.
Pick 5.2: Kenley Jansen
I assured myself of a top flight closer by selecting Jansen at the beginning of the fifth round. The Dodgers will be a top squad once again, offering up plenty of save opportunities for the 30-year-old. Lock Jansen in for 40+ saves with over 100 strikeouts for the third straight season. I’d rather be at the front of the closer run than the back-end.
Pick 6.9: Alex Bregman
Bregman was a coveted prospect and a valuable fantasy asset in 2016. In his 24-year-old season, he could join the 25/25 club with a batting average right around last year’s .284 mark. The potential with Bregman is sky-high and hitting in a potent lineup once again will keep his counting stats at respectable marks.
Pick 7.2: Zack Greinke
After passing on Yu Darvish as my second starter for Jansen, Greinke is one heck of a consolation price. The humidor in Arizona should help Greinke who is coming off a season in which he won 17 games, posted a 3.20 ERA with a 9.6 K/9 (up two full batters from 2016) and a 2.0 BB/9. The veteran right-hander has a proven track record and is a very reliable SP2.
Pick 8.9: Lorenzo Cain
Cain is going to have an excellent year in his first season in Milwaukee. A .300 batting average with a home run total in the mid-to-upper teens and 20+ stolen bases? I’ll definitely take that here at the end of the 8th round. I’m comfortable with him as my second outfielder.
Pick 9.2: Wil Myers
Myers is 27-years-old, which means he is entering the proverbial “prime” years of a player’s career, but rather than expecting a monster breakout, it’s more likely that we know exactly what we are getting with Myers. His batting average dropped last year due to increased strikeouts, but he’s a threat for his second 25/25 season in the past three years. Some more production from other guys in the lineup should help his counting stats as well, seeing as he scored just 80 runs and drove in 74 last season.
Pick 10.9: Andrew McCutchen
McCutchen won’t replicate his 2017 home run total in his new home park, but he’ll have better protection in the lineup than he did last year, with Starling Marte out for a good chunk of the season and an ineffective Gregory Polanco. At this point, the value was fair and I needed another outfielder, so might as well select the former Pirate. He’ll hit around .270 with roughly 22 home runs, 85 RBI and 10 stolen bases.
Pick 11.2: Jose Berrios
After a brutal showing in 2016, Berrios flashed ace-like potential in 2017. His K/9 (8.6) and BB/9 (3.0) should continue to improve in the right directions and his 1.23 WHIP last season shows that he can limit base runners on any given start. As my SP3, I’m very comfortable with what Berrios can provide in 2018. He will be a fantasy ace at some point, and could happen as soon as 2018.
Pick 12.9: Luis Castillo
Castillo has the potential to maintain a strikeout per inning over the course of a season, despite not being the most prolific strikeout pitcher through his time in the minors. With more advanced scouting report, he’ll hit some struggles, but a 3.12 ERA in 89.1 innings with the Reds and a 9.87 K/9 is enough for me to pull the trigger on him as my SP4. There is some volatility here, especially since he pitches in a hitter-friendly park, but the potential for a back-end SP2 is tantalizing here at the end of the twelfth.
Pick 13.2: Raisel Iglesias
Eight rounds after drafting my first closer, Iglesias was too good to pass up here. He notched 28 saves and struck out 92 batters in 76 innings of work. Iglesias could end the year as a top-5 closer and even if the Reds don’t give him a ton of opportunities, he will greatly improve my pitching ratios.
Pick 14.9: Matt Olson
Olson smacked 24 homers in 59 games last season and his stats extrapolated to a full 162-game season would see him mash 56 home runs. Will he reach that mark? No, he won’t, but 40+ home run power at the conclusion of the 14th round was something that could not be overlooked. The Athletics will rely on Olson to deliver the goods and despite unfavorable hitting conditions in Oakland, his power is legit.
Pick 15.2: Matt Carpenter
Carpenter is a career .277 hitter, but his mark alst season plummeted to .241. However, he walked over 100 times and maintained a sky-high OBP (.384). The supporting cast in St. Louis has improved, which will help Carpenter’s counting stats. He should hit around 20 home runs with 80 RBI and a batting average around .270. Love the value here.
Rounds 16-20: Trey Mancini, Jameson Taillon, Javier Baez, Hector Neris, Delino DeShields
Mancini will offer some power and batting average assistance, while Baez can do a little bit of everything for the squad. DeShields is one of my favorite cheap guys and he’ll likely compete for the team lead in stolen bases. On the mound, Neris is an undervalued closer who is in a very good spot for a better-than-advertised Philadelphia Phillies team. Taillon is a steal at this point in the draft because bad luck and unforeseen circumstances resulted in a derailed 2017 season. With some better luck and health, he could prove to be a SP3 by seasons end.
Rounds 21-25: Jose Martinez, Mike Clevinger, Chris Iannetta, Brent Honeywell, Lewis Brinson
These rounds could perhaps be the turning point as to how good this team really could be. Martinez can certainly hit for average, and even showcases some nice pop last season, hitting 14 home runs in 106 games. Clevinger is my favorite starting pitcher that likely won’t break camp in the rotation for some reason. Even so, he’ll improve your team’s ratios, but it’s only a matter of time until he’s in the rotation. Iannetta is my first catcher, which is scary, but half your games in Coors is something I can certainly get behind. Honeywell is my prospect pitcher to watch this season and he should have been called up last season, but the team held off. In 416 innings in his minor league career, he has a career 2.88 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 9.9 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9. Sign me up. Brinson will be an everyday outfielder in Miami and has the potential to develop into a 20/20 player in the big leagues. It likely won’t happen this season, but in the 25th round, I’ll take a chance on upside.
Rounds 26-28: Seung Hwan Oh, Jorge Alfaro, Yoshihisa Hirano
Catchers and closers, oh my! Alfaro rounds out my two catchers with some upside, while Oh and Hirano could be closing ball games for their teams. I’ll take that at this point of the draft. Oh struggled last year, but was a beast the year before, while Hirano has a career 3.10 ERA and 8.2 K/9 in 11 seasons in Japan.