Our Final Rosters

When we last left off, our draft had just completed the 10th round. Rather than going over each round through No. 30, we’ll now examine the final rosters of both our teams. Here is the breakdown:

Dalton’s Squad

C- Brian McCann
1B- Albert Pujols
2B- Jeff Kent
3B- Eric Chavez
SS- Hanley Ramirez
CI- Edwin Encarnacion
MI- Ryan Freel
OF- Delmon Young
OF- Nick Markakis
OF- Chris Young
OF- Brian Giles
OF- Chris Duncan
Util- Brad Wilkerson

Bench – Jose Guillen, Wily Mo Pena, Mike Sweeney, Khalil Greene, Kelly Johnson, Kevin Kouzmanoff

SP- Jake Peavy
SP- Ben Sheets
SP- Felix Hernandez
SP- Brett Myers
SP- John Patterson
SP- Greg Maddux
SP- Tim Hudson
SP- Anthony Reyes
SP- Zach Duke
RP- Salomon Torres
RP- Jesse Crain

Comments: I like my infield better than Robby’s, but his outfield has a sizeable advantage over mine. I went SP heavy, and he’s strong in the RP department. It’s safe to say we had differing strategies. I didn’t set out to punt the saves category, but every time I almost chose a closer I decided better value lied with someone else. Since two other teams in this league currently have no closers on their roster, my plan is to have Torres solidify me the three points, and then I’ll eventually look to deal him. Working the waiver wire is another possibility. I’ve won this league two out of the last three years with a similar strategy, so we’ll see if it works again.

As for starters, I like my pitching. Drafting 3-5 middle relievers is a great way to “steal” numbers that can equal that of a top-10 starter, but it will be tough for those owners that didn’t load up on SPs to contend in the Win and K cats. Remember, it’s an 1800 innings cap with 30 man rosters, so it will be more difficult to utilize the spot start strategy since the pickings will be more slim on the waiver wire than in a league with a 1250 innings cap.

Using my philosophy on position scarcity, I filled out SP, 1B, C and MI early, while waiting on 3B, CI and OF. In the end, I’m happy with how that worked, especially with the third base combo of Chavez and Encarnacion (and even Kouzmanoff), all of whom I selected after the tenth round had passed. As for my outfield situation, it’s admittedly the part of my team with the most question marks. Although unproven, I was happy filling it out late with young guys with upside. Knowing when to draft specific positions based on how your draft is unfolding might be the single biggest x-factor in winning and losing your league.

Also, when it comes to filling out your bench, I like drafting guys such as Wily Mo Pena over someone like Luis Gonzalez who is guaranteed a starting spot. Even when not factoring in the ability to spot start him in this specific daily format, he’s one injury away (from Manny Ramirez, Coco Crisp, JD Drew or David Ortiz) from becoming a fantasy force. He has 40-homer pop right now and plays in the park and lineup to be a top-25 outfielder if given the at-bats.

In the end, we’ll see if my team can withstand the hit I’ll take in saves, if my pitching can remain somewhat healthy (a big if) and if my young outfield can come through.

Robby’s Squad

C- Paul Lo Duca
1B- Prince Fielder
2B- Chris Burke
3B- Alex Gordon
SS- Rafael Furcal
CI- Akinori Iwamura
MI- Bill Hall
OF- Alfonso Soriano
OF- Manny Ramirez
OF- Matt Holliday
OF- Coco Crisp
OF- Kenny Lofton
Util- Freddy Sanchez

Bench – Garret Anderson, Nelson Cruz, Andy Marte, Johnny Estrada, Josh Hamilton

SP- John Smoltz
SP- Chris Young
SP- Ted Lilly
SP- Freddy Garcia
RP- Mariano Rivera
RP- Trevor Hoffman
RP- Chris Ray
RP- Francisco Cordero
RP- Scott Linebrink
RP- Pat Neshek
RP- Dennys Reyes
RP- Cla Meredith

Comments: While we all know the old adage about excuses (everyone has one and they stink), I was without internet and drunk for the last half of our draft and found myself missing out on a few guys that I may have otherwise drafted. Overall grade: B+

Guys like Bill Hall, Coco Crisp and Freddy Sanchez fell so far that they eventually became “sleepers,” at least in my opinion. On the other end of the spectrum, Alex “The Hammer” Gordon stuck around long enough for me to buy into the hype. I’m hoping to get two good starters out of Marte, Cruz, Lofton, Hamilton and Iwamura.

After grabbing two aces (Chris Young is no joke, I don’t care what anyone says), I grabbed a couple starters who should hopefully benefit from the Bronson Arroyo effect. I grabbed a number of top closers who I thought were undervalued and bolstered my pen with a handful of top middle relievers at the end of the draft. I’m hoping to get 800 innings out of my four starters and an additional 500 innings from relievers, leaving a somewhat imposing 500 innings for spot starters. Hopefully I can pick up another starter or two over the course of the season.


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8 responses to “Our Final Rosters”

  1.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    What is this nonsense. I wanted some more praise on my picks.

  2. Jason Avatar

    Who the heck do you guys play with? Seriously? Dalton, assuming no one gets hurt, you may not need to make any moves, if at all, to finish in the $. I can’t believe you got a roster like that. Unheard of.

  3. Jeremy Avatar
    Jeremy

    I love the closer strategy and use it myself. I do think you’re gonna be chasing 2b all year, which is fine, Uggla, Brandon Phillips, and even Mike Lowell were all picked off of waivers there last year.

  4. Jeremy Avatar
    Jeremy

    Not sure why you’re going with 2 catchers though, unless the waiver wire is that barren. I’d rather have Homer Bailey or Tim Lincecum or Chad Orvella, unless you intend to spot start them early in the year, but I usually end up punting those missed catcher games for more upside elsewhere….

  5. RotoScoop Avatar
    RotoScoop

    Jason – haha, thanks. I hope you’re right. My pitchers are a bit worrisome in the injury department tho.

    Jeremy – I believe Robby has 2 catchers on his roster purely for one reason – the Mets play opening night on Sunday April 2nd. Every extra AB counts! Good call on your young upside guys – Lincecum and Orvella were drafted in this league, but Bailey is out there…

  6. Jeremy Avatar
    Jeremy

    gotcha (boy that sounds like a smart league). I’d be interested to see who he picks up once the season gets going. Good luck

  7. Antonio Avatar

    I’ve been playing with the demo and am very isrtteneing in purchasing the full version, but was wondering about if I’m able to create a copy of the existing player file and update it and use it as the default? I’ve been playing around with this and I’ve moved LeBron and Bosh to Miami and when I start the game, it still states they are on Cleveland and Toronto, respectively. Will this be something I will be able to do if I were to purchase the full version? As well as the freezing of the game during simulation using Windows 7; will this stop with the purchase of the full version?Also, will the divisions be broken up into 6 instead of 4 in the full version? And is there a way to slow down the simulation, slower than what’s available in the demo, if the full version if purchased?

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