[NoOne]

you need to change your perception on things a bit.

edit: using war as a simplistic way to describe something, sure, but don't use it like the post above in such a causal way. it's not accurate enough of a measure to use on its own (or at all, imo). especially the defensive stuff. until it's not dependent on human perceptions. it should be all about quantitative measurements-- reaction time, best path to ball etc. these things aren't subjective and don't change much once they are averaged out with a suitable sample (until age sets in). there's no way they are evaluating it properly. it's too inconsistent about something that shouldn't be if looking at it correctly.

defensive zone rating -- balls they "should" get to.. good luck with that being consistent unless 1 person does it all each day. what a silly way to approach it. *ootp may be different animal than RL, i do use the ZR to evaluate in OOTP, unlike above with war.. that's still weighted poorly, lol. and the whole premise... war is great when choosing a bench player and mil hopes and prayer fillers etc... nothing else.

think of offense and defense as mutually exclusive... you have to field 8 defensive positions, it doesn't matter who hits the home runs or who the speedy guys are if it is an elite offense. the more maleable you are, the more opportunities you allow yourself to field the best team.

now, some positions are more difficult to find various offensive qualities than others. you should understand that a bit. the more demanding a position is, the less likely to find high-quality offense. but, when you find someone that is unusual that is nothing but a good thing when it is power at an unusual position, but not required or something you should overspend on for moderate offensive ability at a tougher position. again, mutually exclusive concepts.. don't pay a SS that hits 15hr/season 30m a year, unless he's also batting 400 with 60+ 2b and 100+RS 120+ rbi etc... basically, superman in uniform.

examples based on your questions and you can extrapolate other stuff:

So, while a 1B with speed and no power can be a great leadoff guy, maybe even the best in the league, but it reduces ability to find good power hitters that fit a position you have available. speed and power, but not leading off? sure... speed is always good to have, but you don't waste a hr hitter batting leadoff unless you have 9 hr-hitters in your lineup.

because it is much easier to find power at 1B than other positions, it would take a rare context where that is a good start to building a team. if it's the last piece and it fits, that's awesome and will work fine. i'd make an exit plan based on age of players that make it work, though.

Catcher is an unusual position. he will be missing 75% of the time from your lineup during a regular season, but will be there every game in the playoffs due to days off. So, it will hurt your W-L record depending on a C to be your 3-4-5 hitter (or even 2nd, etc and reduced effect at all other spots excet 8/9 depending on your dh rule).

you take what you get, though. especially in the draft. there would be rare contexts where you'd spend big money on a C FA that's likely upper 20's or even early 30s. it's just not smart outside of a 1-year-at-a-time outlook.

it's far better to get a defensive stalwart at SS/C for cheap and buy signifiantly better bats at other positions while paying far less per RS. it's more efficient in most cases. when the math dictates otherwise, then you do differently in those more rare contexts - like babe ruth at SS.

the most expensive players in the league will roughly cost the same -- some greedy than others and those sorts of factors ignored for a moment. they better be elite offensive forces if you are spending top-dollar. do not pay for names. don't pay for speed or defense at top dollar, unless it also comes with an elite bat.

---- your lineup is a matter of ~5 years worth of chioces. the more options you give yourself moving forward, the more likely you can maintain a high quality team.

you need to collect as many competent power hitters as possible. after that you need at least 1 good leadoff type. These are guys that you keep around and in the right circumstances extend into their early 30s.

it's more difficult to play musical chairs with this "core" of your team, so age is typically the cause of turnover, and you need to work within that time constraint - no bad long-term contracts that you can't get rid of before they are an albatross.

the more flexibility with positions, the better. Also, when they fill a tougher spot liek CF and SS it gives you greater flexibility in acquiring more high-quality offensive players that fit a fielding position you need. But, don't overspend at those positions for a relatively good hitting SS or CF, they need to be a league-wide positionless good hitting player that just happens to play SS or CF.

i like to carry a 2nd, cheaper leadoff type and bury one at bottom third of lineup, hopefully he's also a defensive wiz at a key defensive position, like SS or CF, if possible, but not required.

So, i amass as much power that can field 8 positions, i have a couple OBP guys, then best cheap options available that fit the budget, without long-term committments. you can't "stash" backup power. those guys get hurt, you are f%$ed. you can stash a competent leadoff guy at a lineup spot that create very little offense even with extreme talent for cheap that plays everday instead of creating no value on the bench or in AAA. win-win and you likely have a spot in your lineup... unless you have 9 power hitters and can afford it.

don't give long-term contracts to guys that are ~average or just not that good. you need to upgrade them with as few obstacles as possible. paying more, within short-term budget outlook, to get a shorter term on contract is always worth it.

trade guys before they age, especially if they do have a future bad contract. accept that by avoiding this risk that sometimes guys will go on to have success elsewhere for a while, but most will fizzle within a couple years. (again, position comes into play for consideration -- catchers age faster than first basement, cf lose their elite defenisve ability before 30 in many cases etc...know trends, avoid the downswings)

even better, if timing works out and you get a draft pick compensation? that's great, let them go. if that is better than a possible trade return, that's the way to go.