Strategy For Fantasy Draft

[Klew1986]

So I was planning on doing a Minnesota Twins 2013 game, but all of the sudden thought of maybe doing a fantasy draft to start my 2013 game.

Just curious what your strategies are for Fantasy Drafts. Do you target offense early or do you load up on pitching?

[Charlie Hough]

Starting pitching is always my focus in any draft. Obviously, it depends in part on who is available at your pick and whether you're doing a serpentine draft. But I tend to emphasize starting pitching among my first picks. So, I might draft three starters among my first six players or so.

However, you don't necessarily have to use a really early pick on a starter. Sometimes you can take a superstar player who can hit, field, and run, and then you can use your second and third picks on starters.

[dsvitak]

Originally Posted by Charlie Hough

Starting pitching is always my focus in any draft. Obviously, it depends in part on who is available at your pick and whether you're doing a serpentine draft. But I tend to emphasize starting pitching among my first picks. So, I might draft three starters among my first six players or so.

However, you don't necessarily have to use a really early pick on a starter. Sometimes you can take a superstar player who can hit, field, and run, and then you can use your second and third picks on starters.

Here's how I view starting pitching.

Assuming that you give yourself the very first pick in the draft...

If you have a pitcher go 26-6, and all the rest of your pitching staff wins exactly half of their games, then you end up with a record of 91-71.

That's right. One ace starter makes you an instant contender, with an average team.

Let's take it one step further, and add a second pitcher, with a 22-10 record.

Now, if the rest of the team plays .500 ball, you are at 97-65, and have a pretty good shot at going deep in the playoffs.

The Pythagorean Theory, as it relates to pitching:

If you give up 4 runs a game, and score five, then square them both, and you end up with a 25-16. (5x5) - (4x4) Winning 25 of 41 is pretty close to a hundred wins.

This is how I build my teams. I want the biggest bang for the buck. A starter that gives up 2.5 runs a game, over 270 innings (30 full games) will save 75 runs a year over a #5 starter that gives up 5 runs a game over those same 270 innings.

I recognize that your #5 starter isn't going to get 270 innings...but the math is correct.

Find a way to skip your #5 guys, if the #1 is healthy. Look for vacation days in the schedule to skip your #5 starter. I do..saves me a couple of runs every time it happens.

As far as hitters, a very good hitter is over rated. Consider a first baseman that hits .300, with 30 homers and 110 RBI. Is he worth a first round draft pick? NO.

Why? because you can pick up any joe off the street to hit .280, with 20 homers and 90 RBI. You just aren't getting bang for the buck above an average player.

This is why pitchers are so crucial. The very finest pitchers affect the game disproportional to their roster spots. ONE ace pitcher, statistically, is vastly more important than any other position, unless that one position player is Babe Ruth, or Pujols (back when he was a good player).

Pitchers first, and alternate pitchers and hitters for the first ten picks or so.

Starters pitch a LOT more innings than relievers, so pick them first. An ace closer is important, because their individual innings (the 9th) have more value than the 4th inning for your number 4 starter.....but in this game, MR's seem to be a dime a dozen.

[The Wolf]

Pitching, pitching and pitching.

And then more pitching.

[The Game]

Originally Posted by Klew1986

So I was planning on doing a Minnesota Twins 2013 game, but all of the sudden thought of maybe doing a fantasy draft to start my 2013 game.

Just curious what your strategies are for Fantasy Drafts. Do you target offense early or do you load up on pitching?

Depends on the park. Target plays like a pitchers park doesn't it? I would get Strasburg #1 and then go from there. For the White Sox I try to balance it out. SP, hitter, SP, hitter, leftie specialist, hitter, CL, SP, hitter and so on. Depends on who is available.

[sc_superstar]

Had one of my most sucessful drafts recently. Adjusted budgets for city and then picked the hardest budget to deal with (Miami had the 2nd lowest startig budget and Loria is rated a 1 for spening) got real lucky and got #1 pick

Here was my 2013 25-man roster (Round, Pick)

C Travis Darnaud (2,30)
C David Ross (107,1)
1B Casey Kotchman (16, 30)
1B Nate Frieman (108,30)
2B Kolten Wong (11,1)
SS Jurickson Profar (3,1)
3B Nolan Arenado (10,30)
UI Cory Aldridge (109,1)
LF Mike Trout (1,1)
CF Aaron Hicks (12,30)
RF Yasiel Puig (9,1)
OF Franklin Gutierrez (111,1)
OF Quentin Berry (110,30)

SP Trevor Bauer (4,30)
SP Matt Harver (5,1)
SP Jose Fernandez (6,30)
SP Shelby Miller (7,1)
SP Gerrit Cole (8,30)

MR John Axford (23,1)
MR Aroldis Chapman (12,30)
MR Sean Dolittle (15,1)
MR Greg Holland (25,1)
MR Jake McGee (30,30)
MR Jordan Walden (31,1)
CL Craig Kimbrel (13,1)

Team has won 92, 110 and 99 games

Highest payroll for the 3 years was 40.5m and most of that 25-man is still in tact with a few relievers and backup players being bumped for replacements when they hit ther 6 years of service time.

Kotchman was a reach considering the talent still on the board when I took him, but I wanted someone who would be cheap and payed great D at 1st it was worth it as he led the team in RBI's and won a gold glove

2013 was a struggle offensively, as the team was near the bottom of the league in offense but the pitching was superb with a team ERA under 3, led by Shelby Miller who went 17-7 with 2.79 ERA and 213K in 200 innings and in the bullpen by Sean Dolittle who went 10-0 in 72 innings with a 1.63 ERA and 118K

2014 was a juggernaut, they had a +242 run differential and were in the top 5 offensively while still having one of the best staffs in the league.

In 2015 pitching has suffered a bit, the gap is closing, but we were still the best, but not by a large margin and the offense was again in and around the top 5

[dsvitak]

Originally Posted by sc_superstar

Had one of my most sucessful drafts recently. Adjusted budgets for city and then picked the hardest budget to deal with (Miami had the 2nd lowest startig budget and Loria is rated a 1 for spening) got real lucky and got #1 pick

Here was my 2013 25-man roster (Round, Pick)

C Travis Darnaud (2,30)
C David Ross (107,1)
1B Casey Kotchman (16, 30)
1B Nate Frieman (108,30)
2B Kolten Wong (11,1)
SS Jurickson Profar (3,1)
3B Nolan Arenado (10,30)
UI Cory Aldridge (109,1)
LF Mike Trout (1,1)
CF Aaron Hicks (12,30)
RF Yasiel Puig (9,1)
OF Franklin Gutierrez (111,1)
OF Quentin Berry (110,30)

SP Trevor Bauer (4,30)
SP Matt Harver (5,1)
SP Jose Fernandez (6,30)
SP Shelby Miller (7,1)
SP Gerrit Cole (8,30)

MR John Axford (23,1)
MR Aroldis Chapman (12,30)
MR Sean Dolittle (15,1)
MR Greg Holland (25,1)
MR Jake McGee (30,30)
MR Jordan Walden (31,1)
CL Craig Kimbrel (13,1)

Team has won 92, 110 and 99 games

Highest payroll for the 3 years was 40.5m and most of that 25-man is still in tact with a few relievers and backup players being bumped for replacements when they hit ther 6 years of service time.

Kotchman was a reach considering the talent still on the board when I took him, but I wanted someone who would be cheap and payed great D at 1st it was worth it as he led the team in RBI's and won a gold glove

2013 was a struggle offensively, as the team was near the bottom of the league in offense but the pitching was superb with a team ERA under 3, led by Shelby Miller who went 17-7 with 2.79 ERA and 213K in 200 innings and in the bullpen by Sean Dolittle who went 10-0 in 72 innings with a 1.63 ERA and 118K

2014 was a juggernaut, they had a +242 run differential and were in the top 5 offensively while still having one of the best staffs in the league.

In 2015 pitching has suffered a bit, the gap is closing, but we were still the best, but not by a large margin and the offense was again in and around the top 5

As a Cards fan, Shelby Miller looks like a beast. Not huge, but he has four excellent pitches, and is a real competitor.

[Painmantle]

Originally Posted by dsvitak

This is why pitchers are so crucial. The very finest pitchers affect the game disproportional to their roster spots. ONE ace pitcher, statistically, is vastly more important than any other position, unless that one position player is Babe Ruth, or Pujols (back when he was a good player).

.

Ruth and Pujos aren't even comparable, Ruth is an Ace Pitcher and Albert Pujols rolled up all into one pick if you use him correctly


But on topic, yes Pitching should be your focus early, as said before there are plenty of comparable position players available but only so many True Aces and near Ace #2 guys.

[Bobble]

So, I decided to set up a huge fictional league of 72 teams playing 200 games per year, all restricted to the state of Ohio ... just 'cause I can. First, you know that thing where you can download all those logos from cephasjames and then the game AUTOMAGICALLY fills in the correct logo, team colors, and whatnot for you for all the teams? Awesomesauce!

Second, I wanted to export all the players from the inaugural draft so I can sort them out in Excel 'cause ... like, there's a crap-ton of players and I want use some formulae to help the cream float to the top. At first I was trying to do it through a report that I then opened up in an external browser (that didn't really fly -- I was only getting a page at a time) but I saw that under the league set-up stuff, you can set up OOTP to export the players with OSA ratings, actual ratings, and/or your scouted ratings to .csv file! What!? It's crazy the stuff this game can do!

[ezpkns34]

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...-approach.html

[goroyals]

It depends on your league settings, but in terms of modern baseball, I buck the trend a little bit and go with a pro-hitters approach. I think it's better to have the top of your batting order solidfied before the top of your rotation. Your main position players are going to be on the field everyday, your best pitchers every 5th day. Plus, pitchers just seem more prone to injury and unpredictablity in performance.

Basically, if you make sure to include defensive considerations in your top picks, you can probably just stock up on average arms and still win a bunch of games. Also, don't be afraid to draft for value instead of postion needs. Then swap those useless to you players for your needs or prospects.