Well, I've learned a lot in the last 5 years playing against
the best fantasy baseball competition in the world. The National Fantasy Baseball Championship continues to be a
world-class event and I really enjoyed my trip to Chicago. I put a lot of time preparing for the 2008
draft; however, it is impossible to plan the unexpected twists and turns a
draft will take. I drafted an above
average team according to average draft picks for an NFBC scoring league, but I
didn’t have the category balance that I was targeting for 2008.
Take a look at my team, and then continue on to read my
breakdown of the draft.
|
Rd
|
Pick
|
Pos
|
Player
Name
|
Team
|
Roto
Rank
|
ADP
|
ADP Value
|
Roto Value
|
|
3
|
40
|
C
|
Martin,
Russell
|
LA
|
26
|
30
|
10
|
14
|
|
16
|
231
|
C
|
Towles,
JR
|
HOU
|
176
|
198
|
33
|
55
|
|
1
|
10
|
1B
|
Howard,
Ryan
|
PHI
|
7
|
10
|
0
|
3
|
|
2
|
21
|
2B
|
Upton, BJ
|
TB
|
36
|
23
|
-2
|
-15
|
|
4
|
51
|
SS
|
Tulowitzki,
Troy
|
COL
|
40
|
41
|
10
|
11
|
|
12
|
171
|
3B
|
Fields,
Josh
|
CWS
|
162
|
173
|
-2
|
9
|
|
7
|
100
|
MI
|
Kendrick,
Howie
|
ANA
|
86
|
116
|
-16
|
14
|
|
14
|
201
|
CI
|
Glaus,
Troy
|
STL
|
143
|
196
|
5
|
58
|
|
8
|
111
|
OF
|
Matsui,
Hideki
|
NYY
|
79
|
89
|
22
|
32
|
|
13
|
190
|
OF
|
Cuddyer,
Michael
|
MIN
|
119
|
186
|
4
|
71
|
|
15
|
220
|
OF
|
Upton,
Justin
|
ARI
|
218
|
213
|
7
|
2
|
|
18
|
261
|
OF
|
Matthews,
Gary
|
ANA
|
204
|
221
|
40
|
57
|
|
19
|
280
|
OF
|
Rasmus,
Colby
|
STL
|
242
|
266
|
14
|
38
|
|
20
|
291
|
UH
|
Jacobs,
Mike
|
FLA
|
235
|
278
|
13
|
56
|
|
Rd
|
Pick
|
Pos
|
Player
Name
|
Team
|
Roto
Rank
|
ADP
|
Draft Value
|
Roto Value
|
|
9
|
130
|
SP
|
Cain,
Matt
|
SF
|
127
|
127
|
3
|
3
|
|
11
|
160
|
SP
|
Perez,
Oliver
|
NYM
|
121
|
170
|
-10
|
39
|
|
17
|
250
|
SP
|
Blanton,
Joe
|
OAK
|
224
|
204
|
46
|
26
|
|
23
|
340
|
SP
|
Saunders,
Joe
|
ANA
|
252
|
345
|
-5
|
88
|
|
24
|
351
|
SP
|
Glavine,
Tom
|
ATL
|
237
|
283
|
68
|
114
|
|
25
|
370
|
SP
|
Washburn,
Jarrod
|
SEA
|
337
|
384
|
-14
|
33
|
|
5
|
70
|
RP
|
Rodriguez,
Francisco
|
ANA
|
67
|
69
|
1
|
3
|
|
6
|
81
|
RP
|
Nathan,
Joe
|
MIN
|
73
|
65
|
16
|
8
|
|
10
|
141
|
RP
|
Cordero,
Chad
|
WAS
|
153
|
140
|
1
|
-12
|
|
|
|
|
Overall
Fantasy Draft Value (Pick - ADP)
|
244
|
707
|
When competing against 390 teams for an overall $100,000.00
grand prize, you need to have a solid plan, good research, and plenty of luck.
My plan was to avoid injury prone players, select a few
players with potential upside beyond my projections, and hit certain key
targets that would allow me to compete when the stats were ranked nationally.
I was targeting the following statistical benchmarks for my
team:
Hitting = .280 BA, 290 HR, 1100 R, 1100 RBI, 180 SB
Pitching = 90 W, 90 SV, 1100 K, 3.600 ERA, 1.200 WHIP.
I exceeded my Homerun targets by at least 30, but I missed
my targets in stolen bases by 50. With
only 130 projected Stolen Bases, I will need to get a lot of breaks to compete
nationally.
I definitely have a team that can compete for my league's
$5,000.00 first place prize, but when your stats are ranked against 390 versus
15, it is hard to score below average in any category, especially one like stolen
bases.
Even though I missed some opportunities to hit my desired
targets, I still outperformed the Average Draft Picks of most drafters in the
NFBC. Here is a round by round analysis
of my draft.
Round 1: I had a choice of Chase Utley, Carl Crawford,
Prince Fielder and Ryan Howard. I
really wanted a 3B, and had anticipated getting Migue