Fantasy Baseball Preview Part 1
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by user Sportswiz
Hey everybody,
Just dropping in with a quick fantasy baseball preview at great risk to my chances of winning my leagues this year. If you're in one of my two leagues and want to know what my strategy is, read on. Go ahead...be a jerk...
Anyway, the first pointer to drafting a successful team is to ignore spring statistics. In fact, don't even watch preseason games. Most players only use the spring as a tool for getting into shape. If a player gets off to a slow start it's no big deal. As for drafting guys who hit .430 or had 4 wins in the spring...not so fast my friend. Remember that a lot of players playing in spring games are not major leaguers. Circumstances can inflate numbers. If you face a lot of AAA players you may have good numbers. However, when the season starts and the big boys come to play, fortunes can change quickly.
Pitching tips: Avoid drafting a pitcher early on. I know Johan Santana and Chris Carpenter are tempting, but pitching can be had later, and they'll only pitch once every five games. Remember that. Get every day contributers early on, then go for balanced pitching. You will be rewarded by winning your league.
While we're talking about pitching, don't just look at wins and losses. Having a guy who wins games, doesn't always translate to success. Look at ERA, Strikeouts, and WHIP. I'd rather have a ten win pitcher who helps out all around than a 15 win pitcher with an ERA of 5.00 and 125 strikouts. In other words, get pitchers who help out in more than one category.
A few guys to avoid: Chien M. Wang Freddy Garcia Cliff Lee Greg Maddux Tim Hudson Jaime Moyer
Mid-Late round steals: Dan Haren Ervin Santana Chris Young Eric Bedard Dave Bush Derek Lowe Chris Capuano Kevin Millwood
Look for a bouce back: Esteban Loaiza Zach Duke Barry Zito
Worth a late pick: Bartolo Colon Rich Harden Mark Buehrle John Patterson
Young guns to take late. Anibel Sanchez Jaime Shields Matt Garza
Oh, one more thing about starting pitchers. Don't waste a mid round pick on Roger Clemens. Take a guy like Bedard or Haren. They'll pay larger dividends overall.
The same rules apply to closers. Wait until the middle rounds. Once you've drafted a murderers row, address pitching. Remember that every team has a closer. While some are poor choices, a saavy owner can get solid production without wasting top picks.
Guys to grab in the mid-late rounds: JJ Putz Francisco Cordero Bob Wickman Jose Valverde Joe Borowski
Avoid: Bobby Jenks Eric Gagne Tom Gordon Brian Fuentes Chad Cordero
Look for a bouce back: Brad Lidge
Worth a chance late: Solomon Torres Octavio Dotel Whoever is closing in Boston (Looks like it may be Joel Piniero)
Look out for Part 2 (Hitters).
