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| Albert Pujols |
I know I said "damnit" at least 19 times between my first pick and my second as I watched player after player disappear. I actually felt like I was playing catchup the whole rest of the way through the draft.
The Hardballer philosophy is to have balance. No need to "own" any one category but rather to be competitive across. the board. I actually refer back to previous seasons "Recipe for Success" posts to remind myself just what kind of numbers are needed on a weekly basis to be in the thick of things. I think I have accomplished that with this draft although I am relying on some improved performances from some players. (Zobrist comes to mind.)
Here is my round by round picks and the rationale (or lack thereof) behind them. Feel free to criticize all you want. Just keep it to yourself :)
Round 1 Pick 1 A. Pujols
The worst part about picking early in the draft (1-3) is not who you will get but realizing who you know you won’t be getting by the time your 2nd pick comes around. It took everything I had not to pick H. Ramirez knowing how lean the SS position is. I ultimately decided there was a reason Pujols is the consensus #1 pick. Namely HR’s which are just as hard to come by these days as good shortstops.
Round 2 Pick 24 K Youkilis
Position scarcity at the top levels seemed to me to be greatest at 2B, 3B, SS, and LF. Since I had spent round 1 on a relatively deep position, I was hoping that I could spend the next 2 picks filling 2 of those positions with quality players. I was literally crossing my fingers that Youkilis would make it to me. I know I will have to do something to carry me through the 1st week till his 3B eligibility becomes official but I would rather do that than to have to pass on the position till later in the draft.
Round 3 Pick 25 D Pedroria
With Utley’s condition up in the air the 2nd tier of 2B seemed thinner than ever. Even coming off an injury I felt Pedroria was a safe pick and would give me a quality 2B in another lean position. I pretty much decided that I would live with someone like an E Andrus at SS if necessary and went ahead and filled the 2B position.
Round 4 Pick 48 U Jimenez
I really was not going to look at SP until maybe round 6 but with 7 pitchers already off the board I bit and picked Jimenez. I was trying to determine at this point if I wanted to take Jeter at SS since he was still there. Decided to take a top pitcher instead and bought myself 90 more seconds to think about Jeter. (Here is where the Pujols pick sucks. I could be looking at Morneau in this round with the SS position already secured).
Round 5 Pick 49 D Jeter
If the last month of preparation taught me anything it was that the SS position sucked after Jeter. Assuming he has 1 more decent season in him then I gotta take him here or forget about SS altogether for a couple of rounds. Couldn’t talk myself out of it.
Round 6 Pick 72 A Rios
Actually LF was all I was thinking about right here. All the top guys were gone and there were only a couple left that I liked. I have drafted no one in the outfield so it is now or never if I want any real quality. I picked Rios here because it looks better but my next pick was already determined before I decided on Rios
Round 7 Pick 73 D Young
If you are looking for a LF after this I hate it for ya. This is a reach according to ADP but good average, decent power with some upside in a lean position has a real calming effect right now.
Round 8 Pick 96 B Zobrist
I like the upside potential of Zobrist. I like his 2009 season. I like his multi-position eligibility. I like that he technically fills my last OF position although I will try and revisit RF later.
Round 9 Pick 97 M Scherzer
I feel more comfortable looking at SP now. Hoping Scherzer stays healthy and displays the top 10 SP skills he has.
Round 10 Pick 120 G Gonzalez
SP went way too early in my opinion but you have to adapt to the herd so I grabbed another good pitcher with good upside. Love the K’s… sorta overlooked the BB’s though. This might be one that comes back to bite me.
Round 11 Pick 121 J Broxton
With a boatload of RP already off the board (what is it with you guys?) I felt I needed to grab one now or I would wind up punting the category. Broxton scares the hell out of me so I am thinking right now I want Kuo. Please, please, please let him still be there a few rounds from now.
Round 12 Pick 144 C Kimbrel
This ain’t an ideal situation I am finding myself in as far as closers go. Way too early to be this low on good closers. The situation in Atl is sorta undecided between Kimbrel and Venters so I now have ANOTHER RP I have to hope I get. I now want Venters too. Questions is who 1st Venters or Kuo?
Round 13 Pick 145 C Quentin
I need more power on my team so I am grabbing the oft injured Quentin to play RF. Now Zobrist is officially a super-sub.
Round 14 Pick 168 J Posada
I was really hoping to get Napoli as my C but he went too early. Posada will be doing a lot of DH this year so should get plenty of AB’s. Will hurt my team less than any of the other catchers remaining. All postions filled now!
Round 15 Pick 169 J Helickson
I planned pre-draft to build my pitching staff of mostly mid-level pitchers of which there were plenty. Helickson is getting a lot of positive press and has a ton of upside. Moving on.
Round 16 Pick 192 H-C Kuo
Its time. Whew!
Round 17 Pick 193 J Venters
Round 18 Pick 216 J Shields
Has had some rough seasons but is solid on K’s. Will look at him for a few weeks of the season to see if things are ready to turn around for him.
Round 19 Pick 217 C Jones
Bet you thought I had forgot about that 3B situation didn’t ya! I am 100% convinced Jones can stay healthy for 1 week till Youk gets his eligibility.
Round 20 Pick 240 W Venable
Leadoff for SD. LF, CF, RF eligibility. Speed, maybe 20 HR potential if he gets his AVG up. My sleeper pick for the year. (If this one don’t work out I got another one in mind ;) )
Round 21 Pick 241 I Kennedy
Opening day starter for Ari. After that who knows.
So there ya have it. After weeks of reading experts analysis, listening to podcasts and analyzing spreadsheets I look at this team and say.... "All that for this?"
Actually I feel pretty good about this teams odds of accomplishing my #1 goal for the regular season which is to make the top tier playoffs. After that anything can happen. The marathon now begins. I know that some of these players, and maybe several, will not be on my roster at seasons end. But for right now... for week 1.... I can live with this group.
I hope others of you will take the time to make a similar post to describe how draft day felt at your club house.
Here's to a good season!
Hardballers
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