The Draft Power Rankings and Preview Monday (and Kyle, Jason and Ben too)

3) Clemens’ ‘Roid Needles – Kyle Morris

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Liriano, Penny, Sheets (7)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): M. Cabrera, Beltran, M. Ordonez (3)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Curtis Granderson (3)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Franklin Morales (23rd Round - 3)
Draft Grade (Ranking): B -

The reason why Kyle is at three and not higher is because of the Beltran selection. Had he selected another pitcher or position player that did not play centerfield I would have liked his draft more. Kyle has the potential to have one of the best pitching staff in the league. The only problem is that two of his top three guys are coming off of difficult injuries. I think Penny has one more good year in him before he begins to slide off.

2) Krunk Smurfs – Jason Willey

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Bedard, Harang, Burnett (2)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): AROD, C. Lee, Soriano (2)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Jeff Kent (4)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Andre Ethier (27th Round - 1)
Draft Grade (Ranking): B -

His pitching staff is thin in depth and A.J. Burnett could get hurt by a small gust of wind, but he has the most balance of anybody in the league at this point. Having AROD will solve any down years from anyone in his line up. Andre Ethier was an absolute steal in the 27th round and is my top keeper prospect at this point.

1) Kansas City Inoculators - Ben Nielsen

Because I wrote this.

***

Phantom Menaces vs. KC

Player of the Week: Manny Ramirez
Underachiever of the Week: Jonathan Papelbon
Projected Score: 326.5 – 276.5

Prediction
Manny Ramirez will hit three home runs and drive in 11 in the first week of what will be a huge season for the player who finds himself in a contract year. Unfortunately, Ramirez’ Red Sox will start the season under .500 due to two blown saves by young closer Jonathan Papelbon. KC will take advantage of this by getting solid weeks from Vladimir Guerrero and Travis Hafner to win the week. KC over Phantom Menaces.

Smurfs vs. The Zou

Player of the Week: Alex Rodriguez
Underachiever of the Week: Ryan Braun
Projected Score: 378.5 - 76

Prediction
Alex Rodriguez pretends as if the baseball was Jose Conseco’s head and pounds out four opening week home runs. While AROD is running the bases, Ryan Braun suddenly remembers that his rookie season was entirely insane and decides to make up for it by going 1 for 17 with eight strikeouts. Add the DL stints for Gallardo and Smoltz will turn deadly as Oswalt, Lincecum and Hamels will each suffer terrible Opening Week outings. Erik will also finally realize that half of his team is in the minor leagues. Smurfs over Zou.

CRN vs. BGD

Player of the Week: Hideki Matsui
Underachiever of the Week: Fausto Carmona
Projected Score: 341 – 297.5

Prediction
Fresh off his marriage to an Anima character of a reputable employee, Matsui joins AROD to bash out three homers and three doubles in addition to winning another bet with Derrek Jeter and Bobby Abreu. Life will not be so great for Fausto Carmona when he realizes that he is not nearly as good as he was last season. In a panic, he hits A.J. Pierzynski in the head with a fastball, leading to a brawl and the eventual ejection and suspension of Carmona. Oh, and Ben Sheets gets hurt on his first pitch of the season. You would think this would mean an easy win for BGD, but you are wrong. Because the LM feels BGD is such a terrible name, he awards CRN 50 additional points to guarantee his victory and to send a message to BGD to change his freaking team name. CRN over BGD.

Cockies vs. Rasmi

Player of the Week: N/A
Underachiever of the Week: Matt Holliday
Projected Score: -13.5 – (-13.5)

Prediction
This matchup is terrible; I refuse to make a legitement prediction. The matchup ends in a tie.

Halo’s vs. Inoculators

Player of the Week: Prince Fielder
Underachiever of the Week: Bobby Abreu
Projected Score: 386 - 312

Prediction
Dismayed that he lost the bet between Jeter, Matsui and himself, Abreu begins the season in a slump worse than the one he had last season. In a panic, Andrew drops him and picks up Mike Moustakas because his has “good upside.” Unfortunately for Andrew (and Erik), minor league stats don’t count. On the bright side for Andrew, Ben’s teams historically start insanely slow meaning an easy win for Andrew. Halo’s over Inoculators.

The Draft Power Rankings (and Erik and Adam too)

5) The Zou – Erik Johnson

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Hamels, Smoltz, Lincecum
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): Braun, Tulowitzki, Morneau (9)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Nick Swisher (8)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Joey Votto (24th Round - 4)
Draft Grade (Ranking): B -

The top half of his draft was full of over-valuations. The bottom half of his draft was the best of anybody. It’s hard grading Erik’s teams because rookies and second year players are so hard to project. I’ll go neutral and place him fifth on this list.

4) (A Very Gay Team Name) – Adam Keller

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Chris Young, Maine, B. Myers (9)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): Rollins, A. Ramirez, R. Howard (6)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Dan Uggla (6)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Delmon Young (19th Round - 6)
Draft Grade (Ranking): B -

His first and second round picks should have been flip-flopped. Getting Delmon Young in the 19th round was a steal. I would have rated him higher if I did think his team name was so stupid. That and his pitching staff sucks. But mostly because of his team name…

The Draft Power Rankings (and Andrew and Casey too)

I forgot to mention that today, Saturday, I would be posting the best of the suckers (spots 7 and 6). So, without further Freddy Adu, here are those rankings.

***

7) Hancock’s Halos – Andrew Wessley

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Verlander, Sabathia, R. Hill (4)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): D. Wright, B. Abreu, Jeter (5)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Carlos Pena (5)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Ian Snell (14th Round - 9)
Draft Grade (Ranking): C

How's that Kelvim Escobar selection going for you Andrew? With the exception of the Vernon Wells selection, rounds 7 through 26 were not so good. Fortunately, they were not terrible and his top six picks weren't too bad. I project that Andrew will start the year strong, trade half his team and then have the first pick in the draft next year. That is unless Tony completely bombs the season (which is possible).

6) Springfield KC – Casey Allen

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Webb, Halladay, Pettitte (3)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): Guerrero, Hafner, Berkman (4)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Adrian Gonzalez (2)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Adam Jones (24th round - 8)
Draft Grade (Ranking): C

Casey’s total pitching staff is very solid. Having Nathan and Borowski is the definition of Yin and Yang. Having Guerrero, Hafner, Berkman and Gonzalez in the same lineup is going to be a nice complement to his pitching staff.

The Draft Power Rankings (and Tony, Joel and Jeff too)

This is less of a power ranking and more of a draft review. The bottom three are bellow, with the middle two coming Sunday and the top three on Monday.

****

10) Springfield Rasmi – Tony Allen

Top Three Starters (Ranking): J. Santana, Matsuzaka, J. Shields (10)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): Reyes, Ichiro, Pujols (8)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Edgar Renteria (7)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Colby Rasmus (23rd Round - 6)
Draft Grade (Ranking): D + (10)

Tony has Johan Santana, Jose Reyes and Albert Pujols… and that’s about it. Yeah, his draft was THAT bad. Pujols injury risk also hurts him.

9) (My Team Name Sucks) – Joel Schilb

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Beckett, Vazquez, P. Martinez (8)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): Holliday, Ortiz, Teixeira (10)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Michael Cuddyer (9)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): Carlos Delgado (28th Round - 10)
Draft Grade (Ranking): C – (9)

Joel showed progression by not having a god awful draft. Still, he has more risk on his team than he does consistent players and most of those risks are very high. I see most of those risks crashing leading to another poor season for Joel.

8) Polk County Phantom Menaces – Jeff Kimball

Top Three Starters (Ranking): Kazmir, Zambrano, Hudson (5)
Top Three Hitters (Ranking): V. Martinez, M. Ramirez, Utley (7)
Top Bench Guy (Ranking): Shane Victorino (10)
Keeper Prospect (Ranking): J.J. Hardy (18th Round - 7)
Draft Grade (Ranking): C – (8)

Kazmir getting hurt is a bad sign. Kimball’s lineup looks more like an NL lineup than a fantasy lineup. However, I think Manny has a big season and J.J. Hardy will have a breakout year too. Shane Victorino could be a hot commodity come the trade deadline.

The Draft with Keeper and Eligibility Rules

Individual draft review posts begin tomorrow.

I will not ask you to comment on many posts, but PLEASE give me your thoughts on the matters listed towards the end of the post. I want to make sure everyone understands the keeper rules.

Additionally, this is the OFFICIAL draft transcript. This post will clear up any and all arguments as to the round a player was selected. If you have a correction that can be verified, please get it to me ASAP.

P.S. This post looks really long, but it is mostly names. So don't freak out.

***

Three players may be kept by one team.

Only selected keepers and draft picks can be traded during the offseason.

A team can only select three keepers from their roster after the MLB regular season is over. However, a team can trade draft picks or keepers or both during the offseason to obtain a kept player(s). In that case, the team receiving the traded keeper will lose the compensation to obtain the player and the draft pick associated with the kept player.*

Example One: Joel trades Garrett Atkins to Casey for Travis Hafner. Each would lose a the draft pick associated with the obtained player.

Example Two: Jason trades Erik Bedard to Ben for a 10th round draft pick. Ben would lose his 10th round pick and whatever pick was associated with Bedard.

Example Three: Erik trades Cole Hamels to Andrew for Justin Verlander and Russell Martin. Andrew would lose the pick associated with Hamels. Erik would lose the pick associated with Verlander and Martin.

* Using "Example One" as a guide, once Joel trades Garrett Atkins, the draft pick associated with keeping Atkins is restored. However, he would lose the draft pick associated with obtaining Hafner. Using "Example Two" as a guide, Jason would no longer have to forfeit his pick for keeping Bedard.

***

Players who were kept for this season who cannot be kept after this season:
(Note: These players were either drafted in the first two rounds of 2007 or were not drafted in 2007.)

Vladimir Guerrero
Ted Lily
Hanley Ramirez
Prince Fielder
C.C. Sabathia
Johan Santana
Jose Reyes
Albert Pujols
Chase Utley
Jonathan Papelbon
Alex Rodriguez
Aaron Harang
Tim Lincecum
Ryan Braun

Players Drafted in Rounds One through Two who are not eligible to be kept after this season:

Brandon Webb
Grady Sizemore
David Wright
Carl Crawford
Brandon Phillips
Ryan Howard
Ichiro Suzuki
Carlos Beltran
B.J. Upton
David Ortiz
Mark Teixeira
Carlos Zambrano
Carlos Lee
Justin Morneau
Troy Tulowitzki

Draft rounds three through twenty-eight:
(Note: The following players are eligible to be kept after this season is finished. Additional keeper rules are noted at the end of the post.)

Round Three
Roy Oswalt
Alex Rios
Victor Martinez
Nick Markakis
Miguel Cabrera (two years left of keeper eligibility)
John Lackey
Aramis Ramirez
Brian Roberts
Felix Hernandez
Travis Hafner (two years left of keeper eligibility)

Round Four
John Smoltz
Derrek Lee
Manny Ramirez
Garret Atkins (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Fausto Carmona
Daisuke Matsuzaka
Joe Mauer (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Derek Jeter
Jake Peavy (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Lance Berkman

Round Five
Yovani Gallardo
Alfonso Soriano
Tim Hudson
J.J. Putz
Carlos Guillen
Chipper Jones
Jimmy Rollins (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Bobby Abreu
Adam Dunn
Roy Halladay

Round Six
Hunter Pence
Jeff Francis
Michael Young
Matt Holliday (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Hideki Matsui
Adam Wainwright
Chris Young
Francisco Rodriguez
Eric Byrnes
Alex Gordon

Round Seven
Matt Kemp
Robinson Cano
Mike Lowell
Miguel Tejada
Brad Penny
Brian McCann
Takashi Saito
Carlos Pena
Chone Figgins
Joe Nathan

Round Eight
Chad Billingsley
Khalil Greene
Aaron Rowand
Javier Vazquez
Ben Sheets
James Shields
Brett Meyers
Brad Hawpe
Matt Cain
Ian Kinsler

Round Nine
Ryan Zimmerman
Chien-Ming Wang
Conner Jackson
Torii Hunter
Francisco Liriano
Orlando Hudson
Chris B. Young
Mariano Rivera
Placido Polanco
Adrian Gonzalez

Round Ten
A.J. Burnett
Jose Valverde
Jorge Posada
Pat Burrell
Johnny Damon
Billy Wagner
Kelvim Escobar
Gary Sheffield
Jim Thome
Adrian Beltre

Round Eleven
Jeremy Bonderman
Bobby Jenks
Jered Weaver
Pedro Martinez
Francisco Cordero
Gil Meche
John Maine
Justin Verlander (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Geovany Soto
Kenji Johjima

Round Twelve
Howie Kendrick
Brad Lidge
Billy Butler
Dustin Pedroia
James Loney
Kevin Youkilis
Dan Haren (two years left of eligibility)
Rich Hill
Phil Hughes
Joe Blanton

Round Thirteen
Ivan Rodriguez
Jason Varitek
Kosuke Fukudome
Dustin McGowan
Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Jason Isringhausen
Cory Hart
Todd Helton
Clay Buchholtz
Zack Greinke

Round Fourteen
Oliver Perez
Dontrelle Willis
Mark Buehrle
Huston Street
Rafael Soriano
Al Reyes
Derrek Lowe
Ian Snell
Ubaldo Jimenez
Greg Maddux

Round Fifteen
Rich Harden
Trevor Hoffman
Scott Kazmir (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Jeremy Guthrie
Brian Bannister
Jacoby Ellsbury
Jeff Francoeur
Jon Lester
Randy Johnson
Joe Borowski

Round Sixteen
Mark Prior
Juan Pierre
Shane Victorino
Josh Beckett (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Hiroki Kuroda
Jacque Jones
Micah Owings
Vernon Wells
Homer Bailey
Andy Pettitte

Round Seventeen
Nick Swisher
Chad Cordero
Tom Gorzelanny
Coco Crisp
Magglio Ordonez (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Edgar Renteria
Dan Uggla
Bronson Arroyo
Joakim Soria
Josh Hamilton

Round Eighteen
Jay Bruce
Ty Wiggington
J.J. Hardy
Dave Bush
Paul Konerko
Jason Bay
Michael Bourn
Shaun Marcum
Evan Longoria
Andruw Jones

Round Nineteen
Joba Chamberlain
Erik Bedard (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Jeremy Accardo
Michael Cuddyer
Matt Capps
Jorge Cantu
Delmon Young
Manny Corpas
Matt Garza
J.D. Drew

Round Twenty
Kevin Kouzmanoff
Jeff Kent
Melky Cabrera
Barry Zito
Kevin Gregg
Frank Thomas
Todd Jones
Kelly Johnson
Kerry Wood
David DeJesus

Round Twenty-one
Cole Hamels (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Johnny Cueto
Yorvit Torrealba
Rick Ankiel
Curtis Granderson (two years left of keeper eligibility)
Chris Duncan
Jack Cust
Carlos Marmol
Rickie Weeks
Chad Tracy

Round Twenty-two
Rafael Furcal
Jason Giambi
Aaron Cook
Jake Westbrook
Tony Pena
Nate Robinson
Kyle Kendrick
Josh Fields
Jermaine Dye
Kevin Correia

Round Twenty-three
Cameron Maybin
Adam Miller
Freddy Sanchez
Jhonny Peralta
Franklin Morales
Colby Rasmus
Bengie Molina
Bartolo Colon
Andrew Miller
Chris Sampson

Round Twenty-four
Joey Votto
Chuck James
Scott Baker
Brandon Lyon
Ervin Santana
Hideki Okajima
Tom Glavine
Steven Drew
J.R. Towels
Adam Jones

Round Twenty-five
David Price
Scott Hatteberg
Ryan Church
Ramon Hernandez
Kenny Rogers
Braden Looper
Josh Willingham
Daniel Cabrera
Tim Wakefield
Jhonny Estrada

Round Twenty-six
Clayton Kershaw
Yunel Escobar
Hank Blaylock
Pat Neshek
Lastings Millage
Troy Glaus
Aubrey Huff
Jon Garland
Brandon Wood
Jeff Suppan

Round Twenty-seven
Andre Either
Cliff Lee
Paul Byrd
Gustavo Chachin
Ryan Garko
Jair Jurrjens
Willie Blumquest

Round Twenty-eight
Carlos Delgado
Shawn Hill
Mark Mulder

All players who are not listed under rounds three through twenty-eight are not eligible to be kept. Undrafted players are not eligible to be kept.

***

When a player is kept, the draft pick lost is dependent on consecutive years kept and original draft position. A draft pick will be lost up to three rounds higher of the original draft position. It will go on this scale:

First year kept: one draft round higher
Second year kept: two draft rounds higher
Third year kept: three draft rounds higher

Example: Jake Peavy was drafted in the fourth round of 2007. If he were to be kept again this season, he would cost a second round pick.

A player can be absent from draft eligibility (i.e. "kept") up to three consecutive years before being required to return to the draft pool. Consecutive years kept is NOT contingent on what team kept said player.

***

If there is a situation where two or three players all land on the same round, the rules will go as such:

Two players: said round plus the round above it
Three players: said round plus the round above it and the round below it

Example: Justin Verlander and Russell Martin were each drafted in the 10th round in 2007 and were kept by Andrew. If Andrew decides to keep both again they would each be worth an eighth round pick. Because Andrew currently does not have two eighth round picks, he would lose his seventh round pick in addition to his eighth round pick.* If a third player was involved – such as Andrew’s ninth round pick from this year, Mariano Rivera – Andrew would lose his seventh, eighth and ninth round picks.

Players drafted in the third round will cost a second round pick their first year kept and a first round pick the next two seasons if kept.

If two players are valued at a first round pick, said team will lose their first and second round pick.

If three players are valued at a first round pick, said team will lose their first, second and third round picks.

If a first round player and two second round players are kept, it will cost said team their first, second and third round picks.

* If Andrew were to make a trade to obtain an additional eighth round pick, he would have the option to lose either the added draft pick or the seventh round pick.

***

The reasoning for not allowing undrafted players and top two round players to be kept were for the following reasons: to maintain the value of top round draft picks, to promote strategy in the latter rounds of the draft and to maintain league competitiveness.

I am considering one option to allow undrafted players to be kept. Undrafted players may be kept under the following conditions:

1) Said player must have at least 150 MLB plate appearances or 50 MLB innings pitched.
2) The value of the draft round lost will be voted on by the league.
3) A player cannot be worth lower than a 15th round pick or higher than a third round pick.

The plate appearances and innings pitched numbers do have a purpose and are not up for negotiation. The official stat will be found at baseball-reference.com if there is a dispute.

Let me know what you think about this or if you have any suggestions.

Mock, That's a Bunch of Mocking (and half the league too)

Mock Drafts that Mock People – Kyle, Adam, Kimball and Andrew

KYLE
Note: All comments are written as if Kyle was responding to his draft picks.

C – Ivan Rodriguez

“Rodriguez is just as good of a hitter as Pete Rose.”

1B – Carlos Guillen (via trade with Kimball)

“Guillen is as good of a hitter as Billy Hamilton.”

2B – Placido Polanco

“Polanco is almost as good as Rogers Hornsby.”

3B – Miguel Cabrera (keeper)

“Cabrera is just like Babe Ruth on the stat line and the waste line.”

SS – Edgar Renteria

“Lefty O’Doul’s got nothin’ on Renteria.”

LF – Jacque Jones

“Shoeless Joe Jackson only wishes he were as good as Jacque Jones.”

CF – Curtis Granderson (keeper)

“Ty Cobb? Yeah, I forgot he existed too after watching Granderson play.”

RF – Magglio Ordonez (keeper)

“Did I mention that Ordonez is Ted Williams reincarnate?”

SP – Justin Verlander (via trade with Andrew)

“Cy Young and Verlander are synonymous with each other.”

CL – Todd Jones

“MU sucks. I should have been a Kansas fan.”


KIMBALL
Note: All comments are written as if Kimball was responding to his draft picks.

C – John Buck

Lionel Hutz: “Well, he’s kind of had it in for me ever since I accidentally ran over his dog. Actually, replace ‘accidentally’ with ‘repeatedly’ and replace ‘dog’ with ‘son.’”

1B – Carlos Guillen

Homer: “I’m normally not a praying man, but if you’re up there, please save me, Superman.”

2B – Chase Utley (keeper)

Mayor Quimby: “I stand by my racial slur.”

3B – Mike Lowell

Kent Brockman: “…And the fluffy kitten played with that ball of string all through the night. On a lighter note, a Kwik-E-Mart clerk was brutally murdered last night.”

SS – Jhonny Peralta

Mr. Burns: “I don’t like being outdoors, Smithers. For one thing, there’s too many fat children.”

LF – Adam Dunn

Sideshow Bob: “Your guilty consciences may make you vote Democratic, but secretly you all yearn for a Republican president to lower taxes, brutalize criminals, and rule you like a king!”

CF – Reggie Wilts

Krusty the Clown: “And now, in the spirit of the season: start shopping. And for every dollar of Krusty merchandise you buy, I will be nice to a sick kid. For legal purposes, sick kids may include hookers with a cold.”

RF – Jose Guillen

Homer: “Marge, you being a cop makes you the man! Which makes me the woman — and I have no interest in that, besides occasionally wearing the underwear, which as we discussed, is strictly a comfort thing.”

SP – Scott Kazmir (keeper)

Homer: “How could you?! Haven’t you learned anything from that guy who gives those sermons at church? Captain Whatshisname? We live in a society of laws! Why do you think I took you to all those Police Academy movies? For fun? Well, I didn’t hear anybody laughing, did you? Except at that guy who makes sound effect laughs. Where was I? Oh yeah! Stay out of my booze.”

CL – Jonathan Papelbon (keeper)

Homer: “Save me, Jeebus.”

ADAM
Note: All comments are written as if Adam was responding to his draft picks. At least that’s what it would be, but I’ve never actually met Adam… so… I’m just going to make fun of him for being a Cardinals fan.

C – Joe Mauer

The Cardinals catcher is a Molina descendant. How unoriginal is that?

1B – Mark McGwire

McGwire’s PED seasons of 1997-2001 render all St. Louis accomplishments which eliminates two of your six division championships since 1996. Cheaters. You’ve destroyed the game.

2B – Joe McEwing

No, really, that guy started 152 games for you in 1999. At least the Royals were smart enough to not do that.

3B – Scott Spiezeo

Um… flamer? Plus, the guy was cut because he has “a six-count complaint involving drunken driving and assault in a December car crash” out on him. By Erik’s standards, that makes him a rapist.

SS – Ozzie Smith

He’s going to be the Cardinal who violently dies this year. At Kansas City doesn’t kill off their baseball players. We only do that to should be Hall of Fame linebackers near the end of their career.

LF – Chris Duncan

His brother’s name is Shelly. That’s a girl’s name. Pansy. That same “pansy” gene is in Chris. What a pansy.

CF – Gary Mathews Jr.

Well, at least you don’t have a douche bag playing center anymore. Wait, Colby Rasmus is going to be in center? Never mind then.

RF – Ryan Ludwick

You’re still bitter about 1985 aren’t you? I knew it.

SP – Chris Carpenter

Do your cell phone updates work? Because Tony was having trouble with his and I didn’t know if you could help him with that or not. Maybe the guy who runs the updates committed suicide after finding out Pujols got hurt.

CL – Anthony Reyes

I saw the Cardinals Bandwagon the other day dropping off more people. It must be hard realizing 95% of your fan base is fake.

ANDREW
Note: All comments are written as if Andrew was commenting on his draft.

C – Russell Martin (keeper)

“I wonder if I could trade him to Joel for Benito Santiago?”

1B – Justin Morneau

“Screw it. I’ll trade Morneau for Joel Peralta straight up. This isn’t the major leagues, it’s fantasy baseball!”

2B – Terry Shumpert

“Keeper.”

3B – Miguel Cabrera (via trade with Kyle)

“I plan on swinging him to Ben for Dontrelle Willis.”

SS – Derek Jeter

“I hate the Yankees. I don’t care who I get for him, I just want to get rid of him. He’s cancer on my team.”

LF – Manny Ramirez

“Hmmm, Ramirez for Tony Pena Jr.? Done.”

CF – Carlos Beltran

“I’m going to trade Carlos Beltran for Mark Teahen and John Buck just like the Royals did in real life. Go Royals! Championship!”

RF – Bobby Abreu

“Abreu is slumping. I’m going to trade Abreu for Jermaine Dye who is slumping even worse. That should work!”

SP – C.C. Sabathia (keeper)

“Keeping Sabathia seemed like a good idea at the time. I think I’m going to trade him to Erik for some minor league prospect I’ve never heard of. Hey, if he’s on Erik’s team, he must be good!”

CL – Huston Street

“I’m addicted to blown saves. I can’t let him go.”

Mock. I Mock. I Mock You. (and Jason too)

Mock Drafts that Mock People – Jason

Note: All comments are written as if Jason was responding to his draft picks.

C – Kenji Johjima

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

1B – Mark Teixeira

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

2B – Desi Relaford

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

3B – Alex Rodriguez (keeper)

“I would trade him for Jose Reyes.”

SS – David Eckstein

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

LF – Carl Crawford

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

CF – David DeJesus

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

RF – Gary Sheffield

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

SP – Aaron Harang (keeper)

“The only guy I would trade him for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

CL – Francisco Rodriguez, Joe Nathan, Mariano Rivera, Joakim Soria and Trevor Hoffman

“The only guy I would trade them for is AROD and I have him so don’t ask about trading for him. He’s mine. All mine.”

Mock yeah! (and Erik too)

Mock Drafts that Mock People – Erik

Note: All comments are written as if Erik was responding to his draft picks.

C – Matt Wieters

“At 6’6”, I don’t know if he’ll actually be a catcher when he makes it to the big leagues. Then again, Joe Mauer is 6’5” and he’s a catcher in the bigs so it’s possible. But Mauer does have a slightly better arm and pop time than Wieters.”

1B – Andy LaRoche

“I still can’t believe he was drafted in the 39th round. Why can’t the Royals do that? Allard Baird would have drafted him.”

2B – Jose Offerman

“He had a .315 batting average and .403 on-base percentage in 1998. His defensive skills are concerning, but this is fantasy baseball so it doesn’t really bother me.”

3B – Evan Longoria

“This kid is going to be a stud. I bet he has a better season his rookie year than Alex Gordon did. What was Dayton Moore thinking saying he was “big league ready” last year. Moore is terrible. Longoria has a plus bat and power and I think he will be this year’s Ryan Braun in that young talented Rays lineup.”

SS – Elvis Andrus

“I don’t put much stock into Baseball America’s rankings, but the Rays have four of the Top 20 prospects according to BA and Reid Brignac isn’t one of them. I debated between Brignac and Andrus (who is in the Rangers system), and settled on Andrus because Texas has a better hitter’s park and he’s only 19. Plus, the guy’s name is Elvis.”

LF – Ryan Braun (keeper)

“Braun being moved to the outfield is going to hurt his fantasy value a little bit. But with this roster, I think I’ll be just fine.”

CF – Cameron Maybin

“I’m not really high on Maybin, but I wouldn’t have traded him for Dontrelle Willis. Detroit is getting old at the corner outfield position and I think they are going to regret trading him. They did get Miguel Cabrera though.”

RF – Jay Bruce

“I can’t believe Dayton Moore didn’t draft this guy. How could you not see his potential? He’s 20 years old a major league ready! Gee, the Royals couldn’t use a power corner outfield bat could they? Allard Baird would have drafted him.”

SP – Tim Lincecum (keeper)

“His arm is probably going to fall off in three years given how small he is, but he’s still really good. Did you know Moore took Luke Hochevar over him? Yeah, Baird would not have made that mistake. I might as well start calling Dayton ‘King Carl Part II’ for all the terrible talent evaluation decisions he’s made. Speaking of the Chiefs, they should draft Joe Staley.”

CL – Joe Staley

“I will do what the Chiefs would not: Draft the best offensive lineman in the history of football.”

Hey, mock you. (and Casey too)

Mock Drafts that Mock People – Casey

Note: All comments are directed at Casey.

C – Miguel Olivo

“I make out with your sister.”

1B – Travis Hafner (keeper)

“Your sister and I make out a lot.”

2B – Chico Lind

“Did I mention I make out with your sister? I did? Oh, ok. Just wanted to make sure I mention that.”

3B – Alex Gordon

“Dude, your sister is HOT. I think I may make out with her next time I see her…”

SS – Orlando Cabrera

“Did I ever tell you about the one time I made out with your sister? It was awesome. You should have been there.”

LF – Jason Bay

“Man, making out with your sister is awesome.”

CF – Coco Crisp

“Not to run this into the ground or anything, but, um, I make out with your sister. And it’s awesome.”

RF – Vladimir Guerrero

“Remember that one time when you didn’t make out with my sister, but I made out with your sister? Yeah, that was great.”

SP – Ted Lily (keeper)

“Wow, I’m glad you don’t make out with my sister and then write blogs telling me about how you make out with my sister. That would suck. I’d probably punch you in the face. You really lucked out there.”

CL – Bobby Jenks

“Alright, I’ve got to go make out with your sister now. I’ll talk to you later.”

Mock you too! (and Tony too)

Mock Drafts that Mock People – Tony

Note: All comments are written as if Tony was responding to his draft picks.

C – Victor Martinez

“Andrew traded him to me last year, so he must be good.”

1B – Albert Pujols (keeper)

“He’s hurt? WHAT?! My cell phone didn’t tell me that! #@$&!”

2B – Fernado Tatis

“I need some Latin Vibe.”

3B – Scott Rolen

“He’s not a Cardinal anymore so it’s okay for me to draft him.”

SS – Jose Reyes

“Thanks again Andrew.”

LF – Chris Duncan

“I need him for when he moves to first base after Pujols blows out his elbow. STUPID CELL PHONE!”

CF – Jim Edmonds

“Once again, he doesn’t play for the Cardinals anymore. You can’t call me a homer.”

RF – Colby Rasmus

“He used to live in my apartment complex!”

SP – Johan Santana (keeper)

“Thanks again Andrew. Oh, wait, I actually drafted him last year. I’m sorry, I just assumed since he’s good I got him from Andrew.”

CL – B.J. Ryan

“B.J…… hehehehe.”

Mock You! (and Joel too)

Mock Drafts that Mock People – Joel

Note: All comments are written as if Joel was responding to his draft picks.

C – Benito Santiago (See yesterday’s blog for background on Santiago.)

“That “Jbrocato” kid seems like he knows what he’s talking about.”

1B – Ryan Howard

“Is he good?”

2B – Carlos Febles

“He had a 68 OPS+ in 2000. That’s good, right?”

3B – Garrett Atkins (keeper)

“Wait, he was drafted? CRAP!”

SS – Adam Everett

“My friend told me he was really good on defense. Defense wins championships.”

LF – Matt Holiday

“Screw Curtis Granderson or Troy Tulowitzki, I’d rather have the guy who is not going to be as good as last season in a deep position.”

CF – Joey Gathright

“I wish I would have kept Granderson…”

RF – Juan Encarnacion

“Hey, I’m allowed to have one Cardinal. He’s going to have a breakout season. You watch.”

SP – Josh Beckett (keeper)

“At least I know he wasn’t drafted. He was? CRAP!”

CL – Jason Isringhausen

“Okay, so I lied about the one Cardinal thing, but he’s going to be good if he stays healthy.”

Why the Royals Suck (and a new blog series too)

A new blog series entitled “Mock Drafts that Mock People” starts tomorrow with Joel. Until then, I have a story to share. It looks long, but it reads fast. I promise.

***

While I was sick this weekend, I spent some time commenting on the game threads at Royalsreview.com. Somewhere in the middle of the game, a guy named “NYRoyal” pointed out that commenters seemed to always default on glass half-empty, trade everyone because they suck mode far more frequently than responding with irrational hope. To help feed into this, I made some comment about how we should trade Leo Nunez after he gave up two runs in an inning. He took it as a joke. But what followed was not very funny. Read on…

NYRoyal: Leo Nunez will be another Jim Pittsley. Release him now!!!!!

Jbrocato (random idiot): I’d be impressed if he were as good as Pittsley. And to think the Royals traded their last decent catcher for him.

NYRoyal: Are we talking about the same Pittsley? The one who never had a single decent major league season? Nunez is 10 times better than Pittsley and has already shown that. If he ended up being a mediocre relief pitcher in the majors, he’d be 8 times better than Pittsley.

Jbrocato: At least the Royals didn’t trade a decent catcher for Pittsley. The catcher spot has been a black hole ever since Santiago was traded (and frankly I don’t care whether or not Santiago used steroids).

BlownSave (That’s me! I’m also a random idiot.): What?!?!?!?!?! Santiago was 39 and played a whole 49 games for the Royals. I’d take Buck over a 40 year old Santiago (and I’m not a big Buck fan).

NYRoyal: (To Jbrocato) You’re joking right? Santiago was awful. He was awful and then after the Royals traded him to Pittsburgh, he played all of six games. He hasn’t played since. He’s out of baseball. You really feel bad that we traded away the 40 year old schlub who stunk for the Royals and was about to retire? That trade was an absolute steal for the Royals.

Jbrocato: Revisionist history. Santiago hit .274 for the Royals (Buck has NEVER hit over .245), 6 HR, and 23 RBIs in only 175 Abs. Had he not been hit by a pitch, that pro-rates to .274 with 18 HR. I’d take that from a catcher any day, whether he’s 40 or 22.

NYRoyal: He was 39………………..39! The man’s career was just about over. The Royals did an amazing job to get anything for him at all. And to their credit, they got a talented young pitcher for him who should definitely be able to contribute to a major league team. How much is any 39 year old catcher worth? Damned little. If they had kept him, they would have maybe gotten one crappy season out of him.

There is absolutely no sane, reasonable argument to be made that the Royals didn’t make out like bandits on the Santiago/Nunez trade.

BlownSave: Buck hit 18 HRs last year in 2/3s a season and he’s entering his prime. Let’s say we kept Santiago and didn’t trade him. He would have played six more games with us in 2005 and then would have been out of baseball. How would that have solved anything at the catching position for 2006-2008?

Jbrocato: Buck also hit .222 last year. How is .222 by Buck better than .274 by Santiago? I have seen Buck do one thing well with the Royals – run his big mouth about blaming Buddy Bell for his lack of hitting. Buck didn’t hit before Bell came to the Royals, either. His whining showed that not only is he an out machine, but he has no class, either. Perhaps the Royals would have kept Santiago longer than six games. The Pirates aren’t exactly baseball’s model franchise. As for return, Nunez has a career ERA of 5.77, including a 7.55 the year he pitched the most innings. Granted that’s not as Kyle Davies, but still pretty bad.

BlownSave: Who would you suggest be our catcher?

Nunez had a sub 4 ERA with a near 4:1 K:BB last season and will be 24 (24!) this season. He was 21 the year he had the 7+ ERA you’re complaining about.

Buck was hitting .288 at the beginning of June before falling off. Who’s to say that would not have happened to Santiago? Also, Buck was being sat for a guy who hit .148 last year. Wouldn’t you be a little upset by that when you’re leading the team in home runs?

NYRoyal: It’s the curse of the Benito. The baseball gods have been smiting the Royals for the past three years because they traded Santiago away instead of keeping him and throwing him a really kick ass retirement party.

***

So now you know why the Royals have sucked so bad recently – they traded Santiago for Nunez. It makes so much sense!
Also, from here on out, it must be remembered that Santiago is not only the best catcher ever to put on a Royals uniform, but also the best Royal and MLB (not the video game, Andrew, the real Major Leagues) player in the history of the world. Remember this or die.

Final Keeper Review (and Adam too)

Keeper Review – Boom Goes the Dynamite

Chosen Keepers
Jimmy Rollins
Joe Mauer
Dan Haren

Draft Picks Lost
4th, 5th and 12 round picks

Last Year Fantasy Point Total (position rank)
Rollins – 930 (1)
Haren – 582.5 (12)
Mauer – 492 (4)

Players Not Kept of Note
Lots.

Thoughts:
Overall, I think Adam did well. Jimmy Rollins is going to tear it up for him (and can be kept next season as well) while Dan Haren should have a great season for the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Joe Mauer pick I did not get, but I suppose he did get one of the better catchers.

Rollins is the reigning NL MVP (even though Matt Holliday should have gotten it) and had numbers to justify it (still would have taken Holliday). Rollins will hit around .290 and score a butt load of runs. Rollins has seen his power numbers increase since moving into the Phillies new stadium setting a career high in home runs last season with 30. I don’t see him topping that number or equaling his triples number from last year either (he hit 20 of them). He is in the middle of his prime at 29 years old so I guess posting even better numbers is still possible (but doubtful).

Dan Haren is still a year away from his prime but that hasn’t stopped him from putting up some very nice numbers. Haren had a 3.07 ERA (in AL no less) in 222.2 innings and struck out 192 while walking only 55. His numbers should improve moving to the National League where he will pitch with Brandon Webb and Randy Johnson.

Joe Mauer should have a good to great season for Minnesota, but I still question the selection of him as a keeper. I think there might have been some panic there with the lack of big name catchers available. Still, Mauer should still put up some good numbers for Adam providing good health.

Correction (and Kyle too)

In a previous post, I mentioned that Gary Sheffield was kept. That is not true. That section should have read "Miguel Cabrera, Magglio Ordonez and Curtis Granderson."

Thought I'd clear that up.

***

Keeper Review – Clemens’ Roid Needles

Chosen Keepers
Miguel Cabrera
Magglio Ordonez
Curtis Granderson

Draft Picks Lost
3rd, 17th and 21st round picks

Last Year Fantasy Point Total (position rank)
Cabrera – 730 (4)
Ordonez – 898 (1)
Granderson – 734 (3)

Players Not Kept of Note
Lots.

Thoughts:
Kyle appears to have a slight Tiger bias, eh? All three of these guys are eligible to be kept next season which is a plus for Kyle, but I don’t see him keeping Ordonez another year.

Miguel Cabrera will drive in a lot of runs and score a lot of runs in a loaded Tiger lineup. I do see his home run numbers going down and his double numbers going up in spacious Comerica Park (or whatever it is called now).

I think Ordonez will benefit from all the help in the lineup, which should help hide his declining production. He is a great value pick (17th round), but I think he should have kept a guy like Jimmy Rollins or Brad Penny instead.

Granderson was a great keeper choice and a steal at round 21. To me, that may be the best keeper decision of the all of the keepers who were actually drafted.

EEEEEEE-Mail (and Andrew too)

If you ever have a question and want to e-mail me during the day, your best option is to use this address: BNielsen@bssd.net. Because of the school districts crazy filters (cannot even get onto google sometimes) this will be the best way to get a hold of me during the day.

With that, onto the worst team in the league last year – Andrew Wessley.

***

Keeper Review – Team Wessley (still waiting on a name that I like)

Chosen Keepers
C.C. Sabathia
Justin Verlander
Russell Martin

Draft Picks Lost
11th, 27th and 28th Round picks
(Note: Andrew also has an additional 10th round pick via a trade with Erik)

Last Year Fantasy Point Total (position rank)
Sabathia – 704 (2)
Verlander – 489 (15)
Martin – 411 (3)

Players Not Kept of Note
Francisco Liriano
Pedro Martinez
Joe Mauer
Dustin Pedroia
Carlos Guillen
Kevin Youkilis
Brandon Phillips
Nick Markakis
Todd Helton

Thoughts:
Keeping the second best fantasy pitcher from last season for a mere 28th round pick was not too hard of a decision for Andrew (nor would it be for anyone else besides Joel). Justin Verlander should see increased value given his power pitching nature and the tremendous run support he should be receiving. Russell Martin was kept at good value given how shallow the catchers pool is this season.

To expect C.C. to have the kind of year this year as he did last year would be insane. Some would suggest that since he is in a contract year that he will perform just as well. The same could be said of Carlos Zambrano last year and he was very inconsistent until he signed a deal midway through the year. Andrew can attest to his inconsistency. Given the strength of the American League Central from an offensive point of view (with the possible exception of the Royals), it should not be a given that Sabathia has a tremendous year. Sabathia set career marks in strikeouts, innings pitched, wins and ERA. It was also the first time since 2002 he had thrown over 200 innings in a season. There also must be concern with his heavy work load (241 innings) he endured last season and if he will remain healthy all season. On the up side, he is only 27 and is entering his prime.

Verlander was not subject to a sophomore slump last year, going 18-6 with a 3.66 ERA, 183 strikeouts and a no-hitter in slightly over 200 innings of work. As mentioned earlier, Verlander should expect great run support this season which may make him a 20-game winner this season. One point of concern is that he has thrown 400-plus regular and post season innings in his first two full seasons in the big leagues. How Verlander’s arm reacts to that stress is a question mark. Still, Andrew should expect an excellent season from Verlander and is a steal as an 11th round pick.

Russell Martin is among the five best offensive catchers in the game. At age 25, Martin can expect to improve even more this season, his third in the big leagues. Martin flirted with .300 and 20 homers last year and was only 13 RBI short of 100. His 21 stolen bases is an added bonus. Martin did strikeout more often last season, but he does have a president for walking nearly as many times as he strikes out. Andrew should expect Martin to be in the top three of catchers by the end of the season.

Thou Shalt Not Keep (and Erik too)

For the record, here is the list of players who cannot be kept next season: Tim Lincecum, Ryan Braun, C.C. Sabathia, Johan Santana, Albert Pujols, Jose Reyes, Aaron Harang, Alex Rodriguez, Chase Utley, Jonathan Papelbon, Ted Lily, Vladimir Guerrero, Prince Fielder and Hanley Ramirez. Also, individuals who are drafted in the first two rounds this season and individuals who are not drafted at all are not eligible to be kept. Bet you $10 Andrew wishes he had the first pick in the draft next season and not this season. Sucks to be you Andrew, sucks to be you.

Now on to Erik’s keeper review.

***

Keeper Review – The Zou

Chosen Keepers
Tim Lincecum
Ryan Braun
Cole Hamels

Draft Picks Lost
21st, 27th and 28th round picks

Last Year Fantasy Point Total (position rank)
Lincecum – 317 (33)
Braun – 334 (10)
Hamels – 547 (12)

Players Not Kept of Note
Lance Berkman
Robinson Cano
Grady Sizemore
Hunter Pence
Dan Haren
Joe Nathan
Yovani Gallardo
Phil Hughes
Ben Sheets
Fausto Carmona
Daisuke Matsuzaka
Clay Buchholz
James Shields

Thoughts:
As it relates to draft picks lost, Erik did not take much risk losing picks in twenty’s. How these players fair will be interesting. Only Hamels is eligible to be kept next season so it will also be interesting to see what Erik does with them at the trade deadline.

Lincecum’s violent throwing motion makes him an obvious candidate for arm problems in the future. How fast that future arrives is uncertain. If he does remain healthy, he can count on a lot of strikeouts. His 150 strikeouts in 146 1/3 innings were quite impressive for a rookie. Lincecum’s 4.00 ERA is inflated due to a two start stretch where he gave up 13 runs in less than eight innings of work. He ended following that up with back-to-back seven inning shutouts, totally 20 strikeouts. The Giants are not projected to be a very good team this season so Erik cannot count on too many victories, but that should not keep the strikeouts from coming. (It should be noted Lincecum was drafted nine picks after Luke Hochevar.)

Ryan Braun had a historical rookie campaign, hitting 34 home runs, driving in 97 and batting .324 in only 451 at-bats. Hitting in front of Prince Fielder made his transition to the big leagues smooth and he should reap the same benefits of hitting in front of Fielder this season. There are concerns about Braun. Ryan struck out once every four at-bats and walked only 29 times. Braun hit more home runs (34) than he did doubles (26). The lack of double is a little concerning. Of the 26 players who hit at least thirty home runs, only Ken Griffey Jr., Lance Berkman and Jim Thome had fewer doubles. This lack of base running ability could become costly if Braun sees a dip in his home run power.

Only three players in the history of baseball had at least 30 home runs, 95 RBI, a .320 batting average and 1.000 OPS in there first season in the big leagues: Albert Pujols (2001), Ted Williams (1939) and Ryan Braun (2007). Both Williams and Pujols had significantly more at-bats than Braun. Williams saw a reduction in home run power his next season. Pujols did not. Who Braun decides to be is yet to be seen.

Cole Hamels, who is entering his third big league season, has seen great success striking out batters. He has, however, had issues with injuries. A healthy Hamels combined with a healthy Lincecum and Braun should be very formidable.

I'm a strong cryer... (and Casey too)

Sorry about not having a blog yesterday. I’ve been helping Meredith’s cousin move into their huge new house. Today I learned that I have absolutely no upper or lower body strength, but I do have strength where it counts… my tear ducts.

As for these trade shenanigans I’m going to go ahead and just veto the thing. I do want to make a few quick points though.

Jason would not have had four keepers, he would have had three (AROD, Bedard and Harang). He then would have traded a player and a draft pick for two players. Reyes and Wright would have still been considered Tony’s keeper selections. That really doesn’t matter though, what matters is how many times a specific player has been kept in a row. Once the keepers have been selected, it does not matter who gets traded up to the draft because they are all keepers anyway. If you have question or are confused by this, e-mail me.

Tony and Jason – if you two want to make a trade involving Reyes and AROD you don’t have to wait until the draft to do it. If you come up with a deal that is fair and works send it to me. Maybe a Santana and Pujols for AROD and a 10th rounder would be enticing? I don’t, just thought I’d get the ball rolling.

As for today’s evaluations, we have Mr. Casey at the bat. Enjoy.

P.S. Tomorrow I plan to post the players who cannot be kept after this season. I’ll expand to that list after the draft, but I want to give you a heads up.

P.S.S For clarification, Tony's keepers are Pujols, Reyes and Santana while Jason's keepers are Harang, Bedard and AROD. Just for clarification...

***

Keeper Review – KC

Chosen Keepers
Ted Lily
Vladimir Guerrero
Travis Hafner

Draft Picks Lost
2nd, 3rd and 28th round picks

Last Year Fantasy Point Total (position rank)
Lilly – 472 (16)
Guerrero – 619 (2)
Hafner – 413 (3)

Players Not Kept of Note
Orlando Cabrera
Ken Griffey Jr.
Derek Jeter
Gil Meche
Roy Oswalt
Mark Buehrle
Rich Harden

Thoughts:
KC made a bold move when sacrificed his second and third round picks for an aging Vladimir Guerrero and an underperforming Travis Hafner. To counter his bold move, he gave up his last pick for Ted Lilly, who will likely be better than the player he would draft there anyway.

Keeping Guerrero is an interesting move given his age and round he may have been drafted in (I’d presume later than the second round). Guerrero, who will be 32 this season, had his lowest home run total since 2003 hitting only 27 bombs. However, he did see a spike in his doubles numbers, tying his career mark with 45. This would suggest that he hasn’t lost his power all together. It is a concern though and makes one wonder if Casey could have easily gotten Vladimir in a lower round. A fifth round pick maybe?

I understand the Hafner decision. Despite his down year, Hafner carries a high value because there are not a lot of DH eligible players who produce at a high level. With Hafner being off the board, we are left with David Ortiz and Gary Sheffield as the only reliable DH’s available. There may be an early run on DH’s in the draft. Casey, though, is set at that position.

Ted Lilly will have decent value in the 28th round. If he wasn’t kept, he probably would have gone around the 18th to 21st round. Lilly set career highs in strikeouts and innings pitched while tying his career high in wins last season. He too will be 32 years old this season. The condition his arm is in will be interesting.