Open Thread: The Franchise Player Draft
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Cutch's got the whole Predator look going on. (Photo Credit: Flickr user Brock Fleeger via Creative Commons license)
A little over a week ago, I post something about ESPN’s Fantasy Player Draft, specifically the sheer absurdity of Wilson Ramos being taken 30th overall. This past week the FanGraphs writers did the same thing at the behest of the readers (contracts were a non-factor, it was all about talent), and the results were published last night. Evan Longoria and Troy Tulowitzki were predictably the top two picks, but Mike Trout was a major head scratcher at three. Why take a prospect when the guys you hope that prospect turns into are still on the board? Oh well, Carson Cistulli’s cool like that. Ryan Zimmerman and Joey Votto rounded out the top five.
I picked 15th and took Andrew McCutchen. Pitchers are too risky and I wanted a premium up-the-middle player. McCutchen has yet to turn 25 and does it all; he hits for average, draws walks, hits for power, steals bases, and plays a mean center field. Look at his FG player page and what he’s doing this season, it’s five-tool player porn. Joe picked two spots after me and grabbed Jay Bruce, a true power hitter still not in his prime at a time when power across the league is declining. Yeah, he plays a non-premium spot, but he plays it damn well and a case could be made that he’ll be the best hitting outfielder in baseball with a year or two. Jose Reyes was not picked even though everyone seemed to say they were considering him, and I’m kinda surprised Buster Posey didn’t go despite the injury. The only Yankee taken was Robinson Cano at 24. Who would you have taken if you had my pick? Joe’s? First overall?
Once you’re done with that, use this as your open thread for the evening. The Mets are playing the Pirates (Dickey vs. McDonald), and MLB Network will carry a game as well (teams depend on where you live). No basketball or hockey playoffs tonight, so that’s all you’ve got. Talk about whatever, enjoy.
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Not including games vs Red Sox, the Yankees are 15-5 in their last 20 games.
Nice.
Curtis Granderson will lead the league in home runs by the 20th, Bautista’s home run power is nowhere to be found.
/bookmark’d
Carl Crawford at #7?
:: head explodes ::
The Trout pick is more defensible than that. That’s just asinine.
I don’t think the Trout pick is more defensible than that but it was a huge head-scratcher to me.
The Trout pick is more defensible, IMO, because clearly you’re betting on Trout becoming Mickey Mantle 2.0. It’s risky, but it’s an upside play.
Carl Crawford doesn’t have much upside. Is he going to get dramatically better than what he is right now anytime soon? Really? Chances are, this is his peak or near peak.
Crawford at his best is probably still not a top-ten player in the league on an annual basis. He’s an All-Star, sure, but not an MVP.
Trout is a potential MVP. He’s a potential washout as well, but he DOES still have “best player of his generation” upside. Crawford does not.
Yeah, I think Trout has so much upside that you have to at least think about it with every pick that he’s still on the board.
Crawford, on the other hand, is a little odd for me. He turns 30 this year and his speed helps his defense and baserunning so much. I am not sure he can keep up with the speed for more than 3 more years.
If Trout pans out and this downward trend for Crawford continues, CC will essentially be a massively-overpaid Juan Pierre in 5 years. The jury’s still out.
I guess I just think the Trout thing was silly because of where it was in the draft. #3? When guys who have already been MVP/MVP caliber and are right in their primes are still there?
(Also, I’m not saying Trout is a guarantee to bust or anything, but haven’t we all been fooled by can’t-miss Angels hitting prospects before?)
Oh, no doubt, I totally get doubting the Trout pick. I’m just saying, all things considered, Crawford at #7 is probably worse than Trout at #3.
Trout and Harper were possibly the second and third worst picks of the draft, just because they haven’t proven anything yet, but Crawford to me is even worse, because he HAS proven what he is and what he is not.
He has more in common with Corey Patterson than Brandon Wood. Not that it advances the argument in either direction, but there’s MLB talent there.
Yep, exactly. Trout’s great, but if he pans out he’ll turn into … what I’m getting from McCutchen at 15? Take the sure thing.
Right, the way A-Jax’s ceiling was to be another Curtis Granderson. 2 years later, I don’t think anyone’s crying over losing Austin anymore.
I have to ask: did people say this because they’re both skinny black CFs? I mean, Granderson’s power is a huge part of his game and while A-Jax isn’t total crap, he just doesn’t have that.
I think two things. People who saw and really knew about AJax didn’t say that. And yes, people who didn’t see him or know about him just made a steroetypical comparison.
Don’t know about skin color, but the comparisons were superficial. I don’t know any mainstream scouts who remotely saw Curtis’ power in Jackson.
Yeah, that’s a head scratcher for me too.
Thought the same thing.
Theres no way I’d touch Trout or Harper either, they’re really only projectable at this point.
Other picks I don’t like- Hosmer (who knows what he’ll be in the majors, and only a 1B), Halladay (too old), Mauer (Things aren’t looking good for his future at C, and those numbers anywhere else are not superstar), Castro (Too young), Strasburg (Too young).
Castro might be young, but he is young going through his second season at SS. That might be 10 years of really good production at SS.
Considering there is only one other SS picked, that’s saying something about being set for 10 years at SS.
My main problems is that his upside seems to be a weak Reyes. No power, fewer steals, worse contact number, hasn’t exactly flashed the glove either. To me, Reyes’ injury risk is about equivalent to Castro’s risk of playing too young and running into injury or SSS errors. Reyes has power in a huge ballpark with more speed and contact abilities.
People saw him as being good defensively in the minors. Just because he was the youngest player in baseball last year, and he just turned 21 a few months ago, I don’t think it’s fair at all to say “he hasn’t flashed the glove” and think he won’t improve. He is playing one of the toughest positions on the diamond.
Goldstein and BA raved about his fundamentals and range. I think he’ll get better in that area.
Again, we’re weighing upside of a player against another player who actually done these things. Reyes is only 26, a good fielder and out hits Castro’s ceiling. I don’t know why you’d go with Castro if you really wanted a SS there.
Reyes turned 28 today.
My bad, I’d still take Reyes everyday.
No problem. For me, Reyes hasn’t had an “excellent” defensive year since 2007, and Starlin had a better year defensively last year than Reyes, at 20 yrs old and Reyes at 27.
I don’t like all the injuries either.
Trout at 3 is nuts, way worse than Crawford around 7. That’s not to say I like the pick that early.
But a guy that could hit .315/.360/.500 with 50+ steals and fantastic defense (albeit, at a corner) is really valuable.
I’ve decided that honestly, the Yankees don’t need to hit anyone to retaliate. They should just get Mo to come out and point at someone.
I laughed.
I’m a little surprised Starlin Castro went that late. A 21 year old starting SS in his second full season. Gimme some of that over Cano any day of the week.
i agree i definitley would have had castro going a lot higher.
Things the Yankees should get by the deadline:
- a BP arm
- SP
- bat
yeah, but they need to get that bullpen arm now because this is currrently one of the weakest bullpens the yankees have had in a while
I’d rather the Yanks go out and fet a whole pitcher rather than just an arm. Also I’d prefer a descent hitter over any type of wooden bat.
Exactly, especially with how volatile relievers can be. Speaking hypothetically, I’d much rather have Wandy Rodriguez over Heath Bell.
+ soriano
+ hughes
+ chavez
They’re going to need some stuff in addition to that. Do you even remember Soriano? I’d like to see them get Beltran, too.
yeah I remember soriano… but I’m giving him a pass because he was likely playing hurt. he’s an excellent pitcher and still the best option for the bullpen
Ryan Braun is one of the most overrated players in baseball. His top WAR total is 5. That’s not superstar production, yet that’s what his reputation is. I’d much rather have any of the other outfielders (Trout too) selected in the top 30 over him.
No way I’m taking Trout over Braun. The speed and defense doesn’t trump Braun’s success at the MLB level nor Ryan’s power.
Braun is only entering his peak and he’s already posted over 20 career WAR. Thats pretty incredible.
I think Ryan Braun gets kinda dinged in WAR and stuff by poor defense and the fact that he’s a corner OF. He’s still an excellent MLB hitter. Trout is not yet that.
Wow, you sound really bitter. Did he shove you in a locker in middle school or something?
His flaw is defense, no question. But a guy who puts up two consecutive 5 WAR seasons at 25 and 26 and is on pace for a great season isn’t a better pick than a guy in AA that has proved zip?
Bitter about what? He’s been very helpful to me in fantasy the past few years. He’s just not the superstar player in real life that he is in fantasy.
If you’re picking a guy to start a franchise, that guy shouldn’t be a left fielder (a very bad one at that). There’s a reason those things hurt his WAR. It’s also concerning that his career walk rate is 7.7%. He’s 28, so age is a plus for him, but it’s a stretch to say he’s just entering his prime.
I wouldn’t fault anyone for taking Braun over Trout, but I wouldn’t do it. It’s risky, but it’s such a scarce position compared to left field, and he is a great defender. It’s a similar argument to taking Carlos Santana. He probably won’t put up huge offensive numbers compared to other top players, but he’s a good defender at a position that is very difficult to fill.
A player’s prime is pretty much starts at around 28. Braun has out WARed plenty of “stars” that can field since he started in 2007. Crawford for one.
He may not be the best fielder but some people can look away from the fielding and look at the offense instead. Yanks certainly did with Jeter, and that paid off. You have a point that you should take a premium position, but some people want to take players based on WAR and projection, Braun certainly projects to be an offensive power the next half-decade.
Wow, you sound really bitter. Did he shove you in a locker in middle school or something?
his post doesnt read that way at all to me
the post about Longoria where the person wishes he’d tear a labrum read way more like that IMO
Jesus Montero not in SWB lineup tonight. *gasp*
Just a day off, apparently.
No move has been made…yet *fingers crossed*
I’m sick of hearing about Evan Longoria. Jesus Christ. I don’t wish injuries on anyone but I would like him to tear his labrum, I am sick of hearing about him. He has never ever done anything special. By far the most overrated player I’ve ever seen besides Bobby Crosby.
You’re not a fan of .281/.360/.514 (.374 wOBA and 132 wRC+) with elite 3B defense? That’s not special?
22.3 fWAR and 19.6 bWAR and doesn’t turn 26 until after the season, that’s not special enough for you? Longoria’s pretty special.
I can live with Longo in the top 5, but he’s not bounds ahead of the competition. There’s a case to be made for Zimmerman and possibly Bautista.
I don’t see that very special. He’s never even healthy. He is the fourth best 3rd baseman in that division behind A-Rod, Bautista, and Youkilis. I’m not saying he isn’t good, I’m saying he is overrated and so far his numbers suggest he is average. A .280 average is nothing special at all.
How in the world is a career line of .281/.360/.514, 134 OPS+, “average”? Especially when you consider he’s elite defensively. He played 157 games in 2009 and 151 last year – I’d say that’s pretty healthy. (And IIRC most of the missed games at the end of last year came at the very end of the year when he was resting.)
Bautista isn’t a third baseman and if you’re gonna go with BA, Youkilis was hitting like .255 at the time of the Yankee series.
For an AL 3rd baseman, that’s average. Beltre, A-Rod, Bautista, Youkilis, are all much better than Longoria is. I’d also take Wright and Zimmerman over him. He is average, and a little above average at best. I’m not saying he isn’t good, I’m saying he is overrated. His best year will never end up being better than .290/30/110.
Batshit. Insane.
Step away from the old-school stats. Evaluate defense. Evaluate power (and doubles and triples are good things that aren’t captured by the HR number).
Evan Longoria, from 2008-present, has been the SECOND MOST VALUABLE PLAYER IN BASEBALL, second only to Albert Pujols (and yes, the gap has been pretty large. Pujols is -that- good).
If I read BB-Ref right, 3B in the AL this year are hitting .236/.307/.371/.678 (Jesus, really?). Longoria is not doing great by his standards, but he’s still well above that, as are his career numbers, obviously.
Beltre of the career .328 OBP and 108 OPS+ is not better than Longoria, especially when you consider the fact that they’re probably equal defensively and Beltre is now 32. A-Rod’s one of the best players of all time so comparing him to Longoria is unfair, but Longoria’s been better the last two years. Also, Bautista: still not a third baseman. And if you’re going to use BA/HR/RBI standards, that’s not exactly where Youkilis stands out.
Zimmerman is basically Longoria, and is totally underrated in comparison, but he isn’t particularly better.
Yeah, but name one thing other than numbers!
/old school’d
Ivan Nova is way more overrated.
(What were we talking about?)
Longoria is a nice player for sure, but top 2? Ridiculous.
I think he’s overrated. I’m tired of people comparing him to Arod. He will NEVER be as good as Arod.
Right now, he’s better than A-Rod.
For the 2011 season, no he is not.
wOBA
Longoria: .341
A-Rod: .376 (not including today’s game which will bump it to around .380.)
He’s played 35 games this year. Talk about small sample size. In the past three years he’s accumulated a total WAR of 20.5. A-Rod, meanwhile, has accumulated 14.5. Even if you wanted to include this year, which I didn’t, Longoria still wins.
While A-Rod is still probably a bit better with the bat, he provides nowhere near the defense as Longoria, isn’t as much a threat on the bases and I think age and health is a question mark.
longoria has the potential to be the best 3B in baseball
Considering Longoria has put up two consecutive 7.5 WAR season before the time he was 26 that is pretty legit. He is not A-Rod, but he does put up the numbers no doubting that.
Hey Mike, whats the deal with Rafael DePaula. Was reading old published articles about him yesterday but he doesn’t seem listed on any rosters yet.
Last I heard from Ben Badler was that his case was still pending. That was before the draft.
Who needs to be bought off here. Or am I still living in 9/10/01 world?
Hasn’t gotten a visa yet as far as I know.
Thanks guys.
What exactly is the deal with Soriano? What happened to him and when is he expected to return?
Does anyone know why Montero isn’t in the Scranton lineup?
http://riveraveblues.com/2011/.....nt-2213138
Obviously Bex has her sources, but that makes no sense to me. Yesterday was his first game back right? Either a weird managerial decision or someone lied.
Not inferring it was Bex lying. Coulda been her source or even the organization trying to throw off the Indians.
I got excited for a second when I saw that…
But in all seriousness he should have been up a while ago
I saw it on Twitter RTed by a beatwriter. I have no sources, haha.
just so no one thinks I’m making it up or anything: http://twitter.com/#!/Ledger_Y.....2576854017
and this, before that one:
http://twitter.com/#!/Ledger_Y.....7324395521
take it as you will.
So basically, you just made up that account today to screw with people. Right?
Shhhh…
I think they just held him out of the lineup as a precaution in case Martin isn’t feeling better tomorrow. Don’t want to risk injury to Montero in case they need him, since they’re going to have to put Martin on the DL at some point if he doesn’t get better.
How has Martin been progressing?
I’m going to the game tomorrow, and if Montero gets called up for tomorrows game, that would be that best thing ever.
What the hell happened to Nick Markakis? He get his money and just give up?
why don’t they just let Derek Jeter bat more than 3 or 4 times a game? If he got up like 10 times a game he’d get his 3000th hit so soon! and maybe even 4000!
Ummm that handle had been taken…sorry.
Has not had.
Oh I get it. Someone was spoofing you.
Yeah. Kinda random. I’d rather people didn’t do that lol.
So I was thinking of what an all decade team for the 2000s Yankees would like and here is what I got.
C-2007 Posada
1B-2002 Giambi
2B-2002 Soriano
SS-2006 Jeter
3B-2007 A-Rod
LF-2009 Damon
CF-2000 Williams
RF-2004 Sheffield
DH-2008 Bobby Abreu
SP 1-2001 Mike Mussina
SP 2-2001 Roger Clemens
SP 3-2009 CC Sabathia
SP 4-2001 Pettite
SP 5-2006 Wang
CL-2005 Rivera
SU-2004 Tom Gordon
LHP-2001 Mike Stanton
RHP-2009 Phil Hughes
Long Relief-2005 Randy Johnson
C-2009 Jose Molina
IF-2009 Mark Teixeira
IF-2007 Cano
OF-2004 Matsui
no 07 joba? blasphemy
I thought about it, but I mean he pitched all for two months that year, however the sub .5 ERA was enticing.
No 2000 Scotty Bro? This team ain’t winning shit.
(Mo was probably better in 2008, but other than that I don’t really have any arguments. I’d just have a bullpen of Mos, frankly.)
Not too many bones to pick but I’d take a 09′Tex over 02′Giambi.
Giambi was always a DH playing 1B.
Put 2010 Cano at 2nd, and it’s a little better. Also, 2009 Tex is better than 2002 Giambino.
Whaaaaaaat?
2002 Giambi: .314/.435/.598, 41 HR
2009 Teixeira: .292/.383/.565, 39 HR
Tex’s defense isn’t that good.
But Giambi’s deffense was that bad.
Nah, he scooped like a champ.
Giambi put up 7 fWAR that season even with poor defense. I would have given the nod to Tex if it was closer, but 1 fWAR is quite a gap.
C- 2003 Posada
1B- 2002 Giambi
2B- 2002 Soriano
SS- 2009 Jeter
3B- 2007 Arod
OF- 2000 Williams
OF- 2004 Sheffield
OF- 2006 Damon
DH- 2009 Teixeira
SP- 2001 Mussina
SP- 2009 Sabathia
SP- 2001 Pettitte
SP- 2001 Clemens
SP- 2006 Wang
CL- 2008 Rivera
SU- 2007 Joba
LHP- 2001 Stanton
RHP- 2004 Gordon
Long Relief- 2005 Randy Johnson
C- 2003 John Flaherty
IF- 2007 Cano
OF- 2009 Swisher
OF/DH- 2004 Matsui
When I did this I was shocked just how good the front end of the rotation was for the Yankees. Moose, Rocket, and Pettitte were all #1 pitchers that year.
Me too, much better team than 2000. Also, our lists pretty much ended up the same. I based mine on WAR and some other factors.
You’re missing Melky Cabrera.
A source who has been briefed on the specifics of the labor discussions says that the players’ union has indicated that it is open to the idea of two 15-team leagues, but that the whole plan still hasn’t been talked through or presented to the owners.
“I’d still say the odds of it happening are less than 50-50,” one source said.
A sticking point involves interleague play. Because of the odd number of teams in each league, it is possible that a team in contention late in the season will have to be playing its final games in interleague play.
One of the biggest issues that would have to be resolved in any realignment resulting in two 15-team leagues is which of the National League teams would switch to the American League.
Two highly ranked executives believe the Houston Astros would be a possibility, because a switch to the AL for Houston would foster a rivalry between the Astros and the Texas Rangers.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....id=6651634
Buster hears that the Astros may shift to the AL, and we wind up with 2 15 team leagues. A 30 team sport with 6 divisions really should have 5 teams in each division.
But I don’t like the idea of eliminating divisions at all. Baseball is a regional sport, always has been, and local rivalries are ingrained in the fabric of the game. Having 5 teams make the playoffs removes all the subtext of those rivalries. I hate that idea.
I can’t say I’m sold on the idea, I like it better than adding an additional wild card team (which I believe is incorporated into this proposal). Why would five teams make it to the playoffs in this format and then have a one game playoff??? That’s right, in Bud Selig’s world that means better baseball.
It eliminates the problem of teams from weak divisions getting in at the expense of teams from stronger ones.
I’m not sure if it really effects rivalries, we’ll still be competeing for playoff spots against the Red Sox, divisions really haven’t been around for that long in the grand scheme of things.
I’m all for eliminating divisions if they’re going to add another wild card team and have a sudden death playoff between the two wild card teams. That way there will be a better chance of the all teams playing a similar schedule so that a 93-win AL East team doesn’t lose to an 86-win AL Central or West team that played an easier schedule.
Now having constant interleague play by having two 15-team leagues is something I’m not sure would work.
“Interleague play everyday” is a red herring and always has been.
You don’t have to be a scheduling expert to figure this out, either. Think about it. 15 teams in each league, 14 playing each other at all times. If one team is idle while everyone else is playing, now you just have to stagger the schedule in such a way to accommodate other teams 3 game series. It comes out to 162 off days per league in a 6 month (182 days) season, or roughly one off day per team every 10 days, with another 20 dates open for rainouts. It can be done.
Interleague play every day eliminates what some people find interesting about interleague play. It’s limited.
MLB is going to expand eventually, although I don’t see if for a few more years. At that time, two teams will either be added to the AL, or one team will shift to the AL, and an expansion team will be added to each league, taking both to sixteen teams.
You seem to have missed my point. There won’t be interleague every day. One team is idle, and it can be worked into the schedule.
There is a possibility of having some interleague games crammed into the end of the year (due to rainouts, etc.) but that happens now when neither team has an open date.
Maybe I’m missing your point, but then wouldn’t one team in each league have to be off every day? And how can it be done where a different team is off every day?
Unbalanced scheduling is a recent thing (10-15 years I believe) if you look at the Yankees 1998 team they played every other team about 12 times. I would prefer this than playing the Sox 18 times which is just ridiculous. Travel costs go up, but considering the success of MLB the cost are minimal. Also it will give a better reflection of who is the best team. I also like the idea of eliminating divisions, while I think it might be hard for some people to swallow it only helps guarantee the best teams get in which is the point of the playoffs. I bet Toronto and Tampa are sick to their stomachs watching the other 9 AL teams have easier schedules and worse records and make it to the playoffs while they are left at home.
trout at 3 and bryce harper at 12 are the 2 worst picks on the list, IMO. id rather start a franchise with every single player on the list over those 2 guys with the possible exception of castro or stanton. terrible selections
mike trout was taken 15 spots ahead of felix hernandez. that right there makes me question the fact that i even read the site daily.
I agree with you, but I would count on Felix getting injured or falling apart way before Harper.
well, i would count on felix providing MVP caliber production for an mlb team way before harper… you know, because he already does
I don’t agree with that. If I had a MLB team and I was offered Carl Crawford or Bryce Harper, I would take Harper. I’m building for the future. I’m taking the risk. I want the guy with tremendous upside and can create interest. Most of all the players I’d pick would be young MLB players, but I might take a flyer on one or two minor leaguers who appear to have special skills.
The Brewers uniforms tonight.. yikes.
Don’t get me started, this whole need for twenty diffent uniforms defies the word itself…uniform.
If your throw backs are so cool, then they should just be your uniform.
I understand this is primarily about merchandise sales but it’s gone too far. Red Pirate jerseys??? Red isn’t one of their colors.
LA wearing Brooklyn uniforms…argh!
Some of these shouldn’t be throwbacks, they should be throw away.
I can’t decide if I hate them or kinda like them.
The teal Mariners unis? Now THOSE I hate.
They remind me of those ugly teal unis that the Marlins used to wear back in the 90s.
Bleh.
HIDeous.
I almost threw up when I saw them.
Okay, that’s a lie. But they were pretty disgusting,
River Ave. Blues:
Final line on Banuelos: 5.2, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 8 K. Not quite ready for the big jump from AA tho.
His walks continue to surprise. He can’t get away with walking that many hitters on the MLB level (and I’m guessing that means he’s behind a lot of other hitters) as he is AA, and a very pitcher-friendly Trenton.
I’m not sure why his fastball command has been so sketchy.
Considering how young he is I am not at all worried. He is still pitching well and just means he will probably spend the rest of the year in AA which is fine. The last thing that you want to do with these pitchers is rush them.
I’m not worried either. I’m just a bit surprised based on what I read about his command. He’s a top prospect and very young. If anything, this confirms he wasn’t ready for the Majors.
Since there was a discussion on WAR earlier, anyone notice how bWAR has pretty much every Yankees hitter ranked lower than fWAR?
Can’t we please have one system? Is that too much to ask??
i like that theres 2 systems… when one has a major loophole in it (fWAR for relief aces for instance), you can use the other one.
They’d have to come to an agreement on a single way to rate players, and I’m guessing there is disagreement, or some holding on to their proprietary ideas. I think what’s confusing is they both go by WAR. If it wasn’t for that, it would be less confusing. Baseball Prospectus uses a different name. Bill James’ Win Shares is another example of a rating system. I’m not sure how WAR became the term for both of Fangraphs and B-R’s rating systems.
It seems Fangraphs approach might have a slightly stronger following by some in the sabre community.
That’s the sense I’ve gotten, but I just find BRef a more accessible and easier to read site, for whatever reason.
What a surprise, Jose Veras is giving up a late inning lead.
He gave a Joba-esque fist pump after that K
Hah, he did. That was a pretty nice pitch. Damn, they have a lot of ex-Yankees.
I had to come back and give one more thought on the franchise draft. It’s difficult to say how someone measures the value of a player from here on out.
For example, Player X has 7 years left with an average of 5 WAR left for 35 total WAR. Player Y has 12 years left of with an average of 4 WAR left fro 48 total WAR. You can mess with the numbers, but you get my gist. Would you rather have player X or player Y?
It gets much murkier when you start thinking about position scarcity. If you chose player X, what if X played 1b and Y played SS. If you chose Y, what if it were vice versa.
I’m on pain medication, so maybe I’m just loopy. In that case, ignore.
What kind of pain medication? Have an extras?
Seriously, if I’m giving the instructions on picking a player to build my team around, I’m actually going to trend much younger than some of these picks (no way Halladay’s making it), and I would take Trout above Crawford. I would seriously consider Harper, too. I’d take more risk for the potential reward since I’m building a team.
Crawford? Be serious. No way he gets picked. I’m not sure any player over 25 would make my list.
Also, I think the ESPN guys might have done a better job than the Fangraphs guys.
Percocet man!
I tend to agree with you. I would skew younger all the way.
RAB retweeted Davidoff saying Noesi is already en route to replace Sanit. He is not stretched out to start.So if Colon goes on the DL, which looks more than likely at this point, I think Phelps has to be the guy, correct? Also, unless Martin’s injury is alot more serious than previously thought, Montero will not be called up. And even if it is, I dont think he would be called up because of what we know, the organization LOVES Cervelli. I dont think they take him out in favor of a prospect, even though Cervelli has proven he can’t hit and his defense is really slacking this year.
Anyway, on to some more important matters, this is the 2nd time the Yankees have been called out by a former player and I know for a fact that if George were still alive and healthy, he would have already been saying stuff. This is not the Yankees I know and love. I do not see the team who had their teammates back at this point in the season. We have been hit plenty of times this season, yet no retaliation has come. For god sake, it took Ortiz until the 4th Yankee was hit in the Red Sox series to get plunked. I mean if we had the Joba of old, Youkilis would have been on the ground immediately. Thats obvious. But of course, now Joba does not do that. I am getting sick of our guys getting hit and the only 2 people that do something about it are CC and Girardi. Nova, AJ, Garcia and the bullpen need to step the hell up and realize that they need to do something to stop this shit. If Cleveland does not get plunked tomorrow, I will not be happy. I think it is time for Jeter, Posada and Mo to step up and tell this team something must be done. You need to get your guys back. The whole freakin lineup is probably pissed right now because they feel like no one has got their back. So what, the umps have given out warnings. Who cares, we have been at a point where the pitchers need to do something, even if it gets them ejected. They need to show the hitters that they got their backs and boost their morale about this! The Indians deserved to get plunked tomorrow, Freddy! Protect your freakin teammates and earn your pinstripes!
Damn, that’s a lot of words.
Maybe you should sit out the next game.
Or sleep this past week off. You seem pretty heated. Don’t operate heavy machinery lol.
“If George were still alive”
Nope. Stop now.
Brent Lillibridge just saved a two run homer by Coco Crisp. It’s not just against us.
Did anyone else hear that Kei Igawa was promoted to the AAA team?
Just found this regarding Posey-Cousins. Its too funny
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro109khfgWw (SFW)
Genius. I love it.
That is one bad ass picture of Andrew McCutcheon, if there was ever a picture of me looking that awesome it would be the wall paper in every room of the house. Anyways, my top 30 franchise player picks would be something like:
Troy Tulowitzki
Felix Hernandez
Buster Posey (if the injuries were assured to be limited to this year)
Ryan Zimmerman
Joey Votto
Miguel Cabrera
Clayton Kershaw
Evan Longoria
Albert Pujols
Jason Heyward
Ryan Braun
Brian McCann
Hanley Ramirez
Jose Bautista
Andrew McCutcheon
Tim Lincecum
Jay Bruce
Justin Upton
Mike Trout
Roy Halladay
Justin Verlander
Robinson Cano
Adrian Gonzalez
Bryce Harper
David Price
Starlin Castro
Colby Rasmus
Matt Kemp
Jered Weaver
Mike Stanton
Ballpark estimate…I’m more of a “pitcher guy,” as you can see. I get the inherent risk, blah blah fucking blah. However, if a pitcher pitches I dunno…say 700ish innings without a major hitch I’m comfortable taking him over a position player if I feel he’s elite.
You know what? I don’t care what people say about pitchers and the risk.
If they get an injury, so what? Big deal! Suck it up and be a man!
If I were manager, the only way you’d be heading to the DL would be if you lost a limb.
Haha okay maybe not.
I doubt that you particularly care but I think that this is a very strong list, even though I’m not quite so pitcher-inclined. I think Zimmerman is underrated compared to Longoria, but why so much higher?
(Also, I loooooooove Jason Heyward but he seems to be as big an injury risk as pitchers :/)
I’m positive no one will read this comment since most people have better things to do than read saturday night open threads, but realistically he’s not that much higher than Longoria. The players in between the two you can make a case are better bets to start a franchise with than either. Kershaw, Votto, and Cabrera…you can make a case either are better than Zimmerman or Longoria. Prior to this season I thought Zim was a bit more durable than Longoria and a better defender, so I preferred him to Longoria, so that’s the difference between the two right there.
Also, as far as Heyward goes…he’s w
Also, as far as Heyward goes…he’s 21 and recently put on like 20 pounds. Let him get used to his body before we go off making statements like this.
Also, as to pitchers…yes on a macro level they are more injury prone than hitters. However, since this is a franchise draft and we are assessing individual players on the most micro of micro levels, we can throw away the generalizations about players. All players get injured, A-Rod, Longoria, Jeter, and Pujols have all had injury troubles in the past. I think with players with established track records like Lincecum, Felix, Verlander, Price, Lester, etc. the “pitchers are more injury prone” tag should become less important than the player’s individual history. We aren’t drafting prospects here, well in some cases we are but you get my point, we are dealing with fairly known commodities.
I think you nailed your pick Mike. McCutchen should have went much higher. The guys picking players who are near 30 or even past 30 are ridiculous. And the guys picking minor leaguers who have not even played yet are taking far too much of a risk. You want young players who have already produced on the major league level. Premium position even better. McCutchen is a great place to start.