Real Auction: 12-Team NL-Only
Wednesday night I participated in a 12-team NL-only auction in a challenge run by Dave Gawron of RotoCommunity.com. This was part of a three-team competition among various fantasy sites, which included a mixed league as well as an AL-only squad.
The competition was tough and I have no illusions about winning this league. My main hope is not to sink the hopes of the other two teams for the site I was representing.
I went in with the plan of not paying more than $30 for any player. I was going to punt AVG and put a little more money towards pitching. My goal was to have a strong OF and end up with two closers. I ended up with the following team:
Ryan Doumit – $13
Jason Castro – $1
Adam Dunn – $25
Clint Barmes – $10
Troy Glaus – $14
Stephen Drew – $17
Rafael Furcal – $9
Mark DeRosa – $11
Jason Bay – $26
Michael Bourn – $19
Nate McLouth – $16
Chris Young – $8
Scott Hairston – $1
Justin Maxwell – $4
Luke Gregerson – $1
Jason Marquis – $2
Tim Hudson – $6
Jorge de la Rosa – $9
Ubaldo Jimenez – $21
Brandon Webb – $10
Heath Bell – $16
Felipe Paulino – $2
Chad Qualls – $18
Best buys – McLouth, Hudson, Bell
Worst buys – Glaus, Glaus, Qualls
Cautiously optimistic – Young, Webb
Fingers crossed – Barmes, Bourn
I was surprised both at how quickly the big boys were nominated and how much money was spent early in this auction. My first five buys – Bay, Dunn, Bourn, Jimenez and Bell – were ones I had valued differently than others, as I had them going for more, while seemingly everyone else purchased early went above where I thought they would.
It seemed like everything was going as planned. I was waiting for prices to drop in the middle and then I was going to scoop up the bargains. But for me those bargains never materialized. All of the guys I was targeting went for more money than I was prepared to bid. Then I found myself in a bad place – plenty of money and no one at key positions to spend it on.
Two days later I still can’t believe the money I spent on Glaus. I was hoping for Mark Reynolds but he was too expensive. I thought Casey Blake was too pricey at $11 but that was a bargain compared to what I was left holding. Even Chipper Jones would have been a better buy. Let’s just move on.
The other thing I wish I had done differently was spend on relievers early. Seemingly there was no premium on high-end closers but near the end, everyone started bidding up the third and fourth-tier guys. The owner who snagged Francisco Rodriguez at $15 did a lot better than the rest of us. While I paid too much for Qualls, I don’t think it was a crippling blow.
The middle infielders I ended up with were very surprising. I was targeting Phillips, Uggla or Weeks but each went for more money than I was expecting. Uggla went for $18 and I wish I had tried $19. But if Barmes holds on to the position, he could be a nice addition. I can live with the AVG if he puts up another 20 HR season.
Drew was a guy I thought was going to have a big year in 2009, so hopefully he comes through here one year later. I did not expect to pay $9 for my MI, but I thought that was a nice value for Furcal. Ryan Theriot went for $15 and Alcides Escobar for $17.
Generally, I am not a McLouth fan, but he is much more appealing when AVG is a lesser concern. The one thing I did right in the auction was to nominate Corey Hart immediately after I won McLouth. Hart ended up going for the same $16, which seems crazy to me. Nor am I a big Young fan. But he is only 26 and I am hoping that his production after he was recalled from the minors last year is indicative of what he will give in 2010.
Times have changed when a fantasy owner is happy about having two SP for the Rockies but I like both of these guys. The key for me is how soon Webb can return to the mound. If he only misses a month and comes back at 90 percent of what he was, then I will be happy.
I would prefer to have less risk (Doumit, Barmes, Glaus, Webb) and more upside but at the same time a little risk is a good thing. Now that it is over, my goal is to pull at least 75 points with this team. Do you think that is realistic?
interesting strategy. i plan to sluff catcher in my upcoming NL-only auction, because it’s the one position where you can always find ABs off the wire (in a one catcher league). i also plan to go cheap on MI–a guy like brendan ryan for $3 would be fine. i’ll use the extra $$ to pay for a premium player or two (braun and broxton are two targets).
could you please post a link to the complete auction results?
It’s a private league, so I don’t think it will let you access it. Here is the link
http://rctcnl.baseball.cbssports.com/draft/results?tag=pageRow;pageContainer
Correct, we can’t access it. What’s your username and password? Haha
was it chris young hitter or pitcher? I think $8 would be a bit much for either
OF
The draft guide at CBS Sports has him listed at $15
http://sports.cbsimg.net/images/fantasy/baseball/spln/draft/draft_guide_NL.pdf
A lot of ifs on this team. Good luck. You’ll need it.
I think a strategy of not spending more than $30 on any one player is silly. You’re just forfeiting the ability to get any really solid impact players. Why handicap yourself needlessly? And you forfeited batting average so you could spend more on pitching? You spent only $87 on pitching. Thats not a lot more than average. Oh, and the best approach to batting average is don’t pay attention to it, which means don’t consciously draft low average or high average.
Biggest mistake was taking Qualls at $18. You don’t need two closers to compete. You can find saves later. Get a $1 pitcher and that remaining $17 would’ve been better used on hitting. Also Doumit for $13? Yuck. I almost never spend on catcher. I see that extra $12 as money better spent elsewhere.
That said, this team is probably pretty decent. You don’t have too many holes, and I do like Hudson and Jimenez (and Furcal is a nice price), but I also don’t see a lot of upside either. Without seeing the other teams in the league, I’d guess this team could finish in third (best case), but could also end up in fifth or sixth.
Thanks Pauly.
I think Doumit at $13 is fair. The CBS link I listed earlier has him at $10 while Razzball lists him at $18
Of course the big risk is him staying healthy.
I share the concerns about upside. Hopefully one or two of the risky guys plays a full season and my upside is found there.
If a person or two would like to join an NL auction league drafting online this Sunday, shoot me an e-mail at bluejays01 @ yahoo.com for more details.
Sorry for the quickie advert…back to your regularly scheduled programming.
Mclouth is not a best buy at all
GREGERSON BEST BUY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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