by Danny Boyce
This seemed like it could be fun. I was sent an e-mail for a rotisserie baseball league with a fun twist. The rules:
- Standard rotisserie roster (2 C, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, Corner Infielder, Middle Infielder, Utility Player, 5 OF, 9 P, mix of SP and RP as you please)
- Standard rotisserie scoring (I’m using 12 teams, so a 12 – 1 scoring based on ranks in Runs, Average, HR, RBI, SB, ERA, WHIP, Saves, Wins, and Strikeouts)
- Positions based on rotisseries standards (20 games previous season, 10 games in season)
- This is for players from 1980-2019, individual seasons
- You can only pick one season per player (if you pick Barry Bonds 2001 you cannot take Bonds 2004)
- You can only pick one player per season (if you pick Pedro 1999 you cannot take Manny 1999)
- You can pick no more than six seasons per decade.
I’m putting 12 teams together and let’s just see how they pan out. Because I’m going with 12 teams I’m mixing a couple of things from what were originally rules.
- Originally you could only take one player per team, but since that was just you creating your own, I decided to make the limit two.
- Once a player/season is taken, they are off the board. Originally the rules were that a player/season could be taken by multiple participants.
As an added note an asterisk indicates either a Cy Young or MVP winning season. Let’s have some fun!
Round 1
Team 1: Mike Piazza, 1997
Team 2: George Brett, 1980*
Team 3: Albert Pujols, 2006
Team 4: Dwight Gooden, 1985*
Team 5: Pedro Martinez, 2000*
Team 6: Alex Rodriguez, 2002
Team 7: Roger Clemens, 1986*
Team 8: Rickey Henderson, 1985
Team 9: Alex Rodriguez, 2007*
Team 10: Don Mattingly, 1985*
Team 11: Bret Saberhagen, 1989*
Team 12: Ken Griffey, Jr., 1997*
Only two up the middle positions. Some may be surprised to see Bret Saberhagen in the first round, but let’s not forget just how brilliant he was when healthy. In 1989 he went 23-6 with a 2.16 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP. Remember, rotisserie scoring factors in wins and 30-40 years ago people loved their wins. Might be surprised to see Rickey’s 1985 season as opposed to his 1982 season, but Rickey scored more runs in 1985 and still managed 80 stolen bases. I think Clemens and Gooden are self explanatory, as are both A-Rod picks.
Round 2
Team 12: Greg Maddux, 1995*
Team 11: Mark McGwire, 1998
Team 10: Mike Schmidt, 1980*
Team 9: Manny Ramirez, 1999
Team 8: Randy Johnson, 2002*
Team 7: Eric Gagne, 2003*
Team 6: Ryne Sandberg, 1990
Team 5: Jim Thome, 2002
Team 4: Orel Hershiser, 1988*
Team 3: Cal Ripken, 1991*
Team 2: Curt Schilling, 2001
Team 1: Johan Santana, 2004*
Our first reliever goes in the form of Eric Gagne. I have to make some conscience decisions, as if I’m drafting like 12 different people. In the leagues I was in there was always a minimum of innings you had to meet, so I would stack up on starters, might draft a reliever or two, but probably not. That way, when July would come around and the inevitable guys who were racking up saves needed starters for innings, and I would make a deal or two, pick up a weekly win or two, jump enough the saves standings to earn a few extra points and get in the money. If I draft every team like that, well, duh, we know what happens then. Again, really good averages with power, but you can find a lot of those in a draft like this.
Round 3
Team 1: Chipper Jones, 1999*
Team 2: Joe Mauer, 2009*
Team 3: Steve Carlton, 1980*
Team 4: Wade Boggs, 1987
Team 5: Tom Glavine, 1992
Team 6: Barry Bonds, 2001*
Team 7: Barry Bonds, 1990*
Team 8: Larry Walker, 1997*
Team 9: Roger Clemens, 1987*
Team 10: Pedro Martinez, 1999*
Team 11: Nolan Arenado, 2016
Team 12: Todd Helton, 2000
A few more 20-win pitchers and some peak to go along with Mr. Bonds getting into the mix. I remember 2000 as a fun year because I drafted Pedro with the first overall pick in our work draft. Then in the sixth round I took Todd Helton. See how boring fantasy draft talk can be? As the saying goes, nothing is more interesting that you talking about your fantasy draft, and nothing is less interesting that people talking about their fantasy draft. Let’s move on. I’ll comment only periodically from here on.
Round 4
Team 12: John Tudor, 1985
Team 11: Phil Niekro, 1982
Team 10: Steve Rogers, 1982
Team 9: Randy Johnson, 1995*
Team 8: Troy Tulowitzki, 2011
Team 7: Paul Goldschmidt, 2017
Team 6: Mike Hampton, 1999
Team 5: Jeff Kent, 2002
Team 4: Bret Boone, 2001
Team 3: Cliff Lee, 2008*
Team 2: Roy Halladay, 2010*
Team 1: Clayton Kershaw, 2011*
Round 5
Team 1: Jose Canseco, 1988*
Team 2: Roberto Alomar, 1999
Team 3: Rickey Henderson, 1982
Team 4: Sammy Sosa, 1998*
Team 5: Robin Yount, 1982*
Team 6: Dan Quisenberry, 1983
Team 7: Cal Ripken, 1983*
Team 8: Mike Scott, 1986*
Team 9: Felix Hernandez, 2010*
Team 10: Craig Biggio, 1997
Team 11: Buster Posey, 2012*
Team 12: Chipper Jones, 2001
Round 6
Team 12: Ryne Sandberg, 1984*
Team 11: Roger Clemens, 2001*
Team 10: Francisco Rodriguez, 2008
Team 9: Albert Pujols, 2004
Team 8: Tom Glavine, 1991*
Team 7: Roy Oswalt, 2002
Team 6: Jose Altuve, 2016
Team 5: Roy Halladay, 2003
Team 4: Andres Galarraga, 1996
Team 3: Ivan Rodriguez, 1999*
Team 2: Bobby Thigpen, 1990
Team 1: Ron Guidry, 1983
Round 7
Team 1: Joey Votto, 2010*
Team 2: Jack McDowell, 1992
Team 3: John Smoltz, 1996*
Team 4: Lee Smith, 1992
Team 5: Carlton Fisk, 1983
Team 6: John Olerud, 1993
Team 7: Dennis Eckersley, 1992*
Team 8: Alex Bregman, 2019
Team 9: Lou Whitaker, 1983
Team 10: Rickey Henderson, 1990*
Team 11: Dave Winfield, 1983
Team 12: Corey Kluber, 2014*
Round 8
Team 12: Chris Sale, 2017
Team 11: Albert Belle, 1996
Team 10: Albert Belle, 1998
Team 9: Derek Jeter, 1998
Team 8: Mariano Rivera, 2004
Team 7: Gary Carter, 1985
Team 6: Tim Raines, 1983
Team 5: Derek Jeter, 1999
Team 4: Pedro Martinez, 1997*
Team 3: Curt Schilling, 2004
Team 2: Trevor Hoffman, 1998
Team 1: Jose Mesa, 1995
The beauty of the serpentine draft rule with the back-to-back picks is that Team 12 was able to pick both Sale and Kluber. Kluber’s 2017 might have been better, but
- A Cy Young is a Cy Young in some people’s minds,
- Both of Kluber’s Cy Young seasons were legit Cy Young seasons (not like, say Pete Vuckovich in 1982), and
- 2017 was easily Chris Sale’s best season
So this made the decision making a little easier. Another thing: Ask just about anyone who watched baseball in the 1990’s and 2000’s and they will tell you the two most important players were Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. Combined they only had one Hall of Fame voter not vote for them, yet Mariano Rivera never won the Cy Young and neither of them ever won the MVP. Even odder, Rivera only twice ended up in the top 10 of the MVP voting and never in the top 5 of the Cy Young voting. I find that odd.
Round 9
Team 1: Roberto Alomar, 2001
Team 2: Jason Giambi, 2000*
Team 3: Mike Schmidt, 1983
Team 4: Matt Holliday, 2007
Team 5: Dale Murphy, 1987
Team 6: Mariano Rivera, 1997
Team 7: Mark McGwire, 1996
Team 8: Mike Piazza, 1998
Team 9: Miguel Tejada, 2002*
Team 10: Dale Murphy, 1983
Team 11: Alan Trammell, 1987
Team 12: Ivan Rodriguez, 1996
Round 10
Team 12: Barry Bonds, 1993*
Team 11: David Wells, 2000
Team 10: Craig Kimbrel, 2013
Team 9: Paul Goldschmidt, 2013
Team 8: Trevor Hoffman, 2000
Team 7: Joakim Soria, 2010
Team 6: David Cone, 1988
Team 5: Charlie Blackmon, 2017
Team 4: Yadier Molina, 2012
Team 3: Christian Yelich, 2018*
Team 2: Christian Yelich, 2019
Team 1: George Brett, 1985
Another fun thing is the number of award winning seasons that are still on the board.
Round 11
Team 1: Jim Rice, 1984
Team 2: Bobby Grich, 1982
Team 3: Jim Johnson, 2012
Team 4: Derek Jeter, 2006
Team 5: Jose Bautista, 2010
Team 6: Clayton Kershaw, 2014*
Team 7: Manny Ramirez, 2005
Team 8: Carlos Delgado, 1999
Team 9: Madison Bumgarner, 2016
Team 10: Mike Piazza, 2000
Team 11: Jose Altuve, 2017*
Team 12: Rickey Henderson, 1986
Round 12
Team 12: Nomar Garciaparra, 1998
Team 11: Vinny Castilla, 1997
Team 10: David Price, 2012*
Team 9: Dale Murphy, 1985
Team 8: Todd Hundley, 1996
Team 7: Mike Trout, 2012
Team 6: Mike Trout, 2019*
Team 5: Justin Verlander, 2011*
Team 4: Ian Kennedy, 2011
Team 3: Bruce Sutter, 1984
Team 2: Mike Trout, 2014*
Team 1: Jim Edmonds, 2000
Round 13
Team 1: Carlos Correa, 2016
Team 2: Cal Ripken, 1984
Team 3: Mariano Rivera, 2011
Team 4: Zack Greinke, 2015
Team 5: Max Scherzer, 2016*
Team 6: Scott Rolen, 2004
Team 7: Mike Schmidt, 1982
Team 8: Dennis Eckersley, 1988
Team 9: John Smoltz, 2003
Team 10: Francisco Lindor, 2019
Team 11: Armando Benitez, 2004
Team 12: Francisco Cordero, 2004
Round 14
Team 12: Trevor Story, 2019
Team 11: Joe Nathan, 2009
Team 10: Bartolo Colon, 2002
Team 9: Jose Valverde, 2011
Team 8: Mookie Betts, 2016
Team 7: Jack Morris, 1984
Team 6: Dave Righetti, 1986
Team 5: Ken Caminiti, 1996*
Team 4: Barry Bonds, 2004*
Team 3: Jeff Kent, 2000*
Team 2: Rod Beck, 1993
Team 1: Doug Drabek, 1990*
Round 15
Team 1: Justin Verlander, 2019*
Team 2: Bret Saberhagen, 1985*
Team 3: Magglio Ordonez, 2001
Team 4: Lance Parrish, 1983
Team 5: Brett Butler, 1985
Team 6: Jason Kendall, 2000
Team 7: Roberto Alomar, 1993
Team 8: Lou Whitaker, 1989
Team 9: Gary Carter, 1984
Team 10: Dan Quisenberry, 1984
Team 11: Matt Kemp, 2011
Team 12: Grady Sizemore, 2007
Round 16
Team 12: Tony Gwynn, 1987
Team 11: David Justice, 1993
Team 10: Shawn Green, 2001
Team 9: Lonnie Smith, 1982
Team 8: Eddie Murray, 1983
Team 7: Trevor Hoffman, 2006
Team 6: Edwin Diaz, 2018
Team 5: Roger Clemens, 1990*
Team 4: Francisco Rodriguez, 2014
Team 3: Jorge Posada, 2007
Team 2: Kenny Lofton, 1996
Team 1: Luis Gonzalez, 2003
I get a lot of grief for not ranking Tony Gwynn as high as many others do. The fact of the matter is that Gwynn will not help in a draft like this because outside of a couple of seasons he’s not helping your team in anything other than batting average. Take his famous 1994 season for example. First, the strike shortened his counting totals. But let’s project them out to a 162 game season. The projections come out to a .394 average, 109 runs scored (would have been only the third time he scored 100 runs in a season), 17 homeruns, 89 RBI, and 7 stolen bases. Compare that to Larry Walker in 1997, or Manny Ramirez in 1999 or many other seasons. Then compare those seasons to Gwynn’s actual totals of .394, 79 runs, 12 homeruns, 64 RBI, and 5 steals. Another interesting fact: Grady Sizemore scored 100+ runs in four consecutive seasons. Injuries are unforgiving.
Round 17
Team 1: Mark Melancon, 2015
Team 2: Zach Britton, 2016
Team 3: Alex Rodriguez, 1998
Team 4: Dale Murphy, 1982*
Team 5: Albert Pujols, 2001
Team 6: Albert Pujols, 2003
Team 7: Kenley Jansen, 2016
Team 8: Armando Benitez, 2001
Team 9: Bob Welch, 1990*
Team 10: Wade Davis, 2018
Team 11: David Ortiz, 2005
Team 12: Clayton Kershaw, 2015
Round 18
Team 12: Zack Greinke, 2009*
Team 11: Joaquin Andujar, 1984
Team 10: Miguel Tejada, 2000
Team 9: Fernando Valenzuela, 1986
Team 8: Nomar Garciaparra, 2003
Team 7: Alex Rodriguez, 2001
Team 6: Dave Stewart, 1987
Team 5: Gerritt Cole, 2019
Team 4: Carlos Delgado, 2003
Team 3: Tim Raines, 1985
Team 2: Andruw Jones, 2005
Team 1: Roger Clemens, 1998
Round 19
Team 1: Darryl Strawberry, 1987
Team 2: Tom Henke, 1987
Team 3: Mark Davis, 1989
Team 4: Francisco Lindor, 2018
Team 5: Lee Smith, 1991
Team 6: Orel Hershiser, 1985
Team 7: Sammy Sosa, 1999
Team 8: Adam Wainwright, 2013
Team 9: Johnny Cueto, 2014
Team 10: Mike Trout, 2016*
Team 11: Jake Arrieta, 2015*
Team 12: Gary Carter, 1982
Round 20
Team 12: Albert Pujols, 2010
Team 11: Mike Piazza, 1999
Team 10: Barry Bonds, 1992
Team 9: Barry Bonds, 1996
Team 8: Grady Sizemore, 2006
Team 7: Ivan Rodriguez, 1997
Team 6: Gary Sheffield, 1996
Team 5: Gio Gonzalez, 2012
Team 4: Jeff Montgomery, 1993
Team 3: Craig Kimbrel, 2014
Team 2: Miguel Cabrera, 2012*
Team 1: Gary Sheffield, 2005
Round 21
Team 1: Benito Santiago, 1996
Team 2: Mike Piazza, 2002
Team 3: Rafael Palmeiro, 1993
Team 4: Albert Belle, 1999
Team 5: Kirby Puckett, 1988
Team 6: Darren Daulton, 1992
Team 7: Greg Holland, 2014
Team 8: Jose Ramirez, 2018
Team 9: Victor Martinez, 2005
Team 10: Frank Viola, 1988*
Team 11: Danny Jackson, 1988
Team 12: LaMarr Hoyt, 1983*
In the last 40 years there are two catchers who led their league in RBI. Gary Carter in 1984 with 106, which might be guessed; he’s a Hall of Famer. The other is not Mike Piazza or Ivan Rodriguez or Ted Simmons or Carlton Fisk. It is Darren Daulton in 1992 with 109.
Round 22
Team 12: John Smiley, 1991
Team 11: Chase Utley, 2008
Team 10: Jason Varitek, 2005
Team 9: Sammy Sosa, 2001
Team 8: Steve Bedrosian, 1987*
Team 7: Edgar Martinez, 2000
Team 6: Ryan Braun, 2010
Team 5: Geovany Soto, 2008
Team 4: Jack Morris, 1986
Team 3: Carlos Gonzalez, 2010
Team 2: Jacoby Ellsbury, 2011
Team 1: Chase Utley, 2006
Round 23
Team 1: Mike Krukow, 1986
Team 2: David Ortiz, 2006
Team 3: Miguel Cabrera, 2013*
Team 4: Joey Votto, 2017
Team 5: Ryan Howard, 2006*
Team 6: Magglio Ordonez, 2007
Team 7: Dave Winfield, 1988
Team 8: Mike Trout, 2015
Team 9: Bryce Harper, 2015*
Team 10: Frank Thomas, 1991
Team 11: Mike Trout, 2018
Team 12: Sammy Sosa, 2002
Whew! That was long (started this on Tuesday, took me until Saturday afternoon to finish) and let me tell you, it’s not easy to think like12 different people, and I think the teams may reflect that.
Some notes:
- There were 74 seasons in which the player won either the MVP, Cy Young, or both.
- The players picked the most were Barry Bonds and Mike Trout (six each), followed by Pujols, Piazza, and Clemens at five each.
- The teams averaged .311, 489 HR, 1536 RBI, 1545 R, 244 SB, 2.56 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 127 W, 157 Sv, and 1501 SO.
Ok, now, let’s see where they stand in each category:
| Team | Avg. | Pts. |
| Team 6 | 0.321 | 12 |
| Team 3 | 0.316 | 11 |
| Team 5 | 0.315 | 10 |
| Team 9 | 0.314 | 9 |
| Team 2 | 0.313 | 8 |
| Team 12 | 0.312 | 7 |
| Team 10 | 0.311 | 6 |
| Team 4 | 0.308 | 5 |
| Team 11 | 0.308 | 4 |
| Team 7 | 0.307 | 3 |
| Team 1 | 0.306 | 2 |
| Team 8 | 0.303 | 1 |
Team 2, which had George Brett 1980 and his .390 average, is fifth. Every team finished with a .300 average, as 55 of the 168 hitters did not clear that sacred mark. Next:
| Team | HR | Pts. |
| Team 11 | 545 | 12 |
| Team 4 | 523 | 11 |
| Team 8 | 506 | 10 |
| Team 7 | 504 | 9 |
| Team 9 | 485 | 8 |
| Team 6 | 484 | 6.5 |
| Team 5 | 484 | 6.5 |
| Team 2 | 473 | 5 |
| Team 12 | 469 | 4 |
| Team 10 | 468 | 3 |
| Team 1 | 465 | 2 |
| Team 3 | 456 | 1 |
Team 11 is headed by Mark McGwire 1998 and his 70. Again the overall leader for this span did not lead their team to the top. Team 6 has Barry Bonds 2001 and his 73, yet they sit sixth in the standings.
| Team | RBI | Pts. |
| Team 11 | 1647 | 12 |
| Team 4 | 1644 | 11 |
| Team 9 | 1610 | 10 |
| Team 7 | 1561 | 9 |
| Team 5 | 1547 | 8 |
| Team 1 | 1527 | 7 |
| Team 6 | 1523 | 6 |
| Team 2 | 1504 | 5 |
| Team 8 | 1489 | 4 |
| Team 3 | 1486 | 3 |
| Team 10 | 1472 | 2 |
| Team 12 | 1425 | 1 |
Team 11 has the highest RBI total despite Mike Trout 2018 (only 79 RBI) and Jose Altuve 2017 (81). Team 9 ranks third despite the era’s top spot was Manny Ramirez 1999 (165).
| Team | R | Pts. |
| Team 12 | 1652 | 12 |
| Team 9 | 1611 | 11 |
| Team 6 | 1577 | 10 |
| Team 8 | 1566 | 9 |
| Team 10 | 1556 | 8 |
| Team 3 | 1553 | 7 |
| Team 4 | 1551 | 6 |
| Team 7 | 1528 | 5 |
| Team 5 | 1510 | 4 |
| Team 11 | 1500 | 3 |
| Team 1 | 1476 | 2 |
| Team 2 | 1458 | 1 |
Amazingly, Jeff Bagwell 2000 (152 runs), the highest of the last 40 years) wasn’t picked. The highest total of the drafted ones were Rickey 1985 (146) and Craig Biggio 1997. Biggio’s team (10) is fifth and Rickey’s (8) is fourth. One more offensive category.
| Team | SB | Pts. |
| Team 3 | 383 | 12 |
| Team 12 | 326 | 11 |
| Team 10 | 314 | 10 |
| Team 8 | 254 | 9 |
| Team 6 | 239 | 8 |
| Team 7 | 234 | 7 |
| Team 2 | 233 | 6 |
| Team 9 | 226 | 5 |
| Team 1 | 220 | 4 |
| Team 11 | 189 | 3 |
| Team 5 | 156 | 2 |
| Team 4 | 148 | 1 |
Finally, the leader of the era pushes his team to the top. Rickey’s 130 thefts pace Team 3. Team 12 features another Rickey season (1986) and also features Tony Gwynn’s best season (1987). OK, so the standings after the offensive categories:
| Team | Avg. | HR | RBI | R | SB | Total |
| Team 9 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 10.0 | 11.0 | 5.0 | 43.0 |
| Team 6 | 12.0 | 6.5 | 6.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 42.5 |
| Team 12 | 7.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 12.0 | 11.0 | 35.0 |
| Team 3 | 11.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 7.0 | 12.0 | 34.0 |
| Team 4 | 5.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 6.0 | 1.0 | 34.0 |
| Team 11 | 4.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 34.0 |
| Team 7 | 3.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 33.0 |
| Team 8 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 4.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 33.0 |
| Team 5 | 10.0 | 6.5 | 8.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 30.5 |
| Team 10 | 6.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 8.0 | 10.0 | 29.0 |
| Team 2 | 8.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 6.0 | 25.0 |
| Team 1 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 7.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 17.0 |
Now onto the pitching. I must say that this was difficult for me. In my past experiences I was always willing to tank saves and build up on starters in order to rack up strikeouts and wins while not risking a bad outing by a reliever or two screwing up my ERA or WHIP. Had to shake that mentality a few times.
| Team | ERA | Pts. |
| Team 4 | 2.32 | 12 |
| Team 6 | 2.45 | 11 |
| Team 2 | 2.45 | 10 |
| Team 3 | 2.48 | 9 |
| Team 12 | 2.48 | 8 |
| Team 10 | 2.53 | 7 |
| Team 7 | 2.54 | 6 |
| Team 5 | 2.56 | 5 |
| Team 8 | 2.57 | 4 |
| Team 9 | 2.63 | 3 |
| Team 1 | 2.69 | 2 |
| Team 11 | 2.90 | 1 |
Team 4 is anchored by Dwight Gooden 1985, Pedro Martinez 1997, and Zack Greinke 2015, each below 2.00. Team 11 was “hurt” by three starters with ERA’s above 3.30.
| Team | WHIP | Pts. |
| Team 12 | 1.00 | 12 |
| Team 5 | 1.00 | 11 |
| Team 1 | 1.01 | 10 |
| Team 4 | 1.02 | 9 |
| Team 7 | 1.04 | 8 |
| Team 2 | 1.04 | 7 |
| Team 8 | 1.04 | 6 |
| Team 3 | 1.05 | 5 |
| Team 11 | 1.09 | 4 |
| Team 9 | 1.09 | 3 |
| Team 6 | 1.09 | 2 |
| Team 10 | 1.10 | 1 |
The top three teams all have one thing in common, which you will notice in a little bit. Team 10 has three pitchers who won the Cy Young in the season they were drafted for. Only Team 11 and Team 6 had fewer.
| Team | W | Pts. |
| Team 5 | 172 | 12 |
| Team 12 | 154 | 11 |
| Team 1 | 151 | 10 |
| Team 11 | 149 | 9 |
| Team 4 | 141 | 8 |
| Team 9 | 136 | 7 |
| Team 6 | 121 | 5.5 |
| Team 10 | 121 | 5.5 |
| Team 8 | 104 | 4 |
| Team 3 | 103 | 3 |
| Team 2 | 96 | 2 |
| Team 7 | 76 | 1 |
Notice the similarities with this and WHIP. Let’s see the other correlation:
| Team | Sv | Pts. |
| Team 7 | 288 | 12 |
| Team 2 | 234 | 11 |
| Team 3 | 231 | 10 |
| Team 8 | 224 | 9 |
| Team 10 | 199 | 8 |
| Team 6 | 191 | 7 |
| Team 4 | 133 | 6 |
| Team 1 | 97 | 5 |
| Team 9 | 94 | 3.5 |
| Team 11 | 94 | 3.5 |
| Team 12 | 49 | 2 |
| Team 5 | 47 | 1 |
Team 5 and Team 12 both only have one reliever, while Team 1 only has two. Team 7 and Team 2 both show the same features. And finally:
| Team | SO | Pts. |
| Team 5 | 1960 | 12 |
| Team 12 | 1826 | 11 |
| Team 9 | 1786 | 10 |
| Team 1 | 1640 | 9 |
| Team 4 | 1571 | 8 |
| Team 8 | 1439 | 7 |
| Team 11 | 1411 | 6 |
| Team 10 | 1333 | 5 |
| Team 6 | 1314 | 4 |
| Team 3 | 1300 | 3 |
| Team 2 | 1292 | 2 |
| Team 7 | 1139 | 1 |
Team 7 shows a big part of why I don’t go with relievers. Here are the pitching standings:
| Team | ERA | WHIP | W | Sv | SO | Total |
| Team 12 | 8.0 | 12.0 | 11.0 | 2.0 | 11.0 | 44.0 |
| Team 4 | 12.0 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 43.0 |
| Team 5 | 5.0 | 11.0 | 12.0 | 1.0 | 12.0 | 41.0 |
| Team 1 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 5.0 | 9.0 | 36.0 |
| Team 2 | 10.0 | 7.0 | 2.0 | 11.0 | 2.0 | 32.0 |
| Team 3 | 9.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 10.0 | 3.0 | 30.0 |
| Team 8 | 4.0 | 6.0 | 4.0 | 9.0 | 7.0 | 30.0 |
| Team 6 | 11.0 | 2.0 | 5.5 | 7.0 | 4.0 | 29.5 |
| Team 7 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 12.0 | 1.0 | 28.0 |
| Team 9 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 7.0 | 3.5 | 10.0 | 26.5 |
| Team 10 | 7.0 | 1.0 | 5.5 | 8.0 | 5.0 | 26.5 |
| Team 11 | 1.0 | 4.0 | 9.0 | 3.5 | 6.0 | 23.5 |
And to add the hitting and pitching totals:
| Team | Hitting | Pitching | Total |
| Team 12 | 35.0 | 44.0 | 79.0 |
| Team 4 | 34.0 | 43.0 | 77.0 |
| Team 6 | 42.5 | 29.5 | 72.0 |
| Team 5 | 30.5 | 41.0 | 71.5 |
| Team 9 | 43.0 | 26.5 | 69.5 |
| Team 3 | 34.0 | 30.0 | 64.0 |
| Team 8 | 33.0 | 30.0 | 63.0 |
| Team 7 | 33.0 | 28.0 | 61.0 |
| Team 11 | 34.0 | 23.5 | 57.5 |
| Team 2 | 25.0 | 32.0 | 57.0 |
| Team 10 | 29.0 | 26.5 | 55.5 |
| Team 1 | 17.0 | 36.0 | 53.0 |
If anyone thinks there are lessons in this, they clearly looked deeper into this than I did doing it. It was solely to have a bit of fun during a boring time in our country’s history. But if there are a few things (some we should already know, but for fun) . . .
- Fantasy baseball does not always work like real baseball. The team that won put just about zero stock in closers. And many of the pitchers taken were based on their wins, to boost that category.
- Batting average is important, but secondary skills matter more. It’s one thing to hit .300. It’s something else to hit .300 with power and walks. And if you can add in some speed on the base paths, even better. Give me the power and patience over the guys just trying to make contact and hope it drops safely. Average shows up on the TV screen; secondary skills show up on the scoreboard.
- Strikeouts are huge for pitchers. This should make sense, but you will still occasionally get someone who thinks the pitcher should just have the hitters put the ball in play. Here’s a simple exercise: make a list of 10, 20, 30, whatever number pitchers with 200 career wins. Pick whoever you want. Whatever era. Whatever handed. American or National League. They will pretty much all have a strikeout rate above the league average in the early phases of their careers.
Otherwise, we basically learned that drafts can be very time consuming. Hope you enjoyed it.