In this post I'll give you a rundown of the players I picked and my overall draft performance; what I did right, where I went wrong, and how you can avoid being an idiot and leaving $52 on the table. Yeah, I did that.
Without further a do, let's look at my first pick:
Miguel Cabrera, Det 1B - $30
Let's make one thing clear. Not a single draft strategy of mine set out to pick a Tiger with my first overall pick but I guess that's what fate had in store for me. Ahead of the draft my strategy was to avoid overpaying for superstars. Trout, Betts, Arenado and Altuve naturally went off the board fast but for prices that surprised me. Altuve only sold for $35 but I didn't chase him as I considered second base to have depth and my real target was Paul Goldschmidt. Goldy hits for average and power, plus he's a 30 steals man, which is rare for a first baseman. But as the bidding crept over $42, I stupidly decided not to go any further. I figured Trout only went $46, and I wasn't gonna go that high. I'm a fool and should have been more aggressive.
As more players came off the board I felt I was going to miss out on one of the elite position guys, and I decided I had to act with the 13th pick. Cabrera wasn't getting much attention and despite being a Tiger, he still performs at an elite level and he's consistent too. In his 14 year career he's hit under .300 each season just three times, the last time being 2008. When no one raised Cabrera's price above $30, I felt I'd picked up a minor steal. I considered Cabrera to be at least a $35 player so I got him at a very respectable price. May he hit 45 home runs this year but strike out in every plate appearance against the Tribe!
Charlie Blackmon, Col OF - $33
I didn't hang around with my next pick and won Blackmon for $33 with the 15th overall pick; he eventually turned out to be my highest priced player. Charlie is coming off the back of a sensational 2016 season and posted great numbers in every offensive category (.324 batting average, 111 runs, 29 homers, 82 RBI and 17 stolen bases.) Playing in the thin Colorado air of Coors Field, I have a good feeling Blackmon could repeat his numbers from last year, maybe even improve on them if the Rockies are better in 2017 (as they're predicted to be.) I had no problem at all ponying up $33.
Edwin Encarnacion, Cle 1B - $22
Next up was Indians new boy Encarnacion. Hey, I had to have one Cleveland guy on my team! Similar to Cabrera, Edwin wasn't getting a lot of love from the other draftees and I managed to snatch him up for just $22. Even though I'd already taken a first baseman, I felt having two of the very best on my team could only be a good thing, and I can play them both at the same time thanks to the 1B/3B position. Either one of them could make a great trade chip in the future should I need an upgrade in the pitching department. Edwin clubbed his first homer as an Indian in last night's Opening Day win in Texas. Here's to many more!
Andrew McCutchen, Pit OF - $12
It was when McCutchen came calling that I began to get a little more active. I started to notice many of my league-mates had already amassed quite a few players and I was lagging behind a little. I was still unwilling to overpay, especially for pitchers, and I was always on the look out for bargains. When I bid $12 for Cutch, I fully expected the bidding to continue. I had not planned to own him at all, considering he had a down year in 2016. But all of a sudden I became the owner of a brand new Andrew McCutchen, albeit unintentionally. I'm happy I got him at a decent price though and my fingers are crossed he channels his old self in 2017.
Jose Ramirez, Cle 3B - $11
Another Indians player but one I had prioritized early on. Ramirez is not only a very good player who can put up good numbers in every category, he's also incredibly versatile. He's third base and outfield eligible already, but because I knew Jason Kipnis was going to miss a big chunk of April, I had the knowledge that Ramirez is going to play a lot of second base, hopefully adding another string to his fantasy bow. If I can play him over 3 positions, I can utilize him a lot. For $11 I felt I had another steal.
Christian Yelich, Mia OF - $17
Yet another player I thought I underpaid for. I expected Miami's Yelich to easily clear $20+ so I was surprised nobody challenged my bid of $17. Giancarlo Stanton has the power numbers and gets most of the attention but personally I think Yelich is the Marlins' best all-around talent in their outfield, plus he hasn't missed as much time as Stanton has.
Kyle Seager, Sea 3B - $15
Seager was a player I targeted very early on when I was planning my tactics ahead of this draft. I was over the moon to grab him for just $15. He had a career year in 2016 and the Mariners plan to go one better this season by making the post season, and Seager will be a huge part of that. Despite my pick-up of Ramirez earlier, I plan to deploy him all over the place and keep Seager as my de facto third baseman.
DJ LeMahieu, Col 2B - $14
LeMahieu was one of the reasons I wasn't too fussed that I missed out on Altuve earlier. Don't get me wrong, Altuve is one of the best players in the league and LeMahieu isn't on that level but the Rockie will still put up very good numbers, especially batting average. I had no problem parting with $14.
Cody Allen, Cle RP - $8
You may have noticed that this is my first pitcher, and that was partly my plan. My strategy all along was not to pay premium prices for pitchers, as I feel there's a lot to gain from spending little on the under-the-radar pitchers, who will still provide great value. However at this stage I needed somebody. Well Cody Allen is a pretty good somebody and despite Andrew Miller being the Tribe's best relief pitcher, it will still be Allen called upon for save opportunities.
Elvis Andrus, Tex SS - $5
To fill my shortstop vacancy I only ever had eyes for Francisco Lindor but yet again I was being too conservative. Lindor sold pretty early on for $25 and at the time I felt I didn't want to pay more than that. Little did I know I would later have plenty of extra cash to throw at players just like Lindor! Most of the top shortstops had gone when Andrus was nominated, even Dansby Swanson, a guy I was keen on. So when Andrus came up I wasn't going to miss out, and was thrilled to pay just $5.
Matt Harvey, NYM SP - $6
When I grabbed Harvey with the 155th overall pick, the feeling that I had messed up began to dawn on me. I had way more cash than everyone else and quickly saw that players were selling for cheaper prices now, nobody was being drafted for double digit dollars. I had no problem shelling out $6 for Harvey, but I was a bit annoyed with myself that I hadn't gotten any of the top arms earlier, especially when I realised I could have easily afforded them. Still, if healthy I think Harvey should provide me with some decent points.
Brandon Maurer, SD RP - $2
I know it's only two bucks, but I still felt I overpaid slightly for Maurer. He's the Padres' closer and I still needed pitchers at this point. He was chucked out there for a dollar and I thought I'd put a bid in, to raise the price up a bit. Little did I know that nobody else was interested and all of a sudden he was mine. Hey, at least he should get me some early season saves and hopefully he can hold onto the job all year long.
Byron Buxton, Min OF - $7
Buxton is another guy I didn't originally plan for but it seemed like a lot of people were down on the former number one prospect. I'm not expecting greatness either but I think he could be decent and likely to be one of the top guys on a sub-par Twins team. At the very least Buxton should keep his job in centre field this year.
Yasiel Puig, LAD OF - $1
Perhaps my largest mistake right here. A few of the guys in my league are Dodgers fans and had been chatting about Puig prior to the draft beginning so I thought I'd chuck him out there when my nomination came round and watch the Dodgers fans fight over him, hopefully bleeding them of their budgets. Nobody bit though, not even the Dodgers fans. As the seconds ticked by, I realised, "Shit, I'm going to actually draft Puig..." But hey, for a dollar I can always cut him and won't lose any sleep about it. If he somehow chooses this year to realise the potential that he flashed briefly in 2013, then I look like a genius. I don't expect this to happen.
Ben Zobrist, ChC 2B - $4
Similar to Ramirez, I snatched up Zobrist for his versatility, and considering he's going to bat somewhere in that stacked Cubs lineup, he's gonna score runs.
Joc Pederson, LAD OF - $5
The way I see it, Joc has already repaid me, thanks to his grand slam yesterday. I figure he's a good bet to earn me points in home runs and maybe some stolen bases and that's about it.
James Paxton, Sea SP - $3
I needed another pitcher, as I had only gotten three up to this point. Paxton was still on the board and honestly I don't know what to expect from him. All of the pre-season projections I've read reckon he'll have a good year and hopefully being in a pitcher's park like Safeco will help.
J.T. Realmuto, Mia C - $4
A catcher that hits dingers and steals bases? Take my money. I was surprised he was still available so late on in the draft.
Jim Johnson, Atl RP - $1
Finally a pitcher I had planned to draft all along. I fully expected someone else to bid for Johnson but alas he was mine, for just a dollar too.
Rajai Davis, Oak OF - $1
After my mistake with Puig, I wanted an outfielder I actually planned on using and World Series hero Rajai Davis was still available. He's likely to lead off for the A's to begin the year and he'll really help me out with my steals.
Asdrubal Cabrera, NYM SS - $2
Oh Asdrubal, a once-upon-a-time favourite player of mine. I was sad when he left Cleveland. But considering I drafted him as my backup shortstop, I think I got a steal. Dude is still consistent at the plate and he's off to a great start for me already, with a multi-hit performance and a stolen base in yesterday's Mets opener.
Ian Kennedy, KC SP - $1
J.A. Happ, Tor SP - $1
Ivan Nova, Pit SP - $2
Vince Velasquez, Phi SP - $1
It was these final four picks, right at the end of the draft, where I executed my pitching strategy. My goal all along was to targets these guys, or pitchers just like them. Low cost, high reward players who come with a bit of risk but I'm happy to take that chance given the pennies I paid for them. I am especially happy with getting the ever-consistent Kennedy and the promising Velasquez.
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Final Thoughts
I had $260 to spend and I finished with $52 left over. That's a rookie mistake, plain for all to see, but a rookie is exactly what I am where auction drafts are concerned. I was pretty annoyed with myself, because I could have easily spent way more in the early rounds and gotten one of the mega stars like Altuve or Betts, who both went for less than $40.
However I'm actually very happy with the way my team came out. On first appearances my pitching looks weak but then I have some very good hitters in positions where I have depth, so my plan is to potentially trade one or two of them further into the season for a pitching upgrade (if necessary.)
Whatever the result is at the end of the season, I really enjoyed my first auction draft and I'm very keen to do more in the future. Only time will tell how my team performss but with the right moves, I think my team has what it takes to contend (or be respectable at least!)
Thanks for reading.
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