Sometimes it seems as though there are as many different ways to play fantasy baseball as there are planned Hollywood blockbusters based on comic book superheroes. While there's no way we could possibly do a mock draft based on each and every imaginable format, we did want to try our hand at one of the more popular formats other than rotisserie: The points league.
First, some ground rules under which we operated for this particular mock draft. We used the standard ESPN settings for this format, meaning a 10-team mixed league with a 25-man roster featuring the following positional breakdown: one of each infield position, five outfielders, one 1B/3B, one 2B/SS, one utility player, nine pitchers (no designations for starters or relievers) and three bench spots.
The drafters this time around, in a randomly selected first-round order, were as follows: Tristan H. Cockcroft, Eric Karabell, Andrew Feldman, Pierre Becquey, Brendan Roberts, Joe Kaiser, me, James Quintong, Derek Carty and Todd Zola taking the turn into the reverse snake.
This particular draft took place on Tuesday, March 24, and news of Hector Olivera's signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers occurred while the proceedings were already underway. We made the decision on the fly to allow him to be selected, should any owner wish to do so. Was he? For that answer, you'll have to read on as I analyze what went down in our draft room, and how big a difference the points format made from our first mock, which was roto.
Pointing things out: Because we're using points and not categories, it behooves the fantasy player to evaluate the talent pool differently. Batters get one point for each total base, run scored, stolen base, walk and RBI and lose a point for each strikeout. Pitchers, on the other hand, get a point for each out they record, an extra point for a strikeout, and five points for either a win or a save. A point is deducted for each walk they allow, two points for each earned run that crosses the plate on their watch, and they lose five points for a loss.
The finer point: An ace like Clayton Kershaw can average more than 20 points per start, so there's no surprise seeing him go to Cockcroft as the overall No. 1 in this format. Mike Trout and the best of the best at the plate tend to average just more than three points per game, so if they play only six times a week, we're looking at "only" 18 points in a weekly scoring period. Add to that the likelihood that a starting pitcher might give you two outings in a week if the rotation falls your way, and you can understand why five of the first 10 picks were SP.
Pointing things out: Another five pitchers go off the board, along with a run of first basemen that typically would be seen going in Round 1 of ESPN roto leagues. When you have a player like Jose Abreu projected to give you 34 home runs and 100 RBIs in a standard league, he merits first-round consideration. When those stats are translated to 134 points that get entirely negated by Abreu's strikeouts, the appeal of the free-swinging slugger diminishes slightly. (Though it should be noted the home runs will still earn Abreu four points each thanks to total bases.)
The finer point: Players with a strong eye at the plate like Michael Brantley get a points league boost. Checking a player's K/BB rate, you'll note that the lower it is, the more valuable he'll be in this format. Brantley's is projected to be 1.15. Jose Bautista, who was selected in the first round, is projected to be an even 1.00. Just another useful stat for you to check against your other findings.
Pointing things out: Players are judged by a single number in points leagues, and it doesn't matter how it is generated. In standard leagues, home runs are more valuable than doubles, because they are a category unto themselves. Not so in points leagues, where two doubles are essentially just as valuable as a round-tripper. That's why Anthony Rendon and Jose Altuve and their potential 40 doubles make them strong third-round selections.
The finer point: A.J., you took a closer in Round 3? If you did that in a rotisserie league, you'd either be laughed out of the room, or at the very least be the recipient of blank stares as if you'd just made llama noises. But in points leagues, having a reliever who may well throw four times in a given week can potentially benefit you as much as, if not more than a starting pitcher should he earn multiple saves. Additionally, the reliever's typical workload restrictions limit the damage of a potentially disastrous outing. There aren't many Carlos Frias blowups to fear from your ninth-inning specialists.
Pointing things out: When it comes to starting pitchers after the top 10 or so, you're really looking at a huge tier where you can ignore the format and simply go with the one who you feel would be the best in real life. Look at Cole Hamels, Jon Lester and Jeff Samardzija, all drafted in this round. In IP, WHIP, K/9 and projected wins is there really anything that stands out? Don't kill yourself trying to find something -- it's not there, and your draft clock is ticking.
The finer point: Take note of Carlos Gomez, who is a first-rounder with an ADP of 8.0 in an ESPN standard rotisserie format. Yet, here we see him going off the board at No. 35 -- and reluctantly so, to Kaiser. In a points format, a walk is truly as good as a hit, so when a player is adding only a handful of free passes to the mix while striking out, on average, once per game, that's putting his points league value in a huge hole.
Pointing things out: Ian Kinsler went in Round 5 in both of our mocks, but I'm not sure why he lasted so long in this one. Of the top 20 hitters in terms of projected points, four are second basemen. Kinsler is No. 18 overall, and a clear part of a tier that was otherwise gone by Round 3. I think because our fantasy group isn't points league-centric, some biases -- such as the way we draft second basemen -- carry over when perhaps they should not.
The finer point: Zola may well succeed with his bookend selections of Sonny Gray and Julio Teheran, but I am skeptical. One stat I harp on in points league formats for SP is K/BB and I try to steer way clear of anyone who isn't at 3.5 or higher. Gray sits at 2.15 and Teheran is 3.26, the only pitchers from my "standard top 20" to sit below my personal threshold for this category.
Pointing things out: Jacoby Ellsbury again went to Roberts in this draft, but instead of with pick No. 26 as he did in our first mock, he lasted all the way until pick No. 65. Even given the added love for pitching in this format and the concern about the outfielder's oblique, that doesn't fully explain the drop. What does is the fact that, for all intents and purposes, stolen bases don't matter. Yes, they're worth an extra point for the successful swiper, but without any category-based significance attached to the feat, there's simply not a ton of weight given to speed.
The finer point: You may have noticed that with my pick of Dellin Betances, I've now gone with closers in three of my first six picks. That's no accident. I often will use a strategy in points leagues wherein I fill as many of my pitching spots as I can -- as well as my three bench spots -- with closers, and then rotate them in and out of my starting lineup to maximize my save opportunities. It's a lot easier than hoping to get wins out of your starters. Ideally, I would have also taken Clayton Kershaw in Round 1 as an anchor to this otherwise all-reliever staff so that I could add a few extra points for IP. Alas, that didn't happen, given my draft position, but I may choose a pitcher whom I deem to be "anchor-worthy" later on.
Pointing things out: Look at the four third basemen selected in these two rounds. You've got Evan Longoria and Kyle Seager (ranked Nos. 3 and 4 in ADP for ESPN standard rotisserie) and then you have Matt Carpenter and Ryan Zimmerman (ranked Nos. 10 and 12). Yet there's practically nothing between the quartet in a points league. Why? It all comes down to how often you get on base and how frequently you strike out.
The finer point: While not an exact science, when pressed for time to make a choice between two players, if their expected playing time is generally equal, subtract each candidate's batting average from his OBP. It's certainly not the only factor, but generally speaking, the higher that number, the better value he is likely to have for points leagues. For our third base foursome, Carpenter's OBP-BA differential was the highest, in part explaining the justification for him to close the large ADP gap from standard leagues.
Pointing things out: If you're not planning to use my particular strategy -- which admittedly works best when you're the only one attempting it -- this is the portion of the draft when the value of the remaining hitters on the board tends to match the remaining relievers on the board. That's why I was not surprised at all to see five closers going off the board in these three rounds.
The finer point: It was also no surprise that Becquey snared Kris Bryant here -- far earlier than his overall hitters projected point total rank of 196 would indicate. Let's face facts: If you want Bryant and the potential that comes with him, better to go in perhaps a round too soon and have him than to wait too long and watch him crank home runs for somebody else. This is even more true when you realize that his overall rank in terms of projected points per game among hitters puts him in the top 75.
Pointing things out: One of the hardest things to do in any draft is to avoid selecting a player as a result of the influence of what other owners have picked. When Cockcroft grabbed Brian McCann, he was the sixth owner to draft a catcher. Devin Mesoraco was clearly the last backstop left in his tier, and four owners still needed to draft a catcher. The game of chicken had begun, and while I do not fault Feldman for being the first to blink in the midst of such a sticky situation, Round 14 may have been a round or two too soon. You'll note, however, that it took until Round 21 for the next catcher to go, so that instant tinge of regret Feldman felt was there for a reason, even if in the grand scheme of things the pick itself was not a bad one.
The finer point: My pick of Phil Hughes as my lone SP was based on the following criteria: As an anchor for my strategy, I want a pitcher who will give me 200-plus innings with a K/BB rate of at least 3.7 and a BB/9 rate of under 1.8. That narrowed my list of potential candidates to just eight pitchers: Kershaw, David Price, Jordan Zimmermann and Masahiro Tanaka were long gone by now, and I wasn't keen on Bartolo Colon or Brandon McCarthy, though I would have taken one if push came to shove. Really, I was just waiting on somebody to select one of Doug Fister or Hughes, and I'd take whoever was left with my next pick. Having a plan in place makes the draft process a whole lot less stressful. The hard part is being able to stick to the plan.
Pointing things out: As you can see, this is the part of the draft where a lot of the potential stolen base leaders reside, including Dee Gordon, Leonys Martin, a healthy (save the eye roll) Coco Crisp and my own personal hero, Billy Hamilton. But when you have low power numbers combined with triple-digit whiff counts, it's going to take a lot to get your points league value any higher than this part of the draft.
The finer point: If you've undertaken a more mainstream strategy in terms of your pitching selection, there are still plenty of bargains to be had at this stage of the game. In this format, Yordano Ventura, Michael Wacha, Dallas Keuchel and R.A. Dickey are all projected to be in the top 50 in terms of season-long points totals for SP.
Pointing things out: Rounding out your starting lineup with upside potential is something you want to strive for in any format. I had Yasmany Tomas and Michael Cuddyer in my queue for Round 19, only to have to scramble and settle for Lucas Duda when they were both stolen from me (and boy, do I hate hearing that sound when someone gets snagged out of my queue). Other than that, team needs -- in terms of what positions everyone has neglected up until the last minute -- are going to dictate more than any other factor which players go off the board at this stage of the draft.
Pointing things out: The final rounds are always a hodgepodge. From aging veterans who may or may not have one more good season in them (Carlos Beltran, Curtis Granderson) to youngsters potentially on the cusp of a breakout campaign (Dalton Pompey, Steven Souza). From closers-in-waiting who may get a chance to shine at some point in 2015 (Ken Giles, Adam Ottavino) to a newly signed Cuban import with potential shoulder issues who we only just learned would be joining the player pool in time for 2015. You might as well roll the dice, because if you're wrong, there are plenty of options waiting for you on the waiver wire.
So there you have it. Our points league mock draft is in the books. Who do you think did the best job of constructing his team? Who completely missed the point of the proceedings? Feel free to point things out to us in the conversation below, and don't forget that there's still plenty of time left before Opening Day. Don't just sit there mocking our mock ... get a group of friends together and start a league of your own today! And most importantly, have fun in the process, because at the end of the day, isn't that the whole point?