Staff Fantasy Baseball Draft: Analysis of Our 12-Team Head-to-Head League
Round 2
| Pick | Overall | Player | Position | Fantasy Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Felix Hernandez | P | Peddle/Barry |
| 2 | 14 | Jose Altuve | 2B | Scott Barrett |
| 3 | 15 | Yasiel Puig | OF | Cory Rindone |
| 4 | 16 | Max Scherzer | P | Jim Sannes |
| 5 | 17 | Robinson Cano | 2B | Nick Friar |
| 6 | 18 | Michael Brantley | OF | Jeff Hicks |
| 7 | 19 | Josh Donaldson | 3B | Dale Redman |
| 8 | 20 | Troy Tulowitzki | SS | Matt van de Merlen |
| 9 | 21 | Hanley Ramirez | SS | Kyle Stanzel |
| 10 | 22 | Ian Desmond | SS | AJ Weinberg |
| 11 | 23 | Bryce Harper | OF | Jacob Adler |
| 12 | 24 | Adrian Gonzalez | 1B | Alex Gutjahr |
Felix Hernandez, a player going in the first round in most standard mixed leagues, goes to Russell Peddle at the turn. Hicks goes with Michael Brantley to pair with Bautista, giving him a nice start in the power department.
It’s a run! Three shortstops go in consecutive picks, ordered Troy Tulowitzki, Hanley Ramirez, and Ian Desmond. The latter goes to AJ Weinberg, who now has two 20-20 players in McCutchen and Desmond.
Alex Gutjahr closes out the round with Adrian Gonzalez, a move that doesn’t sit right with Dale Redman.
“Even if Smalls was going position-specific by grabbing the best first baseman, Gonzalez over Freddie Freeman is a mistake,” Redman said. “With their numbers so similar, you can't discount the nearly eight year age difference between them.”
My pick: Bryce Harper
No, I don’t think you should draft Bryce Harper in the second. I was drafting on my phone, saw time running out, and grabbed (probably) the best hitter remaining. He may in fact be overrated, but he’s just 22 years old and has already hit 20 homers twice in three major league seasons.
I was bailed out of this pick by shipping Harp along with Michael Wacha to Jim Sannes for Max Scherzer and Aramis Ramirez, giving me the 1-2 punch of Kershaw and Scherzer.
