who should i draft with my first pick?

Bat Boy Joined: Feb 05, 2006 Posts: 4

i already have Manny Ramirez,miguel cabrerra and Johan Santana (3 keeper 10 team league). i have the 7th pick in the draft and i figure i will have these options
1-Chone Figgins
2-Paul Konerko
any advice??

i am hoping Travis Hafner will fall to me but doesn't look like it

Manager Joined: Feb 02, 2004 Posts: 56

Hafner
Figgins
Konerko

Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:59 pm

Problem to remember with Hafner is that he will only qualify as a UTIL / DH in a large majority of the leagues.

So, just be aware of position eligibility.

And yes, I would go
Hafner
Figgins
Konerko

Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 4:22 pm

same here

Roto Guru Joined: Mar 10, 2004 Posts: 553

Where is the love for Paul Konerko???

All 3 are good choices..I would have to lean towards Konerko for a couple of key reasons.

1-Half of his games in Chicago's homerdome
2-Jim Thome

Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 5:50 pm

I like Figgins for the multipositionality (saw that "new" word somewhere and love it).

How about Grady Sizemore for the five-tool qualities? Do you think he'll still be around?

Roto Guru Joined: Mar 10, 2004 Posts: 553

You answered your own question Xalz.

"five tool qualities"

Grady has alot of qualities and may be worth a look later on in draft but not at that point.

Dont get swooped up in hype and potential too early in any draft. In an auction setting it is differnt if the price is low and you can scoop a guy like Brady up early for cheap then go for it.

Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 6:33 pm

Hafner
Konerko
Figgins

Roto Guru Joined: Mar 10, 2004 Posts: 553

I meant Grady not Brady

Brougth to you by The League Of Self Correcting Posters

Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 7:48 pm

Yeah, I guess I could be a round early on Sizemore. I have Hafner at #42 overall, Figgins #44, Sizemore #54, and Kornerko #62 on my rankings/projections.

RC '06 projections has 'em: Hafner #18, Figgins #31, Kornerko #32, Sizemore #52.

The difference is RC has the 23-year-old suffering a slight regression (losing a couple of steals, homers, etc), whereas I don't. All things considered, I'll go with his lower perceived value and remind myself I think he'll outperform expectations.

You hit the nail on the head on regarding potential with me, Tony. I put a premium on hitting potential. Sometimes it pays off (I took Bay a lot higher than most last year) and other times it doesn't (Beltre left me a third degree burn on my backside). I usually budget myself two of these "reaching" picks - one in the first 10 rounds and another between 12-17. I'm still highly competitive and it's more fun for me to be a little unorthodox. One of these years I'm going to strike gold with both of them and have two new keepers. All in all, I can't see changing the strategy as Pujols, Bay, and Oswalt are all keepers of mine as a result of it.

I still like Sizemore as an option. Jimmy Rollins would get consideration from me as well if he's available between keepers and the seven rounds.

EDIT: With Manny and Miguel Cabrera as keepers - I'd lean heavily toward getting some steals with the seventh pick for some more balance.

Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 9:20 pm

It amazes me how people contantly ask which player is better than which player without giving any kind of context, and how willing people are to rate players without any criteria.

For all we know this guy could be in a points league where the most valuable category by a long shot is Hit By Pitch (in that case, I'd advise Hafner -- better yet, skip the foreplay and go right to Shea Hillenbrand).

Anyway, in terms of raw numbers, Hafner should get the nod in most formats. Figgins' versatility may be completely meaningless (like in a shallow roto league with weekly moves where Figgins will be your 2B all year) or critically important (like in a H2H league with lots of roster slots and daily moves, where Figgins can be switched from place to place like mad).

The thing is we just don't know.

Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2006 2:01 am

Great Point Rosineater about the league layout and the scoring system. I don't know how anyone can give a sound choice on which player to grab without knowing the format. Hafner is a stud, there is no doubt about it but that position eligibility can strap you badly during a season. Him being only eligible in most leagues as DH/utility brings his value down some. Not saying a lot, but enough to merit some consideration. Especially if you don't have the right combination of players complimenting him. One last thing I would like to point out is Hafner has not had one season yet with over 500 at bats. Just something else to think about. Hafner is a great and promising player, but if I had to choose between picking him or Konerko for this season I would have to go with Konerko and his track record. Just my take.

Roto Guru Joined: Mar 10, 2004 Posts: 553

Rosinator...I have given up on the "waiting for the complete picture" angle on any post and gear my responses towards a general look at the players being mentioned...i think that approach actually helps more people because it is not scenario specific....and it doesnt give you an ulcer

Keep smiling Smile

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2006 5:18 pm

While I agree details are very nice to have for evaluation purposes in threads, I don't post first and foremost for the benefit of the person who starts the thread. The discussion is more important and that the subject interest me. Rosineater may have just been in a "Pet Peeve" frame of mind. Gnasher

What people think of my post or me isn't important. The value is in the ensuing discussion - getting different view points and finding the occassional quiet golden nugget on the forums are my goals. Forums for me are all about a search for knowledge and improving my fantasy skills.

There is a lot of value in Figgins versatility in the draft. Once a team drafts him they are then able to wait for values to develop at their choice of 2B or 3B, possibly the OF. Figgins will likely be among the top producers in all his positions making it much easier to be less concerned about position scarcity inflating draft day values. He could be snatched early then a strategy of drafting top OF'ers could be used, while waiting for that value to develop for your last everyday starter at 2B or 3B. Filling all your needs while others are drafting for an extra position, so to speak, could be very valuable.

Roto Guru Joined: Mar 10, 2004 Posts: 553

If you are playing Chone Figgins as anything but a 2b this season than that woul dmean you already have 2 other quality guys who one qualify at 2b. Chone Figgins overall value and ranking come from he fact that he is not just versatile but he is versatile where you need him. It doesnt always pay off (i.e. Brandon Inge last season..not that he did bad for a catcher, but there was alot more hype on him moving to third and being eligible at catcher from the year before) A-Rod is still great both in the real world and fantasy world but he was worth alot more as a shortstop Wink