LoC Standings Update

The MLB 2012 season is a week in (well, a week + 2 days if you count the games in Japan).  At the end of the first week Ravishing Ricky Bo has taken a slim lead compiling a total of 293 points.  Benefiting RRB is the performace of Javy Guerra who has contributed 4 saves so far...not bad for a player taken extremely late in the draft.   Having Roy Halladay also helps.  The race is pretty tight at the top five, with some breathing room being created from the bottom three.   Braunovan, to my surprise hasn't made a single move yet (this is after all the team that made the most moves last season).  

Top 10 Hitters (based on Yahoo! Rankings)

1) Matt Kemp

2) David Freese

3) Miguel Cabrera

4) Yoenis Cespedes

5) Austin jackson

6) Pablo Sandoval

7) Carlos Beltran

8) Ian Kinsler

9) Corey Hart
10) Omar Infante

Top 10 Pitchers (based on Yahoo! Rankings)

1) Chad Billingsley
2) Roy Halladay
3) Aroldis Chapman
4) Kyle Lohse
5) Javy Guerra
7) Stephan Strasburg
8) Fernando Rodney
9) Jeff Samardzija;
10) Barry Zito

Fear Franchise..

You gotta feel for Fear Franchise...he tossed out Josh Johnson for opening night in Miami only to have him shelled by the St. Louis Cardinals lineup and more specifically David Freese (Vancouver Canadians), who went 3-5 with a run scored and 2 RBIs.   Still Franchise managed to pick up 17 points on the evening thanks to Jason Motte earning the save...which almost didn't happen.   Undrafted Kyle Lohse cruised through 8 innings of 2 hit ball to earn the first win of the season for the Cardinals.

In other league news...Team Avenger has become the Westboro Knights...I'd have preferred something like "Horse walks into Aybar"...not much to add this morning to the blog, but in light of Yu Darvish's arrival to MLB baseball, lets take a look at why the Japanese really love baseball...

GAME ON!!!

Alright now that the MLB 2012 season started it's time to get serious.   But first...check out the video!

One game on the slate tonight...The Miami Marlins taking on the St. Louis Cardinals, Kyle Lohse vs. Josh Johnson.   We get a chance to new the new 3B-SS combo in Miami, as Hanley Ramirez and Jose Reyes take to the field together.

St. Louis has lost Chris Carpenter to injury already, but the biggest off season loss was the departure of Albert Pujols to the Angels.  Can Adrian Beltre replace Pujols offensive numbers?  

Most teams take to the field tomorrow and the opening weeks should see many of the teams jockeying for position.  Now I know all the projections were done along with the team reviews...but just before all the scoring starts taking place, I took one last look at the numbers and re-adjusted them to account for player movements.  To make it really simple, I the value of your bench players were divided in half...and with that the rankings ended up looking like this...

Rank	Team
1	Vancouver Canadians
2	Braunovan
3	Toronto Blue Jays
4	Ravishing Rickybo
5	Riverside Southpaws
6	The Buckmartinez-ez
7	Hooter Hunters
8	Alkickurass
9	Under Ceege
10	Situ-Asians
11	Bulgarian Great "8"
12	Team Avenger
13	Siba Style
14	Fear Franchise

 

Team Preview - Part IV

Riverside Southpaws Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
4	12	7	5	3	6

The Riverside Southpaws seemed to have found balance in their lineup despite drafting nothing but pitchers for the first seven rounds of the draft.  

Miguel Montero, Lance Berkman, Ryan Robert, Mark Reynolds and JJ Hardy form the Southpaws infield.   I'm in doubt that Berkman will find the bounceback form he had a couple of seasons ago.   Mark Reynolds simply strikes out to much to be effective in this format, and the JJ Hardy we saw last year...well I doubt he'll make an appearence this year.  Montero is probably the only saving grace here...

I'm just gonna say that this OF and it's project ranking...is just completely off.  David Ortiz is not going to get 400 fantasy points...Chris Young and Tori Hunter...are all overrated.  Carlos Beltran is good, but he won't replace Pujols in St. Louis' lineup.

Despite drafting nothing but pitchers for the, I don't think this is all that great of a starting rotation.  Cole Hamels and Dan Haren are without a doubt great starters, but after that it gets a bit tricky.  James Shields and Ricky Nolasco?  Ok, I can give some credit for Shields - but Nolasco?  As good as Michael Pineda was last year, 2012 doesn't look like such a good season for the Yankees and Pineda.  He's already on the DL with shoulder tendenitous. 
Coming off the bench, RSP have Chris Carpenter (another DL candidate) and the erratic Carlos Zambrano.  

The real gems on this roster might be the two closers.  Jose Valverde may have a great year in Detroit, closing out games for the Tigers and JJ Putz may become the leagues best closer this year pitching for the Diamondbacks. 

I wouldn't say there are any exceptional names on the reserve roster, but RSP can be happy they have aging veterans Chipper Jones and Alfonsio Soriano riding the pine for them.  

Braunovan Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
3	5	9	4	4	8

Honestly, this was one of two really big surprises for me when I was doing the projected rankings.  But this is what the numbers say.  Braunovan's second entry into Fantasy Baseball resulted in a far better team. 

JP Arencibia, Miguel Cabrera, Howie Kendrick, Adrian Beltre and Elvis Andrus form the core infield for Braunovan.  Cabrera just kinda fell to Braunovan given the slew of SP taken with the first three picks.   All should produce.  If that doesn't work there is always Brendon Belt, Danny Espinosa and Jared Saltalmacchia on the bench. 

The teams OF/Util is fairly young (with exception of Johnny Peralta).  Hunter Pence and Alex Gordon are former high end prospects that are starting to show signs of stardom.   Brian LaHair was a surprise entry in the OF rankings for this team, outshinning the strikeout mast Jayson WErth. 

Matt Cain, Matt Garza, Ervin Santana and Wandy Rodriguez share the starting rotation with Josh Beckett.  The only real concerns here are Rodriguez playing in Houston and Beckett's recently announced thumb injury.   Edwin Jackson, and Randy Wolf are waiting in the wings to fill in.

I happen to love these two closers on Braunovan's roster.  Greg Kimbrel should dominate once again, but Joel Hanrahan will surprise some with his work in Pittsburgh. 

Toronto Blue Jays Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
2	2	1	14	14	1

I seem to remember reading someone elses predictions for this team and it wasn't all that flattering, but than again I don't agree with how those "other" projections were produced.   How this team finished 11th on those standings confounds me.

Jesus Montero, Albert Pujols, Brian Phillips, Ryan Zimmerman and Yunel Escobar represents a strong infield put together by the TBJ.   Montero is going to be a monster, even in that Seattle ballpark.   This could also be the year that Yunel Escobar becomes an elite SS. 

The OF/Util positionning of Ryan Braun, Josh Willingham, Nick Markakis and Prince Fielder is just dominating and should produce a ton of ponts for the TBJ.   This allows the team to reserve Andre Either and Desmond Jennings that should pay dividends as injuries occur. 

What I am not a fan of on this team is the pitching staff.  Ubaldo Jimenez is the ace?  Likely not...Matt Moore will take the reigns and lead this rotation.  Jordon Zimmerman, Nefateli Feliz and Gavin Floyd fill out the rotation, with Henderson Alverez and Bartolo Colon waiting on the wings. 

The TBJ will need Greg Holland to get the closer role in KC for this pairing of closers to work out.   Still Francisco Rodriguez could be traded and provide a source of points for the TBJ down the road.  

Vancouver Canadians Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
1	8	2	3	2	2

I guess sometimes you need to be given a last place belt and the duty to write down draft picks for all teams in order for one to become the highest pre-season ranking team.  Maybe paying attention to the whole draft gives you an advantage...in either case the Vancouver Canadians have the opportunity to go from worst (sorta) to First this year and has built the lineup to do it.

The infield consists of the underrated Yadi Molina, the returning Justin Morneau, the emerging Jeff Kipnis and David Freese and the happy to be on a new team...Jose Reyes.   A pretty good infiend that will produce points. 

The OF/Util is kinda interesting.  I really like the Matt Holliday and Josh Hamilton combination, but I really think Melky Cabrera and CoCo Crisp are overrated players...especially Crisp and his projected 434 points. 

The starting rotation here is already hampered by Ryan Vogelsong, who will start the season DL.  Jared Weaver, Juir Jurrjens and Jonny Cueto provide the MLB veteran presence...but the real star here could be Yu Darvish.  Darvish to me will become the ace of the Rangers staff and really be a force this year. 

Closer wise, the VC did well by drafting Mariano Riveria during his farewell tour of the majors, but Kyle Farnsworth has been diagnoised with elbow issues and start the season on the DL. 

The VC bench is deep and holds plenty of replacements and potential.   RA Dickey, Mark Buehrle should be adequate substitutes in case a starter falters, and who knows maybe Mitch Moreland will emerge as a force this year. 



With that the tour of LoC teams is complete.  Good luck to everyone and remember...these were just projections and have nothing to do with how the season will play out.  Trade well and prosper everyone. 

Season Preview - Part III

Situ-Asians 2.0 Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
8	10	4	12	8	5

With the exception of Adrian Gonzalez, the Situ-Asians 2.0 infield will need a lot of help to help this team climb up the LoC standings.  Ryan Doumit should get some additional at bats in Minnisota and hopefully Dan Uggla is able to make more contact for hits, rather then simply homers (although homers are always appreciated).  Mike Moustakas and Astrubal Cabrera are real question marks...if Cabrera can build on last year he could be a very good pick up for this team. 

The Situ-Asians OF is among the leagues best...especially when you consider that Carl Crawford has been relegated to the bench of this team.   Curtis Granderson will hopefully continue his strong play in New York and Ichiro has found a new home batting 3rd in the Mariners lineup.  Cory Hart has shown he can be a big player and it's hoped that he continue to improve.  Then there is the ever consisten Paul Konerko holding down the Util spot for the Situ-Asians.

Zach Greinke looks like he's ready to have another Cy Young type year in Milwalkee and he'll need to do so if the team is to improve on it's 12th spot ranking.  CJ Wilson's projections are a bit low -especially if you consider his new situation in Anahiem and his numbers on the road last year.   Chris Sale could make a breakthrough as a starter, and Colby Lewis and Josh Tomlin round out the rotation...good not great 4th and 5th starters.

The Situ-Asians closers are solid..and Grant Balfour already has a save under his belt.  Not a great pair of closers, but ones that should keep this team in contention. 

The real suprises could come off the Situ-Asians bench.  Ian Desmond, John Mayberry, Devin Mesoraco, and Mike Trout all find themselves on the reserve side of things, but any breakout signs will force them into the lineup.   The team is also hoping that veterns Andy Petite, Eric Bedard and Phil Hughes can contribute this year. 

The Buck Martinez-ez Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
7	4	3	8	12	11

The defending champions find themselves in the middle of the pack despite having a great infield and outfield.  

Veterans Mike Napoli, Dustin Pedoria, Michael Young and Alexi Ramirez provide much of the infield offensive threat, with much hyped 2012 draftee Eric Hosmer working his way into the mix.   Hosmer is considered to be a "sure thing" by almost every "expert" analyst - but with so much hype, will be contribute?

The BMZ's 3rd ranked OF/UTIL consists of Jose Bautista, Shane Victorino, Martin Prado and Andrew Jones.  Effective and efficent.  This OF/UTIL should produce all season long. 

The BMZ starting rotation doesn't have any great names.  Ian Kennedy emerged last year but it's uncertain whether he'll repeat that performance this year.  Vance Worley was a surprise in 2011, but can he be in 2012?  The real gems in this rotation could be Justin Materson, Brandon McCarthy and Madison Bumgartner.  

Brandon League and Chris Perez have the closer situation locked down for the BMZ.

The BMZ bench could contribute, especially Mike Aviles on his new team in Boston.  Ryan Howard might be a story if he can come back this year.   With a few moves here and theere, BMZ looks poised for another solid season.

Under Ceege Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
T6	13	13	2	1	7

Under Ceege has some issues in the infield and outfield, but the strength in the starting rotation and relief pitching could keep this team out of trouble. 

Hanley Ramirez is the only real player in the infield that also includes Kurt Suzuki, Carlos Pena, Alexai Casilla and Edwin Encarnacion.   If any of these guys falter, Freddy Freeman, Kendrys Morales and Giovanni Soto wait in the wings.   Surprising Lonnie Chisenhall was sent down to the minors by the Cleveland Indians. 

The UG OF, will depend on strong outputs from Jay Bruce and BJ Upton along with Michael Cuddyer.   Giancarlo "Mike" Stanton projections seem a bit low, but they could be accurate if he doesn't improve on his strikeout rate. 

Of all the starting rotations, this is the one that puzzles me the most.  Tim Lincecum could have a solid year, but he had some issues in 2011 that still concern me.  Adam Wainwright has looked like an ace in the spring, but he could fall flat to injuries during the season.  Brandon Beachy has shown signs of greatness, but has yet to really reach that level.  I'm not a big fan of either Anibal Sanchez and Doug Fister, but I do think Fister will have a good year in Detroit. 

The UF has the best relief dou in Jonathan Papelbon and Joe Nathan.   Papelbon could see a bump in his numbers as he heads over to the NL and a team that will likely provide him with lots of save opportunities.  

This bench is loaded with talent and could provide some much needed support for the starting lineup in the event of injuries. 

Ravishing Rickybo Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
T6	6	5	1	11	13

With the exception of David Wright (who I think is an injury waiting to happen), I really like this infield...including Rafeal Furcal.   Joey Votto and Joe Mauer provide much of the production while Jamille Weeks will provide steals and runs (if he can bunt his way on). 

This OF/Util is pretty good...although I think Drew Stubbs will eventually replace Dexter Fowler in the OF3 spot.   Carlos Gonzalez could be the #1 OF in MLB if he can stay healthy.  The Colorado air should give him a legitimate shot pending he avoids those injuries. 

The starting roation is solid, especially now that Danial Bard has been named into the Red Sox rotation.  The machine that is Roy Halladay fronts a pretty young rotation.  I think Matt Latos is going to get lit up in Cinncinati, but Marcum, Bard and Norris are good fill ins.   Not much going on from the bench, but Ogando may get himself a shot back in the Rangers rotation this summer. 

If Kasey Jansen or Javy Guerra can become the closer of the Dodgers, Rickybo has it made.  Carlos Marmol is a legit closer, but sometimes he worries the best of fantasy managers.  

The Ravishing ones bench, boasts some strong potential in Dominque Brown and Alondois Chapman.  Chase Utley is also there and could be a real threat when he becomes healthy.  

Alkickurass Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
5	3	12	10	6	4

Alkickurass surprised everyone by not drafting Stephan Strasburg or Bryce Harper in rounds 1 and 2.   Instead he went the more veteran route and should be rewarded with a better result this year. 

Buster Posey, Kevin Youkilis, Ian Kinsler, A. Ramirez and Jimmy Rollins form a solid infield for Kickassers...Posey will look to bounce back after spending most of last year on the DL list.   The others are consistent, with Youkilis potentially improving on his semi-poor numbers from 2011. 

This is another underrated OF/Util, with Jason Heyward likely breaking out and showing what kind of a OF beast he can be.  Jeff Francoeur is consistent, as is Carlos Lee.  Cespedes will be a real interesting player to keep an eye on.  I expect a no so stellar season. 

The starting rotation of Cliff Lee, Felix Hernandez, Stephen Strasburg, Scott Baker and Nicasio is an interesting mix.  Strasburg will provide up to 160 IP and be shut down, so Lee and King Felix will have to really produce.  Francisco Lirano is on the bench and could return to form and really produce.  Not big on Vinny Pestano...

Josh Walden and new minted Red closer Sean Marshall will provide the closign duties for this team.  Jim Johnson could also contribute off the bench. 

This bench is deep and loaded with talent.  Look for this team to use this as a strength during the season.





Up Next: The Top Four

Team Preview - Part II

Team Avenger Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
10	9	10	11	5	10

Team Avenger's infield centres around the performance of Pablo Sandoval, who returned to form last year.   Ike Davis may have a big year in New York, with the fences being drawn in.  A lot of fantasy baseball players will be wondering of Alex Avila can find the form he had last year, or whether he will become another "average catcher".  

Justin Upton is set to hit another level and at 24, that's pretty sick.  Upton I think has a great chance to win the NL MVP award.   The TA outfield is filled out by Brent Gardner and Jose Tabata.  Lucas Duda might surprise many and exceed his projected totals.

The TA starting rotation is centred around David Price and Daniel Hudson.   However, Jamie Garcia will contribute a lot of valuable points.  If Clay Buchholz and Trevor Cahill can avoid injuries, this rotation could be very dangerous.

Sergio Santos and John Axford will provide lots of closer points for TA.

Perhaps the biggest potential for success lies on the TA bench.  Lorenzo Cain, Marco Scutaro (yes, Marco Scutaro) and Cameron Maybin could all have breakout years and contribute greatly to this teams success.  

Hooter Hunters Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
T9	14	6	7	13	3

I honestly don't know if you can put together an uglier infield then this one...actually I think you can...but we won't go there.   Ben Zobrist is the infield offensive catalyst for the Hooter Hunters this year.  I'm not overly convinced that Sterling Castro will live up to expectations, but I am convinced that Wilson Ramos will exceed his projected figures...so long as he's not kidnapped in Washington.

To me, this OF is underrated.  Matt Kemp, Andrew McCutchen, Nelson Cruz are exceptional outfielders and should have put this OF among the top three.  Logan Morrison is a wildcard and how great this OF could be, might depend on him.

CC Sabathia and Gio Gonzalez front a rotation that also includes Chad Luebke, Jhoulys Chacin and Hiroki Kuroda.  Jeremy Hellickson could easily replace Chacin or Kuroda in value during the season.

Andrew Bailey is the sole closer, but Addison Reed could find himself taking over the closer role for the White Sox.   This is probably where the HH suffer the most and may need some luck in order to improve.  

A lot of good talent sits on the HH's bench and some good player management may pay dividends for this team.  Will Pedro Alvarez break out this year?  or what about Matt Gamel?  

Bulgarian Great "8" Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
T9	8	4	9	5	6

The Bulgarian Great "8" (BG8) has a pretty balanced roster and some great depth on the bench.   The Yankee Old Timers (Teixeira, A-Rod and Derek Jeter) club forms the core of the infield, along with Brian McCann and Rickie Weeks.   Teix and A-Rod are still productive and Jeter could have a bounce back year for the Yankees.  

A Yankee, A Tiger and two former Blue Jays hold down the outfield and utility positions for the BG8.   Brandon Boesch could turn in a big year for this team given the addition of Fielder to the Tigers lineup.   Rios is a prime candidate for a big bounceback year.  I definitely think Vernon Wells is done and his projection is too high.

Last years AL MVP and AL Cy Young winner fronts the BG8 rotation.  Jon Lester has been consistent but he did have a slightly off year last year.  Derek Holland will benefit from the Rangers offense and provide some valuable points.   If Max Scherzer can continue to improve, he should be able to exceed the projected figures.  Ted Lilly should benefit from his new home field and produce

Will Heath Bell prove his worth to his new franchise?  BG8 might have to rely on Bell for points with Drew Storen set to start the season on the DL.

The bench strength provides some good balance for the rest of the team.  Jason Bourgeois could breakout with the move to Kansas.   Ivan Nova and Tim Hudson might struggle this year, and Nova has already been put into the bullpen.  



Up Next:

Situ-Asians 2.0, Buck Martinez-ez, Under Ceege, Ravishing Rickybo and Al Kickurass...

Team by Team Preview Pt. 1

Siba Style Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
T11	1	14	13	9	12

You can't deny that any major league team would drool at the chance to see a projected infield consisting of Carlos Santana, Adam Lind, Robinson Cano, Brett Lawrie and Troy Tulowitzki but Siba Style's infield came at a pretty steep price. 

The OF/UTIL group is headed by Michael Bourn.  Newly minted Jays left fielder Eric Thames joins this shallow OF/UTIL talent pool.   SS will need Colby Rasmus to overachieve, while Mike Trumbo learns 3B. 

Tommy Hanson and Ricky Romero will need to be staff aces if the SS pitching staff is going to keep this team in contention.   Huge seasons will also be needed from Brandon Morrow, Matt Harrison and Mike Minor.   Morrow could be a major breakout candidate this year.

Brian Wilson and Houston Street are the SS principal closers, but Matt Capps and Jonathan Broxton are waiting on the bench for some action too.   SS will need to turn these additonal assets into useful peices during the course of the season.  The man with the "Beard" will need to return to his form to solidify this closing situation for this team. 

* Kelly Johnson should have been in the utility spot instead of Trumbo, but the point difference (54) would not have changed SS ranking in the overall. 

With the exception of Capps, Broxton and Johnson, the rest of the bench is made up of largely unknowns.  Rick Porcello will start the season in the Tigers rotation, but he's been given this chance before.   An pair of interesting sleepers in De Aza and Presley. 

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Fear Franchise Projected Rankings
Team Total	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN
T11	11	8	9	7	14

Now I read that Fear Franchise released their own set of "projected numbers" last night, and for the life of me I can't figure out how he managed to get his "projected total" to be 7,378, when the best lineup I set for him can only muster a total of 7,000 points.

The FF infield is made up of Matt Wieters, Justin Smoak, Dustin Ackley, Even Longoria and Dee Gordon.   I'm not huge on Smoak, but Acknley and Gordon have the potential to be breakout stars this year.   Evan Longoria will need to find his form from 2 years ago in order to be the cornerstone of this infield.   Of course, Wieters is a long known Chiser man-crush and this really could be his season for stardom.

The FF outfield hinges on Jacoby Ellsbury, and if last year was any indication of how good Ellsbury is it's scary to think he could get better.   Mike Morse, Delmon Young and Aaron Hill fill ou tthe remaining OF/Util spots.  Chiser could really benefit if Young and Hill can find shades of their former selves this year...while Morse could be a breakout candidate. 

The starters for FF is among the leagues best.  Clayton Kershaw and Yvonnie Gallardo anchor this roation, which also includes Josh Johnson, Johan Santana and late addition Jake Peavy.  If the two aging arms return to form, this could be a dangerous rotation to compete against.  

FF took Brett Myers to place him in the closer role as an SP (but his total was well short of the other starters) so he finds himself on the bench, while Jason Motte and Matt Thornton represent the best of FF closers.   Thornton isn't the White Sox closer yet so that projection might be a bit high. 

Hype and has been and post-hype players dominate the FF bench.  The hype players are obviously Alongso and Bryce Harper, while the post hype player is Emilio Bonifacio.   Grady Sizemore starts on the DL once again.  Adam Dunn and AJ Pierzynski have seen the best of their playing days go by. 

Up Next:

Team Avenger, Hooter Hunters and Bulgarian Great "8"....

What the "Experts" Says...

This is in no ways my prediction for how the league standings will look.  This is simply an opportunity to see how our teams would rank based on the "Experts" projections.   The projections are based on today (April 1) without knowing if they are adjusted during the year.   These rankings will be influenced by the various roster moves made by owners, injuries to players, over and under performance by the players and hopefully not...suspensions for one stupid reason or another (looking at you Josh Hamilton).  

Methodology:  I got all of the projected scoring and created the best lineup possible based upon projected points, position eligibility (including projected eligibility - i.e. Jesus Montero will become eligible at catcher during the season).   Scoring was broken down into 5 sum - total categories - infield, outfield/utility, starting pitching, relief pitching and bench.    A rotoissary style scoring system was then applied to each of the categories to get the overall score for each team (1st = 14 points, 14th = 1 point).  So here are how the teams ranked in these categories and overall.  

Team	Rank	INF	OF/UTIL	SP	RP	BEN	Total
Vancouver Canadians	1	7	13	12	13	13	58
Braunovan	2	10	6	11	11	7	45
TBJ	3	13	14	1	1	14	43
Riverside Southpaws	4	3	8	10	12	9	42
Alkickurass	5	12	3	5	9	11	40
Ravishing Rickybo	6	9	10	14	4	2	39
Under Ceege	7	2	2	13	14	8	39
Buck Martinez-ez	8	11	12	7	3	4	37
SituAsians 2.0	9	5	11	3	7	10	36
Bulgarian Great "8"	10	8	4	9	5	6	32
Hooter Hunters	11	1	9	8	2	12	32
Team Avenger	12	6	5	4	10	5	30
Fear Franchise	13	4	7	6	8	1	26
Siba Style	14	14	1	2	6	3	26

The Vancouver Canadians in theory then had the best overall draft based upon the projections and would ultimately win LoC VI.   I'll use these rankings as a guideline when I start previewing each of the teams individually, starting with the 14th and working my way up the "projected standings".   Hopefully I'll be able to get around to all of the teams before the games start for real on Thursday.  

The Draft

One of the best things about League of Champions (LoC) is the fact that the league maintains a "Live" draft.  While on-line live drafts are fun, nothing beats a room full of grown men talking baseball and yelling out random names and getting them wrong.   Or the numerous..."Gone" responses from the gallery.   The LoC VI live draft took place yesterday (March 31) and I'll take a look at the first 10 rounds.   The first round went as expected, with plenty of stud starting pitchers going:


Round 1
1. Justin Verlander (Det - SP) - Bulgarian Great "8"
2. Roy Halladay (Phi - SP) - Ravishing Rickybo
3. Clayton Kershaw (LAD - SP) - Fear Franchise
4. Miguel Cabrera (Det - 1B) - Braunovan
5. Albert Pujols (LAA - 1B) - Toronto Blue Jays
6. Tim Lincecum (SF - SP) - Under Ceege
7. Cliff Lee (Phi - SP) - Al Kickurass
8. Matt Kemp (LAD - OF) - Hooter Hunters
9. Jose Bautista (Tor - 3B,OF) - The Buck Martinez-ez
10. Robinson Cano (NYY - 2B) - Siba Style
11. Cole Hamels (Phi - SP) - Riverside Southpaws
12. Jered Weaver (LAA - SP) - Vancouver Canadians
13. Zack Greinke (Mil - SP) - The SituAsians
14. David Price (TB - SP) - Team Avenger

In most leagues this wouldn't be the draft order, but in LoC it definitely is the norm.  8 of the first 14 picks were pitchers, with MLBs top three taking spots 1-3.   Miguel Cabrera was the first positional player taken off the board, falling with 4th overall (he is the concensus #1 pick in most drafts), so great value pick for Braunovan there.   The same can be said for those drafting Kemp, Pujols, Bautista and Cano in the first round.    With the exception of Verlander, Halladay and Kershaw all of the other 1st round pitchers drafted were...probably reaches.


Round 2
1. Justin Upton (Ari - OF) - Team Avenger
2. Adrian Gonzalez (Bos - 1B) - The SituAsians
3. Jose Reyes (Mia - SS) - Vancouver Canadians
4. Dan Haren (LAA - SP) - Riverside Southpaws
5. Troy Tulowitzki (Col - SS) - Siba Style
6. Dustin Pedroia (Bos - 2B) - The Buck Martinez-ez
7. CC Sabathia (NYY - SP) - Hooter Hunters
8. Felix Hernandez (Sea - SP) - Al Kickurass
9. Hanley Ramirez (Mia - SS) - Under Ceege
10. Ryan Braun (Mil - OF) - Toronto Blue Jays
11. Adrian Beltre (Tex - 3B) - Braunovan
12. Jacoby Ellsbury (Bos - OF) - Fear Franchise
13. Joey Votto (Cin - 1B) - Ravishing Rickybo
14. Jon Lester (Bos - SP) - Bulgarian Great "8"

I'll just call Round 2 the "value round", as all a majority of the players taken in this round were great value picks.  Most should have gone in the first round - Justin Upton, Troy Tulowitzki, Dustin Pedoria, Ryan Braun, Hanley Ramirez and Joey Votto are all concensus 1st round picks and yet find themselves in round 2 of LoC.  Joey Votto at the end of this round was a great value pick.


Round 3
1. Mark Teixeira (NYY - 1B) - Bulgarian Great "8".
2. Carlos Gonzalez (Col - OF) - Ravishing Rickybo
3. Evan Longoria (TB - 3B) - Fear Franchise
4. Craig Kimbrel (Atl - RP) - Braunovan
5. Prince Fielder (Det - 1B) - Toronto Blue Jays
6. Giancarlo Stanton (Mia - OF) - Under Ceege
7. Ian Kinsler (Tex - 2B) - Al Kickurass
8. Andrew McCutchen (Pit - OF) - Hooter Hunters
9. Ian Kennedy (Ari - SP) - The Buck Martinez-ez
10. Carlos Santana (Cle - C,1B) - Siba Style
11. James Shields (TB - SP) - Riverside Southpaws
12. Mariano Rivera (NYY - RP) - Vancouver Canadians
13. Curtis Granderson (NYY - OF) - The SituAsians
14. John Axford (Mil - RP) - Team Avenger

The draft begins to settle down at this point, with the Bulgarian Great "8" selecting a Yankee (as tradition dictates) in Mark Teixeria.   The best value pick in this round has gotta be Prince Fielder who fell to the Toronto Blue Jays and Ian Kinsler taken by Al Kickurass.    A big reach was made by the Vancouver Canucks and Team Avenger who traded closers after seeing Craig Kimbrel come off the board earlier in the round.

Round 4
1. Pablo Sandoval (SF - 1B,3B) - Team Avenger
2. C.J. Wilson (LAA - SP) - The SituAsians
3. Matt Holliday (StL - OF) - Vancouver Canadians
4. Jose Valverde (Det - RP) - Riverside Southpaws
5. Brett Lawrie (Tor - 3B) - Siba Style
6. Mike Napoli (Tex - C,1B) - The Buck Martinez-ez
7. Starlin Castro (ChC - SS) - Hooter Hunters
8. Stephen Strasburg (Was - SP) - Al Kickurass
9. Jonathan Papelbon (Phi - RP) - Under Ceege
10. Ryan Zimmerman (Was - 3B) - Toronto Blue Jays
11. Matt Cain (SF - SP) - Braunovan
12. Yovani Gallardo (Mil - SP) - Fear Franchise
13. David Wright (NYM - 3B) - Ravishing Rickybo
14. Heath Bell (Mia - RP) - Bulgarian Great "8"

This was a bit of a strange round.  The CJ Wilson pick was probably a bit of a reach by the Situations, as were the Strasburg and Heath Bell picks.   The best value pick of the round might be Jonathan Papelbon by Under Ceege.  Paps may be in line for a bigger season with the transition to the National League and the Philadelphia Phillies.   The biggest reach may be Jose Valverde by the Riverside Southpaws.  Valverde was taken ahead of Papelbon.  Like I said, it was a strange round...


Round 5
1. Drew Storen (Was - RP) - Bulgarian Great "8"
2. Carlos Marmol (ChC - RP) - Ravishing Rickybo
3. Josh Johnson (Mia - SP) - Fear Franchise
4. Elvis Andrus (Tex - SS) - Braunovan
5. Brandon Phillips (Cin - 2B) - Toronto Blue Jays
6. Adam Wainwright (StL - SP) - Under Ceege
7. Buster Posey (SF - C) - Al Kickurass
8. Ben Zobrist (TB - 2B,OF) - Hooter Hunters
9. Ricky Romero (Tor - SP) - The Buck Martinez-ez
10. Madison Bumgarner (SF - SP) - Siba Style
11. J.J. Putz (Ari - RP) - Riverside Southpaws
12. Josh Hamilton (Tex - OF) - Vancouver Canadians
13. Dan Uggla (Atl - 2B) - The SituAsians
14. Daniel Hudson (Ari - SP) - Team Avenger


With the closer rush started in round 2, round three followed the trend with Drew Storen, Carlos Marmol and JJ Putz coming off the board.   Teams continue to stockpile pitching resulting in Ricky Romero, Josh Johnson, Madison Bumgarner and Daniel Hudson all going well ahead of the ADP, and allow the Vancouver Canadians to pick up Josh Hamilton near the end of the round.


Round 6
1. Sergio Santos (Tor - RP) - Team Avenger
2. Asdrubal Cabrera (Cle - SS) - The SituAsians
3. Yu Darvish (Tex - SP) - Vancouver Canadians
4. Chris Carpenter (StL - SP) - Riverside Southpaws
5. Tommy Hanson (Atl - SP) - Siba Style
6. Michael Young (Tex - 1B,2B,3B) - The Buck Martinez-ez
7. Andrew Bailey (Bos - RP) - Hooter Hunters
8. Jordan Walden (LAA - RP) - Al Kickurass
9. Michael Cuddyer (Col - 1B,2B,OF) - Under Ceege
10. Ubaldo Jimenez (Cle - SP) - Toronto Blue Jays
11. Howie Kendrick (LAA - 1B,2B,OF) - Braunovan
12. Dee Gordon (LAD - SS) - Fear Franchise
13. Joe Mauer (Min - C,1B) - Ravishing Rickybo
14. Brian McCann (Atl - C) - Bulgarian Great "8"

At this point ADP didn't seem to matter, as teams began to fill out their rosters based on positional need.   With plenty of SP and Closers gone, Team Avenger choose to start the round by taking Sergio Santos.  u Darvish somehow managed to fall to the Vancouver Canadians.    The worst pick of the round might be the selection of Chris Carpenter who will probably be on the DL with nerve issues.  Fear Franchise took a reach in Dee Gordojn, while the Toronto Blue Jays took a risk in Ubaldo Jimenez.  The biggest value pick may be Brian McCann, taken by the Bulgarian Great "8".

Round 7
1. Alex Rodriguez (NYY - 3B) - Bulgarian Great "8"
2. Mat Latos (Cin - SP) - Ravishing Rickybo
3. Matt Wieters (Bal - C) - Fear Franchise
4. Hunter Pence (Phi - OF) - Braunovan
5. Matt Moore (TB - RP) - Toronto Blue Jays
6. Kendrys Morales (LAA - 1B,OF) - Under Ceege
7. Kevin Youkilis (Bos - 1B,3B) - Al Kickurass
8. Gio Gonzalez (Was - SP) - Hooter Hunters
9. Eric Hosmer (KC - 1B) - The Buck Martinez-ez
10. Brandon Morrow (Tor - SP) - Siba Style
11. Michael Pineda (NYY - SP) - Riverside Southpaws
12. Jason Kipnis (Cle - 2B) - Vancouver Canadians
13. Paul Konerko (CWS - 1B) - The SituAsians
14. Ike Davis (NYM - 1B) - Team Avenger



This was another great value pick round, started by BG8 taking Alex Rodriguez.  The biggest value might be Paul Konerko in this round, but excellent seasons could also be had by Kendrys Morales and Eric Hosmer. The Toronto Blue Jays got a great value pick (given all the SP taken, in rookie phenom Matt Moore).   Fear Franchise took what seems to be another reach in his man-crush Matt Wieters.


Round 8
1. Neil Walker (Pit - 2B) - Team Avenger
2. Carl Crawford (Bos - OF) - The SituAsians
3. Johnny Cueto (Cin - SP) - Vancouver Canadians
4. Lance Berkman (StL - 1B,OF) - Riverside Southpaws
5. Brian Wilson (SF - RP) - Siba Style
6. Shane Victorino (Phi - OF) - The Buck Martinez-ez
7. Cory Luebke (SD - SP,RP) - Hooter Hunters
8. Aramis Ramirez (Mil - 3B) - Al Kickurass
9. Brandon Beachy (Atl - SP) - Under Ceege
10. Desmond Jennings (TB - OF) - Toronto Blue Jays
11. Josh Beckett (Bos - SP) - Braunovan
12. Michael Morse (Was - 1B,OF) - Fear Franchise
13. Shin-Soo Choo (Cle - OF) - Ravishing Rickybo
14. Derek Jeter (NYY - SS) - Bulgarian Great "8"

It took 8 rounds for the Riverside Southpaws to draft their first positional player.  Not sure if and aged Lance Berkman is the player I want as the catalyst of my offence, but that's who the Southpaws have.   The "McMahon Plan" has been attempted in the past in LoC and without much success, but this could be the season it works...right?   Great value picks were made by the SituAsians (Crawford), Fear Franchgise (Michael Morse) and Ravishing Rickybo (Shin-Soo Choo).   The Crawford pick looks less stellar if you think that he's going to be out til May.


Round 9
1. Rickie Weeks (Mil - 2B) - Bulgarian Great "8"
2. Shaun Marcum (Mil - SP) - Ravishing Rickybo
3. Jason Motte (StL - RP) - Fear Franchise
4. Joel Hanrahan (Pit - RP) - Braunovan
5. Jordan Zimmermann (Was - SP) - Toronto Blue Jays
6. Jay Bruce (Cin - OF) - Under Ceege
7. Jimmy Rollins (Phi - SS) - Al Kickurass
8. Nelson Cruz (Tex - OF) - Hooter Hunters
9. Brandon League (Sea - RP) - The Buck Martinez-ez
10. Michael Bourn (Atl - OF) - Siba Style
11. J.J. Hardy (Bal - SS) - Riverside Southpaws
12. Kyle Farnsworth (TB - RP) - Vancouver Canadians
13. Rafael Betancourt (Col - RP) - The SituAsians
14. Alex Avila (Det - C) - Team Avenger


This is the round where the last of the closers remained...Jason Motte, Joel Hanrahan, Kyle Farnsworth, Brandon League and Rafael Betancourt represented the tail end of the closer pool.   Who would have thought Bentcourt would go in the top 10 rounds.   Great values in this round were had by the Hooter Hunters (Nelson Cruz), Siba Style (Michal Bourn) and Team Avenger (Alex Avila).    The next offensive stud taken by the Riverside Southpaws...J.J. Hardy...


Round 10
1. Erick Aybar (LAA - SS) - Team Avenger
2. Corey Hart (Mil - OF) - The SituAsians
3. Justin Morneau (Min - 1B) - Vancouver Canadians
4. Miguel Montero (Ari - C) - Riverside Southpaws
5. Huston Street (SD - RP) - Siba Style
6. Chris Perez (Cle - RP) - The Buck Martinez-ez
7. Jeremy Hellickson (TB - SP) - Hooter Hunters
8. Jason Heyward (Atl - OF) - Al Kickurass
9. Joe Nathan (Tex - RP) - Under Ceege
10. Frank Francisco (NYM - RP) - Toronto Blue Jays
11. Matt Garza (ChC - SP) - Braunovan
12. Brett Myers (Hou - SP) - Fear Franchise
13. Kenley Jansen (LAD - RP) - Ravishing Rickybo
14. Derek Holland (Tex - SP) - Bulgarian Great "8"

The 10th round is where this draft review will likely end, but some great picks were made in this round.   The Situations managed to draft Corey Hart, allowing Jason heyward to drop to Al Kickurass.   Fear Franchise made a bid for one of the few closers with SP eligibility in Brett Myers.   Braunovan managed to draft Matt Garza in this round despite the depletion of the SP talent pool.  

The Other Rounds:

The remaining 15 rounds was a push to complete the team rosters.   The best value picks of these rounds were:

Round 11:
Braunovan - Alex Gordon;
Toronto Blue Jays - Jesus Montero;

Round 12:
SituAsians - Ichiro Suzuki;
Under Ceege - BJ Upton;

Round 13:
Ravishing Rickybo - Billy Butler;
David Freese - Vancouver Canadians;

Round 14:
SituAsians - Mike Moustakas;

Round 15:
Ravishing Rickybo - Chase Utley;
Braunovan - Jayson WErth;

Round 16:
Toronto Blue Jays - Andre Either;
Ravishing Rickybo - Daniel Bard (note: Bard has been named the Red Sox's 5th starter)

Round 17:
SituAsians - Ryan Doumit;
Buck Martinez-ez - Ryan Howard;

Round 18:
Hooter Hunters - Logan Morrison;
Fear Franchise - Bryce Harper;

Round 19:
Fear Franchise - Adam Dunn;

Round 20:
Vancouver Canadians - RA Dickey

Round 21:
Ravishing Rickybo - Drew Stubbs;

Round 22:
Hooter Hunters - Mike Leak;

Round 23:
SituAsians - Devin Mesoraco;

Round 24:
Fear Franchise - Grady Sizemore;

Round 25:
Toronto Blue Jays - Francisco Rodriguez;
SituAsians - Andy Petite (Note: due to the fact that Petite was not in the Yahoo! DB, apparently the team loses him to the waiver wire).   Instead the SituAsians were stuck with the decision of the league commish to place the backup of backup catchers, Jose Molina on his roster.