Reviewing my Fantasy Baseball Sleepers for 2017

Before the season began, I found a guy from each team that I thought would exceed expectations this year. You may be surprised by this, but I did not get them all right. Still, I did get some right, so it's time to go over my successes and failures to see if I'm a genius, or one of those guys that only gets called genius sarcastically. Let's break it down division by division.

AL East: 2-3
Baltimore Orioles - Dylan Bundy
His ERA and record are both respectable, but all of the underlying stats say that things are going to continue to go downhill for him after a strong start. He's been fine, but my lack of confidence in his future makes me mark this down as a loss.

Boston Red Sox - Eduardo Rodriguez
When he's been in, he's been pretty solid. He had a knee injury, but should be back from that soon. Not spectacular, but a solid late round contribution from the guy, so I think it's enough to mark this down as a victory.

New York Yankees - Gary Sanchez
He's a stud catcher that was worthy of reaching early, especially as he gets more playing time in the second half. I know it hasn't been phenomenal yet, but it's still been pretty great.

Tampa Bay Rays - Jake Odorizzi
Odorizzi has been blah, which means I've got to say, "Nah."

Toronto Blue Jays - Troy Tulowitzki
Stick a fork in him; he's done.

AL Central: 2-3
Chicago White Sox - Tim Anderson
Yeah, he hasn't been good at all, but he's kept his job, so at least he's gotten plenty of chances to be incompetent.

Cleveland Indians - Cody Allen
He was rated too low for what would be a good closer. He has been a good closer. That's good enough.

Detroit Tigers - Justin Upton
Justin Upton has been pretty damn good this year. Nice job, Justin Upton.

Kansas City Royals - Jorge Soler
Fun fact: I will draft Jorge Soler for at least the next five years, based solely on Joe Maddon once calling him Vladimir Guerrero with more plate discipline. I thought it was an outrageous comment then, but I still can't get it out of my head. This will ruin me for years to come.

Minnesota Twins - Byron Buxton
He was historically bad to start the year, but at least he's improved to just bad at this point in the year.

AL West: 2-3
Houston Astros - Lance McCullers
Outside of a little injury trouble, McCullers has been a stud, so this one makes me look really smart.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - Ben Revere
With the Mike Trout injury, he has had a decent amount of playing time. He has not been good in that playing time.

Oakland Athletics - Marcus Semien
Got hurt; has barely played. I'd still recommend snagging him when he comes off the DL if you need some middle infield help.

Seattle Mariners - Mike Zunino
Zunino still doesn't have a great average, but it's not awful, and he's producing solid power. He's a respectable catching option that you could have gotten at the very end of the draft, so I feel pretty good about this one.

Texas Rangers - Nomar Mazara
Mazara has basically been doing exactly what he did last year, which is not what I was hoping for from him, so even though he's been okay, I expected more than okay.

NL East: 1-4
Atlanta Braves - Brandon Phillips
Still providing a nice average with some decent counting stats, just as I predicted. Nice work, Mr. Phillips.

Miami Marlins - Adam Conley
He's been bad. Total bust. I really hope you didn't listen to me on this one.

New York Mets - Travis d'Arnaud
Travis d'Arnaud hasn't been too bad, but I also don't think he's been good enough to be a reliable starting catcher on fantasy teams, so I'd have to mark this as a loss.

Philadelphia Phillies - Aaron Nola
Aaron Nola had to be special for this one to pay off. Aaron Nola has not been special.

Washington Nationals - Shawn Kelley
Like, right after I wrote this, word came down that Kelley was unlikely to be the closer. And he's just been awful this year, so this may be my worst pick out of all 30.

NL Central: 2-3
Chicago Cubs - Jason Heyward
Well, he's better than last year, but that's not saying much, so I can't take any credit on this one.

Cincinnati Reds - Devin Mesoraco
For a catcher, he hasn't really been bad, but he also hasn't played enough to make an actual impact. Nobody is actually going to carry Mesoraco on their fantasy team and call it a success, so that makes it a failure.

Milwaukee Brewers - Keon Broxton 
The average isn't strong, but I wouldn't have expected it to be. But considering that he is in the teens for both home runs and stolen bases already, this one is definitely a win.

Pittsburgh Pirates - Tyler Glasnow
2-6 record with an ERA over 7.00. Yeah, not my best work.

St. Louis Cardinals - Kolten Wong
The counting stats aren't great, but he's hitting over .300, and when he gets healthy, he'll start racking up enough counting stats to be relevant, so I'm counting this as a win.

NL West: 1-4
Arizona Diamondbacks - Robbie Ray
Hell yeah, Robbie Ray is striking out fools and keeping a good ERA in a hitter's park. Robbie Ray is the man.

Colorado Rockies - Jonathan Gray
He's barely pitched this year, but the early results are promising. Still, he's barely pitched this year, which means this sleeper has not awoken to become a beast.

Los Angeles Dodgers - Julio Urias
Urias had major surgery already this year, so that tends to not be a great sign for success.

San Diego Padres - Travis Jankowski
He had a poor start to the year, followed by a foot injury, but hey, at least all of his value isn't derived from his speed.

San Francisco Giants - Matt Moore
ERA over 6.00; I'll still probably take a chance on him next year. I can't quit Matt Moore.

As you can tell, my results were, uh...not good. My goal going in was .500, and I thought maybe I'd have up to a 60% success rate. I didn't come close to those numbers; in fact, I wasn't even at .500 for a single division. Instead, I ended up at 10-20, which is simply bad if we're being honest. But now that I have set an incredibly low bar for this exercise, I feel confident that I can exceed expectations next year. 11-19, here I come!

2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - NL Central

Although baseball season is still a few weeks away, fantasy baseball season is here as draft rooms are opening and people are spending fake auction dollars on their favorite players. Everybody knows about the Mike Trouts and Clayton Kershaws of the world, so what you need to do stand out is find those hidden gems on each roster to propel yourself to fantasy greatness. I am going to go through each MLB roster to find at least one underrated player who will have you looking like a genius at the end of the season.

Today, we visit the World Series Champs and their merry band of misfits, the National League Central.

Chicago Cubs - Jason Heyward
So it's pretty hard to find an underrated player on the Cubs these days as right now we are living in a time where everybody loves the team, so they are hyped to an unbelievable level. But the Cubs level of lovability is about to drop precipitously as the hate is brewing for this Cubs team. Much like Red Sox hate, there isn't a ton directed at the players themselves, but the fans are going to become insufferable pretty quickly. One guy that is not universally loved is Jason Heyward. It's not through any fault of his own. He tries hard, and he's good enough on defense to not be totally worthless, but he was a very bad offensive baseball player last year. He has been a good baseball player in the past, and I can't help but buy into Heyward. The guy has so many natural tools that even though he's well past the age of potential, it's hard not to see all of the great qualities he could have. This is one of those guys where a Cubs fan jumps on him too early, but if he's there after pick 200, take a flyer on him and maybe he'll figure it out, or maybe your league added UZR in the offseason.

Cincinnati Reds - Devin Mesoraco
Remember that time that Devin Mesoraco actually played a bunch of games. He hit the ball really well when he did that. He hasn't done that the last two years, and even in his minimal time, he's been rather abysmal, but maybe he'll go back to being the 2014 version of himself. I don't know, it's the Reds, and looking up Reds players is seriously depressing, so Mesoraco it is.

Milwaukee Brewers - Keon Broxton
Keon Broxton hits baseballs really hard. They still usually find people's gloves, but they probably a sting a little when people make the catch. So he's probably not going to hit for average, but that's okay, because he's got some pop in that bat, and the dude just wants to steal, steal, steal bases. Milwaukee's kind of a fun team, because they don't give a shit, so they're just going to steal bases and do all the hustly things that may not necessarily make them good, but it will make them fun. Broxton personifies this.

Pittsburgh Pirates - Tyler Glasnow
Okay, so is this going to be a good pick? Eh, probably not. But will it be a fun pick? Oh hell yeah. Glasnow is going to strike dudes out. He is able to dot hat because he has no idea where the ball is going to end up. Sure, you are sacrificing WHIP for this pick, but sometimes, in life, you have to make sacrifices. And this sacrifice leads to fun, so you should do it. Draft him and ride that Glasnow Rollercoaster.

St. Louis Cardinals - Kolten Wong
Remember those shirts from Abercrombie that talked about "Two Wongs Make it Tight." I think it was like a plumbing shirt with an Asian caricature on it. It wasn't funny, and it may not have even been from Abercrombie, but I still remember that shirt. Anyway, don't buy that shirt, but buy in on Kolten Wong. I know he's never put it together at the major league level, but he's got a good line drive swing that should lead to more balls landing in for hits. He's not going to be a home run threat, but I do think he can get some of those balls to drop in for extra bases. He's an extra infielder that you probably don't even need to draft, but he could add some value this year. What won't add value is that stupid shirt. Seriously, if you have that shirt, don't get rid of it, burn it, and make sure nobody else wears that stupid shit.

2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - NL East

Although baseball season is still a few weeks away, fantasy baseball season is here as draft rooms are opening and people are spending fake auction dollars on their favorite players. Everybody knows about the Mike Trouts and Clayton Kershaws of the world, so what you need to do stand out is find those hidden gems on each roster to propel yourself to fantasy greatness. I am going to go through each MLB roster to find at least one underrated player who will have you looking like a genius at the end of the season.

Today, after getting through the American League. We make our way to the National League, and just like Columbus before us, we will start in the NL East.

Atlanta Braves - Brandon Phillips
Probably not the sexiest pick for a young up and coming team, but sometimes you need to just go with an ol' faithful, and Phillips fits the bill. He'll give you about a .280 average with double digits steals and home runs. Since Atlanta isn't stacked offensively, that means he's probably hitting near the top of the order which will help those counting stats. He's a desperate choice for your top second basemen but is ideal somebody who can fill that 2B/SS role.

Miami Marlins - Adam Conley
He will pitch for the Marlins this year, and I read he got stronger this year. This was by far the hardest team, but since I had to pick somebody, I went with Conley, since I wasn't sure if I could count Giancarlo Stanton as a sleeper.

New York Mets - Travis d'Arnaud
d'Arnaud is a guy who isn't even getting drafted this year, but in 2015, he absolutely crushed the ball for a catcher. What happened in 2016? Injuries, mostly. His batted ball data cratered, and I don't think he has completely lost the ability to hit forever and ever. The guy has been able to hit at every level, and he even did it in the major leagues. I think he could be due for a big year this season as he could be a top-5 catcher if he can stay healthy and show that 2015 is the real d'Arnaud.

Philadelphia Phillies - Aaron Nola
Nola's results were worse last year, but his pitching was better as he had nearly ten strikeouts per nine innings, had about the same walk rate, and significantly lowered his home run rate. He was the victim of bad luck in more ways than one as his BABIP raised by about 50 points, and he only had a comically low 60% of runners left on base. When more people reach base by luck and they always find a way to score, then it's going to be pretty tough for a pitcher not to take a significant step back. If Nola's luck balances out, he's likely a top-20 pitcher this year, so yeah, you should draft this dude.

Washington Nationals - Shawn Kelley
I don't know who's going to be the Nationals closer, but if it's Shawn Kelley, then that's a pretty sweet deal as the Nationals are likely to win a lot of games and closing games isn't that difficult. He strikes out a good amount of guys, so snag him late and he'll probably perform as well as any other closer.

I'll admit, this division had a lot of, "Well, you gotta pick somebody" picks, but I can just about guarantee that one of these will be one of my three best sleepers on my entire list. It's your job to figure out which one that is (Hint: It's probably d'Arnaud).

2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - AL East

Although baseball season is still a few weeks away, fantasy baseball season is here as draft rooms are opening and people are spending fake auction dollars on their favorite players. Everybody knows about the Mike Trouts and Clayton Kershaws of the world, so what you need to do stand out is find those hidden gems on each roster to propel yourself to fantasy greatness. I am going to go through each MLB roster to find at least one underrated player who will have you looking like a genius at the end of the season.

Today, after going with the less sexy divisions in the American League, we go with the most talked about division in all the land, the AL East.

Baltimore Orioles - Dylan Bundy
I've been all-in on Dylan Bundy since he was drafted in 2012, so the fact that I can still buy low on him excites me. He's probably not going to be the game changing pitcher I expected when he was blowing through every minor leaguer that stood in front of him. Due to injuries, he's a different pitcher, but he's still shown that he could be a very good pitcher. Even though he struggled more as a starter in the second half, he was still striking out over a batter an inning, and he's still building up his strength after coming back from injuries. Right now, he's a ranked as a late round flyer, but I think he can produce a mid 3 ERA with a strikeout per inning which wouldn't be a bad haul for a final round pick.

Boston Red Sox - Eduardo Rodriguez
It's damn near impossible to find an underrated Red Sox player. I mean, even Pablo Sandoval made the top 300. Hanley Ramirez ranked 69 which is nice. Maybe I could take a flyer on their top prospect, Andrew Benitendi, but he's already ranked ahead one of the greatest hitters ever, Albert Pujols, so yeah, I can't really say he's underrated. Let's go with Rodriguez who struggled at the beginning of the year but basically pitched like a number two starter in the second half of the season. I doubt he'll be quite that good, but if he gets anything close to that, then he'll be worth it.

New York Yankees - Gary Sanchez
I know this isn't a deep sleeper or anything, but it was the only way I could avoid recommending Chris Carter (I always recommend Chris Carter). I know he's ranked as the second best catcher, but he was only at 113 overall, and that seems at least 30 spots too low. I don't think he's Catcher Babe Ruth, but he's still damn good, and considering the lack of options at catcher, he's worth going above his ranking to go out and secure his services for the year.

Tampa Bay Rays - Jake Odorizzi
Odorizzi's only real issue last year was health, and before that, he had proved to be rather durable. The split may put some extra strain on his arm, but considering the strong track record, he's a pitcher I'd like to have this year. Computer projections continue to love the Rays, so eventually they're going to have to be right...right?

Toronto Blue Jays - Troy Tulowitzki
Making a case with my head for Tulowitzki isn't the easiest. He has been a disappointment since getting traded from Colorado to Toronto. Still, he wasn't too bad last year as he hit 24 home runs, and had he had a better BABIP, he could have easily raised his batting average 20 points. That's what I see happening this year as a little better luck gets him closer to his former glory although not quite all the way there. Is this my head talking? No, but the heart wants what the heart wants. 

2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - AL West

Although baseball season is still a few weeks away, fantasy baseball season is here as draft rooms are opening and people are spending fake auction dollars on their favorite players. Everybody knows about the Mike Trouts and Clayton Kershaws of the world, so what you need to do stand out is find those hidden gems on each roster to propel yourself to fantasy greatness. I am going to go through each MLB roster to find at least one underrated player who will have you looking like a genius at the end of the season.

Today, we continue the series with a lack of East Coast bias and look into the AL West.

Houston Astros - Lance McCullers
Obviously, the big concern with McCullers is is health. He had major struggles with injuries last year, and it's definitely a concern going into this year, but there are very few young pitchers where injuries aren't a big concern. the other concern is his control as he walked five batters per nine last year, and that's not good. I think part of that is the injuries as he was just never able to get comfortable and find a groove druing the season. I think he can at least get his walk level back to its 2015 level, possibly even better. He's ranked 244 despite having a 3.22 ERA the last two years and striking out over a batter per inning (over 11 K/9 last year). He's probably not your 200 inning ace, but he could give you a really nice 160 innings, and getting that late in the draft sure sounds like a steal to me.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - Ben Revere
Real talk, I had no idea that Ben Revere was on the Angels. I also kind of forgot that Cameron Maybin was on the Angels. But I'm still going with Revere, even though I'm not sure if he'll beat out Maybin for the starting job. I figure between Maybin's injury history combined with Albert Pujols getting another year older and needing some time off, they'll be able to find some space for Ben Revere. Two years ago, he hit .300, then his BABIP dropped by 100 points below his career average, and he batted .200. I think things just balance out again this year and he gives you a .300 average, with top 10 stolen base numbers and a good number of runs scored. He may not be the sexiest hitter, but he will be valuable.

Oakland Athletics - Marcus Semien
Semien managed 27 home runs last year, and I do think his average can come up from the .238 he hit last year. His BABIP was only .268, so if that gets closer to .300, it will not only increase his runs and RBI, but he can probably get closer to 20 stolen bases. Right now, he's ranked as the 18th best shortstop. Even if he doesn't improve, he'll be able to reach that level, but if the BABIP does bounce back and the power continues, you're looking at a top-10 guy.

Seattle Mariners - Mike Zunino
This pick is not sexy pick. Zunino is ranked as the 18th best catcher, and considering his struggle in the batting average category, he's probably never going to be a top guy. But he did rake at AAA last year and showed progress when he was in the major leagues. He hits for good power, and there are guys in the top-10 like Evan Gattis and Brian McCann who probably aren't that different than Zunino who you can probably pick up as a free agent.

Texas Rangers - Nomar Mazara
One of my common themes when picking guys is post-hype sleepers. Mazara got a ton of love at the beginning of 2016, but it seems as though he wore down as the season went on, and his numbers dropped accordingly. Last year, he still managed 20 home runs, and although I don't see the power taking a big step forward, I think the guy can flat out hit. He could easily be in the .280-.300 range, and with solid power, he'll be right in the middle of the Rangers lineup to rack up those counting stats. He's currently ranked as the 58th best outfielder, and I'd say it's a fairly good bet that he exceeds those expectations.

2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - AL Central

Although baseball season is still a few weeks away, fantasy baseball season is here as draft rooms are opening and people are spending fake auction dollars on their favorite players. Everybody knows about the Mike Trouts and Clayton Kershaws of the world, so what you need to do stand out is find those hidden gems on each roster to propel yourself to fantasy greatness. I am going to go through each MLB roster to find at least one underrated player who will have you looking like a genius at the end of the season.

Today, we start the series with an oft-forgotten division, the AL Central.

Chicago White Sox - Tim Anderson
Tim Anderson had a really nice rookie year for any position but especially for a shortstop. He was a fairly well thought of prospect, and still, he barely makes ESPN's top 300 and is only ranked the 24th best shortstop. Now, yes, his BABIP was unsustainable as that .375 number is probably not going to hold up, but with his speed and batted ball profile, it is likely to remain above average. There's also a good chance that he can reduce his K% to make more contact meaning the BABIP won't have to remain quite as hight. On top of this, he managed 49 stolen bases in AA in 2015, and I think he could see a decent spike in those stolen base numbers this year. There is a lot of depth at shortstop this year, and outside of the top 5 (Machado, Correa, Seager, Lindor, Bogaerts), are you totally confident that any of them will definitely outproduce Anderson? I'm not, and considering where he's ranked, he'll make an excellent late-round addition.

Cleveland Indians - Cody Allen
Poor Cody Allen. He is a guy who is underestimated not by anything that he did, but because his teammate is Andrew Miller, possibly the most dominant reliever in all of baseball. Since most teams use their most dominant reliever in the closer role, everyone goes into this season that Allen will lose his job. Is it possible? Of course, but Allen has been a pretty darn good reliever these last few years, and one of Miller's greatest attributes is his versatility. Terry Francona is going to do everything eh can to keep Allen in the closer role, and he's likely to produce top-10 results with top-5 upside while currently only ranked as the 19th best relief pitcher. Drafting closers is rarely sexy, but it can still be valuable.

Detroit Tigers - Justin Upton
If I can justify selecting a brother (non-racist way), I'm going to do it. My fascination with drafting brothers in fantasy is a long and sordid affair that almost never works out for me. It started with the Giles brothers, drifted to the Drews, and finally made it to the Uptons. Despite it usually doing me more harm than good, I still always enjoy my experience. But I do believe this is a good year to buy in on Upton. Although he started off poorly for the Tigers, he lowered his strikeout rate and hit 22 home runs in 68 games during the second half last year. I think he's far closer to that second half player for the whole season this year. Although he's ranked in the 60s, I think he can produce at least that if not be up in the top-40 at the end of the year.

Kansas City Royals - Jorge Soler
Joe Maddon said he was Vladimir Guerrero with better plate discipline. That comment will never die in my head, and that means I will end up with Jorge Soler for the next ten years in fantasy baseball by drafting him 100 spots before anyone else. I'm kind of serious. He's ranked 260 right now. I will be at least considering him at 160. Dominant relievers are more highly valued than ever before, and the Royals were happy to trade one of the most dominant relievers for Jorge Soler. Clearly, they believe in him; clearly, I believe in him, and, guys...VLAD GUERRERO WITH BETTER PLATE DISCIPLINE.

Minnesota Twins - Byron Buxton
I'll admit this pick could be a year too early, but Buxton still gives plenty to dream on. Even though Buxton was drafted in 2012, he has far less minor league experience than other people from that draft as injuries have cut short a lot of his time, and he had that compounded by being brought up to the major leagues before he was ready. Still, he struggled in the majors, got sent down, raked in AAA, and showed improvement when he got called back up. It wasn't huge, but he hit some more homers, doubled his walk rate, and slightly improved on the strikeouts. If he can continue to lower that strikeout percentage, it is going to improve every aspect of his game, as just putting the ball in play makes him dangerous with his speed. If the power continues to blossom, you're looking at a true five-tool player. I'm not sure if that's going to happen, especially in 2017, but there were enough positive signs to make him worth the risk late in the draft.

Every Genius Pick I Made In My 2016 Fantasy Football Draft

My fantasy football draft has come and gone, and I am ready for yet another stellar season. I got the seventh pick in the draft, which is usually a spot of dread, but I made the most of the situation and managed to basically nail every possible selection I made. Even though my drafting is thorough, the naming of my team is not, as I am Return of the Mac for the third year in a row, because I drafted Jeremy Maclin three years ago but haven't had him on my team since. So, that explains that. Onto the picks that will undoubtedly lead me to an undefeated fantasy season.

ROUND 1
1 Antonio Brown, Pit WR Charles In Charge
2 Todd Gurley, LA RB baby seals and puppies
3 Julio Jones, Atl WR AwesomeSugar Omelet
4 Odell Beckham Jr., NYG WR Ruby's Roosters
5 DeAndre Hopkins, Hou WR Trouser Trouts
6 Adrian Peterson, Min RB Fart Gamblers
7 Ezekiel Elliott, Dal RB   Return of the Mac
8 David Johnson, Ari RB Panty Bandits
9 Rob Gronkowski, NE TE The Calms Of Death
10 Lamar Miller, Hou RB Shortbus Superheroes
11 A.J. Green, Cin WR Deal With It
12 Allen Robinson, Jax WR Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: Todd Gurley
I knew I pretty much had no chance at getting Todd Gurley, but it would have been really nice had I gotten him. I think he’s the most talented back in the league, and the only guy who is even close is Le’Veon Bell. Gurley had another year to heal from his knee injury, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he looked significantly better this year, and he wasn’t too shabby last year.

Who I Got: Ezekiel Elliott
I was ready to pounce on whoever fell, praying that it wouldn’t be Adrian Peterson. Elliott isn’t the most talented back in the world. Honestly, if he came out in this upcoming draft, I would only take him third after Leonard Fournette and Dalvin Cook. But he’s still really good, and he is in about the best possible position for a running back. Romo being out hurts, but Prescott can threaten a bit with his legs which can also open up opportunities for running backs, so I think he’s going to be just fine this year.

ROUND 2
13 Le'Veon Bell, Pit RB Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
14 Devonta Freeman, Atl RB Deal With It
15 LeSean McCoy, Buf RB Shortbus Superheroes
16 Dez Bryant, Dal WR The Calms Of Death
17 Eddie Lacy, GB RB Panty Bandits
18 Doug Martin, TB RB   Return of the Mac
19 Brandon Marshall, NYJ WR Fart Gamblers
20 Mark Ingram, NO RB Trouser Trouts
21 Jordy Nelson, GB WR Ruby's Roosters
22 Jonathan Stewart, Car RB AwesomeSugar Omelet
23 Alshon Jeffery, Chi WR baby seals and puppies
24 Jamaal Charles, KC RB Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: Le’Veon Bell, Eddie Lacy
I knew Le’Veon wasn’t happening, so then I decided I would buy into the hype and think that Eddie Lacy is actually going to stay in shape this year. In hindsight, maybe it was a blessing that he didn’t fall to me.

Who I Got: Doug Martin
The Muscle Hamster. I don’t know how I feel about this pick either. None of the receivers really stood out for me, so I figured I would get two running backs that will get the bulk of the carries for their teams. I like Tampa Bay to improve this year as a team, but I am a little hesitant on Martin for regression purposes. But the added benefit is that I will get to root for the hometown team down here in Florida, so I guess that’s nice.

ROUND 3
25 Marvin Jones, Det WR Charles In Charge
26 Aaron Rodgers, GB QB baby seals and puppies
27 Matt Forte, NYJ RB AwesomeSugar Omelet
28 Mike Evans, TB WR Ruby's Roosters
29 Keenan Allen, SD WR Trouser Trouts
30 Cam Newton, Car QB Fart Gamblers
31 Sammy Watkins, Buf WR   Return of the Mac
32 Julian Edelman, NE WR Panty Bandits
33 Latavius Murray, Oak RB The Calms Of Death
34 Russell Wilson, Sea QB Shortbus Superheroes
35 Jeremy Langford, Chi RB Deal With It
36 Amari Cooper, Oak WR Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: Sammy Watkins
I also think pretty highly of Mike Evans this year, but I have an undeniable affinity for Sammy Watkins as he produced the single most dominant receiving performance I have ever seen in person when he tore up Ohio State at the Orange Bowl a few years ago. I will never be able to get that performance out of my head. And he built a connection with Tyrod Taylor as the season went on, so if he can stay healthy, he could put up DeAndre Hopkins numbers on a bad offense. I love you, Sammy.

Who I Got: Sammy Watkins
Hooray!

Bonus Thought: Best Moment of the Draft
By far the best moment of the draft was Charles in Charge running out of time and having autopick make his selection for him That selection was Marvin Jones, who apparently he put at the top of his queue so he would remember to take him before somebody else did. Well, no need to worry about that, because he was drafted eight rounds before anyone else was considering him. God bless, autopick.

ROUND 4
37 T.Y. Hilton, Ind WR Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
38 Andrew Luck, Ind QB Deal With It
39 Jeremy Maclin, KC WR Shortbus Superheroes
40 Jarvis Landry, Mia WR The Calms Of Death
41 Tom Brady, NE QB Panty Bandits
42 Brandin Cooks, NO WR   Return of the Mac
43 C.J. Anderson, Den RB Fart Gamblers
44 Jeremy Hill, Cin RB Trouser Trouts
45 Thomas Rawls, Sea RB Ruby's Roosters
46 Demaryius Thomas, Den WR AwesomeSugar Omelet
47 Randall Cobb, GB WR baby seals and puppies
48 DeMarco Murray, Ten RB Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: Doug Baldwin
Baldwin was a guy that I targeted heavily before the draft, so I was really just hoping he would fall to me in Round 4 to get a top receiver in an offense that I think is going to throw the ball a lot. I didn’t even really consider that Brandin Cooks would fall that far, but he kept falling and falling, and I couldn’t pass up that sort of value.

Who I Got: Brandin Cooks
So, yeah, I took Cooks, another top receiver in an offense that I know is going to throw the ball a whole bunch. I mean, after I took Sammy Watkins in Round 3, the only receiver that I would have considered before Cooks was Amani Cooper, and even that is a toss up for me.

ROUND 5
49 Carlos Hyde, SF RB Charles In Charge
50 Matt Jones, Wsh RB baby seals and puppies
51 Ben Roethlisberger, Pit QB AwesomeSugar Omelet
52 Jordan Reed, Wsh TE Ruby's Roosters
53 Melvin Gordon, SD RB Trouser Trouts
54 Greg Olsen, Car TE Fart Gamblers
55 Doug Baldwin, Sea WR   Return of the Mac
56 Larry Fitzgerald, Ari WR Panty Bandits
57 Ryan Mathews, Phi RB The Calms Of Death
58 Tavon Austin, LA WR Shortbus Superheroes
59 Eric Decker, NYJ WR Deal With It
60 Carson Palmer, Ari QB Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: Still Doug Baldwin
I may have also considered Carlos Hyde had he still been there, because Chip Kelly’s offense is pretty appealing for 49ers running backs.

Who I Got: Doug Baldwin
Well, that worked out nicely. As I said, I’m pretty high on Doug Baldwin, and the first five rounds got me starters at both running back positions, both receivers, and a flex. Since tight ends and quarterbacks can be had in later rounds, this was a pretty ideal run for me to start out the draft.

ROUND 6
61 Donte Moncrief, Ind WR Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
62 Jay Ajayi, Mia RB Deal With It
63 Travis Kelce, KC TE Shortbus Superheroes
64 Golden Tate, Det WR The Calms Of Death
65 Jordan Matthews, Phi WR Panty Bandits
66 Drew Brees, NO QB   Return of the Mac
67 DeSean Jackson, Wsh WR Fart Gamblers
68 Delanie Walker, Ten TE Trouser Trouts
69 Arian Foster, Mia RB Ruby's Roosters
70 Michael Floyd, Ari WR AwesomeSugar Omelet
71 Kelvin Benjamin, Car WR baby seals and puppies
72 Eli Manning, NYG QB Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: Drew Brees
Since I needed a quarterback, Brees was the guy I really wanted more than anything. On talent alone, I really liked Kelvin Benjamin in this round, as I think Cam is going to target him hard this year. I really like Travis Kelce, but this was too early for even me to take him.

Who I Got: Drew Brees
Come on, Saints offense! With Brees and Cooks, I am relying on the Saints to throw the ball a whole bunch, and considering that their defense was awful, they tried to improve with their first round pick, said first round pick got injured for the season, and yes, I think they are going to have to throw the ball a whole bunch. If Brees is healthy, last year’s stats seem like the floor for his performance and obviously the upside is much higher just by pure volume of passing.

ROUND 7
73 Tyler Lockett, Sea WR Charles In Charge
74 John Brown, Ari WR baby seals and puppies
75 Ameer Abdullah, Det RB AwesomeSugar Omelet
76 Rashad Jennings, NYG RB Ruby's Roosters
77 Emmanuel Sanders, Den WR Trouser Trouts
78 DeAngelo Williams, Pit RB Fart Gamblers
79 Danny Woodhead, SD RB   Return of the Mac
80 Duke Johnson Jr., Cle RB Panty Bandits
81 T.J. Yeldon, Jax RB The Calms Of Death
82 Frank Gore, Ind RB Shortbus Superheroes
83 Zach Ertz, Phi TE Deal With It
84 Giovani Bernard, Cin RB Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: Ameer Abdullah
I am a big Ameer Abdullah supporter. I know the Lions are going to share their carries, but I have a hard time believing that Abdullah isn’t their guy 75% of the time. He’s just better than the other guys on that roster. I knew it was going to take a lot for him to fall that far, and unfortunately, he didn’t.

Who I Got: Danny Woodhead
Every year, I run into my running back’s bye weeks, and I realize that my bench is full of high upside backups with a starter who refuses to get injured, and every year, I think, man, I just wish I had a guy like Danny Woodhead who can produce 8-10 points every week and keep me in any matchup. Well, this year I have Danny Woodhead, and we’re a whole lot grittier because of it.

ROUND 8
85 DeVante Parker, Mia WR Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
86 Michael Crabtree, Oak WR Deal With It
87 Michael Thomas, NO WR Shortbus Superheroes
88 Blake Bortles, Jax QB The Calms Of Death
89 Antonio Gates, SD TE Panty Bandits
90 Derrick Henry, Ten RB   Return of the Mac
91 Laquon Treadwell, Min WR Fart Gamblers
92 Philip Rivers, SD QB Trouser Trouts
93 Josh Gordon, Cle WR Ruby's Roosters
94 Kevin White, Chi WR AwesomeSugar Omelet
95 Julius Thomas, Jax TE baby seals and puppies
96 Gary Barnidge, Cle TE Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: Nobody, really.
This wasn’t an exciting time for me in the draft. I didn’t really like any of the tight ends, and I always wait on defense, so it was just kind of some low floor, decent upside guys. As a Bears fan, I strongly considered the hype around Kevin White, but I decided to go with different preseason hype instead.

Who I Got: Derrick Henry
Outside of Dak Prescott, I’m not sure I’ve heard any more buzz about a rookie than Derrick Henry. People are already confidently proclaiming that he’s the real deal and will be one of the most successful recent Alabama running backs. DeMarco Murray has never been the most durable guy (outside of that last year in Dallas when he was literally the most durable guy), and even if Murray stays healthy, I see them shifting responsibilities more and more to Henry as the season rolls on. If you got a fancy new toy, you gotta take it out of the box and play with it.

ROUND 9
97 Vincent Jackson, TB WR Charles In Charge
98 Allen Hurns, Jax WR baby seals and puppies
99 Kirk Cousins, Wsh QB AwesomeSugar Omelet
100 Jameis Winston, TB QB Ruby's Roosters
101 Chris Ivory, Jax RB Trouser Trouts
102 DeAndre Washington, Oak RB Fart Gamblers
103 Tyler Eifert*, Cin TE   Return of the Mac
104 Seahawks D/ST D/ST Panty Bandits
105 Willie Snead, NO WR The Calms Of Death
106 Coby Fleener, NO TE Shortbus Superheroes
107 Justin Forsett, Bal RB Deal With It
108 Darren Sproles, Phi RB Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: A Tight End.
That’s all I really wanted. Just a tight end of some sort. If I was going on talent, I wouldn’t have minded betting on Winston taking a step forward this year, but I can’t imagine a week where I would really start him over Brees.

Who I Got: Tyler Eifert
And I got one…kind of. Eifert is out for the beginning of the season, and although he may come back in the first month, he may not. He’s great when he’s healthy, but he’s not the most durable guy in the world. He’ll be a great pick in weeks that he’s healthy, but I’m not real sure how often this will look like a great pick.

ROUND 10
109 Derek Carr, Oak QB Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
110 Devin Funchess, Car WR Deal With It
111 LeGarrette Blount, NE RB Shortbus Superheroes
112 Matthew Stafford, Det QB The Calms Of Death
113 Stephen Gostkowski, NE K Panty Bandits
114 Corey Coleman, Cle WR   Return of the Mac
115 James Starks, GB RB Fart Gamblers
116 Sterling Shepard, NYG WR Trouser Trouts
117 Isaiah Crowell, Cle RB Ruby's Roosters
118 Torrey Smith, SF WR AwesomeSugar Omelet
119 Andy Dalton, Cin QB baby seals and puppies
120 Marcus Mariota, Ten QB Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: Corey Coleman
I’m really riding that rookie hype train this year.

Who I Got: Corey Coleman
This makes me terribly nervous. Like, I may try to package something with Elliott to see if I can get Gurley somehow. Getting a bunch of rookies and expecting to pick the right ones never works out. But I really liked Coleman coming out of college as I think his athleticism is even better on the field than his combine numbers. He’s just a threat, and although Josh Gordon could move Coleman down the depth chart, I wasn’t really willing to bet on Gordon, because he’s been away from the game a while, and I don’t see him stepping right back in and dominating like before.

ROUND 11
121 Bilal Powell, NYJ RB Charles In Charge
122 Cardinals D/ST D/ST baby seals and puppies
123 Jason Witten, Dal TE AwesomeSugar Omelet
124 Panthers D/ST D/ST Ruby's Roosters
125 Tyler Boyd, Cin WR Trouser Trouts
126 Chiefs D/ST D/ST Fart Gamblers
127 Stefon Diggs, Min WR   Return of the Mac
128 Tyrod Taylor, Buf QB Panty Bandits
129 Devontae Booker, Den RB The Calms Of Death
130 Martellus Bennett, NE TE Shortbus Superheroes
131 Jimmy Graham, Sea TE Deal With It
132 Dwayne Allen, Ind TE Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: Tyler Boyd
Probably  good thing that I didn’t get another rookie, but Boyd is a football player. Iowa had maybe the best corner in college football last year, and Boyd was able to consistently create enough space to make catches (Desmond King did have two interceptions in that game, but Boyd did not throw either of those passes). He finds ways to get open, and he’s an ideal number two for the Bengals.

Who I Got: Stefon Diggs
Diggs just kept falling and falling, so I had no choice but to scoop him up. It would have been wiser to get another tight end like Martellus Bennett or Zach Miller, but I figured he’d be the first option in Minnesota, and Teddy could take a big step forward this year. This was before the injury, and now Teddy likely isn’t taking any steps anytime soon. Stefon Diggs is the most likely to be the first guy dropped from my roster, and that has nothing to do with him, and everything to do with the garbage pile of quarterbacks that the Vikings currently have on their active roster (and even though I wrote this before the Bradford trade, nothing really changes with me on Diggs's value), .

ROUND 12
133 Eagles D/ST D/ST Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
134 Broncos D/ST D/ST Deal With It
135 Adam Vinatieri, Ind K Shortbus Superheroes
136 Pierre Garcon, Wsh WR The Calms Of Death
137 Travis Benjamin, SD WR Panty Bandits
138 Bengals D/ST D/ST   Return of the Mac
139 Zach Miller, Chi TE Fart Gamblers
140 Texans D/ST D/ST Trouser Trouts
141 Dak Prescott, Dal QB Ruby's Roosters
142 Theo Riddick, Det RB AwesomeSugar Omelet
143 Steve Smith Sr., Bal WR baby seals and puppies
144 Raiders D/ST D/ST Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: Broncos D/ST
God, I should have taken them last round instead of Stefon Diggs. I know they lost some guys in the middle, but Von Miller is still on this team, so it would have been nice to draft them.

Who I Got: Bengals D/ST
PANIC PICK! Once the Broncos went off the board, I was just kind of stuck deciding between the Bengals, Texans, and Raiders. Then I thought maybe I should just draft a quarterback, but then I knew that some defenses would be off the board before I could make my next pick, and I kept going back and forth. I knocked out the Texans because Watt is out early, and I may be able to snag them off the waiver wire when they have a bad game without him. Then I just decided that I didn’t want to believe in the Raiders despite them having Khalil Mack, destroyer of worlds. So then I picked up the Bengals. They’re always solid. This is not a sexy pick; it’s an okay one.

ROUND 13
145 Christine Michael, Sea RB Charles In Charge
146 Chris Johnson, Ari RB baby seals and puppies
147 Steven Hauschka, Sea K AwesomeSugar Omelet
148 Josh Brown, NYG K Ruby's Roosters
149 Markus Wheaton, Pit WR Trouser Trouts
150 Chris Hogan, NE WR Fart Gamblers
151 Ryan Tannehill, Mia QB   Return of the Mac
152 Patriots D/ST D/ST Panty Bandits
153 Vikings D/ST D/ST The Calms Of Death
154 Steelers D/ST D/ST Shortbus Superheroes
155 Justin Tucker, Bal K Deal With It
156 Charles Sims, TB RB Harrisburg Hairy Palmers

Who I Wanted: Ryan Tannehill
I still needed a backup quarterback, and Tannehill is now working with Adam Gase who helped Cutler to a strong year last season. There are a lot of interesting weapons down in Miami, and Tannehill could revert to his stats from two years ago when he was like the sixth best fantasy quarterback.

Who I Got: Ryan Tannehill
I was probably going RGIII if he wasn’t there, so I’m really happy he was there.

ROUND 14
157 Mason Crosby, GB K Harrisburg Hairy Palmers
158 Mohamed Sanu, Atl WR Deal With It
159 Phillip Dorsett, Ind WR Shortbus Superheroes
160 Dan Bailey, Dal K The Calms Of Death
161 Rishard Matthews, Ten WR Panty Bandits
162 Roberto Aguayo, TB K   Return of the Mac
163 Matt Prater, Det K Fart Gamblers
164 Robbie Gould, Chi K Trouser Trouts
165 Josh Doctson*, Wsh WR Ruby's Roosters
166 Bears D/ST D/ST AwesomeSugar Omelet
167 Graham Gano, Car K baby seals and puppies
168 Chandler Catanzaro, Ari K Charles In Charge

Who I Wanted: A Kicker
I was between Mason Crosby, Justin Tucker, and Roberto Aguayo. If they were all gone, I was going to make a panic pick on a kicker.

Who I Got: Roberto Aguayo
Did I take a kicker who had the yips in the preseason? Oh hell yeah. But now he’s over them and nailing 50-yarders in the rain like it’s not even a big deal. Oh, Roberto, it is a big deal, and you are going to be a big deal when you lead the league in points this year. Aguayo won’t make you sigh-o.

I feel great about my team this year, and since I am a self-proclaimed fantasy expert (like any other fantasy expert), I can just about guarantee that my team will be ravaged with injuries and underperformance. I will then swear each of them off and watch them explode for career years in 2017. Hooray, Fantasy!

Cutting Your Losses in Fantasy Baseball

Since I spend an unhealthy amount of time following sports, I am pretty good when it comes to fantasy sports. I have won far more than I have lost, and that makes me happy. I wouldn't call myself an expert, but that's because I don't really believe in fantasy experts. It always takes some luck. But it also takes the ability to understand weaknesses. And not just others, but your own. I have learned that one of my biggest weaknesses is cutting my losses.

If I invest in a guy, I don't give a shit how bad of a season he is having, I put stake in him, and I fully assume that he will bounce back from whatever season long slump he has been in. I know it's stupid, but I can't even control myself in the moment. These are players that I am sticking by and are probably going to be my downfall in this fantasy baseball season.

Round 3 - Carlos Gomez

I'm not sure if I have ever felt worse about a draft pick as I was making it than I did when drafting Carlos Gomez. Max Scherzer got taken one pick before him, and I was down to Carlos Gomez and George Springer for the pick. I don't know why I didn't consider Buster Posey; it was just poor preparation, and I picked the wrong guy. But Carlos Gomez is still on my team, still starting for the most part, and still sucking ass. But maybe he'll turn the clock back a couple years for the final few months. That won't happen, but I still don't have the testicular fortitude to just cut his ass.

Round 6 - Jason Heyward

I didn't feel great about this one either, but Strasburg got taken one pick before him which really messed up my plans. I'm pretty sure he had more home runs in Spring Training than he has had in the regular season. If only there were years and years and years of evidence that Spring Training stats don't matter. Welp, couldn't have seen this coming. At least he has 8 stolen bases, so if he picks up the home run pace, he might become a 10-10 guy this season.

Round 11 - Michael Wacha

I keep thinking he's going to get to peak version of Michael Wacha, but that guy appears to be gone. He's just fine enough that I will never take the chance to upgrade from him.

Round 14 - Brett Lawrie

This is actually the guy who helped me write this. Lawrie has been a totally average player this year. He's not really good in any way, and he's definitely a guy you'd want to upgrade, but he wasn't so bad that I ever needed to upgrade. But as luck would have it, he got hurt. And it was right after Trea Turner started getting regular playing time for Nationals. My team had a desperate need for speed, so Turner is likely going to keep his spot, and Lawrie's gone when I need to free up a spot on my disabled list. I would have never just picked up Trea Turner, but sometimes luck is just as important as being good.

Trade - Ben Revere

I can't end on a high note. I traded for Ben Revere a couple months ago, thinking he'd turn it around. I traded a pitcher who I thought would start to go downhill. That pitcher was Aaron Sanchez who continues to dominate. Ben Revere has gotten better, but he's only a part-time player at this point, and I still hold onto him. It still sounds like Sanchez won't be a starter late in the season, so maybe it won't turn out so bad for me, but yeah, this is bad, and I will continue to only see the positive in Revere. 

I'm a stupid person. I guess the real key to fantasy is playing with people more stupid than you. That's my true key to success.

Fantasy Booking the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

In my neverending quest to be employed by the WWE, I have come up with a new plan.  Not a lot of people know that Vince Russo started out his career by fantasy booking for the WWE under the name Vic Venom.  While I lack the racism and non-sensical writing style of Vince Russo, I feel I can provide well thought out stories that actually accomplish things like getting wrestlers over.  With that in mind I present my fantasy booking to be presented as a job application to the WWE.

I'm going to start it off with a bang and fantasy book the World Title scene.  The WWE needs this advice, I sincerely hope they take it.

I actually had to rewrite this a bit, but the main points remain the same.  Reigns continues to act like a tweener while people boo the hell out of him.  At Payback he and Styles fight a hard fought match where towards the end there’s a ref bump, Styles accidently catches the ref with a boot while hitting the Phenomenal Forearm.   Styles has him pinned but there’s no ref to count.  Styles tries to get the ref up then Reigns hits a superman punch.  All three men are down when Anderson and Gallows come out.  The crowd is going crazy assuming they’re going to attack Reigns and make Styles the champ.  Instead, they pick up Styles and hit him with the Boot of Doom.  They slide out, Reigns makes the cover and retains.  He gives Anderson and Gallows a confused look, then smiles.  All three men beat down Styles after the match and pose as the show goes off the air.

On RAW the next night, Reigns comes out with Gallows and Anderson and cuts a heel promo about how the crowd didn’t like him, so he went out and got two of their favorites from Japan, so how do you like him now?.  He goes full crazy and calls the group the New Shield.  Reigns then calls out Ambrose.  He says Ambrose is his brother and he wants him in the New Shield.  Ambrose says he still loves Reigns but he can’t support what he did, he can’t join his group.  The New Shield brutally beatdown Ambrose and hit him with a triple powerbomb.  Styles comes out to make the save and is beatdown too.  This sets up the next few months of main event program with Ambrose trying to take down Reigns, but eventually falling to the numbers game, even with Styles help.  Styles also gets his chances but suffers the same fate as Ambrose.

After a few months, Reigns is in the ring doing a heel celebration with his New Shield.  Ambrose comes out on the ramp with Styles and challenges Reigns to a multiman tag team match where if their team wins, they get a Fatal Four Way Match for the title in Hell in A Cell.  Reigns cockily responds that it doesn’t matter who Styles and Reigns find in the back, no one can hang with the three of them.  Cue the hard hitting guitar and out comes Seth Rollins.  They go down and clear the ring.  The crowd goes nuts.  When the match happens, Rollins is the equalizer that Ambrose and Styles have been looking for and Reigns is pinned after a curbstomp.  This sets up the main event at Summerslam, a Fatal 4 way for the WWE Title inside Hell in A Cell.

Reigns is entrenched as a heel who is actually over, meaning that his eventual face turn will be actually well received.  It gives him a reason to turn heel which the WWE has needed for months, but they couldn’t exactly have him join the Authority since they were fighting each other.  It gets Ambrose in the main event where he belongs judging by the crowd’s reaction to him and keeps AJ Styles in the main event where he should be for the rest of his career.  Anderson and Gallows are also elevated as a clearly dangerous tag team that should be near or on top of the division for years to come.  Seth Rollins gets to make his triumphant return where he will clearly get a huge face reaction and you have a huge main event for Summerslam to push buys of the network.

I had written this before Anderson and Gallows had been interacting with Styles.  If I had complete control, there would have been no mention of the three and their history before Payback, making their appearance more of a surprise and more of a big moment.  Now it seems that Anderson and Gallows will almost definitely be involved in the match in some form, but you can still follow the story the rest of the way and make sure that everyone involved is elevated.

The Best and Worst of My 2016 Fantasy Baseball Draft - Part 3

Hey everybody, baseball is here. Last week, I had my fantasy baseball draft, and it sure was a doozy. Unfortunately, this past weekend was also WrestleMania, so I didn't have time to write about it before the season started. Still, people need to know whether their draft was good, bad, or ugly, so I'll be focusing on the best picks, the worst picks, and my pick in each round. It's super simple this year, just a straight 5X5 head-to-head 10 team league with 29 rounds. Who did the best? Me, probably. Who did the worst? I don't know. Part one was published last Monday, part two came out last Tuesday, and now for the long-awaited, exciting conclusion.

ROUND 21
201 Jonathan Papelbon, Wsh RP Joc Jams Volume 1
202 Hector Olivera, Atl 3B Team Asaysian
203 Trevor Story, Col SS The Nasty Boys
204 Eduardo Escobar, Min SS Team GreinkMyCrank
205 Collin McHugh, Hou SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
206 Denard Span, SF OF Regular Ass Joel
207 Marcus Semien, Oak SS   Team Pedigree
208 Wil Myers, SD OF Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
209 Alex Wood, LAD SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
210 Steven Souza Jr., TB OF Total Jocs

Best Pick: Alex Wood
I thought Alex Wood was a steal in the trade the Dodgers made last year, and although he wasn't all that impressive when he came over, I think he puts it together with a full season in the rotation.

Worst Pick: Denard Span
Although the stat nerds like him, I'm not buying an aging Denard Span to stay effective and healthy this year.

My Pick: Marcus Semien
Full disclosure: I know next to nothing about Marcus Semien. I'm pretty sure he was with the White Sox, but then got traded to the Athletics, and I'm kind of guessing it was part of the Samardzija deal. I don't know what type of year he had last year, but I saw half of the fantasy "experts" predict that he would have a breakout year this season, so I'm really hoping they're right.

ROUND 22
211 Delino DeShields, Tex OF Total Jocs
212 Khris Davis, Oak OF Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
213 Andrew Miller, NYY RP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
214 Lance McCullers, Hou SP   Team Pedigree
215 Justin Bour, Mia 1B Regular Ass Joel
216 Gerardo Parra, Col OF Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
217 Vincent Velasquez, Phi RP Team GreinkMyCrank
218 Alex Gordon, KC OF The Nasty Boys
219 Michael Conforto, NYM OF Team Asaysian
220 Brad Ziegler, Ari RP Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Michael Conforto
I like the Conforto pick as a nice upside play this late in the draft. He hit well last year, and this is a point where hitters are becoming scarce, so it's a nice grab in the 22nd.

Worst Pick: Justin Bour
I'm guessing he'll be dropped before May.

My Pick: Lance McCullers
McCullers had some shoulder issues this spring, but it doesn't appear to be serious, and I'm hoping the Astros are just being extra cautious. He came up last year and was incredible, as his changeup took a huge leap forward, and he became one of the more effective young pitchers in the game. He's a little undersized, but as we all know, height doesn't measure heart.

ROUND 23
221 Sean Doolittle, Oak RP Joc Jams Volume 1
222 Drew Storen, Tor RP Team Asaysian
223 Shawn Tolleson, Tex RP The Nasty Boys
224 Devin Mesoraco, Cin C Team GreinkMyCrank
225 Joe Ross, Wsh SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
226 Clay Buchholz, Bos SP Regular Ass Joel
227 Marcell Ozuna, Mia OF   Team Pedigree
228 Kyle Hendricks, ChC SP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
229 Anthony DeSclafani, Cin SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
230 Andrew Heaney, LAA SP Total Jocs

Best Pick: Sean Doolittle
Getting a solid closer this late is a good get.

Worst Pick: Drew Storen
Getting a setup guy this early is not a good get. He has already been dropped.

My Pick: Marcell Ozuna
I'm a big believer in the Marlins outfield this year, because I trust in their hitting coach. He actually played in the major leagues but is not real well known, but I think the guy understands hitting, and I think Ozuna will benefit the most as he Barries balls into the stands while Bonding with his teammates.

ROUND 24
231 Roberto Osuna, Tor RP Total Jocs
232 Juan Nicasio, Pit RP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
233 Nick Castellanos, Det 3B Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
234 Jorge Soler, ChC OF   Team Pedigree
235 Aaron Nola, Phi SP Regular Ass Joel
236 Jonathan Schoop, Bal 2B Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
237 Santiago Casilla, SF RP Team GreinkMyCrank
238 Devon Travis, Tor 2B The Nasty Boys
239 Matt Holliday, StL OF Team Asaysian
240 Mitch Moreland, Tex 1B Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Aaron Nola
He's just a solid pitcher. He's never going to be a top pitcher, but he's got a pretty good chance to be a top 150 guy as long as he stays healthy.

Worst Pick: Matt Holliday
I've gone over this numerous times, but Matt Holliday is a traitor to this country and is likely the most reprehensible human being in all of professional baseball. He let his country down in the inaugural World Baseball Classic by faking an injury, and according to reliable sources, he's a douchebag.

My Pick: Jorge Soler
Jorge Soler is not in a great spot right now. There are four good outfielders on the Cubs, and I think they only plan to play three outfielders every day. But I have been a huge Soler fan for a while, and although he was bad last year, he did set the world on fire during the playoffs. I believe in playoffs Soler, and I think he has the ability to get more playing time than people are expecting.

ROUND 25
241 Danny Valencia, Oak 3B Joc Jams Volume 1
242 Trevor Bauer, Cle SP Team Asaysian
243 Joey Gallo, Tex OF The Nasty Boys
244 Domingo Santana, Mil OF Team GreinkMyCrank
245 Steve Cishek, Sea RP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
246 Alcides Escobar, KC SS Regular Ass Joel
247 Matt Moore, TB SP   Team Pedigree
248 Arodys Vizcaino, Atl RP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
249 Phil Hughes, Min SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
250 Kevin Kiermaier, TB OF Total Jocs

Best Pick: Steve Cishek
I think he can keep the closer role. At this point, anybody who has that sort of role guaranteed to start the year is a good find.

Worst Pick: Danny Valencia
He's a platoon bat at best, and even that may be giving him too much credit.

My Pick: Matt Moore
I picked up Matt Moore last year, and he imploded as much as any one man could. But then he hit the minors and came back with a vengeance. His velocity picked up, and with that, so did the strikeouts. I'm betting on that latter Moore showing up, and if so, this is excellent value for this late in the draft.

ROUND 26
251 Bradley Zimmer, Cle OF Total Jocs
252 Edinson Volquez, KC SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
253 Kevin Gausman, Bal SP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
254 Chris Carter, Mil 1B   Team Pedigree
255 Dexter Fowler, ChC OF Regular Ass Joel
256 Jason Hammel, ChC SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
257 Tyler Glasnow, Pit SP Team GreinkMyCrank
258 Nathan Karns, Sea SP The Nasty Boys
259 Yasmany Tomas, Ari OF Team Asaysian
260 J.J. Hoover, Cin RP Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Kevin Gausman
I was a little bummed to miss out on Gausman as he provides some great upside at this point in the draft. Still, he teased it last year and didn't come through, and he's already hurting this year, so there is risk, but it's worth it for the possible reward.

Worst Pick: Bradley Zimmer
He's starting off in the minors, and this isn't the sort of talent that set the world on fire in the minor leagues where you would expect him to start dominating at the major league level. He'll probably be fine when he gets called up, but holding on to a guy for 2-3 months for a fine performance seems counter productive to me.

My Pick: Chris Carter
I like big sluggers, and I ain't worried about strikeouts. Hence, Chris Carter is one of my favorite players in baseball.

ROUND 27
261 Ian Kennedy, KC SP Joc Jams Volume 1
262 Jimmy Nelson, Mil SP Team Asaysian
263 Josh Reddick, Oak OF The Nasty Boys
264 Trevor Plouffe, Min 3B Team GreinkMyCrank
265 Jeremy Jeffress, Mil RP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
266 Zack Wheeler, NYM SP Regular Ass Joel
267 Aaron Sanchez, Tor RP   Team Pedigree
268 Jean Segura, Ari SS Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
269 Wade Miley, Sea SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
270 Jerad Eickhoff, Phi SP Total Jocs

Best Pick: Jean Segura
I'm a big Segura fan as the only real issue he had last year was a poor BABIP for a guy with his speed and hitting at the bottom of the order, so he wasn't able to rack up counting stats. Both of those may change in a more hitter friendly environment, especially with the injuries the Diamondbacks are dealing with. If certain middle infielders hadn't fallen my way, I would have been happy to add him to my team.

Worst Pick: Ian Kennedy
The Royals have infiltrated some of the Cardinals Devil Magic, but I'll say that it runs out for them, and they do look as stupid as the experts say they are for signing Kennedy.

My Pick: Aaron Sanchez
I saw that Sanchez is getting a shot in the rotation this year for the Blue Jays, and he has a lot of upside for a pitcher, and if he starts off slow, it's no big deal as I can just snag somebody off of the waiver wire.

ROUND 28
271 Jarrod Dyson, KC OF Total Jocs
272 Andrew Cashner, SD SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
273 Brad Boxberger, TB RP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
274 Yan Gomes, Cle C   Team Pedigree
275 Stephen Vogt, Oak C Regular Ass Joel
276 Rajai Davis, Cle OF Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
277 Melky Cabrera, CWS OF Team GreinkMyCrank
278 Adam Lind, Sea 1B The Nasty Boys
279 Jose Reyes, Col SS Team Asaysian
280 Joe Mauer, Min 1B Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Andrew Cashner
He was good enough to be traded for Anthony Rizzo, so that's got to mean something.

Worst Pick: Jose Reyes
I know it's fantasy and everything, but you've got to feel a little icky rooting for this guy. I know no charges are going to be pressed, and people should be innocent until proven guilty, but I don't know man. I didn't even bring this up with Aroldis, but he definitely falls in the same boat. Friends don't let friends draft Jose Reyes.

My Pick: Yan Gomes
What do you want from me? I needed a catcher. Gomes plays catcher. A couple years ago he was good; I hope he is good again.

ROUND 29
281 Ervin Santana, Min SP Joc Jams Volume 1
282 Bartolo Colon, NYM SP Team Asaysian
283 Hector Santiago, LAA SP The Nasty Boys
284 Lucas Giolito, Wsh SP Team GreinkMyCrank
285 Nathan Eovaldi, NYY SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
286 Erick Aybar, Atl SS Regular Ass Joel
287 Tyler White, Hou 3B   Team Pedigree
288 Matt Wieters, Bal C Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
289 Drew Pomeranz, SD RP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
290 Jackie Bradley Jr., Bos OF Total Jocs

Best Pick: Jackie Bradley Jr.
If things had fallen differently, I may have drafted Bradley, but they didn't, so I didn't. But I wouldn't be surprised if he solved his batting average problems and became valuable fantasy contributor.

Worst Pick: Bartolo Colon
Come on, man.

My Pick: Tyler White
Due to my connections within the industry, I have it on good authority that the Astros front office is very excited about Tyler White's potential. Now, this could mean he's going to be a new age John Olerud on offense, but, admittedly, it could just mean that he is a 33rd round pick that made the major leagues which is still pretty fantastic from a front office perspective. Anyway, he's got a starting first base job, and if he continues to hit like he has at every level of professional level, he could keep it for quite a while.

OVERALL STANDINGS
After breaking everything down, its time to look at who is going to be my greatest challenger. I'll give best picks two points and worst picks negative one point. Meanwhile, my picks will always get three points, because they are better than the best. With that scoring system, here is how the final standings should look this season.

1. Team Pedigree - 97 points
2. Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$ - 12 points
3. The Nasty Boys - 7 Points
4. Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation - 6 Points
5. Team GreinkMyCrank 6-1 - 5 Points
6. Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs - 1 Point
7. Total Jocs - 0 Points
8. Regular Ass Joel - 0 Points
9. Joc Jams Volume 1 - 0 Points
10. Team Asaysian - -2 Points

So, there you have it. After 29 rounds (expanded from 25 since we only had 10 teams, and oh god did this review make me long for a 12 team league again), my team is clearly the cream of the crop. I shall rise to the top. I'm funky like a monkey, and too cool for school. And one thing for certain, when it comes to fantasy, I'm the man to see.

The Best and Worst of My 2016 Fantasy Baseball Draft - Part 2

Hey everybody, baseball is here. Last week, I had my fantasy baseball draft, and it sure was a doozy. Unfortunately, this past weekend was also WrestleMania, so I didn't have time to write about it before the season started. Still, people need to know whether their draft was good, bad, or ugly, so I'll be focusing on the best picks, the worst picks, and my pick in each round. It's super simple this year, just a straight 5X5 head-to-head 10 team league with 29 rounds. Who did the best? Me, probably. Who did the worst? I don't know. Part one was published on Monday, but now onto part two.

ROUND 11
101 Elvis Andrus, Tex SS Joc Jams Volume 1
102 Randal Grichuk, StL OF Team Asaysian
103 Anthony Rendon, Wsh 2B The Nasty Boys
104 Gregory Polanco, Pit OF Team GreinkMyCrank
105 Kolten Wong, StL 2B Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
106 Michael Brantley, Cle OF Regular Ass Joel
107 Michael Wacha, StL SP   Team Pedigree
108 Maikel Franco, Phi 3B Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
109 Evan Longoria, TB 3B Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
110 Josh Harrison, Pit 3B Total Jocs

Best Pick: Evan Longoria
Longoria isn't what he used to be, but as an 11th round pick, I can't think of doing much better. Even if he is what he is at this point, he's worth about that, and there is still the chance that he recovers some of his early career form and outproduces this position by quite a bit.

Worst Pick: Randal Grichuk
I'm selling on Grichuk. He struck out a ton last year, and although he might be able to hit 25 home runs, I think it's likely with a .230 average. Does that keep him starting every day, or is he more of a platoon bat at that point? And yes, I do realize that it's crazy to go against Cardinals Devil Magic, but I have a good reason because...

My Pick: Michael Wacha
Wacha's taking all that devil magic for himself this year. Wacha was cruising along before he seemingly ran out of gas at the end of last year. I think he can put together good Wacha for the entire year, and if that's the case, I got myself a nice little pitcher in the 11th round. He's got modest upside with seemingly little downside, so it's not an electrifying pick, but it will be an effective one.

ROUND 12
111 Ketel Marte, Sea SS Total Jocs
112 Shin-Soo Choo, Tex OF Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
113 Aroldis Chapman, NYY RP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
114 Corey Dickerson, TB OF   Team Pedigree
115 Kole Calhoun, LAA OF Regular Ass Joel
116 Cody Allen, Cle RP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
117 Francisco Liriano, Pit SP Team GreinkMyCrank
118 Adam Eaton, CWS OF The Nasty Boys
119 Zach Britton, Bal RP Team Asaysian
120 Evan Gattis, Hou DH Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Adam Eaton
Adam Eaton might be mentally handicapped as he saw a 14-year-old as a leader, but baseball players don't have to be smart to be good. Last year he was good, and he'll probably be good again. I don't see it as a high upside play, but this is the point in the draft where you're just looking for solid contributions from your picks.

Worst Pick: Aroldis Chapman
Chapman may be the best closer in the game, but the dude is dead weight during his suspension, and even when he comes back, it's no guarantee that he is going to be the closer for the Yankees with both Miller and Betances also in the bullpen. The reward could be pretty good, but I think it's far too risky with significant downside early on to take that chance.

My Pick: Corey Dickerson
The Rays are still super smart, right? Oh god, they might be dumb? Well, crap, because this pick was based solely on the Rays being smart and seeing some great value in Dickerson. At this point, it came down to him or Adam Eaton, and I couldn't pull the trigger on the guy who thought a 14-year-old was a leader. I'll admit it's not exciting, but it should be fine for Round 12.

ROUND 13
121 Michael Pineda, NYY SP Joc Jams Volume 1
122 Brandon Crawford, SF SS Team Asaysian
123 Masahiro Tanaka, NYY SP The Nasty Boys
124 Jeurys Familia, NYM RP Team GreinkMyCrank
125 Addison Russell, ChC 2B Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
126 DJ LeMahieu, Col 2B Regular Ass Joel
127 Jeff Samardzija, SF SP   Team Pedigree
128 Kevin Pillar, Tor OF Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
129 Neil Walker, NYM 2B Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
130 Lucas Duda, NYM 1B Total Jocs

Best Pick: Masahiro Tanaka
Since I like to base a ton off of what I see in person, I like the Tanaka pick. He looked like he was keeping hitters off balance when I saw him face off against the Orioles during Spring Training. Was Machado in the lineup? No. How about Chris Davis? No. Adam Jones? Nope. Pedro Alvarez or Mark Trumbo? Nope and nope. Were there any starters in the Orioles lineup? Well, I'm not totally familiar with the Orioles lineup, but no, I don't believe so. But Tanaka did look good, and that's enough for me.

Worst Pick: DJ LeMahieu
I don't have strong takes on this round, but there isn't much in LeMahieu's history to show that he should be a quality major league hitter, so I'll bet on his BABIP dropping and him losing a lot of his value.

My Pick: Jeff Samardzija
I thought Samardzija was going to be really good two years ago and he was. Last year, I didn't have any interest in him, and that turned out to be another good idea. This year, I just kind of threw a dart and figured he'd be good because he was back in the NL and in a very friendly pitcher's park. This may not be my best pick, but once Addison Russell went off the board, I figured a former Cub would have to due.

ROUND 14
131 Ken Giles, Hou RP Total Jocs
132 Ben Zobrist, ChC 2B Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
133 David Robertson, CWS RP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
134 Brett Lawrie, CWS 3B   Team Pedigree
135 Jonathan Lucroy, Mil C Regular Ass Joel
136 Brett Gardner, NYY OF Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
137 Dustin Pedroia, Bos 2B Team GreinkMyCrank
138 Ian Desmond, Tex SS The Nasty Boys
139 Justin Turner, LAD 3B Team Asaysian
140 Mark Melancon, Pit RP Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Ian Desmond
I'm a big believer in the Ian Desmond bounceback year. As long as he can be competent in the outfield, he should be good to go on putting up at least 15-15, and at shortstop, that's going to have some good value, even if the average is only around .260.

Worst Pick: Ken Giles
Ken Giles has been garbage every time I have seen him in spring training (twice), and the fact that the Astros didn't want to totally commit to him as the closer over Luke Gregerson. Even if he gets the closer role, he'll be on a tight leash, and there were plenty of closers in better situations to take at this point in the draft.

My Pick: Brett Lawrie
There are people predicting a breakout for Brett Lawrie. This has happened for five years now, and since 2011, it just hasn't happened. Last year showed a slight uptick in production, and that was when he moved to a pitcher's park. Now he's in a hitter's park, so maybe this is the year. He was the last guy that was second base eligible that I felt comfortable starting, so here we are, ready for the ever elusive Lawrie Breakout.

ROUND 15
141 Justin Verlander, Det SP Joc Jams Volume 1
142 Hector Rondon, ChC RP Team Asaysian
143 A.J. Ramos, Mia RP The Nasty Boys
144 Byron Buxton, Min OF Team GreinkMyCrank
145 Dellin Betances, NYY RP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
146 Jay Bruce, Cin OF Regular Ass Joel
147 Yu Darvish, Tex SP   Team Pedigree
148 Raisel Iglesias, Cin SP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
149 Jordan Zimmermann, Det SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
150 Mark Trumbo, Bal OF Total Jocs

Best Pick: Mark Trumbo
I'm a really big fan of the Orioles offense this year. They have guys like Machado and Adam Jones, but then they have Chris Davis, Mark Trumbo, and Pedro Alvarez. Three huge sluggers who strike out a ton, but crush a ton of baseballs. Like, you might get 120 home runs out of those three guys. Probably more like 100, but still. So yes, I like Trumbo for a bounceback year.

Worst Pick: Jordan Zimmermann
He really fell off last year, and now he's going to the American League and probably isn't going to magically bounce back. I just don't see much upside in this pick and wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't worth owning this year.

My Pick: Yu Darvish
I will fully admit that I may have jumped the gun on snagging Darvish this early, but I really wanted Yu Darvish. He is coming off of a major injury and might be slow to regain his old form, but I think by the end of the year, he's going to be rolling, and that's the time of the year when I need my boy to shine.

ROUND 16
151 Jaime Garcia, StL SP Total Jocs
152 Kendrys Morales, KC DH Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
153 Billy Burns, Oak OF Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
154 Carlos Santana, Cle 1B   Team Pedigree
155 Jung Ho Kang, Pit 3B Regular Ass Joel
156 Ender Inciarte, Atl OF Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
157 Julio Teheran, Atl SP Team GreinkMyCrank
158 Shelby Miller, Ari SP The Nasty Boys
159 Ryan Zimmerman, Wsh 1B Team Asaysian
160 Hisashi Iwakuma, Sea SP Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Julio Teheran
Teheran had a poor year last year, but he's young and will likely bounce back. At worst, he'll probably produce around the 150th most value, but he provides decent upside to become a top 100 guy.

Worst Pick: Jaime Garcia
Would you like to bet on Jaime Garcia staying healthy for the entire season? If so, I will gladly take the other side of that bet.

My Pick: Carlos Santana
I think Santana can hit .270. If he does that with his power, he could be an absolute stud this year. I know he hasn't done it yet, and he's practically Brett Lawrie with people predicting a breakout, but I'm ready for this breakout. And this gives me the added benefit of changing my team name to something involving the song, "Smooth."

ROUND 17
161 Mark Teixeira, NYY 1B Joc Jams Volume 1
162 Steven Matz, NYM SP Team Asaysian
163 Brian McCann, NYY C The Nasty Boys
164 Jake Odorizzi, TB SP Team GreinkMyCrank
165 Jose Quintana, CWS SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
166 Yordano Ventura, KC SP Regular Ass Joel
167 Jake McGee, Col RP   Team Pedigree
168 Curtis Granderson, NYM OF Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
169 Matt Duffy, SF 3B Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
170 Joc Pederson, LAD OF Total Jocs

Best Pick: Jake Odorizzi
Not gonna lie, I was pretty jealous of this pick. Odorizzi has been really good these last two years. His only real issue last year was an injury, but it wasn't serious, and I don't see any reason to think he's more injury prone than any other pitcher. He's probably going to be very good, and I wish he was on my team.

Worst Pick: Curtis Granderson
Granderson seems to do just enough to keep people believing in him. Last year, he had that year that made people believe, so it should inevitably be followed by a couple years where people ask themselves why they were buying into Curtis Granderson. I will not buy into you Curtis, but keep getting paid, playa.

My Pick: Jake McGee
I needed a closer. McGee is a closer. I'm aware that he plays in Colorado, which isn't great, but if Huston Street can be just as effective, I see no reason McGee can't do the same.

ROUND 18
171 Anibal Sanchez, Det SP Total Jocs
172 Drew Smyly, TB SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
173 Starlin Castro, NYY SS Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
174 Gio Gonzalez, Wsh SP   Team Pedigree
175 Logan Forsythe, TB 2B Regular Ass Joel
176 Kenta Maeda, LAD SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
177 Francisco Rodriguez, Det RP Team GreinkMyCrank
178 Huston Street, LAA RP The Nasty Boys
179 Salvador Perez, KC C Team Asaysian
180 Mike Moustakas, KC 3B Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Drew Smyly
Smyly somehow rehabbed an injury and avoided surgery when everyone thought he was going to have to have surgery. So there is definite risk, but when he is healthy, he's a really good pitcher, and this is the point where it makes sense to take chances on guys like that.

Worst Pick: Francisco Rodriguez
Wasn't he supposed to be done as a top-level reliever like four years ago? I'm not buying into this whole smoke and mirrors version of K-Rod. I'm going to bet that he's either injured or ineffective, neither of which is a good thing.

My Pick: Gio Gonzalez
I was trying to get Gio Gonzalez for most of the season last year. I finally got him with like a month left in the year, and he did not magically become the pitcher I thought he'd be. But maybe this year he will be. I think he can cut down on the walks and hits he gave up, and if he does that, he could turn back into the #2 pitcher that people thought he was going into last year. If not, he's still not that bad of an 18th round pick.

ROUND 19
181 Travis d'Arnaud, NYM C Joc Jams Volume 1
182 Victor Martinez, Det DH Team Asaysian
183 Mike Fiers, Hou SP The Nasty Boys
184 Joe Panik, SF 2B Team GreinkMyCrank
185 Russell Martin, Tor C Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
186 Howie Kendrick, LAD 2B Regular Ass Joel
187 Glen Perkins, Min RP   Team Pedigree
188 Pedro Alvarez, Bal 1B Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
189 John Lackey, ChC SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
190 Brad Miller, TB SS Total Jocs

Best Pick: Pedro Alvarez
Like I said in Round 15, I love the Orioles offense, and a bounceback from Pedro Alvarez is a big reason why.

Worst Pick: Victor Martinez
I bet against Victor Martinez two years ago, and he made me look like a butthole. I bet against him last year and had my revenge. Now it's time for the tiebreaker. You will not be good this year, Victor Martinez, and if you are, well, I'll bet against you again next year.

My Pick: Glen Perkins
Alvarez was a guy I really wanted but my computer started messing up, so I got my phone fired up just in time to draft, but I just wanted to make sure I didn't get stuck with a jabroni, so I took the highest rated guy in my queue. Alvarez was waiting just a little ways down, but I'm actually pretty happy with Perkins as he is a closer that I have a lot of confidence in.

ROUND 20
191 Stephen Piscotty, StL OF Total Jocs
192 Scott Kazmir, LAD SP Team VottoEroticAsphyxiation
193 Patrick Corbin, Ari SP Back 2 Take Yo Lunch $$
194 Carlos Rodon, CWS SP   Team Pedigree
195 Alex Rodriguez, NYY DH Regular Ass Joel
196 Luis Severino, NYY SP Blackmon Have McHugh Gardner Wongs
197 Taijuan Walker, Sea SP Team GreinkMyCrank
198 James Shields, SD SP The Nasty Boys
199 Mike Leake, StL SP Team Asaysian
200 Wei-Yin Chen, Mia SP Joc Jams Volume 1

Best Pick: Taijuan Walker
Walker turned it on after a really rough start early in the year. If he had just been in the minors before he put things together, he would have been drafted about seven rounds earlier, but his rough start skewed his final numbers, and this is a nice pick for round 20.

Worst Pick: Scott Kazmir
I doubt I will ever buy into a post-prime improvement from someone, and Kazmir has proved me wrong the last few years, but I'll bet on the magic running out this season.

My Pick: Carlos Rodon

Rodon was incredibly underrated by ESPN's rankings, so he fell to Round 20. That is a huge blessing for me, as Rodon has the raw stuff to emerge as one of the best pitchers in the American League. I'm not betting on all that happening this year, but I do think he takes a step in that direction.

And so goes part two. Part 3 will be coming in the next couple days.