Tough to pinpoint where it all began, but over the years we as a society went from cheering on the good guy to revering the bad boy. Maybe it was James Dean. Maybe it was the Fonz. Maybe it was Stone Cold Steve Austin. The coolness factor on all three stands at a pretty high level and as a result, we’ve embraced them all as role models, people to emulate.
We all want to be bold. We all want to be brazen. Even the nice guys who always play it safe, deep down, wish they could be the one standing atop the mountain saying, “Here I am, motherf***er. I dare you to knock me down.”
But not everyone has the stones to be that guy. Some say they’ve never had the opportunity, but let’s face facts, we’ve all probably had that opportunity at some point or another. The question is, did you do it? Did you seize the moment or did you play it safe?
Well, if you’ve always wanted to be the bad boy, if you’ve always wanted to be the guy everyone wishes they could be, then I have your opportunity right here. It’s called your fantasy baseball auction. OK, fine, none of the aforementioned cool cats ever played a game as nerdy as fantasy baseball, but that doesn’t mean you still can’t be the baddest nerd on the block, does it?
By now you’ve been inundated with a ton of advice on how to handle your auction draft. Hell, I even have a column in the Fantasy Alarm MLB Draft Guide that discusses it. But while I lay out things like ‘have a plan’ and ‘set up a budget,’ I never gave you the most important piece of advice – own the room. Yeah, that’s right. Own it. Take control. Come out swinging. Hard.
It’s called “stars and scrubs,” people and for those who know the player pool and how to play the auction game, it’s more than just a strategy. It’s a statement. It says exactly what you want to say when you’re standing atop that mountain.
If you’re one of those guys who likes to play it safe, who feels you have to be patient in an auction, then turn around and walk out the door. This isn’t for you. Go right ahead and give yourself a tuck. Spread that bid money around on third tier talent. This strategy takes balls. Big ones. Well, big balls and knowledge, that is. Oh, and for those badass ladies out there who routinely embarrass their boyfriends/husbands in fantasy sports, this is for you too. These balls of which I speak, they’re metaphorical.
The key to success with this strategy and attitude is your knowledge of the player pool and just how deep it is in a 12-team league, standard for most. You can certainly pull this off in a 15-teamer as well, but it’s definitely a lot more difficult and takes a lot more work. But you’re not scared of a little extra work, are you? I didn’t think so. For a 10-team league? Pffffffft! Like taking candy from a baby.
The best place for you to start is by looking at the Tout Wars drafts from this past weekend, primarily the Mixed Head-to-Head league I was in and the Mixed Auction from Saturday. The H2H was a 12-teamer while the Mixed Auction is made up of 15 teams (Here are the boards). Both leagues saw aggressive bidding and in each case, the owners walked away from the draft as Alpha Males.
If you look at Paul Sporer’s team in the H2H, you’ll see winning bids on Joey Votto ($41), Nolan Arenado ($41), Mike Trout ($50) and Bryce Harper ($44). You’ll also see a $25 bid on Trevor Story and a $23 bid on Chris Archer. Not too shabby of a core, is it? But then take a look at the rest of his team! Javier Baez and Eric Thames for $5 each? Aledmys Diaz for $3? Or how about $1 guys in Carlos Beltran, Marcell Ozuna and Matt Holliday? The late value to be had in a 12-team auction is ridiculous. His pitching staff may not be the be-all, end all, but there’s definitely some upside and solid potential there. Not to mention, the number of pitchers who frequently pop up on the waiver wire. Barring massive injuries, Paul won’t have to worry about his offense one bit and can focus on honing his pitching staff throughout the season, if needed.
While my balls apparently look like a couple of raisins compared to Paul’s in this draft, I pulled off something slightly similar. I went big on a select group of targets, knowing there would be tremendous values to be had late. That was why I held back just a bit. Thinking that others would try to do what Paul did (something Peter Kreutzer did last season), I tried to hold a little money for later. The fact that he was the only one to do it, meant that my holding back wasn’t necessary. There were too many others apparently willing to overpay for mediocre talent late in the draft.
When you look at the Mixed Auction, take a look at Fred Zinkie’s team. Winning bids on Kris Bryant ($45), Nolan Arenado ($40), Josh Donaldson ($42), Bryce Harper ($42), Madison Bumgarner ($30) and Yu Darvish ($23)! Boom! Mic drop, people! He picked up some great value both on offense and pitching late in the draft and while his supporting cast may not be as strong as Sporer’s (remember, this one is 15 teams), he cornered the market on third baseman and can easily trade one of them to fill in any gaps he may have.
That’s probably the big difference-maker between the two drafts. Sporer still has a strong supporting cast and can work his magic on the waiver wire. Zinkie will have to do a little more work on the trade front, something he is already notorious for dominating. But regardless of the in-season work which is always necessary, both guys walked into their drafts and announced their presence with authority. They were not to be messed with and neither was going to back down from a fight.
Again, the key to a successful draft with this kind of attitude and strategy is the knowledge of the player pool. So long as you know just how deep it is and how you can acquire quality $1 players, then you shouldn’t be afraid to throw your bid money around and shove a few of your league-mates in the face. That guy in your league who thinks he’s smarter than everyone else and is holding back his bid money? You watch. He’ll be stuck overpaying for mediocre talent and even worse, he’ll end up leaving bid money on the table, a serious no-no when it comes to auctions.
So you wanna be a rock & roll star? You wanna be a badass? Get your ass into an auction draft and throw that money around like you mean it. You’ve seen it in motion here and you’ve seen how it can be successful. Be bold. Be brazen. Stand on top of that nerd mountain and laugh. It’s going to take some serious cajones to knock you down!