SiriusXM Host League Draft: Team Review

When my phone buzzed at 5:45 am and it was Jim Bowden asking me who I was looking at with the fourth overall pick today, I just figured I was having that dream where I was Brian Cashman once again. What witty retort can I text back to tell Jim I wasn’t going to fall for the early-morning, caught off-guard, divulge information text? The banana-in-the-tailpipe of GM tactics, so to speak. But in the middle of typing my response, I realized…oh crap! The SiriusXM Host League draft is this morning!

I ran through my morning routine in record time, grabbed a Red Bull from the fridge (I don’t do coffee) and headed out to The Shed. The sun hadn’t risen yet, but with Bowden, Craig Mish and 11 future second-place finishers beckoning, it was time for me to shine.

Let’s get to the league basics:

SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio Host League

12-team, mixed league, snake-style draft

Standard 5x5 roto categories: AVG, HR, RBI, Runs, SB, Wins, K, Saves, ERA, WHIP

Participants (in order of draft):

My Team:

Complete Draft Board

Here was the process:

I was originally going to attack this draft just as I normally would, with some power/speed guys in the first several rounds, wait on pitching (so deep in a 12-team league) and augment either steals or power later, depending on need. At the fourth pick, I figured Paul Goldschmidt would be there to kick things off and then see what happens in Rounds 2 and 3.

Well, wouldn’t you know it, Lisa Ann, picking right before me, ganked Goldy and “forced” me into making a decision I really didn’t want to have to make. I know Jose Altuve has been great, but I believe firmly in the depth of the middle infield and instead went with sure-fire power – and big power at that – in Nolan Arenado. The problem, as I suspected it would be, was as a result of how I strongly I feel about drafting the corner infield (first base gets ugly after the top-six) and outfielder needs in a draft which meant I would have to bulk up on power early and find stolen bases in the mid-to-late rounds. OK, not really a problem. Just a matter of a mid-draft strategy pivot.

So power was now the primary focus with an eye on some speed, if available. Freddie Freeman give me my power-hitting first baseman, Giancarlo Stanton (if healthy) gives me major power upside while Ian Desmond, Andrew McCutchen (yes, I believe in a rebound) and Ian Kinsler offer me good power with a splash of speed. With that in-hand, it was time to look for some pitching.

I have some obvious concern with Masahiro Tanaka’s health and ability to get me 30-plus starts, but he’s a quality strikeout guy and could be a stable top-of-the-rotation guy for me. Aaron Sanchez is a guy I believe can take a step forward this season and then I grabbed Mark Melancon to ensure a quality closer with solid job security to help stabilize the ratios while racking up saves for me.

I briefly turned back to offense, but for steals, and grabbed Byron Buxton while also adding Jason Kipnis who offers both power and speed. There was a closer run in the 12^th, but had my eye on a few late-round closers to target, so with the next tier of starters making their way to the top of the player list in the draft room, I figured I should go back to building my pitching. Aaron Nola has tremendous upside, as does Lance McCullers and then coming back in the 14^th, knowing Lisa Ann had Andrew Miller, I would pay her back for the Goldy-steal and grab Cody Allen.

After that, it was about rounding out the rest of the squad. Matt Wieters gives me a solid backstop in a two-catcher league, Matt Moore has great upside (especially if you believe in his second half from 2016) and then Jedd Gyorko and Jung-Ho Kang give me some nice infield roster flexibility with some good power. Sonny Gray has upside if he rebounds, Cam Bedrosian gives me another closer and even Shelby Miller has some potential based on how he’s looked since fixing his mechanics issue from last season.

The selection of Ben Revere in the 20^th round gives me some real nice speed upside and he could be a huge steal (pun intended) with Cameron Maybin already hurt. Chris Owings also has some moderate speed upside and qualifies at both shortstop and the outfield.

Overall, I’m pretty happy with the way this squad took shape. Yes, I took a few risks, but sometimes that’s what you need to do to win these leagues. If Stanton and McCutchen pan out and Tanaka stays healthy? Ka-BOOOOM! And anything else I need? Well, that’s what waivers are for.

For a look at an outsider's perspective, check out Ray Flowers' write up of the draft.