And just like that, your 2024 fantasy baseball draft is here.

OK, maybe not right this second, but as the calendar flips to March and spring training continues, you’re going to be walking into your MLB draft war room much sooner than later. 

 

 

 

The 2024 MLB season technically begins with a two-game series March 20th and 21st in Seoul, South Korea between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, so fantasy baseball drafts are indeed starting up and your prep work needs to be kicking into high-gear.

A fantasy baseball mock draft is a key part of this prep for a successful season.

While taking part in a legitimate fantasy baseball mock draft is the best way to accomplish your preseason goals, in the continued spirit of our larger 2024 Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide, we want to make this as simple (and as fun) as possible for you. That’s why we’re going to write-up THREE different staff MLB mock drafts. Results and analysis from our first 2024 fantasy baseball mock draft are below.

 

Looking ahead, we’ll be inviting All-Pro subscribers to join us for our upcoming mock drafts. You’ll be able to pick the brains of our analysts while you draft and get 1-on-1 advice ahead of your own league’s drafts.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter or join our Discord to see when these mock drafts are scheduled.

The importance of these types of quality fantasy baseball mock drafts is often overlooked. Most people feel that they need to have some skin in the game for a draft to be worth their while. This leads many to turn to best ball MLB drafts instead of season-long fantasy baseball mock drafting.

We certainly don’t want to take away from best ball drafting, as it certainly brings about its own excitement. That said, you should not be drafting a best ball league the same way you would draft in your 12-team rotisserie league.

Not only should your draft strategy be different, but your roster construction should be as well. After all, in a best ball league, there are no waiver claims, you can’t make trades, and you aren’t even responsible for setting a lineup each week, let alone every day. 

For 2024, we created TWO different fantasy baseball draft cheat sheets to address these differences. Click our links to download your printable fantasy baseball cheat sheet, or our 2024 best ball fantasy MLB cheat sheet. Both cheat sheets will download as PDFs. They’ll also be updated daily through Opening Day.

Now back to the task at hand. Without further ado, let’s see what we learned from our first 2024 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft.

2024 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Results: 12-Team League

Mock Draft Participants (in order of the draft):

  1. David Carcagente (All-Pro subscriber)
  2. Mark Pitts
  3. Joe Gallina
  4. Matt Selz
  5. Jon Impemba
  6. Colby Conway
  7. Nathan Wise (All-Pro subscriber)
  8. Dan Malin
  9. Howard Bender
  10. Ivar Anderson
  11. Ryan Kirksey
  12. Ray Kuhn

Click Here To View The Full Board & Mock Draft Results

Most times, when people are writing up fantasy baseball mock drafts, they tend to focus on their team, their draft strategy and whether or not employing their strategy actually worked. We’ll definitely get into that type of a granular look. First though, I want to give some broad strokes as to what we are looking at for fantasy baseball drafts in general.

The Consensus Top 5 Picks & The Rest Of The 1st Round

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna is everyone’s No. 1 pick. I’ve taken part in a number of drafts, both real and mocks, and have not seen anyone other than Acuna get taken with the first pick.

Why would they? Even if he doesn’t repeat last season’s .337/.416/.596 slash line, 40 home runs and 70 stolen bases are still well within his grasp.

After Acuna, the order may differ from draft to draft, but the next four picks are routinely Julio Rodriguez, Mookie Betts, Bobby Witt and Corbin Carroll. You may see someone sneak Spencer Strider in there if they have a plan to go pitching-heavy, but if you’re sitting with a pick in the top-five, taking a player who can dominate with both power and speed is probably the most beneficial to start.

If you’re picking in the middle part of your draft, you still have strong options like Kyle Tucker and Fernando Tatis, which is the direction I would most likely go. Again, it’s both power and speed.

In this specific mock draft, looking at where I was picking – the ninth spot – I had the option of Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani. Judge is all power. Ohtani does both. Should I have taken Ohtani for that fact? Maybe. But I made the choice to keep my UT spot open and set a plan in motion to seek out speed in subsequent rounds. It might be a little tougher as those drafting around me are also looking at power guys with minimal speed like Juan Soto, Freddie Freeman and Yordan Alvarez, but I’ve identified other speed options throughout the next several rounds, so it’s a chance I’m willing to take. (Funny enough, I was able to lock down speed with my very next pick so it was even easier than I thought!)

2024 Mock Draft Result: When To Draft Starting Pitching

Five years ago, we saw much more starting pitching go in the first two rounds. You had studs like Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander going early while Gerrit Cole, Shane Bieber and Walker Buehler quickly followed. But with the increasing depth at the position, the array of major arm injuries we’ve witnessed recently, as well as the massive uptick in offensive output, drafting “pocket aces” is not necessarily a preferred draft strategy anymore. 

But as you can see in this mock draft, the Top-10 starters are still coming off the board before the end of the fourth round and the Top-20 are gone by the end of the sixth. So, while you see more teams taking offensive weapons with their first three picks, they quickly move to the next available pitching tier to grab what they can for strikeouts, wins and help with the ratios. Those who do not, typically turn to the elite closers.

2024 Mock Draft Result: Identifying The Position Runs

Understanding where the draft-runs start for certain positions is always important during your draft. With so many ways to build a roster, every draft is different, but for some reason, catchers and fantasy baseball closers always seem to go in bunches.

As you can see from the results on the mock draft board, the Top-5 catchers are scattered in the early rounds of a 12-team league, but once you hit Rounds 11 and 12, people really start snatching them up - even moreso in two-catcher leagues. Beyond that, rounds 18 through 21 seem to be a sweet-spot for those picking up their second backstop.

It’s not an exact science, but if you look at the current 2024 Fantasy Baseball ADP, the numbers are all fairly comparable.

For closers, it’s a little more interesting. You’ll find those who don’t grab elite starting pitching to be the owners who grab a top-tier closer first. In this particular draft, Ryan and Ray were the first to take closers off the board and they each had a Top-10 starter. But, in numerous other drafts, including the Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational to name one, the top two closers went to teams that had no starting pitching.

 

Knowing they would need some ratio-stabilizers to go with their third and fourth-tier pitchers, having a guy who posts a 2.00 ERA over 65 innings can be a world of help. So, that puts the top-tier closers off the board around the 60th overall pick and from there, you should see a fair number of dominos fall. You’ll see some scattered closers around the ninth or 10th round and from there you’ll see some activity in Rounds 15 through 18 as people look to either grab a second or even third saves specialist.

Again, not an exact science and every draft is different, but we’re in the ballpark if you’re monitoring this year’s fantasy baseball ADP.

Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Results: Staff Thoughts

I’ve shared some thoughts on my early-draft strategy, so I won’t hit you with too many more details. I picked ninth and lucked out with Trea Turner falling to me in the second, so I was able to splash in both power and speed throughout the subsequent rounds. I made sure to grab a couple of really strong starters early and handled my closers in strong fashion. I don’t think Edwin Diaz is going to fall into the eighth-round too often, but guys like Alexis Diaz and Jordan Romano were still available and I would have been content with either. I mixed in some stable, boring guys with my late-round upside picks and, overall, this is a team I would be happy to open the season with.

But enough about me. Let’s look at what others had to say about their first mock draft of 2024.

Pick 2 -- Mark Pitts (@Mark_Pitts_34)

With the No.2 overall pick, I considered Bobby Witt but ultimately selected Mookie Betts to anchor my team. He may not have the 50-steal upside that Witt has but Mookie does have a 30-steal season under his belt and I’m a sucker for multi-position eligibility.

I bolstered my pitching early with three of my first seven picks going to Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and Justin Steele. The pair of Phillies pitchers may be coming off down years but each recorded 200+ strikeouts and Steele was no slouch either, with 176 in 173 IP. I regretfully did not take my next SP until round 17, but I was happy with a late Aaron Civale and Michael Wacha to round things out.

This was my first draft of the season and though my team feels very solid, I would likely prioritize speed in upcoming drafts. Dansby Swanson and Ozzie Albies both have it in them to swipe 20 bags, but only Thairo Estrada and a late Jake Fraley are coming off 20-steal seasons.

Pick 5 -- Jon Impemba (@jimpemba777)

Loved getting Carroll at pick five. In a 5x5 roto league he is someone that can contribute to all five offensive categories while providing elite upside in both runs scored and stolen bases. With this being the first fantasy baseball mock draft of the year, I didn't want to go in with a plan, but instead, wanted to see where the players would fall on the board. Overall, I'm very happy with how my offensive picks turned out as I feel as though I have a good balance of power and speed.

As for pitching, well, I could use some help. George Kirby and Eury Perez have some solid potential. I'm hopeful Jordan Montgomery lands in a winning spot and that both Triston McKenzie (injury) and Lucas Giolito (performance) can bounce back from their disappointing 2023 seasons. 

Fantasy Alarm’s powerful League Sync tool has my team projected to finish 4th in total points. If one or two breakout plays hit, this squad might be good enough to take it home.

Pick 6 -- Colby Conway (@colbyrconway)

I knew I wanted to attack offense early on, albeit some injury risk with Luis Robert and Jazz Chisholm being two of my first five picks. Nonetheless, the upside is immense.

From an offensive standpoint, this is a complete offense with no significant statistical weaknesses. Pablo Lopez and Cole Ragans are a quality 1-2 punch, but I may have waited a bit too long before taking my next starter. Bryce Miller and Frankie Montas are two of my favorite upside arms to target in drafts this season, so while I'm happy I got them, my starting rotation is a bit iffy.

Overall, I really like this team, but perhaps swapping one of those bats in Rounds 13-16 for a starter would have been better for the overall balance of this squad.

Pick 10 -- Ivar Anderson (@johnwhorfin)

I was glad to pick up both Ohtani and his teammate, Yamamoto. Ohtani has done well for me in fantasy baseball leagues since he landed in the MLB, so I have been targeting the new Japanese import for my early draft rosters as well. I’m interested to see how that plays out, good or bad.

Due to this particular MLB mock draft format, I also sought out some other hype darlings, such as Nolan Jones, Noelvi Marte, Jackson Holliday, and Paul Skenes. I put them together with developing potential stars such as Spencer Torkelson.

I drafted both Cody Bellinger and Jones with an eye for one of them to take over my 1B slot, and the other to slot in at corner infield - but the draft platform placed both in the outfield. Not an issue, as Torkelson at first and Ryan McMahon fill those roster positions nicely.

My pitching looks heavy on bullpen arms, but A.J. Puk, Seth Lugo and Hunter Brown are potentially heading to the rotations of their respective teams. Switching up philosophies when mock drafting is a technique I employ to gather intel for use in actual fantasy baseball drafts.

Do not get attached to the rankings the sites hand out after you receive your mock draft results, positive or negative. What determines a fantasy season is only partially affected by your draft performance. 

Pick 12 -- Ray Kuhn (@Ray_Kuhn_28)

No two drafts are the same. That is perhaps the biggest takeaway here as while having a plan of attack is always great, be prepared to pivot.

I’m used to drafting closers in the third and fourth rounds, but I felt out the room and drafted Devin Williams with the last pick of the fifth round. Had I not been on the end, I likely would have waited, but with 22 picks in between, you need to anticipate runs.

While I love pairing Yordan Alvarez with Jose Ramirez, there are some stolen bases lacking. In a 12-team league, finding enough speed to be competitive isn’t too difficult. With Francisco Alvarez and Eloy Jimenez, I got two of my targets at a price that allows for upside. 

Shane Bieber is intriguing this year, and in Round 14, that pick can pay large dividends. Gavin Williams lasting to Round 18 was surprising as well. Jeremy Pena and Luis Severino falling to the late rounds also were picks that stood out.

You’ve Read Up On Our Staff’s First Mock Draft. Now What?

Your purchase of the 2024 MLB Draft Guide (or your All-Pro subscription) gets you everything you need to dominate your drafts.

We mentioned the draft cheat sheets above. You also have access to 2024 fantasy baseball player rankings, player profiles for every fantasy-relevant athlete, and a series of draft strategy articles for a variety of different league formats. All of these give you a direct pipeline into some fantastic fantasy baseball mock draft results - which will lead you to a successful 2024 fantasy season.