Best way to draft

[ANDYCOCHRANE]

Man I am unhappy with my drafts. I put Schilling and Zambrano as my 1 and 2 picks but got neither of them. My best pitcher is consequently Garcia. Not bad, but not eactly elite. How can I get good pitchers? I missed out on those two plus Roberts, Blalock, Freel, Casey and was given jokers like Bellhorn, Glaus. I did manage to get Berkman, (3rd or 4th pick) and J.Guillen, Izturis, so I suppose its not all bad, just miffed at not getting any top pitchers. It looks like it is basically pot luck if you can't get any of your top 2 picks.

Any ideas how to draft better??

[Detroit-Tigers]

If you want a top pitcher, the only way to do it is the draft 5. Otherwise, I try to draft ahead of others. If I know Schilling is going #1, I don;t pick him, I pick a solid #2 int he #1 position so that I get him.

[bleacher_creature]

[quote:10fcc5f9e4="Detroit-Tigers"]If you want a top pitcher, the only way to do it is the draft 5. Otherwise, I try to draft ahead of others. If I know Schilling is going #1, I don;t pick him, I pick a solid #2 int he #1 position so that I get him.[/quote:10fcc5f9e4]

What is "the draft 5"?

I have the same frustration. Never get the TORs I want, and I try to shoot a little lower than Johnson and Santana. Then people post that these two will go undrafted sometimes!

How about this strategy - pick a park good for pitchers anyway, where middle to cheap pitchers will do well (this much I have learned), and pick hitters at the top.

I just got bounced in the semis by a team with Clemons and Schilling, but the other team in the finals has R. Lopez as his ace.

[wavygravy2k]

Hi Shankly,

Keep trying. Put your SPs at least in the top 5. I believe one time I got Johnson and Santana but ended up dropping Santana cause I didn't have enough money for relief pitching.

In 2003, I believe was able to get Schmidt, Martinez, and Contreras one time.

I've never had Glaus but he seems to be a valuable commodity.

[ANDYCOCHRANE]

I have been able to get good pitchers before but recent drafts have left me short on pitching. I think I had two or three drafts before with good pitchers where I just put my most expensive players at the top. Recently I have tried to put pitchers and middle defence in the top 5 but the pitchers just go.[/quote]

[goredsox33]

you need to put them very high .....SP is scarce in 2005......
draft them high.....
you can always find hitting after the draft/waivers..

[bleacher_creature]

So, do you just draft 5 starters at the top then?

It seems like 2006 is going to be weird. I don't see a ton pf players who can hit both sides well, and my guess is that finding effective pitching is not going to be all that hard. It just looks like quite a challenge.

Also, someone called it "return of the lefty killers". It does seem like it will be a piece of cake to set up your team to hit RHPs, but protect it vs LHPs.

[worrierking]

I try to draft against the grain. The more times you draft, the more you'll learn who goes early. I believe it's best to stay out of the battles for the hot commodities and go after different things that will help your team.

For instance, Luis Castillo is going to be on the draft lists of four or five teams in every autodraft, since he is the best defensive second baseman in the set, is perfect for a pitchers park (which are used more often than hitters parks) and because there are very few stars at second base. Your chances of getting him are slim. To get him he needs to be listed at the top of your list and still you may not get him. That can throw off your whole draft. I usually put Hudson around 10th to 15th on my list and almost always get him. He's not as good as Castillo, but he's very useful. He's a one who is good in a variety of parks and even if you don't end up wanting him, he's good trade bait for all the guys who put Castillo at the top of their lists and failed to get him. Often times I draft another second baseman that I might need like Cora or Boone and put him near the bottom of my list as insurance.

As for starting pitchers, I have found recently that I can almost always get a great staff of guys perfect for my park simply by drafting the non * guys. In US Cell, for instance, I can list Madritsch, Wright, Harden, Wise, Penny and Peavy and typically get four or even five of them. They are all great values in an HR park since they have few BP HRs and there's no feeding frenzy for them like the high-priced * guys. You don't have to list any of them high on your draft list.

I don't always draft a SS, CF or closer. I can almost always get an excellent one of each in waivers or the free agent frenzy. By not spending on a closer, I can list six starters. By not listing a SS, I can draft two 2b, which are scarcer, increasing the likelihood that I get at least one of them.

I almost never go for Bonds, RJ or Santana either, simply because drafting them is very iffy. I would rather draft the low-priced bargain guys high. I seem to get them much more often.