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The earliest of early mock drafts: Rounds 16 - 20

Ray takes a look at rounds 16 - 20 of the #earlymock14 fantasy baseball draft with the guys from Fantasy Assembly.

By Ray Guilfoyle
Brian Kersey

We completed the 25 round draft in the #earlymock14 fantasy baseball draft, but today I offer my thoughts on rounds 16 - 20. You can find my thoughts on the earlier rounds here:

Round One

Round Two

Round Three

Round Four

Round Five

Round Six

Rounds 7 - 10

Round 11 - 15

Tommy L from Fantasy Assembly wrote his thoughts for rounds 1-5 and 6-15 in the links below:

Mock Draft Analysis: Rounds 1-5

Mock Draft Analysis: Rounds 6-15

What I like to do in mock drafts is to try out different draft strategies, but in this mock, I decided to use the wait on pitching strategy. My strategy didn't go as planned, as I ended up drafting five pitchers ( four starters and a closer) in the first thirteen rounds, so you could say I veered off course from my original strategy.

Mid-draft I decided to go with what I felt was best value in each round. It may not have turned out that way, but I didn't want to reach for a first baseman like Brandon Belt, who I like, when Matt Moore was on the board in the ninth round.

Here is a quick look at how the picks for rounds 16 - 20 of the #earlymock14 fantasy baseball draft went:

Rank

Player

Position

Owner

16.181

Bobby Parnell

RP

DanS.@RotoBanter

16.182

Michael Brantley

OF

JimF FantasyAssembly

16.183

Dan Straily

SP

peter@theassembly

16.184

Rex Brothers

RP

tommyl@theassembly

16.185

R.A. Dickey

SP

Daniel Kelley

16.186

Jim Henderson

RP

Alex K Fake Teams

16.187

Leonys Martin

OF

Kevin@theassembly

16.188

Coco Crisp

OF

Paul@FantasyAssembly

16.189

Grant Balfour

RP

FakeTeams

16.190

Torii Hunter

OF

Jeff Q RotoWords

16.191

Ubaldo Jimenez

SP

BrianC@FakeTeams

16.192

Alexei Ramirez

SS

asfarfaketeams

17.193

Will Venable

OF

asfarfaketeams

17.194

Neil Walker

2B

BrianC@FakeTeams

17.195

Lance Lynn

SP

Jeff Q RotoWords

17.196

Mark Teixeira

1B

FakeTeams

17.197

Aramis Ramirez

3B

Paul@FantasyAssembly

17.198

Corey Kluber

SP

Kevin@theassembly

17.199

Jeff Samardzija

SP

Alex K Fake Teams

17.200

Fernando Rodney

RP

Daniel Kelley

17.201

Alejandro De Aza

OF

tommyl@theassembly

17.202

Victor Martinez

DH

peter@theassembly

17.203

Yovani Gallardo

SP

JimF FantasyAssembly

17.204

Ernesto Frieri

RP

DanS.@RotoBanter

18.205

Nolan Arenado

3B

DanS.@RotoBanter

18.206

Corey Hart

1B

JimF FantasyAssembly

18.207

Darin Ruf

OF

peter@theassembly

18.208

Matt Dominguez

3B

tommyl@theassembly

18.209

Dexter Fowler

OF

Daniel Kelley

18.210

Howie Kendrick

2B

Alex K Fake Teams

18.211

Chris Johnson

3B

Kevin@theassembly

18.212

Joaquin Benoit

RP

Paul@FantasyAssembly

18.213

C.J. Wilson

SP

FakeTeams

18.214

Ivan Nova

SP

Jeff Q RotoWords

18.215

Chris Archer

SP

BrianC@FakeTeams

18.216

Danny Farquhar

RP

asfarfaketeams

19.217

Huston Street

RP

asfarfaketeams

19.218

Matt Garza

SP

BrianC@FakeTeams

19.219

Erick Aybar

SS

Jeff Q RotoWords

19.220

Martin Perez

SP

FakeTeams

19.221

Taijuan Walker

SP

Paul@FantasyAssembly

19.222

Carlos Quentin

OF

Kevin@theassembly

19.223

Nick Markakis

OF

Alex K Fake Teams

19.224

Jhonny Peralta

SS

Daniel Kelley

19.225

Bartolo Colon

SP

tommyl@theassembly

19.226

Bruce Rondon

RP

peter@theassembly

19.227

Kole Calhoun

OF

JimF FantasyAssembly

19.228

Adam Eaton

OF

DanS.@RotoBanter

20.229

Alex Wood

SP

DanS.@RotoBanter

20.230

Zack Cozart

SS

JimF FantasyAssembly

20.231

Ryan Cook

RP

peter@theassembly

20.232

A.J. Griffin

SP

tommyl@theassembly

20.233

Joakim Soria

RP

Daniel Kelley

20.234

Colby Rasmus

OF

Alex K Fake Teams

20.235

Tyson Ross

SP

Kevin@theassembly

20.236

Jonathan Villar

SS

Paul@FantasyAssembly

20.237

Alexander Guerrero

2B

FakeTeams

20.238

John Lackey

SP

Jeff Q RotoWords

20.239

CC Sabathia

SP

BrianC@FakeTeams

20.240

Evan Gattis

OF

asfarfaketeams

Round 16

Since I had strayed from my wait on pitching strategy in the first ten rounds, I decided to go with the pitching heavy strategy, as I drafted a closer in the 16th round, followed by two more starting pitchers in 18th and 19th rounds. As a result, I had to grab a second closer, and chose Grant Balfour here. Balfour is a free agent this offseason, but should be able to land a closer job this due to his success in Oakland last season.

Picks I liked

I liked several picks in this round, specifically R.A. Dickey, Coco Crisp, Ubaldo Jimenez and Torii Hunter. All four should outperform their 16th round value in 2014. Crisp might be one of the more underrated outfielders in the game, as he is old, but still puts up solid power and speed totals for his fantasy owners. I am not sure he can hit 20 home runs again next season, but he is good for double digit home runs and 20+ stolen bases.

Picks I didn't like

Rex Brothers was the Rockies closer in 2013, but there are rumors that the Rockies are targeting a closer this offseason, which would result in Brothers moving back to a set up role.

Round 17

In round 17, I grabbed my first baseman Mark Teixeira. I have to say I am surprised he lasted this long, but he is coming off a wrist injury that kept him out most of the 2013 season. I assume he will be fully healthy next season, and if he can return to the 30 home run hitter he was before the injury, he represents solid value here in the 17th round.

Picks I liked

Will Venable had a breakout season in 2013, and anytime you can draft a 20 home run, 20 stolen base hitter in the 17th round, it is a great value pick.

How did Jeff Samardzija last until the 17th round? I think some teams whiffed on not picking him sooner, including me. He is better than he showed us in 2013. Nice pick by Alex, who happens to be a Cubs fan.

Victor Martinez will lose catcher eligibility in 2014, but he is still a very good hitter.

Picks I didn't like

We will learn whether Corey Kluber is for real in 2014. He pitched better than his 3.85 ERA, and owns a very good K/BB rate over 4.00.

Round 18

I drafted Angels starter C.J. WIlson in the 18th round and was surprised he was still available so late in the draft. Wilson won 17 games with a 3.39 ERA in 2013, so how did he last this long?

Picks I liked

I really like outfielder Dexter Fowler in the 18th round here, assuming he does not get traded as has been rumored recently. If he is ultimately dealt, his value will drop somewhat. Otherwise, he is a solid outfield choice this late in the draft.

Picks I didn't like

There is a chance that Phillies outfielder Darin Ruf is a fourth outfielder in Philadelphia this season. They recently signed Marlon Byrd to play right field, and with Domonic Brown and Ben Revere manning left and center field, he looks like he will be a back up outfielder and possible platoon partner with Ryan Howard.

Round 19

Sticking with my heavy pitching draft strategy, I chose Rangers starter Martin Perez here in the 19th round. Perez had an excellent rookie season, winning ten of his twenty starts, with a 3.62 ERA. His 6.08 K/9 rate is not desirable, but he keeps the ball on the ground at a 48% clip.

Picks I liked

Bartolo Colon is another pitcher that somehow fell through the cracks in this mock draft, as he won 18 games with a sub 3.00 ERA last season. If his name was Justin Verlander, he would have been picked about 16 rounds sooner.

Diamondbacks outfielder Adam Eaton was a preseason Rookie of the Year candidate, but an elbow injury kept him out 90+ games in 2013. He scored 40 runs in 66 games this season, and could approach 100 runs scored in 2014. He will be a sleeper in 2014 drafts.

Picks I didn't like

I am not a fan of Carlos Quentin as he is always injured and has played in less than 90 games in each of the last two seasons.

Round 20

I filled my second base spot with recent Dodgers international signee Alexander Guerrero. Guerrero is playing some shortstop in the Dominican Winter League right now, and should hit for some power with solid plate discipline at the keystone or shortstop in 2014.

Picks I liked

Yankees starter C.C. Sabathia lasted until the 20th round? That tells you how much his value has dropped after his horrific 2013 season. Can he return to the ace that he was prior to 2013?

Padres starter Tyson Ross had a bit of a breakout in 2013 as he was one of the best starting pitchers in baseball in the second half. The question is whether he can do this over a full season or not.

Picks I didn't like

Will Braves pitcher Alex Wood be a starter of reliever in 2014. If he is a starter, this is a decent pick here. If not, I am not a fan of this pick here.

Roster

My roster through 20 rounds is as follows:

Rd.1 Andrew McCutchen, OF

Rd. 2 David Wright, 3B

Rd. 3 Ian Desmond, SS

Rd. 4 Alex Rios, OF

Rd. 5 Hunter Pence, OF

Rd. 6 Zack Greinke, SP

Rd. 7 Alex Gordon, OF

Rd. 8 George Springer, OF

Rd. 9 Matt Moore, SP

Rd. 10 Starlin Castro, MI

Rd. 11 Hyun-Jin Ryu, SP

Rd. 12 A.J. Burnett, SP

Rd. 13 Glen Perkins, CL

Rd. 14 Salvador Perez, C

Rd. 15 Chase Headley, CI

Rd. 16 Grant Balfour, CL

Rd. 17 Mark Teixiera, 1B

Rd. 18 C.J. Wilson, SP

Rd. 19 Martin Perez, SP

Rd. 20 Alexander Guerrero, 2B

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