Experts League Recap: The Dynasty Guru Experts League, Rounds 11 - 20

Last week I wrote about the setup of an experts' league I am participating in, along with 19 other fantasy writers from across the internet. As a refresher, here are the details:

20 team dynasty league
40 round snake draft, any player signed by a major league club at the start of the draft is eligible for any pick
4 hour per pick slow draft
Roster is C, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, MI, CI, 5 OF, 9 P, 7 BN, and 10 minor league slots
Minor league slots are available for anyone that qualifies for a prospect list (less than 130 AB, 45 IP)
5x5 categories, with weekly lineup deadlines
$100 in-season FAAB
35 players kept each year out of the 40 on the total roster
No limit on the time a player can be kept
I have pick #18

I wrote up my first ten picks on Wednesday, which you can find below:

Round 11 (218) - Coco Crisp, OF, OAK

With outfielders starting to fly off the board in the round before, and my previous dream that Travis d'Arnaud would make it back to me at this pick ended at pick #201, I went with Crisp here. He's not really likely to hit for as much power as he did last year, but I can see a 10-15 home run season with 25 stolen bases here, to go with a solid batting average.

Round 12 (223) - Tim Lincecum, SP, SF

It's hard to judge what exactly Lincecum can be at this point, as it seems all but certain that the version that won Cy Young awards and struck out boatloads of hitters are gone. But there is still that upside in there, and I think he still slots in as a #3/#4 starter for fantasy purposes.

Round 13 (258) - Jorge Alfaro, C, TEX

My first true hitting prospect, I wanted to find a potential long-term answer at catcher in the middle rounds since I didn't have one to this point. Alfaro has the potential to be a 25+ home run hitter for a high average, true elite upside. He'll likely start the season at AA, and it wouldn't surprise me if he was in the majors by this time next year.

Round 14 (263) - B.J Upton, OF, ATL

Much to the chagrin of my fellow owners, I went with another upside play here for my OF3. There's still the potential to return to the 28 HR/31 SB form of his 2012 season, and while I think it's more likely he ends up in the 15-20 HR/20-25 SB range, I also think his batting average risk is a bit overstated this year. The way the team is built to this point, I think we can take a .220 average from Upton if he provides 15 HR and 20 SB this late in the draft.

Round 15 (298) - Jake Marisnick, OF, MIA

I don't expect Marisnick to start the season in the majors, but I think he is up at the end of the year. (With the Marlins, you never know though.) He projects to be a 10+ homer, 20+ stolen base hitter who doesn't kill you in batting average. A perfectly fine OF3/OF4 for the future

Round 16 (303) - Hiroki Kuroda, SP, NYY

I debated here between a closer and Kuroda, and in hindsight I should have taken the closer. I am a big fan of Kuroda, and think that he can repeat his performance from last year again, and in future years if he decides he wants to keep pitching.

It was at this point in the draft that the closer run officially started and ended, as Uehara, Janssen, Frieri, Balfour, Feliz, Johnson, Papelbon, Grilli, Parnell, Henderson, Soriano and Nate Jones were drafted from the start of round 15 through my pick in round 17.

Round 17 (338) - Rymer Liriano, OF, SD

A forgotten man after missing all of last year with an injury, Liriano could be a 20 HR/20 SB outfielder in the future, and could be in San Diego by season's end as well. I want to see what he does in his return to the field, but this was a top 50 fantasy prospect a year ago.

Round 18 (343) - Colin Moran, 3B, MIA

Another prospect, I wanted to get a long-term answer at third base in the middle rounds since Adrian Beltre is already in his mid-30's. There are questions about whether Moran will hit for enough power at the position, but the comparisons to Dustin Ackley that get floated around seem a bit too easy. He should hit for average, and whether he hits for 10-12 home runs or 15-20 seems like the biggest question.

Round 19 (378) - A.J. Cole, SP, WAS

The last half of the closer run happened between pick 323 and this one, as Street, Rodney, Veras, Axford, Brothers, Allen, and Crick (depending on how you see him) all went in those 35 picks. I was annoyed when the A's traded Cole away, as he has the upside to be a #2/#3 starter and will start this year at AA. He could be up with the big club at the start of 2015, and could be a #3/#4 fantasy starting pitcher in most leagues.

Round 20 (383) - Joakim Soria, RP, TEX

I finally went wading into the closer pool, and went with a longer term play here. I believe Soria ends up getting the most saves on the Rangers this year, and I think he is a full-time closer as soon as next year as well. It's not entirely clear yet whether the Rangers will go with Neftali Feliz first, but I could easily see a situation where Soria takes control of the job at the start of the year and the team is unwilling to make a change while things are going well.

Some Other Notes from Rounds 11-20:

• In a league this deep, you absolutely need to make sure you get the players you want when you want them. Because of how long between my picks, I ran into two different buzzsaw runs on closers that left me without a locked-in closer.
• Alexander Guerrero went at pick #237, in the 13th round.
• We saw a team make completely clear their push for 2016, as they only drafted six players with any major league experience in the first 20 rounds, and every player was under the age of 25.
• Michael Pineda went in round 15, and Josh Johnson went in round 17. Both are on their way to rotation spots, and Pineda could be a steal in 15 if he can continue his spring performance so far.