Who Should I Draft in Fantasy Baseball?

It’s fantasy baseball season! Here are some tips on who you should draft for your team.

Know Your League’s Settings

The first step to winning your fantasy baseball league is to know your league settings. Most leagues have different settings, so it is important to know what kind of league you are in. Some leagues use points instead of head-to-head play, so it is important to know this before you draft your team.

League size

The size of your league will impact the strategy you use on draft day. In general, the larger the league, the more depth there is at each position and the more closely closely bunched together the teams will be in terms of overall talent. That means in a 10-team league it’s easier to find that last piece to put you over the top than it is in a 16-team league. So while it’s important to have a good feel for all 30 major league teams when drafting in a shallower league, in a deeper one you can focus on just your team and maybe one or two others.

Here’s a look at how many players you should expect to drafted at each position in different sized leagues:

League size Catchers First basemen Second basemen Shortstops Third basemen Outfielders Starting pitchers Relief pitchers

10 team 1 2 2 1 1 5 9 2

12 team 1 2 2 1 1 6 10 3

14 team 2 3 3 2 2 8 12 4

16 team 2 3 4 2 2 10 14 5

Positions

In fantasy baseball, team owners draft real-life players to fill imaginary lineup spots. To have the best chance at winning, you need to have a good understanding of the different positions and how they impact your fantasy baseball team.

There are nine positions in baseball: pitcher, catcher, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, right fielder, center fielder and left fielder. In some leagues, there is also a designated hitter position. Each position has different requirements and scoring opportunities, so it is important to understand how they all work before embarking on your fantasy baseball journey.

Pitchers are the most important part of any fantasy baseball team. They are responsible for getting batters out and prevent runs from scoring. The more batters a pitcher gets out, the more points they will score for your team. Catchers work with pitchers to help them control the game and make sure they are throwing strikes. They also provide an extra layer of defense behind the plate.

First basemen are typically big and strong players who can hit for a lot of power. They are responsible for keeping the ball in play and getting runners out at first base. Second basemen need to be quick and agile in order to turn double plays (a play where two runners are thrown out). Third basemen need to have a strong arm to throw runners out at first base. Shortstops need to be able to field their position well and make quick throws to first base.

Outfielders need to be able cover a lot of ground in the outfield grass. They also need to have a strong arm to throw runners out at second or third base if they try to advance on a hit ball. In some cases, an outfielder may be used as a pinch hitter (a batter who comes into the game late in the game). Depending on your league’s settings, you may draft anywhere from one to five outfielders for your fantasy baseball team.

Scoring

In order to succeed at fantasy baseball, you must understand how your league scores points. Most leagues use a basic 5x5 scoring system, which awards points for 10 different stat categories. The 5x5 categories are:

Hitting: Runs (R), Home Runs (HR), RBIs (RBI), Stolen Bases (SB), Batting Average (AVG)

Pitching: Wins (W), Saves (SV), Strikeouts (K), ERA (ERA), WHIP (WHIP)

Depending on your league’s settings, you may also earn points for additional hitting or pitching categories, such as runs scored, walks, strikeouts-per-9-innings pitched, or quality starts. Be sure to check your league’s settings before draft day so you know which stats will earn you points!

Know Your Categories

Fantasy baseball is a game in which fans draft real life baseball players to create imaginary teams. These teams then compete against each other based on the statistical performance of the real life players in the Categories for the season. There are many strategies that can be employed in order to have a successful fantasy baseball team. In this article, we will discuss the importance of knowing your Categories.

Hitting Categories

In fantasy baseball, there are four standard hitting categories in which every player is ranked. They are as follows:

Batting Average (AVG): This is the percentage of a player’s at-bats that result in a hit.
Example: If a player has 100 at-bats and gets 30 hits, his batting average would be .300.

Home Runs (HR): This is the total number of home runs a player hits over the course of a season.

Runs Batted In (RBI): This is the total number of runs a player drives in over the course of a season. A run is scored when a player crosses home plate after hitting the ball, and he gets credit for any runs that score as a direct result of his own hit.

Runs Scored (R): This is the total number of runs a player scores over the course of a season. A run is scored when a player crosses home plate after hitting the ball or by any other means (e.g., walks, stolen bases, etc.).

Pitching Categories

In order to succeed in fantasy baseball, you need to know the pitching categories in which your league scores. Most leagues use the five traditional categories for pitchers: wins, strikeouts, earned run average (ERA), walks plus hits per innings pitched (WHIP), and saves. However, some leagues add additional categories or replace one of the five standard categories with a different statistic. It is important to know which pitching statistics your league counts in order to make informed decisions when drafting and managing your team. The five traditional pitching categories are detailed below.

Wins: A pitcher is awarded a win if he is the pitcher of record when his team takes the lead for good and maintains that lead for the rest of the game. Wins are generally not a good predictor of future success, as they can be influenced by factors such as run support and bullpen performance that are outside a pitcher’s control.

Strikeouts: A strikeout (or “K”) occurs when a batter swings at a pitch and misses, or when he does not swing at a pitch and the umpire judges it to be in the strike zone. Strikeouts are generally considered a good predictor of future success, as pitchers who can rack up strikeouts tend to be more effective than those who cannot.

Earned run average (ERA): ERA is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched, and multiplying by nine. Earned runs are runs that scored without the benefit of an error or passed ball; they are entirely the responsibility of the pitcher. ERA is generally considered a good predictor of future success, as it measures how effective a pitcher is at preventing runs from scoring.

Walks plus hits per innings pitched (WHIP): WHIP is determined by adding together the number of walks and hits allowed per inning pitched. WHIP is generally considered a good predictor of future success, as it measures how often opposing batters reach base against a pitcher.

Saves: A save occurs when a relief pitcher comes into a game in a situation where he can preserve his team’s lead for the rest of the game. Saves are generally not considered a good predictor of future success, as they can be influenced by factors such as team performance and bullpen usage that are outside a pitcher’s control.

Know Who’s Available

It’s always good to know who’s available in fantasy baseball. This way, you can make sure you’re drafting the best player for your team. There are a few things you should keep in mind when you’re looking at who’s available. First, you should look at the player’s statistics. This will give you an idea of how well they’ve been playing lately. You should also look at the team the player is on.

Use a Cheat Sheet

Before your draft, you should create or obtain a cheat sheet. A cheat sheet is a list of the top players at each position, ranked according to their projected stats. You can find cheat sheets online or make your own.

You can use a cheat sheet as a guide during your draft to help you make the best choices for your team. Having a cheat sheet will allow you to draft players that are most likely to succeed, while avoiding those that are more likely to fail.

Use a Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit

A Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit can take the guesswork out of who to draft for your fantasy baseball team. A good draft kit will have updated player rankings and projections, as well as information on player sleepers, busts, and breakout candidates.

player rankings and projections, as well as information on player sleepers, busts, and breakout candidates.

Mock Draft

It’s that time of year again, when baseball fans start preparing for their fantasy drafts. If you’re new to fantasy baseball, or just need a refresher, here’s a quick primer on how to mock draft.

Try Different Strategies

One common mistake is drafting too many players from the same team. While it’s important to have some players from good offensive teams, you don’t want to have too many because then you’re more likely to lose points in categories like ERA and WHIP. It’s also a good idea to mix up your draft strategy with some risky picks. Sure, it’s tempting to draft all superstars, but if everyone else is doing that then you’ll be at a disadvantage. Snagging a few sleeper picks can give you an edge on your competition.

Analyze Your Team

If you’re in a points-based league, look at the top three point-scorers at each position and draft the player who finished the season ranked highest at his position. If you’re in a head-to-head league, look at the team’s recent performance and draft the player who helped them the most.

After the Draft

After you draft your fantasy baseball team, it’s important to analyze your squad to see where you may need to make improvements. One way to do this is by looking at your team’s statistics from the previous season and comparing them to the league average. This will give you an idea of which areas you need to focus on in the upcoming season.

For example, let’s say you drafted a team of all hitters who performed above average in the home run category last season. However, if the league average for home runs is 100 and your team only hit 90 home runs as a whole, then you know that you need to improve in that area. You can do this by drafting players who are more likely to hit for power or by trade for a slugger during the season.

It’s also important to keep an eye on player trends when analyzing your team. For instance, let’s say one of your starting pitchers had a great season last year but his strikeout rate has been declining in recent years. This could be a sign that he is about to start declining overall and it might be time to look for a replacement.

By taking the time to analyze your team after the draft, you can make sure that you are always putting yourself in position to win.

During the Season

Fantasy baseball is all about exploiting matchups. A big part of that is knowing which pitchers to start against which teams, and which hitters to sit. But it goes beyond that. It’s also about finding value in playing time changes due to injury, demotion, or promotion. It’s about finding the breakout performer no one saw coming. And it’s about knowing when to cut bait on a player who is underperforming.

The key to all of this is staying on top of the day-to-day happenings in Major League Baseball, and that is where our “Analyze Your Team” feature comes in.

“Analyze Your Team” is a daily email we send to subscribers of our premium Fantasy Alarm service that breaks down all the important news and information you need to know in order to make the best possible decisions for your fantasy team.

In “Analyze Your Team”, you’ll find:
-A detailed breakdown of all the relevant news and information for every team in Major League Baseball
-An analysis of how that news and information impacts your fantasy team
-Recommended lineup changes for every fantasy league format (i.e. standard, points, head-to-head, etc.)
-“Watch List” players for every team who are either on the verge of a breakout or are underperforming and could be candidates for a change in playing time