Crazy auction.

[onejayhawk]

This is a 20 team league, except we had one team pull out at the least second, so thre are 19. That's cool, since its ROTO. It is the first deep auction league I have done, and I was dealing with distractions, like going to church 4 hours in. Some were expecting 3 hours, and others were saying 2 to 2 1/2. It took 8 hours before all the $1 players were off. On top of that, the poll was $374, so the prices were 50% inflated, and the stats are non standard.

I was going for a stars and scrubs team, and opened with Pujols for $68 (adjusted for inflation). Utley was an accident (double key).

With no more adeau,

19 teams, ROTO, redraft.
R, HR, RBI, OBA, netSB
Ks, WHIP, SV, Hold, QS

C --empty--
1B Albert Pujols (StL - 1B)
2B Chase Utley (Phi - 2B)
3B Evan Longoria (TB - 3B)
SS Alexi Casilla (Min - 2B,SS)
LF Nelson Cruz (Tex - LF,RF)
CF Melky Cabrera (KC - LF,CF,RF)
RF Travis Snider (Tor - LF,RF)
Util Dustin Pedroia (Bos - 2B)

SP Jake Peavy (CWS - SP)
P Mike Adams (SD - P)
P Jeff Niemann (TB - SP)
P Jair Jurrjens (Atl - SP)
P José Contreras (Phi - P)
P Mike Pelfrey (NYM - SP)

BN Fred Lewis (Cin - LF,CF,RF)
BN Juan Pierre (CWS - LF)
BN Emilio Bonifacio (Fla - SS,LF,CF)
BN Kevin Slowey (Min - SP)
BN Fausto Carmona (Cle - SP)
BN Edwin Jackson (CWS - SP)
BN Wade Davis (TB - SP)
BN Michael Wuertz (Oak - P)
BN José Mijares (Min - P)
BN Alexi Ogando (Tex - P)
BN Jeremy Jeffress (KC - P)

How bad is it?

J

[Lucky]

Hard to tell for sure, but it looks like the offense is solid. I would have tried to pick up Lorenzo Cain, who should be taking Melky's place soon, but you have Pierre, so it works out. You may have some spare offense to trade.

I would worry about pitching, particularly starting pitching. I don't think I see a starter in the top forty. Maybe nobody in the top fifty. Having no ERA will help, but I have to wonder how many Quality Starts these guys will turn in.

Just a couple of other matters. What does it mean the poll was $374?

You mentioned that inflation was high. What did you mean by that. There can be no inflation in a redraft league. People can pay way over what players are worth, but inflation is a function of the value of keepers. No keepers, no inflation.

Auctions with 20 teams take a long time. Auctions with 12 teams take a long time. Whoever said you could do it in under three hours was pulling your leg. Or maybe he'd never actually done one. The end game for 20 teams had to be rough.

[onejayhawk]

Hard to tell for sure, but it looks like the offense is solid. I would have tried to pick up Lorenzo Cain, who should be taking Melky's place soon, but you have Pierre, so it works out. You may have some spare offense to trade.

I would worry about pitching, particularly starting pitching. I don't think I see a starter in the top forty. Maybe nobody in the top fifty. Having no ERA will help, but I have to wonder how many Quality Starts these guys will turn in.

Just a couple of other matters. What does it mean the poll was $374?

You mentioned that inflation was high. What did you mean by that. There can be no inflation in a redraft league. People can pay way over what players are worth, but inflation is a function of the value of keepers. No keepers, no inflation.

Auctions with 20 teams take a long time. Auctions with 12 teams take a long time. Whoever said you could do it in under three hours was pulling your leg. Or maybe he'd never actually done one. The end game for 20 teams had to be rough.

This league was inspired by Shandler's $500 project. We get $400. $374 for the draft, and $26 for FAAB, plus any money left over from the draft. We were polling $2-$5 players, and one team still had $180. That's when I had to go to church. 2 1/2 hours later it was still polling $1 guys.

Cain was drafted. For that matter, Kila was drafted. Melky is a $1 slot filler. Inflation is (374/260)=1.44 times normal pricing. With these stats, I had Pujols at $114. Paying $100 was actually under value. The mistake with Utley hurt, since it cut over half my remaining budget. When I got back, I stacked the queue with all the best MR left. Saves are dead, and maybe QS, but I can dominate holds and WHIP.

J

[joncarlos]

I don't see how you're going to do well in WHIP, or the really good MRs that you should have ended up with. Your SPs have some potential, but I don't like their odds of delivering WHIP. Too bad Peavy might be in worse shape than Utley, I think EJax and Davis wouldn't have been a bad start in Ks, but you paired them with a bunch of low-K guys in Neimann, Pelfrey, Carmona. QS might actually be your best category. With that many reserve picks you'll probably end up with crap at catcher, in addition to crappy Melky and not great Casilla (who will only give you one category). I know Pujols covers a lot of sins but I don't think it's that many.

[onejayhawk]

Here is the team nearing a month in. I made some very nice, so far, FA pickups, and got very lucky with Alexi Ogando. On the down side, Pujols is not hitting and Longoria is hurt.

We have a long bench, but no DL. Results on WW pickups are mixed. Pitching has been a journey. I picked up Narveson and Masterson for two cans of warm beer and Fausto Carmona. That was before either ahd a start.

C Yorvit Torrealba (Tex - C)
1B Albert Pujols (StL - 1B)
2B Dustin Pedroia (Bos - 2B)
3B Andy LaRoche (Oak - 3B)
SS Paul Janish (Cin - 3B,SS)
LF Nelson Cruz (Tex - LF,RF)
CF Melky Cabrera (KC - LF,CF,RF)
RF Travis Snider (Tor - LF,RF)
Util Juan Pierre (CWS - LF)
SP Edwin Jackson (CWS - SP)
P Mike Adams (SD - P)
P José Contreras (Phi - P)
P Alexi Ogando (Tex - P)
P Chris Narveson (Mil - SP)
P Jeremy Jeffress (KC - P)
BN Alexi Casilla (Min - 2B,SS)
BN Jayson Nix (Tor - 2B,3B)
BN Evan Longoria (TB - 3B) DL
BN Chase Utley (Phi - 2B) DL
BN Wade Davis (TB - SP)
BN Justin Masterson (Cle - SP)
BN Jeff Niemann (TB - SP)
BN Jake Peavy (CWS - SP) DL
BN Jair Jurrjens (Atl - SP) DL
BN Kevin Slowey (Min - SP) DL

Janish has been solid, but LaRoach is living down to his knickname. I have a trade of Slowey for Brent Morel pending, and a FAAB of Casilla + $1 for Jed Lowrie. If I get scooped, I will pick up Nishioka, and sit out the DL stint.

Inspite of Pujols/Longoria the team is in 5th place. SP has been a strength. EJax, Narveson and Masterson have one of the better rotations, then you throw on Ogando, and his 0.00 ERA. Adams, Contreras and Jeffress have been a decent pen. Middle on saves and holds.

J

PS #2 on WHIP