Reviewing the 2020 Yahoo Friends and Family Fantasy Baseball Draft – Yahoo Sports

I have to start with the elephant in the room. Were in a health crisis, a critical health crisis. Its an uncertain and scary time for all of us. No one knows when normalcy will be restored. We know whats really important; the health and well-being of our families, our communities, our country.

I have my share of anxiety about things, too. But I will openly admit, the two hours I spent with my industry friends last Thursday was therapeutic. I needed to laugh with friends, kid around, make fun of each other. We kept the Yahoo Friends & Family League draft on the books and threw down with 16 teams. Its 5x5 roto, with a limit of 80 transactions. There are also seasonal limits that surely wont apply now. No one knows what the eventual season will look like.

Lets hope for the best, and prepare for what we need to prepare for. Lets be good to each other. If you need some thoughts and guidelines about how to handle your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball experience this year, we have you covered. And if you want to examine how a deep industry draft went down, read on.

You can reach out to me anytime, to talk about sports, music, movies, dogs, life: @scott_pianowski.

Thanks for being a part of our group. Were all in this together.

1. (1) Mike Trout (LAA - OF)

2. (32) Mike Clevinger (Cle - SP)

3. (33) Ozzie Albies (Atl - 2B)

4. (64) Max Muncy (LAD - 1B,2B,3B)

5. (65) Frankie Montas (Oak - SP)

6. (96) Jeff McNeil (NYM - 2B,3B,OF)

7. (97) Liam Hendriks (Oak - RP)

8. (128) David Dahl (Col - OF)

9. (129) David Price (LAD - SP)

10. (160) Sean Doolittle (Was - RP)

11. (161) Kevin Newman (Pit - 2B,SS)

12. (192) J.D. Davis (NYM - 3B,OF)

13. (193) Wilson Ramos (NYM - C)

14. (224) Christian Walker (Ari - 1B)

15. (225) Garrett Richards (SD - SP)

16. (256) Shogo Akiyama (Cin - OF)

17. (257) Dylan Cease (CWS - SP)

18. (288) Randal Grichuk (Tor - OF)

19. (289) Matt Shoemaker (Tor - SP)

20. (320) Kevin Pillar (Bos - OF)

21. (321) Diego Castillo (TB - SP,RP)

22. (352) Asdrbal Cabrera (Was - 2B,3B)

23. (353) Yoshihisa Hirano (Sea - RP)

24. (384) Clint Frazier (NYY - OF)

25. (385) Sean Newcomb (Atl - SP,RP)

26. (416) Robinson Chirinos (Tex - C)

D.J. Short, Rotoworld: In a vacuum, Ronald Acuna, Jr. has been my top-ranked player in drafts this spring, but this league is so deep that it changes the calculus a bit. Theres more room for one-tricky pony speed options and dice rolls from the waiver wire, so the speed advantage that Acuna offers is something I can make up later. Trout has been so darn consistent that I wanted to start my draft with the ultimate sure thing.

Ive made it a point to target versatility in my drafts this spring and I was able to accomplish that here too. Max Muncy, Jeff McNeil, Kevin Newman, J.D. Davis, and Asdrubal Cabrera are all multi-position eligible. Im going to try to get as close to the maximum games played as I possibly can at each position, so this strategy gives me the flexibility needed to pull that off. And obviously it guards you against injury too.

Mike Clevinger has slipped a bit on draft boards this spring due to his knee surgery, but obviously all the concerns about that can be thrown out the window since its going to be a long time before baseball is played. Whenever games do begin, Clevinger could be a bargain. He was the 11th starting pitcher off the board in this draft.

1. (2) Ronald Acua Jr. (Atl - OF)

2. (31) Clayton Kershaw (LAD - SP)

3. (34) Gleyber Torres (NYY - 2B,SS)

4. (63) Jonathan Villar (Mia - 2B,SS)

5. (66) Jos Berros (Min - SP)

6. (95) Josh Bell (Pit - 1B)

7. (98) Marcus Semien (Oak - SS)

8. (127) Kyle Hendricks (ChC - SP)

9. (130) Max Kepler (Min - OF)

10. (159) Luke Voit (NYY - 1B)

11. (162) Robbie Ray (Ari - SP)

12. (191) Hunter Dozier (KC - 1B,3B,OF)

13. (194) Mike Foltynewicz (Atl - SP)

14. (223) Ian Happ (ChC - 2B,3B,OF)

15. (226) Dansby Swanson (Atl - SS)

16. (255) Eric Hosmer (SD - 1B)

17. (258) Mike Yastrzemski (SF - OF)

18. (287) Yadier Molina (StL - C)

19. (290) Jeff Samardzija (SF - SP)

20. (319) Mike Fiers (Oak - SP)

21. (322) Renato Nez (Bal - 1B,3B)

22. (351) Daniel Hudson (Was - RP)

23. (354) Blake Treinen (LAD - RP)

24. (383) Cameron Maybin (Det - OF)

25. (386) Aaron Bummer (CWS - RP)

26. (415) Brandon Belt (SF - 1B,OF)

Scott Pianowski, Yahoo: First off, I cant stand picking near the ends, especially in a league of this size (16 teams). You lose the feel of the draft. You cant play the Maybe I can wait a round on this guy game; its now or never for most players you want. Of course, you get two tandem picks, but I dont like the idea of having to wait 28 selections before I get another throw.

Maybe its a personal flaw, but I feel I draft better in the middle. Or maybe I could just invite weaker competition (I keep inviting people who make the league stronger).

I didnt intend to punt saves, but the flow of the draft took me there. This league has a transaction cap and active managers, so I cant assume Ill be the saves kingpin on the wire; Ill try to be, but this isnt some casual league where you can own the free market. But a saves punt feels easier in 2020, given save striation and the sneaky scarcity of the stat. I dont need that many things to go right before Im back in the middle of the saves pack; maybe a trade, maybe a lucky late pick, maybe a wire add. And inside the draft, the punt was oddly liberating.

I knew Id be priced out of the top-shelf pitching given my slot, but I proactively filled that area and came away with a staff I can live with. The offense is versatile, flexible. Sometimes I tend to draft older teams, but I like the balance of the ages here. I should be able to compete, which is all you can ask for, this removed from opening pitch.

I should also add, in complete seriousness: I thought Salfino got a good price on Mallex Smith.

1. (3) Christian Yelich (Mil - OF)

2. (30) Javier Bez (ChC - SS)

3. (35) Luis Castillo (Cin - SP)

4. (62) Noah Syndergaard (NYM - SP)

5. (67) Josh Hader (Mil - RP)

6. (94) Matt Chapman (Oak - 3B)

7. (99) Mike Moustakas (Cin - 2B,3B)

8. (126) Cavan Biggio (Tor - 2B,OF)

9. (131) Yasmani Grandal (CWS - C,1B)

10. (158) Byron Buxton (Min - OF)

11. (163) Justin Turner (LAD - 3B)

12. (190) Edwin Encarnacin (CWS - 1B)

13. (195) Joe Musgrove (Pit - SP)

14. (222) A.J. Puk (Oak - RP)

15. (227) Nomar Mazara (CWS - OF)

16. (254) Anthony DeSclafani (Cin - SP)

17. (259) Corey Dickerson (Mia - OF)

18. (286) Ryan Helsley (StL - RP)

19. (291) Teoscar Hernndez (Tor - OF)

20. (318) Johnny Cueto (SF - SP)

21. (323) Robinson Can (NYM - 2B)

22. (350) Cole Hamels (Atl - SP)

23. (355) Jorge Mateo (Oak - SS)

24. (382) Spencer Howard (Phi - SP)

25. (387) Kevin Kiermaier (TB - OF)

26. (414) Daniel Ponce de Leon (StL - SP,RP)

Scott Jenstad, Rotowire: In a daily moves league, I am a little less worried about the back half of my starting pitching staff as I consider those likely churn-and-burn spots anyway. I wanted to get two really good starters but then focus on compiling as much offense as I can early on.

I think my offense is really good considering the league has 16 teams, but I pushed the third and fourth starters one turn too far and got burned in this deep a league. I like Joe Musgrove and AJ Puk just fine, but not when they are among your top four starters. Looking back, I should have passed on Grandal in a one-catcher league (he was deep enough in the draft where I liked the pick) and taken another starting pitcher there and the roster would look better.

I do think the offense will be near the top of the league and it is a trading league; Im going to have to trade or find a couple SP gems on the wire to have a shot at winning the league.

1. (4) Mookie Betts (LAD - OF)

2. (29) Shane Bieber (Cle - SP)

3. (36) Kris Bryant (ChC - 3B,OF)

4. (61) Aaron Nola (Phi - SP)

5. (68) J.T. Realmuto (Phi - C)

6. (93) Sonny Gray (Cin - SP)

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Reviewing the 2020 Yahoo Friends and Family Fantasy Baseball Draft - Yahoo Sports