National League Tout Wars Draft Recap

If the LABR drafts are Christmas, the Tout Wars drafts are New Year’s Eve and the New Years’ Day football games all rolled into one. This past Saturday, March 17, four leagues held their in-person drafts at Richmond County Bank Ballpark in Staten Island, New York, home of the short-season Class-A Staten Island Yankees of the New York-Penn League.

My National League-only draft began at 10:00 a.m., with the proceedings transmitted live on Sirius XM radio. The key difference between Tout and the earlier LABR drafts – other than the two weeks of elapsed time between them – is the use of on-base percentage rather than batting average.

I am not a big fan of mock drafts, even for magazines, because they are not always taken seriously by all participants. However, their value in preparing one for later drafts that count is real, in my opinion. For example, I had time to analyze my earlier LABR NL draft and took action to shore up weaknesses this time.

For the most part, I feel I accomplished that. I took less risk with my starting outfield and was more aggressive earlier with my middle infield, resulting in a stronger roster overall in Tout, in my assessment.

Here are my picks, with brief commentary.

C: Kurt Suzuki (5), Austin Barnes (5). As much as I was disappointed in myself for going $5 on a part-time player in Suzuki, I was delighted just a few minutes later when no one said “$6” for Barnes. The second baseman-catcher’s career is on the rise and he could easily earn full-time at-bats before mid-season.

Favorite value pick: Mike Gianella’s Jorge Alfaro. The upside is there and if it does not come to pass, it was just $3.

1B/3B/CI/UT: Cody Bellinger (32), Evan Longoria (19), Chase Headley (7), Wilmer Flores (3). In LABR, I was able to snag Anthony Rizzo for $32, but that was not to be in Tout, with elevated prices for all players early. Still, getting the reigning National League Rookie of the Year is hardly a consolation prize. Longoria’s best days are behind him, but he should remain a decent power source – and he could be rejuvenated in his new home by the Bay.  For $10 end-game power, I like the value from two first and third base-eligible selections Headley and the post-hype Met utility man Flores.

Favorite value pick: Ryan McMahon to Scott Wilderman for $9. Only late in the draft did a first baseman go under value, in my assessment. The Rockies’ McMahon is many people’s choice as the early front runner to succeed Bellinger as the NL’s top first-year player.

2B/SS/MI: Starlin Castro (8), Jose Peraza (15), Ketel Marte (13). Here is where my team made its greatest improvement over my LABR squad. I not only collected solid players, I should have considerable stolen base leverage. Peraza qualifies at both short and second, enabling me to conserve my limited (four) reserve picks for other needs and maintain roster flexibility.

Favorite value pick: DJ LeMahieu to Tristan H. Cockcroft for $17. There is a reason the ESPN staffer has three league titles. I told him I am tired of eating his Chicken Parmesan menu item at Foley’s NY Pub each March in recognition of his prior-year title. Picks like this one will make it harder for my wishes to come true.

OF (4)/Swing player: Yasiel Puig (21), Adam Eaton (18), Jay Bruce (18), Jose Pirela (6), Gerardo Parra (2). Trusting the precocious Puig as my lead outfielder makes me a bit nervous, honestly. I am fine with taking the chance on an injury recovery case like Eaton, who should be leading off for a very good Nats offense. Bruce will help balance my roster, offering a needed source of long balls. Pirela is not only starting for the Padres, he looks to be the #5 hitter behind Headley in the batting order. Parra has incredible resiliency, having supposedly been replaced as a starter multiple times already, but he just keeps bouncing back!

Favorite value pick: Lewis Brinson for $8 to Craig Mish of SiriusXM. Mish is based in South Florida and has seen the former Brewers prospect put together a strong spring for the Marlins. I threw out Brinson late and knew I did not have enough money to get him. A definite breakout candidate in 2018.

SP: Carlos Martinez (25), Alex Wood (15), Luke Weaver (14), Chase Anderson (12), Tyler Anderson (3), Brandon Woodruff (2), Chad Kuhl (1). I am often accused of being Cardinals-centric in my picks, but that is rarely the case in reality. As such, making St. Louis’ two top starters mine was a departure from usual behavior. It is time for Martinez to step up and become the true ace he is. I think Luke Weaver has significant upside in his first full-season and was considerably undervalued at $14. Perhaps others dropped out, thinking I would keep bidding until I got my Cardinal. I won’t say if they would be right or wrong!

Wood is another upside play, pitching for a powerhouse Dodgers team. Even so, perhaps more than any other pick, this one had a diversity of opinions from peers – either it was a solid pick or a reach. Chase Anderson may appear to be overpriced by some, but he is backed by a strong Milwaukee offense. His teammate, rookie Woodruff, will have his bumpy outings, but I like the upside – once he receives the ball every fifth day for the Brew Crew, that is. Tyler Anderson gets little respect because he is a Rockie, but is poised to surprise. Kuhl should deliver $4-$5 value for a buck.

Favorite value pick: Alex Cobb at $3 was a late grab by my draft nemesis, Cockcroft, when I could not go $4. Your guess is as good as mine as to where and when the former Rays starter signs, but if it is in the NL, Tristan will have a bargain.

RP: Raisel Iglesias (14), Greg Holland (2). Fairly early in the draft, bidding on Iglesias stopped at a premature $14. I did not expect to get the Reds closer, but was happy when I did. If one of the final free agents in Holland lands in the Senior Circuit, I will be ready.

Favorite value pick: Jeurys Familia went for $7 to defending champion Grey Albright. It is hard to tell by the mixed comments coming out of New York how volatile the closing situation really is, but Familia has the skills and cost half the price of several comparable closers. Isn’t he more than $1 better than Brad Ziegler?

Reserves: Sandy Alcantara, Roman Quinn, Corbin Burnes, Tommy Hunter. Though Tout has just four reserves, there are no rules prohibiting weekly moves and up and down as in LABR, for example.

Alcantara, the former Cardinal now Marlin, could be in the Opening Day rotation. Still, I will choose the outings for the rookie hard thrower carefully. Hunter offers a fill-in for Holland’s spot. Quinn is adding infield to his outfield eligibility and could offer a later boost as a valuable reserve. NL teams going with eight relievers need guys like Quinn to stretch the value of a four-man bench. Burnes is a stash-and-hold hurler.

Favorite value pick: Alex Dickerson to Steve Gardner. Though the Padres’ outfielder will open the season on the shelf, Gardner can slide Dickerson over to the unlimited-in-size disabled list and fill his reserve spot with another player in the interim. I wanted to do the same, but waited too long to make my move.

Honorable mention: Tyson Ross. My first reserve pick was between Alcantara and the reborn Padres starter, who was taken by Wilderman with the very next selection.

See rosters here (make sure you click on the correct tab for National League).

Update: In what is a little bit each of validation and kiss of death, my squad is on top of the projected standings using BaseballHQ’s numbers, as posted on the site of our league manager, OnRoto. Not surprisingly, Cockcroft is just 1.5 points behind. My roster is good for second place, according to the site’s Davenport projections, as well. So, I am strapping in for what I hope will be another epic battle. No more Parm! No more Parm!

Reminder: If you haven’t already, please consider contributing to the GoFundMe campaign for the daughters of our late friend Steve Moyer.

Brian Walton was the 2009 National League Tout Wars champion, scoring the most points in the league’s history. He also holds the all-time NL Tout single-season records for wins and saves. His work can also be found daily at  The Cardinal Nation. Follow Brian on Twitter.