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| Taijuan Walker (Sea - SP) |
Offense: The 2014 season was actually a down season compared to past years with OF Hunter Pence as the teams best overall player. Fellow outfielders Matt Kemp, who experienced a nice rebound, and Yoenis Cespedes both finished as Top 50 fantasy players last season though find themselves on new teams in more pitcher friendly stadiums. Shortstop Ian Desmond was far and away B&BB's best infield producer though it can count on one more year from SS Hanley Ramirez as he transitions to the outfield. Former AL MVP 2B Dustin Pedroia hopes to have a resurgence in 2015 while slugger 1B/OF Branson Moss finds himself as B&BB's 3rd player hitting in a new offensive environment. Catcher Wilson Ramos remains a nice holdover from last season though teammate 3B/OF Ryan Zimmerman had his worst season as a pro and will move to 1B thus taking away his hot corner eligibility in the future. Rule-5 selection 1B Kennys Vargas might be a diamond in the rough with some of B&BB's positional uncertainty. Teammate prospects OF Joc Pedersen and OF Alex Guerrero will likely make an impact at some point this season though Guerrero will likely see time in the infield. Second baseman prospect Devon Travis, who also finds himself on a new team, will hope to find his way to the majors and the same can be said for farmhand Gary Sanchez who seems to be toiling in the minors. Top prospect SS Corey Seager was an excellent selection in last year's draft and could see time at shortstop and/or third base when he reaches the majors. While there is still a lot of talent here, B&BB's bats had faded of late and might need some infusion. There is a lot of internal movement and positional transition that could cause enough instability to be a problem though the tea lacks star power all are young enough to still produce.
Pitching: Unlike B&BB's long-standing propensity for offense, pitching hasn't always been this team's forte. Ace David Price is owner of the best arms in the league and fellow #1 Mat Latos moves to a hitter haven to a pitcher palace, though he will need to stay healthy. The next most proven pitcher is Jordan Zimmermann who earned an underrated 14 wins last season while Drew Smyly and Danny Salazar pitched well over a limited amount of innings. Prospect Taijuan Walker remains an overlooked dynamo while CJ Edwards is on the cusp of being productive. Former-1st round pick Kyle Zimmer has been oft-injured but still possess great stuff. Speaking of stuff, Aroldis Chapman has seemingly fully recovered from a gruesome injury will help a lot. Co-closer Jonathan Papelbon is good enough to produce while it appears the team has found an asset in the talented Jenrry Mejia as a full-time reliever. Much like B&BB's offense, there is still some uncertainty here but adding some high-upside arms might be a great investment for B&BB
Draft: With the 7th overall selection, B&BB would do well to select someone with some upside that can help soon. Targeting a arm here might be a good choice and assuming Rodon and Kolek are off the board, top Yankees prospect Luis Severino looks the best pitcher available followed by the polished Aaron Nola (Phi - SP) and the electric lefty Kyle Freeland (Col - SP). If offense is the selection here, Korean infielder Jung-ho Kang (Pit - SS) or MLB capable outfielders Steven Souza (TB - OF), Dalton Pompey (Tor - OF), and Michael Taylor (Was - OF) are all possible picks.
Prediction:
RD 1: Luis Severino (NYY - SP) - High upside arm that can hit high 90's with fastball
RD 2: Tim Anderson (ChW - SS) - Fast mover and great contingency plan if Seager moves off SS
RD 3: Lucas Sims (Atl - SP) - Very underrated prospect arm with a lot of projection
RD 4: Colby Rasmus (Hou - OF) - Probably easiest 20 homers available in the draft playing in Hou
RD 5: Nick Williams (Tex - OF) - Big time talent, crazy bat speed, power potential
RD 6: Kennys Vargas (Min - 1B) - R5 Keeper
Prospect Draft:
RD 1: Tyler Beede (SF - SP) - 1st round Vanderbilt talent drafted in right organization
RD 2: Tyrone Taylor (Mil - OF) - Keeper
RD 3: Courtney Hawkins (ChW - OF) - Keeper
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