The Winning Lineup for Draftstreet’s $1,500 GPP Tonight
The unpredictable nature of fantasy baseball is what makes it so great. Last night we had only 10 games
on the schedule and most of these games looked like they were either going to be postponed or going
to be low scoring due to the amount of good pitchers on the mound. I figured the most the fantasy
scores tonight would be in the 30’s and 40’s. Sorry baseball, I was wrong again. The average score in my
leagues had to be at least 60. This is why we love fantasy baseball!
So, in the spirit of high scores, I thought that I would give you the strategy I usually take when I enter
large tournaments. You definitely have to take a different approach than if you are playing in a head to
head league. You have to be more creative with your selections because you not only have to outscore
one person, but you have to outscore hundreds of players. This is where strategy comes in to play.
In most head to head leagues it is smart to take consistent players that will get you points night in and
night out. My goal in head to head leagues is to try to get at least 50 fantasy points per night. If I can
reach that in a head to head, I will win more often than not, but 50 points is not going to win in a large
field league. Therefore you need to completely re-think your strategy. The approach I like to take is a
very high-risk, high reward strategy.
You have to be able to think out of the box and come up with a lineup that will either go as high as
100 points or as low as 0 points. In order to do this, you have to take the guys that are inconsistent but
that can get you a lot of points on a certain night. I typically like to spend most of my salary on hitters
because there are only so many points that a pitcher can score for you. For instance, last night Alexi
Ogando pitched a complete game gem, but it only got him 11.75 fantasy points. Not that this is a bad
score by any stretch of the imagination, but for half the price you could have taken Corey Hart who had
three HR’s with and finished with an astonishing 29.8 points.
The way I usually like to do this is by taking cheap pitchers that have good value and then take as many
home-run hitters as you can. I’m not saying that this strategy will work for you, but it will certainly allow
you to take a much riskier approach.
Tonight I am entering Draftstreet’s $1,500 GPP league. This is a great example of how to develop a high-
risk, high-reward lineup:
| Position | Name | Price | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | Victor Martinez | $6,082 | I think Martinez will have a good night against Wade Davis. |
| 1B | Ryan Howard | $5,677 | Ryan Howard is always a player worth taking when you need a big night. |
| 2B | Robinson Cano | $6,768 | Much like Howard, all it takes for Cano to have a good night is one pitch. |
| 3B | Adrian Beltre | $8,065 | Beltre has been hitting the ball very solid lately, expect a HR. |
| SS | Troy Tulowitzki | $8,547 | Tulowitzki always has the potential to go yard. |
| OF | Matt Kemp | $7,741 | For whatever reason, I’m thinking Kemp goes yard tonight. |
| OF | Jack Cust | $3,038 | Go look at this guy’s numbers against Blackburn. |
| OF | Carlos Beltran | $5,666 | Carlos Beltran for less than $6 grand? Yes please! |
| U | Albert Pujols | $6,087 | Pujols is due for a big game, it’s just a matter of time. |
| U | Ryan Braun | $10,365 | Ryan Braun looks like he is at batting practice right now. |
| SP | Nick Blackburn | $7,781 | Blackburn should have a solid night against the Mariner’s struggling lineup. |
| SP | Jhoulys Chacin | $13,053 | I know this goes against what I was saying earlier, but he will have a big night. |
| RP | Jose Valverde | $2,545 | As long as Verlander doesn’t throw a complete game, Jose should be good for a save. |
| P | J.A. Happ | $8,014 | Happ is a guy that can get you 10 points on a good night, that’s what I’m counting on. |
Let me know what you think and who you are taking!