Some thoughts for the RC - and rest of the league

[Dan Wood]

Furthermore - what happens when the Marlins, Padres, etc decide they are going to rebuild? They have to go to the established teams because they got all the good draft picks, that the lesser teams were entitled to in the first place. Since they valiantly tried to field a competitive team and spend on some pieces, they are now left with no money to sign draft picks. Thus creating a cycle of failure.

This whole draft system in this league is broken. Unless the goal is to send the best talent to a team that has won 300 games in the past 3 years, an eventual 3 time world series winner, or a team that just dominated the best division in the league. I am not trying to make examples of teams (good for you guys - goal is to win), but the evidence is there.

I also forgot what part of the draft it is when the best players fall out of the first round. Someone want to remind me. Totally realistic...

[MOLI643]

 

[Colby]

Dan, I am not following you.  Are you saying that the caps force the teams at the top of the draft to pass on talent?  There is something to be said for that as we may need a separate budget for the draft.

[Dan Wood]

That's precisely what I am saying.

[shooter47]

1 Byron Buxton OF HS Appling County HS, Baxley, Ga. Ga.  Bonus = 7 M - Mariners
2 Mike Zunino C 4YR Florida Fla.      Bonus = 6 M - Orioles
3 Kyle Zimmer RHP 4YR San Francisco Calif.      Bonus = 5 M - Brewers - 1-27
 - this right here is a problem - no other teams before 1-27 could have used him?
4 Mark Appel RHP 4YR Stanford Calif.      Did not Sign Bonus = 6 M - 1-62
Orioles - spent 13 million on draft - hasn't had a team in 2 years
5 Kevin Gausman RHP 4YR Louisiana State La.      Bonus = 3.5 M - White Sox 1-13
 - goes to a contending team - also makes sense
6 Carlos Correa SS HS Puerto Rico Baseball Academy, Gurabo, P.R. P.R. Bonus = 3.5 M
1-3 Mets
7 Albert Almora OF HS Mater Academy, Hialeah Gardens, Fla. Fla.  Bonus = 3 M
1-5 Cubs
8 Michael Wacha RHP 4YR Texas A&M Texas      Bonus = 3 M
1-25 to Cardinals - another team in need -
9 Lucas Giolito RHP HS Harvard-Westlake HS, Studio City, Calif. Calif.  Bonus = 2.5 M
San Fran - auto picked at 1-8 - but better guys go 20 picks later - totally makes sense
10 Marcus Stroman RHP 4YR Duke N.C.      Bonus = 2.5 M - 1-49 - #49? #49? PEDs aside - no one else could have used him prior to pick #49

I won't go any further - I think I made my point

I'm sure the lower end teams (Orioles non-withstanding - chose NOT to draft these guys on talent)

Does it surprise you that pitchers with high bonus values would fall in a leauge that puts significantly more value on premium bats then pitchers? Buxton, Correa, Zunino, Almora all went roughly where they should have in the draft. 

Furthermore - what happens when the Marlins, Padres, etc decide they are going to rebuild? They have to go to the established teams because they got all the good draft picks, that the lesser teams were entitled to in the first place. Since they valiantly tried to field a competitive team and spend on some pieces, they are now left with no money to sign draft picks. Thus creating a cycle of failure.

This whole draft system in this league is broken. Unless the goal is to send the best talent to a team that has won 300 games in the past 3 years, an eventual 3 time world series winner, or a team that just dominated the best division in the league. I am not trying to make examples of teams (good for you guys - goal is to win), but the evidence is there.

I also forgot what part of the draft it is when the best players fall out of the first round. Someone want to remind me. Totally realistic...

You seem to be arguing a couple of different points in this post.  The Dodgers, Cardinals and Brewers lost FA players and recieved compensation picks for those players.  Them having multiple high picks is not an argument againist draft signing bonuses but an argument againist FA compensation which I agree should be overhauled similar to what the MLB has done.

Teams in this league have the choice to invest in the draft and invest in MLB players.  The choice is not mutually exclusive as a team can decide to invest in both players and the draft. Teams aren't entitled to any players in the draft. The draft is a player acquisition system that isn't meant to be fair.  All teams have picks in the draft and should be trying to use research and other tools at their exposal to bring the most talent in to their system as possible. Teams in the MLB don't all spend the same amount on the draft. The Boston Red Sox in the past have spent large amounts of money in the draft to acquire prospects.  Other teams like recently the Chicago White Sox have chosen to go cheap and spend alot less in the draft.  This is a choice that the teams have to spend money on the draft or to use that money in other ways.  Has it occured to you that the "good teams" get better players because they make a concious effort to have money available and invest that money in the draft?  The draft is also not a sure thing at all.  Just because a player has a high bonus doesn't mean that player will make the MLB.  They can bust and the team that invested this money will have wasted this value that could have been invested in MLB players.  Other teams will also find low round bargains that will cost them nothing and become productive players in the MLB. You don't have to spend huge to have a great draft.

[MOLI643]

this strict salary budget may causing also some manage to lose interest in their team and leave them and not very attractive to new mangers to rebuild. I understand that we want to make this as real as posible, but an objective in this online fantasy games is to keep manages active and to attract new ones

[rcankosy]

I think it's time to put rookie bonuses to a vote, so I am creating a separate thread for it.

[Colby]

I agree 100% with Bob.

[Dan Wood]

All I'm saying is that the talent isn't going where it should be. There is no reason for those guys to fall to the extent that they have. That's my argument. And comparing a hard cap in fantasy league is not an apples to apples comparison with MLB draft strategies. Im not making this argument over and over. I am not the only one that feels this way about it, so I must be onto something.

But it's whatever at this point. I'm done arguing. Maybe i'll just drop all my players and focus on the draft.

[Dan Wood]

And the red sox would go above slot to sign guys away from commitments. Teams wouldn't be like, well crap, we can't sign our first pick because we are totally capped, so let's sign some guy that may be good enough for the fourth round. I also remember the last time I saw a team with two players on the field. It was a landslide victory by the other team.