A L L - S T A R B A S E B A L L 2 0 0 1 DRAFT STRATEGY Date: 8/19/00 Author: Gamer003 Version: Final ____________________ / \ / CF \ / LF RF \ \ / \ _____________ / \ / 2b \ / \/ # \/ \ / \ 3b _ 1b / \# |P| #/ \ / \ / \ / \ C / \#/ BASIC BASEBALL FIELD - When drafting a baseball team that you want to be a contender for the League Championship, and then maybe even the World Series, you have to understand a few things. One, in some positions, there is a severe shortage of major players. Meaning, that there are 2 or 3 that are just amazing players, and then the rest are all good, but nothing in comparison to the amazing ones. An example of this is the CATCHING position. Mike Piazza and Ivan Rodriguez, are by far the 2 best catchers in the Major Leagues. Guys like Todd Hundley, Jorge Posada and Jason Kendall are all good guys, but aren't half the players Piazza and Rodriguez are, so having a major player in a very short position, is a major advantage, unless, you spend everything just to get that player, and the rest of your team is week, you have to watch out for that as well. The second thing you need to know, is what kind of players you need for your style of actually playing the game, I mean oh great you have Sammy Sosa, but if you can't hit the ball with his level of contact, he is just as useless as any other guy. That is a major mistake made by most beginner players who just want there team to look good, not knowing the actual consequences. This is why I would recommend scouting players and there abilities, this will be discussed later. The third and most important thing you need to know is, that the saying " Win at all costs" is a load of crap. Don't do anything really stupid, such as have Randy Johnson come in and pitch 3 innings to make sure you don't lose a game your winning 10-2, cause then if he's starting next game, you just ruined the start. This type of thing will also be discussed later. Line-Up ------- a. Info about Live Draft. b. Most important positions and why. c. Basics of building a team. d. Novice mistakes not to make. e. Player Listings - OF [broken into sections] f. Player Listings - SP g. Player Listings - CL h. Player Listings - 1B i. Player Listings - C j. Player Listings - 2B k. Player Listings - 3B l. Player Listings - SS m. Best Players for your style. n. AL or NL Team. o. When to draft a DH. p. Injury prone players. q. PC's Draft List Code r. Reasons not to draft a RP. s. Difference between closers. t. Drafting Minor League Players. u. My actual team. a. Live Draft Info: - During a live draft, you don't have a whole lot of time to think about what you are about to do, the only problem is, this could make or break your entire team. So, the only thing you can really do is survey the more important positions which I will discuss later, and then take the best available player. Basically, if you already have Pedro Martinez, and Randy Johnson is still there,but so is Ivan Rodriguez, take Rodriguez , because you already have 1 big gun, so get the best catcher as well, see what I mean. If not, it will just come with experience from building teams. Take what you need first, then deal with the things that make your team look better on paper. b. Most Important Positions and Why: - Well, the best way to build a team is from the middle up, meaning usually go Catcher,SS,2B,3B, meaning more to take the positions in which are harder to get the better players. But then while you did that, where will this leave your pitching? Don't worry, there is plenty of pitching to go around, maybe not Pedro or Maddux, but good enough to win with. 1B is the position people always go for first, they try to get Mark Mcgwire. Bad move. There are guys like Giambi and Delgado who hit just as many dingers, and don't always cost you a 1st round pick, as Mac always goes in the first round. Also look for guys like Kent, Alfonzo and Alomar to go fast as well. c. Basics of Building a Team: - The only team you can win with is a team you can control. That is why you have to be able to taylor a team that you can play with, without having to change how you play to the point of costing your team games. I can't tell you how to build a team, I can only give you some guidelines by which to look at as a reminder of all the things you could do wrong. One, of these is not to put Mo Vaughn or a very slow player out in left field, just because you want his bat in the lineup, I can assure you, he will cost you more runs than he will hit over the fence himself. d. Novice Mistakes not to Make: 1. Never put infielders in the OF. 2. Never bring in a next day starter to close a game. 3. Don't bring in a 1 inning closer in the 5th or 6th innings. 4. Don't just try to hit homeruns, base hits score runs too you know. 5. Don't put OF'ers in the infield, even if they gave a good glove. 6. Don't pinch hit for a pitcher unless another is warmed up. 7. Don't make spur of the moment decisions Ex. Benching and SP for 1 HR 8. Never, Ever, ever throw Big Mac, Junior, or Sosa 3 straight heaters, you may get away with it a couple times, but I have had many a long ball hit because I got cocky. 9. Most important of all NEVER UNDER ESTIMATE AN OPPONENT, never give charity or free runs, they may come back to haunt you. 10. Remember, your not as good as you think you are! e. Right Fielders: - These are in my opinion the best Right Fielders in the game, with a brief description of why. Be mindful though, if you cant handle their attributes, they're not the player to have on YOUR team. Sammy Sosa ---------- Sammy has over whelming power, and a canon for an arm. His only problem is his contact, which is getting better, but still no where near a Griffey or a Thomas. Draft him with caution, I would experiment with his hitting before hand. Manny Ramirez ------------- The baby bull, also has enormous power for such a young player, but he does not suffer so much from Sammy's contact problem, as he does his base path speed, if it doesn't go over the fence, he does still have to run, and I have had some problems with this in the past. Jermaine Dye ------------ He is a good all around player, he has the speed, the contact and the power, he has everything except the arm which come with a Sosa. Although he is still a great pick, and has been on many of my WS teams. Shawn Green ----------- He to has been on a couple of my WS teams, he has speed, power, and good defensive ability, although still he has Dye's weakness, instead of a canon, he has a Rifle compared to Sosa. Vladimir Guerrero ----------------- He is my current Right Fielder, and I wish I had him from the start, he is in my opinion the best right fielder on the entire game. He has a canon himself, he is a 50+ HR guy, and he is a speed demond, who can beat that! Juan Gonzalez ------------- Juan-gone is another one of those Dye type players, good arm, just not amazing. He is a better contact hitter than Dye though, and he still has the power. A good RBI man, as well as a DH if possible. Albert Belle ------------ He has been around a while, and he is still one of the best. He has a deadly arm, and a big bat, which once belted 50 HR's for the Indians. He is a good RF on any team, take him if possible, in the middle draft sessions. Tim Salmon ---------- He usually sticks around for a while in the draft, he is a solid players, above average in all categories, except not quite as fast as the rest of them, he is also a great defensive player. Jeremy Burnitz -------------- Also a good addition to any team, he is another who can also play as a decent DH. He has a very powerful bat, although he isn't as consistant as the rest of them, he is still a force to be reckoned with. Magglio Ordonez --------------- Another upcoming star of the MLB, he like Green has shown tremendous power in his very early years. He is a good all around player, but has not yet developed into a Guerrero or a Sosa. * Left Field * Barry Bonds ----------- Has been apart of all of my WS teams (6). He is a great batter as well as a fielder. He hit 55 HR in my last season, which did not lead the league, but was pretty good for a LF. He is my choice over any other LF hands down. Gary Sheffield -------------- Another great player, he to is the total package when it comes to defense and offense, he can hit around 40 HR as I have seen in my games against him. In my last season, he hit 37 HR, 2 off of me. Larry Walker ------------ One of the best hitters of his generation, actually used to endorse All-Star Baseball before Derek Jeter became spokesman in I guess it was 2000? Anyway, he is great to have on any team and is a good defender too. Greg Vaughn ----------- Once apart of the big HR race along with Big Mac, he still has some great power, as does his brother. He isn't as good a fielder as some of the others, but he hits the ball just as hard, even though his attributes don't necessarily spell that out for you. Raul Mondesi ------------ Another Sheffield type player, he is the total package again. In my last season, he was a Padre, a last place team and still managed to hit 34 HR, so he can get the job done, I also believe he was on the all star team as well. Moises Alou ----------- A great hitter plagued by injury in real life, but who cares in a video game right? Actually, he did get hurt 2 seasons ago on my game, he broke something, I would only take him if necessary, and if you do happen to draft him, don't have any home plate collisions. Darin Erstad ------------ Another good contact hitter, can also DH and play 1B decent although I wouldn't recommend it. He didn't show the power in my last season that he did 2 seasons ago (28 HR) this time he only hit 16 HR. Still a good choice though. David Justice ------------- He was actually the DH for my first WS team, a good hitter, although I dealt him. He is a great athlete and has a great arm. Don't let his attributes not being Sosa like fool you, he is a great player. * Center Field * Ken Griffey Jr. --------------- The best CF on the game, however has not been on any of my teams. He has tremendous power, and great speed. He is also a 9 time all star and a god knows how many times he has won a gold glove. Carl Everett ------------ My CF on all of my teams, has been great. He is a good mix of power, and speed. Not to mention he has very acceptional defensive skills. Known as an outsider in real life, doesn't matter in the game. Jim Edmonds ----------- One of the best Fielders of his generation, he is most often known for his Willie Mays style catch a few seasons ago. He is a great HR hitter, who adds some spice to any line up. Steve Finley ------------ Another Everett type player, although he doesn't quite have the average any of the others do although he hit around 40 Hr in my last season. He is a great guy to have in CF, I would recommend him to anyone. Andruw Jones ------------ A very young and almost immediate super star, he makes amazing plays look simple in the field. In my last season he put up huge numbers at the plate, hitting 43 HR!!! to bad it wasn't for me. Bernie Williams --------------- Another Griffey type player, I would take him any day. He is a great hitter and an acceptional fielder. Last season on my game he hit 32 HR which I thought was low for him, he will go fast in the draft. Brian Giles ----------- Last season on my game he was a disappointment, although he started to come around towards the end of the season. He only hit 12 HR, and was on a play off bound team. I swept them in straight games in the ALCS though, I believe he batted .174 for the series, but is still a great player. Garrett Anderson ---------------- Another young power hitter exposed to almost immediate success. He surprised me hitting 36 HR for a second to last place team in my last season. He has made the all star team for 3 straight seasons on my game, and is a good choice any day. * Starting Pitching * Pedro Martinez -------------- Ok, there should be no explanation of why to draft him for anyone who knows anything about baseball. He is in my opinion the best pitcher in the Major Leagues right now, when he's healthy. On the game, he doesn't get hurt very much, unless you do something dumb. He usually goes quick, so you might have to draft some guys just to try to trade for him. Randy Johnson ------------- This is another guy just like Pedro Martinez, except he throws a little bit harder. He is the strikeout king, and you can usually get long innings from him. He has a dominating heater, and a wicked slider, throw on a change up, and he's invincible. Greg Maddux ----------- Mr. Invincible, not quite the case anymore, but still one of the greatest ever. He is a great number 1 pitcher in almost any rotation, he isn't so much a dominating pitcher, as he is an artist. His change up placement is amazing. David Wells ----------- Well, he has always been a good pitcher, somewhat resembling a bear with his beard, he has great stuff. After being traded to the Blue Jays, some thought he wouldn't be as effective, which is totally not the case, as this year he is a Cy Young contender. Bartolo Colon ------------- Ok, this is kind of one of those guys, that if you don't know how to use him, don't draft him. He has a great fast ball, but you have to know where to put it, or all that heat just makes the ball go farther. He has been on 3 of my teams, an 18,19 and 22 game winner in those 3 years. Al Leiter --------- A great guy to have on any team, he is more effective as a number 2 guy I think, under a Martinez or Johnson, or even Maddux. None the less, he has great stuff. He throws an above average fastball, and a deadly change-curveball combination. Tom Glavine ----------- Another guy like Leiter, he isn't as effective as a number 1 guy as he is a number 2, like he is on the braves to Maddux. He is another pitcher who uses the same style maddux does, he is a placement guy, don't draft him in the first couple picks. Kerry Wood ---------- Another Bartolo Colon - Basically same type of thing. Orlando Hernandez ----------------- El'duke is one of the best new pitchers to come along in a while. Although he struggled this year, if you use him correctly he is still a very effective guy to have in your rotation. Many make the mistake of taking him before guys like Glavine and Leiter, because he is younger, DON'T DO THAT! Mike Hampton ------------ Second only to Leiter on the Mets, Hampton is a great guy to have in your rotation, no reason he cant win 15 or 16 games. I would make him the 4th or 5th starter though, to give the back a little kick. Curt Schilling -------------- Another big fastball guy, has had some problems, mostly do to injury and the Phillies in general. He throws a sailing, over powering fastball, which can be deadly if you don use it in excess. He does get hurt if you leave him out to long. James Baldwin ------------- Called a one year wonder by some, but I think he's a good pitcher to have on any team. He can be a 20 game winner, but I wouldn't take him in the first few rounds. * Closers * Any of the closers on this list are worth taking, although the ones with stars by their names are the best. Take a closer in the first 4 rounds, because the good ones start going in the first round. John Wetteland ** Billy Wagner Ugueth Urbina John Rocker Dave Veres Antonio Alfonsec * Danny Graves * Todd Jones * Kazuhiro Sasaki Trevor Hoffman * Mariano Rivera * Robb Nen Troy Percival Billy Koch Derek Lowe Armando Benitez * Keith Foulke Steve Karsay Rick Aguilera Bob Wickman * 1B * Mark Mcgwire ------------ Well, I think 70 HR is pretty good, how about you? Obviously, he is the best, but he is also the hardest to come by. Always goes in the first round, he is a very hot commodity. Personally, I wouldn't draft him first, and neither should you. Carlos Delgado -------------- This is the guy I use. He hits HR just like Big Mac, and he also has better speed and base hits, plus he's better on defense. He usually doesn't go first, I have taken him as late as the 4th round. Jason Giambi ------------ Another great HR hitter, not quite a Mac, more in the same league as Delgado. He isnt quite as fast, but he is one of the best defensive 1b men ever. He usually goes very fast. Jeff Bagwell ------------ Not quite in the HR league as the first three listed above, but he can still hit 35-45 HR consistantly every year. He is smaller, and has a harder swing to hit HR with, so scout him before you draft him. Todd Helton ----------- Ted Williams.....nah, but still a great average hitter. He usually bats around .320 on my game, he was an all-star last year. He can also hit the long ball, but then towards the end, he sorta slacks off, last season on my game he hit 34 HR, he is a good pick, that will usually hang around for a while. Mo Vaughn --------- Big Mo, I wouldn't have him on any of my teams, but he is still an all star 1B. He hits around 40 HR each year, but he pops out a lot. He has some running problems, but none the less a great player. Frank Thomas ------------ The best hitter of his generation, and a definite hall of famer. He is the real deal, the total package and all the other nicknames. He hits for average and HR, which is the best combo. He is my DH, and a great one at that, but he can play on any team. Andres Galarraga ---------------- The Big Cat, a great HR hitter, and he also has some running ability. He is a cancer survivor and a great person. He is a good choice for any team. He also stays around a lot longer than some of the other firstr basemen. Jim Thome --------- More of a new comer to the power stage, but he is still a 30 HR guy every year. My first year he was my DH, and he got hurt in the first game, he was out for the season, he also got hurt in my second season, so I would only draft him if necessary. * Catchers * Ivan Rodriguez -------------- This guy, is in the group of the best 3 catchers who ever lived in my opinion, with Berra and Bench. He hits for average and HR, and is always my first pick. He has been on my team all 6 seasons, hitting atleast 38 HR every season. DRAFT HIM FAST!!! Mike Piazza ----------- The second, only to Pudge, he is a hitting champ and a great defensive catcher. He is not hurt often, and is also a first rounder if Pudge is gone. He goes fast, so if you want him, he has to be your number 1 pick. Todd Hundley ------------ A good catcher, but not even close to Ivan and Mikes league. He is a 28 HR type guy, and an average defensive catcher. He has decent average, and makes a great back up for the 2 better ones. Jorge Posada ------------ A great new catcher, has only played a couple years and is already in the top 4 in the league. He usually hits about 18-22 HR, and is a decent average hitter. He doesn't go as fast, but he does go in the early 2nd round most of the time. Jason Kendall ------------- Purely a average hitting catcher, he was my back up last year. He is a great defensive catcher, and will hit about 12 HR if he plays everyday. I would hold off on him until the 6th or 7th round if you don't already have a catcher. * 2B * Jeff Kent --------- Probably the best hitting second baseman in the league. He hit 35 HR on my team last year, and is a big RBI guy to. He is a great 3rd pick in any draft list( Ill discuss a whole list later). Roberto Alomar -------------- The best defensive catcher of his time, he makes amazing plays look simple. He is a good hitter, but has struggled as of late. He usually hits around 13 HR, and bats atleast .305, he is still a great pick. Edgardo Alfonzo --------------- Second only to Kent in hitting for a second baseman, he is a consistant, 30 Hr 95 RBI guy. He is great to have, as he is a good defensive guy to. He can also play 3rd base in a pinch, which in nice also. Pokey Reese ----------- A base stealer mainly, usually hits around 9 HR, he is a contact hitter, and is extremely fast. He is an average fielder, good enough to get by. Jose Vidro ---------- Wow, what a year this guy is having. My first season he hit .346 with 14 HR, which is great for a 2nd baseman and he is only getting better. He is very fast, and a great defense man. Craig Biggio ------------ Another contact hitter, can hit for power sometimes, but usually doesn't. Known for his pine tar helmet. He is a great guy if you don't mind if only hitting about 6 HR. Jay Bell -------- Another big power hitter, he hit 38 HR in '99, he is a great choice. A high ball hitter, usually hits his HR in Sosa like spurts, just not as big of ones. Chuck Knoblauch --------------- I would avoid him unless absolutely necessary. He has power problems and he has a major defense problem, throwing the ball away mostly. He can bunt good, but that gets old after a while. * 3B * Troy Glaus ---------- A great power hitter, made his 1st all star appearance this year. He isn't on any of my teams, but he has made the all star team on my game 3 seasons straight. He hit 36 HR last year on my game, a great mark for any 3B. Chipper Jones ------------- Heres my 3B, he is by far the best overall. He is a great defensive player, and a great hitter too. Last year he hit 43 HR, and had 112 RBI. He usually goes fast so you have to draft him very fast. Robin Ventura ------------- Another Chipper type player, this guy is the real deal. He does get hurt frequently, but only 1-2 game stuff. He is a great power, as well as average hitter, and usually hits around 30 HR on my game. Ken Camminiti ------------- A past hitting champ, he is a RBI hitter, with great average. He usually hits around 25 HR, which is above average. He is a good DH as well, but I have never had him, so I am just letting you know. Travis Fryman ------------- A great fielder, not quite the hitter that the rest of them are. He usually hits about 18 HR a season, and is a great overall IF. He can also play SS in a pinch which I a good thing to have. * SS * Derek Jeter ----------- Not quite the power hitter Arod is, but he is still an amazing contact hitter. He hits around 20 HR a season, but bats in the .340's. He was on my 3rd and 4th WS teams. Alex Rodriguez -------------- The best power hitter of the bunch, he was on my first 2 WS teams, hitting exactly 42 HR in each Season. He is a great fielder, and usually hits in the .320's. he goes fast, so nab him quick. Nomar Garciaparra ----------------- He is my current SS, he was on my team last year as well, hitting 34 HR, but also batting .344. He is the best fielder in my opinion, and is not hurt often. Barry Larkin ------------ A great veteran fielding SS to have. Doesn't hit as many HR, but is still a great hitter. He is a good add on to any team, a good double hitter and base stealer. Mike Bordick ------------ I have never had him, but he has hit 18 and 22 HR, the past 2 seasons I have played on my game. He would make the all star team if he was on a better team on my game, and if you cant get one of the big 3 he is a great guy to have. m. Best players for your style: - If you are the kind of player, who doesn't hit many homeruns, but uses base hits, and careful walks and pitch counts to get his runs around. You want contact hitters like Jeter,Edgar Martinez, Frank Thomas. If you play this way, note, your SP has to be able to hold the other team below your own run support. - If you're a HR hitter, obviously you want the Griffeys,Macs,Delgados and all those type of guys. If you try to hit a HR everytime, prepare to K a lot. - If you are an all around hitter ( best type ) meaning that you get hits and HR, and use any means necessary to get runs across the plate, this is how I play. If you have guys on try to hit a HR. But if not, get a hit so someone else can hit you in. n. AL or NL? - Personally I like AL, just because I like having the DH, and you play in parks like Fenway more, which are much smaller. But then NL has some good parks as well, really it doesn't matter, unless you need the DH to get runs around, becareful of that though. o. When to draft a DH? - My DH isnt always a DH, I switch them quite frequently. I like guys like Thomas, and Edgar Martinez, they are great all around hitters. You don't even have to draft one though, because you can just use a good OF or 1B or something like that to fill in, if no actual DH's are left. p. Injury prone players: - Obviously on a Nintendo, players are going to get hurt constantly like in real life, atleast that's what you would think. Here are the players I've had some problems with: Jim Thome Greg Maddux ( broken arm, my fault though ) Manny Ramirez q. Some people think they can crack the code the PC uses to draft the other teams. Well, I hate to tell you this, but I don't think that there is one, and if there is, its uncrackable. On my game, the PC just randomly drafts good players, there is no way to get around it, no one team always takes someone, so no, there is no way to cheat....crap!!! r. reasons not to draft a Relief pitcher: - Honestly, how often do you use a RP? What I would recommend is get 2 Closers that can go every game. One being the set up man, and the other actually closing the game. I think you will find that this is a better system than screwing around with a bunch of not very good relief pitcher. s. Differences between closers: - You need to get to know your closer before you draft a certain one. Don't draft someone who throws an 85mph fastball, and think your going to over power all the batters. During the draft, look at the scouting reports when you are planning to draft a Closer. t. Drafting minor league players: - Most don't do this, but its actually not a bad idea. Once you get to the point in the draft, where you are just taking guys to fill in space, put some guys in the minor league section of you list, they can come in handy lter, especially if someone gets hurt. Anyway, that's just a suggestion. u. My Actual Team: This is my latest team, which I won the WS with a couple weeks ago. C: Ivan Rodriguez 1B: Carlos Delgado 2B: Jeff kent 3B: Chipper Jones SS: Nomar Garciaparra LF: Barry Bonds CF: Jim Edmonds RF: Vladimir Guerrero DH: Edgar Martinez SP: Martinez SP: Leiter SP: Gooden SP: Hernandez SP: Finley SP: Colon RP: Graves CL: Wetteland If your wondering how I drafted this loaded team, I actually drafted most of them the 1st season, then just traded around. Note: I kept all trades even, I never intentionally stacked my tem with unfair trades. When I got Nomar, I gave away Jeter and Shawn Green. Note: The game is more fun, and more satisfying if you win, if you try to keep it fair like this. This Document (c)2000 Mhulbert. All Rights Reserved. This FAQ, may not be copied, or posted on any web site without the expressed written consent of the author.[gamer003@hotmail.com] Portions of this FAQ may not be reproduced and added to other documents. This is one of my favorite FAQs, but I am discontinuing it, on account of having to work on my other FAQs, and starting a whole line of new ones. I wish there was more I could do, but I can't. Please send all your questions my way, but sorry, no more contributions.