The guys at MLB Network Radio's #PowerAlley have a segment planned for Thursday
— it would have been Wednesday, but we’re on a one-day Duq-delay — and it involves
putting together “your” Dream Team in Major League Baseball.
Now, before you get ahead of yourself, don’t think this is the
easy pick-whoever-you-want Dream Team. If that were the case, Mike Trout,
Miguel Cabrera and Clayton Kershaw would all be cooking out at my house to
celebrate our Dream Team championship.
Instead, I had to be frugal.
The #PowerAlley guys set up rules, and I have to admit, they
were hard to abide by.
I was given a $60M salary cap for 10 players — one at each
fielding position, a starting pitcher and a relief pitcher. To make matters
worse, I had to include one bad contract — highlighted in yellow — and only three of the players could be
younger than 25.
The latter part kills me because as a fantasy baseball
enthusiast, I love prospects.
So, without further delay, here is my team, checking in at
$59.7M, based on their A.A.V. salaries for 2015.
POS
|
PLAYER
|
SALARY
|
AGE
|
C
|
Salvador
Perez
|
$1.4M
|
24
|
1B
|
Joey
Votto
|
$22.5M
|
31
|
2B
|
Jose
Altuve
|
$3.1M
|
24
|
3B
|
Anthony
Rendon
|
$1.8M
|
24
|
SS
|
Ben
Zobrist
|
$5M
|
33
|
RF
|
J.D.
Martinez
|
$3M
|
27
|
CF
|
Andrew
McCutchen
|
$8.6M
|
28
|
LF
|
Starling
Marte
|
$5.2M
|
26
|
SP
|
Madison
Bumgarner
|
$5.9M
|
25
|
RP
|
Zach
Britton
|
$3.2M
|
27
|
TOTAL SALARY
|
$59.7M
|
Strangely, and not planned, five of these players are
currently on my dynasty fantasy team, and a sixth is among one of my offseason
trade targets. I tried numerous players at each position, and this is what I
came up with.
Let’s take a position-by-position look at the players I
selected.
Catcher: Salvador
Perez, the first of my fantasy stars, gets the nod because of his offensive
skills and his manageable contract. At $1.4M AAV, he was a perfect fit for my
Dream Team. Ideally, I’d love to add a Buster Posey or a Yadier Molina, but I
just didn’t have room financially. So why not add a $1.4M All-Star catcher?
Yes, he struggled down the stretch in 2014, but I trust him moving forward. He
is 24 years old, so he counts as one of my three players younger than 25.
First Base: There
are so many bad contracts at first base, from Ryan Howard to Prince Fielder to
Albert Pujols to Mark Teixeira. I almost used the bad contract for LF to place
Carl Crawford there, but considering the limited options at first base, I might
as well use my bad contract here and go cheaper in the OF. Originally, I had
Anthony Rizzo here, but his age made me switch to Jose Abreu, who has a more
manageable contract, but it was still too rich for this #PowerAlley Salary Cap.
That’s why I went with Joey Votto. I could have gone cheaper at another
position to set up first base for Pujols, but I’d rather go Votto and keep the
lineup I have in place. It relies on a bit of a healthy comeback for Votto, but
I have faith. And at $22.5M A.A.V., I’m burning a lot of cash on my first
baseman. This is such a bad contract.
Second Base: My
most favorite player in baseball is in CF — be patient, I’ll get there — but my
second most favorite player is the shortest, Jose Altuve. This guy is a grinder.
He won the batting title in the AL last year and he’s a producer. He gets on
base, he creates runs and makes the plays on defense. I want this guy at second
base every day for my team. Like Perez, he’s 24, so he’s my second player
younger than 25. And his contract comes in at $3.1M A.A.V. He fits in
perfectly.
Third Base: My
infield is young. What can I say? Anthony Rendon, my third and final player
younger than 25 — he’s also 24 — and at a beautiful $1.8M A.A.V., the
third-ranked player at 3B is a great option for me going forward. I’d try to
squeeze him in even if he made more, that’s how much I like Rendon at third.
Shortstop: Here’s
where I go all Billy Beane. Ben Zobrist, age 33, with a $5M A.A.V. contract,
will help my team win more than any other shortstop in the game. Yes, Zobrist
defensively isn’t the greatest at shortstop, and I’d be better off placing him
in another position, but I just can’t help it. Zobrist has a 35 W.A.R. from
2009-14, which is second-most to Miguel Cabrera (38) and tied with Robinson
Cano. Evan Longoria and Andrew McCutchen are both at 34. That’s some great
company, and that is why I want Zobrist at short. Just look at his value. The
estimated value of Zobrist’s production over that time is $164.1M. His actual
earnings from 2006-14 is $23.3M. Do I need to say any more?
Left Field: This
is where I go with a guy who is on the rise. His overall numbers from 2014 don’t
blow you away, but if you look at what he did later in the year, you’d be
excited for what he can do in 2015. Starling Marte is a guy who will hit for
average, steal bases and score a ton of runs, especially in this Dream Team
lineup.
Center Field: My
wife and I have an agreement for Christmas each year. Don’t buy each other
anything exuberant. We’re trying to save money (a future baseball fan is on the
way). In a way, it’s kind of like this Dream Team. We have to make the most of
what we have. Well, my wife made the most of her Christmas Salary Cap this year
and she bought me an Andrew McCutchen T-shirt jersey. … And, I love it.
McCutchen, an MVP, is my favorite player. He has been for a long time, since
before he donned a Pirates jersey. I picked him up in fantasy before he made
his debut, and I’ve kept him ever since. And because he signed a very
affordable extension, he is the absolute perfect CF for this Dream Team. In
fact, I think he is the only option. At $8.6M A.A.V., you cannot find a better
option for the money. If Mike Ferrin and Jim Duquette do not have him in their
CF positions, they absolutely failed at this, plain and simple.
Right Field: J.D.
Martinez burst onto the scene in Detroit last season. Houston had high hopes
for him and they let him go. I did, too, picking him for my Rookie of the Year
candidate in 2013 on #InsidePitch, only to have Casey Stern sadly inform me
that Martinez did not count — he had too much MLB experience to qualify. My
bad. … I was saying “My bad” again when Martinez flopped in Houston. Then, a
year later, he blew up in Detroit, living up to the player I really thought he
would be. So, I put him in right field, just like Detroit will this year. At
$3M A.A.V., he fits nicely. I could have gone a few different directions here —
there were a few high average, speed options here — but I needed power. Left
field has Marte where my speed is, and Martinez provided 23 homers a year ago
and I think he has 25-28 homer potential in 2015. It’s not the biggest power
out there, but for the price, I can’t beat it. Add that with McCutchen’s 25 HRs
— projection — and I have a decent pop in my outfield.
Starting Pitcher:
This was the toughest position to select because the best pitchers are making
way too much money and they would take away from the lineup. With only $60M,
and a bad contract cutting it down to $37.5M, I really didn’t have the money
for a David Price or Clayton Kershaw. So, I had to find the best value. Based
on a one-year assessment, Corey Kluber may have been the best choice after
winning the Cy Young making less than $600,000 last year. His arbitration
numbers haven’t been decided yet — or at least, I couldn’t find them — so I did
pick him, but I don’t know what his numbers are exactly. After a Cy Young year,
who knows what he’d make. Plus, it’s just one year. I want someone who has
proven his worth. That’s why I decided to go a different route with Madison
Bumgarner. At age 25 — the rules said younger than 25, not 25 and younger — and
a $5.9M A.A.V., Bumgarner provides the best upside for the money. If you don’t
believe me, it means you were hibernating in October. I do not need to provide
stats or facts to back this up. All I need to do is tell you to watch Game 7.
If you’re not convinced after that, you don’t need to follow my Dream Team.
Relief Pitcher:
This was almost as tough as selecting a starting pitcher because the best
relievers — I took this assignment as closers — are making big-time money. If I
was a real-life GM, I personally would never spend a lot of money on a closer.
I would go with the next-man-up system. I find a power arm, with flashy stuff,
in the system and move him to the bullpen. That’s why Zach Britton is my pick
for closer. At $3.2M A.A.V., he slips in just below the allotted salary cap,
and his production since moving to the bullpen has been excellent. He had a
4.95 ERA in seven starts in 2013, and a 1.65 ERA in 71 relief appearances, 37
of which resulted in saves. That’s the value I can find in my system. No need
to go on the market and pay millions.
There it is: Ten players checking in at $59.7M.
If I were the manager, this is how my lineup card would
look:
1. Jose Altuve
2. Starlin Marte
3. Andrew McCutchen
4. Joey Votto
5. Anthony Rendon
6. J.D. Martnez
7. Ben Zobrist
8. Salvador Perez
9. Madison Bumgarner
Hey, MadBum hit four homers last year. Got to love that
added bump in this lineup.
So, that’s my Dream Team based on the rules. Let me know
what you think at @jimmysjargon.
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