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Justin Mason’s 2024 Draft Day Cheat Sheet
Targets By Position
*NOTE: These are listed in order of my rankings and, more often than not, their current ADP. That means the players at the end of each section are ones you can typically get in later rounds.
Catcher: J.T. Realmuto, Yainer Diaz, Salvador Perez, Sean Murphy, Logan O’Hoppe, Jonah Heim, Mitch Garver, Luis Campusano.
(In a one-catcher league, I do not typically draft a top guy unless they drop very far. I am usually fine waiting for one of the last ones off the board.)
First Base: Freddie Freeman, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cody Bellinger, Spencer Steer, Spencer Torkelson, Vinnie Pasquantino, Rhys Hoskins, Jeimer Candelario, Justin Turner, Anthony Rizzo, Jose Abreu.
Second Base: Mookie Betts, Ozzie Albies, Marcus Semien, Jose Altuve, Nico Hoerner, Matt McLain, Gleyber Torres, Bryson Stott, Nolan Gorman, Edouard Julien, Gavin Lux, Brendan Donovan, Jose Caballero, Michael Massey.
Third Base: Jose Ramirez, Austin Riley, Rafael Devers, Manny Machado, Alex Bregman, Nolan Arenado, Spencer Steer, Josh Jung, Jake Burger, Ke’Bryan Hayes. Jeimer Candelario, Willi Castro, Colt Keith, Michael Busch, Coby Mayo.
Shortstop: Bobby Witt Jr., Trea Turner, Francisco Lindor, Nico Hoerner, Matt McLain, Xander Bogaerts, Dansby Swanson, Anthony Volpe, Willy Adames, Tim Anderson, Jose Caballero.
Outfield: Ronald Acuna, Julio Rodriguez, Corbin Carroll, Mookie Betts, Kyle Tucker, Fernando Tatis Jr., Juan Soto, Randy Arozarena, Cody Bellinger, Christian Yelich, Kyle Schwarber, Bryan Reynolds, Seiya Suzuki, Spencer Steer, Cedric Mullins, Jorge Soler, TJ Friedl, Brandon Nimmo, Jarred Kelenic, Daulton Varsho, Gavin Lux, Max Kepler, Sal Frelick, Brendan Donovan, Johan Rojas, Alek Thomas.
Utility: Shohei Ohtani, Marcell Ozuna, J.D. Martinez.
Starting Pitcher: Spencer Strider, Corbin Burnes, Zack Wheeler, Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Pablo Lopez, Zac Gallen, Tarik Skubal, Logan Webb, Grayson Rodriguez, Bobby Miller, Logan Gilbert, Zach Eflin, Cole Ragans, Justin Steele, Tanner Bibee, Bailey Ober, Jordan Montgomery, Bryce Miller, Shota Imanaga, Eduardo Rodriguez, Brandon Pfaadt, Braxton Garrett, Michael Wacha, John Means, Trevor Rogers, Dean Kremer, Max Meyer.
Closer: Edwin Diaz, Josh Hader, Emmanuel Clase, David Bednar, Alexis Diaz, Adbert Alzolay, Robert Suarez, Jeff Hoffman, Prelander Berroa.
Targets By Round (12-Team League)
1st: Ronald Acuna, Bobby Witt Jr., Julio Rodriguez, Corbin Carroll, Kyle Tucker, Spencer Strider, Fernando Tatis Jr., Freddie Freeman, Juan Soto, Trea Turner.
2nd: Shohei Ohtani, Jose Ramirez, Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, Francisco Lindor.
3rd: Zack Wheeler, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Luis Castillo, Vlad Guerrero Jr., George Kirby.
4th: Jose Altuve, Pablo Lopez, Zac Gallen, Tarik Skubal, Randy Arozarena, Edwin Diaz, Devin Williams.
5th: Josh Hader, Logan Webb, Cody Bellinger, Manny Machado, Emmanuel Clase.
6th: Nico Hoerner, Grayson Rodriguez, Bobby Miller, Logan Gilbert, Matt McLain.
7th: Christian Yelich, David Bednar, JT Realmuto, Zach Eflin, Gleyber Torres, Alexis Diaz, Kyle Schwarber.
8th: Alex Bregman, Bryan Reynolds, Cole Ragans.
9th: Justin Steele, Nolan Arenado, Seiya Suzuki, Bryson Stott, Spencer Steer.
10th: Bryson Stott, Tanner Bibee, Spencer Torkelson.
11th-15th: Salvador Perez, Josh Jung, Adbert Alzolay, Dansby Swanson, Anthony Volpe, Bailey Ober, Cedric Mullins, Marcell Ozuna, Jake Burger, Jorge Soler, Jordan Montgomery, Logan O’Hoppe, TJ Friedl, Vinnie Pasquantino, Nick Pivetta, Bobby Miller, Jonah Heim, Shoto Imanaga, Ke’Bryan Hayes.
16th-20th: Brandon Nimmo, Eduardo Rodriguez, Nolan Gorman, Luis Campusano, Willy Adames, Brandon Pfaadt, Rhys Hoskins, Edouard Julien, Braxton Garrett, Steven Kwan, Dalton Varsho, Jarred Kelenic, Nestor Cortes, Christopher Sanchez, Jeimer Candelario.
21st-25th: J.D. Martinez, Justin Turner, Vaughn Grissom, Max Kepler, Gavin Lux, Michael Wacha, Anthony Rizzo, Willi Castro, John Means, Jose Abreu, Brendan Donovan, Sal Frelick.
Post-300 ADP: Dean Kremer, Louie Varland, Trevor Rogers, Michael Busch, Johan Rojas, Tim Anderson, Max Meyer, Jose Caballero, Alex Thoms, Jeff Hoffman, Prelander Berroa.
Players To Avoid Near ADP
- Aaron Judge, Yordan Alvarez, Elly De La Cruz, Michael Harris, Gunnar Henderson, Kevin Gausman, Tyler Glasnow, Will Smith, Triston Casas, Lane Thomas, Evan Carter, Jackson Chourio, Estuary Ruiz, Hunter Greene, Kodai Senga, Carlos Rodon, Walker Buehler, Bo Naylor.
Strategy/Advice
Know your format!
Player values change drastically depending on whether you’re playing in a roto, H2H categories or points league. They even change a lot in different versions of these formats. Run your league rules or format through some sort of draft software in order to get a good idea of what kind of players your format favors if you do not already know.
Be aware of tiers and drop-offs.
Starting pitching is really deep this season, and so are first base and catcher. The other positions are not shallow, but have steep drop offs throughout the ADP. Be careful not to miss out on your tiers.
Be prepared.
Have your ranks or dollar values ready and up to date. Things change quickly. Injuries will happen, and roles will change. Make sure you keep your information as up-to-date as possible.
Throw ADP out the window halfway through the draft.
ADP is a great tool to know when to pounce on your guys, but ADP is only a guideline, not a map. After about halfway through the draft, you can pretty much ignore it, though, and just go get your guys. All it takes is one person to think as highly of a guy as you do to miss out on him during your draft. If you value a player at a certain point, don’t be afraid to “draft them too early” so you don’t miss out on them.
Draft smart early and risky later.
Upside is great, but there is a time and place for it. When you are drafting early, you should be thinking more about the floor of a player than the upside. Guys like Elly De La Cruz and Aaron Judge are amazing, but they have huge risks that can sink your season if they do not stay on the field.
Draft Backwards.
Conventional wisdom says to think about the draft from beginning to end. However, you should be building your draft plan from the back with your late targets as the priority. If you like a lot of late pitchers and outfielders, you don’t need to prioritize them early. If you hate the late second basemen, then you should probably target some earlier in the draft. All the players at the beginning of the draft are good, so it is important to know what you do and don’t like at the back of the draft before you worry about the first few rounds.
Expert Fantasy Baseball Draft Advice
- The Welsh’s Must-Have Players (Premium)
- Joe Pisapia’s Must-Have Players (Premium)
- Justin Mason’s Must-Have Players (Premium)
- KC Bubba’s Must-Have Players (Premium)
- Blake Meyer’s Must-Have Players (Premium)
- Mason’s High-Stakes Leagues Draft Strategy (Premium)
More Fantasy Baseball Draft Cheat Sheets
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