Each type of fantasy baseball league has its own inherent characteristics. Ten-team drafts with players available from both leagues — as opposed to National League-only or American League-only — typically yield the same outcome:
Every team should have plenty of talent.
When a position run begins, we aren’t forced to chase because of the infamous and dreaded fear of missing out. Instead, we can draft with confidence that the smaller number of opponents means a quicker return to your next pick and a better chance to build a full roster. Let’s take a look at our latest fantasy baseball mock draft to help you prepare for your league.
Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft: 10-Team (2024)
The lineup for this 10-team draft is C, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, 3 OF, UTIL, 2 SP, 2 RP, 4 P and 5 BN. It was conducted using FantasyPros’ Draft Simulator.
Corbin Carroll was a big name to target entering last year’s draft season. It’s easy to argue he over-delivered on even the highest of expectations — 25 home runs, a .285 batting average and more than 50 stolen basis provided one of the most well-rounded and high-end performances in recent memory. Likely, he regresses somewhere, but a player who contributed to so many categories last year would give him a softer fall if his numbers were to dip. If they don’t, we probably have another top-five fantasy asset for 2024.
Others Considered: Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman
In the introduction of this article, I mentioned how each team will have enough talent to walk away pleased with any combination of players. The other element of a 10-team league is a potential glut of talent at the same position. Unless forced — and someone like Yordan Alvarez could have forced me — I’m inclined to move away from outfielders after selecting Carroll in the first round. Matt Olson somehow improved on a solid debut season with the Atlanta Braves by hitting a ridiculous 54 home runs in a full 162-game season. That last part isn’t a throwaway comment. Olson — and many members of the Braves — takes the field every game. Consistency and production? Sign me up.
Others Considered: Yordan Alvarez
Once again, calling back to the introduction, it isn’t necessary to chase positions regularly in this type of draft. But it also isn’t wise to ignore pitchers for too long. The good news? Through two complete rounds and 24 total picks, only three pitchers have been selected — Spencer Strider, Gerrit Cole and Corbin Burnes. I’ll take the fourth in Zack Wheeler and his solid combination of a high strikeout rate and generally low ERA.
Others Considered: Kevin Gausman
If we needed proof of how talent-laden 10-team leagues are compared to the rest, look no further than Elly De La Cruz sitting in front of me as a viable option in the middle of the fourth round. De La Cruz almost certainly won’t fall this far in most leagues where at least one person will buy into his hype from last year. However, just like the aforementioned Carroll, De La Cruz’s starting point is so high that we can accept a slight regression. More specifically, we can accept it at this point in the draft. I wouldn’t be comfortable selecting him higher and trying to outpace other fantasy managers and their assigned hype of the young, potential star.
Others Considered: Bo Bichette, Adolis Garcia
Oh my. In every draft of the past half-dozen years, I have made a mental note of where I think I could select Mike Trout. Last year, that approach was easier than it had been because he was routinely slipping into the second round. This year? I hadn’t bothered to look at him for the first three rounds and almost failed to do so again here. I understand the injury concerns but I am never going to move away from the player who can be the best in the sport if he can stay on the field. I would easily take Trout another 10 or so picks higher if I needed to.
Others Considered: Devin Williams, Josh Hader
I wrote two closers’ names in the prior blurb as players I considered before selecting Mike Trout. I want to add one of the remaining top bullpen arms here. Is it a necessity? No, since quantity sometimes outranks quality when drafting closers. Still, it can’t hurt to have Josh Hader on a win-happy Houston Astros team added to my roster.
Others Considered: Edwin Diaz, Emmanuel Clase
In assessing my team roughly one-quarter into the draft, it could use a boost in batting average and starting pitching. Normally, I would prioritize the latter but depth should allow me to survive another round without a second starting pitcher. The targets for batting average aren’t eye-popping but Nolan Jones had a thoroughly impressive 2023 season and looks primed to carry it into this year.
Others Considered: Christian Yelich
No surprise here. I wrote in the last round’s blurb I had to start filling out my pitching rotation. It was simply a matter of preference between Zach Eflin and Bobby Miller. Miller has some undeniable upside but Eflin was the latest example of how the Tampa Bay Rays can develop pitchers, even later in their careers. In seven seasons prior, Eflin had not eclipsed 170 innings pitched. We might have seen his ceiling last year. I’m targeting the higher floor as my SP2, where I’d prefer Miller if I had a more stable starting point for my rotation.
Others Considered: Bobby Miller
This was a nice surprise. I closed out my last blurb by noting I would prefer Bobby Miller as an SP3 where I had a more stable foundation. That’s exactly what just happened as Miller remained undrafted until my ninth-round pick. I’ll take the high ceiling and shaky floor now.
Others Considered: Alex Bregman
Xander Bogaerts’ debut season with the San Diego Padres was close to his career averages but slightly below them. That’s actually a good sign. Bogaerts got off to a slow start — a .253 batting average in the first half of the year — but closed out the season hitting .321 over the final 71 games. Specifically, he batted .418 from September 1 through the end of the regular season and now heads into his second year with the Padres on a high note. With De La Cruz able to shift to 3B on my roster, I’ll slot Bogaerts into the shortstop spot.
Others Considered: Ketel Marte
More 2024 Fantasy Baseball Mock Drafts
- 12-Team, Early Pick (v2, v3)
- 12-Team, Late Pick (v2)
- 12-Team, Categories
- 12-Team, Points (v2)
- 12-Team, Salary Cap
- 10-Team, Middle Pick
- 10-Team, Categories
- 10-Team, AL-Only
- 10-Team, NL-Only
I almost had buyer’s remorse with my last pick because it meant I was technically doubling up on shortstops and ignoring a historically difficult position to fill in second base. I passed on Ketel Marte and became worried the decision would haunt me. In a bigger league, it would have. This is the benefit of drafting in a 10-team format. Marte made it back to me and now joins my lineup as the starting second baseman.
Others Considered: Josh Jung
It felt like the draft board finally opened up at this point, where I could have gone anywhere with my pick. I am sure I’ll start to target some closers for depth but I wanted a player with upside, knowing there were no clear leaders midway through the draft. Justin Verlander is working his way back from an injury and it would not be a surprise to see him miss Opening Day, which often leads to an absence through the bulk of April. This is why he is available in the 12th round but that also means we have a decent risk-reward target. He’s an easy pick as my SP4.
Others Considered: Teoscar Hernandez, Jordan Walker
It’s time to think strategically for the next few picks as a bundle. Somewhere soon, I need to start filling up my bullpen. I also have one slot left for a starting hitter — excluding the catcher position. I’m going to prioritize that utility slot now with Teoscar Hernandez but only because I see value in him on my roster. By contrast, I wouldn’t select a hitter here just for the sake of rounding out my lineup. He’ll provide power and drive in runs and do so for a team that finished second in the league in runs scored last year.
Others Considered: Ryan Helsley, Evan Phillips
Despite already deciding I would spend some of my next few picks on closers, I needed to force my mouse away from Salvador Perez, Anthony Santander and Luis Arraez. It also didn’t help that a few closers I had been targeted were selected since my last pick. I’ll add Tanner Scott here for the depth and keep my options open.
Others Considered: Salvador Perez, Anthony Santander, Luis Arraez
I mentioned Salvador Perez in passing While I am always a proponent of waiting to fill the catcher position, I can’t overlook the value here. I still need to add pitchers in the next few rounds but I’ll officially close out my batting lineup with a veteran who has hit a combined 94 home runs over the last three years and has catcher eligibility.
Others Considered: Adbert Alzolay
It was almost a running joke in prior seasons’ mock draft articles that I would move mountains to draft Mitch Keller. In 2023, it finally paid off. Fantasy managers are still exercising some restraint — I won’t. Welcome back to the team, Mitch!
Others Considered: Jose Berrios
I’ve been relatively careful to not reach much because there had been value in numerous rounds. This is the first time I have had to stay outside of my comfort zone and target a position because of need. Not surprisingly, given what I have written throughout this column, I’m doing so to draft a closer. This is simply a matter of “next best available” and, over the coming weeks, this player or name will change numerous times. It’s about depth via save opportunities. Carlos Estevez currently provides that.
Others Considered: Kyle Finnegan
Rolling right along and continuing with the mindset of my last pick, I’m filling in my bullpen and its bench with players currently projected to have the chance to close out games. We’re still operating with the same safety net that a 10-team league offers, so it’s easy to overcome mistakes in the 18th round and ultimately swap Kyle Finnegan — my current pick — for anyone else who steps up as a closer candidate in the early days of the season.
Others Considered: Robert Suarez
I originally intended to go heavy on sleepers starting in this round because the starting lineups for both pitchers and hitters were filled but there is too much solid talent still available. I had difficulty deciding between a few bats here but Alec Bohm gives some positional flexibility and should contribute nicely across the board. In another world, I would take nothing but upside here but I can’t pass on the high floor.
Others Considered: Willy Adames, Jorge Soler
Now we can have some fun. I mentioned upside and sleeper territory but did I also talk about post-hype breakouts? No, but that’s where Eloy Jimenez comes into play. He has failed to reach 20 home runs in a season since his rookie year when he hit 31. Injuries have played a huge role in devaluing what he could bring to a lineup. I’ll take the discount here and eagerly add him to my roster in the 20th round.
Others Considered: Ke’Bryan Hayes
Once again, I’m moving back to a more stable floor at a point where I could take a big risk but it’s hard to pass up on the value when someone like Nathan Eovaldi is available and I need to add pitching depth. Of course, there is a risk with Eovaldi or he would not be undrafted with only two rounds remaining. But his numbers are routinely solid when he is healthy and he’s shown the ability to outperform expectations in numerous seasons.
Others Considered: Triston McKenzie
We’ll close out the draft by going with the potential of Triston McKenzie. He’s an ideal bounce-back candidate after injuries derailed his 2023 campaign as we have seen some outstanding potential when healthy. It’s unlikely to ask McKenzie to snap right back to his sub-3.00 ERA from two years ago with a full season ahead of him but he carries a high strikeout rate and could soar up the post-draft rankings and prove to be one of the best sleeper picks of the year.
Others Considered: Shota Imanaga
Summary
Over the years, I have noticed a trend with 10-team drafts. Because of how easy it is to fill a roster and not leave too many holes, there’s a desire to be conservative. That tends to backfire in the form of a building team that’s good but not great.
I tried my best to break away from that trend this year and it produced a solid score of 88 out of 100 for a B+ rating and a third-place finish. I can accept that and I see a better path to success than failure for this team. In addition, the system didn’t like my reaches for two closers but that’s the nature of the position.
The final takeaway is to lean into the running theme of ‘talent will be everywhere’ and don’t be afraid to take calculated risks as long as you have stable pieces that already form a solid foundation.
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Fantasy Baseball Draft Advice: Players to Target
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Mario Mergola is a featured writer at FantasyPros and BettingPros and the creator and content editor of Sporfolio. For more from Mario, check out his archive and follow him @MarioMergola.
