11-team ROTO 5x5 1st draft-whir

[rja8719]

League has 11 teams standard 5x5 roto, this is my first draft, I have 2 bigger money ones coming up soon so I'd appreciate any feedback on possible mistakes I may have made...

1. (5) Grady Sizemore
2. (18) Alfonso Soriano
3. (27) Carl Crawford
4. (40) Brandon Phillips
5. (49) Joe Mauer
6. (62) Rafael Furcal
7. (71) Jay Bruce
8. (84) Víctor Martínez
9. (93) Joe Nathan
10. (106) A.J. Burnett
11. (115) Jonathan Broxton
12. (128) Ricky Nolasco
13. (137) Edwin Encarnación
14. (150) Brett Myers
15. (159) Matt Capps
16. (172) Ted Lilly
17. (181) Conor Jackson
18. (194) Jered Weaver
19. (203) John Maine
20. (216) Kenshin Kawakami
21. (225) Johnny Cueto

A few things...I was trying to target 5-tool postion players as often as possible so that should explain my first few picks...the round I pick Victor Martinez was an autopick because my computer froze, my plan originally was to draft Joe Nathan that round, and then grab Votto in the following round. I was also unaware of Mauer's injury when I drafted him, although I'm not sure it makes him that terrible of a pick anyway. Appreciate any opinions.

[jackie hayes]

I think that team will struggle. There are too many steals -- you should run away with that cat -- but there's not a ton of power there. Mauer and Crawford won't hit many out, and VMart is (if he returns to form) excellent for a catcher, but as a 1b he's just mediocre (and assuming Mauer gets healthy, that and util are the only spots left for him). Mauer's a big plus in avg, but he's counterweighted by Encarnacion, and the rest of your guys are just so-so in that cat. Your starters are pretty weak. Burnett is always a health risk, I like Nolasco, but after that there's a lot of risk and marginal play. Your relievers should be very solid.

Overall, I don't like the team much. Too much emphasis on steals, not much balance in the lineup, no depth at sp. At some point in the season, I'd look to trade steals to shore up other cats where you may be weak. If Mauer and VMart both start the year fairly well, I'd look to trade VMart for an upgrade somewhere. And keep a close watch on starting pitchers that come available on the wire. (No offense intended -- just trying to be honest.)

Edit: The other thing to think about, if your starters do struggle, is using a couple shut-down middle relievers. If you pick them right (or lucky), two dominant middle relievers can give you 150+ ip, with a great strikeout rate, great rate stats, and about 10 wins. It's not a bad way to sort of 'create' a starter, and even dominant middle relievers are often left on the wire a long time.

[rja8719]

I agree with you, I'm thinking I should've gone for a bigger power bat over Crawford the round I chose him, also was not happy getting stuck with VMart at 1st but it was an autopick and I didn't want to take another 1B when I had no pitching at the point.