Can you win taking only SPs?

[sandiego2010]

I'm in a 20 team league, first timer. We draft 7 P + 7 bench. In the past most people in the league have drafted 10-13 pitchers.

In order to simplify things, I'm thinking of drafting JUTS starting pitchers, given that there is such depth at that position, and I figure I can probably find waiver wire closers later in the season if need be.

So.... is going ALL starting pitchers a viable strategy? Or am I dooming myself somehow?

[bigh0rt]

It depends on if it's 5x5 or not, if it's Roto or H2H, etc.

[sandiego2010]

This is:

Head-to-Head, Points Based System.
Scoring based on total stats each period.

[bigh0rt]

yeah i'd probably just have 14 SP on my roster

[MTUCache]

Head-to-Head, Points Based System.

... that's probably all we needed to know to say yes.

But, I did use your points settings in the lastplayerpicked calculator, just to see where they came out (unfortunately, they don't include Holds or QS as a category, so I bumped Wins up a couple points to compensate for QS and assume MR are approximately equal to Closers).

They're giving closers a pretty solid edge here, with top-end closers getting 350-450 points, top-end SP getting 300-400 points. If you generally equate a Chris Carpenter level starter (top-20 SP guy) to a bottom-end closer (Chris Perez, say), and then figure you can also equate a good holds guy about the same (Gregerson, Bard).... it would be tough to go with just SP.

The extra QS, which I didn't really account for, would probably favor drafting a couple of top-end starters (Felix comes to mind), but doesn't make up for the easy points it looks like you can get out of a MR who comes basically free at the end of the draft.

Tough to guage points leagues without all of the details, other than to say "it depends" on how your points system is set up. It's entirely possible that all the pitchers we're talking about here are $10 values, while even bottom-tier hitters could be worth twice that (especially when we don't know if there's an IP limit each week), in which case you'll be throwing out the whole SP strategy anyway and loading up on hitters for the entire first half of the draft.

[kab21]

yeah i'd probably just have 14 SP on my roster

I'm not a big fan of the league setup. A pts league with large benches and no starts/innings limits. Yuk.

But it's going to be nearly impossible to have 14 SP on your roster in a 20 team league. There just aren't enough of them unless you drafted all 14 in the first 20 rds. But the same argument is true of closers. You aren't going to pick up any closers on the WW. All closers and most of the good 7th/8th inning guys will be drafted in a league this big. but you definitely don't want to have more than 1 or 2 bench hitters in this league.

[Ender]

In a H2H points system you can win drafting just about anything, you just have to exploit whatever flaws exist in the system.

[Matthias]

Oh.

I thought this was going to be an idea that you only draft SPs for every pick and then leverage your created scarcity into good trades.

H2H points, whatever. Draft whatever the system rewards. There's no requirement, necessity, or reason to draft particular players simply because they're drafted in normal formats. I drafted for a guy last year in a league that was exactly this kind of set up and drafted all SPs for him. They were worth more. Why waste picks on relievers?

[Matthias]

Something to consider is that if you have 7 pitching spots but draft 10-12 quality starting pitchers you can maximize 2-start pitchers but you're doing it with quality pitchers, not the trash on the waiver wire.

[kab21]

Oh.

I thought this was going to be an idea that you only draft SPs for every pick and then leverage your created scarcity into good trades.

H2H points, whatever. Draft whatever the system rewards. There's no requirement, necessity, or reason to draft particular players simply because they're drafted in normal formats. I drafted for a guy last year in a league that was exactly this kind of set up and drafted all SPs for him. They were worth more. Why waste picks on relievers?

The reason that you'll waste picks on RP'ers is that there simply aren't enough starters for all of the teams. I've played in a 20 team roto league and every starter down to silva, French and 2010 Cook was owned. And that is a league that penalizes (ERA/WHIP) for bad starters. At most you'll probably be able to get 10 SP'ers. You still draft RP'ers to fill the lineup since all 10 (if you can get that many) starters don't pitch on the same day. You also don't worry about 2 start pitchers since I'm guessing that it is a daily lineup league. Of course that would also change things alot if it wasn't since it further penalizes RP'ers.