2020 Fantasy Baseball Draft Prep: Early H2H mock places heavy emphasis on pitching
The winter meetings have passed and a number of players have new homes. Scott White and friends demonstrate how values have changed in our first Head-to-Head points mock for 2020.
Fourth overall, in case you're wondering.
That's where Gerrit Cole went in our first Head-to-Head points mock draft for 2020 and our first mock draft of any kind since he agreed to his record-setting deal with the Yankees.
Granted, that particular format skews more toward pitching than the traditional 5x5 Rotisserie league does, but in either format, there's a case to be made for Cole going that high, just behind the three outfielders contending for the No. 1 spot, Mike Trout, Christian Yelich and Ronald Acuna.
What's surprising is that Jacob deGrom went right after Cole, also jumping ahead of Mookie Betts and Cody Bellinger, which was our first cue that this draft would to play out differently than in years past. In all, five starting pitchers went in the first round, and 24 were off the board by the end of Round 5.
It made for some stunning hitter values in the early rounds, such as Jose Ramirez and Xander Bogaerts in Round 4 and Ketel Marte and Charlie Blackmon in Round 5. Carlos Correa didn't go until Round 8. Ditto J.T. Realmuto. Other notable hitter discounts included Joey Gallo in Round 9, Max Kepler in Round 11 and Josh Donaldson in Round 12.
The way it played out tells us a couple things. While format certainly had something to do with it, the Fantasy-playing world is becoming wise to the idea that high-end pitching is the only kind that matters in this juiced-ball, launch-angle era in which a home run explosion has effectively killed the middle class. Granted, "high-end" is a broad description that could include as many as 40 pitchers, but once they're gone, they're gone. You may stumble into a lucky waiver wire find, but more likely than not, you'll be streaming and crossing your fingers with whatever openings you still have.
I went into this draft fully intending to have no openings, to draft five pitchers that I would consider to be high-end. I wound up with three: Max Scherzer, Noah Syndergaard and Sonny Gray. And while I emphasized upside with my remaining pitcher picks, hoping to make up for it, the fact is that trust is hard to come by for any pitcher in today's environment. You can't expect to piece together a workable starting rotation like in eras past.
Hard to complain too much about the way things turned out, though, looking at my offense. I was the one seizing on many of those hitter values, and it shows. Still, it's harder to gain an advantage over the competition at those spot with so many good hitters to go around.
This was particularly true at third base, shortstop and the outfield. In a typical Head-to-Head lineup with only no extra infield spots and just three outfield spots to fill, you never really run out of upside picks. Some of the undrafted bats included Khris Davis, Gio Urshela, Yandy Diaz, Hunter Dozier, Bryan Reynolds and Adam Eaton.
Most participants instead were grasping at straws in the late rounds, hoping to find pitching help in unexpected places. Never before have I seen so many minor-leaguers taken in a shallow redraft league, from MacKenzie Gore to Forrest Whitley to Ian Anderson to Casey Mize to Sixto Sanchez. Maybe they'll be up and contributing at some point, but they'll just be burning up a roster spot until then. And who's to say they'll be good right away? Still, it was worth it to these fine folks, knowing how robust the waiver wire would be at all the hitter positions.
I mentioned some fine folks? Well, yes, here are the ones who took part in this draft:
1) Joe Drake, Pitcher List (@JDrake349)
2) Jorge Montanez, Fantrax (@Jmontanez90)
3) Zach Braff, Bases Loaded Fantasy Baseball Podcast (@braffz)
4) Tim McLeod, Patton & Company
5) Mike Kurland, Fantrax (@Mike_Kurland)
6) George Kurtz, RotoWire (@GeorgeKurtz)
7) Ian Kahn, RotoWire (@IanKahn4)
8) The Itch, Razzball
9) John from MLB Moving Averages (@MLBMovingAvg)
10) Brant Chesser, Baseball HQ (@BrantChesser)
11) Scott White, CBS Sports (@CBSScottWhite)
12) Chris Mitchell, Fantrax (@CJMitch73)
And here's the scoring breakdown, in case you need a reminder how CBS Sports points league work:
| Head-to-Head point values | ||||||||
| For hitters | | For pitchers | | |||||
Single | 1 | Walk | -1 | |||||
Double | 2 | Earned run | -1 | |||||
Triple | 3 | Hit | -1 | |||||
Walk | 1 | Hit batter | -1 | |||||
Caught stealing | -1 | Inning | 3 | |||||
Hit by pitch | 1 | Strikeout | 0.5 | |||||
Home run | 4 | Win | 7 | |||||
Strikeout | -0.5 | Loss | -5 | |||||
Run | 1 | Save | 7 | |||||
RBI | 1 | QS | 3 | |||||
Stolen base | 2 | | | |||||
| Round 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 1 | JR Fenton | |
| 2 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 3 | Joe Schubert | |
| 4 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 5 | B_Don | |
| 6 | Scott White | |
| 7 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 8 | Dave Funnell | |
| 9 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 10 | Chris Towers | |
| 11 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 12 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 2 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 13 | Nick Fox | |
| 14 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 15 | Chris Towers | |
| 16 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 17 | Dave Funnell | |
| 18 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 19 | Scott White | |
| 20 | B_Don | |
| 21 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 22 | Joe Schubert | |
| 23 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 24 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 3 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 25 | JR Fenton | |
| 26 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 27 | Joe Schubert | |
| 28 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 29 | B_Don | |
| 30 | Scott White | |
| 31 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 32 | Dave Funnell | |
| 33 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 34 | Chris Towers | |
| 35 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 36 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 4 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 37 | Nick Fox | |
| 38 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 39 | Chris Towers | |
| 40 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 41 | Dave Funnell | |
| 42 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 43 | Scott White | |
| 44 | B_Don | |
| 45 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 46 | Joe Schubert | |
| 47 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 48 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 5 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 49 | JR Fenton | |
| 50 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 51 | Joe Schubert | |
| 52 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 53 | B_Don | |
| 54 | Scott White | |
| 55 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 56 | Dave Funnell | |
| 57 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 58 | Chris Towers | |
| 59 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 60 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 6 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 61 | Nick Fox | |
| 62 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 63 | Chris Towers | |
| 64 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 65 | Dave Funnell | |
| 66 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 67 | Scott White | |
| 68 | B_Don | |
| 69 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 70 | Joe Schubert | |
| 71 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 72 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 7 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 73 | JR Fenton | |
| 74 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 75 | Joe Schubert | |
| 76 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 77 | B_Don | |
| 78 | Scott White | |
| 79 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 80 | Dave Funnell | |
| 81 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 82 | Chris Towers | |
| 83 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 84 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 8 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 85 | Nick Fox | |
| 86 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 87 | Chris Towers | |
| 88 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 89 | Dave Funnell | |
| 90 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 91 | Scott White | |
| 92 | B_Don | |
| 93 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 94 | Joe Schubert | |
| 95 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 96 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 9 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 97 | JR Fenton | |
| 98 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 99 | Joe Schubert | |
| 100 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 101 | B_Don | |
| 102 | Scott White | |
| 103 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 104 | Dave Funnell | |
| 105 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 106 | Chris Towers | |
| 107 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 108 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 10 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 109 | Nick Fox | |
| 110 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 111 | Chris Towers | |
| 112 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 113 | Dave Funnell | |
| 114 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 115 | Scott White | |
| 116 | B_Don | |
| 117 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 118 | Joe Schubert | |
| 119 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 120 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 11 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 121 | JR Fenton | |
| 122 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 123 | Joe Schubert | |
| 124 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 125 | B_Don | |
| 126 | Scott White | |
| 127 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 128 | Dave Funnell | |
| 129 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 130 | Chris Towers | |
| 131 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 132 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 12 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 133 | Nick Fox | |
| 134 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 135 | Chris Towers | |
| 136 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 137 | Dave Funnell | |
| 138 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 139 | Scott White | |
| 140 | B_Don | |
| 141 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 142 | Joe Schubert | |
| 143 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 144 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 13 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 145 | JR Fenton | |
| 146 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 147 | Joe Schubert | |
| 148 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 149 | B_Don | |
| 150 | Scott White | |
| 151 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 152 | Dave Funnell | |
| 153 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 154 | Chris Towers | |
| 155 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 156 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 14 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 157 | Nick Fox | |
| 158 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 159 | Chris Towers | |
| 160 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 161 | Dave Funnell | |
| 162 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 163 | Scott White | |
| 164 | B_Don | |
| 165 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 166 | Joe Schubert | |
| 167 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 168 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 15 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 169 | JR Fenton | |
| 170 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 171 | Joe Schubert | |
| 172 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 173 | B_Don | |
| 174 | Scott White | |
| 175 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 176 | Dave Funnell | |
| 177 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 178 | Chris Towers | |
| 179 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 180 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 16 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 181 | Nick Fox | |
| 182 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 183 | Chris Towers | |
| 184 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 185 | Dave Funnell | |
| 186 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 187 | Scott White | |
| 188 | B_Don | |
| 189 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 190 | Joe Schubert | |
| 191 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 192 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 17 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 193 | JR Fenton | |
| 194 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 195 | Joe Schubert | |
| 196 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 197 | B_Don | |
| 198 | Scott White | |
| 199 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 200 | Dave Funnell | |
| 201 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 202 | Chris Towers | |
| 203 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 204 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 18 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 205 | Nick Fox | |
| 206 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 207 | Chris Towers | |
| 208 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 209 | Dave Funnell | |
| 210 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 211 | Scott White | |
| 212 | B_Don | |
| 213 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 214 | Joe Schubert | |
| 215 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 216 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 19 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 217 | JR Fenton | |
| 218 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 219 | Joe Schubert | |
| 220 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 221 | B_Don | |
| 222 | Scott White | |
| 223 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 224 | Dave Funnell | |
| 225 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 226 | Chris Towers | |
| 227 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 228 | Nick Fox | |
| Round 20 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 229 | Nick Fox | |
| 230 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 231 | Chris Towers | |
| 232 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 233 | Dave Funnell | |
| 234 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 235 | Scott White | |
| 236 | B_Don | |
| 237 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 238 | Joe Schubert | |
| 239 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 240 | JR Fenton | |
| Round 21 | ||
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 241 | JR Fenton | |
| 242 | Frank Stampfl | |
| 243 | Joe Schubert | |
| 244 | The Fantasy Gospel | |
| 245 | B_Don | |
| 246 | Scott White | |
| 247 | Chris Mitchell | |
| 248 | Dave Funnell | |
| 249 | Jeremy Heist | |
| 250 | Chris Towers | |
| 251 | Phil Ponebshek | |
| 252 | Nick Fox | |
| JR Fenton | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | 24 | |
| 3 | 25 | |
| 4 | 48 | |
| 5 | 49 | |
| 6 | 72 | |
| 7 | 73 | |
| 8 | 96 | |
| 9 | 97 | |
| 10 | 120 | |
| 11 | 121 | |
| 12 | 144 | |
| 13 | 145 | |
| 14 | 168 | |
| 15 | 169 | |
| 16 | 192 | |
| 17 | 193 | |
| 18 | 216 | |
| 19 | 217 | |
| 20 | 240 | |
| 21 | 241 | |
| Frank Stampfl | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 2 | |
| 2 | 23 | |
| 3 | 26 | |
| 4 | 47 | |
| 5 | 50 | |
| 6 | 71 | |
| 7 | 74 | |
| 8 | 95 | |
| 9 | 98 | |
| 10 | 119 | |
| 11 | 122 | |
| 12 | 143 | |
| 13 | 146 | |
| 14 | 167 | |
| 15 | 170 | |
| 16 | 191 | |
| 17 | 194 | |
| 18 | 215 | |
| 19 | 218 | |
| 20 | 239 | |
| 21 | 242 | |
| Joe Schubert | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 3 | |
| 2 | 22 | |
| 3 | 27 | |
| 4 | 46 | |
| 5 | 51 | |
| 6 | 70 | |
| 7 | 75 | |
| 8 | 94 | |
| 9 | 99 | |
| 10 | 118 | |
| 11 | 123 | |
| 12 | 142 | |
| 13 | 147 | |
| 14 | 166 | |
| 15 | 171 | |
| 16 | 190 | |
| 17 | 195 | |
| 18 | 214 | |
| 19 | 219 | |
| 20 | 238 | |
| 21 | 243 | |
| The Fantasy Gospel | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 4 | |
| 2 | 21 | |
| 3 | 28 | |
| 4 | 45 | |
| 5 | 52 | |
| 6 | 69 | |
| 7 | 76 | |
| 8 | 93 | |
| 9 | 100 | |
| 10 | 117 | |
| 11 | 124 | |
| 12 | 141 | |
| 13 | 148 | |
| 14 | 165 | |
| 15 | 172 | |
| 16 | 189 | |
| 17 | 196 | |
| 18 | 213 | |
| 19 | 220 | |
| 20 | 237 | |
| 21 | 244 | |
| B_Don | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 5 | |
| 2 | 20 | |
| 3 | 29 | |
| 4 | 44 | |
| 5 | 53 | |
| 6 | 68 | |
| 7 | 77 | |
| 8 | 92 | |
| 9 | 101 | |
| 10 | 116 | |
| 11 | 125 | |
| 12 | 140 | |
| 13 | 149 | |
| 14 | 164 | |
| 15 | 173 | |
| 16 | 188 | |
| 17 | 197 | |
| 18 | 212 | |
| 19 | 221 | |
| 20 | 236 | |
| 21 | 245 | |
| Scott White | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 6 | |
| 2 | 19 | |
| 3 | 30 | |
| 4 | 43 | |
| 5 | 54 | |
| 6 | 67 | |
| 7 | 78 | |
| 8 | 91 | |
| 9 | 102 | |
| 10 | 115 | |
| 11 | 126 | |
| 12 | 139 | |
| 13 | 150 | |
| 14 | 163 | |
| 15 | 174 | |
| 16 | 187 | |
| 17 | 198 | |
| 18 | 211 | |
| 19 | 222 | |
| 20 | 235 | |
| 21 | 246 | |
| Chris Mitchell | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 7 | |
| 2 | 18 | |
| 3 | 31 | |
| 4 | 42 | |
| 5 | 55 | |
| 6 | 66 | |
| 7 | 79 | |
| 8 | 90 | |
| 9 | 103 | |
| 10 | 114 | |
| 11 | 127 | |
| 12 | 138 | |
| 13 | 151 | |
| 14 | 162 | |
| 15 | 175 | |
| 16 | 186 | |
| 17 | 199 | |
| 18 | 210 | |
| 19 | 223 | |
| 20 | 234 | |
| 21 | 247 | |
| Dave Funnell | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 8 | |
| 2 | 17 | |
| 3 | 32 | |
| 4 | 41 | |
| 5 | 56 | |
| 6 | 65 | |
| 7 | 80 | |
| 8 | 89 | |
| 9 | 104 | |
| 10 | 113 | |
| 11 | 128 | |
| 12 | 137 | |
| 13 | 152 | |
| 14 | 161 | |
| 15 | 176 | |
| 16 | 185 | |
| 17 | 200 | |
| 18 | 209 | |
| 19 | 224 | |
| 20 | 233 | |
| 21 | 248 | |
| Jeremy Heist | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 9 | |
| 2 | 16 | |
| 3 | 33 | |
| 4 | 40 | |
| 5 | 57 | |
| 6 | 64 | |
| 7 | 81 | |
| 8 | 88 | |
| 9 | 105 | |
| 10 | 112 | |
| 11 | 129 | |
| 12 | 136 | |
| 13 | 153 | |
| 14 | 160 | |
| 15 | 177 | |
| 16 | 184 | |
| 17 | 201 | |
| 18 | 208 | |
| 19 | 225 | |
| 20 | 232 | |
| 21 | 249 | |
| Chris Towers | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 10 | |
| 2 | 15 | |
| 3 | 34 | |
| 4 | 39 | |
| 5 | 58 | |
| 6 | 63 | |
| 7 | 82 | |
| 8 | 87 | |
| 9 | 106 | |
| 10 | 111 | |
| 11 | 130 | |
| 12 | 135 | |
| 13 | 154 | |
| 14 | 159 | |
| 15 | 178 | |
| 16 | 183 | |
| 17 | 202 | |
| 18 | 207 | |
| 19 | 226 | |
| 20 | 231 | |
| 21 | 250 | |
| Phil Ponebshek | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 11 | |
| 2 | 14 | |
| 3 | 35 | |
| 4 | 38 | |
| 5 | 59 | |
| 6 | 62 | |
| 7 | 83 | |
| 8 | 86 | |
| 9 | 107 | |
| 10 | 110 | |
| 11 | 131 | |
| 12 | 134 | |
| 13 | 155 | |
| 14 | 158 | |
| 15 | 179 | |
| 16 | 182 | |
| 17 | 203 | |
| 18 | 206 | |
| 19 | 227 | |
| 20 | 230 | |
| 21 | 251 | |
| Nick Fox | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 12 | |
| 2 | 13 | |
| 3 | 36 | |
| 4 | 37 | |
| 5 | 60 | |
| 6 | 61 | |
| 7 | 84 | |
| 8 | 85 | |
| 9 | 108 | |
| 10 | 109 | |
| 11 | 132 | |
| 12 | 133 | |
| 13 | 156 | |
| 14 | 157 | |
| 15 | 180 | |
| 16 | 181 | |
| 17 | 204 | |
| 18 | 205 | |
| 19 | 228 | |
| 20 | 229 | |
| 21 | 252 | |

















