Last week, I congregated some fantasy and baseball writers with the objective of doing a league with similar characteristics to the Tout Wars H2H or LABR. A 12-team snake draft, head-to-head with 5×5 scoring categories and 2 catchers.
With the influx of fantasy basketball and football, the head-to-head leagues is a format increasing in popularity. (Which is why if you play in these leagues, check out the “Getting Ahead” series.) If you play head-to-head leagues, they offer a different way to play than Roto leagues, and it requires a different strategy. The league functions are essentially the same as the standard “rotisserie” style. However, instead of adding the accrued statistics and ranking each column as you would in a standard rotisserie league, each individual category is counted as a win, loss or tie. In a league using 10 categories, teams will rack up some combination of 10 wins, losses and ties per week. The head-to-head style of play lends itself perfectly to stocking a pitching staff with multiple relievers. Grabbing an elite reliever, such as Craig Kimbrel or Kenley Jansen, instead of a fourth or fifth starter may allow an owner in a head-to-head league to eke out wins in multiple categories.
In traditional rotisserie leagues, the production of some relievers may not be enough. They may log solid ERA, WHIP or strikeout totals, but their total number of innings pitched may not weight heavily in the overall statistics. Nevertheless, this is a very useful strategy in H2H, giving you the opportunity to obtain wins in saves, ERA, and WHIP with middle and late round players.
For the first time, and some research, this was my key strategy in my drafts this season. Trying to grab a couple of elite relievers between rounds 4 to 8. I drafted Robert Osuna with the pick 56 and Aroldis Chapman with the 65. And in late rounds Andrew Miller (161), Chad Green (224) and Chris Devenski (272).
The participants in order of draft position were:
- Blake Sullivan (RotoBaller & @champsanalysis)
- Shelly Verougstraete (Prospects1500.com)
- Pierre Camus (RotoBaller)
- Àngel Lluís Carrillo (Pitcheos Salvajes)
- Big Joel
- Zach
- Keaton O.DeRocher (The Dynasty Guru)
- TonyRP (Razzball)
- Josh Spaunhorst (Stealing Signs Podcast)
- Joe Mitchell (ITL Army)
- Patrick J. Wisniewski (Fighting Chance Fantasy Sports)
- Howtathor
Your favorite pick you made:
- Blake Sullivan: Tommy Pham (pick 49)
- Shelly Verougstraete: Michael Wacha (pick 239) and A.J. Minter (pick 290)
- Pierre Camus: Nomar Mazara (pick 147)
- Àngel Lluís Carrillo: Anthony Rizzo (pick 21)
- Zach: Ozzie Albies (pick 115) and Steven Souza Jr. (pick 150)
- Keaton O.DeRocher: Robbie Ray (pick 55)
- TonyRP: Jean Segura (pick 89) and Jonathan Villar (pick 185)
- Josh Spaunhorst: James Paxton (pick 88)
- Joe Mitchell: Eduardo Nuñez (pick 154)
- Howtathor: Ronald Acuña (pick 108)
Find out who went where in this 12-team, head-to-head categories below.
Round 1
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Mike Trout | 1 | 1 | Sullivan |
| José Altuve | 2 | 2 | Verougstraete |
| Nolan Arenado | 3 | 3 | Camus |
| Trea Turner | 4 | 4 | Carrillo |
| Giancarlo Stanton | 5 | 5 | Big Joel |
| Paul Goldschmidt | 6 | 6 | Zach |
| Clayton Kershaw | 7 | 7 | DeRocher |
| Bryce Harper | 8 | 8 | TonyRP |
| Charlie Blackmon | 9 | 9 | Spaunhorst |
| Mookie Betts | 10 | 10 | Mitchell |
| Max Scherzer | 11 | 11 | Wisniewski |
| Kris Bryant | 12 | 12 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Max Scherzer
High risk/High reward: Bryce Harper
Safe pick: Mike Trout
Round 2
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Freddie Freeman | 1 | 13 | Howtathor |
| Chris Sale |
2 | 14 | Wisniewski |
| Carlos Correa |
3 | 15 | Mitchell |
| J.D.Martinez | 4 | 16 | Spaunhorst |
| Corey Kluber |
5 | 17 | TonyRP |
| Manny Machado | 6 | 18 | DeRocher |
| Francisco Lindor | 7 | 19 | Zach |
| Joey Votto | 8 | 20 | Big Joel |
| Anthony Rizzo | 9 | 21 | Carrillo |
| José Ramírez | 10 | 22 | Camus |
| Aaron Judge | 11 | 23 | Verougstraete |
| Stephen Strasburg | 12 | 24 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Manny Machado
High risk/High reward: Aaron Judge
Safe pick: Joey Votto
Round 3
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Noah Syndergaard | 1 | 25 | Sullivan |
| Gary Sánchez |
2 | 26 | Verougstraete |
| Kenley Jansen |
3 | 27 | Camus |
| George Springer |
4 | 28 | Carrillo |
| Cody Bellinger |
5 | 29 | Big Joel |
| Josh Donaldson | 6 | 30 | Zach |
| José Abreu | 7 | 31 | DeRocher |
| Dee Gordon | 8 | 32 | TonyRP |
| Brian Dozier | 9 | 33 | Spaunhorst |
| Madison Bumgarner | 10 | 34 | Mitchell |
| Alex Bregman | 11 | 35 | Wisniewski |
| Marcell Ozuna | 12 | 36 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Josh Donaldson
High risk/High reward: Noah Syndergaard
Safe pick: Gary Sanchez
Round 4
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Starling Marte | 1 | 37 | Howtathor |
| Edwin Encarnación |
2 | 38 | Wisniewski |
| Andrew Benintendi |
3 | 39 | Mitchell |
| Rhys Hoskins |
4 | 40 | Spaunhorst |
| Christian Yelich |
5 | 41 | TonyRP |
| Justin Verlander | 6 | 42 | DeRocher |
| Luis Severino | 7 | 43 | Zach |
| Jacob deGrom | 8 | 44 | Big Joel |
| Corey Seger | 9 | 45 | Carrillo |
| Craig Kimbrel | 10 | 46 | Camus |
| Carlos Carrasco | 11 | 47 | Verougstraete |
| Daniel Murphy | 12 | 48 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Rhys Hoskins
High risk/High reward: Daniel Murphy
Safe pick: Craig Kimbrel
Round 5
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Tommy Pham | 1 | 49 | Sullivan |
| Anthony Rendon |
2 | 50 | Verougstraete |
| Justin Upton |
3 | 51 | Camus |
| Nelson Cruz |
4 | 52 | Carrillo |
| Yu Darvish |
5 | 53 | Big Joel |
| Chris Archer | 6 | 54 | Zach |
| Robbie Ray | 7 | 55 | DeRocher |
| Roberto Osuna | 8 | 56 | TonyRP |
| Justin Turner | 9 | 57 | Spaunhorst |
| Carlos Martinez | 10 | 58 | Mitchell |
| Byron Buxton | 11 | 59 | Wisniewski |
| Jonathan Schoop | 12 | 60 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Anthony Rendon
High risk/High reward: Roberto Osuna
Safe pick: Nelson Cruz
Round 6
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Aaron Nola | 1 | 61 | Howtathor |
| Robinson Canó |
2 | 62 | Wisniewski |
| Billy Hamilton |
3 | 63 | Mitchell |
| Willson Contreras |
4 | 64 | Spaunhorst |
| Aroldis Chapman |
5 | 65 | TonyRP |
| Khris Davis | 6 | 66 | DeRocher |
| Will Myers | 7 | 67 | Zach |
| Andrew McCutchen | 8 | 68 | Big Joel |
| Zach Greinke | 9 | 69 | Carrillo |
| Kyle Hendricks | 10 | 70 | Camus |
| Xander Bogaerts | 11 | 71 | Verougstraete |
| Corey Knebel | 12 | 72 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Khris Davis
High risk/High reward: Xander Bogaerts
Safe pick: Andrew McCutchen
Round 7
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Buster Posey | 1 | 73 | Sullivan |
| José Quintana | 2 | 74 | Verougstraete |
| Elvis Andrus |
3 | 75 | Camus |
| A.J.Pollock |
4 | 76 | Carrillo |
| Miguel Cabrera |
5 | 77 | Big Joel |
| Adam Jones | 6 | 78 | Zach |
| Dallas Keuchel | 7 | 79 | DeRocher |
| Yoenis Céspedes | 8 | 80 | TonyRP |
| Domingo Santana | 9 | 81 | Spaunhorst |
| Eric Hosmer | 10 | 82 | Mitchell |
| Rafael Devers | 11 | 83 | Wisniewski |
| Lance McCullers Jr. | 12 | 84 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Eric Hosmer
High risk/High reward: Miguel Cabrera
Safe pick: Buster Posey
Round 8
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Felipe Rivero | 1 | 85 | Howtathor |
| José Berríos |
2 | 86 | Wisniewski |
| Gerrit Cole |
3 | 87 | Mitchell |
| James Paxton |
4 | 88 | Spaunhorst |
| Jean Segura |
5 | 89 | TonyRP |
| DJ LeMahieu | 6 | 90 | DeRocher |
| Cody Allen | 7 | 91 | Zach |
| Jake Arrieta | 8 | 92 | Big Joel |
| Lorenzo Cain | 9 | 93 | Carrillo |
| Miguel Sanó | 10 | 94 | Camus |
| Yasiel Puig | 11 | 95 | Verougstraete |
| Travis Shaw | 12 | 96 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Jean Segura
High risk/High reward: Yasiel Puig
Safe pick: James Paxton
Round 9
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Raisel Iglesias | 1 | 97 | Sullivan |
| Brad Hand |
2 | 98 | Verougstraete |
| Masahiro Tanaka |
3 | 99 | Camus |
| Ryan Braun |
4 | 100 | Carrillo |
| Sean Doolittle |
5 | 101 | Big Joel |
| Shohei Ohtani (P) | 6 | 102 | Zach |
| Adrián Béltre | 7 | 103 | DeRocher |
| Matt Olson | 8 | 104 | TonyRP |
| Trevor Story | 9 | 105 | Spaunhorst |
| Mike Moustakas | 10 | 106 | Mitchell |
| Joey Gallo | 11 | 107 | Wisniewski |
| Ronald Acuña Jr. | 12 | 108 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Joey Gallo
High risk/High reward: Trevor Story
Safe pick: Adrián Béltre
Round 10
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Ken Giles | 1 | 109 | Howtathor |
| Edwin Díaz |
2 | 110 | Wisniewski |
| Whit Merrifield |
3 | 111 | Mitchell |
| Alex Wood |
4 | 112 | Spaunhorst |
| Luis Castillo |
5 | 113 | TonyRP |
| Justin Smoak | 6 | 114 | DeRocher |
| Ozzie Albies | 7 | 115 | Zach |
| Didi Gregorius | 8 | 116 | Big Joel |
| Kyle Seager | 9 | 117 | Carrillo |
| Rougned Odor | 10 | 118 | Camus |
| Carlos Santana | 11 | 119 | Verougstraete |
| Marwin González | 12 | 120 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Whit Merrifield
High risk/High reward: Ozzie Albies
Safe pick: Rougned Odor
Round 11
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Luke Weaver | 1 | 121 | Sullivan |
| Manuel Margot |
2 | 122 | Verougstraete |
| Zack Godley |
3 | 123 | Camus |
| David Price |
4 | 124 | Carrillo |
| Johnny Cueto |
5 | 125 | Big Joel |
| Yoán Moncada | 6 | 126 | Zach |
| Jon Lester | 7 | 127 | DeRocher |
| Rich Hill | 8 | 128 | TonyRP |
| Ender Inciarte | 9 | 129 | Spaunhorst |
| Javier Báez | 10 | 130 | Mitchell |
| Greg Bird | 11 | 131 | Wisniewski |
| Chris Taylor | 12 | 132 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Jon Lester
High risk/High reward: Greg Bird
Safe pick: Javier Báez
Round 12
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Trevor Bauer | 1 | 133 | Howtathor |
| Eddie Rosario |
2 | 134 | Wisniewski |
| Gregory Polanco |
3 | 135 | Mitchell |
| Nicholas Castellanos |
4 | 136 | Spaunhorst |
| Kyle Schwarber |
5 | 137 | TonyRP |
| Wade Davis | 6 | 138 | DeRocher |
| Brandon Morrow | 7 | 139 | Zach |
| Alex Colomé | 8 | 140 | Big Joel |
| Ian Desmond | 9 | 141 | Carrillo |
| Ryan Zimmerman | 10 | 142 | Camus |
| James Taillon | 11 | 143 | Verougstraete |
| Avisaíl García | 12 | 144 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Eddie Rosario
High risk/High reward: Kyle Schwarber
Safe pick: Alex Colomé
Round 13
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Paul DeJong | 1 | 145 | Sullivan |
| Ian Happ |
2 | 146 | Verougstraete |
| Nomar Mazara |
3 | 147 | Camus |
| Jake Lamb |
4 | 148 | Carrillo |
| Matt Carpenter |
5 | 149 | Big Joel |
| Steven Souza Jr. | 6 | 150 | Zach |
| Brett Gardner | 7 | 151 | DeRocher |
| Wilson Ramos | 8 | 152 | TonyRP |
| Marcus Stroman | 9 | 153 | Spaunhorst |
| Eduardo Núñez | 10 | 154 | Mitchell |
| J.T.Realmuto | 11 | 155 | Wisniewski |
| Trey Mancini | 12 | 156 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Nomar Mazara
High risk/High reward: Matt Carpenter
Safe pick: Ian Happ
Round 14
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Sonny Gray | 1 | 157 | Howtathor |
| Salvador Perez |
2 | 158 | Wisniewski |
| Adam Duvall |
3 | 159 | Mitchell |
| Jon Gray |
4 | 160 | Spaunhorst |
| Andrew Miller |
5 | 161 | TonyRP |
| Danny Duffy | 6 | 162 | DeRocher |
| Arodys Vizcaíno | 7 | 163 | Zach |
| Jeurys Familia | 8 | 164 | Big Joel |
| Adam Eaton | 9 | 165 | Carrillo |
| Bradley Zimmer | 10 | 166 | Camus |
| Jeff Samardzija | 11 | 167 | Verougstraete |
| Yadier Molina | 12 | 168 | Sullivan |
Best round pick: Andrew Miller
High risk/High reward: Bradley Zimmer
Safe pick: Adam Duvall
Round 15
| Player | Pick | Over. | Drafter |
| Héctor Neris | 1 | 169 | Sullivan |
| Blake Treinen | 2 | 170 | Verougstraete |
| Michael Fulmer | 3 | 171 | Camus |
| Sean Manaea | 4 | 172 | Carrillo |
| Evan Gattis | 5 | 173 | Big Joel |
| Evan Longoria | 6 | 174 | Zach |
| Ian Kinsler | 7 | 175 | DeRocher |
| Chris Davis | 8 | 176 | TonyRP |
| Garret Richards | 9 | 177 | Spaunhorst |
| Aaron Sanchez | 10 | 178 | Mitchell |
| Jay Bruce | 11 | 179 | Wisniewski |
| Wellington Castillo | 12 | 180 | Howtathor |
Best round pick: Blake Treinen
High risk/High reward: Aaron Sanchez
Safe pick: Chris Davis
Rest of teams:
Sullivan: Michael Brantley, Josh Reddick, Julio Teheran, Mark Trumbo, Scooter Gennett, Tanner Roark, Starling Castro, Alex Reyes, Josh Harrison, David Robertson, Randall Grichuk, Asdrúbal Cabrera, Manny Piña, Mike Montgomery
Verougstraete: Delino DeShields, Mark Melancon, Eugenio Suárez, Mike Clevinger, Michael Wacha, Marcus Semien, José Martinez, Christian Vázquez, Logan Morrison, A.J. Minter, Victor Robles, A.J.Puk, Cameron Maybin, Emilio Pagán
Camus: Taijuan Walker, Chase Anderson, Mike Zunino, Carlos González, Mitch Haniger, David Dahl, Tyler Chatwood, Austin Hedges, Jimmy Nelson, Tim Beckham, Nate Jones, Carlos Gómez, A.J.Ramos, Adalberto Mondesi
Carrillo: Gio González, Danny Salazar, Drew Pomeranz, Dylan Bundy, Alex Cobb, Greg Holland, Chris Iannetta, Matt Wieters, Andrelton Simmons, Yuli Gurriel, Jorge Polanco, Kendrys Morales, Shohei Ohtani (B), Ben Zobrist
Big Joel: Jason Kipnis, Jonathan Lucroy, Todd Frazier, Cole Hamels, Hanley Ramirez, Scott Schebler, Matt Kemp, Stephen Piscotty, Félix Hernández, Zach Britton, Yonder Alonso, Josh Hader, Brad Ziegler, Michael Kopech
Zach: Blake Snell, Archie Bradley, Eric Thames, Lucas Giolito, Jackie Bradley Jr., Yasmani Grandal, Travis d’Arnaud, Shin-soo Choo, Michael A.Taylor, Max Kepler, Mallex Smith, Joakim Soria, Ketel Marte, Carlos Rodón
DeRocher: Odúbel Herrera, Kelvin Herrera, Dexter Fowler, David Peralta, Brian McCann, Zack Cozart, Blake Parker, Russell Martin, Brandon Belt, Willie Calhoun, Ervin Santana, Tyler Glasnow, Dustin Pedroia
TonyRP: Jonathan Villar, Robinson Chirinos, Michael Conforto, Chad Green, Matt Chapman, J.A.Happ, Albert Pujols, Chris Devenski, Miles Mikolas, Jesse Winker, Trevor Cahill, Keone Kela, Jeimer Candelario, Miguel Andújar
Spaunhorst: Kenta Maeda, Charlie Morton, Orlando Arcia, Cam Bedrosian, Aaron Hicks, Maikel Franco, Kyle Barraclough, Dominic Leone, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Eduardo Rodriguez, James McCann, Addison Reed, Luis Perdomo, Sean Newcomb
Mitchell: Patrick Corbin, Justin Bour, Dinelson Lamet, Rick Porcello, Jake Odorizzi, Shane Greene, Lance Lynn, Nick Williams, Lucas Duda, Neil Walker, Reynaldo López, Lewis Brinson, Tyler Flowers, Jorge Alfaro
Wisniewski: Kevin Kiermaier, Addison Russell, Brad Barch, Jake Faria, César Hernández, Dellin Betances, José Peraza, Ryan McMahon, Brad Peacock, Jedd Gyorko, Jakob Junis, Tommy Kahnle, Chris Owings, Amed Rosario
Howtathor: Josh Bell, Kevin Gausman, Tim Anderson, Fernando Rodney, Jordan Montgomery, Austin Barnes, Corey Dickerson, Luke Gregerson, Aaron Altherr, Álex Cláudio, Hunter Renfroe, Jorge Soler, Ryon Healy, Luiz Gohara
You can follow Tony on Twitter.
