My faith is weak. Please reassure me.

[King Wank]

I have the 4 pick in the draft and I can practically guarantee I get Votto in any draft and I'm really juiced about that. Now, we've inserted Braun back into the mix rather highly, which means I'm practically guaranteed to get him. (My bro and I have been guarding the secret of Razzball for a couple of seasons now.)

My worry with Braun is that he just lost his protection in Fielder and, if (and I'm not accusing him of anything so chillax there Brewers honks) he actually was on the juice, he might suffer from a little Low T and be less productive. Thirdly, the pressure of the accusation can ruin a man. Is Braun one that might catch funkititus because of the ruination of his good name?

Grey? Rudy? Bueller? Help me feel better about the pick.

[Disco]

I'm not Grey or Rudy but I'd go with Votto. I know everyone is so caught up in the excitement of ol' Bug Eyes beating the drug test, but those are way too many questions for me to invest the fourth overall (much less the first overall) pick in. Grey's not the only one who shot Braun up to #1 either, but that just seems reckless to me given the circumstances.

[AdmiralTrey]

Braun lost Fielder, but he gained Aramis Ramirez... Still a downgrade, but not much of one. Aramis has been very consistently solid since 2003, with one freak year where his BA was low. And even if Braun gets walked a ton, that just means more stolen bases.

As for the testosterone thing, I think Braun has a mission to shut people up now. He *might* be under more pressure, but he's never cracked under pressure before and he's never had a bad season before. I doubt he slows down at age 28.

[thorbs]

My pick? Braun.

BUT...If you're high on Votto, go with Joey V and don't look back...I've got to feel rock-solid about my first four or five picks or I'm constantly second-guessing myself

[Spud Johnson]

Both are going to be more than solid, but you look at position depth as the tie breaker. Is Braun head and shoulders above the next left fielder, or outfielder? Votto could lead all first basemen, but he is also one in a pack of 4 or 5 guys that could put up the same number.

[Disco]

But if you draft Braun that high, you won't be getting one of the top 5 1B when it comes back around.

[ChrisV82]

Dis be what de Grey man written out:

That’s right, I draft the deeper position earlier. Same reason I punt catchers and try to get a 1st baseman early. If a position is deep, a lot of your leaguemates are going to have one of the top guys. You don’t want to be one of the 3 or 4 teams without a top guy.

[RandomItalicizdVoice]

But if you draft Braun that high, you won't be getting one of the top 5 1B when it comes back around.

Not necessarily true. Fielder's ADP is around 14.

[King Wank]

Thanks for all the feedback. I have appreciated it. I think my bro and I are leaning Votto. My bro has a nose like Anatoli from Chronicles of Riddick and it's telling him Braun smells like trouble.

Given that we probably won't see a pitcher drafted in the first 2 rounds of our draft, the chances of a primo 1B coming back our way is small.

I'm hopeful we take Votto (or another 1B if they drop) and then get some combo of OF or SS/2B in subsequent rounds. That's happened in 5-7 of the most recent mocks I've done. But we'll see.

[The Miracles]

As for the testosterone thing, I think Braun has a mission to shut people up now. He *might* be under more pressure, but he's never cracked under pressure before and he's never had a bad season before. I doubt he slows down at age 28.

I agree with this, but don't buy stock that is going to lose you sleep. Braun has a double tough job this year. He's coming off an MVP season PLUS he has naysayers around him. Just trying to repeat the numbers from last year is hard enough without the added pressure from MLB and fans. I think Votto will let you sleep better at night, and if Braun puts up crazy big numbers you still will have comparable stats from Votto and you won't be kicking yourself for not taking the risk.