Points Leagues: We Are Back Baby

What is up party people? It is once again that beautiful time of year… Draft Season! It’s an exciting time and every team has a chance to win it all. If you’re new to points leagues, welcome, we’ll start with some general tips and tricks. If you’ve read my posts before this will generally be a refresher.

The best piece of advice I can give is to know your specific league’s scoring settings. That is more relevant with the recent scoring changes a certain platform (cough ESPN cough) has made ahead of this season. Under their new standard scoring format pitcher value will be way different than in the past. Wins, Saves, and Loses will no longer impact your teams quite as much. This shifts the balance of power even more in favor of the top bats. If your league penalizes for Ks that changes things as well. The long and the short of it is to understand how points are scored and who gains a boost or a downgrade in your format.

Prioritize power and on-base percentage over speed. Steals are cool and all, especially with the new larger bases but they don’t quite pay the bills in points leagues. Home runs are king, everyone digs the long ball, but doubles are pretty awesome too. Batting average is a tricky one because even the best hitters can slump but guys who can reliably get on base are key to rounding out your roster. They may not be the “sexy” option but boring can still win the day.

Max out your weekly starting pitcher total as often as possible. Aces can put up some big points in a start but two starts from a so-called mid level guy can equal or even surpass that. Unless your league has some crazy rules racking up innings is the most surefire way to stack points on points. Look at your league’s limit for starts in a week and make sure you hit it. In some cases, you can even go over your weekly allotment if you pass it on Sunday. Will your league hate it if you keep doing that? Probably, you gotta do what you gotta do to win. Keep a spot or two of your pitching staff dedicated to streaming. And for help in choosing who to pick up I direct you to the best tool in the biz Streamonator. All hail our new robot overlords.

I’m sure you’re all reading this and asking yourselves where’s the juicy part. General tips are cool and all but that’s just small potatoes and you’re here for the meat. Fear not, because I have prepared a full meal. Here are some guys I like

Shohei Ohtani should be number one pick. Yes, what a shock (that’s sarcasm) but in leagues where he is one player who can pitch or hit, there’s no reason to take anyone else at the top.

Juan Soto is the best pure hitter in fantasy and maybe in real life. This shouldn’t come as a shock but he does everything you want for a points league hitter. Strong average, strong OBP, bombs, runs, RBIs, and enough speed to crank some doubles.

Julio Rodriguez takes one of the bigger tumbles. He’s an electrifying player and could go number one in roto leagues but unfortunately, it doesn’t quite translate. I like him in the second round but highly doubt he’ll still be on the board.

Matt Olson should be a second-round pick. Hard to call him a value pick this early in the draft, especially when he’s a 3rd round Roto pick but I like what he brings to the table.

Bobby Witt Jr suffers in this format like Julio. I’ve seen him going as high as the late first round in roto and while he could be everything we hoped and dreamed for if you take him here you’re buying the hype. I don’t want that to sound like I hate him, I think he’s a great player. However, I would let someone else pay up for him in a point league.

Brandon Nimmo looks like a sleeper. He’s going later in drafts but for points leagues, he’s a stud. Nimmo will give you solid numbers across the board making him one of those less flashy guys (ie. boring) who you’ll want on your squad. As of this moment, he’s going after pick 90 with an ADP around 150. In points leagues, he’s well worth taking in the 80s. The pick range, not the decade, I don’t think he was born in the 80s. Either way, I have a sneaking suspicion he’ll be someone you want.

Ty France was a top prospect with a pristine batting average. After a down season last year, I like him to rebound.

Nico Hoerner is slated to start at second base this season. That would give him eligibility at both middle infield spots, nice for leagues with short benches. More importantly, his points projections look really nice. I’d say he falls into that slightly boring but good for fantasy category.

Alejandro Kirk is my top points league catcher.  In addition, he should actually be a pretty good points league hitter. Around pick 100 (his current ADP) there’s value to be had.

As always, work that wire and follow me, Butters, on Twitter or drop your questions below.