Mound Musings: My 2017 “Home” League Mound Corps

Readers often ask about my own pitching staffs in the various fantasy leagues in which I compete. So, having just completed this year's auction in my primary or "home" league, I thought I'd take this opportunity to discuss the pitching staff with which I will go to war. I will add that I typically focus very heavily on a few arms, so many of these guys pitch on several of my teams.

A little background:

This league has been in existence for a long time. This will be my 27th season, and most of the league's owners have been members for 20-plus years. It started in my hometown, and owners have gradually dispersed all over North America, but we all come back for draft day. These guys are savvy, experienced, and they're pretty familiar with the tendencies of the other owners. It's a challenging group, but that makes it fun!

With 15 teams, it's a mixed league keeper with deep rosters (33 players per team with no minor league or disabled list slots). Standard scoring categories, five hitting and five pitching, with a lineup consisting of 12 hitters and nine pitchers (with a minimum of five qualified starting pitchers and two qualified relief pitchers). One thing that makes roster management more challenging – picking up a free agent requires a "move" usually from a player being sent down or put on the disabled list. You can then release that player and pick up someone on the waiver wire (order is determined by reverse order of the current standings). Since you probably won't want to cut a key player who goes on the DL for a short time, you really need versatility and some productivity on your bench.

So, let's look at my pitching staff and discuss the who and why:

• SP1a Noah Syndergaard ($14 extended) – If it weren't for some guy named Kershaw, the 24-year-old Thor might be the favorite to win the Cy Young in the National League (more on Cy Young awards later). He has the hardest fastball of any starting pitcher, and he complements it with quality secondary stuff – all hard despite good variation in speeds. In a keeper league, when you buy at a strong discount early in a pitcher's career, you have to invest when the contract needs to be extended, but three more years of this horse at $14 has to be a bargain.

• SP1b Yu Darvish ($12 extended) – I promised more on our buddy Cy Young, and here it is. Readers will recall I predicted Darvish would claim the honor in the American League this season, and that sets me up with a powerful 1-2 punch in my rotation. I should note that I own both Syndergaard and Darvish in every league I play in so my fortunes are closely tied to their arms. Darvish has so many pitches he can throw in any given outing that his catcher has to be very concerned with not having enough fingers. My hope is to find 500-plus strikeouts from my top two rotation guys. His contract runs for three years as well.

• SP3 Marcus Stroman ($10) – Stroman is another protected pitcher returning for a final season on my staff (I can't extend them all). I love tenacity and Stroman has it in abundance. He tore his ACL early in 2015, theoretically ending his season, but he was back on the mound before the leaves turned. He was still shaking off rust early in 2016, but he put things together in the second half and began reminding everyone why he turned heads when he first arrived. His command is improving, he's finding a lot of success with his cutter, and I could see him taking the next very big step forward this season. Already an extreme groundball pitcher, a better strikeout rate could make him a monster.

• SP4 Kevin Gausman ($10 extended) – As President of the Gausman Fan Club, I will admit I'm probably more bullish on his future than most analysts. He has been slower to develop than I anticipated, but I do think some of that can be attributed to what I consider questionable handling by the Orioles. Up, down, starting, relieving, and never really getting into a rhythm is tough. He has an electric fastball that keeps hitters honest, and his breaking ball is becoming more consistent. He uses his splitter as his out pitch – a pseudo-change-up – and that's leading to an improved strikeout rate. He just needs to trust his stuff a bit more with less nibbling to keep his pitch counts under control.

• SP5 Jameson Taillon ($1) – Taillon is earmarked to keep the starting pitching pipeline full. After Syndergaard, he was next on my list of "must own" kid arms, but it really required patience. He was selected second overall in the 2010 draft (between Bryce Harper and Manny Machado) out of high school, and he made modest progress before Tommy John surgery and a hernia entirely wiped out his 2014 and 2015 seasons. He came back strong last year – note that his command was amazing considering he hadn't pitched for two years – and if the injury bug is behind him, his future is bright. Here's a measuring stick. I like Gerrit Cole and Tyler Glasnow quite a bit, but I rank Taillon ahead of both, albeit just slightly over Cole.

• SP6 Garrett Richards ($9) – Successful seasons in fantasy baseball usually result when you roll the dice and make your point. Richards is my hope for a windfall, but he offers a lot of risk. If he pitches like he did in 2014 and early 2015, he's an SP2. However, a torn UCL could stand in the way. He opted to forego Tommy John surgery, and the rehab has gone well so far. His fastball velocity is back in the upper 90s, and his command is coming along, but in all honesty, this elbow treatment protocol is yet to be proven over the long haul. Realistically, even if healthy, he won't be an SP2 because the Angels surely won't overwork him. He will be on a pitch count and innings limit, but he could still be a huge boost if he takes the mound and pitches effectively every five days.

• FLEX – this could be a SP7 or RP3 – Charlie Morton ($7), Patrick Corbin ($2), Brandon Finnegan ($1), Daniel Hudson ($2), Frankie Montas ($1) or Koda Glover ($1). – This is generally my option slot. I fill it based on need and opportunity. Here you find three starting pitchers with considerable upside, like Corbin who looked much better than his first stat line, and Morton who has found a fountain of velocity. They could be employed in two-start weeks or when a favorable matchup presents itself, at least until they show consistency. On the other hand, if there are points to be had in the saves category, and one of the relievers finds himself in a closing gig, he could be the choice. Flexibility (and possibly trade bait) is very helpful over the course of a full season.

• RP1 Kenley Jansen ($25) – This is where I found myself having to overspend a bit. Many solid closers were protected and I went into the draft with no firm saves on my roster. I decided to go to the wall on either Jansen or Zach Britton and I ended up with Jansen at a slightly inflated price (Britton went a little later for $2 more). As it turned out, even speculative saves were going for higher prices as owners scrambled to fill out their bullpens. I'm glad I have Jansen. One closer won't compete in the category, but he should provide a good base.

• RP2 Neftali Feliz ($10) – I have never been a huge Feliz fan, but after backing out of the bidding on several marginal closers (and closer wannabes) I felt I had to find someone with the job coming out of the gate. His price tag might have actually been a bargain if he can keep the job, and he has shown signs of coming back to the form that won him the chance to close a few years ago. Thankfully his name came up when many owners in the room were counting their pennies to see if they could afford to spend more on those elusive saves.
  

• I watched the Darvish vs. Corey Kluber matchup hoping for an old-fashioned pitcher's duel, but both aces struggled with command. That's not uncommon early in the season so nothing to fret about yet, but Kluber was also dealing with blisters, which could have affected his performance.

• Haves and Have Nots? An example: Clayton Kershaw will make $33 million this season. He faced the San Diego Padres on Opening Day. The Padres combined 25-man roster will make $34.5 million in 2017. It may be appropriate as Kershaw could approach the Padres in total wins this season.

• Justin Verlander is the ultimate pro. Here's one way you can tell. Two pitchers allow a walk, a long out to the warning track and a sharp single putting runners on first and third. With the first pitcher you're nervous that bad things are about to happen, with the second, no worries. Verlander is the second guy.

• Last year, Milwaukee's Junior Guerra received a lot of hype when he got off to a good start. I was highly skeptical then and I remain skeptical now. It should be noted that Guerra went undrafted in my 15-team home league. He's expected to miss four to six weeks with a calf strain, but I'll stay away when he returns.

• An early season "wow" goes to the Astros' Lance McCullers. I watched some of his first start to get a feel for where he was after missing much of 2016. He looked very sharp – good, lively fastball, keeping the ball down (12 groundouts) and, maybe best of all, the Mariners had no answer for his breaking ball.

• Adam Wainwright was another I wanted to see. He struggled last year as he evolves from a great raw stuff ace to a pitcher who has to rely more on savvy – something he has in abundance. He's still adjusting, but it is coming. I was most encouraged by his willingness to throw breaking balls in any situation.
  

In an early surprise, the Blue Jays placed Roberto Osuna on the disabled list before the season began. He has been dealing with neck soreness all spring and apparently the team felt he would be best off getting it cleared up. It sounds like he could return soon, but Jason Grilli is the most likely fill-in despite already taking an extra innings loss. True to their word, the Phillies used Jeanmar Gomez to close on Opening Day. He notched a save, but also allowed a two-run homer to Scooter Gennett. The clock is ticking for all you Hector Neris owners. The Angels aren't naming Cam Bedrosian their closer even though he looks like the obvious choice. This likely means they're leaving the door open for Huston Street when he comes back from the lat injury that landed him on the disabled list. Long term Bedrosian is still probably the guy to own. The A's may actually be looking at a committee approach. Santiago Casilla got the first chance (and he converted it) after following Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle to the mound. Then they tried Ryan Dull. I'm still leaning toward Doolittle over the long haul. The Rockies will understandably be cautious with his workload, but Greg Holland has looked sharp.