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Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft: 10-Team NL-Only Rotisserie League

Caylor Arnold / USA TODAY Sports

Here are the results of theScore's 10-team NL-only rotisserie mock draft, using standard 5x5 categories (AVG, R, HR, RBI, SB, W, K, SV, ERA, WHIP); eligibility minimum 10 games played in 2015 for all non-pitchers (NOTE: draft took place prior to Ian Desmond signing with Texas):

Participants

Esten McLaren - Fantasy Sports Editor
Dan Toman - Supervising Editor, MLB
Kenneth Conrad - Fantasy Sports Editor
Andrew Potter - Fantasy Sports Editor
Josh Ghatak - Fantasy Sports Editor
Jason Wilson - Fantasy Sports Editor
David Chernish - Fantasy Sports Editor
Gino Bottero - Integrated Content Editor
James Bisson - Managing Editor, Fantasy Sports
Josh Wegman - Fantasy Sports Editor

Round 1

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
1 McLaren 1B Paul Goldschmidt ARI
2 Toman OF Bryce Harper WAS
3 Conrad SP Clayton Kershaw LAD
4 Potter OF Giancarlo Stanton MIA
5 Ghatak 3B Nolan Arenado COL
6 Wilson OF Andrew McCutchen PIT
7 Chernish SP Max Scherzer WAS
8 Bottero OF A.J. Pollock ARI
9 Bisson 1B Anthony Rizzo CHC
10 Wegman 3B Kris Bryant CHC

McLaren on Goldschmidt: When choosing between Goldschmidt and Harper, it came down to the safety that comes with Goldschmidt. The assured 30-plus home runs, 100 RBIs, 100 runs and 15-plus stolen bases with an average over .300 negates the 40-home run potential of Harper. It's not even guaranteed we've seen the best from Goldschmidt just yet.

Round 2

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
11 Wegman 2B Dee Gordon MIA
12 Bisson OF Charlie Blackmon COL
13 Bottero OF Starling Marte PIT
14 Chernish 1B Joey Votto CIN
15 Wilson SP Jake Arrieta CHC
16 Ghatak SP Madison Bumgarner SF
17 Potter C Buster Posey SF
18 Conrad OF Ryan Braun MIL
19 Toman SP Jose Fernandez MIA
20 McLaren SS Corey Seager LAD

Conrad on Braun: Braun is somewhat of a risk due to his advancing age and lingering injury concerns, but with 20 home runs and 20 steals in 2015, he's a middle-class man's Goldschmidt. Along with a solid slash line, there's really no weakness in his game aside from the potential for injury. Braun offers support in all categories as my first hitter selection.

Round 3

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
21 McLaren OF Carlos Gonzalez COL
22 Toman 2B/3B Anthony Rendon WAS
23 Conrad SP Zack Greinke ARI
24 Potter SP Jacob deGrom NYM
25 Ghatak OF Yoenis Cespedes NYM
26 Wilson SP Stephen Strasburg WAS
27 Chernish C Kyle Schwarber CHC
28 Bottero 1B Adrian Gonzalez LAD
29 Bisson SP Matt Harvey NYM
30 Wegman SP Gerrit Cole PIT

Toman on Rendon: Infielders who can hit and run are a scarce bunch, particularly in NL-only leagues. Rendon went 21/17 in 2014, but he was slowed by injuries in 2015, souring expectations of some fantasy owners who pegged him as high as a late first-rounder in mixed leagues coming off the previous season. His high ceiling and multi-position eligibility made this worth the risk.

Round 4

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
31 Wegman OF Yasiel Puig LAD
32 Bisson 2B/3B Matt Carpenter STL
33 Bottero OF Matt Kemp SD
34 Chernish SP Johnny Cueto SF
35 Wilson OF Jason Heyward CHC
36 Ghatak SP Noah Syndergaard NYM
37 Potter SP Jon Lester CHC
38 Conrad OF Gregory Polanco PIT
39 Toman OF Christian Yelich MIA
40 McLaren SP Adam Wainwright STL

Wegman on Puig: I simply couldn't pass up the last chance at snagging an elite OF. Expect Puig to return to his 2014 form when he hit .296/.382/.480 with 62 of his 165 hits going for extra bases. At just 25, his upside and pure raw talent outweigh the risks of injury or character issues. Puig might be the happiest person in Los Angeles to see manager Don Mattingly leave.

Round 5

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
41 McLaren SP Tyson Ross SD
42 Toman 1B Freddie Freeman ATL
43 Conrad 3B Maikel Franco PHI
44 Potter RP Kenley Jansen LAD
45 Ghatak OF Hunter Pence SF
46 Wilson SP Francisco Liriano PIT
47 Chernish OF Curtis Granderson NYM
48 Bottero 2B Kolten Wong STL
49 Bisson SP Michael Wacha STL
50 Wegman SP Carlos Martinez STL

Chernish on Granderson: I drafted Granderson slightly ahead of his ADP because I wanted an outfielder that does everything. He's fresh off a 26-HR, 70-RBI season at 35 years old and he's more than capable of scoring over 90 runs, having done so six times in his 12-year career. He's a safe pick as early as the fifth round in all NL-Only formats.

Round 6

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
51 Wegman SS Jung Ho Kang PIT
52 Bisson OF Billy Hamilton CIN
53 Bottero RP Mark Melancon PIT
54 Chernish OF Jay Bruce CIN
55 Wilson OF Joc Pederson LAD
56 Ghatak RP Jeurys Familia NYM
57 Potter SP Raisel Iglesias CIN
58 Conrad 2B/SS Addison Russell CHC
59 Toman SP Jeff Samardzija SF
60 McLaren OF Jorge Soler CHC

Wilson on Pederson: Pederson brings big power potential, as he showed in his dynamite first half in 2014. His second-half evaporation is concerning, but he's still a developing player. If he plays to his potential for even half the season, it will be worth the spot because I'll likely get elite home run and RBI production. His poor batting average shouldn't hurt me too much.

Round 7

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
61 McLaren 2B DJ LeMahieu COL
62 Toman OF David Peralta ARI
63 Conrad 1B Brandon Belt SF
64 Potter OF Gerardo Parra COL
65 Ghatak OF Ben Revere WAS
66 Wilson C Jonathan Lucroy MIL
67 Chernish SP Shelby Miller ARI
68 Bottero 1B Lucas Duda NYM
69 Bisson 2B/OF Ben Zobrist CHC
70 Wegman SP Scott Kazmir LAD

Potter on Parra: Parra was essentially a 15-HR, 15-SB player in a season split between the Brewers and Orioles. He's under 30 and has played 150-plus games in three-straight seasons, so health isn't a factor. He'll play half his games at Coors Field and the Rockies stole the 8th-most bases in 2015. To get a potential 20-20 hitter in round seven is excellent value.

Round 8

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
71 Wegman OF Randal Grichuk STL
72 Bisson C Travis d'Arnaud NYM
73 Bottero SP Julio Teheran ATL
74 Chernish 2B Neil Walker NYM
75 Wilson 2B/3B Matt Duffy SF
76 Ghatak SS Brandon Crawford SF
77 Potter 1B/2B/3B Daniel Murphy WAS
78 Conrad 2B/3B/OF Josh Harrison PIT
79 Toman OF Matt Holliday STL
80 McLaren 1B/3B Justin Turner LAD

Bottero on Teheran: His win total is going to take a hit on a bad Braves team, but Teheran is a prime bounce-back candidate following a 2015 campaign which saw him start slow before getting things together after the All-Star break. Teheran has a little bit of Pedro Martinez in him. He can lead a fantasy staff if he's able to cash-in on his vast potential in his age-25 season.

Round 9

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
81 McLaren 3B/OF Yasmany Tomas ARI
82 Toman SP John Lackey CHC
83 Conrad SP Stephen Matz NYM
84 Potter RP Trevor Rosenthal STL
85 Ghatak 1B/OF Wil Myers SD
86 Wilson 1B/OF Stephen Piscotty STL
87 Chernish SS Jose Reyes COL
88 Bottero C Devin Mesoraco CIN
89 Bisson SP James Shields SD
90 Wegman RP Hector Rondon CHC

Ghatak on Myers: The limited pool of first basemen was evident come Round 9 so Myers was an option with nice potential at this juncture. Health is obviously an issue, as he's played only 145 games over the past two seasons. If all goes well, Myers could post 20 homers and provide 60-plus RBIs and runs, while also swiping 10 bases and hitting for a .250 average.

Round 10

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
91 Wegman SP Patrick Corbin ARI
92 Bisson SP Gio Gonzalez WAS
93 Bottero SS Jhonny Peralta STL
94 Chernish 3B David Wright NYM
95 Wilson SP Kyle Hendricks CHC
96 Ghatak SP Wei-Yin Chen MIA
97 Potter SS Jean Segura ARI
98 Conrad PF Michael Conforto NYM
99 Toman SP Andrew Cashner SD
100 McLaren SP Jaime Garcia STL

Bisson on Gonzalez: I'm not overly concerned by Gonzalez's elevated WHIP from last season; his FIP remained solid, and he'll be in position to win 15-plus games behind a solid Nationals lineup. Gio isn't without his question marks, but at this point in the draft, I'm looking for consistent pitching options. While his upside is capped, his floor is high.

Round 11

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
101 McLaren SP Kenta Maeda LAD
102 Toman SS Ian Desmond --
103 Conrad RP A.J. Ramos MIA
104 Potter 1B Ryan Zimmerman WAS
105 Ghatak RP Brad Ziegler ARI
106 Wilson 2B Brandon Phillips CIN
107 Chernish RP Jonathan Papelbon WAS
108 Bottero SP Hyun-Jin Ryu LAD
109 Bisson RP Santiago Casilla SF
110 Wegman C Yasmani Grandal LAD

Bottero on Ryu: Ryu's two-year sample size in the MLB has produced results more than adequate for a middle of the rotation fantasy starter. He's compiled a 3.17 ERA while striking out 7.7 batters per nine innings and finishing in the teens in wins each season. While he's still on the road back from shoulder surgery, 25 or so starts and 150-plus innings would be a good return at a discounted cost.

Round 12

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
111 Wegman SP Mike Leake STL
112 Bisson OF Dexter Fowler CHC
113 Bottero 3B/OF Alex Guerrero LAD
114 Chernish OF Denard Span SF
115 Wilson SS Eugenio Suarez CIN
116 Ghatak SP Jason Hammel CHC
117 Potter 2B Joe Panik SF
118 Conrad C Derek Norris SD
119 Toman 3B Hector Olivera ATL
120 McLaren SP Joe Ross WAS

Toman on Olivera: Olivera only played 24 games during his 2015 debut - hitting two homers and posting a .715 OPS. There's still optimism inside the Braves organization that the 30-year-old Cuban can be the "imposing" figure 1B Freddie Freeman once described. Olivera's value gets a further boost by retaining third-base eligibility, while picking up outfielder status.

Round 13

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
121 McLaren SP Aaron Nola PHI
122 Toman RP Will Smith MIL
123 Conrad OF Marcell Ozuna MIA
124 Potter SP Tanner Roark WAS
125 Ghatak 2B Howie Kendrick LAD
126 Wilson 1B Matt Adams STL
127 Chernish SS Alexei Ramirez SD
128 Bottero RP Jake McGee COL
129 Bisson OF Domingo Santana MIL
130 Wegman 1B/OF Ben Paulsen COL

Wilson on Adams: Adams is set to platoon at first base with Brandon Moss. The injury risk is real, but so is Adams' ability to demolish right-handed pitching. I drafted him as depth, but my lineup is fairly balanced so it would be easy to shuffle the deck to accommodate him if he plays up to his mashing potential. If he falters, he can ride the pine behind Stephen Piscotty.

Round 14

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
131 Wegman SP Vince Velasquez PHI
132 Bisson RP J.J. Hoover CIN
133 Bottero OF Jayson Werth WAS
134 Chernish SP Alex Wood LAD
135 Wilson SP Jimmy Nelson MIL
136 Ghatak SP Anthony DeSclafani CIN
137 Potter SP Lucas Giolito WAS
138 Conrad SP Taylor Jungmann MIN
139 Toman RP Jeremy Jeffress MIL
140 McLaren SS/2B Trea Turner WAS

Potter on Giolito: Other SPs at this level have concerns about health or statistical regression, while Giolito is an ace in the making. He's set to start the season in the minors but with the Nats pushing for a pennant, any injury to the rotation would mean a promotion for baseball's No. 5 prospect. That's a big if, but his upside is greater than any other player on the board at this point.

Round 15

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
141 McLaren 1B Justin Bour MIA
142 Toman 2B/SS/3B Javier Baez CHC
143 Conrad 1B Chris Carter MIL
144 Potter OF Ender Inciarte ATL
145 Ghatak SP/RP Brandon Finnegan CIN
146 Wilson SP Brett Anderson LAD
147 Chernish 3B Yangervis Solarte SD
148 Bottero 2B/SS/3B Cesar Hernandez PHI
149 Bisson SS Asdrubal Cabrera NYM
150 Wegman OF Nick Markakis ATL

Conrad on Carter: Carter admittedly won't help at all in terms of batting average, but he fits the bill as a late-round power threat. He hit between 24 and 37 home runs each of the past three seasons in Houston, and now gets to play half his games at Miller Park, which can be considered a more favorable stadium for power hitters, according to ESPN's 2015 Park Factors.

Round 16

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
151 Wegman SP Zack Wheeler NYM
152 Bisson 1B Ryan Howard PHI
153 Bottero SP Jerad Eickhoff PHI
154 Chernish OF Andre Ethier LAD
155 Wilson OF Aaron Altherr PHI
156 Ghatak OF Odubel Herrera PHI
157 Potter SP Robbie Ray ARI
158 Conrad RP Arodys Vizcaino ATL
159 Toman SS Erick Aybar ATL
160 McLaren SP Tyler Glasnow PIT

Bisson on Howard: Nobody feels good about drafting Howard at this point in his career - but with the player pool running desperately-low on players with 25-HR potential, he was worth the pick. He's no longer capable of working the count, and his OBP will probably never see .300 again - but he's still a decent matchup-based option who could wind up with 80+ RBIs.

Round 17

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
161 McLaren SP Archie Bradley ARI
162 Toman SP Matt Garza MIL
163 Conrad RP David Hernandez PHI
164 Potter 2B/3B Martin Prado MIA
165 Ghatak 1B/OF Brandon Moss STL
166 Wilson 3B Jake Lamb ARI
167 Chernish 2B Jace Peterson ATL
168 Bottero RP Fernando Rodney SD
169 Bisson RP Tyler Clippard ARI
170 Wegman SS Trevor Story COL

Wegman on Story: Jose Reyes is likely to face a suspension from MLB, opening the door for Story to start at shortstop. A highly touted prospect playing in Colorado's hitters utopia usually leads to good things. If he gets off to a strong start, the job could be his for good. It can't hurt taking a sleeper Rookie of the Year candidate in the 17th round of an NL-Only draft.

Round 18

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
171 Wegman OF Scott Schebler CIN
172 Bisson SP Chris Heston SF
173 Bottero SP Jake Peavy SF
174 Chernish SP Jonathon Niese PIT
175 Wilson SS/3B Jonathan Villar MIL
176 Ghatak C J.T. Realmuto MIA
177 Potter RP Kevin Siegrist STL
178 Conrad 2B Cory Spangenberg SD
179 Toman SP Bartolo Colon NYM
180 McLaren C Welington Castillo ARi

Chernish on Niese: Once the majority of pitchers came off the board, I drafted Niese in the late rounds of the NL-Only draft as a player to fill out my pitching staff. He won't win any categories with a below average WHIP and ERA but with pending UFA status, a bounce-back year could be in the cards. He's worth the risk.

Round 19

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
181 McLaren OF/1B Derek Dietrich MIA
182 Toman RP Sergio Romo SF
183 Conrad SP Jeremy Hellickson PHI
184 Potter OF Melvin Upton Jr. SD
185 Ghatak RP Jason Grilli ATL
186 Wilson SP Jon Gray COL
187 Chernish SP Adam Conley MIA
188 Bottero C Miguel Montero CHC
189 Bisson 2B/3B Danny Espinosa WAS
190 Wegman RP Tony Watson PIT

Ghatak on Grilli: With Jeurys Familia and Brad Ziegler as my two relievers, I wanted a third option in case one fails me. Grilli shouldn't be doubted as a legitimate option. He had a strong 2015 season with 24 saves and a 12.03 K/9 ratio. The main concerns here are Atlanta's poor offense and Grilli's return from an Achilles injury. Grilli's track record makes him worth the risk as a depth add.

Round 20

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
191 Wegman RP Kevin Quackenbush SD
192 Bisson 2B/SS Jedd Gyorko STL
193 Bottero 2B/SS Chris Owings ARI
194 Chernish RP Brandon Maurer SD
195 Wilson SP John Lamb CIN
196 Ghatak SP Rubby De La Rosa ARI
197 Potter RP Hunter Strickland SF
198 Conrad SS/2B Alen Hanson PIT
199 Toman SS Zack Cozart CIN
200 McLaren 2B/SS Jose Peraza CIN

McLaren on Peraza: Peraza isn't guaranteed playing time in 2016, but few members of the Reds' offense are. He comes with the ability to play both middle infield positions, potentially sliding into the hybrid spot in fantasy lineups. He's twice stolen 60-plus bases in a calendar year across three minor league levels, compensating for a distinct lack of power.

Round 21

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
201 McLaren OF Adam Duvall CIN
202 Toman SS Wilmer Flores NYM
203 Conrad OF/1B Darin Ruf PHI
204 Potter SP Homer Bailey CIN
205 Ghatak 2B/SS/OF Kike Hernandez LAD
206 Wilson 3B/OF Adonis Garcia ATL
207 Chernish OF Gregor Blanco SF
208 Bottero SP Matt Cain SF
209 Bisson SP Drew Pomeranz SD
210 Wegman SP Jeff Locke PIT

Round 22

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
211 Wegman SP Jorge De La Rosa COL
212 Bisson 1B/3B Mark Reynolds COL
213 Bottero SP Wily Peralta MIL
214 Chernish SP Tom Koehler MIA
215 Wilson SP Matt Wisler ATL
216 Ghatak SP Chad Bettis COL
217 Potter SP Mike Foltynewicz ATL
218 Conrad SP Mike Bolsinger LAD
219 Toman SP Ruben Tejada NYM
220 McLaren SP Colin Rea SD

Round 23

PICK NAME PLAYER TEAM
221 McLaren SP Julio Urias LAD
222 Toman OF Carl Crawford LAD
223 Conrad SS Orlando Arcia MIL
224 Potter SP Jameson Taillon PIT
225 Ghatak 3B/OF Cody Asche PHI
226 Wilson SS J.P. Crawford PHI
227 Chernish SP Jarred Cosart MIA
228 Bottero SP Justin Nicolino MIA
229 Bisson SP/RP Tyler Lyons STL
230 Wegman DH John Jaso PIT

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