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Paul Sporer Rotographs Chat

Paul Sporer

1:04

One day away!!! I'm so amped for baseball to be back!

Catcher Conundrum

1:04

End-gamed my catcher. Landed Wong. Replace with Ruiz, Baldwin, or Goodman?

Paul Sporer

1:05

They're all of a particular group. I miiight lean Goodman in hopes that the Jones trade opens more time for him in the OF and he can get more non-catching catcher reps, but I don't overwhelmingly lean toward any of the 4

Matt

1:05

How are you thinking about Cam Smith? Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I left my auction with a ton of money and a shakey OF (Seiya, Trout, Bleday/Friedl). Should I be using my leverage and going high on him, or do you think that he's not a strong enough bet to be a productive OF'er?

Paul Sporer

1:07

I'm intrigued but not bending over backwards to get him. Looks like a mixed lg since you have AL/NL OFs so I think it's prudent to expect decent numbers but nothing overwhelming. Maybe he's this year's iteration of Jackson Merrill and takes the league by storm, but I'd stop short of going high on him. I see some solid pop being in HOU with a modest AVG and R/RBI totals since he'll be in the bottom half of the lineup

Jonny

1:07

Ended my draft with Vladdy, Tatis, Acuna. Any other Juniors I should target?

You buying into Leiter hype this year? Have Grant Holmes and Luzardo at the end of my rotation and thinking of making the move for Leiter because I just dream on upside

Paul Sporer

1:08

Bo Bichette isn't a junior, but there's a lot of hype for him to rebound! I think I prefer Holmes & Luzardo over Leiter. All 3 have tangible upside, but I think Leiter's floor is the lowest (well, outside of injury which can obv sink anyone)

Brad

1:12

Verlander 5x5 roto, viable?

Paul Sporer

1:12

Yeah at least worth seeing where he's at while healthy

1:12

SP flyer to put on bench. Max Meyer, Jack Leiter or Casey Mize? Also just wondering thoughts on Mize in general haven’t heard a lot of talk about him but his preseason Ks have me wondering

Paul Sporer

1:17

At the risk of being a homer, Mize is my guy here! Last chance saloon w/the former #1 overall pick so if we don't see a real step forward this year, I'm done buying the spring hype. But ya, a refined arsenal has netted a legit K% boost paired w/the recent success of DET's pitching development team has me excited. Meyer and Leiter have some juice in their own right, but Mize is my fave of the trio

comish4lif

1:17

Opening Day is tomorrow, whoo hoo!

Do you have any good resources to share for NL Only, Auction fantasy players?

So much content seems to be for 12 team mixed snake drafters...

Paul Sporer

1:18

What are you looking for specifically? Our rankings all cast a wide net to be viable for all league types. You can also put your settings into the Auction Calculator to get custom rankings: https://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy-tools/auction-calculator

Joe14

1:18

Drop Luke Jackson for Brieske for Saves ? 12T Mixed Roto

Paul Sporer

1:20

You can, but they're probably pretty similar. Foley's demotion doesn't clear the path for Brieske to be the A-guy. Hinch is still gonna run matchups consistently, though Brieske might just get the larger share.

Hype Machine

1:20

Which super-hyped young arm do you like best: Jobe, Rocker, Leiter?

Paul Sporer

1:21

OK, maybe I am just a homer bc I'm also picking the Tiger here! Jobe might not have the strikeouts of Rocker, but he's a more complete pitcher right now and I'm really excited to see what he can do in the bigs this year. Again, both Rangers have legit upside of their own, I just see Jobe's being higher right now

Dude

1:21

What exactly is the plan for Maikel Garcia in KC? 3B/2B/CF...starting to sound like he's a super utility guy now? Possible mascot situation?

Paul Sporer

1:23

I'm a sucker for super-utils, so I'd have no problem w/them running Garcia that way. Let's get him OF elig. and then we're running 3 positions plus both CI & MI. I still see a ton of upside in his AVG, too. So a .280 AVG/40+ SBs this year wouldn't shock me

Idiotic Failson

1:23

I have an irrational fantasy crush on Chandler Simpson. Does he make it to the show this year?

Paul Sporer

1:25

He's a VERY fun player type so I totally get the crush. Barring just a collapse of his hitting at Triple-A, he will certainly debut this year. The key will be if can consistently get on base without any real pop. He's been able to take walks in the minors and if he can keep that up in the majors, the SBs will be floooowing!!

Bud

1:25

Hey Paul, is Josh Lowe going to be close to a full-time player this year? Thank you!

Paul Sporer

1:27

Ya I don't think there is an obvious platoon for him. I think Aranda is the first lefty out vL and Mead will likely get those PAs, leaving Caballero as the only other righty and I'm not sure getting him in for Lowe or Lowe (Josh or Brandon) improves the team in any way v. just letting them face a lefty

Ryan Johnson

1:30

Do you ever get the feeling that the Angels FO doesn’t understand the concept of sample sizes?

Paul Sporer

1:30

I'm nearly certain of it, lol

Jim Leyland Palmer

1:30

Does Verlander have any juice for you in a shallower format like 10 teamer?

Paul Sporer

1:31

Probablyyyy just a team streamer right now, which is like an upgraded streamer but I don't cut 'em when I'm not using 'em like a standard streamer. If he gets going and looks like JV of 2023, he's viable in all formats at a consistent starter

Maddie

1:31

Henry Davis a good fit for Boston if they try to get him a change of scenery? Didn't keep Jansen and Wong is not elite.

Paul Sporer

1:32

Classic change of scenery might be exactly what he needs at this point and I'd never turn down a righty going to Boston where he can just mash 2Bs off the Monster. I still keep a tinge of hope alive for Davis, but it's waning

Philosophy

1:32

What are the pro's and con's of a scrubs-and-stars draft vs a balanced draft of less typoes?

Paul Sporer

1:35

Downside of stars/scrubs is if your scrubs are too scrubby, the stars can't outweigh them. Also, if a star or two falls short of their high end, then you're having trouble keeping up unless a scrub or two counters them with a surprise breakout.

Guest

1:35

Brett Baty or Ben Rice to have a bigger long term impact in 2025 ?

Paul Sporer

1:39

Ooohh really challenging me here. Big fan of both. Watching Baty in high school so he's been on my radar forever and Rice looks dialed in right now w/a shot to just mash taters in Yankee Stadium. I do think Rice's bat has the higher fantasy impact right now so I lean toward him. If I can waffle a bit, I will be clear that I love both. But the definitive pick is Rice

Grrr

1:39

Who the heck is closing for your Tigers with Foley getting demoted? Are you drafting anyone for saves in that pen?

Paul Sporer

1:40

I'd draft Brieske but as I mentioned earlier, Foley's demotion won't change the mix-and-match nature of Hinch. Kahnle/Holton will likely both get SV opps, too

All The Z's

1:40

Zach Dezenzo breaking camp in HOU was interesting. Is this just Christian Walker insurance (this isn’t that guy’s first oblique injury) or will he play? Seems like an interesting bat.

Paul Sporer

1:41

I think it's Walker insurance and just 1B/3B coverage in general since Cam Smith is going to the OF. It'll be sporadic PT for Dezenzo as Walker/Paredes/Alvarez have 1B/3B/DH on lock right now

Jud

1:42

Paul! My two friends in my home league (12 team/mixed/H2H, perpetual dynasty) just made the following swap:

SP Ryan Pepiot and OF Jordan Walker for 3B Cam Smith and SP Nick Lodolo.

I thought the Walker/Pep side was a clean win at first ... but now I think the other side is more fun!

Thoughts??

Paul Sporer

1:43

Very fun trade and I can easily make the case for both sides which is always nice bc you don't have to hear anyone crying veto. I'm still on the Walker train for another year so pairing him w/Pep is really solid. I want to love Lodolo, but find myself being very timid with any pitchers in Cincy, especially when you add in Lodolo's injury history. Smith is super exciting breaking camp w/the club and carries major upside. Ya, just a totally solid deal on both sides!

1:43

Is it rue that you're going to be the guest on the BaseballHQ Radio podcast on Friday?

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