2026 Fantasy Baseball Salary Cap Draft: Full draft plan, results and analysis

On Sunday, March 8th I entered my first official salary cap draft of the 2025 fantasy baseball season – a $150 Online Auction Championship at the NFBC.

For those that are not familiar, it’s a 15-team format that utilizes 23 roster spots – 14 hitters (2 Catchers, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, Corner Infield, Middle Infield, 5 OF and Utility) and 9 pitchers. Each team is given $260 to spend during the salary cap draft and the entire 23-man starting roster must be filled out during the salary cap draft. There is then a seven-round reserve draft afterwards. In addition to competing for league prizes in this 15-team league, there is also an overall component in which this team will be competing against all other leagues for overall prizes as well.

Over the years in this space and in our draft guide I have already delved deeply into basic strategy for salary cap drafts, but for this article I wanted to give readers a deeper insight into my personal process for these types of drafts. In fact, I’m writing up this first section the day before the draft.

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Let me start out by saying that I’m not the type of drafter who has dollar values for every particular player that will be available in the draft and who goes into the draft simply looking for discounts and to accumulate as much “value” as I possibly can. I’m someone who believes strongly in getting my guys, and I’m willing to go down fighting with the players that I think are the best options on the board. Entering this draft, or any draft for that matter, I usually start with about 25% of the player pool crossed off my board and around another 25% that I’d only really be interested in at a steep discount.

Now historically, I skew slightly more towards pitching, usually devoting around 59% of my budget on the hitting side ($140) and 41% ($120) on the pitching side. That strategy hasn’t worked out well for me in recent years though and I wanted to try to mix things up in this one. For me personally, I’m usually better at identifying and finding viable pitching options in the middle and late rounds than I am finding impact hitters – especially power bats. So I asked myself, what if I devoted an unreasonable amount of my budget towards offense and absolutely dominated the power categories while competing in speed and batting average as well – and then just tried to make the pitching work?

The idea intrigued me. If you’re going to build a team that’s going to absolutely dominate in power, you’re going to want to have a few of the sluggers that are projected to lead the league in home runs. Your Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh types. So what if we went out and tried to get all three? Remember, this is a salary cap draft, not a standard snake draft. The whole player pool is available to you. You can try any wacky strategy that you want. So I dove in a bit deeper. Looking at average auction values over the past few weeks, I looked at the maximum bids that each of those players had gone for – and budgeted those into my pre-draft plan. For Ohtani, that was $53 ($48 AAV), for Judge it was $53 ($48 AAV) and for Raleigh it was $32 ($29 AAV). Assuming we would need to go to the max to get them, that would be $138 of our $260 on just three players, but it would be three players who would provide an unimaginable base in power while also delivering a smattering of speed, terrific counting stats and a strong batting average.

From there, I started to plan out what other players I would want to add to that strong offensive base. It’s no secret that Brice Turang has been a target of mine in every draft that I have done this year. Second base is an incredibly weak position overall and I think he’s going to have a monster five-category season. His contributions in batting average and stolen bases in particular would gel really well with that top three. His max mid over that same time frame was $24 (AAV $21), so let’s pencil that in.

Do you know who else would deliver five-category production with a major emphasis on batting average and stolen bases while filling another infield position? Trea Turner. His maximum bid during that stretch was $29 (AAV $26), so we’ll add that to the draft plan as well.

If we could get those five bats at those maximum bids, that would take us to $191 and leave us with just $69 to fill out the remaining nine spots on offense and our nine pitching spots. That’s not ideal, but we can also assume that we won’t need to get all five of those at their maximum bids. If we can get them closer to their combined AAV of $171, that would give us an extra $20 to play with and make the experiment much more intriguing.

Staying with the hypothetical for now though. There’s one other player on offense that’s kind of a must-have for me right now and that’s Kazuma Okamoto. I think he’s extremely undervalued in both standard snake and salary cap drafts. He also fills a shallow position that doesn’t have may other options that I like. He has gone for a max of $12, which likely prices him out for me unless I’m able to get him closer to his AAV of $7. We’ll budget $7 for now and adjust from there.

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Here’s what the plan looks like so far:

$32

Cal Raleigh

$24

Brice Turang

Kazuma Okamoto

$29

Trea Turner

$53

Aaron Judge

UTIL

$53

Shohei Ohtani

$206

Budgeting $1 for every available spot around those six, we’re looking at devoting $206 of our $260 on offense, leaving just $54 on the pitching side, keeping in mind we’re hoping to gain back somewhere in the range of $15 based on discounts that we can secure those hitters for off of their maximum bids.

If we only have $54 to start with on the pitching side though, some sacrifices are obviously going to have to be made. The easy one is closers. We’re not going to be able to compete for the top options there and are going to have to go the speculative route. Trying to get two guys for $1-$3 each is probably the best case scenario there and then we’ll have to attack the category through FAAB throughout the season. It’s not the way that I like to build my teams normally, but we don’t really have an option if going with this extreme build on offense.

I would also still like an ace on my staff. It’s crazy to try to shop in the Tarik Skubal or Paul Skenes range, as the rest of the staff would be woefully underfunded if trying to do that. I’m a huge believer in Yoshinobu Yamamoto though and I still feel like he’s being discounted relative to the top of the pitching market. His maximum bid during this stretch has been $29 with an AAV of $26. I’d love to try to get him at or near that AAV, and may even extend to that max depending on whether or not we have landed any discounts before then. Let’s work with that $26 number though and go from there.

If we’re just going to have one ace at the top of the staff, we’re going to need at least two additional quality arms that we think can outperform industry projections and expectations and help to solidify this group. We can’t miss on these guys, because the rest of the staff behind them is going to be basically $1 arms. There are two names specifically that I’m very high on this year that I think fit in here perfectly. Drew Rasmussen and Trevor Rogers. Rasmussen has an AAV of $12 with a max of $15. Rogers has an AAV of $9 with a max of $15. We’re not going to be able to go to $15 for both of them, but could probably make it work if we can get them close to their AAV. We’re going to budget with that and adjust as necessary if we’re able to secure discounts on offense.

If the prices in the pitching market soar and we’re unable to get Rasmussen and/or Rogers, we’re going to have to fall back to other options in the same price range that we like but are not quite as high on. For me that’s Kevin Gausman, Michael King, MacKenzie Gore, Shota Imanaga, Tatsuya Imai and Robbie Ray. If I wind up with two from that group it’s fine, I just won’t like the staff as a whole as much as I would if getting Rasmussen or Rogers – or ideally both. We’re also going to budget $1 for Justin Verlander, as he’s a top target of mine and should be easy to secure at that price, as long as I wait for the right time. If someone clicks him to $2 and I need to go $3, that would be a disaster.

Adding in the AAV’s that we’re trying to get Rasmussen and Rogers at, we’re going to have to put the budget for the speculative closers at $1 to make it work – at least initially. We can add back there as well when/if we get any discounts. So here’s what the draft plan looks like heading into the draft:

$32

Cal Raleigh

$24

Brice Turang

Kazuma Okamoto

$29

Trea Turner

$53

Aaron Judge

UTIL

$53

Shohei Ohtani

$206

$26

Yoshinobu Yamamoto

$12

Drew Rasmussen

Trevor Rogers

Justin Verlander

Speculative Closer

$54

$260

Honestly, I’m very intrigued by the possibilities here. I genuinely feel like the bones of this team would be good enough to make it competitive overall with strong in-season FAAB work. Of course, this plan could fall apart very quickly, especially if we’re unable to get any of the arms that we’re looking for at the prices that we’re hoping to see – or if we get a lot of pushback on offense and have to go to the previous max or beyond to land those core five bats. Let’s see how it unfolds!

It actually took me a little bit of time to get into the action, as most of the first round of nominations were lesser players and didn’t factor into my draft plan at all. It wasn’t until near the end of the first round that Aaron Judge came up for nomination. I knew that he was an integral part of this plan and that I needed to get him at all costs – hoping to not go beyond the $53 that I had in the budget for him. Needless to say, I was thrilled when I clicked the bidding to $48 and heard crickets from the rest of the room. Starting off with a $5 discount gave me the confidence to think that this plan could actually work. I didn’t re-distribute that $5 initially but knew that I had it in my pocket.

A couple of picks later, Shohei Ohtani was nominated. We went into it the same way that we did for Judge, willing to go to $53 but hopeful that we would be able to get him for less. Imagine our shock and dismay when we only needed to go to $47 to get the job done. Two superstar hitters secured at a total of $11 less than we had budgeted. We were off and running.

Shortly after that, our expected ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto was nominated. We weren’t as confident about this one. The Dodgers’ right-hander had gone as high as $29 in recent salary cap drafts but we were hoping to keep it around his AAV of $27 instead. If we had to go to $28 or $29 – or even $30 – we would probably do so based on the savings that we got from Judge and Ohtani, but we’d really like to use those savings elsewhere if possible.

This wound up being the biggest surprise of the draft for me as once the bidding got to $24, everyone simply backed off. Perhaps they were waiting and saving their pitching budgets to fight for Skubal and Skenes. Either way, I couldn’t believe the way that the start of this draft had unfolded in my favor. Not only did I get my desired ace, but I did so at a significant discount.

The next player that was integral for the plan that came up for nomination was Cal Raleigh. Similar to our plan for Judge and Ohtani, we were prepared to go to the previous maximum ($32) to get him but hoping to land closer to his AAV. With that in mind, we were more than happy to secure his services for only $28. Operation crush the baseball was now in full effect.

The next name up that we were concerned with was Trea Turner. The plan had us getting him for $29, so anything around there would have been perfectly fine. Turner, like many players nominated in the first couple of rounds of this draft, got to his AAV that was listed on the site and the bidding stopped. He was ours for $26.

The final piece of the big five clicked into place on offense shortly after that when we nominated Brice Turang. Our budget was starting to dwindle and I wanted to have clarity on where to go at the second base position if I was unable to get Turang. I also had backup options at other positions – namely Freddie Freeman – that I was willing to pivot to if I couldn’t secure Turang. Either way, I needed to know so I didn’t let other contingency plans go by. We didn’t wind up with as steep of a discount on Turang, going $22 which was $1 above his AAV but still $2 below the $24 that we had targeted from his previous max.

Now came the waiting game. This part of the draft was absolutely brutal as we basically had to sit on our hands for the next hour and not compete on any players. We threw a couple of bids in here and there trying to get players at a discount, but we were basically sitting around and waiting for Drew Rasmussen and Trevor Rogers to come up without having to nominate them too early ourselves.

Finally, after nearly 100 players went off the board, Rasmussen was on the block. We knew from our draft plan that he had a previous max of $15 but were hoping to get him closer to his AAV of $12. So there was some frustration when we got to $14 and someone else clicked him up to $15. Not to worry though, as we were happy to tap into those earlier discounts that we secured to get the guy that we had targeted. Thankfully, $16 is all that it took. I don’t like the overpay, but in the end was thrilled to still get the player that I had targeted as my SP2.

The next player up for bid was Rogers. My initial assumption was that he was going to wind up going for a similar bid to Rasmussen after other managers in the league just missed out on the Rays’ right-hander. I was able to breathe a gigantic sigh of relief this time when the bidding stopped at $11. We had now secured each of the top five bats that we targeted and the three SP that we wanted to build this team around. Now all we had to do was fill out the rest with a limited budget.

The next name that we picked up much further down the road wound up being Justin Sterner. He’s someone that I had in mind going in as a potential closer option that could be had for $1 or $2. I didn’t nominate him, so I had to go to $2 but was overjoyed when the bidding stopped right there. At least had a shot at some cheap saves.

I made a play to try to get Robert Garcia, going as high as $6, but couldn’t bring myself to go to $8 and give up what little flexibility that I had in the draft at that point. The only other strong target that we had on offense was Kazuma Okamoto, with his AAV of $7 penciled into the draft plan. Once again we were able to secure an unexpected discount, getting him for just $5. That one got a fist pump.

At this point on offense we still needed to find a second catcher, first baseman, corner infielder, middle infielder and four outfielders. If you’re going to have a weakness somewhere on offense, those aren’t bad positions to need to fill in-season as options on the waiver wire are usually plentiful – especially if you’re streaming bats weekly.

I took a shot at some other bats. Adolis Garcia I went as high as $10 but couldn’t go to $12. Matt McLain I went up to $9 as a middle but couldn’t go to $11. Sal Stewart I went to $8 as a first base option before bowing out. Calen Durbin I also took the bidding to $8 before letting him go for $9.
I tried to get a few more options on the pitching side as well, going to $5 on both Tatsuya Imai and Carlos Rodon before painfully watching them land elsewhere as big discounts at $6.

It wasn’t pretty, but I picked up another speculative closer in Kirby Yates for $3. Not thrilled about it, but if he opens the season with the job it will be worth it. Otherwise, no harm, no foul. I filled my second catcher spot with a $2 Carson Kelly.

By this point, the talent pool was dwindling, and I actually had a decent amount of money remaining compared to the rest of the league. While there wasn’t a lot of talent left in the player pool, it meant that I could at least be competitive in securing what was there. I chose to do my shopping in the outfield, landing some discount power speed options in Ramon Laureano ($6), Jordan Beck ($6) and Mickey Moniak ($5). Not players that I necessarily targeted coming into the draft, but all were still on my board and I think can be solid and capable producers.

That didn’t leave much for the final four spots. We ended up settling on Kyle Manzardo ($2), Colt Keith ($1), Andres Gimenez ($2) and Jesus Sanchez ($1). On the pitching side, we added another speculative closer in Kevin Ginkel ($1), while adding to the rotation with Chad Patrick ($1), Connelly Early ($1) and as expected Justin Verlander ($1).

Here’s the full final team through the salary cap portion of the draft:

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Cal Raleigh

$28

$29

Carson Kelly

($1)

Kyle Manzardo

Brice Turang

$22

$21

($1)

Trea Turner

$26

Kazuma Okamoto

Colt Keith

Andres Gimenez

OF1

Aaron Judge

$48

OF2

Ramon Laureano

OF3

Jordan Beck

OF4

Mickey Moniak

($1)

OF5

Jesus Sanchez

UTIL

Shohei Ohtani

$47

$48

76.92%

$200

$206

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Yoshinobu Yamamoto

$24

$26

Drew Rasmussen

$16

$12

($4)

Trevor Rogers

$11

($2)

Chad Patrick

Connelly Early

Justin Verlander

Kirby Yates

($1)

Justin Sterner

($1)

Kevin Ginkel

23.08%

$60

$56

($4)

Overall, we actually ended up with $2 of profit against AAV while devoting nearly 77% ($200) of our budget toward the hitting side. As far as executing a plan goes, this one wound up going about as smoothly as you can imagine in a salary cap draft. We were able to get all six of our pre-draft targets to build the offense around and were successful in getting all four starting pitchers that we targeted as well. If this team ends up failing, it will be because I targeted the wrong players – which is ultimately how I would prefer to be judged.

There are obviously holes to fill on the edges of the offense and we’re going to need to bolster the backend of the starting rotation while chasing saves all year, but I firmly believe that this team has the bones to compete – not just for league prizes, but to be a contender in the overall competition if things break right for us.

In the supplemental draft portion, here’s what we added to the mix:
SP – Jameson Taillon
SP – Tyler Mahle
2B/3B – Luis Rengifo
SP – Clay Holmes
SP – Nick Martinez
OF – Isaac Collins
SP – Payton Tolle

Basically wanted to add as many quality options to the mix for the rotation to try to maximize starts early in the season and see what shakes out. I also like the addition of Rengifo for flexibility considering how weak we are going in at both the corner and middle spots.

Here’s a quick look around the rest of the league and how their builds turned out:

Team 1

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Kyle Teel

Edgar Quero

Sal Stewart

Ozzie Albies

Geraldo Perdomo

$16

$17

Matt Chapman

$11

($2)

Noelvi Marte

$11

Kevin McGonigle

OF1

Jackson Merrill

$20

OF2

Taylor Ward

$13

$11

($2)

OF3

Dylan Crews

$11

$10

($1)

OF4

Jac Caglianone

($1)

OF5

Colton Cowser

UTIL

Jorge Polanco

49.23%

$128

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Tarik Skubal

$41

Paul Skenes

$38

$39

Jesus Luzardo

$21

$20

($1)

Logan Henderson

($1)

Hunter Greene

$21

$19

Rhett Lowder

Brady Singer

Daniel Palencia

$18

$17

($1)

Robert Suarez

($1)

50.77%

$132

$150

$18

Team 1 went with nearly a 50/50 split between offense and pitching and started that $132 staff by taking the top two names on the board in Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes for a combined $79. Overall it looks like he did well against AAV, but that entire difference is coming from the pre-injury AAV on Hunter Greene. Remove that, and he’s actually -$1 in total. The pitching is going to have to carry the team, as the offense looks a bit light across the board – especially in the stolen base department.

Team 2

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Salvador Perez

$17

$16

($1)

Tyler Stephenson

Josh Bell

Marcus Semien

Xander Bogaerts

Josh Jung

Nolan Schanuel

Luisangel Acuna

OF1

Julio Rodriguez

$37

$38

OF2

Pete Crow-Armstrong

$24

$25

OF3

Randy Arozarena

$17

$18

OF4

Jakob Marsee

$11

$14

OF5

Adolis Garcia

$11

($4)

UTIL

Kyle Schwarber

$28

$27

($1)

62.31%

$162

$167

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

George Kirby

$23

$21

($2)

Logan Webb

$23

Framber Valdez

$20

$19

($1)

Jacob Misiorowski

Aaron Nola

($2)

Chris Bassitt

Reynaldo Lopez

Grant Holmes

Kenley Jansen

$13

37.69%

$98

$96

($2)

Overall, Team 2 finished with $3 in surplus value against AAV while going with a 62.31%/37.69% split between offense and pitching. That’s a much more standard split than what we saw from myself and Team 1. I really like the top three starting pitchers that he chose to build his staff around, though I would’ve preferred to see him get a second closer to pair with Jansen. The offense obviously is build around a terrific outfield, but man does that infield need work overall. I feel like a couple of those spots are going to be a problem for him throughout the season. I think this team is solid enough that it could compete for league prizes.

Team 3

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Shea Langeliers

$23

$22

($1)

Ben Rice

$22

$21

($1)

Nick Kurtz

$32

$28

($4)

Brandon Lowe

($3)

Konnor Griffin

$12

$10

($2)

Jordan Westburg

Ryan O’Hearn

($3)

Jacob Wilson

OF1

Brent Rooker

$28

$27

($1)

OF2

Cody Bellinger

$19

$18

($1)

OF3

Tyler Soderstrom

$19

$17

($2)

OF4

Jurickson Profar

OF5

Anthony Santander

UTIL

Zack Gelof

($1)

70.43%

$181

$169

($12)

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Kevin Gausman

$16

$13

($3)

Chase Burns

$15

$16

Sonny Gray

$12

$13

Jack Flaherty

Emilio Pagan

$15

Trevor Megill

Paul Sewald

($2)

Will Vest

Kyle Finnegan

29.57%

$76

$75

($1)

While my strategy in this draft was a bit extreme and unconventional, somehow this team usurped what I did to be the most interesting squad in the draft. At first I wasn’t sure what was going on with the offense. I didn’t know if he was just a super fan of the Athletics, or if he was trying to take advantage of them playing in Sutter Health Park once again in 2026 – as he built his offense around Nick Kurtz, Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Tyler Soderstrom, Jacob Wilson and Zack Gelof – taking most of them at a premium. I see that he then added three pirates (Konnor Griffin, Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn) and a pair of Yankees (Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger). He then filled out his offense with injured and/or suspended players in Jordan Westburg, Jurickson Profar and Anthony Santander. I don’t believe he timed out, so perhaps he just wasn’t prepared for the endgame? Either way, he wound up with -$12 against AAV on offense and will need his A’s stack to crush all season to have a shot there. On the pitching side, it’s confusing as well. Started out paying a premium for Kevin Gausman and then landed some solid arms and a pair of closers in Pagan and Megill (maybe). He then finished it with a $3 Paul Sewald and two setup arms from the Tigers in Will Vest and Kyle Finnegan. He also ended up leaving $3 on the table. Perhaps the plan all along was to speculate on saves late, but the rotation depth concerns me. I wouldn’t be surprised if this team winds up near the bottom of the standings.

Team 4

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

William Contreras

$22

$21

($1)

J.T. Realmuto

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

$32

Bryson Stott

$10

Gunnar Henderson

$34

$35

Alex Bregman

$12

Andrew Vaughn

Zach McKinstry

OF1

Wyatt Langford

$26

$24

($2)

OF2

Mike Trout

$10

($2)

OF3

Steven Kwan

OF4

Jake McCarthy

($1)

OF5

Dylan Beavers

UTIL

Jordan Walker

63.85%

$166

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Logan Gilbert

$26

Michael King

$14

$12

($2)

Cam Schlittler

$11

($2)

Kris Bubic

($1)

Andrew Painter

($2)

Mike Burrows

Ryan Weathers

Andres Munoz

$23

Taylor Rogers

($1)

36.15%

$94

$86

($8)

This looks like a pretty standard build overall with a 63.85%/36.15% split between offense and pitching. The offense looks solid from top to bottom, and while there are players that I don’t typically target mixed in, there’s a nice balance to it. He had to overpay a bit on the pitching side, giving up $8 against AAV to build his staff, which hurt the overall quality in my opinion. He’s really going to need Cam Schlittler and Kris Bubic to stay healthy and produce strong seasons if he’s going to be competitive. He’ll also need to find a second closer if Taylor Rogers doesn’t win the Twins’ job. A fine squad, at a glance I’d expect him to finish somewhere near the middle of the pack.

Team 5

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Austin Wells

Victor Caratini

Matt Olson

$22

Jose Altuve

$12

Ezequiel Tovar

Maikel Garcia

$22

Austin Riley

$20

Josh Smith

($2)

OF1

Ronald Acuna Jr.

$43

OF2

Jarren Duran

$21

$19

($2)

OF3

Brenton Doyle

$10

OF4

Kerry Carpenter

OF5

Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

UTIL

Marcell Ozuna

($3)

66.92%

$174

$170

($4)

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Max Fried

$23

Zack Wheeler

$11

$12

Edward Cabrera

$10

($2)

Ranger Suarez

($1)

Robbie Ray

Bryce Elder

Michael Wacha

Ryan Walker

$13

$12

($1)

Seranthony Dominguez

$10

($1)

33.08%

$86

$82

($4)

Team 5 came out at $8 below AAV in terms of their total team value at the end of the draft while using a traditional 67/33 split between offense and pitching. As a whole, I like the five bats that he chose to build the offense around, with a stack of three big Braves’ bats leading the way (Acuna Jr., Olson and Riley). I’m concerned that there’s just not enough around them though. I like Zack Wheeler as much as the next person, but counting on him to be an SP2 out of the gate might be a stretch. I like that he strengthened his SP3-SP5 though to be able to pick up the slack if Wheeler misses more time than expected or shows significant rust upon his return. This is another team that feels like middle of the pack to me.

Team 6

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Dillon Dingler

Carlos Narvaez

Jonathan Aranda

($1)

Jeff McNeil

Elly De La Cruz

$44

$37

($7)

Junior Caminero

$31

Caleb Durbin

($2)

Luis Garcia Jr.

OF1

Roman Anthony

$19

OF2

Lawrence Butler

OF3

Chandler Simpson

OF4

TJ Friedl

($1)

OF5

Brooks Baldwin

UTIL

Yordan Alvarez

$25

$23

($2)

62.31%

$162

$155

($7)

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Jacob deGrom

$23

Tyler Glasnow

$12

$10

($2)

Brandon Woodruff

$10

($1)

Shane McClanahan

Kodai Senga

($2)

Gerrit Cole

Shane Bieber

Edwin Diaz

$26

$25

($1)

Josh Hader

$13

$11

($2)

37.69%

$98

$90

($8)

Team 6 also had an interesting build for a couple of reasons, but I at least understand these ones. Overall he wound up with $15 in negative value when comparing his team against AAV. On the offensive side, most of that came from paying a premium (-$7) for Elly Da La Cruz. I’m a major proponent of getting your guys though, and it looks like he was willing to do whatever he had to in order to get Da La Cruz on his team. The rest of the offense may have suffered a bit because of it, but there’s a very nice balance of power and speed here. On the pitching side, he leaned into variance and is hoping that injury luck works out in his favor. If Josh Hader doesn’t miss substantial time, he probably has the best closer duo in the league. If Gerrit Cole or Shane Bieber return early in the season and look like their old selves, then it’s wheels up for this squad. He also needs Shane McClanahan and Brandon Woodruff to stay healthy, two things that are far from guarantees. If everything comes together though and he winds up on the right side of variance, this team could be dangerous.

Team 7

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Carter Jensen

($1)

Harry Ford

Josh Naylor

$18

$20

Jose Caballero

$10

($3)

Colson Montgomery

Jose Ramirez

$42

$41

($1)

Munetaka Murakami

Lenyn Sosa

OF1

Juan Soto

$41

$42

OF2

Corbin Carroll

$35

$34

($1)

OF3

Chase DeLauter

($2)

OF4

Nick Castellanos

OF5

Jake Mangum

UTIL

Luis Arraez

64.62%

$168

$170

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Bryan Woo

$25

$26

Nick Pivetta

$15

Trey Yesavage

($1)

Carlos Rodon

($1)

Max Meyer

($2)

Roki Sasaki

Zebby Matthews

Cade Smith

$20

$24

Carlos Estevez

$12

$13

35.38%

$92

$96

Just glancing at the totals against AAV, Team 7 seemingly did alright here, securing six dollars of surplus value. It’s a pretty traditional split of 64.6%/35.4% between hitting and pitching. I love that he locked up two closers and got Cade Smith at a silly discount, but the starting pitching here leaves a lot to be desired. Woo is great, but with his health I have a hard time trusting him as an ace. If I did though, I would’ve gone in heavier on a strong SP2-SP4 and this simply isn’t it. The offense is exciting with a stars and scrubs approach led by Juan Soto, Corbin Carroll and Jose Ramirez. It actually feels like there’s too much speed here. Jose Caballero seems like he’s unnecessary on this squad, I would’ve rather seen a balanced or a power bat in his place. To me it feels like a good team, not a great team, as I really think the pitching staff holds him back.

Team 8

Will Smith

$14

$15

Gabriel Moreno

Jake Burger

($2)

Xavier Edwards

($1)

Corey Seager

$13

$14

Willi Castro

($1)

Alec Bohm

Dansby Swanson

$13

OF1

Ceddanne Rafaela

$15

$14

($1)

OF2

Brandon Nimmo

$11

OF3

Daylen Lile

($1)

OF4

Heliot Ramos

OF5

Trent Grisham

($1)

UTIL

Christian Yelich

$11

48.85%

$127

$125

($2)

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Garrett Crochet

$39

$38

($1)

Cole Ragans

$23

Joe Musgrove

($1)

Will Warren

($6)

Bryce Miller

Mason Miller

$26

Pete Fairbanks

$15

$14

($1)

Robert Garcia

($2)

Riley O’Brien

($3)

51.15%

$133

$120

($13)

Team 8 has given us another unique build to look at, as he spent more on pitching (51.15%) than he did on hitting. He’s got a sick bullpen with Mason Miller and Pete Fairbanks leading the way then Robert Garcia and Riley O’Brien as speculative adds late. It’s probably overkill in saves, but kept them away from the rest of the league (myself included). Crochet and Ragans are an excellent 1-2 punch if Ragans can stay healthy. The offense is lacking a bit as you’d expect on a limited budget. It also seems like he had extra money left over at the end and chose to throw $7 at Will Warren instead of landing him for $1 and leaving $6 on the table.

Team 9

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Francisco Alvarez

$10

Logan O’Hoppe

($1)

Freddie Freeman

$19

Luke Keaschall

$11

$10

($1)

Mookie Betts

$17

$18

Eugenio Suarez

$14

Christian Walker

($2)

Jackson Holliday

OF1

Kyle Tucker

$35

OF2

Luis Robert Jr.

$18

$15

($3)

OF3

Teoscar Hernandez

$12

OF4

Addison Barger

OF5

Evan Carter

($2)

UTIL

Spencer Steer

63.85%

$166

$161

($5)

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Hunter Brown

$24

$25

Eury Perez

$20

$19

($1)

Nolan McLean

$17

$16

($1)

Zac Gallen

($1)

Andrew Abbott

Shane Smith

Johan Oviedo

($1)

Brayan Bello

Aroldis Chapman

$20

36.15%

$94

$93

($1)

Another team with a pretty standard split between offense and pitching. Team 9 ended up with a $6 deficit compared to AAV. On the pitching side, he has one elite closer locked up but didn’t go back to the bullpen at all. The top three arms in the rotation are strong, but it gets sketchy after that. There’s a lot of old and boring baked into this offense, but I kind of dig it. It pained me to pass on Freddie Freeman at that cost and in hindsight I may have been better off taking him instead of Trea Turner in my draft plan. I also pushed up the bid on Evan Carter. I’d expect this squad to finish in the upper third of the league, it’s just not quite enough to seal the deal.

Team 10

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Alejandro Kirk

$10

Ryan Jeffers

Yandy Diaz

$11

$12

Nico Hoerner

$13

$15

Trevor Story

$14

Manny Machado

$22

$23

Jazz Chisholm Jr.

$30

$31

Willy Adames

$15

$13

($2)

OF1

Andy Pages

$10

OF2

Bryan Reynolds

($2)

OF3

Kyle Stowers

$10

OF4

Daulton Varsho

OF5

Giancarlo Stanton

($1)

UTIL

Spencer Torkelson

($1)

64.06%

$164

$167

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Cristopher Sanchez

$26

$28

Nathan Eovaldi

$11

$12

Luis Castillo

($1)

Shota Imanaga

$10

Shane Baz

Matthew Boyd

Merrill Kelly

Jeff Hoffman

$16

$15

($1)

Dennis Santana

$10

$11

35.94%

$92

$99

Just looking at how this team was assembled, I would guess that the manager of Team 10 is a value-based drafter rather than someone who has a scripted draft plan. He did a nice job securing discounts relative to AAV, finishing with $10 in surplus value. Most of that is on the pitching side where he built a very strong staff from top to bottom. The offense looks to be solid as well, with a nice balance of power and speed spread throughout. I’d guess that he’s going to be bidding against me for outfielders on the waiver wire early in the season as quality depth could be lacking there. Overall, this team feels like a competitor.

Team 11

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Drake Baldwin

$14

$17

Samuel Basallo

Bryce Harper

$20

$21

Matt McLain

$10

($3)

Zach Neto

$26

$28

Carlos Correa

Royce Lewis

$12

($3)

JJ Wetherholt

OF1

Fernando Tatis Jr.

$33

OF2

Jackson Chourio

$31

$32

OF3

Ian Happ

($1)

OF4

Wilyer Abreu

OF5

Matt Wallner

UTIL

Brett Baty

68.08%

$177

$181

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Emmet Sheehan

$15

Ryan Pepiot

$14

Gavin Williams

$11

($2)

Bubba Chandler

$10

Grayson Rodriguez

Sean Manaea

Ryne Nelson

Ryan Helsley

$19

$18

($1)

Raisel Iglesias

$13

$15

31.92%

$83

$89

Team 11 is another squad that did a very nice job relative to AAV, securing $10 in surplus value by the end of the draft. He also went with a pretty traditional split at 68/32. The pitching staff is interesting, as he locked up two strong(ish) closers and chose to spread the wealth on the starting staff. I like Emmet Sheehan as much as the next guy but I’d be very leery of trusting him as my ace. The depth is decent enough, but I feel like the top end is lacking. I also think that most of his starters have innings limits or workload concerns, so there could be a problem with volume. The offense looks good, it’s strong, deep and balanced as headlined by Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Chourio, Zach Neto and Bryce Harper. If the pitching comes together, this team could compete for league prizes.

Team 13

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Yainer Diaz

$12

$13

Joe Mack

Pete Alonso

$26

$27

Brendan Donovan

Bobby Witt Jr.

$45

Ernie Clement

Vinnie Pasquantino

$18

Francisco Lindor

$25

$26

OF1

Alec Burleson

$12

($3)

OF2

Victor Scott II

($3)

OF3

Josh Lowe

OF4

Jasson Dominguez

OF5

Austin Hays

UTIL

Jeremy Pena

$12

$17

62.55%

$162

$167

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Joe Ryan

$19

Nick Lodolo

$15

$14

($1)

MacKenzie Gore

$10

$11

Jack Leiter

Casey Mize

Braxton Ashcraft

Jhoan Duran

$24

$23

($1)

Bryan Abreu

$10

($1)

Abner Uribe

$10

37.45%

$97

$96

($1)

Overall it looks like Team 13 secured $4 of surplus value in the draft, but that’s a bit inflated as Jeremy Pena has seen his value dip a bit with the word that he’s likely to open the season on the injured list due to his finger injury. It’s also interesting to see a team take three strong shortstops in Bobby Witt Jr., Francisco Lindor and Pena. It could work out, but limits overall roster flexibility a bit. The infield looks very strong here, but what in the world is happening in the outfield. That may be the worst starting outfield that I have ever seen. Yikes. That’s going to be an area of need throughout the season. This team simply doesn’t impress me much, feels like it’s going to finish in the bottom third in the league.

Team 14

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Hunter Goodman

$19

Agustin Ramirez

$17

Michael Busch

$14

Ketel Marte

$20

$22

Bo Bichette

$15

$16

Max Muncy

Miguel Vargas

Otto Lopez

OF1

Byron Buxton

$18

$19

OF2

Oneil Cruz

$15

$16

OF3

George Springer

$15

$16

OF4

Seiya Suzuki

$14

$16

OF5

Justin Crawford

UTIL

Isaac Paredes

61.54%

$160

$177

$17

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Chris Sale

$24

$25

Dylan Cease

$19

$20

Kyle Bradish

$18

$19

Blake Snell

$10

Tatsuya Imai

Cody Ponce

Noah Cameron

Devin Williams

$19

$21

Clayton Beeter

38.46%

$100

$110

$10

Now here’s a complete masterclass on how to execute value-based drafting. Team 14 didn’t go above AAV for any of his 23 players, getting everyone at cost or at a discount. In doing so, he amassed $27 in surplus value. Whether you’re a fan of the strategy or not, that’s extremely impressive and makes this team one to worry about. It’s a very strong squad from top to bottom. If I’m nitpicking, he’s missing a second closer unless Beeter wins the gig for the Nationals and it feels like there could be some batting average concerns. That’s it. I love the two elite catchers leading the charge on offense and there are players up and down the roster that I was interested in and tried to acquire myself. Very nicely done and I look forward to competing with this team for the league prizes.

Team 15

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Adley Rutschman

$10

Bo Naylor

Rafael Devers

$19

Gleyber Torres

CJ Abrams

$21

$20

($1)

Jordan Lawlar

Willson Contreras

$12

$10

($2)

Masyn Winn

OF1

James Wood

$24

$23

($1)

OF2

Riley Greene

$18

$17

($1)

OF3

Michael Harris II

$16

OF4

Jo Adell

$15

$14

($1)

OF5

Sal Frelick

UTIL

Ivan Herrera

59.62%

$155

$156

Player

$$$

AAV

Delta

Freddy Peralta

$23

$22

($1)

Spencer Strider

$16

$12

($4)

Sandy Alcantara

$13

($4)

Cade Horton

($2)

Tanner Bibee

Cristian Javier

($2)

David Bednar

$21

$20

($1)

Griffin Jax

$12

Edwin Uceta

40.38%

$105

$92

($13)

We wrap up our tour around the league with Team 15. Where we saw some squads that were completely devoid of talent in the outfield, he did a nice job of building out a very strong unit there – albeit with batting average concerns. Overall it feels like a good offense, not a great one. The same goes for the pitching staff. I love Freddy Peralta at the top, but I have serious concerns about trusting Spencer Strider and Sandy Alcantara as an SP2 and SP3 respectively. There’s plenty of ceiling there, but the floor is much lower than I would prefer. My guess would be that this team finishes somewhere near the middle of the pack.

For those that made it all the way through, thanks for following along. Hopefully you understood that there was a method to my madness and can take some insight from here into your own salary cap drafts over the next few weeks as we creep closer to Opening Day.

2026 Fantasy Baseball Salary Cap Draft: Full draft plan, results and analysis

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