As you’re preparing for you fantasy baseball drafts, you’re going to hear the phrase position scarcity quite a bit. In a nutshell, it’s a draft strategy that involves using early round picks on positions at which the drop-off in usable talent dramatically increases as the upper-tiered players are drafted.
Fortunately, we’re talking about third base here, so the notion of scarcity can be put out of your mind. Not only is there significant depth, but waiting on the position just might be one of your most beneficial of draft strategies.
When you look at the top tier in talent at the position, Nolan Arenado and Kris Bryant always stand out. Why wouldn’t they when power at the position is your goal, and both are a threat to put 35-40 balls over the fence each season.
But as we scroll down the rankings, names like Manny Machado and Josh Donaldson stand out as well for their power contributions. You would be just as happy with one of them manning third base for you and would be equally successful using either.
However, to own any of these third basemen, you’re looking at a heavy investment, at least according to current average draft position (ADP) numbers. They’ve all gone as high as the first round, never lasting past the third or fourth. If position scarcity were in play, you’d be encouraged to act fast and draft at least one of them. But as you continue to scroll down, there’s a long list of viable options remaining.
Players such as Travis Shaw and Nick Castellanos may not be the marquee names, but they are considered four-category contributors and capable of 25-30 home runs with 100 RBIs and 80-90 runs scored in a given season. And in an era when the .250 hitter is revered so long as he’s hitting bombs, their .270 batting averages are a huge asset. Neither player seems to cost more than an eighth- or ninth-round pick, but given the prospective results, this is a case in which the no-frills is almost as good as the real thing.
And the list stays strong even further down. Joey Gallo is a 40-homer guy. Jake Lamb and Maikel Franco are power-hitters on the rise. And if you ask Mariners executive VP of baseball operations and general manager Jerry DiPoto, he’ll tell you, “save for Nelson Cruz, no one on the team hits the ball harder or farther than Ryon Healy.”
Drafting a top-tier guy always makes you feel good, but at third base, it just isn’t necessary. The contributions of Bryant are strong, but they’re not irreplaceable. Late options at third will work just as well. Remember, you’re drafting production, not the name.
Howard Bender is the VP of operations and head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on Twitter @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 4-6 p.m.
