Let Garrett Crochet (LHP, White Sox) serve as an example of how paying attention to the MLB Draft and its prospective college/high school prospects can pay off short-term as well as long-term in a dynasty league. Crochet went from being drafted 11th in June of 2020 to blowing hitters away at the big-league level by September! Now, this is super rare - a by-product of an odd year - and is much more commonplace in the NFL or NBA. What helped catapult Crochet was 62.5% of his fastballs hitting triple-digits (100+ mph). Serious cheddar! To give you insight into how serious I’m talking, only three other pitchers have such a rate since pitch tracking was instituted - Aroldis Chapman, Jordan Hicks and Mauricio Cabrera.
Now, not all prospects pan out so quickly as Crochet. Some may even take years to come to fruition. But you’re in a dynasty league, so where you goin’? One of my main objectives is snipping off young talent before they become a thing. Whether this looks like grabbing these young gentlemen in a rookie draft or adding them via the waiver wire at the tail end of a lost season, the result is gaining young talent for pennies on the dollar. Taking a leap of faith now can pay off handsomely later when your team is LOADED with 22 to 28-year-olds who rake/dish. Allow me to give you an example of long-term planning for dynasty leagues from my personal vault...
