Inside The Dynasty Rebuild – Part 4

The trades have been memorialized. If you missed them, check out Parts 2 and 3 of this series!

Now, it’s on to arguably the most important component to rebuilding a dynasty team: THE FYPD!

In the Backyard Baseball Roto League, the draft is a ten round draft, consisting of all 30 teams. Therefore, 300 players are selected, which is considerably more than most leagues you’ll find out there. The ten rounds are necessary, however, since we have 100 minor league roster spots to fill. I went into the draft with around 55 prospects on my team, having cut well over 20, maybe upwards of 30 prospects leading up to it. Most were cut for bad performance, some were cut because they simply hadn’t played baseball in two, three, even seven years. It’s not clear why the previous owner hadn’t bothered to cut those retirees and fill the spot with at least a warm body, but here we are. As I detailed in the previous trade columns, I was aggressive in acquiring draft picks, including the typically coveted 1.1 selection! In all, I went from 10 draft picks all the way to 34 selections, with four first-round picks included in the mix. I’ll list all picks I made, including their draft slot, with some color commentary on most of them.

1.1 : Travis Bazzana, 2B, CLE

Obviously, I could have selected anyone (not Roki Sasaki, he went in the International auction), but I decided to go with the Aussie, who has a high floor and a pretty high ceiling, to boot. It shouldn’t be long before he’s playing alongside the shore of Lake Erie. I had also considered Wetherhold and Kurtz with this pick.

1.6: Jac Caglianone, 1B/OF/P, KC

Kurtz and Wetherholt were taken, along with Chase Burns and Charlie Condon. I considered Konnor Griffin, but it felt too early to take him, despite the upside. Cam Smith and Hagen Smith (not related to Cam), were also considered, but I wanted to take a gamble on the potential 40 homer bat. There’s plenty of swing-and-miss to Jac’s game, but I think he’ll be better when focusing on hitting full time and will get to his double-plus power more.

1.8: Cam Smith, 3B, HOU

At the time of the draft, Cam was a Cubbie. His post-draft trade to Houston is better for him, as it presents a quicker path to playing time, and it’s easy to envision him hitting 25-30 bombs per year into the Crawford boxes. Konnor Griffin and Braden Montgomery were still available, but I opted to plug the hole at 3B with a guy that we should see in the lineup in 2026, if not towards the end of 2025.

1.23: Theo Gillen, OF, TB

It’s not clear where Gillen will settle into from a positional perspective. For now, we’ll project him to the outfield where his above-average speed and plus athleticism will play along with the plus hit tool and plus raw power. He’s got quite the high floor and a fairly decent ceiling, and it doesn’t hurt that his upside is trending upward.

2.6: Braylon Payne, OF, MIL

The Brewers drafted Payne as a 17 year old high schooler out of Texas. What they obtained is a hit-over-power quick-twitch athlete that loves to get on base and cause some havoc when he reaches. I can see him getting to 20 homers at peak, with good stolen base numbers. A couple 20/25 or 20/30 seasons just might be in play here.

2:25: Joey Oakie, SP, CLE

It’s generally not a bad idea to select a pitcher that gets to develop in the Guardians system. Oakie boasts two plus pitches already in the fastball and slider. He’ll need to throw more strikes and develop a third pitch to reach his ceiling, but he’s an arm worth investing in.

2.30:  Chris Cortez, RP, LAA

Viewed as a likely high-end reliever, the Angels selected the A&M Aggie from Las Vegas, and if their recent promotion history is any indication, Cortez could see innings in the bigs as soon as 2025

3.7: JD Dix, SS, ARI

4.12: Jakob Christian, OF/1B, SF

4.17: Chase Allsup, RP, BAL

5.6: Hunter Cranton, RP, SEA

I firmly believe the Diamondbacks have themselves a sleeper in the switch-hitting SS Dix. Christian hit 54 homers over his last two seasons, including one of them at D2 Point Loma. Allsup and Cranton are back of the bullpen type relievers, which I’m quite fond of.

6.6: Carter Frederick, OF, KC

6.7:  Greysen Carter, RP, NYY

6.12: Peyton Olejnik, RP, LAA

6.17: Brooks Auger, SP, LAD

6.23: Sam Stuhr, SP, OAK

6.24: Zach Ehrhard, OF, BOS

Frederick was taken in the 20th round, but has generated some post-draft buzz. Carter and Olejnik are high strikeout relievers. Auger and Stuhr should stick as starters in good pitching development organizations. Ehrhard looks to be a meaningful bench outfielder.

7.4: Jeremiah Jenkins, 1B, SF

7.6: Cody Schrier, SS, MIA

7.12:  Bridger Holmes, RP, LAA

7.17: Nate George, OF, BAL

7.20:  Payton Green, SS, MIA

7.21:  Jayden Dubanewicz, SP, MIL

7.23:  Rafe Perich, 3B, TEX

7.28: Ryan Cesarini, OF, BOS

7.29:  Ryan Stafford, C, BAL

I like Nate George and Jayden Dubanewicz out of this massive 7th round of drafting for my Oakland A’s squad. Both were selected in the 16th round of the MLB Draft, and both were given well over slot bonuses by the O’s and Brewers. George is a speedy outfielder with a good hit tool; Dubanewicz is a long, lean righty that attended Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL. He set a school record for ERA, which is not bad when it was previously held by current Phillie Jesus Luzardo!

8.4: Greg Farone, SP, SF

8.6:  Nick Brink, SP, MIA

8.23: Ryan Gallagher, SP, CHC

9.4:  Gavin Adams, RP, PIT

9.6:  Devin Futrell, SP, BOS

9.23:  Cam Schuelke, SP, CLE

10.6: Logan Samuels, SP, ATL

10.23: Andrew Susac, RP, TEX

I closed the draft with eight selections, all on the pitching side. Pitching prospects are volatile, but you can never have enough pitching. I’ll be keeping an eye on the development of these guys, and if one or two of them provide viable innings for my dynasty team, I’ll consider this group a success.

That wraps up all 34 draft choices. What pick did you like best? What pick seems like an awful decision? Thank you for being along on this journey with me, it’s going to be fun to see the impact that some of these guys have on the fortunes of the team!