Fantasy Baseball in November?! Draft-and-Hold Strategy w/JH Schroeder

Rates & Barrels: A show about Baseball

Eno and DVR are joined by John Henry Schroeder to discuss draft-and-hold formats -- fantasy baseball leagues with no in-season pickups -- and how to approach those leagues in a way that is different than a typical February or March draft. They cover roster construction goals (and a few pitfalls to avoid), the unique risk of low WAR players in this format, playing time trends relative to draft position in 2024, and a few projections that they will likely disagree within heading into 2025.

Rundown

1:38 JH’s Path Into High Stakes Fantasy Baseball

3:34 Draft-and-Hold (Draft Champions) & Gladiator Leagues

5:19 Why Draft This Early?

7:22 A Critical Roster Construction Mistake To Avoid

15:17 How Important is Categorical Balance without In-Season Pickups?

23:01 The Risk with Low WAR Players

29:16 Low WAR Players We’re Still Interested In

34:15 Playing Time v. Draft Position

41:57 What Outside the Box Idea Flopped the Most?

49:54 Ideal Roster Balance w/50-Round Draft-and-Hold Builds

52:51 Other 2025 Projections You Will Disagree With

Follow Eno on Bluesky: @enosarris.bsky.social

Follow DVR on Bluesky: @dvr.bsky.social

e-mail: ratesandbarrels@gmail.com

Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/FyBa9f3wFe

Subscribe to The Athletic: theathletic.com/ratesandbarrels

Hosts: Derek VanRiper & Eno Sarris

Producer: Brian Smith

Executive Producer: Derek VanRiper

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