2239 - Drafting the 2027 First Round

Take 10 with Tim – June 19, 2026Microsoft Teams:1.We are approaching the halfway mark of the season (45% completed), so let’s draft the first round of the 2027 Draft based on what we know today.1)Bobby Witt Jr. (Tim)2)Shohei Ohtani (Rich)3)Juan Soto (Tim)4)James Wood (Rich)5)Aaron Judge (Tim)6)Elly De La Cruz (Rich)7)Jacob Misiorowski (Tim)8)Pete Crow-Armstrong (Rich)9)Yordan Alvarez (Tim)10)Nick Kurtz (Rich)11)Jose Ramirez (Tim)12)O’Neil Cruz (Rich)13)Paul Skenes (Tim)14)Tarik Skubal (Rich)15)Corbin Carroll (Tim)16)Julio Rodriguez (Rich)2.Andrew Painter was optioned back to the minor leagues. The performance was pretty awful with a 7.20 ERA and only two more strikeouts than runs earned runs – Yikes.a.For Dynasty League managers, are you still all-in? He still has minor league eligibility in some leagues. Does that play a role in whether you cut him or not?3.It’s been a month since Dylan Crews returned. He’s hitting .189 with four home runs and two stolen bases. Remarkably, he’s walked twice in 100 plate appearances and is sporting a .230 OBP. a.We will look at his baseballsavant data as well.b.Similar to Painter, what do Dynasty League managers do and you still all-in or starting to lose confidence in him?4.There’s no timeline for Ronald Acuna returning to game action, except Walt Weiss saying – “he’s a long from returning”. Let’s look at his injury history.a.82 games played in 2021, 119 in 2022, 159 in 2023, 49 in 2024, and 95 in 2025. That’s 64 games a year or 40% of the games – in 5 years. Why are people still taking this guy in the first round? I get the potential, but this run makes Byron Buxton look Ripken-esque. What am I missing?5.Shane Bieber looks ready to go, although his fastball only averaged 91.8 (T 93). He’s never thrown hard, but he’s also soon to be 32. Are you starting him immediately after his activated from the IL?6.The Mariners are supposedly going to a piggyback scenario. If I have it right, they will take their six starters and stick to a five man rotation, but players will take turns starting innings (1 – 4) and (5 – 8). I guess, sometimes the starter will go 5, but who knows. If you have Mariners’ pitchers, what do you do?a.Two of the best pitchers in the minor leagues are Ryan Sloan and Kade Anderson. Both are shoving it in Double-A and look nearly ready. How on earth do they get a shot?7.What hitter are you targeting for this weekend’s FAAB?a.Cooper Pratt 8.What pitcher are you targeting for this weekend’s FAAB?a.Shane Drohan