Backyard Baseball 2001 DraftKings Price Guide: The Almost-Elite

The penultimate part of my Backyard Baseball DraftKings price guide is here. In case you are a bit behind…

• The Introduction
• Part 1: Players 61-40
• Part 2: Players 39-20

I can say with much certainty that I've played more Backyard Baseball than anyone in the state of Massachusetts over the past few weeks. Perhaps even the whole country or entire world. And no, that is not something I am proud of.

Other than Larry Walker, the rest of the players on this list made an "all-star" team, giving them five extra games to show off their skills and help me decide where to put them. Tomorrow's starting nine will have played an extra three games in addition to that five.

As Scott Ragowsky would say, let's get down to the nitty gritty.

19. Larry Walker, $4,700: 21-44, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 8 runs, 2 BB: 142 DK points

Larry Walker was known as the Canadian Clubber in the big leagues because he was a Canadian who clubbed baseballs. However, many folks do not know that the nickname stemmed from his crippling addiction to Canadian Club Whisky when he was a yout.

Alright, these next nine kids have 15 games worth of stats. Need to bolster that sample size when creating a list of this magnitude. For the most part, they averaged more points per plate appearance because they actually had good teammates. One of the "all-star" teams ended up doing much better than the other, though.

18. Barry Bonds, $4,700

• 13-44, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 5 HR, 6 RBI, 8 runs, 1 BB, 1 SB: 120 DK points
• 4-20, 2 doubles, 1 RBI, 1 BB: 20 DK points

I took a chance, took a chance, took a chance on Barry, but he made me look like a jackass. After the first round, there were a handful of players who I could've put on the all-star teams over Bonds, but I figured he could improve on his preliminary stats. Never again, Barry. Never again.

17. Vladimir Guerrero, $4,800

• 19-47, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 5 HR, 7 RBI, 11 runs, 2 BB: 147 DK points
• 12-27, 2 doubles, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 9 runs, 1 BB: 104 DK points

It's been a good 24 hours to be Vladimir Guerrero. First, your son hits a walkoff homer in Montreal. And now, you are listed 17th on my Backyard Baseball rankings. Not bad, not bad at all.

16. Pablo Sanchez

Just playin. Can you imagine?

16. Nomar Garciaparra, $4,800

• 20-40, 5 doubles, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 13 runs, 1 BB: 122 DK points
• 8-20, 2 doubles, 4 HR, 6 RBI, 6 runs, 1 BB, 1 SB: 77 DK points

I'm a big Nomar guy. BIG Nomar guy. I took a chance, took a chance on Nomar, but unlike Barry Bonds, he was able to improve on his stats. I am a bit miffed at Humongous Entertainment's decision to give him an 8/10 batting stat, considering he had just flirted with .400 in the season prior. They also say his nickname is "Spiderman", which is most certainly not the case.

15. Ronny Dobbs, $4,900

• 18-41, 6 doubles, 6 HR, 12 RBI, 9 runs, 1 BB: 152 DK points
• 7-19, 3 HR, 3 RBI, 4 runs, 2 BB, 1 SB: 65 DK points

Hey now, what's this? Ronny "Bleepin" Dobbs?!? I too, was surprised with how well Dobbs did. I went in with zero expectations for the small-of-stature chap, but he had an alarming amount of power. Not quite as much as his sister, though…

14. Mike Piazza, $4,900

• 19-44, 3 doubles, 11 HR, 19 RBI, 13 runs, 1 BB: 206 DK points
• 3-22, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 3 runs: 35 DK points

I believe the best way to describe my feelings on Mike is this video.

Mike couldn't stop hitting home runs in the first go around, but was abysmal in his second five games.

I do, however, recommend the Mike Piazza Vortex Power Bat, the little brother to the Mark McGwire Vortex Power Bat. More on Mark later…

13. Kiesha Phillips, $4,900

• 16-44, 3 doubles, 5 HR, 10 RBI, 8 runs, 1 BB, 2 SB: 137 points
• 5-19, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 3 runs, 2 BB, 1 SB: 63 DK points

Kiesha is certainly one of the more well-known Backyard Sports athletes. Built like an O-Lineman, she is rife with power, but also brings speed to the table. She wasn't overly impressive to play with, but I do feel I slightly underperformed. With her 9/10 batting and running stats, she is a great dual-threat.

12. Sally Dobbs, $5,100

• 15-38, 2 doubles, 7 HR, 10 RBI, 7 runs, 3 BB: 138 DK points
• 13-26, 1 double, 8 HR, 11 RBI, 12 runs, 1 BB: 145 DK points

This is the biggest shock of the entire article in my mind. Though she only boasts a 7/10 batting stat, "Long Dong" Dobbs can mash homers with the best of 'em. I feel like she'd be due to regress a bit the more I played with her, but to almost make the starting nine is quite an accomplishment for someone who I expected nothing out of.

11. Kenny Lofton, $5,200

• 19-42, 3 doubles, 4 triples, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 11 runs, 3 SB: 144 DK points
• 11-29, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 11 runs, 1 BB, 2 SB: 96 DK points

Kenny Lofton is like a poor man's Pete Wheeler. Very fast with a solid bat, Lofton can get on base plenty, especially if you aren't aiming to hit homers. He can hit a few of those, too, though.

10. Mikey Thomas, $5,300

• 13-40, 3 doubles, 4 HR, 7 RBI, 8 runs: 103 DK points
• 18-29, 1 double, 9 HR, 21 RBI, 15 runs, 1 BB: 193 DK points

Mikey Thomas, what a legend. Much like Barry and Nomar, Mikey's initial numbers did not merit him a spot this high. But, I KNEW he was better than that. I always had Mikey on my team back in the day and the kid had oppo pop akin to Aaron Judge.

In the second round of action, he averaged almost 40 DK points per game. If it weren't for his mediocre first round, he would've made the top nine. He'll always have a spot in my top nine, though.

Get ready for tomorrow, when legends such as Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Ken Griffey Jr., and of course…Pablo Sanchez, make their long-awaited appearances on the list.