Beginner 2026 Fantasy Baseball Auction Draft Strategies

Hitters: Where the Big Money Goes

With that breakdown of your budget, obviously more of the high-dollar buys are going to be on the hitter side. As of now, it looks like seven of the top 10 budgeted players are hitters. The top five would be Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Paul Skenes, and Jose Ramirez. You’d do well for yourself to come out of the auction with one of those. More on that later.

Pitchers: There's Value to be Had

While getting a top-flight starting pitcher can be important, you are much more likely to find some really great value at this position. You are likely to end up with Robbie Ray, Jesus Luzardo, Ryan Pepiot, Spencer Strider for under $10.

Closers Can Be a Volatile Market

Closers are more volatile because not only are they susceptible to injury like everyone else, we also know their jobs are likely at stake if they falter during the year. And then sometimes, they will lose the job or get it back. So, when do you add or drop these guys?

You want to try to come out with an Andres Munoz, Josh Hader, Jhoran Duran, or Edwin Diaz. They are likely to hold and keep their job (forget about that one awful year for Diaz), and also help you at every category that closers can.

Prospects

What about prospects? You have guys who are sure to have an impact like Samuel Basallo, Nolan McLean, Trey Yesavage, J.J. Wetherholt and Kevin McGonigle. Having a prospect can really help your roster and come at a cheaper price, but having too many could hurt your chances of winning.

Nominations: A Great Way to Bluff

Different people have different ways to go about nominations. Some nominate players they want on their team. Some like to try to nominate low-dollar players they know they want earlier in the auction, figuring that other league mates are holding their budgets for the big ticket guys early, and thus you can get a bargain.

What I like to do is nominate players I know I don’t want, and the higher the dollar value the better. This will ensure that someone else is going to empty a significant amount of their remaining budget on a player I was never interested in, thus giving someone less money to bid against me for a player I do want. I will do this for at least the first 10-12 nominations before transitioning to players I do want.

Updating Your Budget: Seeking Balance vs. "Stars and Scrubs"

Another important skill is to update your budget during the auction. You are likely to go a little outside of your plan here and there during the auction. Maybe you got a player for less than expected, so you can now pay a little more at another position.

There are really two ways to build your roster. You can go with a balanced roster in which you trend away from big buys early, or you can go with the “stars and scrubs” approach, which means emptying a lot of your wallet early on big stars, then filling in the rest of your roster later with value buys. That is typically my approach, and I almost always go after the very first player nominated. A lot of people are hesitant to spend right off the bat and are scared to be the the first one to lose a big portion of their budget, and I have often found that the first player nominated comes at a discount.

Conclusion

There are so many things to consider while doing an auction, and that is why it is the superior way to draft. You really have to be engaged at all times, with which players are remaining at each position, what amount of budget you have left, trying not to spend too much and engaging in bidding wars, and of course, finding those later-round gems that far surpass their auction value.

You also don’t want to have any money left when you are finished. Bidding $6 on a player at the end of the auction because that's what your have left means you could have bid more on other players throughout the draft. Finishing the auction with three to five $1 players is the sweet spot. Be sure to pay attention to other people’s tendencies and budgets as well to have the most chances of success.

People Also Ask

How should I balance my team between hitters and pitchers?
Aim roughly for these percentages: 65 percent for hitters and 35 percent for pitchers.

Why are nominations so important in a Fantasy Auction Draft?
Nominating players you are not really interested in is a great way to get your competitors to overspend, especially early.

Are prospects a good way to go in this kind of draft?
They can be, if you don't spend too much on them.