Why is this Royals’ rookie picking up late-round buzz lately?

There’s nothing quite like the excitement of the draft season, but what happens when you miss out on the top picks? If you’re like me, you’d rather have the back-end elbow picks rather than floundering in No Man’s Land. That said, all is not lost! Come, fly with me as we dominate a mock draft from the six spot.

For this respective 12-team redraft mock, we’re using standard 5×5 roto categories with these slots: C, 1B, 2B, SS, 3B, CI, MI, 3 OF, 2 Util, 3 SP, 2 RP, 4 P, and 5 BN. To complete this mock, I used our Draft Wizard which is a quick and easy way to prepare for your fantasy baseball drafts. You can cheat ahead and view the results here before reading (Grade: 94).

Here’s a look at a recent mock draft completed from the first pick

Mock Draft Picks

• 1.06 Paul Goldschmidt, ARI
• 2.07 Carlos Correa, HOU
• 3.06 A.J. Pollock, ARI
• 4.07 Justin Verlander, DET
• 5.06 Gary Sanchez, NYY
• 6.07 Matt Carpenter, STL
• 7.06 Khris Davis, OAK
• 8.07 Matt Kemp, ATL
• 9.06 Zack Greinke, ARI
• 10.07 Edwin Diaz, SEA
• 11.06 Adam Eaton, WSH
• 12.07 Jake Lamb, ARI
• 13.06 John Lackey, CHC
• 14.07 Steven Matz, NYM
• 15.06 Alexander Reyes, STL (ouch)
• 16.07 Brandon Belt, SF
• 17.06 Devon Travis, TOR
• 18.07 Shawn Kelley, WSH
• 19.06 Garrett Richards, LAA
• 20.07 Kevin Kiermaier, TB
• 21.06 Nomar Mazara, TEX
• 22.07 Neftali Feliz, MIL
• 23.06 Keon Broxton, MIL
• 24.07 Matthew Strahm, KC
• 25.06 Ervin Santana, MIN
• 26.07 Jorge Soler, KC

Early Rounds

I couldn’t bring myself to go Clayton Kershaw, not with Paul Goldschmidt still there. I’m not expecting another 30+ steals out of Goldy, but locking up five-category production is impossible to pass up. He’s only had one season affected by injury, with a 100/25/100/25/.300 season perfectly within reach. At the fresh age of 29, he should deliver in one of the most hitter-friendly environments that the game has to offer.

Now with a decision between Carlos Correa and Corey Seager, I decided to see how targeting all-around contributors would pan out with Goldy already in tow. Correa should top 20 homers with 12-15 bags, with room for growth at the ripe age of 22 in a stacked lineup. Let’s see where this goes.

A.J. Pollock broke our hearts (and his elbow) last season, but there’s no reason he can’t return to business as usual. Get over that he missed last season. Ever since 2014, when he made his swing more compact with lowered hands, he has been a beast when healthy. Unless you think he’s currently injured, the third round is a steal for another five-category force.

Without an enticing hitter on deck, I went pitcher. Hello, Justin Verlander! JV woke up on May 4 last season and was simply dominant again. In the final three months of the season (18 starts) he delivered an absurd 1.98 ERA without allowing more than three runs in any outing, as his resurgent slider made him an ace again. He’s no Superman, but Verlander was one of the last guys I felt drafting as my SP1. If I didn’t pick him, I’d likely be waiting a while for an arm.

With a well-rounded foundation and in the interest of exploring interesting paths, we’re going to see what taking Gary Sanchez looks like. Sanchez has been a buzzy prospect forever, but no one was prepared for his hitting 20 homers in 201 at bats last season. He won’t replicate the 40% HR/FB rate, but he’s clearly ready for the MLB and gets to mash in Yankee Stadium, so I’ll be nabbing a few shares in ’17.

Matt Carpenter missed some time and went 0-for-4 on steal attempts in ’16, but validated his power gains in ’15 (.233 ISO in ’15, .235 in ’16). He also brought his strikeout rate down by 3.6% alongside the sustained strength. With his versatility also in mind, I’m buying here. Now I’ve got healthy speed, a true SP1, even a catcher! But I could use some more…

Firepower! Enter: Khris Davis. After hitting a ridiculous 20 homers in the final two months of ’15, Davis fought off all worry that the spacious Oakland Coliseum would dampen his power by hitting 42 dingers in ’16 – tied for third-most in the MLB. Without a 40-homer threat thus far, I felt justified grabbing him.

Feeling covered at all junctures, I went “best player available”. Matt Kemp is about to bat cleanup in a growing Atlanta offense that boasts a potent top half. With Ender Inciarte, Dansby Swanson (or now Brandon Phillips?) and Freddie Freeman ahead of him, Kemp makes for a solid pick that will likely be overlooked in draft lobbies a bit.

Zack Greinke slid too far. While asking to repeat that .229 BABIP from ’15 was a tall order, ’16 was brutal thanks to his fastball getting slaughtered. BrooksBaseball gave hitters a .322 average against his heater (.202 in ’15). Still, he only had four games with more than four earned runs and for the most part was effective. There’s enough here for me to justify a rebound pick, but not as an SP1.

Mid-Rounds

The more mocks I do, the more I feel I need one of those elite-strikeout closers. Edwin Diaz is usually the last one around, and I’m satisfied with a 10th-round price tag.

Rounds 11/12 saw me lock up the “Eaton Lamb” pun! What, you don’t draft for naming rights? Adam Eaton should break 100 runs with his usual 12/18 production, while Jake Lamb will get a chance to be an everyday player with good health in ’17. Count me in.

This was really exciting. Rounds 13-16 added up to good luck for a wedding! Something old (John Lackey), something new (Anthony Reyes), something borrowed (Brandon Belt) and something blue (Steven Matz). Just pretend I borrowed a belt from you and let me have this. I trust Lackey to remain his consistent self and reap the benefits of the Cubbies’ support, while Reyes and Matz bring plenty of upside if they can conquer their respective command and durability issues. Belt may never become an astounding asset at AT&T Park, but not everything has to be flashy.

Late Rounds

Even with two UTIL slots, the three outfield format pushes guys like Kevin Kiermaier, Nomar Mazara and Keon Broxton lower than I’d expect. Kiermaier could go 15/30, Mazara could blast 25 shots with a healthy average and Broxton could turn in a 20/40 line, albeit with a .230s average. Fliers galore.

Matthew Strahm has some deep-league buzz as a potential rotation option, though the Jason Hammel signing dampens that fire. Even if he’s just in the ‘pen to start, he’d be an intriguing option should someone get injured in Spring Training/early season.

Ervin Santana is a nice back-end arm who posted a 2.41 ERA over his final 18 starts after cleaning up a hitch in his delivery. An ERA in the mid-threes is likely, which is great at this juncture.

Wrapping up my studly draft is another outfield bat with the potential to hit 25+ homers, Jorge Soler. In a real league, I’d be hoping just one or two of these late OF bats go off in Spring Training, allowing me to flip them. If they look awful then what have I really lost?

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Nick Mariano is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Nick, check out his archive and follow him @NMariano53.