League-specific fantasy formats such as AL- or NL-Only leagues are different from your normal fantasy league draft. The player pool is only half as big and the talent dries up quickly.

Let’s use the Draft Wizard to run a fantasy baseball mock draft for a 10-team, AL-only points league. We’ll draft from the fifth slot and use the following roster settings: 1-C, 1-1B, 1-2B, 1-3B, 1-SS, 3-OF, 2-UTIL, 2-SP, 2-RP, 4-P and zero bench spots. You can find the draft board here.

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Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft (AL-Only)

1.05: Jose Ramirez (3B – CLE)

Jose Ramirez is an easy pick fifth overall. Last year, he finished with 39 homers and 41 steals while scoring a career-high 114 runs. Bobby Witt and Aaron Judge are the only players in this format I’d be willing to take over Ramirez.

2.06: Jose Altuve (2B – HOU)

Getting Jose Altuve as the second player at his position (second base) off the board feels like a steal. He’s coming off his first 20/20 season since 2017 and there’s even talk of him getting outfielder eligibility.

3.05: Brent Rooker (OF – ATH)

Brent Rooker is coming off a career year that saw him put up 39 homers and 112 RBI. It’ll be hard for him to replicate the .293 batting average with a nearly 30% strikeout rate, though. However, he’s had back-to-back seasons with 30+ homers and is moving to a minor league stadium in 2025, so the power can be expected.

4.06: Max Fried (SP – NYY)

Max Fried is my SP1 and the 11th starter off the board. He started shaky last year before turning it around and ending with an impressive 3.25 ERA. He is still one of the best in the league at limiting hard contact, although the strikeouts are low for an ace. It’ll be interesting to see how he fares with his new team after spending his entire career with the Braves.

5.05: Felix Bautista (RB – BAL)

The reliever position is extremely thin in this format. Felix Bautista was the sixth closer off the board after not throwing a single pitch last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. However, we know the upside with him is the RP1 overall.

In his two seasons, he’s compiled a 1.85 ERA and 0.92 WHIP, with 48 saves in 56 chances. He should be closing for one of the best teams in the American League.

6.06: Riley Greene (OF – DET)

Riley Greene’s quality-of-contact metrics are some of the best in the league. He’s improved his strikeout rate each of his first three seasons in the league and had a career-high walk rate last year (11%).

If Greene can get his strikeout rate under 25%, a 30-homer, 90-RBI season is well within his range of possibilities.

7.05: Seth Lugo (SP – KC)

Seth Lugo is coming off a career-best 3.00 ERA and 1.09 WHIP with 16 wins. Can he replicate his 2024? Probably not. However, in the three years before last, his ERA was no higher than 3.60. The biggest concern is that his 206.2 innings pitched last season are 60 more innings than he’s ever pitched in a season.

8.06: Shane McClanahan (SP – TB)

Shane McClanahan also did not pitch in 2024 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He finished as a top-six Cy Young award candidate in 2022 with a spectacular ERA and nearly 200 strikeouts. The Rays are expecting him to get around 150 innings, but they can be super cautious with their players.

9.05: Isaac Paredes (3B – HOU)

Isaac Paredes was traded from the Chicago Cubs to the Houston Astros this offseason. He doesn’t strike out a lot and has a career 11% walk rate, making lots of contact. His spray chart is going to pair very nicely with the Astros’ home ballpark.

10.06: Trevor Story (SS – BOS)

Trevor Story is a former 30/20 player when he was with the Colorado Rockies but has struggled to stay healthy since joining the Boston Red Sox. Since 2022, he’s only managed to play in 163 games.

In that timeframe, he’s stolen 29 bases, including six last season in only 26 games. His willingness and success on the basepaths provide some upside, however, his 31% strikeout rate would need to improve.

11.05: Tanner Houck (SP – BOS)

Tanner Houck had a breakout year in 2024, finishing with a 3.12 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. He improved his walk and groundball rates as they were the best of his career.

He also pitched a career-high 178.2 innings. It’s valid to wonder if he can hold up to this kind of workload after things were starting to fall apart in the second half of last year.

12.06: Brayan Bello (SP – BOS)

Brayan Bello has had some flashes of excellence, but never for long. He’s never had an ERA under 4.24 or a WHIP under 1.34 for a full season, offering little upside. Nick Pivetta went two rounds later, and even as a free agent, I’d rather have him than Bello based on average draft position (ADP).

13.05: Evan Carter (OF – TEX)

Evan Carter was a popular pick in 2024 drafts after a great postseason run as a rookie. However, a back injury sidelined him for most of the season. He didn’t show much last year, but at 21 years old, a bounce-back season is more than possible.

14.06: Kenley Jansen (RP – FA)

Kenley Jansen is currently a free agent but spent the past two seasons with the Boston Red Sox. He hasn’t been quite as dominant since leaving the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he’s close to a lock for a mid-3.00 ERA and 25+ saves wherever he signs.

15.05: Chris Bassitt (SP – TOR)

Chris Bassitt’s ERA, WHIP and K/9 have all taken a step back each of the past three seasons. However, he’s averaged 184 innings pitched in those same seasons with no worse than a 4.16 ERA.

16.06: Andrew Vaughn (1B – CWS)

Andrew Vaughn is a former top prospect who still hits the ball hard. He doesn’t strike out a lot but hardly gets on base via walks, either. He’s not very exciting.

17.05: Bo Naylor (C – CLE)

Bo Naylor is young with upside. He was bad last year in 123 games, finishing with 13 homers and six stolen bases while batting .201. His willingness to run could be a nice addition to the position if he can make an impact with his bat.

18.06: Jorge Polanco (2B – SEA)

Jorge Polanco just re-signed with the Seattle Mariners. It wasn’t exactly a great fit last year. He batted .213 in 118 games with fewer than 50 runs (43) and RBI (45). However, he did have some hype going into drafts last year after hitting 14 homers in only 80 games in 2023.

Draft Wizard Insights

The Draft Wizard gave this fantasy baseball mock draft an A-, 92/100 grade and projects it as the second-best team in the league. The talent in AL- or NL-Only leagues evaporates very quickly. Waiting on a starting pitcher seems to be the consensus in a mixed league, but in a mono-league, you may want to pay up for a true ace.

One thing about this draft I didn’t like was the combination of pitchers coming back from injury and guys who set a career-high in innings by a wide margin last year. Pitchers already have so much injury risk and I’m willingly taking on extra.

I would have drafted Pablo Lopez or Luis Castillo in the third round instead of Brent Rooker if I could have a redo. Taking a pitcher and Lawrence Butler later instead of Max Fried would make my pitching staff better while hopefully not losing too much offense.

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