We’re already at the end of our ADP Hacking series! It seems like just a couple days ago we started it… mostly because it was just a couple days ago. But still! (Nothing trumps everything else during an argument than saying, “But still!”)

Earlier this week, we looked at infielders on one article, and then another article covered both outfielders and catchers together (I’ve always said that catchers are like the inverse outfielders of the infield).

Advertisement

If this is the first article you are reading in the series, then let’s explain what’s going on!

Another one of our favorite fantasy baseball draft tools every spring is the Average ADP rankings over at FantasyPros. They look at the ADP on websites who offer fantasy baseball league drafting services, like ESPN, the NFC, and Yahoo. Those ADP numbers are compiled together to create an Average ADP! It’s like how your favorite team’s batting average is actually an average of their averages.

The problem is we don’t draft on a site that uses this all-encompassing ADP to populate its draft room. Each site uses their own site-specific rankings to pre-populate their draft room.

With this article, you’ll get the opportunity to use this average ADP data against the ADP data on the site you draft on, which will help us find values and reaches. You can use this article to outsmart the other nine or 11 owners in your league, who are likely going off one site’s ADP or rankings.

We detailed which players rank higher or lower from an ADP perspective on specific fantasy draft sites, compared to overall ADP. That means if you want one specific player, and you realize he’s ranked higher on that site’s ADP compared to general ADP, then you’re going to have to reach in order to draft him. If you like a player and he’s ranked lower, then you might be able to wait on that player for one or more rounds, and still get him!

Use these ADP hacks to find good and bad values to build a competitive advantage against your uninformed league counterparts. They’re so dumb.

This draft trick works on several fantasy baseball draft services including ESPN, Yahoo, NFBC, Fantrax and RT Sports.

ADP Hack: Which Starting Pitchers Are Valued Higher/Lower On Which Sites?

If we compare the ADP from the league service you use with the overall ADP on FantasyPros.com, you will know which pitchers you’ll have to draft earlier if you want them, and which pitchers you can wait on. In this article, we’re going to look specifically at starting pitchers and relief pitchers. We’re going to discuss the value players on the three most popular drafting sites: NFC, ESPN and Yahoo. We used CBS last season, but for whatever reason, FantasyPros doesn’t include their ADP anymore.

Finding Value Among Starting Pitchers ADP

Starting Pitchers Going Higher on NFC (You’ll have to reach if you want them)

Starting Pitchers Going Lower on NFC (You can wait a little)

  • Clayton Kershaw, L.A. Dodgers – NFC 50, Average ADP 37
  • Hyun-Jin Ryu, Toronto – NFC 135, Average ADP 122
  • David Price, L.A. Dodgers – NFC 176, Average ADP 153
  • Mike Minor, Texas – NFC 174, Average ADP 161
  • Carlos Martinez, St. Louis – NFC 185, Average ADP 166
  • Masahiro Tanaka, N.Y. Yankees – NFC 222, Average ADP 177
  • Dallas Keuchel, Chicago White Sox – NFC 261, Average ADP 212
  • Dakota Hudson, St. Louis – NFC 298, Average ADP 255
  • J.A. Happ, N.Y. Yankees – NFC 362, Average ADP 263
  • Rick Porcello, N.Y. Mets – NFC 346, Average ADP 271

Starting Pitchers Going Higher on ESPN (You’ll have to reach if you want them)

  • Clayton Kershaw, L.A. Dodgers – ESPN 35, Average ADP 45
  • Charlie Morton, Tampa Bay – ESPN 50, Average ADP 62
  • Shohei Ohtani, L.A. Angels – ESPN 71, Average ADP 125
  • Hyun-Jin Ryu, Toronto – ESPN 117, Average ADP 131
  • Eduardo Rodriguez, Boston – ESPN 122, Average ADP 132
  • Carlos Martinez, St. Louis – ESPN -159, Average ADP 179
  • Jose Leclerc, Texas – ESPN 162, Average ADP 174
  • Jose Quintana, Chicago Cubs – ESPN 244, Average ADP 335
  • Reynaldo Lopez, Chicago White Sox – ESPN 255, Average ADP 336
  • Brendan McKay, Tampa Bay – ESPN 272, Average ADP 329

Starting Pitchers Going Lower on ESPN (You can wait a little)

  • Blake Snell, Tampa Bay – ESPN 43, Average ADP 32
  • Luis Castillo, Cincinnati – ESPN 58, Average ADP 44
  • Chris Sale, Boston – ESPN 66, Average ADP 39
  • Mike Clevinger, Cleveland – ESPN 69, Average ADP 41
  • Lucas Giolito, Chicago White Sox – ESPN 77, Average ADP 57
  • Chris Paddack, San Diego – ESPN 80, Average ADP 53
  • Yu Darvish, Chicago Cubs – ESPN 87, Average ADP 62
  • Tyler Glasnow, Tampa Bay – ESPN 95, Average ADP 72
  • Dinelson Lamet, San Diego – ESPN 165, Average ADP 120
  • Jesus Luzardo, Oakland – ESPN 176, Average ADP 126

Starting Pitchers Going Higher on Yahoo (You’ll have to reach if you want them)

  • Mike Soroka, Atlanta – Yahoo 87, Average ADP 103
  • Kyle Hendricks, Chicago Cubs – Yahoo 132, Average ADP 156
  • Matthew Boyd, Detroit – Yahoo 145, Average ADP 171
  • David Price, L.A. Dodgers – Yahoo 148, Average ADP 167
  • Masahiro Tanaka, N.Y. Yankees – Yahoo 172, Average ADP 202
  • Andrew Heaney, L,A, Angels – Yahoo 175, Average ADP 214
  • A.J. Puk Oakland – Yahoo 222, Average ADP 253
  • Griffin Canning, L.A. Angels – Yahoo 210, Average ADP 330
  • J.A. Happ, N.Y. Yankees – Yahoo -239, Average ADP 335

Starting Pitchers Going Lower on Yahoo (You can wait a little)

  • Charlie Morton, Tampa Bay – Yahoo 64, Average ADP 55
  • Madison Bumgarner, Arizona – Yahoo 131, Average ADP 122
  • Shohei Ohtani, L.A. Angels – Yahoo 143, Average ADP 90
  • James Paxton, N.Y. Yankees – Yahoo 201, Average ADP 160
  • Jon Gray, Colorado – Yahoo 280, Average ADP 234
  • Adrian Houser, Milwaukee – Yahoo 372, Average ADP 266
  • Anthony DeSclafani, Cincinnati – Yahoo 375, Average ADP 271
  • Ross Stripling, L.A. Dodgers – Yahoo 369, Average ADP 294
  • Sandy Alcantara, Miami – Yahoo 376, Average ADP 278
  • Brendan McKay, Tampa Bay – Yahoo 377, Average ADP 275

Finding Value Among Relief Pitchers ADP

Relief Pitchers Going Higher on NFC (You’ll have to reach if you want them)

  • Tyler Glasnow, Tampa Bay – NFC 70, Average ADP 83
  • Brandon Woodruff, Milwaukee – NFC 85, Average ADP 95
  • Carlos Carrasco, Cleveland – NFC 105, Average ADP 116
  • Jesus Luzardo, Oakland – NFC 122, Average ADP 152
  • Adrian Houser, Milwaukee – NFC 247, Average ADP 327

Relief Pitchers Going Lower on NFC (You can wait a little)

  • Josh Hader, Milwaukee – NFC 61, Average ADP 45
  • Aroldis Chapman, N.Y. Yankees – NFC 83, Average ADP 65
  • Kenley Jansen, L.A. Dodgers – NFC 121, Average ADP 92
  • Brandon Workman, Boston – NFC 161, Average ADP 128
  • Nick Anderson, Tampa Bay – NFC 202, Average ADP 144

Relief Pitchers Going Higher on ESPN (You’ll have to reach if you want them)

  • Liam Hendricks, Oakland – ESPN 91, Average ADP 102
  • Kenley Jansen, L.A. Dodgers – ESPN 89, Average ADP 108
  • Will Smith, Atlanta – ESPN 116, Average ADP 263
  • Nick Anderson, Tampa Bay – ESPN 139, Average ADP 176
  • Archie Bradley, Arizona – ESPN 141, Average ADP 165

Relief Pitchers Going Lower on ESPN (You can wait a little)

  • Tyler Glasnow, Tampa Bay – ESPN 94, Average ADP 71
  • Edwin Diaz, N.Y. Mets – ESPN 135, Average ADP 111
  • Hector Neris, Philadelphia – ESPN 148, Average ADP 128
  • Jesus Luzardo, Oakland – ESPN 175, Average ADP 125
  • Julio Urias, L.A. Dodgers – ESPN 188, Average ADP 152

Relief Pitchers Going Higher on Yahoo (You’ll have to reach if you want them)

  • Brad Hand, Cleveland – Yahoo 94, Average ADP 110
  • Edwin Diaz, N.Y. Mets – Yahoo 104, Average ADP 127
  • Brandon Workman, Boston – Yahoo 122, Average ADP 147
  • Craig Kimbrel, Chicago Cubs – Yahoo 123, Average ADP 143
  • Hector Neris, Philadelphia – Yahoo 119, Average ADP 143
  • Ian Kennedy, Kansas City – Yahoo 173, Average ADP 200

Relief Pitchers Going Lower on Yahoo (You can wait a little)

  • Jose Leclerc, Texas – Yahoo 178, Average ADP 166
  • Will Smith, Atlanta – Yahoo 375, Average ADP 136
  • Michael Givens, Baltimore – Yahoo 351, Average ADP 306
  • Ross Stripling, L.A. Dodgers – Yahoo 368, Average ADP 295
  • Adrian Houser, Milwaukee – Yahoo 373, Average ADP 264

A pitcher’s eligibility rules might be different from site to site, so keep that in mind as you look through these ADP comparisons. However, it doesn’t change the fact that some starting pitchers and relief pitchers are drafted much higher or much lower on one site than they are compared to the average of the other sites.

Advertisement

Don’t forget to check out our Average ADP review of infielders, and then our other article covering both outfielders and catchers together.

Which over- or undervalued starting pitchers or relief pitchers grabbed your attention among the Average Draft Position rankings on FantasyPros? Who deserves an extra mention?

(Top photo: Michael Zagaris/Getty Images)