Free Fantasy Advice: Instant Gratification Versus the Great Beyond

Here at Project Prospect, we’re as into following the big leagues as we are the minors. So we have perspectives on every kind of fantasy question. We’re making an effort to help your team out by providing Free Fantasy Advice once a week.

Dan from Minneapolis, Minn. asks: 

I'm always down for some free advice.  I wish I knew about it sooner since my draft is in five hours and eight minutes, so lets test that Project Prospect punctuality.  I've gotten a lot of feedback from my friends at home about this question and I would like to get your take.

In a dynasty league, who would you rather take as your 2nd pick (2nd round, 11th overall pick), if available? Mike Pelfrey, Yovani Gallardo, Adam Miller or Phil Hughes? Or would you rather go with somebody that can help you this year (Adam LaRoche, Aaron Harang, Raul Ibanez, Gary Sheffield, Greg Maddux, etc.) and hope to get one of the SP prospects in later rounds?  

Love the site – glad that I stumbled upon it one lunch hour! 

Dan   

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Dan,  

Project Prospect means serious business when we use the word “punctually.” Prepare to be amazed as I write far faster than I can actually think to create a focused solution to your open-ended issue.  

Welcome to the newest installment of our favorite age-old dynasty debate: instant gratification versus the future and continued success of your current franchise.  

Start by saying goodbye to the Madduxs and Sheffields of the world. There are too many question marks hovering around these senior citizen types: can they actually produce over the course of an entire season, not if – but when – they’ll hit the disabled list first, will they retire within the next five hours and eight minutes, etc.  

The LaRoche, Harang, and Ibanez types are more interesting names to consider – let’s narrow these three down a bit.  

Ibanez had the best year of his career in 2006, belting 33 homers while driving 123 home en route to posting a strong .289/.353/.516 vital line. LaRoche’s vitals actually outdid those of Ibanez, as the Orange, Calif. product went .285/.354/.561 last season. Ibanez turns 35 this year while LaRoche is just 26 – advantage LaRoche.  

But if you really want an impact guy, I’d have to go with Aaron Harang. Harang, 27, quietly led the National League with an impressive 216 punch-outs on the season last year. The 6-foot-7, 240-pounder had posted a strong 1.27 WHIP in each of his last two seasons, making Harang your best bet to help your team in a few hours.  

While the instant success would be nice, give me Phil Hughes in a heartbeat. All the 20-year-old phenom has done with his minor league career is post a 21-7 record, a 2. 13 ERA, an impressive 269:54 K to BB rate, and a microscopic 0.86 WHIP. Without throwing a single pitch in the big leagues, Hughes is already cemented within the top 25 young players in the game on Project Prospect’s Top 150 Under 25 list (no. 21) and the future ace will only see his stock rise throughout the course of his career.   

If you can get your hands on Phil Hughes, you take Phil Hughes. End of conversation. Next up on the list would have to be Aaron Harang and then I’d look at the Pelfrey, Gallardo, Miller trio – in that order – if Hughes is off the board.   

So the moral of the story: out with the old, in with the new. Given the current injury woes of the New York Yankee rotation, the gratification may come sooner rather than later by selecting Hughes anyways. While it’s nice to think about what that new starter or slugger could mean to your team today, ponder the likes of a future frontline all-star instead.