Roundtable Redux: A humbling look at theScore's 2016 prognostications

Every year we try our hand at predicting the future, often to hilarious amounts of inaccuracy. While we pride ourselves on doing as much reading and research as humanly possible, but we still can't get it right all the time. We're taking a look at 2016's roundtable predictions from our fantasy baseball analysts. Let's see how we did!

I will be applying a score of 0-5 to each selection (with some exceptions) in a highly scientific process to which only I possess the formula. I assure you, my grading is more accurate than our predictions were. Whoever finishes with the highest score was the, comparative, best at channeling his psychic abilities.

Who will be the biggest first-round bust?

Stanton and McCutchen were the only two choices to really burn teams that drafted them. Correa was still a top-100 pick and Goldschmidt's combination of power and speed, even if he finished below his projections, kept him on the cusp of returning first round value.

Stanton was the absolute worst choice you could have made in the first round (which I certainly did) due to injuries derailing him yet again. In a year where everyone hit 20 home runs, his 24 long balls barely made a blip. Conrad had the foresight to project him as the biggest bust.

Which fourth- to sixth-round pick is the best bet to return first-round value?

None of us were even close with this one. Strasburg was on his way there, making the All-Star team for the second time, but he made only five starts after July and missed two weeks in June. When he was healthy, he was excellent outside of a few catastrophic outcomes (mostly in those limited August-September starts).

Gomez was designated for assignment and was a complete waste of space in fantasy for three-quarters of the season, hence the negative assessment. Sano and Tulowitzki were both okay in spurts, but nowhere close to first-round value. Schwarber was written off almost immediately, which neutralizes any finish he may have had.

Which non-closer is most likely to earn a closer role?

If we're sticklers about the word 'earn,' then no one should be given a point here. Miller only gets one because he went into the season as the temporary closer in New York, so that doesn't really count. Jepsen was officially named the closer in Minnesota, but lost the job by June. He gets two points because he's the closest thing we had to a correct answer in this category.

The lesson: closers are unpredictable and you might as well flip a coin as try to figure out who is going to amass saves at a respectable clip. This category did not come out well.

Who will be the top rookie?

That's the ticket! Seager exceeded his lofty expectations en route to hoisting the NL rookie of the year trophy. He was a top-50 fantasy option and one of the best options at shortstop because of a balanced attack across four of the five standard categories. If adds a speed element, he'll be the top SS.

Snell was pretty good, but only threw 89 innings, so his impact wasn't universally felt. Buxton hit .225 largely thanks to striking out 35.6 percent of the time. He was better after Sep. 1, hitting .287 with nine of his 10 home runs, but the first half was atrocious and he landed in the minors. The less said of Park's debut season with the Twins, the better (it was really bad).

Which player represents the best HR-SB combo play?

Gomez had a terrible season, but he's the only other name on this list other than the clear winner (Betts) to have double-digit home runs (13) and steals (18). Still not great, and no one would ever argue he's a better fantasy option than Rizzo or Marte, but that balance somehow existed.

Marte was very close, hitting nine home runs to go with 47 stolen bases. He has shown power in the past (he hit 19 home runs in 2015), and he'd be my choice in this category if asked again this season. McLaren should have gone with Paul Goldschmidt if he wanted a 1B for this answer (24 HR, 32 SB), because Rizzo's 17 SB from 2015 may have been anomalous.

Which relocated player interests you most?

While home runs were hit by the bushel, Davis emerged as a legitimate power threat (42 HRs) with a just-good-enough batting average (.247) to not be a sinkhole in another category (SB notwithstanding). Upton had a rough start to his Tigers career, but a monster second half salvaged what looked to be a disaster season.

Samardzija was fine. In some starts, he was elite, while in others he was gasoline on a wildfire. It mostly balanced out. Frazier hit home runs and stole a good amount of bases for a 3B. Heyward was outright trash at the plate and Lind barely made a dent despite 20 HRs. Parra was a decent streaming option, but his production didn't register and he's now an afterthought in Colorado.

Which elite middle infielder will regress the most?

Gordon played in only 79 games, mostly due to suspension, but he struck out more often, hit for a lower batting average and wound up providing a much lower return even though his stolen base pace was close to the year before. Without knowing how things would've turned out had he not been suspended, those who selected him do not get the full five (this includes me, so don't scream bias).

Crawford didn't belong on this list in the first place because he was never elite to begin with. Come on, Potter! Kipnis hit for a lower batting average, but hit more home runs and stole a few more bases, balancing himself out. Cano had his best season in Seattle with a career-high 39 home runs. Correa gets Conrad a point just because he managed more HRs and SBs in 54 fewer games the year before, but was otherwise on par.

Who will be this season's fantasy MVP?

By no metric did Harper live up to his expectations, though the 21 SBs were nice. Trout doesn't get the full five points because A) it was the obvious choice, and B) Mookie Betts was technically the most valuable and no one picked him here. Goldschmidt had a very good/great season, but was still a few rungs below Trout and Betts.

Donaldson had a similarly excellent season, but he failed to return first-round value on the whole despite an all around satisfying campaign.

Final Scores

Congrats to Ken Conrad, the man who had the greatest range of success through his predictions. He received a score of five on three separate occasions en route to a relatively respectable score. Esten McLaren, despite finishing in a tie for second, didn't land with a single score of five.

Our roundtables in 2017 will be position-specific and be limited to four participants apiece. Look for those along with our positional rankings in the coming weeks.