Mastersball.com surveys a surprisingly active week and notes one of the invidious effects of the Vickrey auction system.
In Tout NL, there were a number of interesting hitters available, and a number of bidders:
Steve Gardner: Domingo Santana 30 (27)
Brian Walton: Domingo Santana 26, Aaron Altherr 26 (25), Travis Jankowski 26, D Sweeney 26, Tommy Pham 2. Travis Jankowski 0
Phil Hertz: Domingo Santana 22, Aaron Altherr 22, Darin Ruf 22 (1), Travis Jankowski 22, D Sweeney 0.
Gene McCaffrey: Aaron Altherr 24
Scott Wilderman: Aaron Altherr 13,Tommy Pham 7 (1), Travis Jankowski 6, Darin Ruf 0
Tristan Cockcroft: Travis Jankowski 15 (1), Aaron Altherr 11, Jason Bourgeois 5 (2)
The bolds are the guys who bought the player, and the number in parentheses is the Vickrey reduced price. The issue here, I think, is the way Vickrey distorts the market, rather than reflect it. Clearly Domingo Santana and Aaron Altherr were preferred over Travis Jankowski, but in terms of pricing, the difference as set by Walton, Hertz and Wilderman is slight. But because of Vickrey, Santana and Altherr went for full price, while Jankowski’s price was cut from $15 to $1. It seems arbitrary, though it is worth noting that Jankowski was Cockcroft’s highest ranked hitter for the week, so it is fitting he got him.
I just think reducing big bids down to $1 demeans the process, making the reduction lucky rather than a reading of the market.
Mike Gianella discusses the week’s Tout AL and NL moves at Baseball Prospectus.