CrossFit Athletic Group

The original plan was to have Mr. Van, Mrs. Van, Jessica, and Anto as captains, but the scheduling to get them all together wasn't working and Anto ended up getting the short straw. I'll make it up to him next year. In his place was Owen. We had the draft on Saturday in serpentine fashion (Jessica-Mrs. Van-Mr. Van-Owen in the 1st round, Owen-Mr. Van-Mrs. Van-Jessica in the 2nd round, etc.) in front of a live audience. I am excited to announce that this year Mel Kiper also made a guest appearance and graciously provided a team grade and corresponding notes included in this post.

Photo credit courtesy of ManCaseyEdits

Each team picked from the regular morning/afternoon groups first, Rookies next, one kid from Double-A, and a wild card. Whichever team has the best attendance percentage at the end of Summer is declared the winner.

Jess-I-Cantraisemyarmsoverhead (Jessica)

1. Jaylee
2. Cecilia
3. Luke
4. Jay
5. Mr. Carey
6. Mr. Bettys
7. Reese
8. Erica
9. Bubs
10. Sammy B
11. Mrs. Jayme
12. Calan
13. Koltin
14. Langston
15. (r)Karen
16. (r)Priti
17. (r)Allie
18. (r)Grace
19. (r)Caleb (I keep spelling it with a K)
20. (AA)Michael Banet
21. *Evan

Kiper's grade: B. Jaylee was the first overall pick and with good reason. In fact, I would argue Jessica has the best top-3 out of any group. The make-or-break will be whether Jessica can draw up contracts lucrative enough for veterans Jay, Mr. Carey, Bubs, and Erica to come to a mobility session; my initial guess is she'll have to clear up some cap room before making such an offer. I also question her loyalty to the two families who live furthest away (Bettys and Pfannes). Picking up Michael Banet as the last Babies selection was a steal, as well as Evan with the wild card.

Jenny from the Block (Mrs. Van)

1. Paris
2. Mrs. Burton
3. Shakes
4. Mr. Gjon
5. Lily
6. Madison
7. Coach Casey
8. Conamora
9. Mrs. Nevarez
10. Mrs. Lanette
11. Sarah Curtis
12. Caitlin O'Malley
13. Coach T
14. Kadence
15. (r)World-Wide Wesley
16. (r)William
17. (r)Zach
18. (r)Isabella
19. (r)Ashlyn
20. (AA)Kendall
21. *Javier 

Kiper's grade: B. While Mrs. Van doesn't have the flashy names at the top of her board, she is loaded with consistency that I believe makes her a slight favorite to come out of the Harry Potter Workout as the winner. Caitlin, Coach T, and Kadence could end up being steals in the late rounds. Todd also believes she drafted the best Rookie prospects, but I don't quite agree. Mrs. Burton's decision to sleep in through the Disney Workout might be an ominous sign of a too-early second round pick, especially when Luke and Cecilia were still on the board. Also, rumor is Mrs. Tara has picked a new bff in an outward rebellion of Mrs. Van repeatedly passing on the fellow mom.

Bruce Almighty (Mr. Van) 

1. Josh Van
2. Bethany
3. Mr. Mark
4. Mr. Kuiper
5. Woooooooooorden
6. Mrs. Tara
7. Bewick
8. Mrs. Hana
9. Crystal
10. Mr. Bennis
11. Chase
12. Schott
13. Sam Curtis
14. Mr. Malak
15. (r)Jack Dav
16. (r)Samantha
17. (r)Cam
18. (r)Katelyn
19. (r)Mr. Slade
20. (AA)Mallory
21. *Dickey

Kiper's grade: C+. This is a clear case of someone going with personal favorites over doing what's right. Not only the favoritism of drafting his own son as his 1st-rounder (3rd overall) with Katie Shakes, Anto, and Dillon still on the board, but also taking Mr. Mark and Mr. Kuiper in back-to-back picks when even Todd knows the golf course will eventually override any desire of a dedicated Summer at the Champions Club from those dads. I do, however, have to say that Mr. Van found a couple diamonds that could really carry the team: Bethany had a 1st-round grade on my Big Ol' Board (2nd overall to Jaylee), and Mrs. Tara (a 2nd-rounder on my board). I also have note from Bewick's agent (Bill Nye the Science Guy) that his client is requesting a trade, which could help Mr. Van find some young talent to round out the middle of his roster.

Ol' Hitches-in-Short-Britches (Owen)

1. Lulu
2. Anto
3. Moustaache
4. Dillon
5. Dylan
6. Emma Lang
7. Tea'
8. Makenna
9. Sydney
10. Aaron Sexton
11. Alex Schulz
12. Mr. Andrew
13. Zander
14. Mrs. Carey
15. (r)Kyron Burton
16. (r)Blake Kuiper
17. (r)Josh Backos
18. (r)Josh Perkins
19. (r)Erica Slade
20. (AA)Josh Bennis
21. *Emily O'Malley

Kiper's grade: C. I'll say this about Owen: for someone who has thrust into front-office duty straight from the custodian's closet, this was the best late-round drafting out of all four teams. Aaron Sexton in the 10th and Mrs. Carey in the 14th(!) rounds are the steals of the draft, as both are 3rd rounders on my Big Ol' Board. And Kyron Burton and Josh Perkins are 1-and-2 overall on my Lil' Ol' Rookie Board. Unfortunately his lack of preparation hurt him with some big selections, where he went with names instead of production: Josh Bennis as the first Babies choice is questionable due to vacations, as is Moustaache and Dylan in the top-5. And Lang as a 6th rounder is not quite as questionable as Elizabeth taking Josh Howey 3rd overall in 2018, but it's not far off. Owen's best hope is his personal attendance (which, I believe, will be best out of the captains) and a strong showing from Emily O'Malley will give him a shot at the title.