Now that 2010 is here, the fantasy baseball season is right around the corner. Your Mother’s Mustache will be previewing each position in preparation for your draft day. All rankings are based on a points system which values overall player productivity, or OPS (On-base Plus Slugging). Because if you’re still playing in a roto league, you probably also have a “Members Only” jacket hanging in your closet.
1. Alex Rodriguez (NYY)-Once again, Arod led the league in gay photo shoots. But he also returned from hip surgery in early May to hit 30 homers and drive in 100 runs. At the age of 34, the 50 home run, 150 RBI seasons are a thing of the past. But Arod still has the talent and supporting cast to put up the best numbers at the position.
2. Pablo Sandoval (SF)-Kung Fu Panda followed up his 2008 late season debut by batting .330 and slugging .555 over the course of a full season, both of which were tops at the position. At the age of 23, Sandoval has plenty of room for improvement. He’s very similar to a young Vlad Guerrero, as he can hit almost any pitch thrown to him and will take very few walks as a result. But as he matures, he’ll learn to lay off of the garbage pitches and take more walks. The end result will be a MVP candidate who contends for a batting title every year.
3. Evan Longoria (TB)-Longoria shot out of the gate to start the 2009 season, and after the first two months was on pace for 40 homeruns and 170 RBIs. That hot start quickly fizzled though, and he struggled through much of the summer. His final line was still worthy of a second round pick in your draft, but he’ll need to find some more consistency before he’ll be considered elite. At the age of 24, he still has plenty of time.
4. David Wright (NYM)-While Longoria had a rough second half, David Wright had a rough season. After being selected with a top 5 pick in most drafts, Wright disappointed fantasy owners with his worst season as a pro, barely mustering double digit homeruns and striking out at an alarming rate. Whether you want to blame the meddling Howard Johnson for changing his swing, or spacious Citi Field for swallowing homerun shots to deep right center, Wright will need to prove that he can rebound from last season before he should be considered in the first few rounds on draft day again.
5. Ryan Zimmerman (WAS)-It seems like Zimmerman has been around forever. But at the age of 25 he is just beginning to enter his prime, and if last season is any indication, he’s about to become a perenial all star for the Nationals. He finally displayed some of the power he showed in the minors, slugging over .500 for the first time in his career. While Washington’s lineup may not strike fear in the heart of any pitcher, batting in front of Adam Dunn should give Zimmerman plenty of fastballs to hit. Consider him in the first 6 rounds on draft day.
6. Gordon Beckham (CHW)- While Beckham will open the season as the White Sox starting second baseman, he will retain his eligibility at third base in most leagues, only adding to his value. A first round pick in 2008, Beckham almost made the big league team out of spring training, and if it wasn’t for his mildly retarded manager he would already have a full season of experience under his belt. His lack of experience will make him affordable on draft day, but don’t let the opportunity to select him pass you by. This will be the last year that drafting the next Chase Utley won’t cost you a second or third round pick.
7. Aramis Ramirez (CHC)-Ramirez has never been a picture of health, but he missed significant time last season with a shoulder injury and only appeared in 82 games. When he actually did play, he put up his usual .300 batting average and .500 slugging percentage. A 32 year old with a laundry list of injuries can’t be relied upon to play a full season, but if he does manage to appear in 140-150 games, Ramirez can be a mid to late round steal in your draft.
8. Mark Reynolds (ARI)- Reynolds may have hit 44 homers and driven in 102 runs last year, but he also struck out 223 times. You may not care about that last stat if you play in a rotisserie league, but for those of us living in the 21st century it’s a major deterrent. It’s also tough to get too excited about those 24 stolen bases because Reynolds never stole more than 11 in any season, including the minors. His dual eligibility at first base makes him slightly more valuable, but he still isn’t worth the mid round pick most owners will waste on him.
9. Michael Young (TEX)-Young’s first season as the Rangers third baseman was a huge success, and the move from shortstop allowed him to bulk up more than in season’s past. The result was a power surge that saw him hit more than 20 homeruns for the first time since 2005. Young will turn 33 this year, which is typically the beginning of the end for most big leaguers, but even if he can’t match his power numbers from last year he’ll still provide a strong average and plenty of runs atop the Rangers lineup.
10. Chone Figgins (SEA)- Call me a cynic, but I have a hard time buying into an injury plagued 32 year old third basemen who put up career numbers during his contract year. Figgins will certainly benefit from hitting behind Ichiro in the Mariners lineup, and he should see a slight boost in his RBIs as a result, but you may be better off rolling the dice on a young up-and-comer such as Ian Stewart at third base. There’s only one way Figgins can go from here.
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