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. Albert Pujols (STL)- The reigning NL MVP is the type of talent that only comes along once in a generation. He hits well over .300 and slugs over .600 every season. Last season he walked twice as much as he struck out. He’s never driven in fewer than 100 runs. He has made at least 600 plate appearances every year since he entered the league in 2001. No other player in baseball gives you the type of production guarantees that Fat Albert does. He is the clear cut number 1 pick in this year’s draft.
2. Prince Fielder (MIL)- The only other first basemen to slug over .600, Prince Fielder had a career year in ‘09 after a disappointing 2008 season. At the age of 26, he is just entering his prime, and has an excellent chance to repeat last season’s performance with few changes to Milwaukee’s lineup. Pencil the fat bastard in for 40 homers and 120 RBIs with the potential for much more.
3. Mark Teixeira (NYY)-In his first season in pinstripes, Teixeira hit 39 homeruns and drove in 122 runs. And that was after a long slump to start the season. Now that Arod is healthy and will bat behind Big Tex for a full season, you can expect even better numbers from the switch hitting first baseman. Ryan Howard may be the bigger slugger, but Teixeira’s average and on base percentage make him the more valuable player.
4. Ryan Howard (PHI)-Howard improved his batting average in ‘09 while maintaining his huge homerun numbers. He still strikes out way too much (186 times last season), but his consistent RBI production batting out of the clean up spot in Philly’s high powered lineup makes him too good to pass up. Playing at that little league field they call Citizen’s Bank Ballpark doesn’t hurt either.
5. Miguel Cabrera (DET)- Miguel Cabrera loves to eat. And apparently after last year’s fiasco in Minnesota, he loves to drink too. But he sure can hit a baseball, and that’s all we really care about in fantasy baseball. Believe it or not, after 6 full seasons in the pros, he is only turning 27 this year, an age considered by many experts to be a baseball player’s prime. The lack of offensive threats in Detroit’s lineup hurts his value, but he is the second most consistent first baseman on this list, making him a sure fire top 20 pick on draft day.
6. Joey Votto (CIN)- A sleeper pick in ‘09, Votto delivered… when he actually played. After missing significant time due to “anxiety issues”, Votto returned to hit 25 homeruns and 84 RBIs. Extrapolate those numbers over a full season, and you have a sure fire 30-100-.300 candidate. Add the fact that he plays at the Great American Ballpark, and Votto has a chance to put up top 5 numbers at a 4th round price on draft day.
7. Adrian Gonzalez (SD)-Adrian Gonzalez managed to hit 40 homeruns last year while playing half of his games at Petco Park. Granted, he only hit .244 and slugged .446 at home, but he more than made up for it when the Padres hit the road. If San Diego trades him at some point this season, his value immediately sky rockets to top 3 at the position. Considering the fact that the Red Sox have been interested in him for a couple years, and they have the pieces to get a deal done, Gonzalez might turn out to be the steal of the draft in 2010.
8. Kendry Morales (LAA)- The Cuban defector spent 4 years in the minors before getting his shot, but for Angels fans he was well worth the wait. Morales came out swinging, and actually improved as the season progressed, slugging .614 after the All Star break. While there are no guarantees that he improves on his numbers from last season, you have to like the trend. Even if 2009 was his ceiling, I don’t know any owner who would turn down a 30-100-.300 player in the middle rounds on draft day.
9. Justin Morneau (MIN)-A back injury derailed Morneau’s season in 2009, and the Twins first basemen was shut down in early September. The injury clearly affected his numbers, as he hovered around the Mendoza line after the All Star break. The former MVP is clearly better than this ranking indicates, but at a position flush with sluggers, you’re better off taking a player with a clean bill of health.Â
10. Billy Butler (KC)- This was a close call, but Butler gets the nod at the 10 spot on sheer potential. The Cardinal Rule of fantasy baseball is to draft consistency early and take shots on potential late. Butler can be had in the mid to late rounds, and after batting .314 and slugging .540 in the second half of ‘09, the 23 year old finally showed glimpses of becoming the big time slugger scouts projected. I wouldn’t blame anyone for taking Youkilis over Butler, but after an injury plagued season, the soon to be 31 year old might be on the downswing of his career.
