|
1. Carl Crawford - BOS
After pulling off the biggest trade during the offseason by
landing Adrian Gonzalez, Boston put the cherry on top and signed Carl Crawford
to a 7-year deal. Anyone who averaged
50 stolen bases per season over the past 8 years is certainly valuable, but
toss in a career-high 19 HRs and 90 RBI in 2010 and you have a gem. It will be interesting to see where Crawford
bats in the lineup, but all signs point to him flourishing in Beantown.
2. Carlos Gonzalez - COL
CarGo finally popped and delivered on the breakout year
owners always wanted. His 336-24-117-26
line made him a legitimate MVP candidate and now a stalwart at the top of
fantasy drafts. His 135 strikeouts last
season is a little troubling, but not nearly enough to offset the benefits of
playing in Colorado.
3. Ryan Braun - MIL
Braun averaged 34 homeruns per season, but regressed a bit
in 2010 going deep 25 times. His .304
average, 103 RBI, and 14 SBs were fine, it’s just that owners were expecting
more. Braun always seems to have some
sort of minor ailment, but he’s played in 157 and 158 games over the past two
seasons. If he can maintain his health
and remain on the field, he has a strong chance at rebounding in 2011.
4. Josh Hamilton - TEX
The scary thing was that Hamilton only needed 133 games to
post a tremendous line - .359-95-32-100-8 and snag AL MVP honors. The average may adjust downward if he had
played more, but every other total would have certainly risen. But, that’s the story with Hamilton – will
he ever stay healthy for an entire season?
5. Matt Holliday - STL
Even though Holliday’s totals were definitely inflated by
his time in Colorado, he has produced some pretty steady numbers throughout his
career. The days of a 28-stolen base
season are gone, but he’s a solid choice to land at .300-25-100-10.
6. Nelson Cruz - TEX
The numbers Cruz has produced in limited time are
amazing. He landed at 33 HRs/20 SBs
after playing in only 128 games in 2009 and last year he was limited to 108
games but still managed 22 HRs and 17 SBs.
Drafting Cruz is simply your standard risk/reward proposition.
7. Matt Kemp - LA
Kemp struck out 170 times last year and saw his average
plummet to .249 while hitting 15 less homeruns. Team drama and girl drama are being blamed as the primary sources
for the dip, which, if true, would be great.
If he can regain his focus, he can regain top-tier fantasy status.
8. Alex Rios - CHW
Rios was rejuvenated in his first full year in Chicago. And he provides value across all
categories,.284-89-21-88-34, and playing in a hitter-friendly home park while
being surrounded by a strong lineup sure doesn’t hurt either.
9. Shin-Soo Choo - CLE
You want to talk about pressure? By all accounts, if Korea didn’t win the Asian Games in baseball,
Choo would have been required to serve out his 2-year military obligation in
Korea. Thankfully, Korea did win, so
owners have another chance to acquire a pretty consistent player who has
back-to-back .300-20-20 seasons.
10. Andrew McCutchen - PIT
McCutchen hit .286 for the second year in a row and
increased his stolen base total from 22 to 33.
This year, he may hit 3rd in the lineup but he says he will
still be aggressive on the basepaths.
If he can find a way to still steal bases out of the number 3 spot, then
an increase in the 56 RBI total can only help his value.
 |
|
