ESPN seems to have some glaring holes in the second basemen rankings, so here’s your cup of tea for the day.
| RANK | OVR | Name | Team | Position(s) | Mixed $ | AL/NL $ | UPDOWN |
| 1 | 14 | Dustin Pedroia | BOS | 2B | 28 | 27 | |
| There’s no arguing with Pedroia at 1, but I wouldn’t expect a repeat of 2008. Pedroia doesn’t strike the same fear you’d expect from an MVP. 14th overall seems right, but second base has a lot of value this year. | |||||||
| 2 | 16 | Chase Utley | PHI | 2B | 26 | 27 | |
| If Utley comes in healthy, and gets at least a little time under his belt prior to the season – he’s number one. Utley has about 3 weeks of the season to take off, before I’d drop him below Brandon Phillips and crew. | |||||||
| 3 | 25 | Ian Kinsler | TEX | 2B | 22 | 26 | |
| The little guy cannot stay healthy, at all. He’s a superb talent that can’t seem to play a whole season. Obviously, you’re going to have to rank Kinsler based on the depth of your league. If you can fill the 25 or so games that Kinsler will miss with a half-decent player, then Kinsler might just be the best fantasy option at second base. As a player, I like him more than Pedroia but less than Utley. | |||||||
| 4 | 34 | Brandon Phillips | CIN | 2B | 17 | 23 | |
| Phillips brings everything except batting average, which he should hike up to at least .270ish this year. Phillips is a given for 20/20 with the possibility of 25/25 or even 25/30! The Reds should be a blast to watch this year, and having Phillips on your team will at least keep things fun. | |||||||
| 5 | 38 | Brian Roberts | BAL | 2B | 16 | 24 | |
| At least the Orioles think that Roberts has something left in the tank, giving him a new multi-year deal. Roberts leaves a little bit to be desired in the power category but more than makes up for it with SB numbers. He went for 50 a couple years ago, and 40 last year. Like the Reds, the O’s are stacked with young talent and should be fun to watch. I figure Roberts will miss 40 SB by a couple. | |||||||
| 6 | 62 | Alexei Ramirez | CHW | 2B | 13 | 21 | |
| Ramirez is the most interesting of the bunch, as he seems to have all the potential in the world. He could easily finish the season as the top second baseman in the league. Not often do you get a player outside the top-50, that has the potential to jump up into the top-15. Here’s the problem with Ramirez: He Swings at Everything and gets caught stealing way too much. Ramirez’s numbers will drop once pitchers completely clue into Ramirez’s hacking ways, and whether or not Ramirez can adjust remains up in the air. Ramirez hit 20 HR and stole 13 bases in limited playing time last year. He was unfortunately caught stealing 9 times. Is 30HR and 25 SB a possibility for Ramirez? A Resounding Yes. Could he also fall flat on his face? Indeed. | |||||||
| 7 | 91 | Dan Uggla | FLA | 2B | 9 | 18 | Down |
| Uggla posted a career high strike-out rate last year, striking out nearly one third of the time. Thankfully, he also improved upon his walk rate, negating much of the increase. Uggla’s BA is going to kill you, as he’s bound to come in somewhere between .250 and .260. You’re either going to have to punt batting average, or draft a low-HR-high-AVG player in a typical power position. If you can get 20HR and a good AVG out of a player like that, you’ll have two players with about 50 HR between them, to go with a .280 AVG. That’s not bad, and you’ll probably be getting your money’s worth. | |||||||
| 8 | 109 | Robinson Cano | NYY | 2B | 7 | 18 | Up |
| Robbie started off terribly last year, and playing in the stacked Yankees line-up will definitely help his counting stats. Most of Cano’s value will come from his AVG, or how often he gets on base. Throw Cano’s .270 AVG of 2008 out the window, and remember he used to hit .340. | |||||||
| 9 | 118 | Howie Kendrick | LAA | 2B | 7 | 17 | |
| Kendrick will get hurt, but the kid can hit. He’s in a good line-up and he’s approaching the age when things start to click. Kendrick’s a good boom/bust but Anaheim is stacked in youngins that can play the MI positions. | |||||||
| 10 | 126 | Placido Polanco | DET | 2B | 6 | 17 | Down |
| Polanco is boring, but Detroit will be improved. Polanco doesn’t do the sexy things, but he hits for average and scores runs. A safety pick that brings about 10 HR, 10SB, a Boatload of Runs and RBI and a .300+ average. People will draft the guys after Polanco before him, because their ceiling is higher – If you want a safe pick though, Polanco’s your man. Nice pick here for ESPN. | |||||||
| 11 | 143 | Jose Lopez | SEA | 2B | 5 | 16 | |
| Lopez has been raking all spring, and a repeat of last year’s numbers seems a very safe bet. Can Lopez step up and reach the 20 HR mark? I’m banking on yes. Lopez’s average will drop but the power numbers should go up. He is in a fairly terrible offense though, so whether or not he brings elite R & RBI is still in question. | |||||||
| 12 | 159 | Mike Aviles | KC | 2B/SS | 4 | 15 | Down |
| I’m not an Aviles fan, and I think this is still too high. I love the Royals this year, but Aviles is a bit old to be a rookie in my book. | |||||||
| 13 | 175 | Mark DeRosa | CLE | 2B/3B/OF | 3 | 14 | |
| DeRosa started out as a fairly sexy pick, and has returned to where he probably should be valued. He had a career year last year, and while I wouldn’t expect a complete repeat – there’s still good value here. | |||||||
| 14 | 185 | Rickie Weeks | MIL | 2B | 2 | 13 | |
| It’s Rickie’s last shot, and I think he goes hog-wild on the basepaths. Alcides Escobar is breathing down the neck of whomever falters in the infield. Rickie Weeks and the next couple guys showcase the benefits of waiting on a second baseman and then grabbing a couple high-risk players and hoping one pans out. | |||||||
| 15 | 187 | Kelly Johnson | ATL | 2B | 2 | 13 | |
| Kelly Johnson does what he does and does it well. He’s not spectacular, nor does he play in an incredible line-up, but he still has value. The .5 BB:K ratio isn’t awful, but he could cut down on his 20+ percent K Rate. BABIP says expect a downturn in AVG. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him up the ante on last years 12HR. 15Ish? 17? | |||||||
| 16 | 196 | Felipe Lopez | ARI | 2B | 1 | 13 | Up |
| My favourite sleeper this year. Lopez should be hitting near the top of that stacked Diamondback line-up. The deal with Lopez is he only plays when he wants to, so his stats tend to lie. Remember, it was only 2 years ago that Lopez stole 44 Bases. | |||||||
| 17 | 222 | Freddy Sanchez | PIT | 2B | 1 | 12 | Down |
| The Pirates are improving but Sanchez’s value is based on his batting average. If you can predict BA, then you can go ahead and rank Sanchez wherever you please. If he hits .330 again, he’ll be a steal. The improvement in the Pirates give Sanchez a bit of lee-way, as he could well score 90-95 Runs. | |||||||
| 18 | 223 | Orlando Hudson | LAD | 2B | 1 | 12 | |
| Hudson and the Dodgers. I’d move him up. He’ll be in a great line-up and I’m starting to think he bats early in the line-up rather than late in it. With Kemp, Manny and Loney behind him he’s just gotta get on base. I’d take him over Sanchez any day. | |||||||
| 19 | 253 | Kazuo Matsui | HOU | 2B | $- | 12 | |
| Matsui is starting to get up there in age but he stole 20 bases in under 400 AB in 2008. Matsui’s nearly .300 average last year, made him a steal. He probably won’t repeat the average, but a slight increase in steals if he plays a full season is very realistic. The possibility of 30SB to go with a .280 AVG is pretty appealing at this point. | |||||||
| 20 | 258 | Mark Ellis | OAK | 2B | $- | 11 | |
| Ellis had a very solid year last year, and Oakland has went out and re-loaded this off-season. With the maturation of Travis Buck, Daric Barton and the addition of Matt Holliday, and Jason Giambi; Oakland should be a very solid offense. Expect Ellis to quietly put up solid numbers. | |||||||
| 21 | 268 | Akinori Iwamura | TAM | 2B | $- | 10 | |
| He’ll put up damn near 100 runs to go with a solid batting average. You get what you pay for. | |||||||
| 22 | 294 | Mike Fontenot | CHC | 2B | $- | 9 | |
| Fontenot should get the job, but Aaron Miles is right there. If either of these two can get to 550AB, they’re in a good enough offense to outperform their draft spot. Pick 300 seems about right for the higher-upside Fontenot. | |||||||
| 23 | 295 | Clint Barmes | COL | 2B/SS | $- | 8 | Down |
| I’m not a Barmes fan, mainly because I love Ian Stewart so. You could do worse at this point, but this tier of second basemen is very deep. | |||||||
| 24 | 299 | Asdrubal Cabrera | CLE | 2B/SS | $- | 9 | Up |
| I’m high on Cabrera, and Cleveland in general. I wouldn’t have any problem putting Cabrera in Aviles spot, but anyone from 15 to 5 Dollars has the possibility to preform. | |||||||
| 25 | 323 | Aaron Hill | TOR | 2B | $- | 8 | |
| Aaron Hill is a steal at this point if he plays all year. Post Concussion Syndrome is a bitch, though. The Jays have a solid, yet not spectacular, offense. Hill will probably outperform his peers. | |||||||
| 26 | 334 | Luis Castillo | NYM | 2B | $- | 7 | Down |
| He has the second base job, but I wouldn’t touch him with a 10 foot pole. At this point, the speed has gone and while he may have a resurgence in a decent Mets line-up, I wouldn’t expect too much. | |||||||
| 27 | 378 | Emmanuel Burriss | SF | 2B/SS | $- | 6 | |
| Speed, Speed, Speed, Kelly Fransden. Burriss needs to find a spot to play to be valuable. He’s definitely worth a late round flyer based on speed alone. Same goes for Velez. The Giants are going to have to manufacture runs this year, which means speed on the basepaths. | |||||||
| 28 | 394 | Maicer Izturis | LAA | 2B/SS | $- | 6 | |
| I’m not sure how Maicer falls into this spot with the Kendrick Ranking. Maybe he’s a solid fill-in, maybe he only gets 300 AB. | |||||||
| 29 | 413 | Anderson Hernandez | WAS | 2B | $- | 5 | |
| Hernandez is someone I’d take over the previous few guys. He’s got the starting gig in a good Nats line-up and he’ll steal bases even if he gets caught. The power wont be there, but at this point what can you expect. Most of the Robots have him coming in at .250, but I’d expect more in the range of the high-.260s, low-.270s and there’s always the chance of him maturing faster than expected. | |||||||
| 30 | 424 | Chris Getz | CHW | 2B | $- | 6 | Up |
| Getz has been compared to Pedroia, at least in stature. I’m not certain as to why Getz has fallen so far in these rankings, but he definitely deserves to be higher in a good-line up that hits in a solid park. I bet he comes closer to 10 dollars than 6 dollars. | |||||||
| 31 | 427 | Ronnie Belliard | WAS | 2B/3B/1B | $- | 4 | Down |
| Boring, and no place to play….yet. With his versatility, he’ll eventually find a place to play. | |||||||
| 32 | 429 | Blake DeWitt | LAD | 2B/3B | $- | 4 | Down |
| Poor DeWitt. Blake’s got third, and Hudson was brought in to play second. The outfield is also packed. Someone’s gotta get hurt for DeWitt to produce. | |||||||
| 33 | 460 | Kevin Frandsen | SF | 2B | $- | 3 | |
| Boring, really boring. It’s hard to hype up Frandsen when you’re praying for Burriss or Velez to take his spot. | |||||||
| 34 | 467 | Aaron Miles | CHC | 2B/SS | $- | 3 | |
| Fontenot gets the job, but if you’re in a league this deep it makes sense to bet on Miles getting the job. Fontenot has some faults, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Miles snag the job | |||||||
| 35 | 473 | Nick Punto | MIN | 2B/SS | $- | 3 | |
| Punto was hurt a lot by the signing of Crede but like Belliard, he has all sorts of versatility. I think Punto out preforms the previous couple guys all the way up to Chris Getz. | |||||||
| 36 | 479 | Jeff Baker | COL | 2B/1B | $- | 2 | |
| If Helton goes down as expected, Baker will find a place to play. Otherwise, Barmes, Stewart, Tulu, and Atkins will fill the infield spots. | |||||||
| 37 | 488 | Brendan Ryan | STL | 2B/SS | $- | 1 | |
| We’re getting into very boring land, and I’d much rather take a risky pick with this selection but 1 dollar is fair. | |||||||
| 38 | 523 | Brendan Harris | MIN | 2B/SS/3B | $- | 1 | |
| A starting gig and maturation should get Harris at least to a few bucks. He’s a steal this late. | |||||||
| 39 | 526 | Marco Scutaro | TOR | 2B/SS/3B | $- | 1 | Up |
| Full time starter, in a decent offense is worth more than a buck. His average isn’t so awful that he’ll hurt you. | |||||||
| 40 | 529 | Eugenio Velez | SF | 2B | $- | 1 | Up |
| Ditto Emmanuel Burriss. | |||||||
| 41 | 548 | Alexi Casilla | MIN | 2B | $- | 1 | Way Up |
| Really, this is what’s up? Casilla is a beast, and I adore the man. What the hell is ESPN thinking? .280 AVG with 25-30SB and you’re ranking him 41st? I have him in the top 10! | |||||||
| 42 | 683 | Ronny Cedeno | SEA | 2B/SS | $- | 1 | |
| 43 | 704 | Ray Durham | FA | 2B | $- | $- | |
| 44 | 719 | Adam Kennedy | TAM | 2B | $- | $- | |
| 45 | 722 | Mark Grudzielanek | FA | 2B | $- | $- | |
| 46 | 730 | Mark Loretta | LAD | 2B | $- | $- | |
| 47 | 738 | Adrian Cardenas | OAK | 2B | $- | $- | |
| 48 | 739 | Joe Inglett | TOR | 2B/OF | $- | $- | |
| 49 | 745 | Alberto Callaspo | KC | 2B | $- | $- | Up |
| I have trouble believing that Teahan can stick at 2nd. | |||||||
| 50 | 746 | Edgar Gonzalez | SD | 2B | $- | $- | |
Here’s the problem: ESPN released new rankings, and has people floating around all over the field but failed to mention the two guys that seem like a lock at second base.
Skip Schumaker – St. Louis Cardinals: Skip is a dirty dirty man, and has faired very well at second base. While he only hit 8 HR, he went for 87R and 8 SB while batting above .300. Right now, he looks like a glamorized Aki Iwamura, but just wait — he’ll be a top-10 2nd basemen.
Mark Teahan – Kansas City Royals: Teahan looked half-decent at the WBC playing third, and he’s got a great arm. However, playing second base for the Royals has been a chore. He keeps committing errors, and Collaspo is a fine replacement. In a perfect fantasy world, Teahan would get enough bats at 2nd Base to gain eligibility and then return to the outfield. His bat makes him roster-able as a second basemen, but not particularly an outfielder.
Matt Antonelli – San Diego Padres: Antonelli slept through the majority of the 2008 season, waking up occasionally to strike out. However, this is still the uber-prospect who made 2007 his bitch. Maybe he makes the big club out of camp, but he’ll probably spend some time down in the minors now that the Padres got the super-talented David Eckstein. I’d still rather have Antonelli over the Joe Inglett’s of the world.
The Phillies Situation – Marcus Giles, WHAT? and Eric Bruntlett: Bruntlett is penciled in at every conceivable spot on the Phillies depth chart. If Utley misses serious time, one of these two gents could actually have some value. Marcus Giles? Yah, he’s in camp. He used to be very good too, so if you’re in a deep deep league — take a flyer, maybe.
German Duran – Texas Rangers: There’s some upside here, but he only gets a shot if Kinsler hurts himself, which is guarenteed. 25 Games, it is. If Kinsler ever goes down permenantly, Duran should be nabbed up in deeper leagues.
Eric Young Jr. – Colorado Rockies: He killed Arizona fall league pitching, and has been taking some practice at second base — maybe worth a shot. If he gets a job in the outfield or at second, he’ll steal some.
Gordon Beckham – Chicago White Sox: As of today, Tuesday March 17th, Gordon Beckham is listed atop the White Sox depth chart at second base. AWESOME. Beckham was drafted last year, 8th overall and is just a wee lil child. Anyways, if he starts he’s good enough, as raw as he is, to ball out. It’ll be a roller-coaster ride though. White Sox manager, Ozzie Guillen seems to think that Beckham shouldn’t be used as a UTIL man under any circumstances — which is stellar for Beckham’s development and his keeper league prospects.
Angel Berroa – New York Yankees: Here’s the deal, Cano had an MRI yesterday and it revealed bursitis of the shoulder. This is not good, and there’s a good chance it’ll flare up again throughout the season. Those little bursae sacs are bastards, and if Cano can’t go or Jeter gets hurt, Berroa steps in. In that Yankee line-up, anyone can be successful.
