'08 Fantasy Baseball Preview (Position-wise)

By: Andrew Katz
It’s never too early to look ahead to next season, so here are my projected top players at their respective positions for the ’08 Fantasy Baseball campaign (keeping in mind that this is in regard to the ’08 season alone):
Catcher:
1) Russell Martin – Seems like a lock for 25/25 and with the addition of Jones and the maturation of some the Dodgers’ young stars 100 runs and 100 rbis are not out of the question.
2) Victor Martinez – Expect the same as last year…which just happens to be outstanding relative to his position on the diamond.
3) Jarrod Saltalamacchia – Could end up number one here by year’s end. The guy has 30+ HR potential and could reach that as soon as this season the wild cards being his team and playing time.
1B:
1) Albert Pujols – At first base, I’m looking for consistency and no one embodies the word more than Albert. I would expect 45/140/.335 this season, and that’s being conservative for a man of this caliber just hitting his prime.
2) Ryan Howard – Expect comparable numbers to Albert in every category expect average, where Albert probably will have about a 50 point edge.
3) Prince Fielder – Book him for 50 jacks this year, and expect his other numbers to go as the Brewers go.
2B:
1) B.J. Upton – (Bold!) He made tremendous strides last season and at the ripe old age of 24 this season, expect even bigger things. And yes, I do realize how good Chase is, but we are looking at a potential 35/35 guy who likely will hit in the .310 range this year in a very solid lineup.
2) Chase Utley – Probably the safer pick over Upton (clearly another one of my unhealthy crushes in case you couldn’t determine that from the blurb above) seeing as he is one of the most sure thing top 10 players.
3) Brandon Phillips – No reason why he can’t go 30/30 again, too bad he’ stuck on a team where he may never see 100 RBIs or Rs ever again.
Note: Fantasy owners should note, for strategy purposes, that second base is not nearly as weak as it used to be. Other potential studs for this upcoming season include Asdrubal Cabrera, Howie Kendrick, Dustin Pedroia, Dan Uggla, and Robinson Cano with Kinsler, Iwamura, Polanco, and Aaron Hill all shaping up to be more than serviceable. Second base has most certainly surpassed shortstop in terms of quality and may now be even stronger top to bottom than third.
SS:
1) Hanley Ramirez – Runs may suffer slightly due to the loss of Miggy, but otherwise the guy basically creates his own stat sheet. Expect similar numbers to last year only with more power.
2) Jose Reyes – His second half really worried me last year. Let’s just hope that he gets his act together and puts up the numbers he’s capable of. He could fluctuate anywhere between numbers 1-50 in the Y! rankings.
3) Jimmy Rollins – I hate this man, but that doesn’t stop me from recognizing that he always on base and batting in front of what’s possibly the scariest lineup in baseball.
3B:
1) Alex Rodriguez – Even if he has an ‘off-year’ you can expect 40/135/.290.
1a) Miguel Cabrera – My boy is finally playing on a major league caliber team! There is no limit for the numbers he could put up this season. My bold prediction: 46 HR 165 RBI .340 AVG 130 R.
3) Ryan Braun – No Sophomore Slump here! Expect him and Prince to keep mashing away. 20 steals is also very possible.
OF:
1) Matt Holliday – Just reaching his prime and he plays half his game at Coors.
2) Carl Crawford – This is the year I think he solidifies himself as a top 5 or 10 fantasy player. In that young, improving Rays lineup, he’s a lock for 100 runs and if they mix his role up in the lineup, 20 HR and 100 RBI suddenly sound very reachable.
3) Alfonso Soriano – He’ll be healthy this year so lock him for 35/25/.310 and if the rest of the lineup shows any life 100/100 as well.
4) Magglio Ordonez – Hope you got him cheap last year because the word’s out by now that he’s a monster.
5) Curtis Granderson – Fortunately, if you can’t get Magglio, people still tend to undervalue Granderson, who may be the most complete player in baseball. Remember how he had at least 20 2B, SB, and HR last season? Why rule out 30 this season?
6) Ichiro – He’s 35? Really? Because his numbers tell me that he’s 25 and that he’s going to play like it next season.
7) Vladimir Gurrerro- Had a down year last year with everyone injured, but now with the addition of Torii Hunter and possible emergence of Brandon Wood (Troy Glaus without the roids anyone?) Vlad should be back in form.
8) Alex Rios – Alex is just starting to show signs of the player he can be. He may be dealt for the right price, but even if that’s not the case, he should be in line for 30/110/110 with 15 steals. Also take into account that he will go later than you think in most fantasy drafts.
9) Hunter Pence – Think Granderson except he plays a much uglier style game (watch him swing and you’ll understand) but will get you close to the same results.
SP:
1) Johan Santana – Umm…Johan in a contract year, Johan in a contract year, Johan in a contract year.
2) Jake Peavy – The fact that he just got paid shouldn’t affect him at all. He’s a competitor and will do anything to win, as evidenced by offering to start on three days rest in September last season.
3) Brandon Webb – You know what you’re going to get: 16-20 W’s, 200+ IP, sub-4.00 ERA 1.20 WHIP.
4) C.C. Sabathia – C.C. also is in a contract year but I would expect a slight drop-off from last season if only because never before in his career was he able to stay healthy for a whole season AND get that kind of run support (plus the fact that every team in the AL Central improved except for Cleveland.)
5) Cole Hamels – Made a huge jump from first to second year in the bigs, no reason why he couldn’t win 20 this season.
6) Josh Beckett – Best pitcher on the best team so you know he’s a lock for 15 regardless of how he pitches (assuming he stays clear of blister related issues.) The question is will ’06 or ’07 Beckett show up.
7) John Lackey – Quietly won 19 last season and is my pick for ‘most value for draft location’ this year, even if he probably is going in the 3rd. On this team (improved hitting, solid bullpen) he could win 20+. Gave up 4+ runs only 18% of his starts last season so he’s always gonna have a shot at that W. I’m banking on 23 wins personally.
8) Roy Oswalt – Don’t be fooled, he hasn’t gotten any worse over the last few years, his team has. Still a front-line starter on any fantasy roster.
9) Fausto Carmona – One year wonder? Nope, more like the AL’s Brandon Webb, only younger.
10) Scott Kazmir – Calling it right now: this is the year he puts it all together for a Cy Young type season. Expect 3.30 ERA 250 Ks 1.25 WHIP 16+ wins (depending on how well the rest of his team plays around him, and according to previous columns, they should improve substantially.)
11) Tim Lincecum – Improved control the second half of the season and showed that he has all the makings of an absolute horse. Don’t expect any sort of Prior/Wood/Liriano type injuries ever, he has never once (since he started pitching) had to ice his shoulder after a start.
12) Dan Haren – I hear people talking about how he is going to run over teams now that he’s in the NL, but I feel quite differently on the matter. First of all, look at his splits from last season. His era rose every month culminating in an ERA close to 5. Second, pitching in Oakland is not like pitching in any other AL park. Just look at that park’s track record for producing quality pitchers who don’t fair nearly as well the season after they leave Oakland (Zito, Mulder, Hudson.) Essentially, it is the AL’s version of PetCo Park. Barry Zito found that it wasn’t so friendly in the NL last season and I feel Haren may have similar luck. However, considering that there is some evidence pointing towards Haren potentially dominating in the desert, he still is probably worth a top 12 ranking.
RP:
1) Jonathan Papelbon – Last season’s stats: 1.85 ERA .77 WHIP 37 Saves 84 Ks…any reason to believe he won’t at least maintain those kind of numbers?
2) Francisco Rodriguez – Not quite as dominant as Papelbon but should see equal if not more save opportunities.
3) Joe Nathan – He is the Rock of closers. The only question is if the Twins will unload him, and of course will such a move help or hinder his stats.
4) Billy Wagner – I like my closers to be reliable (maybe not to their teams, but to me year in and year out in the fantasy world) and Billy consistently puts up the numbers. Even if he is aging…
5) Mariano Rivera –…Billy is 2 years younger than Mo and…
6) Trevor Hoffman –… Mo is one year younger than Hoffman.
Prospects:
1) Clay Buchholz – He threw a no-no in his SECOND start and have you seen that curve!!?? Combine that with the fact he will be going up against 4th and 5th starters and this youngster could win 15+ this year.
2) Jay Bruce – Unreal power. It’s all about when he gets the call to the show.
3) Joba Chamberlin – Basically unhittable last year. How long will it take him to adjust to starting in the bigs?
4) Cameron Maybin – Opening day starter in the OF for the Fish. 20/20 right away is possible.
5) Ian Kennedy – Looked impressive last season. He will be the best 5th starter the Yanks have had in ages.
6) Jacoby Ellsbury – Please don’t trade him Theo. He was born to play here. 100 runs this season? For damn sure.
7) Justin Upton – Expect him to take some time to adjust like his brother, but he has a higher ceiling than B.J. according to scouts (and just to be clear, B.J. has no ceiling.)
8) Evan Longoria – Possible 3B on opening day for the Rays. Batting 5th or 6th in that lineup is any rookie’s dream.