2008 Fantasy Baseball Top 10

Alex Rodriguez Tops List of the Ten Best MLB Rotisserie Players

Feb 8, 2008

The ten best players for your fantasy baseball team.

1. Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees (2007 Statistics: .314 BA, 54 HR, 156 RBI, 143 R, 24 SB). He is the best player in baseball. He may be the best player of all time. So even if A-Rod has one of his “bad” seasons, he is still going to hit .290 with 38 homers and 120 RBI. If he gives you a good year, then you'll probably win your league.

2. Matt Holliday, Colorado Rockies (.340 BA, 36 HR, 137 RBI, 120 R, 11 SB). Holliday is probably going to win the National League MVP award, so you might want him on your team. Just like Peavy, he's got a ton of talent and his park favors his game. Plus, Holliday is surrounded by good hitters who will give him plenty of RBI opportunities. Last year was no fluke. Holliday has been building to this level for four seasons, and in 2008, he will hit his peak.

3. Jake Peavy, San Diego Padres (19-6, 2.54 ERA, 240 SO, 1.061 WHIP). Every fantasy baseball team needs an ace, and Jake Peavy will once again be an ace in 2008. He's got great stuff, great control, he plays in huge PetCo Park, and half the teams in the National League can't hit. Peavy has come into his own; expect another great season.

4. Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals (.327 BA, 32 HR, 103 RBI, 99 R, 2 SB). Everybody knows he's 1 or 2 when healthy, but that elbow should cause concern.

5. Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins (.331, 29 HR, 81 RBI, 139 R, 41 SB). If conventional wisdom could indeed speak, it would tell you to draft Jose Reyes or Jimmy Rollins as the top fantasy shortstop. And conventional wisdom would be wrong. Rollins is due for a letdown in performance after his stunning 2007 season, and Reyes doesn't hit well enough to justify taking him over Ramirez.

6. David Wright, New York Mets (.325 BA, 30 HR, 107 RBI, 113 R, 34 SB). After A-Rod, the battle for the best player at the hot corner comes down to Wright vs. Miguel Cabrera. Wright gets the nod because he will steal at least 30 bases, while Cabrera will steal about two.

7. Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers (.320 BA, 34 HR, 119 RBI, 91 R, 2 SB). Cabrera’s first four full seasons have been nothing short of remarkable. Now that he is going to be hitting between Gary Sheffield and Magglio Ordonez, he could have his best offensive season. The only problem with Cabrera is that he’s chubby, and he keeps getting chubbir. It hasn’t hurt his game yet, but well, you never know. So long as he stays below 300 pounds, he will surely keep hitting over .300.

8. Jose Reyes, New York Mets (.280 BA, 12 HR, 57 RBI, 119 R, 78 SB). After his late season slump and rumors that he is a clubhouse disruption, a lot of fantasy owners might be hesitant to draft Reyes in the early going. Don't fall into this trap. Use a high draft pick, or if you are in an auction league, spend if you have to get him, because Jose Reyes is going to steal 80 bases this year, and nobody else in baseball will top 60. He'll also hit cose to .300 and score a ton of runs with Wright and Beltran backing him up.

9. Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies (.332 BA, 32 HR, 103 RBI, 104 R, 9 SB). Utley was the frontrunner for the National League MVP award until he missed the month of August with a broken hand. Even though he missed thirty games, Utley still put up the best all-around numbers among second basemen. He hits in a great lineup, with Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino will give him plenty of RBI opportunities. He’ll also steal at least 20 bases and score a lot of runs, with Ryan Howard and Pat "the Bat" Burrell hitting behind him.

10. Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies (.268 BA, 47 HR, 136 RBI, 94 R, 1 SB). Howard can beat the daylights out of a baseball. He’s got Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins hitting in front of him and Pat Burrell hitting behind him. He hits in homer-friendly Citizens Bank Park. He missed thirty games last year and still put up monster numbers. If he could just strike out less, Howard would challenge Pujols as the best first baseman in fantasy baseball.

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