Well, it's almost time for everyone's 2009 fantasy baseball draft. To help you through the process, here is a quick cheat sheet of the projected Top 50 Fantasy Baseball Players for 2009. Listed next to each player's name is his 2008 key statistics.
While there is no perfect way to "rank" fantasy baseball players -- after all, no one can predict which players will slump or suffer injuries -- revewing the statistics from the prior year is a loose indication of future success.
Future articles will examine three-year and five-year player performance trends in a further effort to identify those players who are poised for great season, and can thus help your fantasy basbeall team succeed. For now, take a quick look at this information; it will help you get started.
1. Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals 1B (.357 BA/37 HR/116 RBI/100 Runs/7 Steals)
2. David Wright, New York Mets 3B (.302 BA/33 HR/124 RBI/115 Runs/15 Steals)
3. Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins SS (.301 BA/33 HR/67 RBI/125 RBI/35 Steals)
4. Jose Reyes, New York Mets SS (.297 BA/16 HR/68 RBI/113 Runs/56 Steals)
5. Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians OF (.268 BA/33 HR/90 RBI/101 Runs/38 Steals)
6. Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies 2B (.292 BA/33 HR/104 RBI/113 Runs/14 Steals)
7. Carlos Beltran, New York Mets OF (.284 BA/27 HR/112 RBI/116 Runs/25 Steals)
8. Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies 1B (.251 BA/48 HR/146 RBI/105 Runs/1 Steal)
9. Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers 1B (.292 BA/37 HR/127 RBI/85 Runs/1 Steal)
10. Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees 1B (.308 BA/33 HR/121 RBI/102 Runs/2 Steals)
11.Lance Berkman, Houston Astros 1B (.312 BA/29 HR/106 RBI/114 Runs/18 Steals)
12. Alex Rodriguez , New York Yankees 3B (.302 BA/35 HR/103 RBI/101 Runs/18 Steals)**
13. Alfonso Soriano, Chicago Cubs OF (.280/29 HR/75 RBI/76 Runs/19 Steals - in 109 games)
14. Ryan Braun - Milwaukee Brewers OF (.285 BA/37 HR/106 RBI/92 Runs/14 Steals)
15. Jimmy Rollins, Philadelphia Phillies SS (.277 BA/11 HR/59 RBI/76 Runs/47 Steals)
16. Johan Santana, New York Mets SP (16-7/ 2.53 ERA/ 206 strikeouts/ 1.15 WHIP)
17. Manny Ramirez, Los Angeles Dodgers OF (.332 BA/37 HR/121 RBI)
18. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers OF (.304 BA/31 HR/130 RBI/98 Runs/9 Steals)
19. "Bossman Junior" Upton, Tampa Bay Rays OF (.273 BA/9 HR/67 RBI/ 85 Runs/44 Steals)***
20. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants SP (18-5/ 2.61 ERA/ 265 Strikeouts/ 1.18 WHIP)
21. CC Sabathia, New York Yankees SP (17-10 / 2.70 ERA/ 251 Strikeouts/ 1.15 WHIP)
22. Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins 1B (.300 BA/23 HR/129 RBI/97 RBI/1 Steal)
23. Matt Holliday, Oakland Athletics OF (.321 BA/25 HR/88 RBI/107 Runs/28 Steals)
24. Prince Fielder, Milwaukee Brewers 1B (.276 BA/34 HR/102 RBI/86 Runs/3 Steals)
25. Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox 2B (.326 BA/17 HR/83 RBI/118 Runs/20 Steals)
26. Vladimir Guerrero, Los Angeles Angels OF (.303/27 HR/91 RBI/85 Runs/5 Steals)
27. Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays 3B (.272 BA/27 HR/85 RBI/67 Runs/7 Steals)
28. Ian Kinsler, Texas Rangers 2B (.319 BA/18 HR/71 RBI/102 Runs/26 Steals)
29. Jake Peavy, San Diego Padres SP (10-11/ 2.85 ERA/ 166 Strikeouts/ 1.18 WHIP)
30. Carlos Quentin, Chicago White Sox OF (.288 BA/36 HR/100 RBI/96 Runs/7 Steals)
31. Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers OF (.290 BA/18 HR/76 RBI/93 RBI/35 Steals)
32. Brandon Webb, Arizona Diamondbacks SP (22-7/ 3.30 ERA/ 183 Strikeouts/1.12 WHIP)
33. Carl Crawford, Tampa Bay Rays OF (.273 BA/8 HR/57 RBI/69 Runs/25 Steals)
34. Jason Bay, Boston Red Sox OF (.286 BA/31 HR/101 RBI/111 Runs/10 Steals)
35. Brian Roberts, Baltimore Orioles 2B (.296 BA/9 HR/57 RBI/107 Runs/40 steals)
36. Cole Hamels, Philadelphia Phillies SP (14-10/3.09 ERA/196 Strikeouts/1.08 ERA)
37. Geovany Soto, Chicago Cubs C (.285 BA/23 HR/86 RBI/66 Runs/0 Steals)
38. David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox DH/1B (.264 BA/23 HR/89 RBI/74 Runs/1 SB)
39. Aramis Ramirez, Chicago Cubs 3B (.289 BA/27 HR/111 RBI/97 Runs/2 Steals)
40. Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves C (.301 BA/23 HR/87 RBI/68 Runs/5 SB)
41. Adrian Gonzalez, San Diego Padres 1B (.279 BA/36 HR/119 RBI/103 Runs/0 Steals)
42. Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox RP (41 Saves/77 striekouts/2.34 ERA/0.99 WHIP)
43. Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox 1B (.312 BA/29 HR/115 RBI/ 91 Runs/3 Steals)
44. Dan Haren, Arizona Diamondbacks SP (16-8. 3.33 ERA/206 Strikeouts/1.13 WHIP)
45. Chipper Jones, Atlanta Braves 3B (.364 BA/22 HR/75 RBI/82 Runs/4 Steals)
46. Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays SP (20-11/ 2.78 ERA/ 206 Strikeouts/ 1.05 WHIP)
47. Brandon Phillips, Cincinnati Reds 2B (.261 BA/21 HR/78 RBI/80 Runs/23 Steals)
48. Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins C (.328 BA/9 HR/85 RBI/98 Runs/1 Steal)
49. Brad Lidge, Philadelphia Phillies RP (41 saves/ 1.95 ERA/ 90 Strikeouts/ 1.23 WHIP)
50. Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees RP (39 Saves/ 1.40 ERA/ 74 Strikeouts/ 0.66 WHIP)
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** Rodriguez had surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip on March 9, 2009. He is expected to return at some point in early to mid-May. A healthy A-Rod is the #1 or #2 pick, so by missing a month, he drops to #12.
*** The Greatest Nickname of All Time.
