Fantasy Baseball Preview: Tiered 1B/3B Rankings

This is similar to my outfield rankings, but hopefully in less words (that’s the dream, for time and typing purposes), but we’ll see. I’m linking 1st and 3rd basemen in one group, but will happily rank them separately at the bottom for those that aren’t interested in them being ranked together. Personally, I used to think that 3rd Basemen held more value than 1st Basemen, and I still do. There’s 5 good third basemen, a maybe, and an old guy named Larry that might play 130 games if you’re lucky…. After that it’s a gong-show and quite possibly the most shallow position in baseball. Anyhow, ranking them together makes one less page for me to write – so here it is – and even though I think Pujols is the better hitter, we’ll start off with A-Rod…

Tier 1

1. Alex Rodriguez – He plays 3rd Base, hits in a ridiculous Yankee lineup that lost Bobby Abreu and gained Mark Teixiera. He is not longer playing with a weight on his shoulders, and despite every stupid critic in the world, this guy has been clean for some time. He does it all and should continue.

2. Albert Pujols – Albert is magic. I am ranking him behind A-Rod strictly because of him playing third instead of first, but Albert is one of the best hitters I’ve ever seen. I would be stunned if Al didn’t get back to the 45+ HRs he hit in 2004 and 2006. This guy is a career .334 hitter and that doesn’t look to decline anytime soon. He doesn’t steal you bases but he does walk twice as much as he strikes out – that’s great in points leagues.

3. David Wright – The fact that he rolls at 3rd instead of 1st might have me picking him over Albert by draft time, but right now I’m sticking with Albert because he’s freaking magic. Still, David is a great addition to any team, and despite maybe A-Rod’s owner, you won’t get better production from 3rd base.

Tier 2

4. Miguel Cabrera – The American League is a hitters league, and fortunately it took Miguel the first half of the season to realize that. Fortunate for this year’s drafters. Many people forget that the big former Marlin is only 25 – and I think his seasonal highs are his basement coming into his second season with the Tigers. That lineup that everyone thought would score tons of runs last season, it will this season. But Miguel still has never hit more than the 37 homeruns and 127 RBI he picked up last season – so he can’t move ahead of Albert on my list.

5. Mark Teixeira – This guy is the meaning of consitency, and I only think his numbers improve in New York with that dirty lineup. Despite spending 2007 with Texas and Atlanta, Mark hit 30 HRs and batted in over 100 in 132 games. He split teams in 2008, again changing leagues, and hit 30HRs with 121 RBI. In that last 5 years he hasn’t had less than 30HRs and 100 RBI. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had the best season of his career in New York.

6. Justin Morneau – Morneau is very good on a team that is maturing offensively. Denard Span and Carlos Gomez are both a year older, and that should mean more people on base for Justin when he’s mashing.

7. Lance Berkman – Berks is 33 but he’s one of the best and most consistent hitters in baseball. I doubt he’ll start off on the same kind of fire he did in 2008, but there is no doubt that this guy is going to be a top hitter in baseball.

Tier 3

8. Evan Longoria – You’re probably taking Longoria a bit high if you do, but he’s a dandy. The kid is one of the Top 4 3rd basemen in the league and he’s very young.

9. Aramis Ramirez – Aramis Ramirez can easily be argued to be the 3rd best 3-bagger in your draft. Longoria is a risk because of his body of work and A-Ram is about as consistent as hitters get in a very good lineup in Chicago. Hurt for parts of ’08, his value might be just right for you on draft day.

10. Ryan Howard – This is one format where Ks really can hurt you. Howard had -196 points last season, that’s freaking amazing. Because of that, and the reality that his Ks have only grown from 180-199-199 in his first 3 seasons, he doesn’t make pound the value-meter very high in formats such as the one listed. Still, if you are in a roto league, or one that doesn’t dog Ks, this guy should move up a bit because he hammers balls and drives in runs like it’s his job – because it is.

11. Prince Fielder – Prince has lots of upside, strikes out a lot, but can still crush. He had a great 2nd half of the season in ’08 and I expect him to be back to his powerful self in 2009. I think he’s a nice value pick.

Tier 4

12. Arian Gonzalez – Adrian Gonzalez had his best power season of his career. But he plays for San Diego, and many insist he’ll drop back a little in HRs. Still, he’s a solid 1-bagger.

Tier 5

13. Kevin Youkilis – Last season was by far Kevin’s best season ever. A lot of his numbers insist he’ll drop off a bit from that, but he’ll always be a run producer in Boston.

14. Joey Votto – I like this kid a lot. He might not have as many studs around him as he did last year, but the guys that are hitting around him might be on base more and strikeout less. That’s good for a couple reasons. His potential has yet to be reached.

15. Derek Lee –  Lee is in a great offense and can put up really great numbers. He’s also been streaky with power numbers, but he’ll always drive in runs hitting where he does in Chicago.

16. Aubrey Huff – Which Aubrey will you get? The hype that used to be Huff and was last year too, or the guy that played all those mediocre seasons in-between?

17. Chipper Jones – Oh Larry. Chipper hit .360 last season, spending a big portion of the season at .400 or better. Chipper can swing a bat despite being oft injured and even in 130 games he could get you right into the playoffs with his solid offensive totals.

18. Carlos Pena – Carlos isn’t a good average hitter but he’s much better than he started out the 2008 season. Carlos has 40 dinger power and he’s relatively cheap.

Tier 6

19. Chris Davis – This may be all hype, but a 3B eligible young slugger with upside goes a long way in fantasy drafts, I would reach a little for him just in case.

20. Garret Atkins – I’m not too fond of Garret but he puts up pretty consistent numbers and is definitely a fantasy force. However, that offense isn’t as powerful as it once was.

21. Carlos Delgado – Many thought Carlos was done, but here he is, making his presence felt on my list – and he deserves it, at least for one more season.

22. Adrian Beltre – Beltre was hurt last year and still managed to get his Mariner averages in most areas. He’s a consistent guy, never the guy that will hit like he did in LA his last season, but then again, you don’t have to draft him with those hopes in mind.

Tier 7

23. Mark Derosa – He should have playability or position eligibility at 2B, 3B, and OF – which makes him even a little more valuable probably – but DeRosa was impressive last season.

24. Alex Gordon – Lots of tools. Alex hasn’t lived up to the hype, but sometimes it takes a guy one more year – could be his year.

25. Ryan Zimmerman – Zimmerman has shown flashes, and his offense is getting better in Washington.

26. Chone Figgins – They say Figgins will never hit .330 again – probably not, but he might play 150 games and if he does that he’s a good deal.

27. Jed Lowrie (playing SS but has 3B eligibility) – Jed looks like he’s going to get everyday at bats and that might make him a nice sleeper.

1st Baseman Rankings

Tier 1

1. Albert Pujols

Tier 2

2. Miguel Cabrera

3. Mark Teixeira

4. Justin Morneau

5. Lance Berkman

Tier 3

6. Ryan Howard

7. Prince Fielder

Tier 4

8. Arian Gonzalez

9. Kevin Youkilis

Tier 5

10. Joey Votto

11. Derek Lee

12. Aubrey Huff

13. Carlos Pena

Tier 6

14. Chris Davis

15. Carlos Delgado

3rd Baseman Rankings

Tier 1

1. Alex Rodriguez

2. David Wright

Tier 2

3. Evan Longoria

4. Aramis Ramirez

Tier 3

5. Kevin Youkilis

6. Aubrey Huff

7. Chipper Jones

Tier 4

8. Chris Davis

9. Garrett Atkins

10. Adrian Beltre

Tier 5

11. Mark Derosa

12. Alex Gordon

13. Ryan Zimmerman

14. Chone Figgins

15. Jed Lowrie