Fantasy Football

2011 Fantasy Baseball Mid-Season 1B Rankings: Miguel Cabrera Leads The Pack…For Now

Picture

Miguel Cabrera (see credits below)

If hitters and starters were like children, starters would definitely be the favorite first son of mine.  Which is why I write a weekly pitching article, The Rubber  Hitters would be the youngest child that could never quite live up to their big brother.  And closers, well, they would be like the middle child no one ever pays any attention to.  But in the interest of spreading the love, I’m going to write a six article series where I rank the players at every position for the rest of the way.  Hitting second this week, first basemen.

If you play in a shallow mixed league, the odds are that you don’t need help figuring out what to do with the first base slot on your roster.  There are so many safe, top flight options that almost everyone in a ten team mixed league can take a 1B early in the draft and not have to worry about the position until draft day the following year.

But if your league plays with a corner infield spot, if you play in a deeper mixed league, or if you play in a single league format (which means AL or NL only), then some of the names a little bit further down the upcoming list might be of some interest to you.

Whether you need some help at 1B or not, I hope you’ll keep reading.  Actually, what do I care?  As soon as you clicked on this article I had everything I needed from you.  But I’m not a selfish lover, so I’ll try to give you what you need as well.

1st Tier
1.
Miguel Cabrera | Detroit Tigers | 100% owned
2.
Adrian Gonzalez | Boston Red Sox | 100% owned
3.
Albert Pujols | St. Louis Cardinals | 100% owned
4.
Prince Fielder | Milwaukee Brewers | 100% owned
5.
Joey Votto | Cincinnati Reds | 100% owned
6.
Mark Teixeira | New York Yankees | 100% owned

There isn’t much to say here as these guys are all pretty much money in the bank.  The only thing to note is that Pujols is supposedly planning to return tonight, but I’m still a little hesitant and can’t quite rank him #1 until I see him play a few games.  If he ends up missing a little more time, I’d have him a few spots lower.

2nd Tier 
7.
Ryan Howard | Philadelphia Phillies | 100% owned
8.
Paul Konerko | Chicago White Sox | 100 owned
9.
Adam Lind | Toronto Blue Jays | 100% owned

Two surprises here. 

First, Paul Konerko continues to get it done, and I see no reason why that should stop in the second half. 

Second, Ryan Howard really doesn’t deserve to be included in that top group anymore.  Gone are the days of 45+ home runs, and his average is what it is, about .250,  He only provides real top-of-the-line production in one category, RBI.  Don’t get me wrong, he’s still an excellent player, but he’s not an elite option at this point.

3rd Tier 
10.
Michael Morse | Washington Nationals | 100% owned
11.
Gaby Sanchez | Florida Marlins | 100% owned
12.
Billy Butler | Kansas City Royals | 100% owned
13.
Michael Young | Texas Rangers | 100% owned

I don’t know if you know this, but Michael Morse is kind of legit.  Compare:


Picture

For some reason, ZIPS does not project Morse to stay on his current pace in the second half.  But you and I are looking at two very similar sets of numbers that total over 500 AB’s.  I see no reason why Morse shouldn’t be considered a .285, 30 HR, 90 RBI type of guy.  And that is legit.

4th Tier 
14.
Todd Helton | Colorado Rockies | 94.2% owned
15.
Carlos Pena | Chicago Cubs | 99.1% owned
16.
Mark Trumbo | Los Angeles Angels | 54.8% owned
17.
Adam Dunn | Chicago White Sox | 77.5% owned
18.
Aubrey Huff | San Francisco Giants | 85.6% owned

A few quick thoughts before I lay some Adam Dunn-related stat-age on you. 

·       Todd Helton is the poor (old) man’s Paul Konerko.

·       Pena is such a homer binger.  It looks like he just finished up a binge, but he probably has a couple more 6-7 homer binges in him this year.

·       Trumbo is a nice source of power and gives you a little something in the other counting categories.  His seven steals definitely add some value at a position where you rarely find steals.

And now for the Adam Dunn stats:

·       Andruw Jones to the age of 30: .263, 17.4 AB/HR, 21.4 K%.

·       Andruw Jones after the age of 30: .205, 19.6 AB/HR, 29.5K%.

·       Adam Dunn to the age of 30: .250, 14.1 AB/HR, 32.8 K%.

·       Adam Dunn is 31 this year: .173, 33.0 AB/HR, 43.3% K%.

Andruw Jones’ career path looks like the best comp for Dunn at this point, but I’m ranking him here just so I can cover my ass in case he hits 15-20 from here on out.

5th Tier 
19.
Eric Hosmer | Kansas City Royals | 63.1% owned
20.
Freddie Freeman | Atlanta Braves | 54.2% owned
21.
Justin Smoak | Seattle Mariners | 68.3% owned
22.
Mitch Moreland | Texas Rangers | 97.6% owned
23.
Brett Wallace | Houston Astros | 13.6% owned

Never has there been a group with so much potential yet so little to be excited about.  Obviously I’m only speaking about this year, but because of the depth of first base, this group of young hitters does not provide a whole lot in the way of fantasy value for the rest of the year. 

Hosmer, Freeman, and Smoak have all been streaky as they continue to adjust to big league pitching, Moreland can’t seem to find enough steady playing time, and Wallace has been far more lucky than he has been good.

Someday these guys might top this list, but today is not that day.

(Dishonorable Mention) 

24. James Loney | Los Angeles Dodgers | 32.5% owned

It wasn’t anything special, but it was nice when James Loney posted a couple of .285, 13 HR, 7 SB, 90 RBI seasons at the ages of 24 and 25.  His production has fallen off a bit from those numbers over the last two years, but if he can provide production very close to those numbers, it’s never a bad idea to carry a guy who can give you a little bit of everything. 

25. Casey Kotchman | Tampa Bay Rays | 6.6% owned

Kotchman’s .335 batting average has fooled 6.6% of ESPN.com ten-team mixed league owners.  But his .364 BABIP and career .266 average mean you shouldn’t be one of them.

All ownership percentages from ESPN.com. All stats current through 07-04-11.

Written by Brett Talley exclusively for thefantasyfix.com.  Brett is a law student in Dallas who knows someone who picked Adam Dunn for AL MVP.  Seriously.   You can follow him and/or ask him for fantasy advice on Twitter @therealTAL.

(June 17, 2011 – Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images North America)

Tags: The Fantasy Fix,  2011 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Advice, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Player Rankings, 2011 Fantasy Baseball First Basemen Rankings, Brett Talley
Previous post

Bryce Harper Promoted To Harrisburg & Other Fantasy Baseball News

Next post

2011 Fantasy Baseball Rookie Report Week 14: Presley Sighting & Bryce Harper Gets Promoted