Player Rater Review: Top 50

September 30, 2008 9:26am CDT

Who are the 50 most valuable fantasy players going? Are saves “worth” more or less than stolen bases? How do you compare a hitter to a pitcher on an equal playing field? We at Rototimes.com have a tool called the Player Rater, and each week I will discuss the top-50 fantasy baseball players based upon the rankings provided by this tool using the following parameters: a 12-team mixed league using standard 5x5 scoring with 14 hitters, nine pitchers and a $260 salary cap.

You can click on the following link to find the actual Player Rater Tool.


1. Albert Pujols, 1B, STL: Pujols hit .357-37-116-100, giving him eight straight seasons of hitting at least .314-32-103-99. He also led baseball with a 1.114 OPS.

2. Hanley Ramirez, SS, FLA: Ramirez went 30/30 with 33 home runs and 35 steals while recording 125 runs for the second straight season, making him the only player in baseball to reach that total in the run scored category the past two years.

3. Jose Reyes, SS, NYM: Had his first 200-hit season (204) while scoring 113 runs and stealing 56 bases. Over the past four seasons he has scored at least 99 runs with at least 56 steals each year.

4. David Wright, 3B, NYM: The guy just keeps improving. Wright set career bests in home runs (33), RBI (124) and runs (115), though he had a four-year low with 15 steals.

5. Matt Holliday, OF, COL: He hit .321-25-88-107 in what would have been a disappointing effort if not for a career-high 28 steals, which easily offset the loss of power.

6. Manny Ramirez, OF, LAD: All that Dodger bashing (.396 with a 1.232 OPS in 53 games) led to some spectacular overall numbers (.332-37-121-102-3). He was the only batter in baseball to hit .310-30-120-100.

7. Lance Berkman, 1B/OF, HOU: Berkman finished with 29 home runs, thanks to hitting just seven in his last 66 games. After hitting .347 in the first half he fell to .259 in the second. There may not have been a more bipolar option in baseball this season.

8. Roy Halladay, SP, TOR: Finished with 20 victories, a 2.78 ERA (fifth in baseball), a 1.05 WHIP (first) and 246 innings pitched (second). An amazing season that also included nine complete games.

9. Alex Rodriguez, 3B, NYY: Not the best of years for A-Rod at .302-35-103-104-18, but still good enough for a top-10 finish, showing just how amazing this guy really is. The safest play in the fantasy game.

10. Tim Lincecum, SP, SF: The major league leader with 265 Ks, Lincecum was third in baseball in ERA (2.62) and won 18 games for a team that won just 72 games in San Francisco.

11. CC Sabathia, SP, MIL: All everyone talks about is his 11-2 record with a 1.65 ERA with the Brewers, but few seem to realize that he went 17-10 with a 2.70 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 251 Ks in 253 innings with 10 complete games and five shutouts overall. A flat-out horse.

12. Grady Sizemore, OF, CLE: After three straight 20/20 seasons, Sizemore took his game to another level this season with 33 home runs and 38 steals. He also scored 111 runs, though that was his lowest mark since becoming a regular.

13. Carlos Beltran, OF, NYM: Beltran hit .284, his highest average since 2003, while ripping 27 bombs with 112 RBI and 116 runs. Toss in 25 steals and it’s hard to find anyone who brings a more complete game to the table.

14. Cliff Lee, SP, CLE: Lee was a stud all year and finished with the best ERA in the AL at 2.54. At 22-3, Lee was one of only two hurlers in baseball who won at least 11 games with only three losses (the other was Daisuke Matsuzaka who went 18-3).

15. Francisco Rodriguez, RP, LAA: The only reliever ever with 60 saves, K-rod finished with 62, allowing him to record his fourth straight 40-saves campaign. He is the only reliever in baseball to have accomplished that feat.

16. Josh Hamilton, OF, TEX: Though he limped to the finish with just 11 home runs and 35 RBI in the final 63 games, Hamilton still hit .304-32-130-98 on his way to leading the AL in RBI.

17. Dustin Pedroia, 2B, BOS: The AL MVP? Pedroia led the AL in runs (118) and tied for the league lead in hits (213 with Ichiro), while hitting .326-17-83 with 20 stolen bases.

18. Mariano Rivera, RP, NYY: He is likely facing offseason shoulder surgery, but he was magnificent this season with 39 saves, a 1.40 ERA and a 0.67 WHIP (a career best). Over the last six seasons only once has Rivera posted an ERA above 1.95 (it was 3.15 in 2007).

19. Chase Utley, 2B, PHI: After hitting .292-33-104-113 with 14 steals, Utley is the only second baseman in history who has hit at least .290-20-100-90 in four straight seasons.

20. Mark Teixeira, 1B, LAA: Mighty Mark hit .308-33-121-102-2 in a season split in Atlanta and Anaheim. In 54 games with the Angels this free-agent-to-be hit .358-13-43-39 with a 1.081 OPS.

21. Ryan Ludwick, OF, STL: An amazing pickup this season, Ludwick posted a .299-37-113-104 line with a .966 OPS, making him the most productive waiver-wire pick up of 2008 on offense.

22. Ryan Braun, 3B/OF, MIL: The ride was bumpy, but overall this young slugger came through, hitting .285-37-106-92-14. He must improve his plate discipline, though.

23. Ian Kinsler, 2B, TEX: Kinsler was one of four second baseman who scored 100 runs and knocked in 70 despite being limited to just 121 games because of injury. He also hit .319 with 26 steals.

24. Johan Santana, SP, NYM: Ended up leading baseball in ERA (2.53), thanks to a 2.17 mark over his last 15 starts during, which time he didn’t lose a single game. This was the fifth straight year of 15 wins and 200 Ks (he had 16 wins and 206 Ks).

25. Ryan Howard, 1B, PHI: Howard has gone deep at least 47 times three years running, something only six others have ever accomplished (Sammy Sosa did it five straight years from 1998-2002). Howard has also knocked in at least 136 runs in each of the past three years, tied for the fourth longest streak ever (Babe Ruth did it seven straight years from 1926-32).

26. Nate McLouth, OF, PIT: From a guy who couldn’t land a full-time role to a 20/20 performer in his first full season of at-bats, McLouth produced a sensational overall line for the pitiful Pirates (.276-26-94-113-23).

27. Bobby Abreu, OF, NYY: At .296-20-100-100-22, who says this guy has lost any effectiveness? He also had 109 strikeouts, his lowest total since 1997, though he was caught on the bases 11 times, his highest caught-stealing mark since 2002.

28. Ichiro Suzuki, OF, SEA: Mind numbingly consistent, Ichiro is a lock for 200 hits (213), 100 runs (103), a .300 batting average (.311) and 30 steals (43). He has reached each of those levels in every one of his seasons in America, the longest streak in baseball history.

29. Matt Kemp, OF, LAD: A fantastic first full season presented less in batting average than hoped for (.290), but his 35 steals more than made up for that. Also hit 18 home runs with 76 RBI and 93 runs.

30. Aubrey Huff, 1B/3B, BAL: For the second time in his career he hit .300-30-100-90 with a .304-32-108-96 line (the other time was 2003).

31. Jason Bay, OF, BOS: Rebounded strongly after a down 2007 (.247-21-84-78) with a tremendous year split between hell (Pittsburgh) and heaven (Boston). Overall he hit .286-31-101-111-10.

32. Jonathan Papelbon, RP, BOS: Improved his save total yet again (35 to 37 to 41 this year), though he did post three-year lows in ERA (2.34) and WHIP (0.95).

33. Kevin Youkilis, 1B, BOS: Youkilis will certainly get some MVP consideration after producing the best season of his young career with career highs in average (.312), home runs (29), RBI (115) and OPS (.958).

34. Brandon Webb, SP, ARI: Webb tied for the major league lead with 22 victories (Cliff Lee), though he posted three-year lows in ERA (3.30) and WHIP (1.20).

35. Miguel Cabrera, 1B/3B, DET: It wasn’t a great first season in Detroit with 85 runs scored and an .888 OPS (the runs were a career worst, the OPS the second lowest total in his five full seasons), but he did set career bests in home runs (37) and RBI (127).

36. Brian Roberts, 2B, BAL: Struck out a career worst 104 times, but other than that it was a remarkable season. Roberts tied his career best in runs (107), doubles (51) and hits (181) while stealing 40 bases and reaching a three-year high with a .296 average.

37. Johnny Damon, OF, NYY: Damon scored 95 times, giving him his 11th straight season of at least 93 runs. He also finished at .303-17-71 with 29 steals in yet another in a long line of fantastic fantasy seasons.

38. Jose Valverde, RP, HOU: With 44 saves this season, Valverde is the only reliever in baseball to record that many the past two seasons (he had 47 in 2007).

39. Carlos Quentin, OF, CWS: Quentin was one of just 11 hitters to knock 35 home runs and record 100 RBI, as he hit .288-36-100-96 with a .965 OPS in just 130 games.

40. Shane Victorino, OF, PHI: After hitting .293-14-58-102-36, Shane is one of only three players who has hit at least .280-10-45-75-35 the past two years (the others are Hanley Ramirez and Jose Reyes).

41. Alex Rios, OF, TOR: Finished just one RBI short of his third straight 80-RBI campaign, though he did manage to hit over .290 for the third straight season at .291. He did fail a bit in the home run category with a three-year low of 15 longballs.

42. Joakim Soria, RP, KC: Only six relievers recorded 40 saves this season, and Soria posted the best ERA (1.60), WHIP (0.86) and batting average against (.169) of the group

43. Jacoby Ellsbury, OF, BOS: Ellsbury ran like crazy, finishing with 50 steals, and he just missed out on the triple-digit run club with 98. Also hit a decent .280.

44. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, SD: Over the past two years, Adrian has hit 66 home runs, fifth at the first base position, while knocking in 219 runs, tied for sixth with Albert Pujols at the first base position.

45. Chipper Jones, 3B, ATL: Led the majors in batting average at .364, which means he posted the second best single season average for a switch hitter in baseball history (Mickey Mantle hit .365 in 1957).

46. Justin Morneau, 1B, MIN: For the second time in three years Morneau hit over .300 (.302) with 125 RBI (129) and 95 runs (97).

47. Cole Hamels, SP, PHI: With 14 wins he failed to match last year's total of 15, though he did set career bests in ERA (3.09), WHIP (1.08), strikeouts (196) and innings (227.1). He is the second best lefty in the National League behind Johan Santana.

48. Ervin Santana, SP, LAA: Was the Angels best hurler this season, setting career bests in ERA (3.49), WHIP (1.12) and Ks (214), which was 73 strikeouts more than his previous career best.

49. Nick Markakis, OF, BAL: Had his second straight 20/10 season while scoring 106 runs and batting .306. Not really a growth season, but still a fine effort.

50. Dan Haren, SP, ARI: Haren won a career-best 16 games while also striking out a career best 206 batters, including a career low 1.13 WHIP. A great first season back in the NL.