Fantasy Baseball: NL Top 10 For 2010

by Ray Guilfoyle on Sep 8, 2009 8:45 AM EDT in Baseball

On Saturday, Eric posted his Top 10 for 2010 for mixed leagues over at rotomusing.blogspot.com, so today, I will give you my NL Top 10 for 2010. The consensus number 1 pick going into 2010 drafts will be Albert Pujols. But, I am going out on a limb with my NL number 1 pick in 2010.

I recently stated in the comments section of a previous post that I would pick Matt Kemp with the number 1 pick in my NL-only league should I land the number 1 pick, so Kemp is my number 1 pick in 2010. Here are the rest of my Top 10:

Pick	Player	Comment
1	Matt Kemp	He can go 30-100-100-30-.310. Could bat cleanup in 2010.
2	Albert Pujols	Could he hit 50 HRs in 2010?
3	Hanley Ramirez	He won't hit .359 again, drop in HRs and SBs
4	Chase Utley	Solid production at a scarce position
5	Justin Upton	He could be top 3 by the end of 2010.
6	Ryan Braun	I like Upton just a little better.
7	Mark Reynolds	See Chase Utley.
8	Tim Lincecum	Could win 20 with a better lineup.
9	Prince Fielder	Proving 2007 was no fluke. Could hit 50 HRs again.
10	Ryan Howard	Guaranteed 40-120.

Now the Kemp pick is certainly going against most expert's picks, but after watching him over the last few seasons, I have seen a major improvement with his approach at the plate. He is on pace for 27-103-96-35-.300 in a season where he hit in the 6th-8th spots in the Dodgers lineup. I think manager Joe Torre will bat him in the middle of the lineup in 2010, and with that will come more RBI and runs scored for those who play in 5x5 leagues. And we could soon see 30+ HRs from him year in and year out.

Another reason for the Kemp selection is when I compared him to Hanley Ramirez, who was the top pick in many drafts the last two seasons, Kemp provides just as much or more power, more RBI and more SBs. Like I mentioned in the list above, I don't see Ramirez hitting .359 in 2010, and his SB totals have dropped two seasons in a row from 51 in 2007 to 35 in 2008 to 24 in 2009. Hanley's HR totals are dropping as well, from 29 in 2007 to 33 in 2008 to 21 in 2009.

One last note, notice there are two Diamondbacks and two Brewers in my top 10. It is no coincidence that they were two of the better farm systems over the last few years.

Poll

Who is your number 1 NL-only pick for 2010?

Albert Pujols

112 votes

Matt Kemp

12 votes

Hanley Ramirez

16 votes

140 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Albert Pujols

He is now in his 9th season and has never posted lower than a

.310 B.A.
100 RBIs
30 HRs
100 runs (ok.. one year he got 99)
and he has swiped 20+ bases this year as well.

"If you believe in telekinesis, raise my hand."

by tigr on Sep 8, 2009 10:45 AM EDT reply actions

20?

he has 14 SBs currently. I don’t disagree, Pujols is a great hitter, I just think we will see more power from Kemp next year.

raygu

by Ray Guilfoyle on Sep 8, 2009 1:57 PM EDT up reply actions

Pujols

better safe than sorry and there isn’t a safer, better pick.

Bonds stands alone.

Neal before Zod!
Official Sponsor of the 1997 San Francisco Giants

by nostocksjustbonds on Sep 8, 2009 10:55 AM EDT reply actions

Pujols

Maybe Will Carroll’s trinagular scar observation means Pujols had TJS and fantasy players need to stop worrying about the possibility.

If true, great for fantasy. Absolutely horrible for front office disclosure. Kind of one up’s J.P. Ricciardi’s outright lie about BJ Ryan’s elbow a couple seasons ago.

Nicotine patching at Rotisserie Musings

by faketeams on Sep 8, 2009 3:49 PM EDT reply actions

+1

raygu

by Ray Guilfoyle on Sep 8, 2009 3:56 PM EDT up reply actions

If Kemp played SS or 2B, I might check that box...

…but the OF pool of talent is too deep to take one with a first overall pick. Kemp’s a stud, but if you take him #1, there will be ZERO top-tier middle infielders left when it’s time to grab your second pick. Gotta factor in positional scarcity over raw data. Personally, I’d rather have Hanley/Pujols #1 and a Matt-Holliday-esque player with my #2 than Kemp and Brandon Phillips (for example).

Giants: World Series Champions...in 2011.

by Giants_Junkie on Sep 9, 2009 5:13 PM EDT reply actions