To follow up on yesterday's top 10 NL-only catchers post, here are the top 10 NL-only 1bman:
1. Albert Pujols-MVP, future Hall-of Famer, not much more to be said. He is probably the top 2 or 3 best fantasy/roto hitters in all of MLB.
Bill James projection: 41-125-118-.337-.443-.633
2. Ryan Howard: if he were younger, Howard could probably break the HR record someday. You can count on 45 HRs and 125+ RBI every year.
Bill James projection: 50-144-101-.276-.376-.587
3. Lance Berkman-I like Ryan Howard and Adrian Gonzalez more than Berkman in 2009, mainly due to the drop in HRs each of the last 2 years, but Berkman boosted his value in 2008 with 18 SBs. Can he keep that up?
Bill James projection: 33-113-104-11-.295-.413-.541
4. Adrian Gonzalez-how does he continue to produce like this in SD? Wonder what he could do in a better lineup and hitters park? We may find out before spring training if he is dealt.
Bill James Projection: 31-106-95-.277-.349-.494
5. Prince Fielder-his HRs dropped as much as the Dow in 2008. Does he bounce back to 40+ in 2009?
Bill James Projection: 40-110-97-.281-.379-.545
6. Joey Votto-Delgado deserves the 6th spot after his performance in 2008, but Votto is younger and should continue to excel in a hitters park. Votto could be top 3-5 in 2009.
Bill James Projection: 30-102-87-13-.307-.386-.536
7. Carlos Delgado-the Soon-To-Be-Bankrupt Field is supposed to be a bigger pitchers park than Shea Stadium. Age and the new park may bring Delgado's number down across the board.
Bill James Projection:33-107-85-.263-.361-.502
8. Pablo Sandoval-this may be a stretch, but he hits for some power and a very high average. I will stick him ahead of Lee and Dunn. James loves him! ROY??
Bill James Projection: 17-103-90-.320-.346-.500
9. Derrek Lee-he would be #10 if Dunn could hit .260, but he probably won't. Lee's power is quickly disappearing even though he hits in a nice lineup.
Bill James Projection: 24-85-87-8-.291-.376-.492
10. Adam Dunn-I almost put Jorge Cantu ahead of Dunn, but the 5 straight seasons of 40+ HRs is very hard to overlook. He will make it 6 years in a row in 2009.
Bill James Projection: 42-403-100-.246-.386-.527
Positions 3-8 among NL -only 1bman could be flipped in 2009 and it wouldn't surprise me. The James Loneys and Conor Jacksons of the NL need to show more pop to crack the top 10 in 2009.