:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/53734429/645366486.0.jpg)
Check out my top 250
Fantasy Baseball 2017 Top 250
First base is the topic of today’s positional preview. Who’s the top tier? How deep is the position, really? Where can you find speed at first base? In addition to giving you the top players to draft at the position, I’ll offer up a breakout player, sleepers, busts, and an overall strategy of how to go about drafting the position. Without further delay, let’s slide right into first base!
Top 30 First Basemen
| Pos Rank | Player | Team | Age | PR | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos Rank | Player | Team | Age | PR | League |
| 1 | Paul Goldschmidt | ARI | 29 | 8 | NL |
| 2 | Miguel Cabrera | DET | 33 | 27 | AL |
| 3 | Anthony Rizzo | CHC | 27 | 51 | NL |
| 4 | Joey Votto | CIN | 33 | 22 | NL |
| 5 | Daniel Murphy | WAS | 32 | 23 | NL |
| 6 | Edwin Encarnacion | CLE | 34 | 50 | AL |
| 7 | Freddie Freeman | ATL | 27 | 36 | NL |
| 8 | Wil Myers | SD | 26 | 35 | NL |
| 9 | Hanley Ramirez | BOS | 33 | 53 | AL |
| 10 | Eric Hosmer | KC | 27 | 108 | AL |
| 11 | Jose Abreu | CWS | 30 | 96 | AL |
| 12 | Carlos Santana | CLE | 30 | 100 | AL |
| 13 | Matt Carpenter | STL | 31 | 196 | NL |
| 14 | Chris Davis | BAL | 31 | 184 | AL |
| 15 | Mike Napoli | TEX | 35 | 119 | AL |
| 16 | Brandon Belt | SF | 28 | 186 | NL |
| 17 | Albert Pujols | LAA | 37 | 85 | AL |
| 18 | Adrian Gonzalez | LAD | 34 | 151 | NL |
| 19 | Brad Miller | TB | 27 | 174 | AL |
| 20 | C.J. Cron | LAA | 27 | 250 | AL |
| 21 | Tommy Joseph | PHI | 25 | 346 | NL |
| 22 | Greg Bird | NYY | 23 | N/A | AL |
| 23 | Travis Shaw | MIL | 26 | 295 | NL |
| 24 | Chris Carter | NYY | 30 | 155 | AL |
| 25 | Justin Bour | MIA | 28 | 415 | NL |
| 26 | Wilmer Flores | NYM | 25 | 379 | NL |
| 27 | Mitch Moreland | BOS | 31 | 391 | AL |
| 28 | Josh Bell | PIT | 24 | N/A | NL |
| 29 | Brandon Moss | KC | 33 | 297 | AL |
| 30 | Lucas Duda | NYM | 30 | 873 | NL |
*PR stands for 'Player Rater' which is a measure of how good a player was in a standard 5x5 roto league
Breakout player – Eric Hosmer
Sleepers – Greg Bird, Travis Shaw
Busts – Freddie Freeman, Chris Davis, Albert Pujols
Position Overview
This season hosts the weakest crop of first basemen I can remember. A top heavy position, 1B has major concerns outside of the top 4. My draft strategy this season will be to grab one of the top 10, but perhaps not even all of those players can be fully trusted. Multi-eligible players such as Daniel Murphy and Matt Carpenter will probably be your best option at 1B this season once your roster is finished. First basemen I have ranked 15th and beyond will make great corner infielders and utility players, but I do not want them as my starting first baseman heading into the year. Outside of Paul Goldschmidt and Wil Myers, finding stolen bases at first base will be difficult. Joey Votto, Carlos Santana, and Eric Hosmer will be who to target if you’re looking for all around contributors at the position. Hosmer is my selection for a breakout season. He’s had seasons with over 10 stolen bases, seasons with over a .290 batting average, and he’s coming off a career high 25 HR season. If he can put all those skills together, which I believe he can, he will easily be a top 50 player in fantasy.
Designated hitter is often grouped with first base. Victor Martinez and Kendrys Morales are the only two DH only players inside my top 500 players. Martinez falls between Chris Davis and Mike Napoli in my overall rankings. Morales is just ahead of Brad Miller in those rankings as well.
Tune in tomorrow for a rundown of second base! See you then and thanks for the read.
Other Positional Previews:
Catchers
Second Base
Shortstop
Third Base
Outfield
Starting Pitcher
Relief Pitcher