What do you think of the Top 50 2006 lists from Yahoo/ESPN?

[Music2004Man]

Here are two top 50 lists that have already been posted for next year. What do you think? Critique at your leisure.

Here's Yahoo

1 Alex Rodriguez, NYY, 3B Fantasy owners shouldn't care if he stinks in playoffs 1
2 Albert Pujols, StL, 1B Amazingly, his 117 RBIs were a career low 2
3 Vladimir Guerrero, Ana, OF 3
4 Mark Teixeira, Tex, 1B A 40-HR member at just 25 years of age 4
5 Manny Ramirez, Bos, OF Can hit anywhere, but Beantown fits so well 5
6 Johan Santana, Min, SP Past 3 years: 48-16, sub-3 ERA, sub-1 WHIP 6
7 Alfonso Soriano, Tex, 2B Hard to believe he'll be 30 in January 7
8 David Ortiz, Bos, 1B Will Manny bust up the best 3-4 tandem in MLB? 8
9 Derrek Lee, ChC, 1B Will welcome the return of Aramis Ramirez 9
10 Miguel Cabrera, Fla, OF Home woes: 2x the HRs, 29 points better BA on road 10
11 Carl Crawford, TB, OF .301/15/81/101/46 at 24, but he has few fans here 11
12 Michael Young, Tex, SS 25-game hit streak; The new No.1 SS for '06 12
13 David Wright, NYM, 3B .991 post-break OPS points to bigger things 13
14 Chris Carpenter, StL, SP 36-10 in two seasons in St. Louis 14
15 Jake Peavy, SD, SP Batters hit just .217 off the 24-year-old 15
16 Pedro Martinez, NYM, SP ERA under 3 and 200+ Ks in 8 of past 9 seasons 16
17 Gary Sheffield, NYY, OF At 36, still a great bet for .300/30/100/100/10 17
18 Bobby Abreu, Phi, OF .290/24/100/102/31 is same old, same old 18
19 Jason Bay, Pit, OF The next Abreu -- .306/32/100/109/21 (0 CS) 19
20 Roy Oswalt, Hou, SP Back-to-back 20-game winner; NLCS MVP 20
21 Andruw Jones, Atl, OF 51 HRs & still in his prime, but BA hurts 21
22 Roy Halladay, Tor, SP Perhaps '05 Cy Young if not for a line drive off his leg 22
23 Dontrelle Willis, Fla, SP Still a slight fear of volatility, but not like before '05 23
24 Miguel Tejada, Bal, SS Poor 2nd half, but you'll take his final #'s from a SS 24
25 Jeff Kent, LA, 2B Great season despite BA 50 points better on road 25
26 Chone Figgins, LAA, 2B, 3B, OF Looks like he'll lose Y! SS-eligibility in '06 26
27 Jose Reyes, NYM, SS Will lose Y! 2B-eligibility in '06 27
28 Ichiro, Sea, OF M's need to be competitive to bring out his best 28
29 Chase Utley, Phi, 2B He won't lose April ABs to Polanco in '06 29
30 Rafael Furcal, Atl, SS BA 70 points better in 2nd half 30
31 Victor Martinez, Cle, C Season spoiled by April/May; Hit .380 post break 31
32 Carlos Delgado, Fla, 1B Finished with 9th consecutive 30-HR season 32
33 Aramis Ramirez, ChC, 3B Likely would have hit 40 HRs if not for quad injury 33
34 Roger Clemens, Hou, SP Is undecided on '06, but he's here until then 34
35 Mark Prior, ChC, SP I'm still going to buy into an '06 rebound 35
36 Derek Jeter, NYY, SS You can count on his '05 line every year 36
37 Richie Sexson, Sea, 1B Top 10 in HRs and RBIs; hit more HRs at Safeco 37
38 Ryan Howard, Phi, 1B Near-future 40-HR man forcing Thome out of town 38
39 Ben Sheets, Mil, SP Yes, in '06, I'd take Sheets over Colon 39
40 Travis Hafner, Cle, UT User made point he's UTIL-only now -- It's valid 40
41 Randy Johnson, NYY, SP 17 wins, 211 Ks, 1.13 WHIP not shabby at 42 41
42 Barry Bonds, SF, OF Would feel better w/him if he was an AL DH 42
43 Andy Pettitte, Hou, SP Great season, but his ERA likely to regress a bit 43
44 Grady Sizemore, Cle, OF 5-fantasy tool leadoff men are rare 44
45 Jimmy Rollins, Phi, SS Look out Pete: Hitting streak at 33 games 45
46 Morgan Ensberg, Hou, 3B 1st Astros 3B to drive in 100 runs 46
47 Lance Berkman, Hou, OF 11 HRs in Sept. spells 35-40 in '06 47
48 Carlos Zambrano, ChC, SP Back by popular demand - I concur -
49 Todd Helton, Col, 1B .367 post-break, but power outage was constant 49
50 Adam Dunn, Cin, OF Was a poor man's Andruw Jones in '05 50


Here's ESPN

2006: THE TOP 50
1. Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals
2. Alex Rodriguez, 3B, Yankees
3. Vladimir Guerrero, OF, Angels
4. Mark Teixeira, 1B, Rangers
5. David Ortiz, DH, Red Sox
6. Alfonso Soriano, 2B, Rangers
7. Manny Ramirez, OF, Red Sox
8. Miguel Tejada, SS, Orioles
9. Johan Santana, SP, Twins
10. Miguel Cabrera, OF/3B, Marlins
11. Bobby Abreu, OF, Phillies
12. Derrek Lee, 1B, Cubs
13. Carl Crawford, OF, Devil Rays
14. Andruw Jones, OF, Braves
15. David Wright, 3B, Mets
16. Chris Carpenter, SP, Cardinals
17. Ichiro Suzuki, OF, Mariners
18. Carlos Beltran, OF, Mets
19. Gary Sheffield, OF, Yankees
20. Michael Young, SS, Rangers
21. Travis Hafner, DH, Indians
22. Roy Oswalt, SP, Astros
23. Jason Bay, OF, Pirates
24. Pedro Martinez, SP, Mets
25. Derek Jeter, SS, Yankees
26. Jake Peavy, SP, Padres
27. Dontrelle Willis, SP, Marlins
28. Chone Figgins, OF/3B/2B, Angels
29. Todd Helton, 1B, Rockies
30. Carlos Lee, OF, Brewers
31. Carlos Zambrano, SP, Cubs
32. Juan Pierre, OF, Marlins
33. Adam Dunn, OF, Reds
34. Chase Utley, 2B, Phillies
35. Mark Prior, SP, Cubs
36. Mariano Rivera, RP, Yankees
37. Paul Konerko, 1B, White Sox
38. Jimmy Rollins, SS, Phillies
39. Roger Clemens, SP, Astros
40. Jose Reyes, SS, Mets
41. Lance Berkman, OF, Astros
42. Felix Hernandez, SP, Mariners
43. Grady Sizemore, OF, Indians
44. Brad Lidge, RP, Astros
45. Scott Podsednik, OF, White Sox
46. Hideki Matsui, OF, Yankees
47. Roy Halladay, SP, Blue Jays
48. Adrian Beltre, 3B, Mariners
49. Francisco Rodriguez, RP, Angels
50. Huston Street, RP, Athletics

[mweir145]

IMO, Yahoo's rankings are way better. Some of the players on the ESPN rankings are way, way off...

Halladay at 47? If that's where he is being valued for next year, then all the better for me..

[J35J]

IMO, Yahoo's rankings are way better. Some of the players on the ESPN rankings are way, way off...

Halladay at 47? If that's where he is being valued for next year, then all the better for me..

I agree

[kentx12]

ESPN has Lee ranked ahead of Cabrera

[Pogotheostrich]

ESPN has Lee ranked ahead of Cabrera

That's Yahoo's list.

[kentx12]

ESPN has Lee ranked ahead of Cabrera

That's Yahoo's list.

Opps your right. Anyway that is crazy.

[zergeR]

they have howard at 38 for NEXT year?

Theres no way that I would take him there

[San D]

You got me dude....next time do the work yourself!

San D,

Could you post those lists for us or give us a link. I'm interested to see how the top 50 are ranked.

Thanks

Here's Yahoo

1 Alex Rodriguez, NYY, 3B Fantasy owners shouldn't care if he stinks in playoffs 1
2 Albert Pujols, StL, 1B Amazingly, his 117 RBIs were a career low 2
3 Vladimir Guerrero, Ana, OF 3
4 Mark Teixeira, Tex, 1B A 40-HR member at just 25 years of age 4
5 Manny Ramirez, Bos, OF Can hit anywhere, but Beantown fits so well 5
6 Johan Santana, Min, SP Past 3 years: 48-16, sub-3 ERA, sub-1 WHIP 6
7 Alfonso Soriano, Tex, 2B Hard to believe he'll be 30 in January 7
8 David Ortiz, Bos, 1B Will Manny bust up the best 3-4 tandem in MLB? 8
9 Derrek Lee, ChC, 1B Will welcome the return of Aramis Ramirez 9
10 Miguel Cabrera, Fla, OF Home woes: 2x the HRs, 29 points better BA on road 10
11 Carl Crawford, TB, OF .301/15/81/101/46 at 24, but he has few fans here 11
12 Michael Young, Tex, SS 25-game hit streak; The new No.1 SS for '06 12
13 David Wright, NYM, 3B .991 post-break OPS points to bigger things 13
14 Chris Carpenter, StL, SP 36-10 in two seasons in St. Louis 14
15 Jake Peavy, SD, SP Batters hit just .217 off the 24-year-old 15
16 Pedro Martinez, NYM, SP ERA under 3 and 200+ Ks in 8 of past 9 seasons 16
17 Gary Sheffield, NYY, OF At 36, still a great bet for .300/30/100/100/10 17
18 Bobby Abreu, Phi, OF .290/24/100/102/31 is same old, same old 18
19 Jason Bay, Pit, OF The next Abreu -- .306/32/100/109/21 (0 CS) 19
20 Roy Oswalt, Hou, SP Back-to-back 20-game winner; NLCS MVP 20
21 Andruw Jones, Atl, OF 51 HRs & still in his prime, but BA hurts 21
22 Roy Halladay, Tor, SP Perhaps '05 Cy Young if not for a line drive off his leg 22
23 Dontrelle Willis, Fla, SP Still a slight fear of volatility, but not like before '05 23
24 Miguel Tejada, Bal, SS Poor 2nd half, but you'll take his final #'s from a SS 24
25 Jeff Kent, LA, 2B Great season despite BA 50 points better on road 25
26 Chone Figgins, LAA, 2B, 3B, OF Looks like he'll lose Y! SS-eligibility in '06 26
27 Jose Reyes, NYM, SS Will lose Y! 2B-eligibility in '06 27
28 Ichiro, Sea, OF M's need to be competitive to bring out his best 28
29 Chase Utley, Phi, 2B He won't lose April ABs to Polanco in '06 29
30 Rafael Furcal, Atl, SS BA 70 points better in 2nd half 30
31 Victor Martinez, Cle, C Season spoiled by April/May; Hit .380 post break 31
32 Carlos Delgado, Fla, 1B Finished with 9th consecutive 30-HR season 32
33 Aramis Ramirez, ChC, 3B Likely would have hit 40 HRs if not for quad injury 33
34 Roger Clemens, Hou, SP Is undecided on '06, but he's here until then 34
35 Mark Prior, ChC, SP I'm still going to buy into an '06 rebound 35
36 Derek Jeter, NYY, SS You can count on his '05 line every year 36
37 Richie Sexson, Sea, 1B Top 10 in HRs and RBIs; hit more HRs at Safeco 37
38 Ryan Howard, Phi, 1B Near-future 40-HR man forcing Thome out of town 38
39 Ben Sheets, Mil, SP Yes, in '06, I'd take Sheets over Colon 39
40 Travis Hafner, Cle, UT User made point he's UTIL-only now -- It's valid 40
41 Randy Johnson, NYY, SP 17 wins, 211 Ks, 1.13 WHIP not shabby at 42 41
42 Barry Bonds, SF, OF Would feel better w/him if he was an AL DH 42
43 Andy Pettitte, Hou, SP Great season, but his ERA likely to regress a bit 43
44 Grady Sizemore, Cle, OF 5-fantasy tool leadoff men are rare 44
45 Jimmy Rollins, Phi, SS Look out Pete: Hitting streak at 33 games 45
46 Morgan Ensberg, Hou, 3B 1st Astros 3B to drive in 100 runs 46
47 Lance Berkman, Hou, OF 11 HRs in Sept. spells 35-40 in '06 47
48 Carlos Zambrano, ChC, SP Back by popular demand - I concur -
49 Todd Helton, Col, 1B .367 post-break, but power outage was constant 49
50 Adam Dunn, Cin, OF Was a poor man's Andruw Jones in '05 50

Here's ESPN

2006: THE TOP 50
1. Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals
2. Alex Rodriguez, 3B, Yankees
3. Vladimir Guerrero, OF, Angels
4. Mark Teixeira, 1B, Rangers
5. David Ortiz, DH, Red Sox
6. Alfonso Soriano, 2B, Rangers
7. Manny Ramirez, OF, Red Sox
8. Miguel Tejada, SS, Orioles
9. Johan Santana, SP, Twins
10. Miguel Cabrera, OF/3B, Marlins
11. Bobby Abreu, OF, Phillies
12. Derrek Lee, 1B, Cubs
13. Carl Crawford, OF, Devil Rays
14. Andruw Jones, OF, Braves
15. David Wright, 3B, Mets
16. Chris Carpenter, SP, Cardinals
17. Ichiro Suzuki, OF, Mariners
18. Carlos Beltran, OF, Mets
19. Gary Sheffield, OF, Yankees
20. Michael Young, SS, Rangers
21. Travis Hafner, DH, Indians
22. Roy Oswalt, SP, Astros
23. Jason Bay, OF, Pirates
24. Pedro Martinez, SP, Mets
25. Derek Jeter, SS, Yankees
26. Jake Peavy, SP, Padres
27. Dontrelle Willis, SP, Marlins
28. Chone Figgins, OF/3B/2B, Angels
29. Todd Helton, 1B, Rockies
30. Carlos Lee, OF, Brewers
31. Carlos Zambrano, SP, Cubs
32. Juan Pierre, OF, Marlins
33. Adam Dunn, OF, Reds
34. Chase Utley, 2B, Phillies
35. Mark Prior, SP, Cubs
36. Mariano Rivera, RP, Yankees
37. Paul Konerko, 1B, White Sox
38. Jimmy Rollins, SS, Phillies
39. Roger Clemens, SP, Astros
40. Jose Reyes, SS, Mets
41. Lance Berkman, OF, Astros
42. Felix Hernandez, SP, Mariners
43. Grady Sizemore, OF, Indians
44. Brad Lidge, RP, Astros
45. Scott Podsednik, OF, White Sox
46. Hideki Matsui, OF, Yankees
47. Roy Halladay, SP, Blue Jays
48. Adrian Beltre, 3B, Mariners
49. Francisco Rodriguez, RP, Angels
50. Huston Street, RP, Athletics

[George_Foreman]

49 Todd Helton, Col, 1B .367 post-break, but power outage was constant 49

god, PLEASE let him stay there! this guy will by my 3rd round pick in every league i'm in next year and i'll be sooooo happy.


i'm probably going to be cutting and pasting this a lot between now and April....


here's helton's by-month splits:

Code: Select all

          G    R    HR    RBI    BB    AVG     OBP     SLG     OPS
April     21   12   1     9      15    0.267   0.402   0.373   0.776
May       28   14   4     10     22    0.253   0.388   0.465   0.853
June      26   10   1     12     17    0.274   0.389   0.389   0.779
July      21   12   5     12     11    0.400   0.494   0.667   1.161
August    20   15   4     15     13    0.357   0.465   0.657   1.122
September 26   27   4     19     25    0.386   0.526   0.670   1.197
October   2    2    1     2      3     0.429   0.600   0.857   1.457


notice how over the last 3 months, his numbers are right in line with his recent performance:

Code: Select all

      G      R      HR    RBI    K    AVG     OBP     SLG     OPS 
2003   160   135    33    117    72   0.358   0.458   0.630   1.088
2004   154   115    32    96     72   0.347   0.469   0.620   1.088


helton is the same guy he was last year; the "power outage" lasted all of three months, and by July, he was back to his 1.100 OPS. helton is right there next to halladay as the most underrated guys on these lists.

edit: other notables-

yahoo has v-mart, sexon, howard, a. jones, and carp too high (i'll also avoid d. wright at the start of the second...) and they'v got rollins, sheets, and bonds (and helton ) too low.

ESPN's got carp, wright, jones, hafner, and probably beltran and ichiro too high, while i'd bump up rollins and helton a bit, and halladay in to the top 30. i also think they're too high on closers in general.

[hooligan1]

they have howard at 38 for NEXT year?

Theres no way that I would take him there

Agreed!! Even if they trade Thome, I wouldn't take him that high. If they can't trade Jimmy T, then there's someone looking over Howard's shoulder every time he screws up.