HELP! Need to pick 3 keepers out of these 6!

[zdre30]

I'm in a 12-team league 5X5 league where you keep 5 guys. so far im keeping a-rod and holliday, but i'm having trouble narrowing my other 6 down to 3. here's who im stuck between:

sandoval 1/3B
morneau
zobrist 2/SS/OF
cruz
hanson
gallardo


so far im leaning toward keeping keeping sandoval, cruz, and hanson.

i like sandoval over morneau b/c hes younger and morneau is coming off a major back surgery. although, i know 1B are dime a dozen and 2B/SS are not, which is why im heavily considering zobrist. i dont think he has the same season as last year (his BABIP was rediculous v. his career #s), but i still see him hitting .280, 20-25, 15-20 steals, which is almost always top 5 for a 2B. i love cruz. i think he has a monster, top 10 OF year. had he not gotten hurt last year he was on pace for nearly 40 HR, 25-30 steals.

hanson v. gallardo is killing me. i love hanson's upside, and gallardo really struggled with control last year. i know the NL central is more pitcher friendly than NL east, but i still think hanson finishes with lower ERA and WHIP. but is it really silly to take a pitcher whose not even in most top 15 SP rankings as one of these keepers? i also wouldnt be too opposed to taking sandoval and morneau, being that we use 1 utility, but i really dont want to do that.


our deadline is WEDNESDAY at midnight; please help!

[JimmyTwoTimes]

I like your reasoning but think Gallardo is a better play than Hanson - who is great but saw a huge jump in innings. Gallardo could be a monster.

Please help:

viewtopic.php?t=401892

[HOOTIE]

Morneau
Pablo
Hanson

Cruz is popular, but still a career .255 hitter.

[Grouperman941]

Morneau
Pablo
Gallardo

I like Hanson, but I've been burned a few times by 2nd year pitchers who had great first seasons.

[The Artful Dodger]

I'd go with Morneau and Pablo for sure. I'd go with Cruz by a hair over Hanson (who in turn I'd rather have over Gallardo by a slim bit) because it's difficult to let go of 35 HR/20 SB potential, even though Cruz is a low contact hitter.

If you feel insecure about Cruz's low contact, I'd go with Hanson over Gallardo. Hanson's control for a pitcher his age is fantastic, so is his arsenal of pitches, and the innings jump is exaggerated. If we're talking about innings jumps, Gallardo had a larger one from '08 to '09, even though his injury in '08 had to do with a knee, nothing arm-related.

[Grouperman941]

Are you still able to trade? A lot of people are nuts over Hanson right now. Maybe flip Hanson and Cruz for someone comparable to Cruz with a better BA.

[zdre30]

Thank you all for the quick feedback. It looks like the consensus is to take pablo and morneau, with the final spot still undecided between gallardo, hanson, and cruz. i think this makes sense, pablo and morneau are probably the best players out of this bunch. looks like zobrist is getting no love, and after thinking about it i agree. i could probably nab him in the 7th round if i want him still.

grouperman, yes i can still trade, but im afraid i wont get the value im looking for. cruz hit .260 last year battling injuries in teh 2nd half, and for some reason a lot of managers in my league arent buying his 1st half. the only way id package cruz and hanson for a top OF is if i get a justin upton or matt kemp back.cruz's 1st half he was around .280 and although that might be overly optimistic for a full season, i think he should be able to hit at least .270 if he stays healthy. add in 35 HR, 100 RBI, 20 steals and you have got a top 30 player, maybe higher. yes i know i am a huge fan of cruz but damn if he puts it together, the sky is the limit.

still stuck on the hanson v. gallardo debate. gallardo's 2nd half last season worries me. he wore down noticeably down the stretch last season (5.33 ERA, 1.54 WHIP in his final nine starts). and though he lost much of 2008 to injuries, none of his ailments were arm-related, so it's possible that his sluggish finish to 2009 was a matter of wearing down from an innings spike. i appreciate your help in advance.

[zdre30]

by the way, for those of you whom, like myself, forgot how damn young gallardo is, let me remind you. gallardo just turned 24 on feb 27 (happy belated yovani), whereas hanson is 23 and turns 24 in late august.

so hanson is only 6 months younger than gallardo; i thought it was much more. not really sure if this will prove anything relevant for my hanson v. gallardo debate, but i thought id share. initially i think this makes me realize how much further ahead hanson is than gallardo (2.89 v. 3.73 ERAs last year, respectively).