Chase Utley VS. Chris Burke

[TB13]

[quote="Sticky Spice"]Speaking of Utley - there's a new blurb on his situation on Rotoworld this morning.[/quote]
What was it?

[perlick29]

Here's the blurb, it looks like mauel is playing it conservative:

"Phillies manager Charlie Manuel seems to already be backing down from earlier claims that Chase Utley would be the everyday second baseman despite Placido Polanco's return.
''It's way too early for me to commit... . Polanco could be in there playing somewhere Opening Day. It's not like we've ruled that out,'' Manuel said. ''Utley is definitely going to play more than he did last year. But at the same time, it doesn't mean we can't get Polanco at-bats. Polanco can play a lot of different positions. It'll play itself out.'' We expect that this means Polanco will play second base against lefties and Utley will still get all of the starts against righties initially. That's the way it should be."

The F Word Out Loud! A poor 7 dollar investment is Utley before the season starts it appears.

[Danimal]

I think that blurb is pure motivational stuff by the manager. Utley showed good potential. Come opening day, I'm betting Utley will be starting.

[perlick29]

I think that blurb is pure motivational stuff by the manager. Utley showed good potential. Come opening day, I'm betting Utley will be starting.

That'd be a relief. They play the nationals as their opening series so there's an excellent chance they will see righties in that series.

[ramble2]

One of the painful lessons I've learned playing fantasy baseball is to never, ever, never rely on a rookie 2B. They are fine as backups, but do not put yourself in a position where failure on the rookie's part is going to put you too much out of sorts.

I'd rank them

Matsui
Utley
Burke

Who was the 2B that burned you? Reyes?

I agree with this wholeheartedly. The best strategy to employ is to take the scarce positions seriously. Get guys you know will produce. Not necessarily super star level but above average. Other positions are MUCH easier to replace.

Jose Ortiz comes to mind. Really I owe him a debt of gratitude, for he single-handedly convinced me that Coors alone does not a hitter make AND not to rely on a rookie middle infielder.

It's too bad, he was supposed to be a really nice guy too.

[Cornbread Maxwell]

To the initial question - I think Matsui is easily the best pick for you at this point. He's a good tier above Utley or Burke. I'd also rank Omar Infante above both of those guys too. If Figgins is still available he's who you really want - he'll play 2B for Anaheim and more than likely will be eligible before the season starts as Anaheim will list him as their 2B.

[LumberJack5]

Figgins is gone and Matsui just went. Ive thought about Infante. Im gunna take Utley for sure and Burke I dunno if I will or not. Any chance Utley plays 2nd full time and Polanco plays 3rd?

[VaTribeFan]

One of the painful lessons I've learned playing fantasy baseball is to never, ever, never rely on a rookie 2B. They are fine as backups, but do not put yourself in a position where failure on the rookie's part is going to put you too much out of sorts.

I'd rank them

Matsui
Utley
Burke

Who was the 2B that burned you? Reyes?

I agree with this wholeheartedly. The best strategy to employ is to take the scarce positions seriously. Get guys you know will produce. Not necessarily super star level but above average. Other positions are MUCH easier to replace.

Jose Ortiz comes to mind. Really I owe him a debt of gratitude, for he single-handedly convinced me that Coors alone does not a hitter make AND not to rely on a rookie middle infielder.

It's too bad, he was supposed to be a really nice guy too.

AAGGHHH! Jose Ortiz! Don't say that name!

Yes. I was burned by him in my keeper league. I won't even begin to tell you some of the trade offers I turned down for this kid.

Thanks for re-opening that wound...

[bronxxbomber]

Hmm...I think it's right not to gamble on the really scarce positions. Grab a guy who will produce and maybe take a gamble on another guy. With that in mind I would go with:

Utley
Kaz
Burke