by Moonlight Graham

Think back to last year’s Fantasy Baseball Draft when you sat at the table clicking your heels, hoping for Geovany Soto to get through to the round in which you had him slotted.  Coming off a season so stellar that he garnered the Rookie of the Year award, Soto was even more enticing to Fantasy Baseball owners because his 23 HR and 86 RBI came from behind the plate; traditionally the weakest Fantasy spot.  But like many before him, (remember Rick Wilkins?), Soto failed to build on his initial success.  Instead of the 30-100 season many expected, his was an injury riddled exercise in disappointment.

Unfortunately, offensive inconsistency behind the dish is an annual pitfall for Fantasy Baseball players.  Two years ago, Jorge Posada was a Moonlight selection primarily because, as I said at the time, “the guy plays every day.”  Almost as soon as I said that, Posada suffered the first major injury of his career and was lost for the season.  However, the undrafted Kelly Shoppach came from nowhere to post 21 HR and help my march to a title.  In the same season, many owners saw their chances go up in flames as Victor Martinez struggled while Chris Snyder supplied 16 HR from the waiver wire.  Even last year, Miguel Montero’s breakthrough campaign threw a lifeline to a number of Soto’s victims.  Starting to recognize a pattern?  Try not to get sucked in by the next “great” catcher and, instead, identify a few consistent producers who’ll come cheap but won’t blow up your season.

Chief among these candidates is the Angels’ Mike Napoli, an annual member of Moonlight’s Master Batters in the Hausier’s Krowedum Rotisserie Baseball League.  Despite semi-splitting time in the Angels’ lineup with the offensively challenged Jeff Mathis, Napoli has posted back to back 20 HR seasons.  He’s a .270 hitter with a catcher-friendly .350 OBP whose name will rarely be called before the 15th round of any mixed draft.  He’ll even throw in 4 or 5 SB for good measure.  His stats may not be as sexy as Martinez, Martin or McCann, but he’ll deliver what you expect at about a third of the price.

2010 Catcher Ratings

Stud- Joe Mauer’s ridiculous MVP season was so good, it eliminates anyone else for consideration in this category.

Stars- Look for Matt Wieters to build on his scorching September, Victor Martinez is more attractive because of his First Base eligibility and Brian McCann is Atlanta’s best hitter.

Sleepers- Kurt Suzuki had a terrific season that went largely unnoticed while Miguel Montero looks for an even bigger season now that the D’Backs job is his alone.

Slippers- Chris Iannetta and Miguel Olivo will vie for the starting job in Colorado; a competition that will cost each of them AB.

Stiffs- Rod Barajas’ 19 HR were overshadowed by an abysmal .258 OBP.  His HR will disappear at CitiField.

Moonlight Graham’s Top Ten

Joe Mauer
Victor Martinez
Matt Wieters
Brian McCann
Kurt Suzuki
Miguel Montero
Mike Napoli
Jorge Posada
Russell Martin
Bengie Molina

In the Hausier’s Krowedum Fantasy Baseball League, as well as many Dynasty, or Keeper, leagues across the country, Minor Leaguers can play an important role.  Drafting and holding on to prospects that are close to making contributions on the Major League level is a great way to supplement your Fantasy Baseball roster and increase your chances for a championship. If you don’t draft Minor Leaguers, it’s still worth a look, as some are good enough to warrant selection in a regular Fantasy Baseball Draft. What follows is a list of Moonlight’s Top Ten prospects for 2010; players who have yet to play in the majors ranked as much for their chances to see significant time in the big leagues this year as for their talent.  Good luck. Just twenty one days ’til pitchers and catchers!

1) Stephen Strasburg RHP (Nationals-AFL) As a senior at San Diego State, Strasburg had a 13-1 record that featured a 1.95 ERA and 195 K in 109 IP.  He and his 100 MPH fastball could be in Nats’ rotation without ever having played in the Minors. He was 4-1 as he made his professional debut in the Arizona Fall League.

2) Chris Carter 1B (Athletics-AAA) His OBP of .422 is enough to make GM Billy Beane swoon.  He also clouted 32 HR and 115 RBI while batting .329.  AL Rookie of the Year candidate will probably start the year in Oakland.

3) Carlos Santana C (Indians-AA) His power numbers are sterling enough for a backstop,(22 HR 93 RBI), but what sets him apart from the pack is the 90 runs he scored and his .413 OBP; unheard of for players at his position. The Indians traded both Victor Martinez and Kelly Shoppach to clear room for him so; he may be the Tribe’s starter on Opening Day.

4) Jason Heyward OF (Braves-AAA) In just 99 games, Heyward, Atlanta’s top prospect, hit .323 with 17 HR and 63 RBI.  Throw in 25 doubles, a few of which will become dingers as he matures, and you can see why the Bravos are so hot for him.

5) Pedro Alvarez 3B (Pirates-AA) Biggest obstacle facing the top overall pick from ’08 may be the Pirates tight checkbook.  Keeping his arbitration clock from starting would be the only reason to keep Alvarez in the Minors to start the season. He turned in a solid pro debut last year, (.288-27-95) and is better than any of the Bucs’ alternatives.

6) Travis Wood LHP (Reds-AAA) Tough to draft a rookie pitcher who’ll call the Great American Ballpark his home, but Wood’s got the stuff. 13-5 at AAA last year with a miniscule 1.777 ERA and 1.04 WHIP; he knows how to pitch.

7) Jeremy Hellickson RHP (Rays-AAA) This far down the list only because the Rays are, historically, patient to a fault with their young hurlers.  However, it’ll be hard to keep his K Rate, (10.4/9IP), or his ungodly WHIP, (0.94) in the Minors for long.  Future ace.

8 ) Michael Taylor OF (Athletics-AAA) A 20-20 prospect that Billy Beane plucked from the Jays for Brett Wallace.  Another high OBP guy, (.395), Taylor might find a spot with the rebuilding A’s

9)Brett Wallace 3B (Blue Jays-AAA)Wallace was the key guy shipped from the Cardinals to the A’s in the Matt Holliday trade and was then sent to Toronto over the winter.  He’s got a solid bat, (.293 BA 20 HR), and has only to beat Edwin Encarnacion and/or Lyle Overbay for AB at either corner spot.

10) Drew Locke 1B (Astros-AA) Posted a ledger of .338-20-109 in just 129 games last year.  At first glance, blocked at 1B by Lance Berkman, but Houston could always move Lance back to the outfield if Locke continues to mash.

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Catcher-Though his owners would love to see more power, Joe Mauer walked away with his second career batting title while leading AL catchers in RBI.  While it’s true that the absence of Victor Martinez and Jorge Posada made this a thin position, Mauer was still great.

First Base-Though it’s unlikely he’ll get enough votes to garner his second AL MVP award in three years, Justin Morneau was still better than anyone else at 1B this year.  Always asked to carry the offensively challenged Twinkies, he never disappoints.  A .300+ BA along with 30 HR and 100+ RBI have become the norm for this emerging superstar.

Second Base-Red Sox fans miffed at Kevin Youkilis being passed over at 1B are not going to be pleased with this selection either.  While Dustin Pedroia is being trumpeted for MVP consideration, the Rangers’ Ian Kinsler was head and shoulders above his peers.  Before going down in early September, Kinsler was in the top ten of most categories and was leading the league in total bases.  The fact of the matter is that Kinsler and whoever you replaced him with had better stats than Pedroia.

Shortstop- Michael Young makes it an all Texas keystone combo as his usual BA and R were enough to place him on top of a weak Fantasy group.

Third Base- Lost in the disaster that was the Tigers’ season was the huge production of Miguel Cabrera, who will go into 2009 with eligibility at 1B as well.  His .292 BA 37 HR and 127 RBI were enough to nose out Alex Rodriguez.

Outfield-One of two players to appear on our fantasy sleeper and all star lists is ChiSox OF Carlos Quentin.  Despite missing the last month, he still managed to cop the league HR crown.  Josh Hamilton gives the Rangers its third representative despite his late season fade.  Based on his Home Run Derby performance alone, he merits a nod.  His .302 BA 32 HR and 130 RBI simply sealed the deal.  Bobby Abreu takes the last OF spot based on a 20-20 season that also featured a .300 BA, 100 R and 100 RBI.

Starting Pitcher-Hard to ignore a 23-2 record, which is why Cliff Lee gets the nod at this spot.  Would have loved more strikeouts and looked st Roy Halladay but Lee takes a close race.

Relief Pitcher- Easiest call we’ve made all year.  Francisco Rodriguez set the Major league record for saves at 60.  Case closed.

In a season that saw perennial Fantasy studs like Jorge Posada, Carlos Guillen, Hideki Matsui, Erik Bedard, Victor Martinez, Travis Hafner and Chien Ming Wang all miss huge chunks of the season to injury, the skill of Roto players was tested throughout the season as free agent pickups became critical to each team.  Missing from the list below were players like Texas Rangers’ CI/OF Chris Davis who were called up in midseason.  Although their performance was terrific, it fell just short of our sleepers’ year long excellence.

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Catcher- Owners of Indians’ C Victor Martinez suffered through a miserable two months before his injuries became too much for him to deal with.  Taking a little sting out of the high pick that was likely used to acquire the Tribe’s backstop, however, was Kelly Shoppach, whose performance as VMart’s replacement may have permanently moved Martinez to 1B.  Shoppach belted 21 HR for Cleveland to lead all AL catchers and vaulted himself into the upper echelon at the position for 2009.

First Base-Even though he had produced a few 100 RBI seasons in Tampa Bay, it had been quite awhile since Aubrey Huff of the Orioles’ had drawn much fantasy draft day interest.  That won’t be the case next spring as Huff was one of the AL’s most productive hitters.  His .304 BA 32 HR 108 RBI were better than many that were picked in the first few rounds.

Second Base-Even though his post season performance brought him a lot of attention last season, there were not many who predicted the MVP caliber season turned in by Red Sox second sacker, Dustin Pedroia.  His .326 BA was a mild surprise but his 17HR and 83 RBI vaulted him into the first three rounds of 2009.

Third Base-Melvin Mora of the Orioles managed to turn the clock back a few years in his most productive season since 2004. Melvin poked 23 HR and had 104 RBI despite going undrafted in many leagues.

Shortstop-In a weak crop, Royals SS Mike Aviles gave owners a mid season boost by posting a .324 BA, 10 HR and 51 RBI after being called up to the big club in June.

Outfield-Jack Cust had 33 HR and posted a .374 OBP in Oakland.  In the Windy City, Carlos Quentin managed to win the AL HR crown despite missing the last month with a broken wrist.  His 36 HR and 100 RBI were leading the MVP race when he went down.  Milton Bradley rebounded from a knee injury and emotional meltdown in San Diego by making the AL All Star squad.  Hitting behind Josh Hamilton in the Rangers’ powerful lineup, Bradley flourished.

Starting Pitcher- Cliff Lee came off of most free agent lists and onto the top of everyone’s Cy Young list.  His 23-2 season was even more impressive considering the Indians’ season long struggles.

Reliever-With all of their sleepers, it’s no wonder the Orioles had their best season in a few years.  RP George Sherrill rounds out the list.  His 31 S in his first season as a closer boosted many owners into the top half of the standings.