Finding Keepers: Toronto Blue Jays

Finding Keepers

The Toronto Blue Jays are a team filled with question marks about many of their young stud players and what type of production they will contribute in 2011. This could be a year where fantasy owners catch lightning in a bottle but only if they are willing to accept the risks associated with that happening. Let's take a look at all this lineup has to offer.

3B/OF Jose Bautista exploded on the fantasy baseball scene in 2010 with an MVP-caliber season, producing the following line, .260/109/54/124/9, and added 100 walks with a .378 OBP. Okay, 54 home runs are an unreal number and we all have to be expecting a regression, right? Well if he has a 20% regression in his home run numbers, that still projects him in the low 40's. The third base eligibility alone makes Bautista a "must-have" if you miss out on the proven elite.

1B/DH Adam Lind had a very productive 2009 (.305/35/114) and a disappointing 2010 (.237/23/72). Most 2011 projections have him sort of splitting the difference (.270/26/92). I think there's way too much uncertainty to lock him up as a keeper but definitely target him late in drafts as a DH until he gains his 1B eligibility, giving you a little more wiggle room to get him into your lineup.

If fantasy baseball has taught us anything, it's that there are tiers of players at each position and those tiers are used to determine if a position is deep or shallow. 2B Aaron Hill is projecting 20+ HR, 70+ RBI, 70+ R but an average in the .250's, .260's and .270's. So the question to ask yourself when deciding whether or not to keep Hill should be, "Can I live with an unpredictable average if it means getting at least 20/70/70 out of my second baseman?". I can live with that.

While preparing to write this article, I was teetering on whether to make a case for keeping SP Brandon Morrow or not when I saw this tweet appear in my updates. It took a few hours for the Blue Jays to issue an update on his condition and it looks like he may only miss one start. So Morrow's potential to reach 12+ Wins and 200 K's is still there but at what cost to your ERA (4.00+) and WHIP (1.40+)? His 10.9 K/9 ratio draws you in but his 4.1 BB/9 causes concern. I don't think Morrow is ready to be your fantasy ace but should be a nice middle-of-the-rotation starter with plenty of upside.

OF Travis Snider is another young Blue Jays hitter that has the potential to put up .270/20/70/70 numbers but hasn't proven it yet. I'm not a fan on using my keeper selections on young, unproven players with lots of potential. I hope the Jays commit an entire season to Snider so evaluating him as a keeper for next season is clearer.


Best of the rest but not keepers:

• OF Rajai Davis will lead off for the Jays to start the year and could steal 50 bases again. Definitely worth targeting late in drafts as a source for steals, runs and a .280 batting average.
• C J. P. Arencibia is being targeted by many fantasy owners passing on the top and middle tiers of catchers for his home run power. That power may come at the cost of a very low batting average and a 60/40 playing time split (think 100 games) with Jose Molina.
• SP Kyle Drabek should start the season in the rotation and will have every chance to prove he belongs there long term. He definitely has dynasty league keeper value now.
• SP Ricky Romero is slated to be the ace of this staff but not ready to be an ace on your fantasy roster.
• 3B Edwin Encarnacion is simply a place holder until über-prospect Brett Lawrie learns how to field his new position at AAA. Lawrie is also worthy of a keeper in deep dynasty leagues for his eventual 2012 arrival, if not sooner.

I'm sure after reading this article and scanning their roster, the word "potential" jumps out over and over again. This team may be competitive in 2011 but the 2012 season seems to be when these young players could show their true keeper values.

The entire series of "Finding Keepers" is now complete. It certainly has been a labor of love for me to commit to and complete the series. I think the quality and depth of the evaluations got stronger as I did more and more teams and believe I have the structure in place to do these again next offseason in a much more timely fashion. My goal will also be to get guest writers that cover each team regularly to chip in on some of the articles to truly get a perspective on the entire organization, rather than just at the major league level. I will admit that knowledge of team prospects is an aspect of the keepers where I was lacking and tried to incorporate more "dynasty league keepers" as I went along. My hope is that you, the readers, take the time to search for your favorite team and use the comments section to help fill in the gaps on players I may have missed or on how to make this series better come November 2011.

Finding Keepers: St. Louis Cardinals

Finding Keepers

The St. Louis Cardinals were one of only two teams to finish the 2010 season with three players in the Top 20, according to
ESPN's Player Rater system. Unfortunately, for the Cards, only two of those players will be fantasy relevant for the 2011 season.

1B Albert Pujols has undoubtedly been the greatest player in baseball over the past decade, fantasy or not. In the first 10 seasons of his career, he's averaging 156 games played with a .331 batting average, 41 HR, 123 RBI, 119 Runs and even 8 SB a year. AVERAGING! If you have the first pick in your draft, you take Albert and smile. If you have the second pick in your draft, you hope someone gets cute with their pick and Albert falls in your lap. If you have the third pick in your league, sorry but Albert is gone. Better luck next year (or next draft).

OF Matt Holliday finished 2010 as the 7th-ranked outfielder and begins 2011 ranked as the 4th best. To me that says he's projecting better numbers this season than he had last year or staying steady and others are projecting worse numbers. His slash line looked like this: .312/95/28/103/9. Keep him around for years to come, as he's showing no signs of slowing down any time soon.

I want to take a moment to discuss the danger of drafting (or even locking in keepers) in February. I'm just as excited as the next guy to want to draft and get the fantasy baseball season rolling as soon as all the major services announce they are open for business but it makes no sense to do it so early. (All five of the leagues I'm participating in this year have drafted in the last two weeks or are still yet to draft.) And this is not just about possible injuries. There are jobs to be won and lost, too. SP Adam Wainwright suffered an injury that will require Tommy John surgery and keep him out the entire 2011 season and possibly beyond. This all happened by February 24th. Fantasy leagues, as a whole, benefit from not having a team use a precious top pick or keeper selection on an injured player. Show restraint and draft as late as possible.

SP Chris Carpenter is on the keeper bubble since he, too, is dealing with an injury that could linger. I've already witnessed experienced fantasy players skip over him in live drafts. So either they were assessing the risk as too high or the uncertainty caused them to focus their efforts elsewhere. More than likely this injury won't linger all year and some owners got a fantasy ace at a bargain price.


23-year-old OF Colby Rasmus should be a keeper. The problem with that statement is that I don't agree that he is a keeper, yet. He's shown 20+ HR potential and the ability to get his batting average up near .280 but he's yet to gain the confidence of his manager and at times it feels like the franchise has yet to support him and his abilities. Is it a question of maturity (or lack thereof)? A trade this offseason would have had me feeling a lot better about his 2011 season. MockDraftCentral.com has him being drafted around the same time (93.35) as D'Backs OF Chris Young. I've targeted Young in all four drafts I've completed so far. Not once did I consider Rasmus as an alternative option.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• 1B/OF Lance Berkman was brought in to provide some offensive punch to the lineup and defensively man RF. He could put up some nice numbers if he's able to stay healthy. If.
• SP Jaime Garcia was a great find for savvy owners last year that paid attention during the Spring and early April. Expect some regression from 13-8 with a 2.70 ERA but don't over invest.
• CL Ryan Franklin projects to save around 30 games. RP Jason Motte could chip away at some saves, too. Neither are elite.
• 3B David Freese could be a nice, cheap option at a shallow position with his .300/15/80 potential.
• C Yadier Molina is an option at catcher that won't kill you (.280/7/50)  to own but probably won't excite you either.

The St. Louis Cardinals' roster has two elite fantasy baseball players that are definite keepers (Pujols and Holliday) for 2011 and beyond. I'd love to see a healthy Carpenter make another run at 20 wins and Rasmus to put up monster numbers but the reality of either happening seems remotely possible, at best.

I'm down to just one team left to cover (the Toronto Blue Jays) in my "Finding Keepers" series of articles. I hope you'll take the time to check out your favorite team. Hopefully you'll notice that the structure and depth of the team coverages got better the more I wrote them. I'd love to hear some feedback in the comments section.

Finding Keepers: San Francisco Giants

Finding Keepers

The 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants surprised many by becoming the champs but an in-depth look at their roster from a fantasy perspective shows they have plenty of pieces in place to make another run at the title.

SP Tim Lincecum is settling in as a guy you can pencil in for 16+ Wins, an ERA right around 3.00, a 1.20ish WHIP and nearly 250 K's. Roy Halladay has been the pitcher most likely off the board first (according to Mock Draft Central) but Lincecum goes next, even before reigning AL Cy Young winner Felix Hernandez. No one would blame you for locking up Lincecum as a keeper and the ace of your fantasy baseball pitching staff. Just a few points of caution, though.

ESPN's Player Rater ranked CL Brian Wilson as the Giants best fantasy player in 2010 and 33rd overall. The fantasy value of Closers and Saves in a standard 5x5 rotisserie league are always hotly debated. Wilson's numbers would have actually helped you in four of the five standard categories. His 48 Saves led the majors while sporting a 1.81 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and striking out 93 in just 74.2 innings pitched. There's plenty of risk in using a keeper selection on a closer but Wilson is currently one of the best and definitely worth consideration when evaluating your roster.

Last March, fantasy baseball was all abuzz about when C/1B Buster Posey would be called up to the majors causing most owners to invoke a draft and stash strategy and hope he was going to be worth all the hype. Well, Posey was called up and saw his first game action on May 29th, promptly going 3-for-4 with 3 RBI and never looked back from there. In 108 games, he racked up 18 HR and 67 RBI with a .305 batting average and looks to be the next big thing at the always shallow fantasy baseball catching position. Lock Posey up in every possible scoring format and enjoy the above-average production he'll provide for many years to come.

SP Matt Cain is showing signs of becoming a consistent fantasy baseball starting pitcher option. He's putting up 14 Wins, an ERA around 3.00 and a WHIP near 1.10 with 170+ Ks over the last two seasons. At just 25 years old, there's no reason not to expect more of the same or even better. He easily can be considered a tier two fantasy baseball ace and a very nice option to anchor your staff in 2011.


The Giants pitching staff led the majors in team ERA, so it should be no surprise that their top four starting pitchers all have fantasy keeper value. SP Jonathan Sanchez and SP Madison Bumgarner are definitely riskier options but each have "breakout" stuff. Sanchez flashed some of that brilliance in 2009 when he pitched a no-hitter while striking out 11. Bumgarner showed his potential with an 8-inning, 3-hit shutout performance against the Texas Rangers in the World Series. Each could be had in the middle rounds of redrafts, so it may be worth keeping other, less-risky players and targeting each a round or two before others would grab them.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• 1B/OF Aubrey Huff shocked fantasy owners with his .290/100/26/86/7 line in 2010 and is still not getting fantasy love in 2011. The potential to repeat these numbers could make him another draft day steal as a CI or 4th OF option.
• 3B Pablo Sandoval saw a dip in his BABIP (from .350 in 2008 to .291 in 2010) and in his fantasy value. A slimmed-down Panda is showing signs of life this Spring and should be targeted as a come-back candidate.
• OF Andres Torres took full advantage of an opportunity to play full-time and didn't disappoint owners with his .268/84/16/63/26 production. Sneaky 15 HR/20 SB potential again for 2011, too.
• Playoff superhero OF Cody Ross has 20+ HR power and a full-time job. Will be interesting to see what type of numbers he's able to put up.
• 3B/SS Miguel Tejada was signed to bring some stability to the left side of the infield. He's not the offensive player he once was but .280/15/75 from a player with eligibility at two shallow positions could be a nice late-round pickup.
• 1B Brandon Belt could be on the same track as Posey was in 2010. He may be drafted and stashed as a potential 2012 keeper.

The San Francisco Giants roster is filled with many fantastic fantasy baseball assets and should keep them competitive in the NL West for years to come. Are they built to go back-to-back? I wonder what Brian Wilson's Beard has to say about the odds of a repeat. I'd love to hear what you think their chances are of repeating, too.

Only two more teams left to cover in my Finding Keepers series (St. Louis and Toronto). I'm hoping to have them completed within a week, so please check back often.

Finding Keepers: Washington Nationals

Finding Keepers

(Stop me if you've heard this one before. COSFBA would like to introduce another guest blogger to you all. This edition of "Finding Keepers" was written by Geoff Bloom of BEONDECK.com. I hope you enjoy Geoff's style of writing about fantasy baseball as much as I do.)

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The Washington Nationals improved by ten games in 2010 and hope to do the same in 2011. Their lineup is slowly improving and the addition of RF Jayson Werth will provide protection for 3B Ryan Zimmerman in the lineup. This lineup has some fantasy keepers lead by Werth and Zimmerman. However, Werth's home run total fell from a career high 36 in 2009 to 27 in 2010 and Werth is projected by some to have even fewer in 2011. The change in scenery could be a huge detriment to Werth's fantasy stock. Werth hit 50 points higher and twice as many home runs in Philadelphia last year than he did on the road. He won't see a lot of pitches to hit with RISP in the Nationals lineup. He probably will drive in 87 runs, but Werth is going to have to be extremely efficient when his opportunities present themselves. A hamstring injury slowed Zimmerman's production a bit in 2010, but he continued to be a four-category monster. If the top of the Nationals order had gotten on base more, he would have easily had 100 RBI based just on his clutch hitting last year (.365 BA two-out with RISP). With Werth and 1B Adam LaRoche protecting him, expect Zimmerman to have a monster year. LaRoche does not have Adam Dunn power, but he has hit at least 20 homers each of the last six seasons and should continue to provide respectable production numbers as long as he can cut down on his strikeouts.

SS Ian Desmond stole 17 bases and knocked in 65 runs, but he had nearly four times as many K (109) as BB (28). 2B Danny Espinosa rated as the #66 prospect by Baseball America is a potential future fantasy stud. In 2010, he posted huge numbers between Double-A, Triple-A and the majors: 151 G, .259 BA, 96 R, 28 HR, 84 RBI and 25 SB. Look for him to have a productive 2011. Desmond and Espinosa can provide double-digit power and speed as well as strengthen the Nationals defensively up the middle.

With RHP Stephen Strasburg expected to miss the entire 2011 season after reconstructive elbow surgery, the ace of the Nationals injury-riddled staff is RHP Livan Hernandez. Enough said.

The Nationals bullpen is led by RP Drew Storen. He pitched well enough last year to warrant the closer role when this season begins. He went 5-for-7 in save chances. His 22 walks were uncharacteristic of what he did in the minors, but he did strike out 52 batters in 55.1 innings. If Storen stumbles, RP Tyler Clippard is next in line for saves. If your league includes the HOLDS category, look no further than Clippard who had 23 holds last year.

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Geoff Bloom writes his own fantasy baseball blog, BEONDECK.com, dispensing fantasy baseball advice. I recommend checking out his blog and following him on Twitter. Geoff is also a member of a COSFBA-sponsored fantasy baseball league.

Finding Keepers: San Diego Padres

Finding Keepers

The San Diego Padres may find ways to win a lot of games in the NL West this season and stay competitive but they will be doing so with very few keeper worthy players. Funny how trading 1B Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox turned him from an upper-tier option at first base into an elite one.

With Gonzalez off the roster now, the Padres highest-ranked fantasy player according to the ESPN Player Rater was CL Heath Bell. Now, in a game that most pundits will say "never pay for saves", having your closer be your best option for a fantasy keeper is not necessarily a good thing. On the plus side, Bell was 6-1 with 47 Saves, had a 1.93 ERA with a 1.20 WHIP and an 11.1 K/9 ratio. So if you want to use a keeper selection on him, you'll probably get very good numbers in return for doing so. Probably? That word doesn't exactly instill confidence.

SP Mat Latos went from being virtually undrafted in most leagues in 2010 to producing an 8th-place finish in the 2010 NL Cy Young Award with a 14-10 record, 2.92 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 189 K's in 184.2 innings pitched. Those strikeout numbers translated to robust ratios of 9.2 K/9 and 3.78 K/BB. Those kinds of numbers matched with his potential for a big 2011 currently have him being drafted on MockDraftCentral.com at 72.17 with such fantasy pitching studs as Justin Verlander (66.12), Josh Johnson (72.40) and Francisco Liriano (79.91). Lock him up and enjoy the ride.

The only player on the Padres projecting to hit 20 or more home runs in 2011 is OF Ryan Ludwick. That surely doesn't bode well for a team that had the 22nd-ranked offense in 2010. Unfortunately, a 21 HR, 82 RBI, .270 hitting outfielder with no speed doesn't deserve a keeper selection but it will get him drafted as a third or fourth outfield option.

If SS Jason Bartlett was able to put up 2009 numbers again (.320/90/14/66/30) he'd be a no-brainer keeper option for 2011 at what's projecting to be a very thin position. Unfortunately, those numbers look more and more like a statistical anomaly. He'll probably get drafted in very deep, mixed leagues or NL-only leagues and could reward some owners with a decent, if not surprising, return on investment. But probably not.


Best of the rest but not keepers:

• OF Cameron Maybin has yet to earn the opportunity to play a full season at the majors, so his fantasy value continues to be based on potential. Could he be a 15/15 outfielder or better? Maybe. But that potential probably comes with a .250 batting average or worse.
• Let's be clear, this is not the SP Aaron Harang that won 32 games total from 2006-2007. The Padres signed the pitcher that has won a total of 18 games in 75 starts (24%) over the last three season. Some experts are targeting him as a sleeper. Look elsewhere until he proves he's even draftable.
• If your league uses Holds K/9 and/or K/BB as scoring categories then you need to be targeting RP Mike Adams and RP Luke Gregerson as late-round picks. In 2010, they combined for 78 Holds, had K/9 ratios right around 10.0 and would be likely candidates to close for the Padres should Bell get hurt or be traded.

The Padres are a team based on good pitchers pitching well enough to have a strong bullpen keep them in games long enough to find ways to win. They surprisingly managed to win 90 games last season. A season that included a 10-game losing streak. Their roster might not be full of guys that are going to help you dominate your fantasy baseball league but it should be another enjoyable season for fans in Southern California.

The entire series of "Finding Keepers" articles are nearly complete and, coincidentally, just in time for me to start drafting my fantasy baseball teams (five this season). I look forward to putting my knowledge, research and passion into actual rosters and the joy and agony that is sure to ensue from now until October. It doesn't get much better than that for a true baseball and fantasy baseball fan.

Finding Keepers: Texas Rangers

Finding Keepers

(For the second time in COSFBA's short history, an article is being presented to you by someone other than me. I've recently been in contact with some writers that have shown interest in possible  guest writing opportunities, so you may see a few more in the near future. This post was written by Joe Tetreault, a fellow Baseball Bloggers Alliance member and accomplished writer/blogger. Enjoy his take on a "Finding Keepers" article.)

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Defending AL Champs. That suggests plenty of keepers to be found by reviewing the roster of the Texas Rangers. But the pickings are slimmer than one would expect. The obvious ones jump out right away. But even in the most obvious there are caveats aplenty.

Josh Hamilton is a feel good story, and the reigning AL MVP. His outstanding .359/.411/.633 slash line signals the offensive prowess that Hamilton brings to the plate. But he's entering his age 30 season and injuries have chewed up chunks of his last two seasons. They weren't enough to derail his MVP quest, but as year end approached and Miguel Cabrera chased his numbers down, plenty called for the award to go to Detroit's troubled slugger instead of Texas'. And like Cabrera, no caveat list is complete without alluding to the troubles that Hamilton had with drugs when he was a minor-leaguer. They seem to be in the past, but the worry of relapse should be taken seriously when considering Hamilton as a keeper.

Legitimate keepers are much harder to find. One can make a case for Nelson Cruz, but age (he'll be 29 this year) and his own set of persistent injuries diminish the credibility of that recommendation. Julio Borbon and Mitch Moreland are younger lads, but their track records reflect their youth. Borbon was barely replacement level in 2010, so he's not worth the keep. Moreland didn't make it to 50 games played in 2010, so his solid batting line screams small sample size.

That leaves two players who have both youth and an established track record of success available. The first is even more appealing because he plays the most challenging position on the defensive spectrum. That's Elvis Andrus. And he'll be but 22 during the coming season. He doesn't bring the power, with just 49 career extra base hits in his two full seasons. But he's swiped 65 bases in that same stretch of time and he's reasonable enough at getting on base that he'll pile up runs. In short, he's a great table setter at a typically difficult to fill fantasy position. Draft him. Keep him. Be Happy.

Like Andrus, the Rangers other keeper of renown started his pro career as a Brave and was part of the bounty the Rangers won for Mark Teixeira. But Neftali Feliz is not a defensive wiz afield. He's not a Ruthian figure at the plate. He's a flamethrower of some skill who's actually undervalued this year because no one really knows what the Rangers are poised to do with him. Will he continue to close or is his destiny in the rotation. His greater value to the club is likely as a starter, but unless he becomes a front of the rotation star, his fantasy value is tied to the saves and strikeouts he racks up along with a miniscule ERA and WHIP. He's only 23, so nabbing him now amid the uncertainty may be the steal of your draft.


Deeper keepers can look to the Rangers farm system for another treat. Lefty starter Martin Perez made it to AA Frisco as an 18 year old in 2009. He stumbled there at 19 but still struck out more than a batter an inning while playing very young for the league. He's a possible September call up, so if you can grab him later in the year and keep him long term, your patience will surely be rewarded.

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Joe Tetreault covers the intersection of baseball and business for the Biz of Baseball, and a variety of topics at his own blog TetreaultVision. You can also follow him on twitter.

Finding Keepers: Tampa Bay Rays

Finding Keepers

The Tampa Bay Rays went for it all in 2010 and won the AL East before being knocked out of the playoffs by the Texas Rangers. Everyone knew the Rays would be making some wholesale changes this offseason (letting Carl Crawford, Rafael Soriano, Carlos Pena and Joaquin Benoit walk while trading away Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett) but the future looks bright for a team that has 12 of the first 89 picks in the 2011 MLB Draft.

So for all of the talk about what this team has lost, they still have some fantasy keepers on the roster and it all starts with 3B Evan Longoria. Longoria is definitely a keeper and a first-round pick for 2011 and for many years to come. Mock Draft Central puts his current ADP at 4.89, being drafted as high as third and as late as 11th. He's projecting a batting average in the .280s with 25-30 home runs, 100+ RBI and runs with 10+ stolen bases. Third base is a very shallow position this year so I can see why people are jumping on Longoria early.

In 2010, SP David Price was the runner-up in the AL Cy Young Award with a 19-6 record, 2.71 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 188 K's and is now being looked upon as the ace of the Rays' staff. That's a lot of pressure to put on a 24 year old but Price has shown he's ready to handle it. His win total may come down a bit to around 15 since he'll be matching up against other number ones in the AL East but I'd expect his ERA to hover around 3.30 and a WHIP near 1.25 with 200 K's in 2011. Lock him up as a fantasy roster ace.

What's not to like about an outfielder that can produce 18 HR, 62 RBI, 89 R and 42 SB? How about his awful .237 batting average? Such is the case with OF B.J. Upton. If only he could get his batting average up to his career mark of .260, it would make the 20 HR/40 SB potential so much more attractive. If you're willing to accept some bad with all that good and the potential Upton possesses for greatness, he makes a great keeper selection.

OF Desmond Jennings could probably steal 50 bases given an entire season of regular playing time this season. The giant question mark, though, is how much playing time will he ACTUALLY get? I think the Rays are going to bring him along slowly while seeing how the Damon and Ramirez signings play out for 2011. If you are in a dynasty league, Jennings would be a great keeper selection to lock up for 2012 and beyond. I'm not sold that you'll get your return on investment if you are simply keeping him for his 2011 potential.


Best of the rest but not keepers:

• SP Jeremy Hellickson is being touted as the "next big thing" but projections on Rotochamp.com put him as an 11-win pitcher, at best. He could be good in 2011 but probably not a keeper until 2012 or 2013.
• 2B/OF Ben Zobrist is a second baseman that has 20/20 potential but his .253 career batting average could deter him from being on anyone's keeper list. NOTE: He hit just .177 and slugged .293 after the break due to an ugly .190 BABIP.
• What you get out of OF Manny Ramirez and OF Johnny Damon this season is anyone's guess but it's been a while since either were worthy of a keeper selection.
• C John Jaso is a catcher that can hit .270 with an OBP near .380 and should be sitting there available at the end of most drafts if you're looking for a cheap option at this position.
• 1B Dan Johnson looks as though he'll be in the mix at first base for the Rays this season. There are some serious discrepancies in projections on what to expect out of him this season.

The Rays roster still has a bunch of players with fantasy value and it will be interesting to see how that relates to the real-life outcomes in the standings. This team will play with a ton of enthusiasm and heart and should be in the mix come playoff time.

Please take a moment to check out the rest of the teams in my "Finding Keepers" series and contact me if you have any interest in participating in my fantasy baseball league (see settings). Also, COSFBA can be followed on Twitter and now has a Facebook fan page to "Like" to have new articles and updates appear in your News Feed. Thanks for taking the time to check out all the ways in which COSFBA helps feed my addiction to fantasy baseball.

Finding Keepers: Pittsburgh Pirates

Finding Keepers

One of the more enjoyable aspects of fantasy baseball is that even the bad teams can have very valuable assets to own. Such is the case when looking at a team like the Pittsburgh Pirates. They haven't had a winning season since 1992 but do have some players worthy of a "keeper" selection and several others that will have fantasy value throughout the season.

The Pirates best player and a no-brainer keeper selection is OF Andrew McCutchen. He finished 2010 as the 39th-ranked player on ESPN's Player Rater and the 15th-ranked outfielder. His 162 game career averages of .286/104/17/68/34 makes him a must-own player in all fantasy baseball formats. Check out his projections and rankings on his RotoChamp.com player page. Impressive!

Depending on the depth of your league, 2B Neil Walker deserves consideration as a keeper. A second baseman that can hit .280+ with 15+ HR, 75+ R, 75+ RBI, 10 SB potential can be a very valuable asset to own come draft day. In no way am I suggesting that Walker is or ever will be an elite option at second base but he should easily finish ranked in the top 10 come season's end.

If you're the type of fantasy owner that loves to keep young players with potential (and risks) then these next two players are probably right up your alley and deserve keeper consideration. OF Jose Tabata and 3B Pedro Alvarez each showed they have major league-ready talent in around 100 games last season. Tabata showed the potential to score 100 runs, steal 30 bases and hit around .300 while Alvarez flashed 25 HR/100 RBI power. Of the two, Tabata is probably the safer bet to succeed in 2011. Alvarez only hit .256 and struck out at rate that would have surpassed 200 K's over 162 games. If I'm the Pirates, I run them out there for 150+ games and see what they can do.


Best of the rest but not keepers:

• 1B Lyle Overbay was signed to get his 500 at bats, hit 15 home runs and bat .260. It's a shame they didn't have anyone in their system (Steven Pearce?) with enough potential to compete for the job in Spring Training. That would have given fantasy owners something to look forward to and talk about.
• 1B/OF Garrett Jones probably takes the biggest hit with the Overbay signing. He'll now bring his 20+ HR power into the first base mix and an outfield platoon with newly signed OF Matt Diaz.
• RP Joel Hanrahan was officially announced as the Opening Day closer. He had a very high 12.9 K/9 ratio in 2010 to go along with a very nice 3.85 K/BB ratio. If your league uses these alternative scoring columns, his value goes up but would never qualify as a keeper.
• SP Ross Ohlendorf went 1-11 in 2010 and won his arbitration case against the Pirates. He shouldn't even be considered on draft day but his case kept the value of advanced statistics (Sabermetrics) in the news.

Fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates may be in for another long season on the field but their roster includes many ownable fantasy baseball assets while their farm system currently offers slim hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Be sure to check out the rest of the articles in my "Finding Keepers" series as you prepare to lock in your keepers and continue preparing for your upcoming drafts. Also, if you're interested in participating in a fantasy baseball draft made up of COSFBA Readers and Followers on Twitter, check out my recent article here to get more information.

Finding Keepers: Seattle Mariners

Finding Keepers

Even though the Seattle Mariners' 2010 offense as a whole was inept, they still managed to produce several very good individual fantasy baseball performances worthy of a keeper selection.

What little offense you do squeeze out of this team can probably be attributed to OF Ichiro Suzuki. He's led the MAJORS in hits seven out of his ten seasons since joining Seattle in 2001, while averaging 224 hits per season. He's also carrying a career .331 batting average and has hit .350 or better four times! RotoChamps.com reports his 2011 5x5 projections around .319/90/7/48/33 and ranks him as the 6th-best outfielder overall. Ichiro is one of those fantasy baseball players that you really know what you are getting when you draft (or keep) them and this season should be more of the same excellence.

Who knew that the major's worst offense would wind up being at the center of the AL Cy Young Award voting too? SP Felix Hernandez received the lowest Run Support Average of all qualifying pitchers in the majors for 2010 and it was reflected in the fact that he recorded 30 Quality Starts in 34 Games Started but produced just a 13-12 record. "King Felix" led the AL in Innings Pitched with 249.2 and the majors with a 2.27 ERA. At just 24 years old, the sky's the limit for a pitcher that deserves so much more support than the anemic Seattle Mariners offense can provide him.

2B Chone Figgins was just one of the many Mariners that had an awful offensive season, hitting a career-low .259 and scoring a career-low 62 runs. Positively, Figgins still managed to steal 42 bases and could come at a discount in auctions and new league drafts. There's talk that he'll be moved back to third base for the 2011 season, so he should gain 3B eligibility early enough in the season to give owners some nice roster flexibility with a guy that could easily produce a .280/90/2/45/40 line.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• We all want 1B Justin Smoak to be a viable fantasy option at first base but he's yet to prove worthy of the hype. Projections on RotoChamp.com have him hitting as low as .233 with just 12 home runs and as high as .261 with 20 home runs. Get back to me in 2012.
• OF Franklin Gutierrez has 15 HR/20 SB potential but with a .260 batting average. He has value in larger, mixed-format leagues but not as a keeper.
• C Miguel Olivo was signed to be the regular catcher for his 20 HR potential. Unfortunately, he also brings a .246 career batting average.
• On the plus side, 1B/DH Jack Cust averages 27 HR per 162 games played with a career OBP of .378. Negatively, his career batting average is .245 and strikes out 197 times per 162 games played. Has much more value in leagues that use OBP instead of BA but will never be a keeper.
• 2B Dustin Ackley looks to be the future at second base and could see significant time in the majors this season but has little fantasy value at this point for 2011. Keep a close eye on him this Spring.

There's not a lot to get excited about when looking over the current Seattle Mariners roster once you get past the elites. Their farm system is currently ranked 16th out of 30, so even the near future seems dim. I'd love to hear from someone that covers the Mariners for a living or a die-hard fan on what to look for in 2011 and beyond.

I'm nearing the end of my keeper previews of all teams, so if you'd like to see what I've done so far, please check out  the article tag "Finding Keepers" at http://www.cosfba.com/search/label/Finding%20Keepers.

Finding Keepers: New York Mets

Finding Keepers

Not a ton seemed to go well for the New York Mets on the field in 2010 but they did manage to have some fantasy-relevant players and some of those performances translate into keeper selections.

A lot has been made of 3B David Wright's increasing strikeout numbers and decreasing walk numbers but he still managed to finish the season as the 20th-ranked fantasy player overall and the 2nd-ranked third baseman (on ESPN). Why's that? Because most leagues don't care about strikeouts and walks. Fans will continue to focus on the negative because they expect big(ger) things from Wright but fantasy managers shouldn't get caught up in all that and simply focus on the statistics that matter most in your leagues: .283/87/29/103/19.

OF Angel Pagan earned his first full season's worth of at bats and responded with a very nice fantasy line of .290/80/11/69/37. Pagan is slated to be the Mets right fielder in 2011 but what type of numbers should be expected? If this is the ceiling on his production, then one must assume his numbers will be down this season. RotoChamp has him producing a line of .278/79/11/64/30 in 561 at bats while CAIRO sees him at .278/54/8/42/17 in just 383 at bats. That's quite a disparity. I had him as a fringe keeper in my mind before doing the research (because of the steals) and would not be willing to gamble on him at this point with such a limited body of work.

From 2005 through 2008, SS Jose Reyes was a fantasy baseball god. He averaged 195 hits, 32 doubles, 16 triples, 14 home runs, 66 RBI, 113 runs and 64 stolen bases per season. He only managed 36 games in 2009 and 133 in 2010 but still managed to stay on pace with his career numbers. If you look at the 169 game totals for the last two season, this is what you get: 200 hits, 36 doubles, 12 triples, 13 home runs, 69 RBI, 101 runs and 41 stolen bases. Look familiar? This may be the year to buy into him as turning it all around and putting up the numbers that made him a top 5 pick in years gone by. PS, Reyes is still just 27 years old.


OF Jason Bay's first season with the Mets was a disaster, to say the least and leaves a lot of unknowns heading into draft day. Bay had averaged 33 HR and 108 RBI (per 162 games) prior to joining the Mets and was on pace for a mere 10 HR with 80 RBI before suffering a season-ending concussion in late July. Add in Citi Field's ability to suck the life out of a power-hitter's bat and things aren't looking so great for Bay as a keeper for 2011. Way too many "ifs".

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• SP Mike Pelfrey will be called upon to be the number one starter and has the potential to win 15 games but for his career he's not a strikeout pitcher (5.1 K/9), has a historically high WHIP (1.46) and a low K/BB ratio of 1.56. Not keeper numbers.
• 1B Ike Davis should provide 20 HR and 75 RBI with a .260s batting average. You need to get more production out of a fantasy keeper at first base.
• OF Carlos Beltran is another Met finding it hard to stay healthy and on the field. He nearly averages a career 30/30 (28/29)! Are there more years left in those knees? Too much risky involved to find out.
• C Josh Thole has shown the ability to offensively-productive catcher and the starting job is his to lose. Definitely a late-round pick in deep leagues using two catchers but not a keeper.

Unfortunately for the Mets, they are stuck with a lot of bad contract and a lot of bad players on their roster for 2011. The good news is that 2012 offers some promise. Their 2011 payroll commitments currently total around $125M but will drop to just around $60M in 2012. That should translate into them being players in next winter's free agent market and increase the amount of keeper options.

Finding Keepers: Philadelphia Phillies

Finding Keepers

(In a COSFBA first, this article is coming to you by someone other than me. A unique opportunity presented itself to me via Twitter and I pounced. Writer Paul Boyé offered up his services to compose this edition of Finding Keepers and I couldn't be happier with the results. Paul currently writes for PhilliesNation.com. Be sure to check out his body of work there and follow him on Twitter @Phrontiersman.)

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In making the NLCS for the third consecutive year, the 2010 Philadelphia Phillies further cemented their status as one of the Senior Circuit’s top clubs. Their defeat at the hands of the eventual champion San Francisco Giants, however, seemed to expose some flaws in their armor. In the offseason, OF Jayson Werth flew the coop for a huge contract with the Nationals and, suddenly, with all of the incumbent players a year older, things seemed a little dubious for the Phils and their top-tier status.

Then along came SP Cliff Lee, and things didn’t seem quite so bleak anymore. Sure, questions still remain about their future, but for 2011 and 2012, you can find keeper-quality players in plenty of places.

One of the no-doubt-about-it keepers on this team is SP Cole Hamels. The 2008 NLCS and World Series MVP followed up a rough 2009 campaign – one compounded by both sub-par stuff and bad luck – with an excellent 2010, and at 27 years old, he’s entering his prime years. Playing in Citizens Bank Park as a flyball pitcher means Cole will always give up more than a homer per nine innings, but he gives you enough everywhere else – high-strikeout, low-walk numbers, along with wins if the offense supports him – and durability isn’t a problem. He could be a top-20 SP in 2011, and should be just as good for the next few seasons.


Similarly, you can earmark SP Roy Halladay for a keep. You know how good he is, and he’s showing no signs of slowing. He’ll still be elite in the N.L. for the foreseeable future. The rest of the rotation, with SPs Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt, are probably keepers, too. Watch out for lingering back injury issues with both, but don’t let it bother you too much when deciding whether to hang on to either.

Offensively, 2B Chase Utley is likely a top-2 second baseman, C Carlos Ruiz is an underrated player in a thin position (beware low RBI totals from the end of the lineup), and 1B Ryan Howard will always give you big numbers in fantasy stats, even if his real-world value seems to have slipped. Top prospect OF Domonic Brown could break out at any time, even in 2011, so he’s worth holding on to for a few seasons to see if he’ll reach any of his lofty expectations.

After this season, hang on to RP Ryan Madson. Even if it isn’t with the Phillies, he’ll be a closer in 2012.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• 3B Placido Polanco – A nice player, but he won’t provide you with enough offensive production (good AVG aside) to justify being a high pick at third base.
• SS Jimmy Rollins – While he’ll never be the player he was in 2007 again, he’s not as bad as he was in 2010, either. Still, this definitely feels like beginning of the back end of a good career.
• RP Brad Lidge – He’ll get saves, and he had a nice second half in 2010, but something still isn’t right with Lidge. Plus, a balky knee and elbow could limit his innings.
• OF Raul Ibanez – Struggled mightily out of the gate in 2010, and though he salvaged some decent fantasy numbers, his age 39 season doesn’t seem likely to feature some big power surge.

The Phillies have a lot of really good, if aging, players on their roster and, for once, their pitching is more valuable than their hitting. Assuming 130-game health for the hitters and 30-plus starts for the SPs, they have plenty of top fantasy players. Some keeps would be a bit riskier than others, but the sheer number of potential keeper-quality players on this club is noteworthy.

Finding Keepers: Oakland Athletics

Finding Keepers

The 2010 Oakland Athletics were a team with a highly-effective pitching staff (lowest team ERA in the AL) and that was reflected in the fact that their top fantasy performers were three starting pitchers and their closer but how does that translate into keepers?

At just 22 years old, SP Trevor Cahill came out of nowhere to post a very good 18-8, 2.97 ERA, 1.11 WHIP season for fantasy owners but let's take a deeper look at some numbers. Cahill only struck out 118 in 196.2 innings while walking 63 for less than stellar ratios of 5.4 K/9 and 1.87 K/BB. His BAA of .220 was 40 points below the MLB average of .260 while his BABIP(*) was .237 compared to the MLB average of .298. So from my relatively low understanding of BABIP is that either he was very lucky or that he played in front of a very good defense or a little of both. Are you willing to bet a valuable keeper selection on him to find out if he can repeat this at such an early age? In your standard 5x5 league with 60 total keepers, I say no. In much deeper dynasty leagues with expanded scoring categories, maybe.

(*)NOTE: This is the first time I've quoted BABIP in an article. I'm trying to expand my knowledge and understanding of the more commonly referenced sabermetric statistics seen in articles these days. Please call me out if I have misinterpreted or misused BABIP.

SP Dallas Braden (27), SP Gio Gonzalez (25) and SP Brett Anderson (22) make up the rest of Oakland's very young and talented rotation but each comes with pros and cons in the keeper debate. Braden owns a perfect game but has a career W/L record of 25-35 (.417%), a 4.20 ERA, a 1.33 WHIP and just a 5.5 K/9 ratio. Gonzalez owns the highest career K/9 ratio at 8.5 but also the worst BB/9 ratio of 4.7 to go along with his 4.43 ERA and 1.47 WHIP. In 49 career starts, Anderson owns some of the more impressive numbers of the group such as a 3.57 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP and ratios of 7.0 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 3.36 K/BB. Again, depending on the depth of your keeper selections, I wouldn't question trying to capture lightning in a bottle by selecting any of these four as a keeper but the risks involved have me leaning towards no in most formats. I'd rather target them all at a specific point in my draft and if they aren't there simply move on.

OF Coco Crisp was Oakland's highest-ranked position player and considering he only appeared in 75 games doesn't speak well of this team's offensive abilities. Crisp now comes with the label "injury-prone" in fantasy circles and that's never a good thing when talking keepers. His 162 game averages of .277/92/12/65/30 make him a very good fantasy asset (when healthy) but too risky to tag him a keeper target.


Ask yourself how valuable a decent offensive catcher is to the overall success of your fantasy team. Or ask the opposite of how much of a liability having a below average catcher is to your success. C Kurt Suzuki only hit .242 with a very low BABIP of .245 but still managed 13 home runs and 71 RBI. If he can get his batting average back up into the .270s, he'd be a top-10 catcher again who deserves consideration as a keeper.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• DH Hideki Matsui was brought to Oakland to provide a proven offensive presence to the middle of their lineup but only projecting to be about a .275/67/20/73 hitter (per RotoChamp.com).
• OF Josh Willingham is another acquisition that was brought in to provide some offense to the middle of their lineup but may only bring a .260/70/20/70 line into the mix.
• 1B Daric Barton led the AL in walks with 110 but provided just 10 HR and 57 RBI with a .273 BA. He has more value in leagues that use OBP (.393) instead of BA, but still not a keeper.
• A shortstop that can steal 30 bases should be a lock for a keeper but SS Cliff Pennington brings little else to the table.

The current Oakland roster is filled with many good fantasy assets/options/pieces but none stand out as a "no-brainer" keeper. Do you see it differently? Did I miss someone? Are you a diehard A's fan that just wants to discuss your outlook for the upcoming season? If so, feel free to use the comments section to talk about all things Oakland Athletics.

If you'd like to check out the rest of my "Finding Keepers" articles, click here or check out the "Article Tags" section of my blog to the right.

Finding Keepers: Milwaukee Brewers

Finding Keepers

The Milwaukee Brewers had a very productive offseason, acquiring two very exciting young arms but it remains to be seen if they gave up too much in doing so.

OF Ryan Braun is at the core of this team's offense and finished the season as the 13th-ranked fantasy player with a .304/101/25/103/14 line. It's hard to find fault with those numbers even though each was below his career average (per 162 games played) of .307/111/36/118/18. The Brewers are a team that injected a lot of optimism and energy into their 2011 season and I'd expect a player like Braun to benefit from that and produce another MVP-caliber season.

Okay, enough beating around the bush. Acquiring SP Zack Greinke from the Kansas City Royals sent a message to the rest of the NL Central (and all of baseball) that the Brewers were ready to make a run at winning now even though it meant sacrificing a few young players. Greinke is one season removed from winning a Cy Young award while on a very bad team. I look for him to regain his dominance and you should too by making him a keeper selection in all fantasy baseball league formats.

OF Corey Hart seemed to figure it all out after a horrific 2009 and wondering if he'd even be a starter in 2010. Merely a late round afterthought in most drafts (ADP 232.7), he rebounded to produce a .283/91/31/102/7 line, which was good enough to finish the season as the 17th-ranked outfielder. Hart is a two-time 20/20 player but has seen his stolen bases slip to just seven last season. It would be great to see him produce a 30/15 season in 2011 but regardless of the stolen bases deserves to be a keeper.

It's hard not to call a player that was drafted with an ADP of 8 and finished the season ranked 100th overall a disappointment, but I'm sure that's exactly what most 1B Prince Fielder owners would say about his 2010 performance. Fantasy managers were definitely expecting big things from Prince after his .299/103/46/141/2 line in 2009 but would be foolish to think he's not going to put up monster numbers again, especially while seeking a mega-millions type contract. If he were made available in a keeper league, I'd be questioning if the league was even worth playing in.

2B Rickie Weeks has averaged 22 home runs and 23 stolen bases (per 162 games played) over his young career and produced the 3rd-best season of all second basemen in 2010 with a .269/112/29/83/11 line. It's hard to ignore production like that when locking in your keepers but be aware that Weeks has only averaged 105 games played over the last six years with a low of 37 in 2009 and a high of 160 in 2010.

What a nice fantasy surprise 3B Casey McGehee has been over the last two seasons, producing at a .288/74/22/101/1 pace and being the ninth-ranked third baseman while holding 2B eligibility too. He'll strictly be a third baseman in 2011 but deserves serious keeper consideration at a position that drops off significantly outside of the top 10.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• SP Yovani Gallardo, newly-acquired SP Shaun Marcum and SP Randy Wolf round out the top four rotation spots and each could have a very good fantasy season but none are worthy of a keeper selection. All three should be available in the middle rounds of drafts when quality starting pitchers start flying off the board.
• RP John Axford filled in very nicely as the closer when the wheels fell off of Trevor Hoffman's season. He finished the season with 24 Saves, a 2.48 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and a stellar 11.79 K/9 ratio. Axford will be a fun player to own in 2011. I mean just check out his Twitter profile picture!

Looking over the Brewers roster, fans have a lot to look forward to in 2011. Did I miss anyone? Disagree with my assessment of a player? I'd love to hear from a die-hard Brewers fan that can't wait for the season to get underway and your player and team predictions.

As a new member of the Yardbarker Network, my articles are getting a lot of exposure to a much wider audience and I am grateful to all of the first-time visitors. Be sure to check out COSFBA on Twitter and Facebook, too. If you'd like to see what other teams I've already covered in my "Finding Keepers" series of articles, click here.

Finding Keepers: New York Yankees

Finding Keepers

Rare is the team that can make a case for a keeper at nearly every position, but so is the case with the New York Yankees.

2B Robinson Cano finished the season as the top-ranked fantasy second baseman and the 11th-ranked player overall . His .319/103/29/109/3 was enough to garner him a third place finish in the AL MVP voting. Cano will be drafted in the first round of most drafts and continues to show his value as a keeper. I'm still not sure we've seen him reach his full potential and that should excite any fantasy owner lucky enough to have him on their roster for years to come.

You'd think 40 wins and nearly 400 strikeouts over the last two seasons would have been enough for SP CC Sabathia to win a couple of Cy Young awards but such is not the case. His 2010 season left him as the 7th-ranked starting pitcher on ESPN's Player Rater. Sabathia owners should just sit back and enjoy the quality seasons he's putting together, lock him up as a keeper and work to build a quality pitching staff around him.

Any guesses which other Yankee ranked within the top 50 fantasy-valued players? Hint: His yearly salary was a whopping $452,500. OF Brett Gardner finished the season with a .277/97/5/47/47 line, ranking him 47th overall and he deserves the same consideration as a keeper that a Juan Pierre or Michael Bourn would be given. Would you rather a 20/20 outfielder or a 5/50 one?

Some people would argue that 3B Alex Rodriguez is no longer the player he used to be. Maybe that's true but he's STILL a player that hit 30 HR and had 125 RBI last season and that was good enough for 6th best at his position and is a no-brainer keeper. He probably won't be drafted in the first round of many drafts this season and could fall past the second round. All I know is that if he falls and I have the next pick, I'm buying that his line gets better in 2011.

SS Derek Jeter had a statistically down year in 2010 (for him) but still managed to be the 5th-ranked shortstop in baseball. With a new contract and 3000 hits within his reach, does Jeter have something to prove to the Yankees, the media and the fans? Love him or hate him, he's a fantasy baseball keeper.

Wanna lock up a seven-year veteran as a keeper that averages 37 HR, 121 RBI, 104 Runs while batting .286? Then 1B Mark Teixeira is your guy. Even though his batting average was a career-worst .256, Teixeira managed to hit 33 HR with 108 RBI while scoring a career-high 113 Runs. Pencil him in as your opening day first baseman and enjoy the ride.

Two players that would probably not receive much keeper consideration were they not on the Yankees would be C Jorge Posada and OF Nick Swisher. Posada looks to be the Yankees full-time DH next season with catcher eligibility and the potential to hit .270+ with 20 HR and 80 RBI while Swisher went .288/91/29/89/1 in 2010. I say yes to Posada as a keeper simply due to the numbers he can put up with his catcher eligibility (10th ranked) but no to Swisher as the 25th-ranked outfielder.

Rarely do closers deserve consideration as keepers but how do you not consider RP Mariano Rivera and all that he brings to the table. Obviously on the downside of his career, Rivera still brings the potential for 40 saves with a sub-2.00 ERA and a sub-1.00 WHIP. I'm not here to endorse him as a keeper but surely won't mock you for doing so.

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• OF Curtis Granderson brings tons of potential (20/20? 30/30?!?!) for a breakout fantasy season but hasn't hit north of .250 the last two seasons. That's a huge gamble to take with a keeper selection.
• SP Phil Hughes was 11-2/3.65 ERA/1.18 WHIP prior to the All-Star break and 7-6/4.90 ERA/1.34 WHIP after the All-Star break. Which pitcher would you be keeping?
• C Russell Martin, if fully healthy, could put up great numbers hitting at the bottom of a potent Yankee lineup and will likely be aggressively sought on draft day but not a keeper for 2011. That may very well change for 2012.
• SP Andy Pettitte is still weighing his options but his keeper years are well behind him.

As stacked as the Yankees' roster is with fantasy keepers, they still have some unanswered questions within their rotation and in the bullpen. Feel free to use the comments section to discuss what the 2011 season has in store for the entire team, individual player statistics and projections or what moves you think the Yankees still have left to make headed into a season where the rival Boston Red Sox are clearly making a run at winning it all with their offseason moves.

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Finding Keepers: Los Angeles Dodgers

Finding Keepers

Going into the 2011 season, the Los Angeles Dodgers have some very nice fantasy players but how many of them deserve to be keepers heading into draft day?

If you put together your "All Disappointment" Team of 2010, most would have OF Matt Kemp earning a spot in the starting lineup. Google searching seems to prove he earned it. But is it deservingly so? Kemp, a full-time player since 2008, did reach career highs in extra-base hits (59), home runs (28) and walks (53) but also in strikeouts (170) and caught stealings (15). His slash line of .249/.310/.450 was below his career slash line of .285/.336/.472 but not significantly other than in batting average. In my opinion, the perception of his season as being "down" comes from Kemp being drafted as a first-rounder (8.8 ADP) but only providing owners with an 83rd-ranked performance. With Joe Torre and Rihanna out of the way, Kemp's focus should be on returning to an elite fantasy baseball outfielder and definitely worthy of a keeper selection in all formats.

OF Andre Ethier was hitting .392 with 11 HR and 38 RBI before fracturing his pinkie in batting practice on May 15th. His season never felt the same after that. Ethier still managed to finish 2010 hitting .292 with 23 HR and 82 RBI and deserves to to be keeper.

We all learned from watching Felix Hernandez earn a Cy Young award this season that wins aren't the truest measure of a pitcher's value. SP Clayton Kershaw finished the season 13-10 with a 2.91 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 212 strikeouts (9.3 K/9). Those are fantasy ace numbers. Oh, by the way, he's just 22 years old. 22! With so much still to learn about pitching at the major league level, Kershaw deserves to be a keeper now and for many years to come.


I often talk about factors that should be considered when evaluating a player's status as a keeper and one of this is positional scarcity or positional ranking. SS Rafael Furcal finished the season as the 6th-ranked shortstop on ESPN's Player Rater with a .300/66/8/43/22 but only managed to play in 97 games. Is he an injury risk or an upper-tier shortstop? I choose the latter. What about you?

Best of the rest but not keepers:

• 1B James Loney hit a career-worst .267 but still managed to come close to his career averages in runs, hits and RBI while stealing a career-best 10 bases. He finished the season as the 23rd-ranked first baseman.
• SP Hiroki Kuroda only finished the season 11-13 but posted a 3.39 ERA with a 1.16 WHIP. A very nice pitching option but not a keeper.
• SP Chad Billingsley was supposed to be this team's ace but struggled at times and finished the season 12-11 with a 3.57 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP.
• RP Jonathan Broxton came into the season as a dominant closer but struggled (misuse?) and replaced by RP Hong-Chih Kuo who was very effective in that role. It will be interesting to see how Mattingly aligns his bullpen for 2011.

That's all I got off the Dodgers roster heading into keeper season. Are their others you're more optimistic about than I am? I'd love to hear from the die-hard Dodgers fans regarding the overall outlook for the 2011 season (I'm talking to you @Alyssa_Milano).

Check out the rest of the teams I've covered so far in my "Finders Keepers" series by clicking here.