Fantasy: Hill is a great flier

I probably wouldn’t take him as my starting second baseman but he can do pretty good.  He still hit 26 homers last year and won’t hit less than 23 this season.  He will probably not be as good as he was in 2009 but his average and value should slowly climb up and I expect a good season from him, especially if he’s your middle infielder or a bench player.  He won’t hit a ton and isn’t a sleeper but people are selling him a bit too low this year and at second, he’s not a terrible option.  He could add a few stolen bases in there and do good for the Jays this year.  In an auction league I wouldn’t spend more than six dollars on him though.  I see him starting hot and cooling down, just a bit in the second half.  He will be a late round guy for the rest of his career but look for an increase in most of his numbers and he’s a lock for a 20-70 season.  BOTTOM LINE: He will provide good value but don’t play him everyday.

Candidates for Cardinals Fifth Starter Job

BRIAN TALLET: He’s done good for the Jays in the past but I think he would be a better reliever at this point.  He wouldn’t do terrible but I don’t think he will do real good either.  He would have a 4.70n ERA and only a few good numbers but he could have some good starts a few times  month and he’s the easiest guy to trust.  He would keep them in some games and could have some solid starts but he won’t have that many and will struggle through the year.  RATING AS STARTER: 4.2 
MAIKEL CLETO: He has the most talent and could have some good seasons in the MLB and he will do good for the Cardinals.  He might not be quite ready yet, he could make some spot starts or spend September in the bullpen but if the Cards start him all year he should have a very bad year and an ERA around 6.00, he just isn’t ready yet.  RATING AS STARTER: 3.2
IAN SNELL: He can do good, especially with Dave Duncan.  Snell could have an ERa around 4.00 if he regains his control and he will have good numbers and could have a good season as a bottom of the rotation guy.  His talent will take him somewhere and he’s worth a shot.  He could do awesome.  RATING AS STARTER: 4.8
WINNER: Snell, he could do decent at best.  The Cardinals have a very unsteady bottom of their rotation now and they only have a small chance to make the playoffs.

Who Should Hit Lead-Off for the Reds?

PHILLIPS: I think right now he’s the best choice.  He’s got a good power-speed combo and kind of fits the bill.  He could do the job pretty good too.  He won’t hit better than .280 in the spot but he can give you a little bit of everything and he will be productive.  He will fall into slumps a lot but he may not do it as much here and he won’t do it too much.  He did good in the spot last year and I would keep them there this year.  PERCENTAGE CHANCE OF HITTING LEAD-OFF: 75%
STUBBS: he has even more talent than Phillips but he isn’t quite as polished yet and he might not succeed in the lead-off spot.  He would have some very good games but he would let them down a bit too often.  They could throw him in that spot every once in a while and it could be in his future and if he does hit there he could do a lot better than I think he will because of his talent.  CHANCE HE HITS LEAD-OFF: 50%
BRUCE: He has a shot at it but he’s better in the five-spot and wouldn’t do very good hitting lead-off, it could hurt him and the team.  CHANCE HE HITS LEAD-OFF: 1%
BEST CHOICE: Phillips and then Stubbs a little bit behind.

Most Valuable Right Fielders for 2011

There is a ton of talent here…

10. Mike Stanton- He will climb a lot higher after this year, he just needs a track record and he could soon be the top outfielder on this list.  He will be a great power hitter and he will be a great hitter a defender right behind that.  He’s will be a great player and has it all going for him  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.2
9. Justin Upton- His tools will take him a long way, he just has to use it more, he may struggle a bit this year or he could start to enter his prime, no matter what happens he will have decent numbers.  Upton is going to be a very good player and he could move up a bit before next year.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.2
8. Jason Heyward- He’s another guy whom is already great and will get better and move up.  His numbers will be great and all five of his tools will get better.  He’s a special talent and it won’t go to waste.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.4
7. Hunter Pence- He’s a really good and toolsy player who could have his best year and he’s by far the Astros best player and he should be for a while.  He will have a ton of good seasons and now he will do a really good job this year.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.4
6. Nelson Cruz- He’s the Rangers power hitter and he;’s a really good outfield.  Cruz will have another great year and he could break 100 RBIs this season.  He’s got a decent arm too and will contribute in tons of ways.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.5
5. Andre Ethier- He will be the Dodgers best position player in 2011 and could finish higher in the MVP voting and he should have one of his better years.  Ethier will likely move up on the list and his hitting will be at it’s best all year-long.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.6
4. Shin-Soo Choo- He’s a great player in so many ways and he will do everything he’s done and more in 2011 and beyond he could go a little bit higher very soon too.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.7
3. Jayson Werth- This si the highest he will ever be but with his numbers he will do a decent job and he will live up to his contracrt in 2011 but he will start to fall after that and he could even decline a bit this year, but nto much and him and Zimmeramn will a good combo.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.7
2. Ichiro Suzuki- He will do an awesome job and he will hit decent and field decent but beyond that he won’t do that much, but he hits so good and he’s the Mariners only really good hitter.  He will be a great right fielder again this year.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.9
1. Carlos Gonzalez-He will be at the top for a while and in Colorado, he will prove he belongs in this spot with his really great stats and tools.  HOW VALUABLE?: 9.9
JUST MISSED: Magglio Ordonez, Nick Swisher, Nick Markakis, Jay Bruce, Michael Cuddyer, Torii Hunter, Carlos Quentin
NEXT WAVE: Stanton, Heyward, Dominic Brown, Travis Snider (Not quite as good as the top three)

Is Johnny Gomes going to produce?

I think as far as homers, yes.  He could hit a lot of homers, if he plays a lot, which he shouldn’t for maximum production he would have a shot at thirty.  His defense isn’t that good and he should be more of a platoon guy who plays more.  He won’t hit for a very good average.  Gomes won’t have a really good year but he should be very good on the Reds and will do good in his role, he just won’t be anything special.  I would hit him sixth when he plays and he could do some good things for the Reds, plus he is a clutch guy and the Reds could always use that.  Chris Heisey could challenge him but Gomes should start most games this year and should be their starter in the playoffs.  I don’t like him too much but he has a few good tools and he’s going to do a good job no matter what for the reds.  He could do a little bit better than expected too.

Could Brayan Villalrreal make the Tigers roster?

I don’t think he has a really good shot of making the Opening Day roster but with a little seasoning he could come up in the middle of the year and do a great job for them.  I think Robbie Weinhardt or Al Albuquerque would be better choice for the roster, they have better experience and are more polished and could do a better overall job but in the future Villarreal should be better than them, putting up lower ERA’s with his good stuff.  I like Villarreal and think he will be a great short reliever in the bullpen for many seasons and he could be very good for the Tigers if they just wait until June because they need a guy who could fail a lot in the first half but at some time he will come up and amaze a lot of people and when he does he will have a ton of good outings and barely and bad ones.  I think if he gets 25 appearances this year he could have a 2.56 ERA, around 7 or 8 holds and 30 strikeouts and good K-BB ratio but he could even do better than that or he could a bit worse but he will be a really good reliever.

Make or Break Season: Kazmir and Jackson

• Scott Kazmir will have another sub-par season but he could make small improvements and he will slowly get better and better.  He probably won’t ever regain his control or have an all-star season and he won’t have really good numbers.  He will have a high ERA and WHIP and will have big troubles with walks and he won’t have much than a few good starts and his only really good stat next year will be strikeouts and he won’t be anything more than a fifth starter, so for him it will mostly be a break season but he could do a bit better than I think.  MAKE OR BREAK?: BREAK
• Edwin Jackson will have an okay ERA at home and do pretty good overall at home, and I think he will do very good on the road.  He has electrifying stuff and he’s just a great pitcher.  He won’t have the best season with stats or overall but he should do very good and keep improving from there, he could be the White Sox best or second best pitcher this season and he is bound for some good starts.  MAKE OR BREAK?: MAKE, in a big way

Who will be the Better MLB Player?-Part 2

I have some more for you and these are based on MLBNetwork upside and aren’t rankings…
Jake McGee vs. Craig Krimbel: McGee
Wilson Ramos vs. Carlos Perez: Ramos
Mark Trumbo vs. Jerry Sands: Trumbo
Nolan Arrenado vs. Zack Cox: Arrenado
Engel Beltre vs. Michael Taylor: Taylor
Simon Castro vs. Mike Minor: Minor
Chance Ruffin vs. Juan Martinez: Martinez
Anthony Gose vs. Gary Brown: Gose
Jason Kipins vs. Billy Hamilton: Kipins
Michael Choice vs. Jared Mitchell: Mitchell, barely
Drew Pomeranz. vs. Zach Lee: Pomeranz
Andy Oliver vs. Andrew Brackman: Oliver
Jordan Lyles vs. Trey McNutt: Lyles
Christian Friedrich vs. Anthony Raunado: Friedich
Brandon Beachy vs. Tyler Skaggs: Skaggs
Daniel Schlereth vs. Tanner Scheppers: Schlereth

Top 100 MLB Players for 2011

This is not a fantasy ranking.  Here is my list…

1. Albert Pujols
2. Roy Halladay
3. Miguel Cabrera
4. Felix Hernandez
5. Joe Mauer
6. Joey Votto
7. Adrian Gonzalez
8. Evan Longoria
9. Josh Hamilton
10. Ryan Braun
11. Robinson Cano
12. Alex Rodriguez
13. Troy Tulowitzki
14. Tim Lincecum
15. Carl Crawford
16. David Wright
17. Mark Teixeira
18. Ryan Howard
19. Prince Fielder
20. CC Sabathia
21. Adam Wainwright
22. Jon Lester
23. Carlos Gonzalez
24. Chase Utley
25. Ryan Zimmerman
26. Matt Holliday
27. Cliff Lee
28. Zack Greinke
29. Dustin Pedroia
30. Justin Verlander
31. Josh Johnson
32. Mariano Rivera
33. Kevin Youkilis
34. Ubaldo Jimenez
35. Buster Posey
36. David Price
37. Mat Latos
38. Ichiro Suzuki
39. Clayton Kershaw
40. Shin-Soo Choo
41. Andrew McCutchen
42. Jayson Werth
43. Adam Dunn
44. Justin Morneau
45. Paul Konerko
46. Kendry Morales
47. Brian McCann
48. Matt Cain
49. Jered Weaver
50. Jose Bautista
51. Joakim Soria
52. Brian Wilson
53. Victor Martinez
54. Billy Butler
55. Roy Oswalt
56. Cole Hamels
57. Francisco Liriano
58. Adrian Beltre
59. Ian Kinsler
60. Elvis Andrus
61. Derek Jeter
62. Dan Uggla
63. Brandon Phillips
64. Martin Prado
65. Yovani Gallardo
66. Heath Bell
67. Tim Hudson
68. Dan Haren
69. Nelson Cruz
70. Jason Heyward
71. Matt Kemp
72. Jose Reyes
73. Andre Ethier
74. Justin Upton
75. Jimmy Rollins
76. Hunter Pence
77. Mark Reynolds
78. Vladimir Guerrero
79. Neftali Feliz
80. Mike Stanton
81. Shane Victorino
82. Hunter Pence
83. Delmon Young
84. Casey McGehee
85. Mike Adams
86. Scott Rolen
87. Austin Jackson
88. Andrew Bailey
89. Nick Markakis
90. Michael Young
91. Jacoby Ellsbury
92. Tommy Hanson
93. Chris Carpenter
94. Jose Valverde
95. Magglio Ordonez
96. Aubrey Huff
97. Jay Bruce
98. Alexei Ramirez
99. Placido Polanco
100. Max Scherzer

DL(Or else would have made it): Johan Santana

Who Will Be The Better MLB Player?

Some prospects face off and I predict who could be a better MLB player.  (These are not my actaul my prospect rankings and some guys who lose could be ranked higher on my list)
Dominic Brown vs Mike Trout: Trout
Casey Kelly vs Kyle Drabek: Kelly
Eric Hosmer vs Mike Moustakas: Moustakas
Desmond Jennings vs Dominic Brown: Jennings
Jesus Montero vs Bryce Harper: Montero, for now
Julio Teheran vs Michael Pineda: Teheran
Mike Montgomery vs Matt Moore: Montgomery
Dellin Betances vs Manny Banuelos: Banuelos
Yondor Alonso vs Chris Carter: Alonso
Arolids Chapman vs Jeremy Hellickson: Hellickson
Nick Franklin vs Manny Machado: Machado
Wil Myers vs Wilin Rosario: Myers
Freddie Freeman vs Brandon Belt: Freeman
Lonnie Chisenhall vs Miguel Sano: Sano
Brett Jackson vs Ben Revere: Jackson
Craig Krimbel vs Kanley Jansen: Jansen
Jacob Turner vs Shelby Miller: Turner
Chris Sale vs Martin Perez: Sale
Grant Green vs Jurickson Profar: Green
Devin Mesoraco vs Tony Sanchez: Mesoraco
Wislon Ramos vs JP Arenciba: Arenciba
Anthony Rizzo vs Jonathon Singleton: Rizzo
Randall Delgado vs Chris Archer: Archer