Fantasy Baseball 2010: 3 Up and 3 Down -- hitter's edition

Here at NYaT, we talk about baseball all the time.  Mostly Yankees stuff, of course, but our focus is on the real games.  But let's not pretend that we don't play fantasy baseball.  My guess is that most of the people who read this blog play in at least one fantasy baseball league.

With that in mind, let's do a "3 Up, 3 Down" for the first month of the 2010 season.  We'll start with just the hitters today, and the pitchers will come tomorrow.  Think I missed someone?  Disagree with my list?  Add your comments below!

3 Up:

1.)  Vernon Wells


(Photo Credit: AP)
 

Despite being labeled a bust with an untradeable contract, and in spite of declining numbers in recent years, Wells has been on fire early this season.  In only 8 games, he has posted a .345/.457/.931 with 5 HR, 10 RBI, and 9 R.  Not bad for a guy who wasn't even drafted in most leagues (#227 in one of my mine).

It's unclear if he can keep this up, but if he does, the Jays might have to eat slightly less of his $126 million contract in order to move him to a contender at the deadline.

2.) Jason Heyward

(Photo Credit: AP)

There was as much hype surrounding Heyward going into the 2010 season as for anyone in recent memory.  This may have scared off some fantasy players; in one of my leagues, he wasn't picked until the 14th round, and he went undrafted in another.  But boy has he delivered on those great expectations.  Despite being just 20 years old, the rookie has hit .269/.387/.654 for an impressive OPS of 1.041.  He's also crushed 3 HR and driven in 9 runs, scoring another 5.  Incredibly, everything we have seen and heard about this guy appears to be true -- he is mature and poised and ready to carry a significant chunk of the Atlanta offense on his back.  If you picked this guy up off the FA wire, congratulations on making the steal of the year.


3.) Jose Guillen

(Photo Credit: AP)

Guillen went undrafted in most leagues.  His Yahoo O-Rank is 945 and he is owned by only 10% of teams.  Yet the controversial journeyman has gotten off to a torrid start, hitting .313/.357/.781 with 4 HR, 8 RBI, and 7 R.  He's in the last year of a 3-year, $36 million contract with the Royals (contract year, ka-ching!) and he's currently serving as their full-time DH.  I just picked him up as a FA, and if he's still available in your league, he's worth grabbing as a short term investment.  Especially if you have dead weight you can afford to shed.  Speaking of underperforming hitters...


3 Down:

1.) Mark Teixeira

(Photo Credit: Getty Images)

Teixeira's appearance on this list should not come as a surprise to experienced fantasy players (or Yankees fans).  The slick-fielding first baseman is notorious for starting slow at the plate.  This year is no exception.  Despite an average draft pick of 10, he has started the season in a 3-for-27 slump, with similarly depressing slashes: .111/.294/.148.  We all know that he'll come around.  If you look at his monthly splits, he is a lifetime .295 hitter in May (his third best month in the regular season) with 39 HR and 142 RBI in 184 games.  But right now, Teixeira is missing the Mark.


2.) Ichiro Suzuki

(Photo Credit: Getty Images)

As Double Down Trent would say, Ichiro is so money and he doesn't even know it.  Yet as predictable and reliable as his stats have been in recent years (from 2001-2009, he averaged .333 BA, 226 hits, and 38 SB) he is off to a slow start this season.  I guess you could say he hasn't been money at all.  In 9 games, he is batting .222 (8-for-36) with 0 HR, 1 RBI, 3 R, and 1 SB (with 2 CS!).  This is far below his usual April numbers.  Fortunately, those splits reveal that Ichiro's best month is May, when he has posted a career .365 average with more stolen bases (by far) than any other month.  Guess he's just starting colder than usual this year.



3.) Prince Fielder

(Photo Credit: Getty Images)

Prince Fielder was taken, on average, with the 12th pick in Yahoo fantasy leagues.  This is based on his historically prodigious power at 1B, a power position.  But how has he fared so far this year?  He's 7-for-25 with 0 HR, 2 RBI, and 5 R.  He also has a 3:1 K/BB ratio with 9 strikeouts and 3 walks.  He needs to significantly improve his run production to justify his first round status.  Again, his monthly splits show that he will improve as the weather gets warmer, but sometimes fantasy seasons (just like real seasons) are won or lost in the first 3-4 weeks of the year.  He still deserves do-not-trade status, but he also warrants a careful eye until at least Memorial Day.



Stay tuned tomorrow for 3 Up and 3 Down: Pitcher's Edition!  Until then, fire up those comments!