I'm trying something new this week. With some owners now looking to build for next year, I'm publishing a very, very preliminary set of 2009 rankings for keeper leaguers. I'll be doing the usual position rankings and an overall top 100. These rankings are for 2009 only, so I'm not giving top prospects credit for what they might do in 2010 and beyond.
One note: I've fixed some, but there's still probably a few players here listed with their old teams. I was using my preseason spreadsheet for the new rankings.
In more interesting news, I'll be in Stamford for the next two weeks providing commentary for the live Olympic baseball broadcasts on NBCOlympics.com. So, if you want a glimpse of some top prospects like Matt LaPorta and Trevor Cahill or potential imports such as Kenshin Kawakami and Yu Darvish, be sure to check it out. I will still be posting columns as usual.
Click to see other 2009 Rankings:
Relief Pitcher Rankings
Starting Pitcher Rankings
Outfielder Rankings
Catcher Rankings
First Basemen Rankings
Second Basemen Rankings
Shortstop Rankings
Third basemen Rankings
Top 100 Overall Rankings
Rank - Outfield - Team
1 - Ryan Braun - Brewers
2 - Matt Holliday - Rockies
3 - Grady Sizemore - Indians
4 - Alfonso Soriano - Cubs
5 - B.J. Upton - Rays
6 - Carl Crawford - Rays
7 - Nick Markakis - Orioles
8 - Carlos Beltran - Mets
9 - Alex Rios - Blue Jays
10 - Jason Bay - Red Sox
11 - Josh Hamilton - Rangers
12 - Ichiro Suzuki - Mariners
13 - Vladimir Guerrero - Angels
14 - Carlos Lee - Astros
15 - Curtis Granderson - Tigers
16 - Bobby Abreu - Yankees
17 - Jacoby Ellsbury - Red Sox
18 - Manny Ramirez - Dodgers
19 - Matt Kemp - Dodgers
20 - Adam Dunn - Reds
21 - Jay Bruce - Reds
22 - Corey Hart - Brewers
23 - Magglio Ordonez - Tigers
24 - Vernon Wells - Blue Jays
25 - Carlos Quentin - White Sox
26 - Delmon Young - Twins
27 - Torii Hunter - Angels
28 - Chris Young - Diamondbacks
29 - Hunter Pence - Astros
30 - Nate McLouth - Pirates
31 - Jeremy Hermida - Marlins
32 - Nick Swisher - White Sox
33 - Shane Victorino - Phillies
34 - Johnny Damon - Yankees
35 - Brad Hawpe - Rockies
36 - Eric Byrnes - Diamondbacks
37 - Jermaine Dye - White Sox
38 - Rick Ankiel - Cardinals
39 - Lastings Milledge - Nationals
40 - Willy Taveras - Rockies
41 - Ryan Ludwick - Cardinals
42 - J.D. Drew - Red Sox
43 - Justin Upton - Diamondbacks
44 - Hideki Matsui - Yankees
45 - Adam Jones - Orioles
46 - Carlos Gomez - Twins
47 - Kosuke Fukudome - Cubs
48 - Raul Ibanez - Mariners
49 - Pat Burrell - Phillies
50 - Jeff Francoeur - Braves
51 - Juan Pierre - Dodgers
52 - Adam Lind - Blue Jays
53 - Jason Kubel - Twins
54 - Aaron Rowand - Giants
55 - Michael Bourn - Astros
56 - Michael Cuddyer - Twins
57 - Jose Guillen - Royals
58 - Josh Willingham - Marlins
59 - Milton Bradley - Rangers
60 - Andre Ethier - Dodgers
61 - Ryan Church - Mets
62 - Randy Winn - Giants
63 - Mike Cameron - Brewers
64 - David Murphy - Rangers
65 - Chase Headley - Padres
66 - Xavier Nady - Pirates
67 - Jack Cust - Athletics
68 - Fred Lewis - Giants
69 - Luke Scott - Orioles
70 - Ken Griffey Jr. - White Sox
71 - David DeJesus - Royals
72 - Juan Rivera - Angels
73 - Brian Giles - Padres
74 - Andruw Jones - Dodgers
75 - Ryan Sweeney - Athletics
76 - Austin Kearns - Nationals
77 - Garret Anderson - Angels
78 - John Bowker - Giants
79 - Carlos Gonzalez - Athletics
80 - Ben Francisco - Indians
81 - Gary Matthews Jr. - Angels
82 - Skip Schumaker - Cardinals
83 - Mark Teahen - Royals
84 - Colby Rasmus - Cardinals
85 - Melky Cabrera - Yankees
86 - Rocco Baldelli - Rays
87 - Brandon Moss - Pirates
88 - Coco Crisp - Red Sox
89 - Matt Joyce - Tigers
90 - Cameron Maybin - Marlins
91 - Matt LaPorta - Indians
92 - Steve Pearce - Pirates
93 - Chris Duncan - Cardinals
94 - Franklin Gutierrez - Indians
95 - Elijah Dukes - Nationals
96 - Marcus Thames - Tigers
97 - Wladimir Balentien - Mariners
98 - Shin-Soo Choo - Indians
99 - Scott Hairston - Padres
100 - Felix Pie - Cubs
101 - Corey Patterson - Reds
102 - Denard Span - Twins
103 - Nate Schierholtz - Giants
104 - Travis Buck - Athletics
105 - Jim Edmonds - Padres
106 - Cody Ross - Marlins
107 - Jayson Werth - Phillies
108 - Joey Gathright - Royals
109 - Wily Mo Pena - Nationals
110 - Andrew McCutchen - Pirates
111 - Brandon Jones - Braves
112 - Matt Murton - Athletics
113 - Geoff Jenkins - Phillies
114 - Eric Patterson - Athletics
115 - Jody Gerut - Padres
116 - Mark Kotsay - Braves
117 - Jonny Gomes - Rays
118 - Ryan Freel - Reds
119 - Dexter Fowler - Rockies
120 - Reed Johnson - Cubs
- The new arrivals in the top dozen are Jason Bay and Josh Hamilton, with Ichiro Suzuki and Vladimir Guerrero dropping five and 10 spots, respectively. Ichiro could well move up a couple of spots if the Mariners take steps to improve their offense in the offseason. Also dropping is Bobby Abreu, based on the likelihood that he'll be hitting in the middle of a less productive lineup next year.
- Whether to find spots for top prospects like Austin Jackson, Andrew McCutchen, Jordan Schafer, Dexter Fowler provided some of the tougher calls here. Travis Snider and Fernando Martinez didn't receive quite as much consideration, since it looks like they'll spend at least half of next year in the minors. Of the aforementioned group, I think McCutchen is the best bet to have a starting job at the beginning of next year, as the Pirates may decide they'd be better off with Nate McLouth as a corner. The others may have more upside, Fowler particularly, but I'm guessing they'll start off in Triple-A.
- Seven of the 2008 top 90 failed to make the top 120 here. They are Barry Bonds, Jacque Jones, Kenny Lofton, Dave Roberts, Moises Alou, Frank Catalanotto and Jerry Owens. Roberts was given consideration, and there's a good chance he'll be there if he's dealt in the offseason. Alou would also be there if he decides to keep playing, but he may choose retirement.
