Fantasy 40/40: 2010 Fantasy Baseball Review: 10/10 Club
In the 2010 fantasy baseball season, these players were able to hit at least ten homeruns and steal at least ten bases – they were apart of the “10/10 Club.” Technically, there really isn’t a “10/10 Club” or much fan fare or recognition of a “10/10 Club” in “real-life” baseball. But, here, at Fantasy 40/40 and in the “fantasy world,” these guys are vital to any winning fantasy baseball team.
Therse are all the players who reached, at least, 10/10 this season, but not quite 20/20. This includes anyone who may have gone 10/90 or 19/19. No one stole 90 bases, but you get the idea. They are broken down even further below into smaller groups for easier viewing.
15/40
- Carl Crawford OF, TB – 19/47 – Was a fantasy stud in 2010 and led me to a fantasy championship in my mixed league. He will be hitting the free agent market come this winter and C.C. will be a 1st round pick in 2011 fantasy baseball drafts. He’ll look good too, counting his money, in his new pinstripes or under the Anaheim sun next season.
- B.J. Upton OF, TB – 18/42 - He hit an undesirable .236 this season, but reached his SB total from a year ago while improving his HR total by seven. He finished in the TOP 100 overall and should be a TOP 30 outfielder come 2011. He seems to slide in a lot of drafts and might be someone you can steal a little later – I don’t know why, everyone loves B.J.
15/30
- Shane Victorino OF, PHI – 18/34 – Mahalo! The Flyin’ Hawaiian was hanging ten all season as he hit a career high in homeruns and also returned to the 30 SB level, after finishing with 25 in ‘09. Victorino spent a lot of time leading off and in the two-hole because of injuries to teammates Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco. He should be a TOP 25 outfielder when drafting this March since he’ll move up in the order with the likely departure of Jayson Werth.
- Andrew McCutchen OF, PIT – 16/33 - Another one of my fantasy man crushes, McCutchen turned in a fine sophomore campaign, improving on his HR and SB totals from his rookie season – jumping from 12/22 to 16/33, McCutchen provides hope of a possible 20/30 season in 2011 and possesses TOP 10 outfield potential. Yes, he is a Pirate. But, just like fantasy football, someone on bad teams has to score. Might as well be McCutchen.
15/15
- Brandon Phillips 2B, CIN – 18/16 – B. Phillips is a personal favorite and proved helpful this season. But after a 30/30 season three years ago and back to back 20/20 seasons, I was expecting more. Manager Dusty Baker also changed his lineup this season, moving Phillips into the leadoff spot or two-hole for much of the year, limiting his power potential. He did, however, score 100 runs for the first time since ‘06.
- Justin Upton OF, ARI – 17/18 – J Up was a sexy pick and drafted in the TOP 4 rounds in almost every draft prior to the season. He was on the DL during the season and finish with shoulder issues and questions about his health. He has 30/30 potential and probably will be a sexy pick next April as well.
15/10
- Alexei Ramirez SS, CHW -18/13 - ALEXEI! After a promising year last season, Ramirez was a under the radar/sexy pick back in April. He managed some nice power/speed numbers from the weak shortstop position and should look to improve in 2011.
- Jason Heyward OF, ATL – 18/11 - The most anticipated rookie to arrive in Atlanta since one Larry “Chipper” Jones, the twenty-one-year-old kid didn’t disappoint his fans. He dealt with a nagging thumb injury much of the year, but still played like he belonged. He’s an elite keeper for fantasy owners and will only get better from here on out.
- Chase Utley 2B, PHI – 16/13 - The choice for top second baseman prior to the season, Utley had a sub-par go at it to our standards. He was up and down all season to go along with some DL time, Utley should return to his elite status in 2010 – might be number two behind Robinson Cano.
- Stephan Drew SS, ARI – 15/10 – The Arizona shortstop has yet to really maximize his potential or expectations at least. Drew reached 15/10 this season making him a TOP 10 shortstop.
10/20
- Will Venable OF, SD – 13/29 - What? That’s right folks. Will Venable went 13 and 29 this season in 392 ABs for the San Diego Padres. In a crowded outfield, Venable managed to improve on his career highs in all the major categories. HR – 13 (previous best-12), RBI – 51 (38), R – 60 (38), SB – 29 (6). He might be someone I might study come this fall. With regular playing time in 2011 and an increase in ABs, he might be a sleeper in NL and deeper mixed leagues.
- Franklin Gutierrez OF, SEA – 12/25 – The Seattle outfielder took a step backwards in 2010 and saw a decrease in his BA, HR, RBI and R totals from ‘09. He set a career high in SB this season and might be someone you can buy low on next season. Seattle will hopefully be better, as a whole, and Gutierrez will have another year under his belt.
- Angel Pagan OF, NYM – 11/37 – With Carlos Beltran sidelined for the first three and a half months, Pagan stepped into center field and performed All-Star caliber ball – both offensively and with the glove. He outperformed his mentor Beltran as well as the other Met outfielders (Bay and Francoeur). He also hit .290, scored 80 runs and drove in 69 teammates. He is probably worth keeping in most leagues since you probably got him at a real bargain price back in April and since he’s starting next season.
- Jose Reyes SS, NYM – 11/30 – Well, he’s back but not fully back. With some setbacks and a thyroid issue this season, Reyes was unable to reach the fantasy elite level we all know he can maintain when healthy. Expect him to have a monster season in 2011 – his contract is up after the season and should be looking to swipe at least 50 in 2011.
- Ben Zobrist 1B/2B/3B /OF, TB – 10/24 – Following his All-Star season in ‘09, Zobrist had to live up to monster expectations placed on him by fantasy owners. After a 27/17 showing last year, I wasn’t a buyer coming in. You had to expect a small dropoff from the unproven utility player. He’s a valuable player for the Rays and might be a draft steal in 2011. But, I’m still not a buyer – great versatility, though.
10/15
- Roger Bernadina OF, WAS – 11/16 - Bernadina caught some regular playing time by the end of the season and has nice power/speed ability to offer. He should compete for a job come Spring Training and might be a legit NL only starter in 2011. He was Willingham, Morgan and Morse to deal with… Check that. He should have a job in 2011.
- Derek Jeter SS, NYY – 10/18 – DJ once again finished in the TOP 5 for fantasy shortstops in 2010. Even at the young age of 36, Jeter continues to play the game the same way as he did when he came up back in ‘95 (‘96 rookie season). He was 18/30 last year and saw a dip in his contract year – but don’t worry Yankee fans, he’s not going anywhere and you’ll still have a 40-year-old shortstop come 2014. And yes, he’ll be macking chicks then, too.
- Ian Desmond SS, WAS – 10/17 - Washington’s rookie shortstop had a nice season for fantasy owners, producing with 65 RBI and 59 R to go along with his 10 and 17. He should improve on his totals in 2011 – I can see a 15/20 season if they let him stretch his legs out.
10/10
- David Murphy OF, TEX – 12/14 - More of an AL only guy this season, Murphy provided solid help for those fantasy owners. He might get a chance to be a starter in 2011 and might have 20/20 potential (17/14 career highs) since his RH/LH splits aren’t that bad average wise (.298/.272).
- Chase Headley 3B, OF – 11/17 – With the departure of Kevin Kouzmanoff to NorCal, Headley got the move back to his original position at the hot corner and played just okay. Yeah. He came out of the shoot quickly, but was unable to keep up the pace. He did, however, improve his SB career high by 7. Headley hits the ripe old age of 27 next season – hopefully he finds his power stroke at this breakout age.
- Howie Kendrick 2B, LAA – 10/14 – Kendrick was always thought of as a candidate to breakout and join the top-end keystones, but has yet to match lofty predictions. Kendrick might be a TOP 12 second baseman come next spring and someone who might surprise people in 2011 – maybe a buy low nominee come draft time.
- James Loney 1B, LAD - 10/10 - Every year we wait for Loney to launch 25 HR and every year it doesn’t happen. He’s looks like he’s built to hit 25 HR, but may just be a 10-15 HR guy forever more. He did reach double digit stolen bases for the first time in his short playing career. He’s more of a NL only option and a lower one at that. At a position that you usually need HR from, Loney doesn’t provide enough.
