2011 THIRDBASE CONSENSUS RANKING

[SteveB]

Please rank your top-12 Third Basemen using standard 5x5 rotisserie scoring rules (HR, BA, RBI, SB, R)
Scoring will be done MVP style, your top catcher will get 12 points.
After we receive enough votes, we'll post the results in a separate thread along with comparisons to the actual Mastersball projections.

You can also include some honorable mention, sleeper choices as well.

Look forward to seeing everyone's lists and thoughts i will post mine later this week after a few others have responded.

[AllstonRockCity]

1 Longoria - really close between him and Wright, hitting in front of Manny is the tie breaker
2 Wright - no one in the Mets lineup comes close to offering the protection Manny does
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3 ARod - will still put up monster numbers
4 Youk - if he hits between Crawford and Gonzalez, that's gonna be a lot of fastballs
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5 Zimmerman - in a tier by himself. his lineup limits his potential, but he is just better than the people below him
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6 Bautista - I am skeptical, but 30HR does seems reasonable
7 Beltre - aside from his monster contract year, 28 is his season high for HR, i don't assume he hits 30 just cuz he's in arlington
8 Sandoval - needs to rebound from last year, i think he's young enough to do it
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9 Young - Tex has screwed this thing up and I think it has to hurt him somehow, someway
10 Reynolds - if you can take the AVG hit, the counting stats are nice, so is BAL's lineup
11 Ramirez - you are betting on the AB total
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12 Avlarez
McGehee Lopez, Polanco

[Mickey4081]

1. Longoria
2. Wright
3. Zimmerman
4. Arod- Sorry, I respect you for you tremendous career but your missed time and age are taking it's toll. I'll take Zimmy entering his prime over you at this point.
5. Adrian Beltre- Assuming you stay healthy, I will be very surprised if you don't put up .280 25 80 90
6. Pablo- My oh my how you have fallen. I look for a rebound year.
7. Jose Bautista- Everyone seems to agree on the 30+ hr output for 2011. After smacking 54 homers, you better send 40 pills over the wall this year.
8. Aram Ramirez- .285 30 90 within reach if you can stay off the dl.
9. Mike Young
10. Mark Reynolds- too hard to ignore your whiff's but not many can deliver 40 dingers at the hot corner.
11. Prado
12. Alvarez

[bahamamike]

1. Longoria - hard to believe he is just 25, say what you want about Manny, but he can still hit and will offer nice protection for Longoria
2. Wright - Another player I prefer not to own, walks have decreased, strikeouts increased,
3. Arod - would not be surprised if he finishes the year number 1 on this list, another year removed from the hip surgery
4. Zimmerman - Nice talent, 26/27 (age) this year, feels like he has been around forever
5. Youk - Love the lineup, especially if he bats around Crawford, Pedroia, Gonzales, lots of men on base and protection
6. Jose Bautista - Uggghhh, he does have power, but is there a repeat?
7. Adrien Beltre - Another player I don't like. The talent definitely exsists, but two year with over 100 RBI both contract years, 2 years competing for the AVG title, both contract years...., I will not own this player
8. Aramis Ramirez - If healthy definitely higher
9. Pedro Alvarez - Power is a real potential, Dunn of the 3B world
10. Michael Young -
11. Casey McGehee
12. Pablo Sandoval - hoping for a rebound

honorable mentioned
Edwin Encarnacion -

3B may not be too deep, this year, but there is a lot of nice late round value, so its not the end of the world if you don't get one of the top players.

[deansdaddy]

Here's my Top 12 at 3B for 2011!

1.) Evan Longoria - Yes his power numbers dropped last season, but in a lot of ways last year was his best yet. His BA improved as did his SB's. He is now a legitimate 5 category stud and last year's numbers may present a buying opportunity if he slides down a few notches in this year's drafts.
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2.) David Wright - Wright bounced back from a nightmare 2009 with 29 HR's last year. His BA dipped below .300 but still posted a nice 5 category season. He doesn't have the upside of Longoria and needs his supporting cast to stay healthy, something they were not able to do last year.

3.) Alex Rodriguez - Well, it was bound to happen eventually. Arod has finally officially fallen from first round status. He will still hit plenty of homers and drive in 100 plus runs, but the stolen bases can't be counted on anymore and the BA might not return from the .270 range. Still, he is on a great team and it wouldn't surprise me if he topped 40 hr's again this year. A little more health is all he needs to make that happen, but he hasn't been 100% healthy since 2007.

4.) Ryan Zimmerman - Zimmerman is a nice option for those in the second round who still want an impact 3B. The only thing keeping him this low is a lack of speed and/or a little less guaranteed power. That said, he is entering his Age 26 season and if you believe in such trends might see a power spike that many are predicting is coming eventually.
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5.) Jose Bautista - It's been said by everyone and his brother, but I will say it again. If you draft him don't expect 54 homers again. Does this mean he can't repeat? No, it just acknowledges the reality that a regression here is quite likely. Still, it is hard to see a scnerario where he doesn't whack 35 or so again, so he will still be a quality corner-man. Nobody wants to get burned by last year's wonder, so he should come at a discount on draft day.

6.) Adrian Beltre - He is slated to make his spring debut this week, and that would help him maintain this ranking. His defense as always will keep him in a very good lineup. He should enjoy hitting in Texas and put up solid numbers. I doubt he hits over .300 again, but he could erase those losses if he goes back to stealing his 8-12 bases a year.
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7.) Pedro Alvarez - Nobody will be sleeping on Alvarez this year, and most are predicting a breakout season for the slugger. He won't produce a great BA but 30 HR's is within reach this year. I would rather gamble on his upside than most of the guys ranked around him.

8.) Pablo Sandoval - I likely rank Sandoval higher than most, so be aware that you can likely get him later in drafts than some other guys due to last year's collapse. Still, he has lost the weight and still is a pure hitter. There is great upside here for a guy who was getting drafted in the third round last year. This season, he won't cost you anywhere near that - so enjoy the profit of his bounce-back.

9.) Michael Young - First off I will say I am a Michael Young fan. Still, the writing is on the wall that a trade out of Texas will likely happen at some point. When you realize he hit 16 of his 21 homers at home last year, it's hard to predict his power output without knowing where he will land. One thing we do know, is he won't hurt you anywhere, especially in the BA department.

10.) Mark Reynolds - He is the new poster boy for all or nothing results. If you need power later in your draft, look no further. I think a move to the AL brings that average back to merely terrible and a revamped Oriole lineup could provide an opportunity for some nice RBI totals. The 24 sb's from 2009 looks like a fluke even though he's a good bet to chip in 10 or so here.
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11.) Aramis Ramirez - He'll be undervalued at the draft table, and in shallow leagues may even drop to CI status. Still, he was great in the second half and could turn the clock back to 2008 if he could just stay healthy. As the rounds start to go by, he'll get harder and harder to pass up until someone will finally succumb to make him a nice value pick.

12.) Martin Prado - I like Prado better if I can slot him at 2B, but he qualifies here as well so he gets the 12th spot. His best attribute is a .300 average, but I think a 20 homer season could be coming as soon as this year.
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HM
13.) Casey McGahee - He was a nice surprise for anyone that owned him last year. Not sure he tops 100 RBI's again - but he's a quality option if you are waiting on the position.

14.) Jhonny Peralta - He's a real under the radar option, but something clicked again once he landed in Detroit. He'll have guys on base to drive in and less pressure than he had in the past. He'll give you what you expect, which is something in fantasy.

15.) Mike Moustakaks - I am giving the highly touted rookie this slot. Do I rank him this high on my sheet - no. But if I were forced to give a ranking starting after June 1st - he'd be in my Top 10.

[Bodhizefa]

McGehee looks like a great value pick to me after seeing all these rankings listed out. I'd have him in my Top 8 pretty easily.

1) Evan Longoria - Stud.
2) David Wright - Still good, although the excess K's have me worried on the batting average front.
3) Alex Rodriguez - I believe there's upside here.
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4) Kevin Youkilis - With that offense, he should have an excellent year.
5) Ryan Zimmerman - I think both he and Youkilis are rock solid contributors in 4 categories.
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6) Adrian Beltre - Both he and Bautista could go up or down as they both have massive upside but obvious downside. Hedge!
7) Jose Bautista - He's got obvious upside, but I'm hedging my bets here.
8) Casey McGehee - Slow and steady wins the race.
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9) Michael Young - He'd be in the next tier if more playing time was guaranteed in a decent hitting park.
10) Aramis Ramirez - He could move up a tier easily if he stays healthy. That's a big "if", though.
11) Pablo Sandoval - I'm still a believer.
12) Mark Reynolds - If I'm going with someone with a bevy of strikeouts here, I'm taking the guy who will help in steals over the youngster who is still largely unproven (Pedro Alvarez).

Runner-Up: Pedro Alvarez

[deansdaddy]

Thanks Bod - make sure to add your voice to the other position threads.

Also - I have no problem with people ranking Youkilis - but it should be noted he will likely not become 3B eligible is most leagues til Week 2.

I think McGahee is the perfect guy to wait on at 3B by the way.

[Bodhizefa]

Thanks Bod - make sure to add your voice to the other position threads.

Done!

Your move, sir