Ryan Fowler
Updated: 4/24/2013
By the end of your league's fantasy baseball draft, the top-tier options at each position have found a new home. The players that remain on your league's waiver wire will most likely be recycled over the course of the next six months. It's this group of second, third, and, in some cases, fourth tier options, that owners want to learn about when they seek an upgrade at a specific position. So, to remove the majority of fantasy baseball clutter, I'll be publishing updated positional player rankings throughout the season, concentrating on players widely available on the waiver wire. To start, I focused on infielders owned in roughly less than 70 percent of FOXSports.com leagues. Next to some players' names, I've added notes with some recent valuable stats and/or trends to assist owners eager to make a move. These will be updated periodically throughout the 2013 season.
| Rank | Catchers | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | J.P. Arencibia, Tor | Hitting .268 with eight home runs and 15 RBI. The BA won't stay that high, but could hit 30-plus HR at that rate. |
| 2 | Evan Gattis, Atl | The former ski lift operator has hit six home runs this season. McCann return doesn't mean we say goodbye. |
| 3 | Salvador Perez, KC | The .258 BA much lower than owners had anticipated and/or hoped for in 2013. |
| 4 | Jonathan Lucroy, Mil | Hits in seven out of his last eight games (4/24) |
| 5 | Carlos Ruiz, Phi | Returning from suspension |
| 6 | Wellington Castillo, ChC | Hitting over .300 with a .350 OBP despite no walks and 17 strikeouts |
| 7 | Jesus Montero, Sea | |
| 8 | Russell Martin, Pit | Only hitting .241, but tore the cover off the ball in last week (4/24) with 12 hits (two doubles and two home runs) |
| 9 | A.J. Ellis, LAD | |
| 10 | Devin Mesoraco, Cin | |
| 11 | Nick Hundley, SD | |
| 12 | Alex Avila, Det | |
| 13 | John Jaso, Oak | |
| 14 | Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Bos | |
| 15 | Ryan Doumit, Min | |
| 16 | Chris Iannetta, LAA | |
| 17 | Kurt Suzuki, Was | |
| 18 | Tyler Flowers, CWS | |
| 19 | Erik Kratz, Phi | |
| 20 | Robert Brantly, Mia | |
| 21 | Chris Stewart, NYY | |
| 22 | Mike Zunino, Sea |
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| Rank | First Basemen | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lance Berkman, Tex | Some knee issues (again), but still raking .333 with a .463 OBP (4/24) |
| 2 | Matt Carpenter, StL | Before the end of the season, he may be eligible at every position. |
| 3 | Justin Morneau, Min | Was hitting .308 on April 8, but down to .235 |
| 4 | Chris Johnson, ATL | An early-season surrprise with a .397 batting average 9 runs and 7 RBI (4/24) |
| 5 | Mark Reynolds, Cle | not 3B eligible on FS.com (10 games needed) |
| 6 | Kendry Morales, Sea | |
| 7 | Ike Davis, NYM | Hitting .164 with three home runs and six RBI … we're waiting |
| 8 | Eric Hosmer, KC | |
| 9 | Adam LaRoche, Was | |
| 10 | Adam Dunn, CWS | Ownership has dipped below 50 percent on FOXSports.com |
| 11 | Daniel Murphy, NYM | |
| 12 | Brandon Moss, Oak | Hitting .299 with 16 RBI |
| 13 | Chris Carter, Hou | |
| 14 | Yonder Alonso, SD | |
| 15 | Greg Dobbs, Mia | |
| 16 | Todd Helton, Col | |
| 17 | Carlos Pena, Hou | |
| 18 | Mitch Moreland, Tex | |
| 19 | Garrett Jones, Pit | |
| 20 | Corey Hart, Mil | DL late-May return |
| 21 | James Loney, TB | |
| 22 | Mike Carp, Bos | |
| 23 | Jason Giambi, Cle |
| Rank | Second Basemen | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Neil Walker, Pit | Hitting .264 with a .346 OBP, 7 runs and 8 RBI |
| 2 | Daniel Murphy, NYM | Hitting .357 with 2 home runs and 13 RBI (4/24) |
| 3 | Mark Ellis, LAD | Hitting .358 with 2 home runs (same game) and 11 RBI |
| 4 | Marco Scutaro, SF | |
| 5 | Yuniesky Betancourt, Mil | A Halpin deep-legue favorite - provides some decent pop and average |
| 6 | Eric Sogard, Oak | Greg Maddux's child (we think) and a, meh, batting average if you are desperate |
| 7 | Chris Nelson, Col | |
| 8 | Emilio Bonifacio, Tor | |
| 9 | Chris Getz, KC | |
| 10 | Dustin Ackley, Sea | |
| 11 | Darwin Barney, ChC | |
| 12 | Steve Lombardozzi, Was | |
| 13 | Omar Infante, Det | |
| 14 | Ronny Cedeno, Hou | |
| 15 | Donovan Solano, Mia | |
| 16 | Jedd Gyorko, SD | |
| 17 | Josh Rutledge, Col | |
| 18 | Jamey Carroll, Min | |
| 19 | Kelly Johnson, TB | |
| 20 | Alexia Amarista, SD |
| Rank | Shortstops | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Asdrubal Cabrera, Cle | Shocked his ownership dipped below 70 percent - he'll be fine |
| 2 | Jean Segura, Mil | I'm on Team Segura - great speed (SBs) and batting average |
| 3 | Brandon Crawford, SF | Continues to produce for the Giants - 4 home runs to date (4/24) |
| 4 | Jhonny Peralta, Det | |
| 5 | Marco Scutaro, SF | |
| 6 | Yuniesky Betancourt, Mil | |
| 7 | Everth Cabrera, SD | Six stolen bases (3 CS) with a higher batting average than 2012 |
| 8 | J.J. Hardy, Bal | |
| 9 | Alexei Ramirez, CWS | |
| 10 | Pete Kozma, StL | |
| 11 | Zach Cozart, Cin | |
| 12 | Ruben Tejada, NYM | |
| 13 | Eric Sogard, Oak | |
| 14 | Didi Gregorius, Ari | Light hitting, but has provided some early pop post minor league call-up |
| 15 | Brendan Ryan, Sea | |
| 16 | Ronny Cedeno, Hou | |
| 17 | Andrelton Simmons, Atl | |
| 18 | Derek Jeter, NYY | Scheduled to return post-All-Star break |
| 19 | Clint Barmes, Pit | |
| 20 | Yunel Escobar, TB | |
| 21 | Devaris Gordon, LAD | At Triple-A, but raking - keep tabs on a possible call-up |
| Rank | Third Basemen | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyle Seager, Sea | After slow start, bat starting to heat up - in the midst of 13-game hit streak (4/24) |
| 2 | Chris Johnson, Atl | Short-term investment - An early-season surrprise with a .397 batting average 9 runs and 7 RBI (4/24) |
| 3 | Matt Carpenter, StL | |
| 4 | Manny Machado, Bal | Up to 14 RBIs on the seaosn with a .276 batting average - definitely worthy of a long look at CI |
| 5 | Mark Reynolds, Cle | not 3B eligible on FS.com (10 games needed) |
| 6 | Trevor Plouffe, Min | |
| 7 | Juan Francisco, Atl | |
| 8 | Pedro Alvarez, Pit | Power - that's about it - just no guarantee when it's going to happen |
| 9 | Mike Moustakas, KC | Will he ever turn it on? A .158 batting average is not getting it done. |
| 10 | Yuniesky Betancourt, Mil | |
| 11 | Placido Polanco, Mia | |
| 12 | Luis Jimenez, LAA | Minor league replacement for Alberto Callaspo (DL) - hitting .343 in 35 at bats (12-35) |
| 13 | Chris Nelson, Col | |
| 14 | Josh Donaldson, Oak | |
| 15 | Greg Dobbs, Mia | |
| 16 | Eric Sogard, Oak | |
| 17 | Conor Gillaspie, CWS | |
| 18 | Jordan Pacheco, Col | |
| 19 | Anthony Rendon, Was | |
| 20 | Matt Dominguez, Hou |
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