Playing in a dynasty fantasy baseball league is a whole other animal when it comes to drafting and building you roster.  You want a team that can win now, but hen you’re in a dynasty league you also have to build your team to win in the future.  You carry over your team from year to year making it very important to draft young talent and players who will be part of your core so that you can compete both now and in the future.

In a dynasty league you will find yourself reaching a little bit for guys such as Bryce Harper for the simple fact that he may not be a first round talent yet in standard drafts but perhaps as soon as next year, assuming he’s healthy, Harper could be one of the better hitters in baseball.  This means if you want him for your team in the future you need to reach a little now to endure he’s on your team. This is a huge difference between dynasty leagues and standard leagues.  Drafting for the present can get you in trouble you always have to have the future on your mind as well.  

1. Mike Trout, Outfield, Los Angeles Angels

The best overall player in the game right now, if you are just joining a dynasty league and have a chance to draft him make sure you do so.  Trout is only going to be 23 next season and already has three full seasons and some change under his belt.  During that time he has finished second in the MVP voting twice and won the award once.  There is nobody in the game who can contribute to as many categories as Trout does as well.

He truly is a five star player and has already racked up 98 homeruns and 102 stolen bases in his brief career.  Trout ahs also gone over 100 runs scored in every full season he’s played and over 100 RBI once.  If that doesn’t scream best player in baseball I don’t know what does.  Trout should be a no brainer in all fantasy formats as there is nothing this young superstar can’t do.

2. Clayton Kershaw, Starting Pitcher, Los Angeles Dodgers

Clayton Kershaw is to pitching what Mike Trout is to batting.  He is just simply better than everybody and dominates in every facet of the game.  Kershaw will only be 27 next season and has already pitched seven seasons in the majors.  The only season that Kershaw has an ERA above 3.00 was his rookie season.  Kershaw has pitched out of this world in recent years.  The last two years he has an ERA under 2.00 and has one the CY Young award in three of the past four seasons and finished second in the one year he didn’t win.  Even more impressive is that Kershaw also managed to take home the MVP last season. 
 
3. Andrew McCutchen, Outfield, Pittsburgh Pirates

Age is a key component when drafting your dynasty team and if you have a chance to snag a young player like McCutchen who contributes to multiple categories you need to make it happen.  McCutchen has batted over .300 for three straight years, has hit over 20 homeruns in all but two seasons and has stolen at least 20 bases in all but one season.  Not many players provide this type of diverse production making McCutchen a rare commodity.  

4. Giancarlo Stanton, Outfield, Miami Marlins

Stanton probably has the most raw power in the game today.  He hit’s the ball further than anybody else and last season eh managed to stray healthy and put together a very impressive season with 37 homeruns and a .288 batting average.  Stanton is only 24 years old meaning he has yet to hit his prime, so some truly impressive seasons are sure to come in the future.

5. Miguel Cabrera, First Base, Detroit Tigers

Normally a player of Cabrera’s caliber would be higher on this list but Cabrera has been nagged by injuries the last few seasons which have really affected his overall numbers.  That with the fact that he is starting to get up there in age means Cabrera is going to begin his decline soon.  He is still one of the best hitters in the game but his shelf life is running low which isn’t a positive quality in dynasty leagues.

I’m not going to go into detail about the next few players but all of them can be very important pieces on a fantasy team. Outside of Tulowitzki all of them are very young players whose best seasons are still in front of them.  They are the future of baseball and if you are able to get them on your fantasy team you have a great show at ranking near the top of your league for years to come. 

6. Paul Goldschmidt, First Base, Arizona Diamondbacks

7. Bryce Harper, Outfield, Washington Nationals

8. Madison Bumgarner, Starting Pitcher, San Francisco Giants

9. Jose Altuve, Second Base, Houston Astros

10. Troy Tulowitzki, Short Stop, Colorado Rockies