The fantasy baseball playoffs are over for most all leagues. A lot of interesting things happened this year. Bryce Harper was good but not as great as some hoped he would be when they reached for him in the draft. Even though fantasy baseball is done for this year, it is never really over. There is always time to sharpen your knowledge on players and look ahead to who you want to draft come the 2014 season but I’m getting ahead of myself.
Like so many previous years of fantasy baseball the first base position has proved to be one of, if not the main source of power. We all know the disappointment that Albert Pujols was at the first base position but we are going to keep things positive for this article and show the top first baseman of 2013. Lets start with number ten.
10. Mark Trumbo, Los Angeles Angels
The man who would give Pujols rest and eventually took over the reigns at first had himself a pretty solid year as far as fantasy numbers are concerned. His batting average was much lower than the other names that will appear on this list at .237, but he surely makes up for it with his power numbers. He hit 34 home runs this season which puts him at fourth overall of all first baseman's in the league today. With big home run numbers comes big RBI numbers as he drove in 98 men which is tied for sixth of all qualifying first basemans. He was being drafted a big earlier than I thought he would this year going in roughly the eighth to ninth round but those people who drafted him have to be happy with the results.
9. Eric Hosmer Kansas City Royals
Don’t look now but the Royals have slowly creeped into the wild card discussion. They are three and a half games back so the chance of them making the playoffs is very slim. When it comes to the big man covering first Hosmer did just that this season for Kansas City. His .304 batting average is fifth of all first baseman and he hit 17 home runs while driving in 78 men. He just came short of eclipsing 20 homers which you can assume he will do next season. The value for Hosmer is great because he wasn’t being drafted until about the 11th or 12th round of most drafts. Sure, you didn’t get 20 to 25 homers but as 23 years-old he has proved that there is a lot more to come.
8. Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds
Ahhh, the walking machine that is Mr. Votto. Just three years removed from an MVP title and he has not missed a step. One of the best control hitters in all of baseball continued to impress once again this year. There are three things that we know about this guy; he’s going to hit .300, he’s going to hit 20 homers and he is going to walk…. A LOT. His OBP is the second highest in all of baseball behind some guy named Miguel Cabrera at a .434 mark. He had 127 walks on the season which is 18 more than the second place guy who is his teammate Shin-Soo Choo. He hit 24 home runs this year while driving in 71 men. The only problem I have with Votto is that he is being drafted too soon. The numbers are decent as far as power is concerned but you are not going to win a fantasy baseball championship with walks. Drafting him in the first round just makes no sense.
7. Edwin Encarnacion, Toronto Blue Jays
EnCar really came into his own last season putting up superb numbers. This season was a lot like last minus the late season injury to his wrist. He ended up with 36 home runs which is only six less than his 2012 campaign. He still hit .272 and drove in 104 men as well. The 104 rib eyes was the fifth most of any first baseman and he led the American League in walks for first basemans. This is a steal pick for sure because he was going in the third round. A lot of people were sceptical about him because they had only really seen him do good in 2012. To those of you who drafted him tap yourself on the back. If you have a keeper league it might not be a bad idea to make him one of them. This is depending on how his surgery goes but it is a wrist injury so he should be fine come next April.
6. Adrian Gonzalez, Los Angeles Dodgers
One of many pieces that proved pivotal in an NL West Championship was this guy. He was a bit overshadowed this year since the Dodgers have a lot of star power. Needless to say he has been doing his job much better in 2013 as he did in 2012. He is batting just under .300 and has hit 21 home runs for the first time in the past four years. He is very close to topping the 100 mark of RBIs as well, at 98. Much like Edwin he was drafted in about the third round and has done very well over the entire season.
5. Allen Craig, St. Louis Cardinals
Here we have a fifth round pick who dominated all year up until his injury. He batted .315 on the season which is the highest of any first baseman in the game today. He also failed to reach 100 RBIs ending up with 97. The most impressive thing this guy did all year was hit with runners in scoring position. Over 125 at-bats he had 57 hits that put his batting average at a insane .452 mark! If someone was on second or third it was almost automatic that he would come through with the hit. If he did not get injured his numbers would have surpassed 100 RBis and he might have made his way up a bit higher on this list.
4. Prince Fielder, Detroit Tigers
Arguably the best first baseman in all of baseball is Fielder. He has been the model for consistency over his nine years in baseball and has never missed more than five games in any of his seasons. He batted .283 this year and hit 24 home runs. He also topped the 100 RBI mark as he hit 106 to this point in the season. That puts him at third most in all of baseball for first basemans. He continues to walk at a high rate as he took the stroll to first 72 times. The days of him hitting 40 home runs might be gone but the days of him driving in 100 men are still here. Fielder has had a great career to this point and it will be interesting to see how many records he can break over the next five to ten years.
3. Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
Freeman is making a name for himself this year and has slowly creeped into the MVP conversation. 2013 marked the first year in which he was invited to the All Star game along with the first time he has hit for 100 RBIs as he is at 105 at the moment. This has been a breakout year for the 24 year-old who is only going to get better as he matures. Besides how great the power numbers have been he has really cut back on strikeouts and has continued to walk at a decent rate. He is a very tough guy to strike out because when he gets behind in the count he shortens up his swing and just looks to put the ball in play. Freeman was being drafted in about the eighth round which looking back is a complete steal! Don’t you feel bad for the guy who drafted Pujols in the third when he could have gotten second round numbers in the eighth?
2. Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks
Where in the world would the D’Backs be without Goldy? My guess is not even close to .500. Goldy showed glimpses of what was to come in 2012 as he hit 20 home runs and drove in 82 men while walking 68 times. He busted out in a big way this year as he has hit 35 home runs and driven in 122 men. Of all first basemen he is currently third in home runs, second in RBIs (122), second in walks (98) and second in OBP (.406). This guy is clearly in the talks for MVP votes but due to the fact that the D’Backs failed to make the playoffs you will likely see him drop in the polls to guys like Andrew McCutchen. Either way this guy has had a great season and for the seventh round value it was even better.
1. Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles
Who in the world saw this coming?! A fourteenth to fifteenth round pick in most drafts has topped the leaderboard for greatest first baseman of the 2013 fantasy baseball season. At a mark of, wait for it…. 51 HOME RUNS and 134 RBIs. Davis leads the world in most long balls for 2013 and is only two RBIs behind Mr. Triple Crown. Easily the greatest value of the draft and he even pushed the Orioles to a wild card chase that came up just short. If you have a keeper league it would be tough not to keep this guy but you have to remember we have never seen him doing anything remotely close to this in his career. Hell, he only combined for 39 home runs from 2010 to 2012 and only 108 RBIs from 2010 to 2012. Both of which failed to reach his numbers for this year. Draft this guy as early as the fifth round but don’t take the risk before that, little lone keep him. The one positive is that this guy is only 27 years-old so his best days could be ahead of him. Unfortunately his glory days will always come back to 2013.