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If you neglected to jump on the wealth of second-base

depth early in your draft, have no fear—there are plenty of

young up-and-comers who could make waiting pay off.

Kansas City’s Mike Aviles played more games at shortstop

last year, but he’ll have second-base eligibility this season.

Alexi Casilla had more

than 100 hits and 50 RBIs

in just 98 games for the

Twins. Emilio Bonifacio

is a speedster who stole

123 bases in three minor

league seasons. He could

be a sleeper source for

steals depending on

how the Marlins

use him.

If you’re not into taking risks, then Brian Roberts is your man.

Since 2005, Roberts has been a .296 hitter, averaging more

than 12 home runs and 60 RBIs per year during that span.

With the exception of Chase Utley, it’s tough to find

another second baseman who has been as consistent for

as long as Roberts. Not only does he produce year after

year, Roberts also seems to improve with each season. He

had a career year in 2005, so it wasn’t surprising to see

his numbers dip in ’06. But since then, Roberts’ hits have

gone up each year, as well as his extra-base knocks,

which are important in points leagues.

Roberts will likely put up solid numbers this

year, as Baltimore had one of the more explosive

offenses in baseball last season. Even if Aubrey

Huff and Melvin Mora regress, Roberts will

continue to do his part for your fantasy team.

The injury bug nipped a few of the position’s best last

year, but none of the injuries are expected to carry over to

the spring.

Ian Kinsler missed the final six weeks of the season with a

sports hernia. The injury doesn’t typically cause any long-term

repercussions, but keep it in mind when you’re looking at his

final stats from last year.

Brandon Phillips was forced out of the final three weeks

of 2008 with a broken finger. However, the injury shouldn’t be

cause for concern in ’09.

Howie Kendrick missed 24 of the last 30 games of the season

with a strained hamstring, and sat out for the Angels earlier in

the year because of the same injury. Kendrick seems to be hurt

on a yearly basis (he has never played more than 92 games in a

season), so remember that before picking him.

Orlando Hudson was lost for the final two months of last

season with a dislocated left wrist. He also missed time in ’07

because of thumb surgery, so take note of the two hand injuries

during the past two seasons. However, Hudson has had plenty

of time to recover from the injury and should be ready for 2009.

AMERICAN LEAGUE 2009PROJ. VALUE

STAT PROJECTIONS R HR RBI SB AVG.

Ian Kinsler $30 107 20 83 28 .330

Dustin Pedroia $24 112 19 80 20 .333

Brian Roberts $20 106 11 53 42 .292

Alexei Ramirez $19 84 22 83 16 .299

Howie Kendrick $15 64 5 42 10 .318

Jose Lopez $14 85 13 74 5 .303

Robinson Cano $14 82 16 75 2 .281

Placido Polanco $12 93 7 62 7 .321

Alexi Casilla $10 70 10 54 10 .288

Mike Aviles $9 68 11 58 7 .316

Akinori Iwamura $9 95 5 47 11 .279

Mark Ellis $5 62 12 59 13 .252

Asdrubal Cabrera $4 57 5 50 6 .263

Joe Inglett $3 52 4 42 8 .284

Marco Scutaro $3 68 7 57 4 .262

Erick Aybar $3 54 4 37 6 .269

NATIONAL LEAGUE 2009PROJ. VALUE

STAT PROJECTIONS R HR RBI SB AVG.

Chase Utley $30 119 22 85 8 .306

Brandon Phillips $25 101 28 91 30 .289

Dan Uggla $23 100 30 95 5 .258

Mark DeRosa $15 86 18 78 6 .280

Orlando Hudson $15 72 10 47 7 .293

Kelly Johnson $11 85 13 66 10 .289

Kazuo Matsui $10 72 5 31 24 .296

Rickie Weeks $10 84 13 49 22 .238

Jeff Baker $8 62 15 58 5 .269

Jeff Kent $6 54 12 60 0 .278

Felipe Lopez $6 75 7 47 9 .280

Ian Stewart $5 53 11 55 1 .266

Ronnie Belliard $5 50 11 52 3 .281

Luis Castillo $4 49 3 31 14 .261

Eugenio Velez $4 47 2 33 15 .272

Ray Durham $3 51 5 44 2 .272

Aaron Miles $3 50 3 34 2 .300

Freddy Sanchez $3 70 8 51 0 .280

Willie Harris $3 55 8 40 12 .263

Blake DeWitt $3 36 11 39 3 .229

$1: Willie Bloomquist, Jamey Carroll, Mark Grudzielanek, Brendan Harris, Juan Uribe.

$2: Mark Antonelli, Clint Barmes, Mark Loretta; $1: Emilio Bonaficio , Emmanuel Burriss, Ronny Cedeno, Chris Coghlan, Damion Easley, Mike Fontenot, Kevin Frandsen, Edgar Gonzalez, Tadahito Iguchi, Adam Kennedy.

DESCENDING INJURY CONCERN SLEEPERASCENDING

1 Freddy Sanchez, Pirates After batting .304 with

11 home runs in 2007, Sanchez’s stats declined across

the board in ’08.

2 Robinson Cano, Yankees Cano took a big step

back last season, hitting just .271 with 14 home runs

and 72 RBIs. He’s no longer the “sure thing” everyone

thought he was.

3 Mark Ellis, Athletics Ellis had right-shoulder

surgery last season, and his statistics declined drasti-

cally from 2007 when he was healthy.

1 Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox Pedroia is coming off

an AL MVP season in which he hit 17 homers and stole

20 bases. And being in the Red Sox’s lineup ensures a

high run total, too.

2 Jose Lopez, Mariners While stuck in the mess

that is baseball in Seattle, Lopez had a solid year

(.297, 17 home runs, 89 RBIs). And at only 25, he’s sure

to improve.

3 Alexei Ramirez, White Sox If Ramirez can

match his numbers from last year (.290, 21 home runs,

77 RBIs, 13 steals), he will be a solid early middle-

round pick for any fantasy team.

3 DOWN

3 UP PLAYER PROJECTIONS

MEDICAL REPORT

Mr. Consistency

SLEEPERS

41SN’s Fantasy Source baseball: www.sportingnews.com/fantasy/baseball

AlexiCasilla

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