Mound Talk

Second base is a position that’s been hard to fill in fantasy baseball recently. After the top two or three players, there hasn’t been much. But with a recent flood of young talent at second, that’s changed. Rickie Weeks, Chase Utley, Howie Kendrick, Robinson Cano, Julio Lugo, Brian Roberts and the aged one, Jeff Kent combine to make second base a position of fantasy desire. After the top couple spots, there seems to be a group of one or two category players including Brandon Phillips, Josh Barfield and Freddy Sanchez. Drafting someone late who can rise up and produce in this slot can drastically improve your fantasy team. There are two rookies who ought to receive some playing time in 2007. Neither are good options.

Dustin Pedroia is a decent prospect if you’re Theo Epstein. In fact, in the business of baseball, he’s a very good guy to have around your organization. Pedroia is going to be a fringe fantasy player. He might be worth a roster spot, but he’s certainly not worth banking on.

The other player worth noting is Alberto Callaspo. Though he is not the primary candidate for the everyday role in Arizona going into Spring Training, Callaspo is a guy who could give you a small boost in runs and average if you’re really in a bind and he gets written into the lineup card. He has limited power and limited base stealing ability, Callaspo could score upwards of 75 runs and hit .290 on the marginally high side. Again, not a player to draft at this point, but keep an eye on the situation as Spring Training begins and the season progresses.