Rotographs Midseason Rankings – Second Base
Not only are you getting the keystone rankings today, but the Catchers and First Basemen are also updated with the guys missed the first time around. So Carlos Santana and John Jaso are in with the catchers and guys like Todd Frazier have been fully ranked at 1B by our rankers.
Remember when I ranked Kinsler over Kipnis? That was rich. I’ll take my heat for being wrong there, but I still remain a touch skeptical on trusting Kipnis fully. This upcoming portion of the season – the second half – has long been a problem for Kipnis. He hasn’t been great at holding up in the dog days and delivering the frontline production we expect and have seen in previous first halves.
His career .683 OPS in the second half is well off the All-Star level .816 he’s amassed in the first half over the last four seasons. All that said, I’m still more in on Kipnis than I have been previously and ranked him quite highly, though still came in last among the quartet of rankers. Hilariously, despite feeling better about Kipnis as a player, he’s actually a spot lower than those May rankings where I had Kinsler ahead of him. Don’t worry, Kinsler is well behind him now (though still a starter in all formats).
For this update, you will have the rankings from me, Zach Sanders, Jeff Zimmerman, and Dan Schwartz. Mike Podhorzer is currently on vacation.
Other positions:
| Rank | Player | Team | League | Paul | Zach | Jeff | Dan | AVG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jose Altuve | Astros | AL | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | |
| 2 | Jason Kipnis | Indians | AL | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3.3 | |
| 3 | Brian Dozier | Twins | AL | 3 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3.5 | |
| 4 | Dee Gordon | Marlins | NL | 2 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 3.8 | |
| 5 | Mookie Betts | Red Sox | AL | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 4.5 | |
| 6 | Kolten Wong | Cardinals | NL | 6 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 6.0 | |
| 7 | Ian Kinsler | Tigers | AL | 7 | 10 | 6 | 10 | 8.3 | |
| 8 | Dustin Pedroia | Red Sox | AL | 8 | 8 | 12 | 7 | 8.8 | |
| 9 | Robinson Cano | Mariners | AL | 16 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 9.3 | |
| 10 | Howie Kendrick | Dodgers | NL | 10 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 9.8 | |
| 11 | Anthony Rendon | Nationals | NL | 11 | 14 | 20 | 8 | 13.3 | |
| 12 | Rougned Odor | Rangers | AL | 12 | 16 | 11 | 16 | 13.8 | |
| 13 | Joe Panik | Giants | NL | 9 | 13 | 19 | 21 | 15.5 | |
| 14 | Neil Walker | Pirates | NL | 15 | 11 | 16 | 20 | 15.5 | |
| 15 | DJ LeMahieu | Rockies | NL | 27 | 15 | 10 | 13 | 16.3 | |
| 16 | Ben Zobrist | Athletics | AL | 14 | 17 | 13 | 22 | 16.5 | |
| 17 | Brandon Phillips | Reds | NL | 18 | 22 | 14 | 17 | 17.8 | |
| 18 | Logan Forsythe | Rays | AL | 13 | 12 | 43 | 12 | 20.0 | |
| 19 | Daniel Murphy | Mets | NL | 20 | 24 | 18 | 18 | 20.0 | |
| 20 | Jimmy Paredes | Orioles | AL | 25 | 27 | 15 | 15 | 20.5 | |
| 21 | Justin Turner | Dodgers | NL | 22 | 20 | 26 | 26 | 23.5 | |
| 22 | Marcus Semien | Athletics | AL | 32 | 19 | 17 | 28 | 24.0 | |
| 23 | Devon Travis | Blue Jays | AL | 21 | 18 | 25 | 33 | 24.3 | |
| 24 | Jace Peterson | Braves | NL | 37 | 21 | 28 | 14 | 25.0 | |
| 25 | Matt Duffy | Giants | NL | 17 | 33 | 22 | 32 | 26.0 | |
| 26 | Wilmer Flores | Mets | NL | 28 | 25 | 27 | 24 | 26.0 | |
| 27 | Addison Russell | Cubs | NL | 23 | 29 | 37 | 19 | 27.0 | |
| 28 | Luis Valbuena | Astros | AL | 29 | 26 | 29 | 27 | 27.8 | |
| 29 | Delino DeShields | Rangers | AL | 19 | 28 | 38 | 31 | 29.0 | |
| 30 | Danny Espinosa | Nationals | NL | 30 | 31 | 32 | 25 | 29.5 | |
| 31 | Brett Lawrie | Athletics | AL | 24 | 36 | 31 | 29 | 30.0 | |
| 32 | Chris Owings | Diamondbacks | NL | 41 | 23 | 23 | 38 | 31.3 | |
| 33 | Martin Prado | Marlins | NL | 40 | 34 | 21 | 34 | 32.3 | |
| 34 | Alex Guerrero | Dodgers | NL | 33 | 32 | 46 | 23 | 33.5 | |
| 35 | Johnny Giavotella | Angels | AL | 39 | 41 | 24 | 39 | 35.8 | |
| 36 | Cesar Hernandez | Phillies | NL | 34 | 30 | 44 | 36 | 36.0 | |
| 37 | Scooter Gennett | Brewers | NL | 35 | 40 | 30 | 39 | 36.0 | |
| 38 | Steve Pearce | Orioles | AL | 45 | 37 | 33 | 30 | 36.3 | |
| 39 | Brock Holt | Red Sox | AL | 31 | 41 | 40 | 35 | 36.8 | |
| 40 | Chase Utley | Phillies | NL | 38 | 38 | 35 | 37 | 37.0 | |
| 41 | Eddie Rosario | Twins | AL | 26 | 41 | 47 | 39 | 38.3 | |
| 42 | Jonathan Schoop | Orioles | AL | 36 | 41 | 41 | 39 | 39.3 | |
| 43 | Omar Infante | Royals | AL | 44 | 41 | 34 | 39 | 39.5 | |
| 44 | Rob Refsnyder | Yankees | AL | 42 | 35 | 47 | 39 | 40.8 | |
| 45 | Aaron Hill | Diamondbacks | NL | 48 | 41 | 36 | 39 | 41.0 | |
| 46 | Arismendy Alcantara | Cubs | NL | 49 | 41 | 39 | 39 | 42.0 | |
| 47 | Enrique Hernandez | Dodgers | NL | 43 | 41 | 47 | 39 | 42.5 | |
| 48 | Yangervis Solarte | Padres | NL | 46 | 39 | 47 | 39 | 42.8 | |
| 49 | Emilio Bonifacio | White Sox | AL | 51 | 41 | 42 | 39 | 43.3 | |
| 50 | Asdrubal Cabrera | Rays | AL | 47 | 41 | 47 | 39 | 43.5 | |
| 51 | Cory Spangenberg | Padres | NL | 51 | 41 | 45 | 39 | 44.0 | |
| 52 | Tim Beckham | Rays | AL | 50 | 41 | 47 | 39 | 44.3 |
How is Rougned Odor rated higher than Devon Travis after the first half? I understand there is a component of expected return for the rest of season, but isn’t Travis being disrespected at 27th 2nd baseman in baseball. Even with his large absence he made a huge impact at the position, both for power and average. And of course, he plays for the run machine that is the Blue Jays.
Hold up. I had a major typo on my D.Travis rank. It’s 31 when he should be 21. That’ll move him up some. One second, lemme update that error.
D Travis since coming back from injury:
10r 0hr 6rbi 1sb .379avg .859OPS
with a .458 BABIP and 87 ISO. Those numbers hurt Travis more than they help in terms of my confidence. That said, I didn’t make my ranking based on those numbers.
Oh man, D Travis is WAY undervalued here. Wow. Compare Odor (12) and Travis (27).
Odor: 193 PA, 4HR, 5SB, .265AVG
Travis: 207 PA, 7HR, 3SB, .304AVG
Well it’s not just a ranking of how guys did in the first half, though. Honestly, I’d say it’s pretty impressive that Odor is even close to Travis in that numbers comparison given the awful start Odor had before his send-down.
BTW, Travis hasn’t homered in 28 games and has just 2 SBs in that time, too.
Would you drop Travis for Walker or Odor right now? 6×6 roto w/ OPS as extra category and I don’t need SB.. Travis has been solid despite his injury and I don’t see anything that would indicate a major drop off in the 2nd half. Curious as to why everyone is so low on him?
Yes, Eric. I’d take either. Leaning toward Odor who I think can have a huge 2H.
some kind of “Yahoo only” filter would be great for guys like Betts/Paredes who only qualify at 2B in the most clown-shoes of formats.
Seems as if you’ve found your niche. A good, free filter for clown shoes formats.
Just wondering about the incredible variance in Forsythe’s ranking? Did Logan punch Jeff or something?
Logan did punch Jeff. It was under-publicized, but it definitely happened when Forsythe was visiting the Rotographs offices. 🙂
Also very confused on the Logan ranking. Is that a mistake? Or does Jeff think Logan Forsythe is really worse than Emilio Bonifacio? Seems like 43 should read as 13.
Brett Lawrie is just about cloning Neil Walker’s 5×5 line yet he’s #31 and Walker is #15? I can’t tell if one is too low or the other is too high but am leaning toward Lawrie being a bit low.
Since when are we deeming first/second half splits predictive? Especially for a guy who has only played 3 full seasosn, one which through a major injury. Sorry but that is simply lazy analysis.
Honestly, calling someone’s analysis “lazy” has become the new lazy. You outline part of the problem with Kipnis in your comment, he gets hurt. He’s never held up over a full season. Sell me on why he’s so good instead of just lazily calling it lazy and moving on. What’s SO great about Jason Kipnis (mind you, I ranked him fifth) that suggests his ranking is so criminal?
Well I think he got hurt, not gets hurt. His career low ABs was last year at 555. I am encouraged by his improvement in disciple, he is sporting a career contact% and swstrk%. He has been hitting the ball hard as well, with the 13th lowest soft% (11.5%) and career 28% ld%. There is even some HR upside with 27 doubles and the liners taking from his fb%, ~ 6% down from his career avg. At such thin position, he probably has the best bat.
Mookie Betts has played 85 games in the OF this season, zero games at 2B. His inclusion seems a bit odd. Will we see Hanley ranked as a SS?
Because if they leave him off they get 5 comments asking where he would be ranked if he qualified. A lot of fantasy leagues are Yahoo leagues.
Quals in Yahoo!. Of course Hanley will be SS, he was SS in every single format coming into the season.
Was offered Kemp for Panik in a 12-tm dynasty with standard scoring. Could pick up Alexei or Ahmed off the waiver to fill MI. Slam dunk?
Kemp for Panik? No, that is not a slam dunk. Panik is good and Kemp isn’t.
Well Kemp can’t hit and plays the deepest position in fantasy baseball.
Panik can actually hit, and plays one of the shallowest positions…
So you’re right. Turning that down *is* a slam dunk.
Lawrie at 31 is a joke.
I see that none of you are believers in Justin Turner?
I noticed that, too.
Justin Turner posted a wRC+ of 158 in the first half of 2015, after posting a wRC+ of 157 in 322 plate appearances in 2014. His SLG last year was .493 and it is .538 so far this year. He has been hitting for the equivalent of a full season at a high-end All-Star level.
But he is ranked below LeMaheiu, Paredes, Zobrist, Forsythe and others who have not produced at his level. What is up with that???
Ooooo eeeeee. What’s up with that? What’s up with that.
Turner’s rank is just part of a player doing something for a limited amount of time at the major league level at a more advanced age. Same thing happened with EE (then E5) in 2011-2012, and Frazier last year. The majority of fantasy managers are going to question the sustainability of his production just because he is older than normal when having a potentially sustainable breakout.
Odor is sooo overrated at this point. His boffo June and July was helped by a .390 and .324 BABIP. No way he keeps up that pace in second half. Also his Iso was creeping near .200. Simply playing way over his head.
A .324 BABIP isn’t exorbitant at all. Odor could easily live at that level with his speed.
Big Justin Turner fan. ZiPS likes him for .297/.357/.456 moving forward, and I think I think he can go even higher with power (he’s 18th in flyball/HR distance). His raw stats look a bit light because while he played in almost all of their games, he was a part-timer (Only 3.16 PA/game, compared to, say, Howie Kendrick and his 4.22 PA/game). But now that Justin Turner is a daily fixture in the meat of the the lineup I expect his raw stats to improve. Top-10 guy if he qualifies at 2B for you.
Agree. Must own in 12-team mixed, even at ESPN where he only qualifies at the very deep 3B. Even if DJ played ALL his games at Coors, he would not match Turner’s triple slash or overall production.
Same, here. I was hoping he’d acquire eligibility at one of the MI spots, but that doesn’t look likely, especially Olivera and Seager right around the corner.
I agree 100%. Turner posted a 158 wRC+ in 2014 and a 157 wRC+ so far this year. He hits the ball often (relatively low K%), and hard (outstanding flyable distance).
In OttoNeu, Turner qualifies at SS, 2B, MI and 3B this year, and he only needs a couple games at SS to carry those positions over to 2016.
Turner has been outstanding, and he seems likely to provide value for the next few years.
Acknowledging your “mistake” (ie; Kinsler over Kipnis) is one that I’m sure MOST of us would’ve believed/thought/said,…BEFORE the season began. Don’t feel too bad about that one. ;^b
no Jturner love, huh?
Also, the post hype sleeper “look he’s so undervalued because he had a rough start and was sent down, LOOK, LOOK!” ranking is too much with Odor.
Was it too much? Or was it really good advice because he could be had for free?
Since returning: .365/.398/.661 w/6 HRs, 18 XBH (out of 42 H), 22 RBI, 17 R, and 4 SBs.
So is Joe Panik way better than Devon Travis in an OBP league? I honestly thought they were close and currently own Travis, but Panik is available.
D Murphy at 19 is low. He is as close to a sure thing for top 10 as it gets. The Mets are terrible, but that just means that he will be hitting in the heart of the order. He is behind a bunch of unproven players and complete has-beens, most of them with less ceiling. Its fun to rank upstarts highly, but it ends up looking foolish by the end of the season.
Tempted to add Odor at this point. This might cause problems because when Strasburg returns from the DL (again…) I have to figure out who to drop. If I mean to add Odor, it means I’ll have to figure out 2 players to drop.
I wonder if I shouldn’t just add him, then try a 2 player for 1 player trade and put the “who to drop” burden on someone else.
I hate the Rendon rank and, at the same time, I can’t really argue with it either. Fantasy does terrible things to an owner’s logic.
Anyone a touch more bullish on Cano with the stomach illness explanation or is this still a steer-clear situation?
What’s up
Looking to improve my avg and obp
Is grandal worth dropping to stash span or harrison on the ir and picking up any of these guys…Neil walker, collabello, parades, cron or Castellanos
If you’re looking to improve your OBP, dropping Grandal would be just about the biggest mistake you could make, certainly not for anyone on that list. Surely you can find someone else to drop to pick up someone like Walker.
I believe Schoop at 42 will prove to be low.
I agree about Schoop. There’s too much pop just since he’s been back with the club to be that low. Any further thoughts on him, Paul?
I agree.
If I have done tiers, 26 to 36 just wouldn’t be too far away so he could’ve reasonably been up near Rosario.