2016 Fantasy Baseball Rankings – Third Base Overview
Like first base, third base is deep in top-level talent and deep in playable talent as well. The position brags four players who are worthy picks in the first two rounds, and you could even argue that a fifth could be placed toward the end of the second round. The big difference is that at first base, you continue to find guys who are rosterable and even startable as a utility or corner bat deep into the rankings. At third base, however, there is a pretty steep drop after the first 16-18 players, and the talent level quickly goes from a guy worthy of a borderline starting 3B role to guys that you’d have to argue hard to convince yourself to roster as a bench guy. In other words, seek out your corner/utility bat at a different position, and you may even want to put an emphasis at getting a top 7-10 guy in the first 5-6 rounds to ensure you have the position covered.
Donaldson is a clear #1, and he has an argument for a top-5 overall pick. However, Machado, Arenado, and Bryant could all be argued in the first round, depending on the size of the league. Once you get past Frazier, I’d wait a few rounds before picking among the next 3-4 guys, though, and then there’s another 3-4 round gap before you should worry about picking anyone else from the position.
2016 Fantasy Baseball Rankings – Third Base Rankings
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In my rankings this year, I’ll post first my rank, then the player’s name and team, followed by the PR rank for the position in 2015, and lastly, any other positions the player will be eligible at in 2016, based on 20-game eligibility.
1. Josh Donaldson, Toronto Blue Jays, 1
2. Manny Machado, Baltimore Orioles, 2
3. Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies, 3
4. Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs, 4
5. Todd Frazier, Chicago White Sox, 5
6. Adrian Beltre, Texas Rangers, 9
7. Kyle Seager, Seattle Mariners, 8
8. Maikel Franco, Philadelphia Phillies, 24
9. Matt Carpenter, St. Louis Cardinals, 6
10. Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays, 12
11. David Wright, New York Mets, 45
12. Mike Moustakas, Kansas City Royals, 10
13. Pablo Sandoval, Boston Red Sox, 36
14. Nick Castellanos, Detroit Tigers, 26
15. Trevor Plouffe, Minnesota Twins, 16
2016 Fantasy Baseball Rankings – Braves Third Base Highlight
The Braves are off the radar once again here at third base, though I think they could have two sleeper guys on their team to start the season. Adonis Garcia should get at least a solid platoon’s share of plate appearances, though many are not fans of his defense, in spite of him being a solid defender in the time I’ve seen him in Gwinnett. What I did see of him defensively is that he’ll get on streaks defensively where he makes one poor play, and he would then have 2-3 more pile up on it. His power bat has continued to shine in winter league action, and it’s hard to imagine him not playing a significant amount as one of the few legitimate right-handed power threats the Braves have.
Hector Olivera is the big wild card for fantasy owners. He’s going to start the season with only 3B eligibility, which is why we discuss him here. He could end up starting in left field. He could end up paired with Garcia in a platoon. There are just a number of outcomes for Olivera. What is clear is that the Braves intend to give him every opportunity from opening day, and that means that he has a spot, which is something you’ll find in the deepest of leagues does have some value.
Tomahawk Take Fantasy League Announcement
Last season, the Tomahawk Take staff put together two leagues each on Yahoo and ESPN. We had a lot of fun in those leagues, and there was great participation from writers and readers alike. We’ve decided to do the same thing this year. However, we’re going to have things set up a little more ahead of time.
This season, we will have two leagues on each site again, the size of each depending on the interest in each, however, the maximum for each league will be 14, so first come, first serve until the league fills up. We will have one rotisserie league and one head-to-head league on each site. I made a mistake in setting up one league last season, and that won’t happen this year – each league will have daily add/drop moves available. If you are interested in any of the leagues, please email me at gopherben@gmail.com and indicate in your email whether you would prefer ESPN or Yahoo and whether you would prefer roto or H2H. Thanks!
Next: Braves Top 100 Prospects Updated With Offseason Additions
That’s your break down of the third basemen for 2016. Like it, love it, hate it? Comment below, and let’s talk about what you think for 2016!