Fantasy Factory: Hanley Ramirez, Mr. Overrated

(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Well first off, if you're someone who drafted Hanley Ramirez with the number one pick in the draft, or even number two, you have come nowhere close to getting what you expected.

So at this point, you may have no other choice but to keep him and hope that he tears it up in the second half, OR you can do the smart thing...flip Hanley for all he's worth.

I recommend number two. Like I went into earlier, people for the most part look at only the name of the player, and right now, you still might be able to deal Hanley for someone like Mark Teixeira, Ian Kinsler, or Miguel Cabrera.

If your pitching staff is hurting, you could even give up Hanley for someone's ace, and then take their SS in return and see what you can build on.

Now don't get me wrong, I think Hanley Ramirez is a tremendous baseball player, and even a better athlete. But when it comes to fantasy, there are just better options available.

A lot of people use the argument, "But he's the best available SS in the MLB." While this statement in itself is debatable, I think he's worth taking a hit at SS when you can clearly upgrade at other positions.

For example, its worth taking a hit at SS if you can trade Hanley for someone like Miguel Tejada (beating Hanley in half the categories including RBI and average...not really taking a loss at the shortstop position), and grabbing at all star at another position like Ryan Braun or Victor Martinez (I believe there is less talent this year at catcher than even SS).

Final Verdict

I guess what I'm trying so hard to make apparent for everyone, is that the smartest thing to do as a Hanley owner would be to trade him for the big name players who are known for good second halfs or even the ones who have just been steadily performing this season.

I know many of you may think I've just taken the players who may be better than Hanley and not the whole story, but in reality there are plenty of other "no name's" that have performed far better than Hanley.

Ready for the last thing that might finally crack open the fantasy eyes?

Looking back at a 12-team league draft, there were players taken with the 200 something pick that have given their owners more than Ramirez.

Don't believe me? How about Shin Soo Choo with the 236th pick? Adam Lind with the 245th? How about Pablo Sandoval with the 218th selection?

Hell, there are free agents that have been added within the last couple of weeks, even days that are performing tremendously. How about the now famous Ben Zobrist? He is beating Ramirez in every single offensive category except for batting average.

If your league takes OPS into account, than you could always take Zobrist with his AL leading 1.086 (trailing only Albert Pujols in the entire MLB).

Well there you have it, the numbers simply do not lie. To close out the article, I promised a friend I would include the following information, a final comparison if you will, to hopefully push you over the edge of Mount HanRam.

Hanley Ramirez (in case you forgot): .325, 39 Runs, 8 HR's, 34 RBI's, 9 SB's
Pla. B (owned in only 86% of leagues): .275, 44 Runs, 14 HR's, 47 RBI's, 14 SB's

I'm pretty sure in any league 50 batting average points is worth more runs, almost twice as many homers, a handful of RBI's, and the ever elusive stolen bases.

But really. Do you think Mark Reynolds even knows this?

Written by, Edited by, Travis Rand NYG Community Leader and Fantasy Sports Writer

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