Fantasy Baseball: Creating All-Fantasy Team from Players Still in the Playoffs

Even though the fantasy season is over, I still find myself rooting for the guys who were on my fantasy team.

With the exciting first round over, I thought it would be a good idea to come up with the ultimate fantasy lineup of players who are still in the postseason.

First Team

C: Buster Posey

1B: Prince Fielder

2B: Robinson Cano

3B: Miguel Cabrera

SS: Johnny Peralta

OF: Allen Craig

OF: Ichiro Suzuki

OF: Carlos Beltran

DH: David Freese

SP: Justin Verlander

SP: CC Sabathia

SP: Doug Fister

SP: Kyle Lohse

RP: Sergio Romo

RP: Jason Motte

Second Team

C: Yadier Molina

1B: Mark Teixeira

2B: Omar Infante

3B: Pablo Sandoval

SS: Pete Kozma

OF: Matt Holliday

OF: Raul Ibanez

OF: Delmon Young

DH: Austin Jackson

SP: Hiroki Kuroda

SP: Anibal Sanchez

SP: Chris Carpenter

SP: Andy Pettitte

RP: Rafael Soriano

RP: Jose Valverde

Honorable Mention

Russell Martin, Daniel Descalso, Gregor Blanco, Andy Dirks, Hunter Pence, Matt Cain, Madison Bumgarner, Phil Hughes, Max Scherzer.

Notes

C: Posey didn't hit all that well in the first round, but he was the No. 1 catcher during the regular season, so it would be almost impossible not to start him, especially with the lack of offensive catchers still remaining.

1B: Fielder's stats so far don't really do him justice. He had a couple hits robbed by Oakland, including a home run. He feasted off New York pitching this season, posting a .333 clip. Teixeira has been swinging the bat better (.320 average in postseason), but he still isn't as dangerous as Fielder.

2B: Cano gets the nod because of his regular season and the way he ended the year. Yes he's hitting less than .100 in the playoffs, but a struggling Cano is still a better option than Infante. You have to figure Cano will turn it around sooner, rather than later.

3B: Sandoval really deserved to make the first team (he's hitting .292 with a homer), but how could you leave off the guy who just won the first triple crown in 45 years? Cabrera will turn it around in the LCS; he hit .308 with five home runs in 10 games against the Yanks this season.

SS: This should be Jeter's spot, but a broken ankle drops him off the roster. The next best option is Peralta, who is hitting .385 in the playoffs. Kozma makes the jump to the second team, after putting up five RBI in the LDS.

OF: The two Cardinals deserve to be on the first team. Beltran has been sensational, hitting .385 with three home runs and six RBI. Craig is right behind Beltran, hitting .308 with a home run and four RBI. Ichiro makes the first team squad after getting off to a good postseason start. One of the few bright spots for the Yankees' offense, Ichiro is hitting .273 with a home run, five RBI and a stolen base. Although Holliday is struggling, he makes the second team because of his potential. When he gets hot, he can carry an entire team on his back. Ibanez has been a miracle worker for the Yankees and earned a second-team berth and Delmon Young always shows up to play against the Yanks.

DH: Freese just knows how to get it done in October. After winning the World Series MVP a year ago, Freese is at it again, hitting .360 with a homer and four RBI. Jackson is the second team selection after hitting .267 so far.

SP: This was the hardest position to fill out. I mean, I had to leave off Cain and Bumgarner from both teams. Verlander and Sabathia are the no-brainers of the group. Those two are horses and have dominated in the postseason. Fister has looked masterful in his two starts and Lohse just won't go away this year. In 12.2 innings so far, Lohse is 1-0 with a 2.13 ERA and 0.79 WHIP. Veterans Carpenter and Pettitte thrive in October so they make the second team. Sanchez has given up just two earned runs in the playoffs while Kuroda continues to impress in the Bronx.

RP: Well you can't trust Valverde so he gets designated to the second team. Romo was lights out all year as a closer and setup man and Motte saved 42 games for the Red Birds.