Top 45 Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitchers for 2010: Take Three

Ranking starting pitchers is definitely one of the more debatable positions in baseball.  How do you rank up-and-coming pitchers like Yovani Gallardo, Ubaldo Jimenez, and Tommy Hanson?  How about injury concern pitchers like Johan Santana and Chris Carpenter?  Let’s take a look at how things currently look for me:

1. Tim Lincecum - San Francisco Giants
2. Zack Greinke - Kansas City Royals
3. Roy Halladay - Philadelphia Phillies
4. Felix Hernandez - Seattle Mariners
5. CC Sabathia - New York Yankees
6. Johan Santana - New York Mets
7. Chris Carpenter - St. Louis Cardinals
8. Dan Haren - Arizona Diamondbacks
9. Jon Lester - Boston Red Sox
10. Justin Verlander - Detroit Tigers
11. Yovani Gallardo - Milwaukee Brewers
12. Ubaldo Jimenez - Colorado Rockies
13. Clayton Kershaw - Los Angeles Dodgers
14. Cole Hamels - Philadelphia Phillies
15. Adam Wainwright - St. Louis Cardinals
16. James Shields - Tampa Bay Rays
17. Josh Johnson - Florida Marlins
18. Cliff Lee - Seattle Mariners
19. Josh Beckett - Boston Red Sox
20. Ricky Nolasco - Florida Marlins
21. Jake Peavy - Chicago White Sox
22. Tommy Hanson - Atlanta Braves
23. Chad Billingsley - Los Angeles Dodgers
24. Scott Baker - Minnesota Twins
25. Matt Garza - Tampa Bay Rays
26. Javier Vazquez - New York Yankees
27. John Lackey - Boston Red Sox
28. Wandy Rodriguez - Houston Astros
29. Matt Cain - San Francisco Giants
30. Brett Anderson - Oakland Athletics
31. Jered Weaver - Los Angeles Angels
32. A.J. Burnett - New York Yankees
33. Jorge De La Rosa - Colorado Rockies
34. Brandon Webb - Arizona Diamondbacks
35. Clay Buchholz - Boston Red Sox
36. John Danks - Chicago White Sox
37. Aaron Harang - Cincinnati Reds
38. Rich Harden - Texas Rangers
39. Jair Jurrjens - Atlanta Braves
40. Roy Oswalt - Houston Astros
41. Carlos Zambrano - Chicago Cubs
42. David Price - Tampa Bay Rays
43. Ted Lilly - Chicago Cubs
44. Gavin Floyd - Chicago White Sox
45. Rich Porcello - Detroit Tigers

• There is some risk involved in the Top 10 pitchers, especially with Johan Santana and Chris Carpenter.  Will Santana be healthy?  If he is, and indications right now are that he is, he has the stuff, in that ballpark, to be the best pitcher in the game.  As for Carpenter, after all the injuries he’s had, are you willing to bet on him staying healthy for a second full season?  Even if he does, is there any way he repeats his 2009 campaign?  It certainly would seem unlikely.
• Don’t believe that Yovani Gallardo will be a No. 1 fantasy pitcher in 2010?  Worried about his control?  Let’s not forget about his minor league career walk rate of 3.2 and his 110 Major League innings at 3.0 in ‘07.  His control is far better than he showed in ‘09 (4.6) and if he gets that back in order, he will be a top option in all formats.
• Ubaldo Jimenez has converted me to a believer.  What else is there to say?  I was always a big critic of his, but he appears to have improved his control to go along with strikeouts and a great groundball rate.  At this point, there really is nothing left not to like.
• I’ve already spoken about Kershaw (click here to view) and how he could become a fantasy ace in ‘10.  If he can simply throw strikes and go deep into games, it’s a realistic possibility.
• How is Cliff Lee affected by his move back to the AL?  Considering that he’s already proven that he can be successful in the American League, there isn’t much reason to downgrade him very far.  He’s a solid No. 2 in all formats.
• Is there any chance Ricky Nolasco has as much poor luck (.336 BABIP, 61.0 percent strand rate) in ‘10?  He’s a great buy low candidate if your league mates forget about him.  For more on him, click here .
• How will Jake Peavy do away from San Diego?  His great few innings in Chicago are nice, but he needs to do a whole lot more to fully put fantasy owners at ease.  Don’t forget about his ‘08 split, posting a 1.74 ERA at Petco Park and a 4.28 ERA everywhere else.
• Scott Baker the WHIP Maker.  And don’t forget it (click here for more).
• Javier Vazquez was great last season but he is moving to a park that helps to boost the power of left-handed hitters.  In ‘09, he allowed 14 HR to lefties.  That sounds like a perfect marriage, doesn’t it?  He’s going to be good, but he’s not likely to be anywhere near last year’s production (click here for more).
• There’s little doubt that Matt Cain regresses from last season, is there (click here for my article)?  He had tremendous luck, benefiting from an 81.0 percent strand rate and a .268 BABIP.  He’s not likely to repeat that type of luck.
• Pitchers who could break out in ‘10: Brett Anderson, Jorge De La Rosa & Clay Buchholz.  Any one of those three could emerge as Top 20 pitchers before the year is out.
• What can we expect from Brandon Webb after missing virtually all of ‘09?  It’s tough to invest too heavily on him, isn’t it?

What are your thoughts on the rankings?  Who’s too high?  Too low?  Who was the biggest omission?

Make sure to order your copy of the Rotoprofessor 2010 Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide, selling for just $5, by clicking here .

Make sure to check out our other early rankings:

• Catchers
• First Basemen
• Second Basemen
• Third Basemen
• Shortstops
• Designated Hitters
• Outfielders
• Closers

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