Fantasy Baseball Decision: Alex Rodriguez or Hanley Ramirez for No. 2 Pick?

Yesterday, my buddy Jude called me with a fantasy baseball question.

He has the second pick in his draft, and he wondered who he should take: Alex Rodriguez or Hanley Ramirez.

His league is a standard league, 10 teams and a 5X5 format. Albert Pujols, of course was going to be picked No. 1 overall, so Jude was faced with a decision.

While he can’t go wrong either way, Ramirez would be the better choice with the No. 2 pick. Here is why.

First, let’s look at their stats from 2009:

Rodriguez: .286/30/100/.402 with 14 stolen bases in 124 games.

Ramirez: .342/24/106/.410 with 27 stolen bases in 151 games.

As we all know, Rodriguez missed the first month of the season after undergoing hip surgery in the offseason, so his numbers should increase in 2010 just by virtue of him playing more games.

However, Rodriguez only played in 138 games in 2008, so keep that in mind. He is no longer guaranteed to play in 150-plus games every year.

It’s realistic to expect Rodriguez to hit 35 to 40 home runs and drive in 110 to 120 runs next season. However, his batting average has declined three straight years (.314-.302-.286), so that trend could continue in 2010.

Ramirez, on the other hand, has no problem with his batting average. Ramirez led the National League in batting last season (.342), and he gets better with each year.

He is the premier hitting shortstop in baseball, and he really has no competition for that title.

Ramirez gives your fantasy team help in all five categories. He can hit, hit home runs, drive in runs, get on base, and steal a base.

He was helped in the offseason with the Florida Marlins bringing back Dan Uggla and Jorge Cantu. Those two, along with Chris Coghlan and Cody Ross, should give the Marlins a pretty good lineup in 2010.

Don’t expect a drop-off in RBI or runs for Ramirez.

Rodriguez would give you more home runs, RBI, and maybe runs. Ramirez would give you a better batting average, a higher OBP, and more steals. So while it might seem like a wash, there is one reason you would take Ramirez over Rodriguez—depth.

The third base position this year is a lot deeper than the shortstop position. If Jude misses out on Ramirez and somehow doesn’t get Troy Tulowitzki either, then what does he get?

He could get Derek Jeter, but I don’t expect him to nearly to have the year he had last year. Jose Reyes could have a bounce-back year, but he has a lot of question marks going into 2010.

After those four at the shortstop position, it gets pretty dicey. Third base, on the other hand, has a lot more depth to the position this year.

If Jude misses out on Rodriguez, he can grab Evan Longoria, who isn’t that far behind the New York Yankee third baseman. Even if he misses out on Rodriguez and Longoria, there is the chance to draft players like Gordon Beckham (breakout star), Kevin Youkilis, Ryan Zimmerman, or even David Wright (I expect him to bounce back in the power and RBI categories).

There are also guys like Chone Figgins or even Ian Stewart he could draft later and get quality production from.

Due to the fact that Ramirez plays shortstop, he is the right choice with the No. 2 pick. He will give you everything you need at a position that doesn’t offer much depth.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg