Fantasy Funkhouser: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Player Rankings - Rounds 10-15

Clayton Kershaw's injury is a lesson in not leaning too heavily on pitching in fantasy. (calltothepen.com)

Fantasy Funkhouser will review all things Fantasy Baseball. After all, life is a small sample size.

With all of the media coverage that baseball has, it's hard to believe how many surprises there have been so far for fantasy owners. The day-in-day-out grind that is covering a baseball team usually lends itself to sensational stories or any interesting minutia being discussed just to get something submitted by a deadline. Yet, here we are a week into the season and Clayton Kershaw's precautionary scratch is now a month plus on the DL. Ryan Braun who was homer happy and excited in spring training, now all of a sudden, can't feel his fingers. Pre-season sleeper favorite for the White Sox's closer job, Nate Jones, didn't even get a chance to blow a save, as that gig went to Matt Lindstrom, and he will forever be known as the INF reliever for failing to retire a single batter in his first two appearances of the regular season. Jim Henderson also immediately lost the closing job out of the blue, but he is expected to get it back at some point. Oh and no one seemed to notice that Stephen Strasburg was throwing 90 mph either.

I mean, what the hell, beat writers? How did none of this some to light? I can't remember being more blind sided to start a season than I have been this year. Add to that the unfortunate injuries that have already taken place to Aroldis Chapman, Jose Reyes, and a quick Yu Darvish trip to the DL it's been a scattered and crazy start.

Anyway, with that being said, it seems necessary to start pumping out more rankings faster. This is just getting things official for review and consumption. I've really only altered a couple of players slightly. Most of the movement is due to injuries or players losing their starting gigs. No reason to overhaul everything after a week. Plus these ranks should have been posted by now anyway. No reason to play revisionist history on these. Enjoy!

RANK	PLAYER NAME	POS	POS RANK	TEAM	CHANGE
1	Miguel Cabrera	3B	1	DET
2	Mike Trout	OF	1	LAA
3	Paul Goldschmidt	1B	1	ARZ
4	Andrew McCutchen	OF	2	PIT
5	Carlos Gonzalez	OF	3	COL
6	Jacoby Ellsbury	OF	4	NYY
7	Hanley Ramirez	SS	1	LAD
8	Edwin Encarnacion	3B	2	BAL
9	Chris Davis	1B	3	TOR
10	Carlos Gomez	OF	5	MIL	16
11	Robinson Cano	2B	1	SEA
12	Bryce Harper	OF	6	WAS
13	Adrian Beltre	3B	3	TEX
14	Joey Votto	1B	3	CIN
15	Adam Jones	OF	7	BAL
16	Giancarlo Stanton	OF	8	MIA
17	Troy Tulowitzki	SS	2	COL
18	Jason Kipnis	2B	2	CLE
19	Prince Fielder	1B	4	TEX
20	Evan Longoria	3B	4	TB
21	Chris Sale	SP	1	CHI
22	David Wright	3B	5	NYM
23	Dustin Pedroia	2B	3	BOS
24	Felix Hernandez	SP	2	SEA
25	Adam Wainwright	SP	3	STL
26	Ian Desmond	SS	3	WAS
27	Yu Darvish	SP	4	TEX
28	Alex Rios	OF	9	TEX
29	Freddie Freeman	1B	5	ATL
30	Cliff Lee	SP	5	PHI	31
31	Jose Fernandez	SP	6	MIA	43
32	Hunter Pence	OF	10	SF
33	Jose Bautista	OF	11	TOR
34	Shin-Soo Choo	OF	12	TEX
35	Justin Verlander	SP	7	DET
36	Justin Upton	OF	13	ATL
37	Stephen Strasburg	SP	8	WAS
38	Ryan Braun	OF	14	MIL	5
39	Craig Kimbrel	RP	1	ATL
40	David Price	SP	9	TB
41	Matt Holliday	OF	15	STL
42	Buster Posey	C	1	SF
43	Clayton Kershaw	SP	10	LAD
44	David Ortiz	1B	6	BOS
45	Elvis Andrus	SS	4	TEX	37
46	Madison Bumgarner	SP	11	SF
47	Max Scherzer	SP	12	DET
48	Jay Bruce	OF	16	CIN
49	Ian Kinsler	2B	4	DET
50	Yasiel Puig	OF	17	LAD
51	Eric Hosmer	1B	7	KC
52	Zack Greinke	SP	13	LAD
53	Starling Marte	OF	18	PIT
54	Albert Pujols	1B	8	LAA
55	Jean Segura	SS	5	MIL
56	Adrian Gonzalez	1B	9	LAD
57	Yoenis Cespedes	OF	19	OAK
58	Homer Bailey	SP	14	CIN
59	Kenley Jansen	RP	2	LAD
60	Allen Craig	1B	10	STL
61	Jason Heyward	OF	20	ATL
62	Matt Carpenter	2B	5	STL
63	Pedro Alvarez	3B	6	PIT
64	Pablo Sandoval	3B	7	SF	85
65	Everth Cabrera	SS	6	SD
66	Greg Holland	RP	3	KC
67	Jose Altuve	2B	6	HOU
68	Wil Myers	OF	21	TB
69	Joe Mauer	C	2	MIN
70	Jayson Werth	OF	22	WAS
71	Alex Gordon	OF	23	KC
72	Shane Victorino	OF	24	BOS
73	Jose Abreu	1B	11	CHW
74	Anibal Sanchez	SP	15	DET
75	Starlin Castro	SS	7	CHC
76	Alex Cobb	SP	16	TB
77	Trevor Rosenthal	RP	4	STL
78	Josh Donaldson	3B	8	OAK
79	Anthony Rizzo	1B	12	CHC
80	Mark Trumbo	1B	13	ARZ
81	Yadier Molina	C	3	STL
82	Kyle Seager	3B	9	SEA
83	James Shields	SP	17	KC
84	Josh Hamilton	OF	25	LAA
85	Manny Machado	3B	10	BAL	89
86	Billy Hamilton	OF	26	CIN
87	Ben Zobrist	SS	8	TB
88	Carlos Santana	C	4	CLE
89	Ryan Zimmerman	3B	11	BAL	64
90	Wilin Rosario	C	5	COL
91	Carlos Beltran	OF	27	NYY
92	Jordan Zimmermann	SP	18	WAS
93	Xander Bogaerts	SS	9	BOS
94	Masahiro Tanaka	SP	19	NYY
95	Brett Lawrie	2B	7	TOR
96	Matt Kemp	OF	28	LAD
97	Matt Cain	SP	20	SF
98	Mat Latos	SP	21	CIN
99	Danny Salazar	SP	22	CLE
100	Sonny Gray	SP	23	OAK
101	Victor Martinez	1B	14	DET
102	Brandon Belt	1B	15	SF
103	Koji Uehara	RP	5	BOS
104	Shelby Miller	SP	24	STL
105	Chase Utley	2B	8	PHI
106	Gio Gonzalez	SP	25	WAS
107	Andrew Cashner	SP	26	SD
108	Gerrit Cole	SP	27	PIT
109	Billy Butler	1B	16	KC
110	Martin Prado	SS	10	ARZ
111	Jedd Gyorko	2B	9	SD
112	Jonathan Lucroy	C	6	MIL
113	Cole Hamels	SP	28	PHI
114	Desmond Jennings	OF	29	TB
115	Brian McCann	C	7	NYY
116	Jose Reyes	SS	11	TOR
117	Brett Gardner	OF	30	NYY
118	Aaron Hill	2B	10	ARZ
119	Hyun-Jin Ryu	SP	29	LAD
120	Joe Nathan	RP	6	DET
121	Aramis Ramirez	3B	12	MIL
122	Coco Crisp	OF	31	OAK
123	Brad Miller	2B	11	SEA
124	Austin Jackson	OF	32	DET
125	David Robertson	RP	7	NYY
126	Mike Napoli	1B	17	BOS
127	Sergio Romo	RP	8	SF
128	Brandon Phillips	2B	12	CIN
129	Doug Fister	SP	30	WAS
130	Addison Reed	RP	9	ARZ
131	Aroldis Chapman	RP	10	CIN	59
132	Ernesto Frieri	RP	11	LAA
133	Michael Cuddyer	1B	18	COL
134	Julio Teheran	SP	31	ATL
135	Mike Minor	SP	32	ATL
136	Justin Masterson	SP	33	CLE
137	Joakim Soria	RP	12	TEX
138	Matt Moore	SP	34	TB
139	R.A. Dickey	SP	35	TOR
140	Jim Johnson	RP	13	OAK
141	Matt Adams	1B	19	STL
142	Chase Headley	3B	13	SD
143	Will Venable	OF	33	SD
144	Tony Cingrani	SP	36	CIN
145	Glen Perkins	RP	14	MIN
146	Hisashi Iwakuma	SP	37	SEA
147	Michael Wacha	SP	38	STL
148	Jeff Samardzija	SP	39	CHC
149	C.J. Wilson	SP	40	LAA
150	Jason Grilli	RP	15	PIT
151	Salvador Perez	C	8	KC
152	Jered Weaver	SP	41	LAA
153	Alfonso Soriano	OF	34	NYY
154	Jason Castro	C	9	HOU
155	David Murphy	2B	13	NYM
156	Brandon Moss	1B	20	OAK
157	Domonic Brown	OF	35	PHI
158	J.J. Hardy	SS	12	BAL
159	Curtis Granderson	OF	36	NYM
160	Christian Yelich	OF	37	MIA
161	Leonys Martin	OF	38	TEX
162	Andrelton Simmons	SS	13	CHW
163	Will Middlebrooks	3B	14	BOS
164	Carl Crawford	OF	39	LAD
165	Hiroki Kuroda	SP	42	NYY
166	Matt Weiters	C	10	BAL
167	Nelson Cruz	OF	40	BAL
168	Alexi Ramirez	SS	14	ATL
169	Anthony Rendon	2B	14	WAS
170	Rafael Soriano	RP	16	WAS
171	Steve Cishek	RP	17	MIA
172	Jonathan Papelbon	RP	18	PHI
173	Johnny Cueto	SP	43	CIN
174	Norichika Aoki	OF	41	KC
175	Matt Garza	SP	44	MIL
176	Jon Lester	SP	45	BOS
177	Yan Gomes	C	11	CLE
178	Asdrubal Cabrera	SS	15	CLE
179	Adam Lind	1B	21	TOR
180	Torii Hunter	OF	42	DET

Fantasy Funkhouser: They Told Me To Do It

When it comes to players like Rick Porcello, seeing will be believing in 2014.

Fantasy Funkhouser will review all things Fantasy Baseball. After all, life is a small sample size.

As you may or may not have noticed, the baseball season has started. I've been sitting on this article for about 2 weeks, so before things get out of hand, it's time to just shove off and give you my list of guys whose opinion I have of them are completely created by the experts out there. Personally, from an emotional standpoint, I have zero interest in these characters, but people smarter than me are constantly saying that these guys are going to break big in 2014. I've selected some position players and pitchers that have been regularly brought up across all kinds of  formats with people gushing all over them. So against my personal better judgment I've based my rankings on these players by trusting the experts and not myself. They're on my teams, I upped their auction price, and I'm holding on for the ride. Here's the list.

Brandon Belt, 1B +San Francisco Giants 
What the experts say: Belt is the golden child of the sabermatricians out there. They rave about his swing, his approach at the plate, and all the good stuff like that. He even changed his swing! Oh, they love that. Also, after finally getting regular playing time against lefties, Belt was able to shine in the second half of 2013 going .326/.390/.525. For a guy that has average power and plays in a pitcher friendly park that particularly zaps lefty power unless you're Barry Lamar Bonds, this is eye catching. Belt is expected to bat 2nd or 3rd this season against righties, putting OBP skills to good use. And so far, he has two dingers, including this one last night against lefty Wade Miley. Color me curious. If all plays out like the experts say, he's a comparable Eric Hosmer without the high ceiling or at least can approach Freddie Freeman status, so long as Freddie doesn't become a 40 HR hitter.



What I think: The guy is just awkward looking, and while his short swing from the left side of the box will help him make solid contact, if he only cracks 15 HR this year and/or loses playing time - that's a ho-hum year. His second half can't be denied, but it seems a little too good to be true.

Alex Gordon, OF +Kansas City Royals 
What the experts say: The uber prospect that made good on his potential. Gordon is a category filler putting up solid but not great numbers across the board. We probably won't see another 2011 year out of him, but that year was what he needed to justify to all of us that he was here to stay.

What I think: He is a solid roto player, no doubt, but without that 2011 ceiling should he be going higher than Ben Zobrist, Austin Jackson, Desmond Jennings, and Carlos Beltran? Also, Gordon will be batting lower in the order to start the season, decreasing his run scoring ability. This could open up some more RBI opportunities and give him the option to run a bit more, but I think this is an overall negative. Also, he's such an elite fielder, that you have to be mindful when reading up on how much experts love him - considering not everything is 100% fantasy related.

Mark Trumbo, OF +Arizona Diamondbacks 
What the experts say: He's moving to a better hitters park! He's going to hit 40 home runs!

What I think: When I heard Todd Zola gush all over Trumbo, I was blown away. Sure the power is there, but Trumbo has been so inconsistent and prone to strike out so much that it usually leads to him falling off a cliff in the 2nd half. I was really blown away from the praise coming Trumbo's way.

Season	Monthly	G	PA	HR	R	RBI	SB	AVG
Total	1st Half	257	1047	61	132	161	14	0.268
Total	2nd Half	203	824	35	89	129	4	0.227
*Fangraphs

Xander Bogaerts, SS +Boston Red Sox 
What the experts say: He's a future multiple time All-Star. He has a cool approach to the plate, and when he was inserted into a World Series' lineup he wasn't phased at all. The power is coming, and some sites have him ranked as a top 5 SS for 2014.

What I think: I'm a fan of the X-man. I have no doubt he'll be a very solid baseball player. I do worry about him being my everyday SS in fantasy, as I think he's probably a little bit away from starting to capitalize on his potential.

Khris Davis, OF +Milwaukee Brewers 
What the experts say: He has the power and now an everyday spot in an underrated Brewers' lineup. He can approach 30 HR and hit for a decent average.

What I think: Every year experts go nuts over young power hitters. Whether it's Kyle Blanks or Wily Mo Pena or Giancarlo Stanton there are a lot more misses than hits. People were right about Stanton, but Blanks and Pena are and became barely serviceable pinch hitters. Davis has a real likelihood of being exposed when playing everyday.

Will a new approach help make Ivan Nova a superstar? (bronxbaseballdaily.com)

Ivan Nova, SP +Yankees 101 
What the experts think: Nova battled through health issues again last year, but very quietly put together his best ERA and WHIP in his Yankee career. He improved his control and ditched throwing his average fastball so much in favor of distributing those pitches to a cutter and sinker. This took his K's a step down, but improved his ground ball percentage and thus his sparkling ratios.

What I think: This guy never stays health, and he's prone to blow up as much as Gavin Floyd in his prime. He's an unreliable starter in a brutal division who happens to pitch in a terrible park. He's frustrating and I won't feel good putting him out there 80% of the time.

Rick Porcello, SP +Detroit Tigers  
What the experts think: Porcello has finally started to figure out his pitching. He's generating more ground balls, striking more batters out, and all of that points to even more improvement in 2014. He's a player that should easily out perform his auction day purchase price.

What I think: If there's a pitching version of Brandon Belt, it's Porcello. Experts love all of his underlying stats, except for the fact that when he's on the mound he hardly strikes anyone out and can't be trusted start after start. His bad outings (see the first picture in this article) are enough to off-set any discrepancy between his ERA and FIP. Also with Jose Iglesias out most of the year, he won't have the benefit of that slick fielding shortstop to gobble up all his grounders.

Koji Uehara, RP +Boston Red Sox 
What the experts think: Uehara has one of the most unhittable pitches in all of baseball, his splitter. He had the best season of any closer in 2013 and remained unhittable throughout the playoffs. But, he's old and he's always had the injury bugaboo following him. His high usage last year and propensity to give up home runs make him unlikely to repeat last year's success this year. He's outside the top 5 closers in fantasy.

What I think: Not every expert is going to make you want to draft a player. In this case, the experts have kept me away from Uehara this year. I have always like Koji back to his Baltimore days, and having him on several teams last year, I can say that he was dynamite. It bothers me that a lot of the things experts are pointing at are not statistical based but eventuality based. It's likely he'll get hurt, it's likely he won't be as successful. I think Uehara can still be a top 5 closer, but the experts have kept me away.

Corey Kluber, SP +Cleveland Indians 
What the experts think: I've written about Kluber, I like Kluber. I hope he does well.

What I think: I've written about Kluber, I like Kluber. I hope he does well. Hey, we're all in the Kluber fan club whether we want to be or not.