The 1B rankings are getting hammered in the fantasy community this year as people perceive the position to be shallow this year. However, I don’t think its significantly weaker than it has been the last couple of years but more that the other infield positions are so much deeper that you no longer need to use the multi-positional guys at second, short or third.
In terms of starters there are 17 guys I am more than happy to start in points leagues and given that often in points you don’t have the corner infield position to fill there are plenty of options to keep you happy here.
Currently we are going division by division as we preview the season having covered the AL Central, NL West and NL East.
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C | 1B | 2B | 3B | SS | OF | SP |RP
| Rank | Player | Positions | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anthony Rizzo | 1B | CHC |
| 2 | Paul Goldschmidt | 1B | ARI |
| 3 | Joey Votto | 1B | CIN |
| 4 | Miguel Cabrera | 1B | DET |
| 5 | Edwin Encarnacion | 1B/DH | CLE |
| 6 | Freddie Freeman | 1B | ATL |
| 7 | Daniel Murphy | 1B/2B | NYM |
| 8 | Matt Carpenter | 1B/2B/3B | STL |
| 9 | Jose Abreu | 1B | CWS |
| 10 | Carlos Santana | 1B/DH | CLE |
| 11 | Adrian Gonzalez | 1B | LAD |
| 12 | Hanley Ramirez | 1B | BOS |
| 13 | Eric Hosmer | 1B | KC |
| 14 | Joe Mauer | 1B/DH | MIN |
| 15 | Albert Pujols | 1B/DH | LAA |
| 16 | Chris Davis | 1B | BAL |
| 17 | Wil Myers | 1B | SD |
| 18 | Brandon Belt | 1B | SF |
| 19 | Tommy Joseph | 1B | PHI |
| 20 | Lucas Duda | 1B | NYM |
| 21 | Mike Napoli | 1B/DH | TEX |
| 22 | Greg Bird | 1B | NYY |
| 23 | Josh Bell | 1B | PIT |
| 24 | Brad Miller | 1B/SS | SEA |
| 25 | Justin Bour | 1B | MIA |
| 26 | Travis Shaw | 1B | MIL |
| 27 | Ryan Zimmerman | 1B | WSH |
| 28 | C.J. Cron | 1B | LAA |
| 29 | Steve Pearce | 1B | TOR |
| 30 | Kennys Vargas | 1B | MIN |
My points strategy:
- In points you don’t need to chase home runs so getting one of the elite gets a lot less important and for that reason:
- I am quite happy to have any of the the top 10 and I wouldn’t be surprised if Carlos Santana was on a ton of my teams this year given he is the best ADP value of my top 10.
- I also really like Joe Mauer in points leagues and given that you can essentially get him for nothing he isn’t significantly worse than the bottom end of the top 12 so if I don’t like the value I am getting guys in the draft then he is my safety net and I am more than happy to take him as my starting first baseman given the extra value I should get at other positions by taking them when everyone else is getting their first baseman.
- The Myers, Pujol and Davis group scare me from an injury and floor point of view so whilst I will happily take them if the value is there I would much prefer to get Mauer and would be willing to miss them in the draft.
