My Three Players

The other day I asked who you would pick to start a major league franchise, and a couple of folks even responded (may the rest of you be subjected to a lifetime of D’Angelo Jimenez at second base!). I thought there would be a consensus at #1 and probably even at #2, but that things would get interesting from there. As it turns out, among the extremely limited sample, even #2 wasn’t as clear as I’d expected it to be.

That said, here are the guys I’d put at the top:

1. Albert Pujols. It’s not even close. I took flack for not choosing him #1 overall in a fantasy league this year, but my reasoning was that the gap between him and the first baseman I’d likely end up drafting was smaller than that between the options I’d have at the position I chose at #1 if I passed on the guy I wanted. This logic works in fantasy baseball, which is really glorified accounting, but not so much in the real thing. For one thing, Pujols is such a great hitter that he might actually affect the financial bottom line in terms of filling seats, selling merchandise, etc. He’s not quite on the Michael Jordan/Wayne Gretzky (ah, I show my age) level but I’d imagine he’s pretty close. Understand also that as a fan, I don’t like Pujols. He strikes me as a bit of a punk and a logical successor to Barry Bonds in more ways than one. But if I’m building a team, Pujols is the guy I absolutely want as the foundation. My suspicion is that some of what I perceive as “punkiness” is actually what drives him to greatness. As long as he keeps mashing, he can do whatever he wants.
2. Johan Santana. I hate to put so much stock in a pitcher but Santana has absolutely everything working in his favor. He’s young, left-handed, durable, and unhittable. There is no weakness in his game, and for that, I’d be willing to look past the injury risk inherent in pitchers. With Santana on your team, you know that every fifth day, there’s a good possibility that you’re going to kick the other team’s ass. That’s a real nice feeling to have.
3. Miguel Cabrera. I’m calling an audible here. The player I’d originally intended to list at #3 was David Wright (who incidentally is the guy I took ahead of Pujols in my fantasy league), but Anthony’s comments in my original post got me to thinking about Cabrera, and in the end he was too good to resist. I’m not convinced that Cabrera is the true third baseman that Wright is, but it might not matter. Cabrera puts up ridiculous numbers despite playing half his games in a ballpark that kills offense. Oh, and he’ll be 24 next year. If anyone in baseball is going to challenge Pujols’ claim as best hitter of this generation, Cabrera is the guy. He is a scary, scary talent and someone I’d gladly employ as the cornerstone of my franchise.

Well, there you have it — one man’s thoughts on building a ballclub. Anyone else have ideas? Speak now, or forever hold your Jimenez…