Fantasy Second Base Rankings: 2019Man, there are a lot of options at second base this year. Some are clearly the top choices, but once you get into the middle-of-the-pack, you could either make or break your 2019 fantasy season - all based on your second baseman. We've ranked the top 35, below, which is kin of a strange number to cap our rankings out at, but there were so many possible guys worth drafting that we wanted to give you as much info as we could on as many second basemen as we thought were worth a draft pick. Even then, we still left a few out just because we had to move on to other positions. So, with that said, check out the list and feel free to expand on it.
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First, Jose Ramirez is a total “duh” at second base. His numbers are incredible for any position, but this may be the only year that he qualifies at 2nd. Jose Ramirez is totally worth a #1 overall pick even if we don’t expect him to necessarily match last season’s output. Look – there’s no reason to think he won’t match last year’s stats, but even if you shave off 10 runs, 10 HR, 10 RBI and 10 steals off his stat line, you’d still have a guy with 100 runs, 29 HR, 96 RBI and 24 steals at second base.
Now, we have to eat a little crow. Javier Baez proved us totally wrong last season. We thought he was just too much of a free swinger to remain consistent at the plate, but he put up huge numbers all season long. Atta boy, Javy. We’re still gonna say “Buyer beware” in regard to his absolutely awful 29 walks to 167 strikeouts, but when he puts the ball in play, it’s always hit hard somewhere. And even is he does hit a dribbler, he busts his ass to beat the throw to first. Let it be said that he could very easily drop to a .250 hitter with 25 HR and 70 RBI, but that’s still pretty sweet for a second baseman.
Whit Merrifield got off to a slow start in the beginning – so much so that we were actually part of a public Yahoo league where a guy dropped him early on. Naturally, we picked him up and he danced the rest of the season. He’s already mature, he has learned how to read pitchers, and we see potential in his swing (and size) to eclipse the 20 HR mark without sacrificing other stats. Too bad the Royals suck, otherwise we’d be able to tack on another 10-15 runs and a few more RBI, too.
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Potential Sleeper Picks at Second Base
Remember, sleeper picks aren't always up-and-coming guys at a position - they're also guys who the rest of your league may forget about on draft day. Guys who are (or were) great and maybe got hurt last year; guys who had unpredictably-bad seasons last year, guys who are in a better lineup than they were a year before - those are all potential sleeper situations.
Ian Kinsler is the expected starter at second base in San Diego this season. Everyone loves San Diego (except the Chargers), and they have a pretty core of players down there. Kinsler’s experience and past success could play right into their laid-back-and-just-put-up-numbers offensive scheme. Kinsler hit 14 HR with 16 stolen bases in just 128 games last season, even though he still only hit .240. Given the low batting average, that’s efficient production. He has also been relatively injury-free throughout his career, but he’ll be 37 in 2019, so don’t expect more than 130 games. Still, while he’s in the lineup, chances are good he’ll perform well, and you can get him in the later rounds or for $1-$5 in an auction.
Jonathan Villar has no reason to not score 90 runs other than he just can’t manage to stay in the starting lineup. Villar hit 14 home runs with 35 stolen bases (and he was only caught stealing 5 times, so his speed is legit). He strikes out too much (about once per game), but who doesn’t these days? He’s in Baltimore so there’s no reason he shouldn’t be an every-day starter… since that whole team sucks. Expect Villar to hit .250-.265 with 20 HR and 30 SB. He could even hit in the #3 spot on that terrible team, so we could see a serious spike in his Runs and RBI, too. Don’t count on it, but take a flyer on him for the potential to be a 20/20 or a 20/40 guy, even.

People forgot all about Jason Kipnis after he hit just .230 last season. He still plays in a great lineup, so he may go back to being a .260-.280 hitter with plenty of pop, RBI opportunities and runs scored. He drove in 75 RBI and scored 65 runs. Now that Encarnacion is out of the lineup and the Indians have a bunch of slap-hitters in their outfield, Kipnis may be relied upon to be more of an RBI guy. We’ll believe it when we see it, but if you can sneak him into your roster late in the draft, do it.
Yoan Moncada has been the guy that all the so-called “experts” like to tout to try to prove they know more than you. We weren’t sold on him and we were right… bunch of nerds. Anyway, we’re still not sold on him. Moncada had pretty impressive numbers for a 23-year-old: 73 runs, 17 HR, 32 doubles, 6 triples, 17 HR, 61 RBI and 12 stolen bases. The bad news is that he hit just .235 with a league-worst 217 strikeouts. Duuuuuuude… 217 strikeouts. That’s a formula for getting your ass put on the bench or sent back down to the minors again. We’re not saying he’s not gonna start all year; we’re not saying he can’t improve; we’re not saying he’s gonna get send down to the minors again… but if I’m pitching against the guy, I’m fearlessly throwing junk low and away and up-and-in heat. He would never see a strike to hit and, therefore, he would never make contact. Now, there’s no denying the mass of positive statistics, but there’s also no denying the massive holes in his swing. If you draft him, expect nothing and if he has a breakout year (he’s just 24 in May), you’ll finally look like the genius that the dumbass “experts” tried to be 2 years ago.
Yoan Moncada has been the guy that all the so-called “experts” like to tout to try to prove they know more than you. We weren’t sold on him and we were right… bunch of nerds. Anyway, we’re still not sold on him. Moncada had pretty impressive numbers for a 23-year-old: 73 runs, 17 HR, 32 doubles, 6 triples, 17 HR, 61 RBI and 12 stolen bases. The bad news is that he hit just .235 with a league-worst 217 strikeouts. Duuuuuuude… 217 strikeouts. That’s a formula for getting your ass put on the bench or sent back down to the minors again. We’re not saying he’s not gonna start all year; we’re not saying he can’t improve; we’re not saying he’s gonna get send down to the minors again… but if I’m pitching against the guy, I’m fearlessly throwing junk low and away and up-and-in heat. He would never see a strike to hit and, therefore, he would never make contact. Now, there’s no denying the mass of positive statistics, but there’s also no denying the massive holes in his swing. If you draft him, expect nothing and if he has a breakout year (he’s just 24 in May), you’ll finally look like the genius that the dumbass “experts” tried to be 2 years ago.
Asdrubal Cabrera is another guy that, if it wasn’t for having the worst first name in baseball, no one would remember him on draft day. He does just enough every year but he’s very forgettable. 65 runs, 15-20 HR, 60-70 RBI and a .270 batting average. Ho-hum stuff, but he’s consistent – he’s not really streaky. Draft Asdrubal Cabrera, make a few ass-jokes on draft day with your buddies, then see if he cracks your starting lineup. He probably will one way or another
Starlin Castro is another guy that’ll be easy to forget about on draft day, but he can actually help your team. Even better, his numbers could improve on last year’s. But, buyer beware: Castro plays in Miami where there’s no one to drive in and there’s no one to drive him in. He’ll probably be hitting in the #2 spot, but depending on how things shake out in Miami, he could hit anywhere from the 2-6 spot. Even if Starlin Castro hits .310 with 200+ hits (which is highly unlikely), he may still only score 70 runs with 60 RBI and 12-15 HR. If the Marlins sell him off at the trade deadline, he could land somewhere valuable for fantasy owners. Right now, though, his best-case scenario isn’t all that great
Ian Happ could be the pick of your draft if the other fantasy geeks in your league forget about him, but that’s unlikely. There’s always one Cubs’ fan in every league and they worship all things Cubs. Still, even if you get Happ in the 5th-10th round, that’s pretty good (or for around $10 in an auction). Expect Happ to give you 60+ runs, 15 HR and 50+ RBI. If you get anything more out of him - which is very possible given the lineup around him - consider yourself lucky.
Jonathan Schoop was a bit of a bust last season. Consistent with previous performances, he hit 21 HR. Unfortunately, his season was kinda lost between the God-awful Orioles and the sudden playoff chase with the Brewers. He never seemed to settle in well in the NL. Now, Schoop is the second baseman with the Minnesota Twins who have quietly put together a rather potent lineup – maybe too good, likely pushing Schoop down in the lineup. Still, expect 20-30 HR and 80 RBI out of Schoop in 2019. He could even score 80 runs depending on where they put him in the lineup.
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