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Around the League: 1st Base
A breakdown of the EHCC's mildly-warm corner
By Listen DePleyohs / Baseball Tri-Weekly
Power has always been the name of the game at first, but now speed is becoming a factor for these former fatties.
Eastern Division
6. Chris Shelton, PEO After a breakout year, the 25-year-old Shelton is looking to make his mark in a division with some of the best first basemen around. After a great start he seemed to level off. Fortunately, Peoria management wants to see more of him and with Damon and Jeter at the top of the order, the opportunity is there for him to succeed.
5. Todd Helton/ Carlos Pena, HAV Shrewd trading finally brought a quality first baseman to Haverhill. Whether or not he will shine is still the question. He is a risk that some of the top teams didn’t want to take, but he is a perfect fit for the Swingers who may be able to move him around the trade deadline. Pena will most likely be dropped off the 20-man roster, but it will be interesting to see if any of the Western teams take a shot at his potential. He could be a nice, late-round surprise.
4. Derrick Lee/ Ryan Howard, BRW There seems to be a lot of interest surrounding the right corner of Bridgewater’s infield. Over the past year, almost every top first baseman has seen time there. From Pujols to Teixeira, and now Derrick Lee will be there catching sloppy throws. Many considered Lee’s breakout season a fluke, but he has long been an above average player and the Weasels shouldn’t expect that to change. Fortunately, if it does, they have one of the most promising young power guys in the game right behind. Howard is not ready to take over for Lee, but should provide valuable production from the utility spot.
3. Carlos Delgado/ Conor Jackson, WEY Even after a pretty good year, many were disappointed with Delgado. An injury and the deep walls of Weymouth have really hurt his numbers the last two years. Still, he is one of the top producing power guys in the game and he should be expected to build slightly on his numbers. Jackson, on the other hand, is up in the air. If he does make the opening day roster, Weymouth could be in a pickle. The question is if he ready to take on full-time duty as a utility guy or would he be better served traded. Since spring training has yet to open for Shaddupu, it is hard to tell, but I think they are hoping he keeps his minor league protection.
2. David Ortiz, RAK Big Papi will only have a few years where he will be one of the best hitters in the game, and this season should be one of them. With Bonds hitting behind him instead of Vernon Wells, he should see a lot more strikes and a handful of extra homeruns.
1. Albert Pujols, LV They traded for Pujols, and now they must rely on his veteran leadership and production if they are going to be successful this season. Regardless of the numerous young guns batting around him, he should continue to put up big numbers. He is very consistent, and the stolen bases don’t hurt either. Let’s hope Reyes and Weeks can get on base for him.
Western Division
6. Dan Johnson/ Prince Fielder, TKO Tokyo doesn’t want to go into 2006 with Dan Johnson on the bag… or do they? The team that loves to fail has a surprisingly talented outfield, an interesting shortstop and one of the top first basemen sitting in their minor league system. If Fielder starts putting up numbers it will be interesting to see if Tokyo makes a run at the playoffs or if they sit on another season. Either way, Johnson is not the guy they will win with, even if he puts up satisfactory numbers.
5. Justin Morneau, TIJ The centerpiece in the David Ortiz trade, the 24-year-old Morneau suffered every type of problem imaginable last year. While this could be his breakout year, there is not a lot of pressure for him with Tijuana’s strong lineup. If he gets into a groove, he can put up some big numbers, but that would also make him interesting trade bait again. Unfortunately, as the only real question mark in the lineup, he may also get the axe earlier than expected meaning a nice little prize for one of the lower teams.
4. Jason Giambi, GLD He is getting old in a division of youth, but he is in one of the top lineups in the division. Giambi doesn’t need to live up to his big contract, but he does need another 30 home runs if Golden is going to take a shot at the playoffs. If Golden finds themselves drifting they could move him late in the season, but that would require Giambi to make himself a valuable utility asset.
3. Richie Sexson, BIZ Sexson is reaching Dunn status on his Strikeout to homerun ratio, but the Markies aren’t complaining. Bizton needs production and Sexson is the main source of it, but until spring training opens up it is tough to tell who will be around him in the batting order. Look for all his numbers to rise a bit, but it may be meaningless until Bizton can get some offensive players around him.
2. Paul Konerko, Lyle Overbay, WS Konerko brings the only real power to the scrappy Monsters lineup. With a mix of underperformers and old men hitting behind him, it could be a long year for him. He isn’t a speed guy, and doesn’t bring in the runs that Winston-Salem might like, but the team has plenty of other options for that. His job is to hit 40 homeruns. If he can do that, the Monsters will see the playoffs, and possibly the division. Overbay has been a solid contributor, but I don’t expect him to stay on through spring training. Expect him to turn up again somewhere during the season.
1. Mark Teixeira/ Jim Thome, QC Easily the best in the west, but Quebec City doesn’t have to rely too much on their young masher with Thome and Dunn waiting to pick up the slack. A key for Teixeira this year will be to keep his average around .300. He is one of a few Piglets that can reach that mark, and it will be needed more this season than his 40 homeruns. Thome had an injury-plagued year, which allowed Quebec to hide him on their DL. They hope he will now reward them with a 30 home run, 100 RBI season from the utility spot.
Listen DePleyohs writes a column for Baseball Tri-Weekly. He hasn't had time to write anything for the past two months due to his wife giving birth to their third child. Ex-Commissioner Ellis Burks calls the child, "The ugliest [deleted expletive] baby I've ever seen. Ever."
