Fantasy Baseball: Top 5 Milwaukee Brewers For 2010

The Brewers are next in the Top 5 series, so let’s have a look:

1. Ryan Braun-he’s the best, or second best, outfielder in the draft depending on who you talk to (I say Matt Kemp is #1). Braun will give you 30+ HRs and 100+ RBIs with 15-20 SBs every year, and he is capable of hitting 40 HRs in the very near future.

2. Prince Fielder-speaking of power, the Brewers may have one of the top 1-2 power hitters in the game. Fielder proved that his 2008 season was an aberration as he clubbed 46 HRs and drove in 141 to go with his .299-.412-.602 slash line. Bill James projects a 44-124-.286-.393-.574 season in 2010.

3. Yovani Gallardo-Gallardo went 13-12-3.73-1.31 in 2009, as his BB/9 increased from 3.00 in 2008 to 4.56 in 2009. Still he struck out nearly 10 batters per nine innings, but his LOB%, or strand rate, was pretty high at 77.9%. James projects 12-3.53-1.30 in 2010.

4. Alcides Escobar-not many rookies make the Top 5’s, as I am not ready to buy into a bounce-back season from OFer Corey Hart or Casey McGehee continuing to hit like he did in 2009. Escobar has the speed to steal 35+ bases in 2010, but has no power whatsoever. His only value to fantasy owners is his speed.

5. Trevor Hoffman-not much more can be said about this HOF closer. Many experts wrote him off in 2009, and he responded with a 37 save season with a 1.83 ERA. James projects similar numbers in 2010.

Sleeper Alert: Mat Gamel-Gamel was touted as the next Ryan Braun going into 2009 fantasy drafts, and he struggled with the comparisons as he finished 2009 with 5 HRs, 20 RBI, and a .242-.338-.422 slash line. James projects a 17-73-.277-.354-.464 season for Gamel in 2010. If given a position, whether at third base or right field, Gamel should hit.