1. Ian Kinsler-Despite hitting .263, Kinsler did manage to go 30/30 with 101 runs. If you want him, you’ll probably have to draft him in the second round.
Fantasy Baseball: Top 5 Texas Rangers for 2010
2. Nelson Cruz- Cruz broke out in 2009 after a pretty successful minor league career. There’s no doubt Cruz has monster power and potential, but whether or not he can consistently hit for average is another thing. If you draft Cruz this year, chances are you’re getting a 30/20 guy with .270 batting average. I’ll take it.
3. Josh Hamilton- 2008's feel good story turned in a fairly miserable, injury plagued season in 2009. Hamilton saw his HR/FB% drop by nearly 10% from career norms and should he bring those numbers back to normal, we could see a 25 home run season from him. Bill James has him at 75/23/91 11 and .293. All of those numbers should certainly be within reach with a healthy season.
4. Neftali Feliz- Armed with an electric upper-nineties fastball and a changeup in the high 80’s and even low 90s, Felix was used last year as a reliever for Texas in the latter part of the season. In his tenure in the bigs, Felix totalled a 1.74 ERA with a K/9 of 11.32 and BB/9 of 2.32.Feliz averaged about .22 HR/9 in the minor leagues, so Texas may not be much of a factor for Feliz. At this point, whether Feliz is working out of the bullpen being groomed as a closer or into the starting rotation, it’s a pretty safe bet that he’ll be a useful option on most fantasy teams.
5. Julio Borbon- Armed with fairly poor plate patience, Borbon may never be a legitimate leadoff hitter type of player. But, he does have a good ability to hit for average and has blistering speed. If you draft Borbon, you could be getting 40-plus stolen bases, 90 runs and a .300 average.
Sleeper Alert. Vladimir Guerrero- Vlad has been overlooked in most league and probably for good reason. A move to Texas in that ballpark could boost Guerrero into being a bargain come draft day. If you nab him late and he hits well, you've gotten a good deal. But if the move to such a hitter friendly park and lineup doesn't help, have no concern cutting bait.
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