Best of the Best Keepers

With each owner’s seven keepers submitted, let’s take a look at the three teams that I think have the top keepers.  I will list their keepers along with their ESPN and Yahoo ranking, and I will give a few thoughts on why I think their teams have the best keepers.

The Dinos

1. Albert Pujols (3,3)

2. Miguel Cabrera (8,7)

3. Tim Lincecum (12,21)

4. Chase Utley (17,22)

5. Carlos Beltran (25,19)

6. Jacoby Ellsbury (62,51)

7. Bobby Abreu (60,94)

Barring injuries, the Dinos should be set for the next few years with this core.  They have last year’s Cy Young and MVP winners, they have one of the best second baseman in the game, and they have a young speedster who stole 50 bases in his first full season.  Their top-five could all be top-20 players this season.  There’s a decent mix of power and speed, along with an ace to head up the rotation.  The only negative is that Chase Utley should miss most of April, but it sounds like he’s progressing rapidly in his return from surgery.

Macafeys

1. David Wright (4,5)

2. Jimmy Rollins (10,12)

3. BJ Upton (41,14)

4. Roy Halladay (24,58)

5. Alex Rios (44,43)

6. Geovany Soto (71,54)

7. Derrek Lee (55,95)

The Macafeys also have a great foundation of young and talented players, with two first-rounders and a staff ace.  This team has a better mix of speed and power than the Dinos, but the Dinos have a deeper top-five and there are some question marks about some of the Macafeys players.  Will Geovany Soto duplicate last year’s success?  Can Alex Rios put his talents for power and speed together for one season?  Will BJ Upton and Jimmy Rollins find their power strokes again?  This team will be good, but how good remains to be seen.

Screaming Lemurs

1. Ryan Braun (6,8)

2. Ian Kinsler (26,11)

3. Carl Crawford (33,28)

4. Brandon Webb (28,46)

5. Cole Hamels (35,45)

6. Aramis Ramirez (42,39)

7. Curtis Granderson (50,42)

The Lemurs are just completely solid from top to bottom.  Though they don’t have the as many elite players as the Dinos or the Macafeys, all of their players are ranked in the top-50 to begin the season.  That’s pretty impressive, and it’s that level of depth that keeps them right behind these two teams.  There’s a lot of speed on this team, but probably not as much power as the other two teams.  Having two aces means they can focus on hitting for the first few rounds.  This team just needs Ian Kinsler to stay healthy and rebound seasons from Carl Crawford and Curtis Granderson to challenge for the championship. 

Let me know what you think.  There’s also a poll if you feel like giving a vote.  I’m going to try to do a mock draft of the first round by Friday, so there’s that to look forward to.