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I got a trade vetoed by the trade committee.

I traded Bret Baty for two prospects, Jefferson Rojas and Haydn McGeary.  I was selling low on Baty, and buying a couple of prospects that I thought would breakout this year.  The trade was vetoed, and I’m totally fine with it.  I fully expected to have some minor hiccups like this along the way and that’s why there’s a trade committee in the first place.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

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The journey through the 2024 Top Keepers continues this week with a look at the top shortstops. Compared to some of the other positions we’ve covered, shortstop is actually a pretty deep position. If you get stuck with a Tier 4 player, like a Jeremy Pena or Tommy Edman, you still have a decent shortstop on your hands.

Even in Tier 5 (players ranked 31-40), you still can get a decent utility player or fulltime shortstop with some solid upside. Meanwhile, the top shortstops are players who are not just the best at this position, but are some of the best players in the game. Overall, this is a strong group of players.

Now, on to the rankings!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

After going over keeper relievers, keeper starters and keeper catchers in October, we turned our attention to the top infield keepers last week with a look at the keeper first basemen.

This week we continue the trip around the infield by looking at the second basemen.

I’m pretty sure I said this last year, but I will say it again: second base is the scrapheap of major league baseball. It seems every manager believes anyone can play second base – and they may be right. You have players getting starts at the spot that you would think would never play there – like a Brandon Drury. Right fielders, center fielders, third basemen, first basemen – they are all getting time at second base.

With so many fantasy leagues requiring middle infielders, the list of keepers is long and the bar to be on the list consists of players who had to have at least 10 starts at second base.

Enough with the chit chat, on to the 2024 Top Keepers – Second Basemen

Please, blog, may I have some more?

I was a history major in college.  This was a terribly poor decision.  I realized after my first year in history/secondary education that I did not really enjoy history.  I was gonna be a coach.  My only A’s in college were coaching classes.  Why did I think that history was interesting?  Who would ever read stuff like that just for the fun of it?

As I’ve grown older, I realized that there is some history that I enjoy.  I just don’t enjoy ALL of it.   It’s all good, I was only a Social Studies teacher for two years before I took a different type of position.  The lesson is to never listen to your parents, I guess.

For a time, I felt the same about dynasty baseball leagues.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

After going over the pitchers and catchers the past month, it is time to turn our attention to the top infield keepers. the trip around the infield will start with the first basemen.

I really thought it was going to be easy to find 30 first basemen and another 10 who can play the position well. But what I thought and what I learned were two different things.

The top half of this group solid, especially the top 10 players with the next 10 being very safe keepers. If you have anyone in Tier 3 or better, be happy. But the bottom tier players are just that – bottom tier players. Some may surprise and have a good season in 2024, but others will likely do exactly what you and I expect from them.

With that said, it’s on to the 2024 Top Keepers – First Basemen

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Catchers – you can’t live with them, and in fantasy baseball, we can’t live without them.

This is a position that is not deep and not that talented after the top tier of backstops. You may get a catcher who has power but kills your average and on-base percentage. Or you may get a catcher who hits well and gets on base, but has no power at all.

There are very few perfect catchers in baseball, and the few that are close are going to be tough to get or trade for due to the scarcity of those players. But you almost feel compelled to try to go after them or hang onto them a year or two too long because for every Adley Rutschmans, there are two Martin Maldonados who just kill your team.

I came up with forty catchers to rank, but that is mostly to help fantasy owners who play in 20-team (or more) leagues or the leagues that require two catchers. If you are in a 12- to 16-team league, the Tier 4 and perhaps Tier 3 players will likely mean nothing to you.

Anyway, let’s get to the 2024 Top Keepers – Catchers.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Wow, has it already been a week since the first installment of the 2024 Top Keepers was unveiled? Time flies when the baseball playoffs are in full swing.

Last week I looked at the top relievers to keep (2024 Top Keepers – Relievers). This week the focus is on starting pitchers.

Like relievers, starting pitchers can be a little inconsistent from year to year, making it tough to nail down the top keepers. I went pretty deep this year with a list of 85, allowing for a nice mix of veteran pitchers and young up-and-comers.

That said, I’m sure I missed some pitchers you probably like more and listed players higher than you think they deserve to be.

However, I like the list I have put together and I hope you find it useful as you build your fantasy staff.

Now let’s get on with the rankings!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

For a majority of major league baseball teams, the season is over and players are taking some time off before gearing up for the 2024 season.

But in fantasy baseball, there is no offseason – especially in dynasty/keeper leagues. Owners are busy trying to figure out who they should keep or ditch as they try to put together the best roster possible before 2024 comes roaring into view.

With that in mind, welcome to the first installment of the 2024 Top Keepers. This week the spotlight falls on the relievers.

When it comes to relief pitchers, I take a different view of them compared to other positions. That is due to the fact that most relievers are very inconsistent and have a shorter shelf life compared to other positions. Relievers could have had a great 2022 season, giving you lots of hope that you have a key member of your bullpen this year, only to fall apart this season. I’m looking at you Rafael Montero and dozens and dozens of other relievers.

Knowing relievers are up and down, I don’t care as much about age of a reliever like I do other players, especially position players. If a reliever is 33 but has been consistent year after year, I’m going to take him just as quickly as I would a 25-year-old flamethrower who hasn’t figured it out on the mound yet.

Now, let’s get to the 2024 Top Keepers – Relievers.

Please, blog, may I have some more?