Crown of the War Stone

Fantasy Roundtable

this week’s topic involved choosing between three of the more coveted outfielders in the game today. the players discussed were Orion pence, dent markakis and corey hart.who would you choose?eric stashin – roto professor i’m not really sure that you can reverse with picking any of these three, but since i’m the one who posed the question, i guess i should originate a decision. if i were forced into a decision for 2008, my first choice would be run off markakis, followed by hart and then pence.

I know the argument that Markakis does not have the support in the line-up, but the same could be said for a few other sluggers (someone like Vladimir Guerrero), yet they still always seem to produce. Now, I’m not trying to say that Markakis is on Vlad’s level, because he’s not, but I’m not going to shy away from him because the rest of the Orioles are not tremendous fantasy options.

Last season, how much protection did Markakis really have as it is? If you were hanging your hat on Miguel Tejada offering much protection to him, you would be mistaken. Tejada did not hit much at all last season, including missing time due to injury. Yet, Markakis managed to rake last season, so I see no reason for him to slow down now. The guy can flat out hit, and while 20 SB’s may elude him, I see him taking the next step in the power department, slugging more home runs and driving in more runs then the other two players we are discussing.

Markakis brings the total package to the table, with the ability to hit for power, steal some bases and hit for a good average. Corey Hart brings the same skills, but with Ryan Braun & Prince Fielder joining him in the line-up, the chances for him to drive in a lot of runs is probably just not there. While Hart will have a small edge in the SB department, the discrepancy in RBI potential gives Markakis the edge in standard 5×5 leagues.

Pesos

Pence, meanwhile, may hit for the best average of the three, but he will probably be slightly behind in the power & speed departments. He’s a great player, but a 20/20 season is doubtful for him, while the other two appear more likely to surpass that feat (in fact, Hart did it last season). He also will not be hitting in a line-up spot that supports RBI, though depending on where he bats, he will have a chance to score some runs.

Like I said in the opening, I would love to get any of these players, but in my mind, Markakis has the most upside both this season and in future seasons. Hart is certainly just a small notch behind him, but he falls just short.

Patrick DiCaprio – Fantasy Baseball Generals It is close between Markakis and Hart, with a large step down to Pence. Hart is peaking coming into his age 26 season and is a solid bet for at least 25-25-.290 if not better. He and Markakis should be roughly equal, but Hart right now rates to get more steals so I think Hart gets the edge in a close call. Projections from Baseball HQ: Markakis $26 in 5×5 and Hart $26; in 4×4 Markakis is $28 and Hart $27. You don’t get any closer than that! I say Hart by a nose.

Commish – Fantasy Baseball Geeks Nick Markakis: I believe Markakis to have the mos

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