In the Line of Fire- Top Infielders 2009

The infield of a baseball team is its most active part, defensively, after the catcher and pitcher. For this reason, second basemen and shortstops have to be able to cover a lot of ground and play above average defense, all while wielding an at least passable bat. The list below names the top infielders in the game, some for their offense, some for their defense, some for a combination of both.

1. Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Colorado Rockies-Troy Tulowitzki, still only 24, has already shown flashes of a "Next" athlete. TT gets an edge over Hanley and Utley for his ability to pick it at a position where it matters the most. He can hit 30 homeruns and save more than a few with his glove. His range factor and zone rating can only be matched by Ozzie Smith. In fact, his range factor in 2007, his last full season was a nearly a point and a half above the league average, 5.29 vs. 4.00, and he only made a miniscule 11 errors in 155 games. His bat ain't all that shabby either. He batted .291 with 24 homers and 99 ribbies in 2007 and looks poised for a 3o homerun campaign in 2009. Matt who?

Projected '09 Stats: .300, 25 hr, 100 rbi, 100 runs, GG

2. Chase Utley, 2B, Philadelphia Phillies- A world champion and high-character player, Utley hears his share of "ooohs and ahhhs" while playing second base. He is maybe THE best second basement at turning the double play, evidenced by his turning 102 in 2008 with mostly fly ball starters. His .375 career on base percentage and .526 slugging percentage are far ahead of the pack of other second basemen. A big part of the Phillies Success was their trusty little second basemen, Chut.

Projected '09 Stats: .300, 25 hr, 100 rbi, 100 runs, GG

3. Jose Reyes, SS, New York Mets- Another short stop who can really use the glove. He's a victim of lax defense on occassion but his range is better than his range factor illustrates judging by his affinity for fielding groundballs even behind fly ball pitchers like John Maine, Ollie Perez and El Duque. The best part of his game is no secret, it's his baserunning speed. Maybe the fastest player currently in the game Reyes is good for 60 steals and 15-20 triples a year. The real energizer bunny can get on base too, evidenced by his .358 on base percentage in 2008. Reyes is no Luis Castillo either, if he can add some more bulk he could turn from a 15-20 homer, .300 hitter to a 20-25, .320 hitter.

Projected '09 Stats: .290, 15 hr, 60 sb, 100 runs, 70 rbi

4. Dustin Pedroia, 2B, Boston Red Sox-You'd be hard pressed to find a more solid defensive second baseman than Pedroia (in the AL). His range isn't anything to write home about but he NEVER makes stupid errors-he made just 6 in 2008. More importantly, he's the type of bat the Red Sox are starving for. He's a contact and doubles guy that really can use the Green Monster. He hit 54 doubles in '08 and was a shade behind Joe Mauer in the batting race with his .326 batting average. The very deserving MVP of the AL in 2008, Pedroia's trophy case is gonna be crammed by the team he blows out the candles on his 30th birthday cake.

Projected '09 Stats: .320, 15 hr, 15 sb, 80 rbi, 100 runs, 50 2b

5. Hanley Ramirez, SS, Florida Marlins- Hanley doesn't play a good shortstop, more like a horrible one. The position really needs a slick fielder and Hanley has rocks for hands and his baserunning speed hasn't transferred to range. Still, what keeps him on the top of the list is his bat and baserunning ability. The best hitting middle infielder, even beyond Chase Utley, Hanley is good for a .300 batting average, 30 bombs and 40-50 stolen bases yearly. It's hard to believe the Marlins have held on to him this long, but rumor has it that Theo Epstein really wants him back.

Projected '09 Stats: .300, 30 hr, 40 sb, 100 runs, 90 rbi

6. Jimmy Rollins, SS, Philadelphia Philles- The other half of the super tandem of middle infielders in the Liberty Bell city, Rollins may be inconsistent but his defense is hard to match and his bat and base running are usually in the top five of shortstops. 2007's NL MVP, J-Rawl is even better at stealing bases without getting caught than Brian Roberts. He's won two consecutive Gold Gloves and has donned a career 4.22 range factor, and this number has seen massive improvement over the past three years. He seemed to take a year off in 2008 and took the opportunity to slip in La-La Land, but at age 30 it doesn't look like more than a speed bump for the horse in Philly.

Projected '09 Stats- .290, 25 hr, 40 sb, 90 rbi, 110 runs

7. Robinson Cano, 2B, New York Yankees- Cano fell of the batting average list in 2008 after getting his contract from the Yankees. He has good range but the man is lax and is prone to about 12-14 errors a year. His range factor topped Dustin Pedroia by almost half a point, but more than doubled Pedroia's error total. Cano is the best contact hitter in the bunch outside of Pedroia, but his stroke, think Rod Carew, gives him a bigger ceiling. He hit .342 in 2007 and will be pressured to hit above .300 again in 2009, or the end result will be his divorce from his wife Melky Cabrera and the ugly Petco Park.

Projected '09 Stats: .315, 20 hr, 90 rbi, 90 runs

8. Dan Uggla, 2B, Florida Marlins- Uggla is a solid second basemen, outside of that aberration at the 2008 All Star game. He is kinda of like Adam Dunn in that he strikes out a ton, hits for a low average but walks and hits bombs. He was a nobody before Florida called him up in Spring 2006 so fantasy owners are always waiting for him to regress. He has hit more and more homers every year but his second half of 2009 was so atrocious that it would be hard to be blamed for benching him. With a big contract coming up, Uggla won't be on the Marlins for long, certainly not when their new stadium is ready to open. He'll probably end up with The Nationals, Padres, Giants, Mets or Dodgers.

Projected '09 Stats: .275, 32 hr, 100 rbi, 90 runs, 100 bb's

9. Brian Roberts, 2B, Baltimore Orioles- Roberts is overlooked annually when it comes time for All Star votes, but the little engine is so fast that he almost never gets caught, he hasn't been caught stealing more than ten times since 2004 and only once in his career despite stealing 226 bases. He isn't a feared hitter like Hanley, but his .280-.300 batting average, doubles power and ability to take a walk is valuable for a team that has Markakis and Huff driving in runs.

Projected '09 Stats: .290, 12 hr, 40 sb, 60 rbi, 100 runs, 50 2b

10. Derek Jeter, SS, New York Yankees- Jeter used to be top among Shorstops on this list but the sudden loss of his baserunning speed and his strange loss of weight have lowered his ranking. D.J. can still hit for average, after all he has hit.300 or above in 10 of his 13 seasons with the Yankees. Before his loss of speed he had far more fantasy value than he was given credit for, regularly hitting .315 with 40 doubles, 15 homers and 25-30 stolen bases. His defense isn't tops but its still pretty darn good. His range factor won't show it, but intelligent Gold Glove voters have realized that his Zone Rating has been stellar of late. Outside of that run-down-a-groundball-turn-and-throwi-it-away play he has the ability to make ridiculous catches and that doesn't go unnapreciated by fans. Still, he's the Yankees Captain only because of his smile-- Jeter still hasn't shown the ability to really take hold of the team. Alex Rodriguez was write when he called Jeter "a 2 hitter" -- Jete always needs a guy to hit behind him. He's getting old, but this is the guy you want manning your most important infield position when it comes down to it.

Projected '09 Stats: .315, 12 hr, 15 sb, 70 rbi, 110 runs

11. Howie Kendrick, 2B, Anaheim Angels- If Howie Kendrick can learn to take a pitch and loft some of his line drives the MiLB batting title winner could be one of the top 3 second basemen in the MLB. Another contact and doubles hitter his numbers are pretty close to Pedroia's despite his lack of playing time. The only thing that doesn't match Pedroia is his walk rate, which is one of the lowest among active players (12 walks in '08 and 9 in '07). Still, HK won't be 26 until July and his ability to put the bat on the ball will help the Angels forget about Tex and ease the pain of Vlad's declining power and ailing back. Eleven is a weird number, but I had to include this guy.

Projected '09 Stats: .325, 10 hr, 20 sb, 80 rbi, 100 runs