2011 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft

It is that time of the year where football is coming to an end and our attention now needs to change to fantasy baseball.  Come March, there will be an abundance of fantasy baseball drafts and I am starting early to help your brain transition from fantasy football to fantasy baseball.  Each week I will add a new round of draft picks.  Feel free to comment on my draft picks and let me know what you think….

Round 1

1. Hanley Ramirez, SS, Florida Marlins

The best player going into this fantasy baseball season is definitely Albert Pujols.  The thing that hurts his fantasy draft stock this year in my 2011 mock draft is that there are a lot of big time first basemen that can be picked up later on.  The reason I go with Hanley Ramirez number one overall is that there are not many shortstops that produce his kind of numbers.  He hits for power, steals bases, drives in runs, and scores many runs.  Troy Tulowitzki is about the only other SS that comes close the Ramirez’s numbers.

2010 Stats: Avg. .300, 21 HR, 76 RBI, 92 Runs, 32 SB’s

2. Albert Pujols, 1B, St. Louis Cardinals

The second pick in your fantasy baseball draft may be the easiest this year.  If someone like me picks Hanley Ramirez then it’s a no brainer you go with Pujols and if the first pick is Albert Pujols then you have to go with Ramirez.  Pujols does not need much discussion about because he is the best player in the game and may be the best hitter in baseball history.

2010 Stats: Avg. .312, 42 HR, 118 RBI, 115 Runs, 14 SB’s

3. Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Detroit Tigers

Cabrera has been getting better every year he has been in the league.   He has hit over 30 HR’s in 6 of his 8 MLB seasons and also hit for a great average as a power hitter, which is hard to come by.  Last year he had a career year for his overall stats and I expect him to have the same production in 2011.

2010 Stats: Avg. .328, 38 HR, 126 RBI, 111 Runs, 3 SB’s

4. Carl Crawford, OF, Boston Red Sox

Carl Crawford has been one of the best fantasy outfielders in the last few seasons.  In a rotisserie league, one of the biggest categories that I try to win the stolen base category.  Crawford is one of the best at the art of stealing bases.  In his 9 seasons of MLB experience he has had 7 seasons when he has stolen over 40 bases.  Along with the stolen base category, he can hit for average, drive in runs, score runs, and even hit close to 20 home runs.  Now in Boston, with a short left field fence he could look at even more home runs and maybe a higher average.

2010 Stats: Avg. .307, 19 HR, 90 RBI, 110 Runs, 47 SB’s

5. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Boston Red Sox

Adrian Gonzalez has produced extraordinary numbers in San Diego’s pitcher friendly park and now he is playing in Fenway Park.  Fenway is a lefty friendly park, with a short left field fence.  Gonzalez is a very good opposite field hitter so the green monster should also be very appealing to him.

2010 Stats: Avg. .298, 31 HR, 101 RBI, 87 Runs

6. Robinson Cano, 2B, New York Yankees

The battle between the top second basemen is between Robinson Cano and Chase Utley.  Utley ended up missing a large part of the season last year and Cano had a career year in 2010.

2010 Stats: Avg. .319, 29 HR, 109 RBI, 103 Runs, 3 SB’s

7. Evan Longoria, 3B, Tampa Bay Rays

Longoria was drafted in 2006 and made his way to the majors very quick.  Since he has been up with the Tampa Bay Rays, he has done nothing but put up big numbers.  He has produced over 20 HR’s, and over 85 RBI’s in his three professional seasons.  Last year, he also showed some speed on the bases with 15 stolen bases.

2010 Stats: Avg. .294, 22 HR, 104 RBI, 96 Runs, 15 SB’s

8. Joey Votto, 1B, Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds won the National League Central Division for the first time since 1995.  Joey Votto was a major reason for the turn around.  He won the National League MVP for the monster numbers that he put up.  Everyone knew that he was capable of his 2010 stat line it was just a matter of time for it to show.  He has overcome a lot of adversity and I believe he will be a force in the NL for many years to come.

2010 Stats: Avg. .324, 37 HR, 113 RBI, 106 Runs, 16 SB’s

9. Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Colorado Rockies

I have seen a few fantasy baseball mock drafts have Troy Tulowitzki in the top 5.  I think that is a little too high but I definitely can understand the reason he would be drafted so high.  It goes along with my explanation for drafting Hanley Ramirez number one overall.  The reason I have him slipping a little is that he has missed a decent amount of games over his last three seasons, so that scares me but his numbers don’t lie and position scarcity helps him go in the first round of most fantasy baseball drafts.

2010 Stats: Avg. .315, 27 HR, 95 RBI, 89 Runs, 11 SB’s

10. Ryan Braun, OF, Milwaukee Brewers

Although outfield depth is an easier position to come by, Ryan Braun is one of my favorite fantasy players in the past three years.  He has played in over 150 games, driven in over 100 runs in each of the last three seasons, and hit over 30 HR’s in 3 out 4 seasons.  You could call him Mr. Consistency and that is a huge factor in my fantasy baseball drafts.

2010 Stats: Avg. .309, 25 HR, 103 RBI, 101 Runs, 14 SB’s

2011 NFL Draft Order

Round 1

1. Carolina Panthers

2. Denver Broncos

3. Buffalo Bills

4. Cincinnati Bengals

5. Arizona Cardinals

6. Cleveland Browns

7. San Francisco 49ers

8. Tennessee Titans

9. Dallas Cowboys

10. Washington Redskins

11. Houston Texans

12. Minnesota Vikings

13. Detroit Lions

14. St. Louis Rams

15. Miami Dolphins

16. Jacksonville Jaguars

17. New England Patriots – from Oakland

18. San Diego Chargers

19. New York Giants

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

21. Kansas City Chiefs

22. Indianapolis Colts

23. Philadelphia Eagles

24. New Orleans Saints

25. Seattle Seahawks

26. Baltimore Ravens

27. New York Jets

28. Green Bay Packers

29. Chicago Bears

30. Pittsburgh Steelers

31. Atlanta Falcons

32. New England Patriots

Round 2

1. New England Patriots – from Carolina

2. Denver Broncos

3. Buffalo Bills

4. Cincinnati Bengals

5. Arizona Cardinals

6. Cleveland Browns

7. Tennessee Titans

8. Dallas Cowboys

9. Washington Redskins

10 Houston Texans

11. Minnesota Vikings

12. Detroit Lions

13. San Francisco 49ers

14. Denver Broncos – from Miami

15. St. Louis Rams

16. Oakland Raiders

17. Jacksonville Jaguars

18. San Diego Chargers

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

20. New York Giants

21. Seattle Seahawks

22. Indianapolis Colts

23. Philadelphia Eagles

24. Kansas City Chiefs

25. Green Bay Packers

26. New York Jets

27. Baltimore Ravens

28. New Orleans Saints

29. Chicago Bears

30. Pittsburgh Steelers

31. Atlanta Falcons

32. New England Patriots

2011 NFL Draft Round 2 53-64

Round 2

Order	Team	Position	Player	College
53.	Indianapolis Colts	C/G	Stefan Wisniewski	Penn State
54.	Philadelphia Eagles	CB	Johnny Patrick	Louisville
55.	Kansas City Chiefs	C	Kristofer O’Dowd	USC
56.	New Orleans Saints	OLB	Mason Foster	Washington
57.	Seattle Seahawks	OT	Nate Potter	Boise State
58.	Green Bay Packers	FS	Deunta Williams	North Carolina
59.	San Diego Chargers	OG	Rodney Hudson	Florida State
60.	Baltimore Ravens	DE/OLB	Jabaal Sheard	Pittsburgh
61.	Chicago Bears	RB	Daniel Thomas	Kansas State
62.	Pittsburgh Steelers	OLB	Mark Herzlich	Boston College
63.	Atlanta Falcons	S	Will Hill	Florida
64.	New England Patriots	DE	Greg Romeus	Pittsburgh

<<< Draft Picks 42-53

<<< 1st Round

2011 NFL Draft Round 2 43-52

Round 2

Order	Team	Position	Player	College
43.	Minnesota Vikings	QB	Christian Ponder	Florida State
44.	Detroit Lions	ILB	Greg Jones	Michigan State
45.	San Francisco 49ers	WR	Jonathan Baldwin	Pittsburgh
46.	Denver Broncos	DE	Nick Perry	USC
47.	St. Louis Rams	DT	Christian Ballard	Iowa
48.	Oakland Raiders	CB	Brandon Burton	Utah
49.	Jacksonville Jaguars	QB	Pat Devline	Delaware
50.	San Diego Chargers	OLB	Bruce Carter	North Carolina
51.	Tampa Bay Bucaneers	DE	Jeremy Beal	Oklahoma
52.	New York Giants	DE	Sam Acho	Tennessee

<<< Draft Picks 33-42

Draft Picks 53-64 >>>

2011 NFL Mock Draft Round 2

Round 2

Order	Team	Position	Player	College
33.	New England Patriots (From Carolina)	RB	Mark Ingram	Alabama
34.	Buffalo Bills	QB	Andy Dalton	TCU
35.	Cincinnati Bengals	RB	Mikel Leshour	Illinois
36.	Denver Broncos	FS	Robert Sands	West Virginia
37.	Cleveland Browns	DT	Marvin Austin	North Carolina
38.	Arizona Cardinals	OT	Demarcus Love	Arkansas
39.	Tennessee Titans	CB	Aaron Williams	Texas
40.	Dallas Cowboys	DT	Phil Taylor	Baylor
41.	Washington Redskins	FS	Rahim Moore	UCLA
42.	Houston Texans	DT	Cory Liuget	Illinois

<<< Round 1 21-32

Draft Picks 43-52 >>>

2011 NFL Mock Draft 21-32

21. Kansas City Chiefs – DE Muhammad Wilkerson – Temple

Tamba Hali had a great season rushing the passer.  Adding another pass rusher like Muhammad Wilkerson on the other side could really improve a pretty good defensive next year.

22. Indianapolis Colts – DT Drake Nevis – LSU

The Colts got dumped in the first round of the playoffs for the first time in awhile.  One glaring weakness that the Jets took advantage of was the Colts run defense.  They have had a great pass rush year in and year out but they have been known to struggle in the run defense.  Despite Nevis’ lack of size he is very good against the run.   They have been in desperate need of an anchor in the middle of the defensive line and Drake Nevis should provide that.

23. Philadelphia Eagles - OT Anthony Castonzo – Boston College

The Eagles have given up a lot of sacks this season even with the mobile QB Michael Vick.  Anthony Castonzo has prototypical height and has very good mobility but needs to add bulk.

24. New Orleans Saints – DE Cameron Heyward – Ohio State

Cameron Heyward could have been a high draft pick last year but decided to stay one more year in college.  He has had a great senior season.  He has very good size and is a versatile player who can rush the passer or drop back in coverage.  The defense has really struggled this year giving up some big plays and creating less turnovers.

25. Seattle Seahawks - DE Adrian Clayborn – Iowa

Seattle won their division even with a losing record and even with a lack of talent on the defensive side of the ball.  Adding Clayborn will dramatically improve their pass rush especially since they will have to battle Sam Bradford for years to come.  They could also use a quarterback for next season.

26. Baltimore Ravens – WR Randall Cobb – Kentucky

Last year, the Ravens had many talented WR’s but they were all possession receivers.  They need some speed which they tried out with Donte Stallworth but he is getting old and just isn’t as talented as a Cobb.  Along with his speed he is also a great route runner who could help out in the return game as well.

27. Atlanta Falcons – DE Aldon Smith – Missouri

Atlanta has had  a very good season this year in many different areas.  One weakness that I have noticed is their lack of pressure from their four down lineman on defense.  They finished the 2010 regular season tied for 20th in sacks.  Last year they drafted Sean Witherspoon from Missouri and now its time to add another Missouri player to their front line.

28. New England Patriots – G Dan Watkins – Baylor

Dan Watkins played tackle at Baylor, but at the NFL level he will be a very good guard.  New England’s offensive line has been getting older and also has had some injury problems.  They added their defensive end with their first pick and now they will address the offensive line with their second 1st round pick.

29. Chicago Bears – OT Greg Carimi – Wisconsin

Jay Cutler was sacked more times than anyone this year in the NFL and needs to be protected next season if they have any chance at making it to the Super Bowl.  Carimi is a top offensive lineman who will be hard to pass up come the Bears’ pick.

30. New York Jets – OT Derek Sherrod – Mississippi St

The Jets are a very good team that are in serious contention for the Super Bowl.  With not many weaknesses they will be looking to add depth and one place that they could use some depth is the offensive line.  He may not play right away but any time there could be an injury and he would be a great replacement.

31. Pittsburgh Steelers - C Mike Pouncey – Florida

In the 2011 NFL draft look for the Steelers to continue to upgrade their offensive line.  Mike Pouncey has been playing center this year at Florida but when his brother was there last year he played guard. With the Steelers he will reunite with his brother and move back to guard which will help protect Ben Roethlisberger.

32. Green Bay Packers – OLB Justin Houston – Georgia

The Packers had a great season resulting in a Super Bowl victory.  They have many players coming back from IR for the 2011 season.  Adding Justin Houston will add more weapons to that defense that was so disruptive during the 2010 season.  He has top pass rushing skills to go along a huge frame that will give defensive coordinator Dom Capers plenty of options.

<<< 2011 NFL Mock Draft 11-20

<<< 2011 NFL Mock Draft 1-10

2011 NFL Draft 2nd Round >>>

2011 Fantasy Baseball Mock draft >>>