Top 20 2nd Basemen for 2024 Fantasy Baseball, A Recap

We already went over the top 20 catchers and the top 20 1st basemen for 2024 fantasy baseball. Today, we dip our big toe into the top 20 2nd basemen pool. Make sure to go feet first here, because it’s shallow and I don’t want you cracking your medulla oblongata all over the place. To recap this crap (rhyme points!), this final ranking for last year is from our Fantasy Baseball Player Rater with my comments. The Player Rater allows me to be impartial while looking at how I ranked them in the preseason. Anyway, here’s the top 20 2nd basemen for 2024 fantasy baseball and how they compared to where I originally ranked them:

1. Ketel Marte – You thought the 1st basemen were bad? Wait until you see the 2nd basemen! Ketel is a good guy to lead this off, because you might want to start drinking. They’re not worse than the catchers, but they are worse than the 1st basemen, who weren’t very good. Went to look at Ketel’s ADP to see if I was unreasonably low. I was not. While looking at ADP, I saw Albies — ouch — Matt McClain — who was so nonexistent I felt like I had to put his full name to remind you — Bogaerts, Kim, Thairo, Morel, Jackson Holliday and Nolan Gorman. 2nd base might’ve been the most land mine-filled position of all-time. So, if you happened into Ketel, then congrats, you lucky ess oh bee. I don’t buy for one second you expected this season. You might’ve been fine with his usual 90/20/80/.275/5, but you did not expect this year. Do not lie to yourself. Preseason Rank #14, 2024 Projections: 86/19/70/.277/7 in 554 ABs, Final Numbers: 93/36/95/.292/7 in 504 ABs

2. Jose Altuve – When they measure this guy’s home runs, do they add in an extra foot to account for his tiny arms? Preseason Rank #4, 2024 Projections: 2/25/57/.306/15 in 533 ABs, Final Numbers: 94/20/65/.295/22 in 628 ABs

3. Mookie Betts – Incredibly disappointing season and he was the 3rd best 2nd baseman. The world’s longest woof. The injury could account for the entire meh, but if you’re looking at his peripherals and seeing him make a lot worse contact, it’s fair to be nervous. He was not driving the ball this year. Hopefully it was the hand injury. Or you can look at his entire year, positively, as he was still very valuable and missed almost two months. On a side note, whenever a player does like Betts and has a better walk rate than strikeout rate, I let out a little giggle. Preseason Rank #1, 2024 Projections: 116/33/91/.286/15 in 577 ABs, Final Numbers: 75/15/75/.289/16 in 450 ABs

4. Marcus Semien – If you come for the puns, you’re in the right blurb. That was a pun. Reread it. Okay, stop being a Silly Billy. By the way, Betts started a step down tier from the previous guys. So, Semien was one of my biggest 2nd half sells and he ended up being about as meh in the 2nd half as the first. Not worse as much as same-same. Three months this year Semien could barely get it above the Mendoza Line. One of the times when you should’ve moved on from Semien, and not kept it in your pants. Though, it’s a fair question: Move on to whom? Preseason Rank #2, 2024 Projections: 112/31/94/.272/18 in 632 ABs, Final Numbers: 101/23/74/.237/8 in 650 ABs

5. Brice Turang – Expectations are a funny thing. Semien seems like a bust; yet, a nut for Turang I am. I prolly could’ve rephrased that. Turang has exactly the type of numbers I love from my MI. Shame Pat Murphy couldn’t commit to Turang being at the top of the order. Well, good for Turang, but that would’ve possibly hurt Chourio. Can’t everyone hit leadoff? Wait, that’s the Yanks. Preseason Rank #31, 2024 Projections: 57/8/51/.233/28 in 412 ABs, Final Numbers: 72/7/57/.254/50 in 559 ABs

6. Luis Garcia Jr. – You think he suddenly was feeling very spiritually connected to his father or do you think MLB contacted him and was like, “Bro, there’s fifteen Luis Garcias, can you just honor your dad and add junior?” Luis Garcia JUNIOR definitely got the short stick when it came to ranking here, because he was excellent, when Davey Martinez actually played him. Davey platooned him way too much. Maybe Garcia’s playing time was hurt after he mentioned to his manager he really likes playing slots on his phone until the wee hours. Preseason Rank #29, 2024 Projections: 56/10/62/.274/8 in 403 ABs, Final Numbers: 58/18/70/.282/22 in 500 ABs

7. Nico Hoerner – Wonder if Wrigley had a year where there were a lot more days with the wind blowing in. Guys having 5-ish HRs and 30-ish steals with .270-ish averages and ranking this high makes me feel like we’re back in the 80’s. There’s a very Ozzie Smith-esque feel to his numbers without the glove. Preseason Rank #5, 2024 Projections: 94/13/66/.284/37 in 606 ABs, Final Numbers: 86/7/48/.273/31 in 582 ABs

8. Maikel Garcia – I mentioned this with the top 20 1st basemen, and it might be confirmation bias, but it seemed like the Year of Low BABIP. (Nico was victim to it, too.) I did research it, and BABIP was down (.297 to .291). While looking at league stats, I did notice that in 2019 there was 6776 homers and 5868 in 2023. This year? Way below even last year, but above 2022 (this year was 5453 HRs). In fact, 2022 had the lowest BABIP and AVG. This all pertains to Maikel, as he should’ve hit for a much higher average, and that would’ve pushed him up even higher, and he’s already pretty high here. Preseason Rank for SS #22, 2024 Projections: 66/6/53/.282/25 in 481 ABs, Final Numbers: 84/7/58/.231/37 in 575 ABs

9. Luis Arraez – Already went over him in the top 20 1st basemen for 2024 fantasy baseball.

10. Willi Castro – Funny thing about Castro, I rostered him for the majority of the year in my RCL league (12-team), and the Player Rater was the reason I held onto him. I’d see him on my team doing nothing, get bored, then look at the Player Rater, and see he was doing well for the position compared to others and just hold Castro. Willi Apathy Castro. Preseason Rank #26, 2024 Projections: 64/12/61/.251/23 in 417 ABs, Final Numbers: 89/12/60/.247/14 in 558 ABs

11. Brendan Donovan – BDon making this list, while having as much business being here as my podcast co-host. His projections are not that different than what he did, and I ranked him 40th for 1st basemen! Almost 200 more at-bats than his projections and nearly matched them? C’mon! That’s awful for the state of offense. Preseason Rank for 1B #40, 2024 Projections: 61/14/51/.282/6 in 385 ABs, Final Numbers: 65/14/73/.278/5 in 587 ABs

12. Andres Gimenez – Ya know what 2nd basemen are this year: meh power, speed and “just okay” average. And the further down in the ranks the further down goes a guy’s “just okay” average. Gimenez is still “just okay” but by the time you get to Caballero the average is awful. My projections vs. reality ended up showing me that And-Gim isn’t And-Power. Preseason Rank #9, 2024 Projections: 77/18/68/.259/28 in 549 ABs, Final Numbers: 64/9/63/.252/30 in 583 ABs

13. Jonathan India – The one good thing about the 2nd basemen is it was: One big tier in the 1st two guys, then a very slow trail off. Like a freak-off with slightly less lube but still Semien. India’s stats are so yawnstipating they’re hard to believe ending up ranked this high, but if a guy had 600 plate appearances, he had at least a halfway decent chance of making it on a top 20 list for hitters. If I would’ve said in the preseason, India would get those stats and ranked him this high, you would’ve thought I lost my way to India like I was Columbus. Preseason Rank #16, 2024 Projections: 67/19/77/.252/12 in 477 ABs, Final Numbers: 84/15/58/.248/13 in 533 ABs

14. Bryson Stott – One of the biggest disappointments that is almost entirely the manager’s fault. If Stott had 85 runs, he’d be ranked 5th in this recap. Preseason Rank #8, 2024 Projections: 82/15/72/.282/28 in 572 ABs, Final Numbers: 65/11/57/.245/32 in 506 ABs

15. Jake Cronenworth – Already went over him in the top 20 1st basemen for 2024 fantasy baseball.

16. Gleyber Torres – Gleyber was Bregmanny in his ability to do the same each year — 25 HRs, .275 — but not this year. I trust Gleyber to hit 25 homers if the ball is normal more than I trust MLB to use a normal ball. Preseason Rank #7, 2024 Projections: 81/25/78/.275/15 in 576 ABs, Final Numbers: 80/15/63/.257/4 in 587 ABs

17. Ryan McMahon – Did you sell him after his 1st half? No one was falling for that nonsense? Yeah, fair. Too bad the Rockies’ GM isn’t in your league. Can you imagine how easy it would be to beat them? You’d be like, “Why is this team in last? Let me look at their team? Did they drop Elias Diaz for Jacob Stallings? Why? Wait, they’re playing Kris Bryant in a five-team league?” Preseason Rank #23, 2024 Projections: 73/22/66/.238/6 in 534 ABs, Final Numbers: 68/20/65/.242/4 in 567 ABs

18. Jordan Westburg – He was a preseason sleeper. Considering how weak the hitters are in this rank I can’t tell if that’s a flex or not. I’m going to say it is a flex, but it’s with one of my two-inch pythons. Preseason Rank #18, 2024 Projections: 63/21/71/.272/14 in 503 ABs, Final Numbers: 57/18/63/.264/6 in 416 ABs

19. Jose Caballero – Only completely unranked 2nd baseman, and in my rankings I spoke about Caballero multiple times under Taylor Walls’s blurb, because at the time Walls was supposed to return the 1st week of the season from injury, and I worried Caballero would lose his job. With that said, Caballero is ranked way too low in these end-of-the-year ranks than where I’d put him. This is the Player Rater ranks, and Caballero is being failed by the PR because of his low average, runs and RBIs, but if you grabbed Caballero for steals, and only steals, well, let’s just say, I’d trade you a lot higher guy on this list if I needed steals. McMahon for Caballero? 5,000% yes. Preseason Unranked, Final Numbers: 53/9/44/.227/44 in 441 ABs

20. Brandon Lowe – He ended up as the 28th top 1st baseman, so there was more depth at 1st base than 2nd, but Cronenworth was the 17th best 1st baseman and 15th here, so to say 2nd basemen were that far behind the 1st basemen is overstating things. As for Lowe, if he could stay on the field for the whole year, he’d be a perennial 35-homer guy. Sadly, no HMO is covering his ass. Preseason Rank #25, 2024 Projections: 54/22/66/.226/7 in 409 ABs, Final Numbers: 56/21/58/.244/5 in 385 ABs