This article is part of our Baseball Draft Kit series.
While the lengthy version of the series may debut in full for 2019 (I'll begin writing it up earlier to make things work schedule-wise), the rankings-only version is now available below.
Commentary will come in the form of other supporting articles, and debate throughout the comments section of the tiered lists themselves.
In addition to updated catcher and first base rankings, hitters at every position are tiered throughout this piece. Players' overall rankings from my latest RotoWire Roundtable Rankings are also included.
One important note: There are several players that have been optioned to Triple-A who remain listed ahead of players with a clear-cut starting role in the big leagues to begin the season. My approach would be to draft those prospects over their replacement-level counterparts when bench depth allows you to do so.
Catcher
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 1 | Gary Sanchez | NYY | 1 |
| 48 | 2 | Willson Contreras | CHC | 2 |
| 60 | 3 | Buster Posey | SFG | 2 |
| 104 | 4 | J.T. Realmuto | MIA | 3 |
| 105 | 5 |
While the lengthy version of the series may debut in full for 2019 (I'll begin writing it up earlier to make things work schedule-wise), the rankings-only version is now available below.
Commentary will come in the form of other supporting articles, and debate throughout the comments section of the tiered lists themselves.
In addition to updated catcher and first base rankings, hitters at every position are tiered throughout this piece. Players' overall rankings from my latest RotoWire Roundtable Rankings are also included.
One important note: There are several players that have been optioned to Triple-A who remain listed ahead of players with a clear-cut starting role in the big leagues to begin the season. My approach would be to draft those prospects over their replacement-level counterparts when bench depth allows you to do so.
Catcher
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 1 | Gary Sanchez | NYY | 1 |
| 48 | 2 | Willson Contreras | CHC | 2 |
| 60 | 3 | Buster Posey | SFG | 2 |
| 104 | 4 | J.T. Realmuto | MIA | 3 |
| 105 | 5 | Salvador Perez | KCR | 3 |
| 133 | 6 | Evan Gattis | HOU | 3 |
| 156 | 7 | Wilson Ramos | TAM | 3 |
| 183 | 8 | Austin Barnes | LAD | 3 |
| 184 | 9 | Yadier Molina | STL | 3 |
| 185 | 10 | Mike Zunino | SEA | 3 |
| 198 | 11 | Jonathan Lucroy | OAK | 3 |
| 199 | 12 | Tyler Flowers | ATL | 3 |
| 200 | 13 | Welington Castillo | CHW | 4 |
| 201 | 14 | Yasmani Grandal | LAD | 4 |
| 234 | 15 | Robinson Chirinos | TEX | 4 |
| 235 | 16 | Brian McCann | HOU | 4 |
| 257 | 17 | Austin Hedges | SDG | 4 |
| 279 | 18 | Russell Martin | TOR | 4 |
| 280 | 19 | Chris Iannetta | COL | 5 |
| 281 | 20 | Jorge Alfaro | PHI | 5 |
| 309 | 21 | Matt Wieters | WAS | 5 |
| 310 | 22 | Jason Castro | MIN | 5 |
| 343 | 23 | Travis d'Arnaud | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 24 | James McCann | DET | 5 |
| -- | 25 | Francisco Mejia* | CLE | 5 |
| -- | 26 | Manny Pina | MIL | 5 |
| -- | 27 | Kurt Suzuki | ATL | 5 |
| -- | 28 | Stephen Vogt | MIL | 5 |
| -- | 29 | Tucker Barnhart | CIN | 5 |
| -- | 30 | Yan Gomes | CLE | 5 |
| -- | 31 | Alex Avila | ARI | 5 |
| -- | 32 | Francisco Cervelli | PIT | 5 |
*Mejia may not qualify at catcher in some leagues to begin the season. Be sure to check your league rules.
First Base
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 1 | Paul Goldschmidt | ARI | 1 |
| 16 | 2 | Freddie Freeman | ATL | 1 |
| 18 | 3 | Joey Votto | CIN | 1 |
| 19 | 4 | Anthony Rizzo | CHC | 1 |
| 36 | 5 | Cody Bellinger | LAD | 2 |
| 37 | 6 | Rhys Hoskins | PHI | 2 |
| 39 | 7 | Jose Abreu | CHW | 2 |
| 42 | 8 | Edwin Encarnacion | CLE | 2 |
| 55 | 9 | Wil Myers | SD | 2 |
| 97 | 10 | Ian Desmond | COL | 3 |
| 99 | 11 | Ryan Zimmerman | WAS | 3 |
| 100 | 12 | Miguel Cabrera | DET | 3 |
| 101 | 13 | Eric Hosmer | SD | 3 |
| 123 | 14 | Greg Bird | NYY | 3 |
| 124 | 15 | Matt Olson | OAK | 3 |
| 137 | 16 | Joey Gallo | TEX | 3 |
| 140 | 17 | Carlos Santana | PHI | 3 |
| 141 | 18 | Matt Carpenter | STL | 3 |
| 152 | 19 | Trey Mancini | BAL | 3 |
| 162 | 20 | Justin Smoak | TOR | 3 |
| 175 | 21 | Eric Thames | MIL | 4 |
| 182 | 22 | Marwin Gonzalez | HOU | 4 |
| 202 | 23 | Yonder Alonso | CLE | 4 |
| 203 | 24 | Justin Bour | MIA | 4 |
| 204 | 25 | Brandon Belt | SF | 4 |
| 205 | 26 | Josh Bell | PIT | 4 |
| 206 | 27 | Chris Davis | BAL | 4 |
| 238 | 28 | Jose Martinez | STL | 4 |
| 252 | 29 | Logan Morrison | MIN | 4 |
| 263 | 30 | Yulieski Gurriel | HOU | 4 |
| 272 | 31 | C.J. Cron | LAA | 5 |
| 273 | 32 | Ryan McMahon | COL | 5 |
| 306 | 33 | Wilmer Flores | NYM | 5 |
| 308 | 34 | Ryon Healy | SEA | 5 |
| 313 | 35 | Albert Pujols* | LAA | 5 |
| 314 | 36 | Mitch Moreland | BOS | 5 |
| 342 | 37 | Lucas Duda | KC | 5 |
| -- | 38 | Jake Bauers | TAM | 5 |
| -- | 39 | Dominic Smith | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 40 | Joe Mauer | MIN | 5 |
*Albert Pujols may not qualify at first base to begin the season in most leagues.
Second Base
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | Jose Altuve | HOU | 1 |
| 25 | 2 | Jose Ramirez | CLE | 1 |
| 26 | 3 | Brian Dozier | MIN | 1 |
| 49 | 4 | Dee Gordon | SEA | 2 |
| 59 | 5 | Jonathan Schoop | BAL | 2 |
| 74 | 6 | Robinson Cano | SEA | 2 |
| 75 | 7 | Daniel Murphy | WAS | 2 |
| 83 | 8 | Rougned Odor | TEX | 2 |
| 98 | 9 | Chris Taylor | LAD | 3 |
| 103 | 10 | Ozzie Albies | ATL | 3 |
| 115 | 11 | Yoan Moncada | CWS | 3 |
| 116 | 12 | Ian Happ | CHC | 3 |
| 117 | 13 | Javier Baez | CHC | 3 |
| 134 | 14 | Paul DeJong | STL | 3 |
| 135 | 15 | Whit Merrifield | KCR | 3 |
| 136 | 16 | DJ LeMahieu | COL | 3 |
| 144 | 17 | Ian Kinsler | LAA | 3 |
| 179 | 18 | Jonathan Villar | MIL | 4 |
| 180 | 19 | Eduardo Nunez | BOS | 4 |
| 181 | 20 | Jose Peraza | CIN | 4 |
| 182 | 21 | Marwin Gonzalez | HOU | 4 |
| 236 | 22 | Jason Kipnis | CLE | 4 |
| 237 | 23 | Scooter Gennett | CIN | 4 |
| 245 | 24 | Neil Walker | NYY | 4 |
| 251 | 25 | Brandon Drury | NYY | 4 |
| 264 | 26 | Kolten Wong | STL | 4 |
| 265 | 27 | Devon Travis | TOR | 4 |
| 276 | 28 | Scott Kingery | PHI | 4 |
| 277 | 29 | Gleyber Torres | NYY | 4 |
| 288 | 30 | Cesar Hernandez | PHI | 5 |
| 289 | 31 | Josh Harrison | PIT | 5 |
| 299 | 32 | Yangervis Solarte | TOR | 5 |
| 315 | 33 | Raul Mondesi | KCR | 5 |
| 325 | 34 | Asdrubal Cabrera | NYM | 5 |
| 346 | 35 | Starlin Castro | MIA | 5 |
| -- | 36 | Logan Forsythe | LAD | 5 |
| -- | 37 | Chris Owings | ARI | 5 |
| -- | 38 | Jose Reyes | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 39 | Brad Miller | TAM | 5 |
| -- | 40 | Joe Panik | SFG | 5 |
| -- | 41 | Jed Lowrie | OAK | 5 |
| -- | 42 | Ben Zobrist | CHC | 5 |
Third Base
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 1 | Nolan Arenado | COL | 1 |
| 11 | 2 | Kris Bryant | CHC | 1 |
| 17 | 3 | Manny Machado | BAL | 1 |
| 22 | 4 | Josh Donaldson | TOR | 1 |
| 25 | 5 | Jose Ramirez | CLE | 1 |
| 38 | 6 | Alex Bregman | HOU | 2 |
| 64 | 7 | Anthony Rendon | WAS | 2 |
| 102 | 8 | Miguel Sano | MIN | 2 |
| 114 | 9 | Travis Shaw | MIL | 3 |
| 120 | 10 | Rafael Devers | BOS | 3 |
| 121 | 11 | Kyle Seager | SEA | 3 |
| 122 | 12 | Nick Castellanos | DET | 3 |
| 137 | 13 | Joey Gallo | TEX | 3 |
| 138 | 14 | Mike Moustakas | KC | 3 |
| 139 | 15 | Adrian Beltre | TEX | 3 |
| 153 | 16 | Eugenio Suarez | CIN | 3 |
| 154 | 17 | Jake Lamb | ARI | 3 |
| 155 | 18 | Justin Turner | LAD | 3 |
| 186 | 19 | Evan Longoria | SFG | 3 |
| 219 | 20 | Todd Frazier | NYM | 4 |
| 220 | 21 | Maikel Franco | PHI | 4 |
| 285 | 22 | Matt Chapman | OAK | 4 |
| 286 | 23 | Miguel Andujar | NYY | 4 |
| 287 | 24 | Jedd Gyorko | STL | 4 |
| 289 | 25 | Josh Harrison | PIT | 4 |
| 298 | 26 | Jeimer Candelario | DET | 5 |
| 299 | 27 | Yangervis Solarte | TOR | 5 |
| 306 | 28 | Wilmer Flores | NYM | 5 |
| 308 | 29 | Ryon Healy | SEA | 5 |
| 317 | 30 | Cory Spangenberg | SDG | 5 |
| 325 | 31 | Asdrubal Cabrera | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 32 | Logan Forsythe | LAD | 5 |
| -- | 33 | Colin Moran | PIT | 5 |
| -- | 34 | Hernan Perez | MIL | 5 |
| -- | 35 | Jose Reyes | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 36 | Chase Headley | SDG | 5 |
| -- | 37 | Eduardo Escobar | MIN | 5 |
| -- | 38 | Matt Duffy | TAM | 5 |
| -- | 39 | Matt Davidson | CHW | 5 |
| -- | 40 | Yolmer Sanchez | CHW | 5 |
Shortstop
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 1 | Trea Turner | WAS | 1 |
| 15 | 2 | Carlos Correa | HOU | 1 |
| 21 | 3 | Francisco Lindor | CLE | 1 |
| 30 | 4 | Corey Seager | LAD | 1 |
| 38 | 5 | Alex Bregman | HOU | 2 |
| 56 | 6 | Jean Segura | SEA | 2 |
| 57 | 7 | Xander Bogaerts | BOS | 2 |
| 58 | 8 | Elvis Andrus | TEX | 2 |
| 117 | 9 | Javier Baez | CHC | 3 |
| 118 | 10 | Trevor Story | COL | 3 |
| 119 | 11 | Didi Gregorius | NYY | 3 |
| 134 | 12 | Paul DeJong | STL | 3 |
| 163 | 13 | Orlando Arcia | MIL | 3 |
| 164 | 14 | Zack Cozart | LAA | 3 |
| 180 | 15 | Eduardo Nunez | BOS | 4 |
| 181 | 16 | Jose Peraza | CIN | 4 |
| 182 | 17 | Marwin Gonzalez | HOU | 4 |
| 207 | 18 | Addison Russell | CHC | 4 |
| 208 | 19 | Marcus Semien | OAK | 4 |
| 209 | 20 | Andrelton Simmons | LAA | 4 |
| 210 | 21 | Jorge Polanco | MIN | 4 |
| 211 | 22 | Tim Anderson | CHW | 4 |
| 249 | 23 | Tim Beckham | BAL | 5 |
| 250 | 24 | Brandon Crawford | SFG | 5 |
| 277 | 25 | Gleyber Torres | NYY | 5 |
| 290 | 26 | Ketel Marte | ARI | 5 |
| 299 | 27 | Yangervis Solarte | TOR | 5 |
| 316 | 28 | Amed Rosario | NYM | 5 |
| 325 | 29 | Asdrubal Cabrera | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 30 | Freddy Galvis | SDG | 5 |
| -- | 31 | Chris Owings | ARI | 5 |
| -- | 32 | Jose Reyes | NYM | 5 |
| -- | 33 | Alcides Escobar | KCR | 5 |
| -- | 34 | Chad Pinder | OAK | 5 |
| -- | 35 | Aledmys Diaz | TOR | 5 |
| -- | 36 | Dansby Swanson | ATL | 5 |
| -- | 37 | Jordy Mercer | PIT | 5 |
| -- | 38 | Jose Iglesias | DET | 5 |
| -- | 39 | Troy Tulowitzki | TOR | 5 |
| -- | 40 | Wilmer Difo | WAS | 5 |
Outfield
Utility
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47 | 1 | Nelson Cruz | SEA | -- |
| 231 | 2 | Kendrys Morales | TOR | -- |
| 248 | 3 | Hanley Ramirez | BOS | -- |
| 313 | 4 | Albert Pujols | LAA | -- |
| -- | 5 | Victor Martinez | DET | -- |
Starting Pitchers
Closers
Note: This list only includes each's team favorite for saves. Plenty of non-closer relievers have value in a variety of formats, league sizes/types, pursuit of cheap saves, and other factors prevent me from ranking them amidst closers below.)
| Ov | Rk | Name | Team | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | 1 | Kenley Jansen | LAD | 1 |
| 44 | 2 | Craig Kimbrel | BOS | 1 |
| 52 | 3 | Aroldis Chapman | NYY | 1 |
| 65 | 4 | Roberto Osuna | TOR | 1 |
| 76 | 5 | Cody Allen | CLE | 1 |
| 77 | 6 | Corey Knebel | MIL | 2 |
| 90 | 7 | Felipe Rivero | PIT | 2 |
| 91 | 8 | Brad Hand | SD | 2 |
| 92 | 9 | Raisel Iglesias | CIN | 2 |
| 93 | 10 | Edwin Diaz | SEA | 2 |
| 129 | 11 | Sean Doolittle | WAS | 3 |
| 149 | 12 | Mark Melancon | SF | 3 |
| 150 | 13 | Wade Davis | COL | 3 |
| 151 | 14 | Ken Giles | HOU | 3 |
| 160 | 15 | Arodys Vizcaino | ATL | 3 |
| 161 | 16 | Brandon Morrow | CHC | 3 |
| 167 | 17 | Jeurys Familia | NYM | 3 |
| 168 | 18 | Blake Treinen | OAK | 3 |
| 169 | 19 | Alex Colome | TAM | 4 |
| 170 | 20 | Hector Neris | PHI | 4 |
| 242 | 21 | Fernando Rodney | MIN | 4 |
| 274 | 22 | Kelvin Herrera | KCR | 4 |
| 275 | 23 | Shane Greene | DET | 4 |
| 282 | 24 | Brad Boxberger | ARI | 5 |
| 283 | 25 | Joakim Soria | CHW | 5 |
| 284 | 26 | Brad Ziegler | MIA | 5 |
| 322 | 27 | Brad Brach | BAL | 5 |
| 324 | 28 | Keone Kela | TEX | 5 |
| 331 | 29 | Dominic Leone | STL | 5 |
| -- | 30 | Cam Bedrosian | LAA | 5 |
