We will be rolling out plenty of 2010 fantasy baseball coverage in the coming days, weeks and months, but let’s start right here with player-by-player profiles of our rough top 100 preseason rankings. Stay tuned to the site for more player profiles, draft kit information, rankings, sleepers, busts, etc. as the regular season approaches.

Curtis Granderson, OF, New York Yankees
Overview: Five-tool player moving from Detroit to New York, where he joins the most potent offense in the AL … is still in the running for the valuable No. 2 spot in the Yankees’ lineup … has four productive, albeit slightly imperfect, seasons under his belt … power numbers spiked while his average plummeted in ‘09 … is two years removed from becoming one of four players with at least 20 doubles, triples, homeruns and stolen bases in a season.
2009 numbers: .249 avg., 30 HRs, 71 RBIs, 91 runs, 20 SBs in 160 games
Key splits and trends: Average has declined in each of the last two seasons, bottoming out at .249 in ‘09 … warrants benching against left-handed starters, putting up a .183 BA with only 2 HRs and 9 RBIs last season … hit for much better numbers across the board away in 2009; 20 HR, .267 BA.
Strengths: Main strength is his versatility and ability to produce in almost every category … move to the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium will be a benefit to power and run production numbers … has 20/20 potential, perhaps more if his power trends continue.
Weaknesses: Is unpredictable when it comes to making contact … swing gets long, so he’s prone to strikeouts and a low batting average … fantasy owners must work off the assumption he’ll hit in the .250 range … is a man without a lineup spot; could hit as high as second or as low as seventh or eighth in the Yankees’ order.
Bold prediction for 2010: A well-protected lineup breeds more fastballs and a better average along with more runs scored: .280 BA, 30 HRs, 80 RBIs, 100+ runs scored.

Baltimore Orioles’ third baseman Miguel Tejada’s job may not be in jeopardy, but hot shot prospect Josh Bell is certainly making his case. He’s impressing in Orioles’ camp, but as the Baltimore Sun’s Peter Schmuck tells us, the plan is for Bell ‘to get more comfortable hitting Triple-A pitching this season.’

Bell is flying under the radar amongst prospects in fantasy, but he’s getting closer and closer to being Major League ready. A highly regarded prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization, he was shipped to Baltimore in the deadline deal for reliever George Sherrill last season. Read more »

Ray Guilfoyle over at Fake Teams talks about position scarcity and how it affects fantasy baseball owners. While a valid point — that some owners overreact and make poor decisions based on fear of ‘missing out’ — positions do need to be considered.

There’s a balance to be struck between production, upside and a player’s position. Going into a draft dead set on filling scarce positions immediately is just as bad as completely disregarding position for the sake of stockpiling top talent. The best balance is found when an owner fluidly navigates a draft, identifying the best value for his particular situation. Read more »

We talked in detail about how Curtis Granderson and the New York Yankees benefited from a three-team deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Detroit Tigers. But, how about the D-backs and Tigers, what was in the deal for them?

Trading Granderson and All-Star pitcher Edwin Jackson wasn’t a popular move by the Tigers, but if they absolutely had to go for the sake of lowering payroll, the Tigers got the kind of haul to make the move worthwhile.

Young RHP Max Scherzer has a chance to replace Jackson’s production NOW and far exceed it down the road, while LHPs Daniel Schlereth and Phil Coke provide big boosts to the Detroit bullpen. Outfielder Austin Jackson, 22, is a top prospect with plenty of upside and the ability to claim a Major League roster spot now.

The Tigers, in the view of Stan McNeal of Sporting News, were the real winners in this trade. Read more »

You don’t need experts of any kind to tell you that the Curtis Granderson deal was a real coup for the New York Yankees. A young, do-it-all outfielder type goes to the Bronx and not only solidifies the Bronx Bombers’ offense, but boosts their defense and helps them take a step toward ‘reloading’ with new talent.

There was a price to pay in dealing top prospect Austin Jackson, young pitcher Ian Kennedy and lefty reliever Phil Coke in the three-team deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Detroit Tigers. All in all, though, it was an excellent move by under-appreciated Yankees’ GM Brian Cashman. Read more »

Fans and fantasy owners can be remarkably short-sighted.

In trying to project for an upcoming season, the tendency is to look at last season’s results and assume they are going to repeat themselves. Understandably so, too; the fresher information is the safest approach to evaluating players and the best way to feel good about the picks you’ve made.

It takes some guts to reach for a rookie or a player coming off an injury plagued season. We can’t look at the statistics and feel safe in our decision-making, so we tend to avoid those players and only look at them when prices are absolutely right. Read more »