The trend in fantasy baseball is more toward the head-to-head formats that became popular in fantasy football over the years.
However, the original rotisserie-style, cumulative 5x5 format is still out there, especially among established leagues. These rankings are weighted toward head-to-head, but can easily be tweaked toward rotisserie, and there are notes under certain players who are more valuable in rotisserie-style play, where the lost art of stolen bases has a big reward. Some players who are highly ranked in a rotisserie-style format are worth a lot less in a points format.
Make sure you know the exact format your league is using, because it will affect the way you should prepare. You can learn more about the different formats here.
Baseball guide Scott Kendrick has been with About.com since 2007, has been playing fantasy baseball for 20 years and has ranked players for the last decade. He's perused just about every preseason magazine, scoured the other baseball websites and taken some of the best expert opinions into account.
If getting a top-notch second baseman is important to you, target them early. There's a steep drop after the elite group.
On to the rankings of second basemen, looking at the top 20 prospects, easily led by a steady Yankee who is in the prime of his career:
TIER 1: No-brainers
1. Robinson Cano, Yankees
- Age on opening day: 30
- 2012 stats: .313, 33 HR, 94 RBI, .929 OPS
- Three-year average: .311, 30 HR, 107 RBI, .909 OPS
TIER 2: Elite
2. Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox
- Age on opening day: 29
- 2012 stats: .290, 15 HR, 65 RBI, .797 OPS
- Three-year average: .297, 16 HR, 65 RBI, .837 OPS
3. Ian Kinsler, Rangers
- Age on opening day: 30
- 2012 stats: .256, 19 HR, 72 RBI, .749 OPS
- Three-year average: .263, 20 HR, 64 RBI, .791 OPS
4. Brandon Phillips, Reds
- Age on opening day: 31
- 2012 stats: .281, 18 HR, 77 RBI, .750 OPS
- Three-year average: .285, 18 HR, 72 RBI, .774 OPS
Note: If eligible at second base in your league, Ben Zobrist (Rays) is a Tier 2. He is in the outfield rankings, as that is his projected 2013 position.
TIER 3: Servicable starters
5. Jason Kipnis, Indians
- Age on opening day: 25
- 2012 stats: .257, 14 HR, 76 RBI, .714 OPS
- Three-year average: .260, 10 HR, 47 RBI, .738 OPS
6. Aaron Hill, Diamondbacks
- Age on opening day: 31
- 2012 stats: .302, 26 HR, 85 RBI, .882 OPS
- Three-year average: .253, 20 HR, 71 RBI, .741 OPS
TIER 4: Worth a look
7. Danny Espinosa, Nationals
- Age on opening day: 25
- 2012 stats: .247, 17 HR, 56 RBI, .717 OPS
- Three-year average: .239, 14 HR, 45 RBI, .727 OPS
- Other potential eligibility: SS
8. Jose Altuve, Astros
- Age on opening day: 22
- 2012 stats: .290, 7 HR, 37 RBI, .740 OPS
- Three-year average: .286, 4 HR, 24 RBI, .716 OPS
9. Chase Utley, Phillies
- Age on opening day: 34
- 2012 stats: .256, 11 HR, 45 RBI, .793 OPS
- Three-year average: .264, 12 HR, 51 RBI, .800 OPS
10. Neil Walker, Pirates
- Age on opening day: 27
- 2012 stats: .280, 14 HR, 69 RBI, .768 OPS
- Three-year average: .282, 12 HR, 72 RBI, .770 OPS
11. Dan Uggla, Braves
- Age on opening day: 33
- 2012 stats: .220, 19 HR, 78 RBI, .732 OPS
- Three-year average: .248, 29 HR, 88 RBI, .794 OPS
TIER 5: Backups only
12. Rickie Weeks, Brewers
- Age on opening day: 30
- 2012 stats: .230, 21 HR, 63 RBI, .728 OPS
- Three-year average: .255, 23 HR, 65 RBI, .791 OPS
13. Marco Scutaro, Giants
- Age on opening day: 37
- 2012 stats: .306, 7 HR, 74 RBI, .753 OPS
- Three-year average: .293, 8 HR, 61 RBI, .747 OPS
- Other potential eligibility: SS
14. Howard Kendrick, Angels
- Age on opening day: 29
- 2012 stats: .287, 8 HR, 67 RBI, .725 OPS
- Three-year average: .284, .12 HR, 68 RBI, .748 OPS
15. Dustin Ackley, Mariners
- Age on opening day: 25
- 2012 stats: .226, 12 HR, 50 RBI, .622 OPS
- Three-year average: .243, 9 HR, 43 RBI, .673 OPS
16. Daniel Murphy, Mets
- Age on opening day: 28
- 2012 stats: .291, 6 HR, 65 RBI, .735 OPS
- Three-year average: .302, 6 HR, 57 RBI, .765 OPS
17. Omar Infante, Tigers
- Age on opening day: 31
- 2012 stats: .274, 12 HR, 53 RBI, .719 OPS
- Three-year average: .289, 9 HR, 49 RBI, .727 OPS
18. Jurickson Profar, Rangers
- Age on opening day: 20
- 2012 stats: .176, 1 HR, 2 RBI, .647 OPS
- Three-year average: .176, 1 HR, 2 RBI, .647 OPS
19. Gordon Beckham, White Sox
- Age on opening day: 26
- 2012 stats: .234, 16 HR, 60 RBI, .668 OPS
- Three-year average: .238, 11 HR, 51 RBI, .664 OPS
20. Kelly Johnson, Rays
- Age on opening day: 31
- 2012 stats: .225, 16 HR, 55 RBI, .678 OPS
- Three-year average: .245, 21 HR, 61 RBI, .758 OPS
Next five: Darwin Barney, Cubs; Tyler Greene, Astros; Jemile Weeks, A's; Cliff Pennington, Diamondbacks; Jedd Gyorko, Padres
2013 position rankings