Fantasy Baseball 2015: Fresh Top 150 Big Board as Spring Games Start Up

With the 2015 baseball season nearing—pitchers and catchers report next week!—the fantasy version of the sport needs all kinds of attention. Like, right now. Because we fantasy folk can be an insecure lot, and we'll spend the next few weeks poring over names, statistics and information to prepare for drafts.

With that in mind, it's time to focus on stacking up players based on their value going forward. That's where the first big board of the year comes into play.

Below is a fantasy ranking of the top 150 players from now through draft season—and, in theory, through the end of September.

With opinions and circumstances changing oh so much over the offseason—thanks to various player performances, transactions and injuries—a complete, one-stop-shopping rundown is a good place to start.

Think of this as your security blanket in an otherwise insecure world.

Before getting to that, though, some housekeeping is in order, as this lengthy list of the top talents comes with a few key qualifications.

First, everything is based on 10- or 12-team mixed leagues with standard 5x5 rotisserie scoring for hitters (BA, R, HR, RBI, SB) and pitchers (W, ERA, WHIP, K, SV).

Second, lineup construction accounts for 22 active roster positions, consisting of one each for catcher, first base, second base, third base, shortstop, corner infield, middle infield and utility, along with five outfielders and nine pitchers.

And third, to be eligible at a particular position, players must have played at least 20 games there in 2014 or 10 games in 2015 (or be projected to play there regularly).

With that out of the way, get ready to count down, starting with No. 150 and working all the way to No. 1.

Ins and Outs

This time around, only two players fell off the big board:

• Andrew Cashner (No. 143): There's plenty of upside with Cashner, who could be an SP 2 if everything clicks, but upon closer inspection, his injury history and lower-than-you-thought strikeout rate as a starter (6.7 per nine across 2013-14) was enough to push him just outside the top 150. The 28-year-old is still very much worth drafting, though.
• Doug Fister (No. 137): Fister, 31, was fantastic last year when it came to his ratios (2.41 ERA, 1.08 WHIP) and his win total (16), but his 5.4 K/9 was the fifth-lowest among qualified starters, while his 3.93 FIP doesn't inspire confidence that he's anything more than an SP 4/5.

The two newbies replacing them, highlighted on the big board, are:

• Hyun-Jin Ryu (No. 146): Any concerns over Ryu's stiff back are dissipating, as he is set to throw a bullpen session on Saturday and then start five days later, per Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. He's not an elite fantasy arm but should be a very solid No. 4 with a chance to be a No. 3 if he can throw 180-plus innings.
• Justin Verlander (No. 145): Call us naive (at best) or plain stupid (at worst), but the reports out of camp are that Verlander—once as good as it gets among fantasy pitchers—looks both healthy and good, according to Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. Look, we're not expecting the 32-year-old to once again be a dominant force, but if there's anything to the thought that last offseason's core-muscle surgery set him back enough to hinder his performance in 2014, then isn't it at least possible we could get something close to 2013 Verlander (3.46 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 8.9 K/9)?

On the Bubble

Because you're probably wondering about some players just outside the top 150, that list includes (in position order):

• Sal Perez, Yadier Molina, Justin Morneau, Adam LaRoche, Eric Hosmer, Brandon Belt, Mike Napoli, Lucas Duda, Mark Trumbo, Chris Carter, Neil Walker, Pedro Alvarez, Jean Segura, Elvis Andrus, Ben Zobrist, Ben Revere, Oswaldo Arcia, Khris Davis, Avisail Garcia, Homer Bailey, Cliff Lee, Jered Weaver, Matt Cain, Kevin Gausman, Taijuan Walker, Drew Smyly, Michael Wacha, Steve Cishek, Fernando Rodney, Jonathan Papelbon, Glen Perkins, Zach Britton, Joaquin Benoit

Keep in mind: When a few players at the same position are bunched together—like starters Phil Hughes, Yordano Ventura, Anibal Sanchez and the aforementioned Verlander and Ryu—it means they're more or less in the same boat, with no clear-cut favorite at the moment.

That can and will change as more information, news, injuries and performances come to light. After all, it's not even spring (the season) yet, and exhibition games across Arizona and Florida are only just getting underway. When players are clumped, consider their value to your team based more on specific category need than overall ranking.

Risers and Fallers

The right-most column marked "previous" on the big board indicates a player who rose or fell in the rankings by 10 spots or more in either direction from the previous edition. Similar to the new additions, players who saw their value improve by that margin are highlighted.

Here are the reasons for some of the biggest risers this week:

• Jayson Werth: Werth's recovery from January arthroscopic surgery on his shoulder took another step forward as he swung a bat for the first time, per James Wagner of The Washington Post. "I've been doing a lot," said the 35-year-old, who has topped 80 runs and RBI the past two years. "You push it as far as you can without setting yourself really setting yourself back. It’s just a tedious process but stuff we got to go through. … It’s a start."
• Gerrit Cole: Cole's somewhat disappointing 2014 was due mostly to injury that limited him to just 22 starts. Once healthy, he went for a 3.44 ERA and 1.05 WHIP with 60 strikeouts in 52.1 frames over his final eight starts. The potential for the 24-year-old to develop into an SP 2 this year—and an SP 1 in time—is still very much there.
• Hisashi Iwakuma: Simply put, Iwakuma and his 3.05 ERA and 1.03 WHIP the past two seasons didn't deserve to be ranked outside the top 100 (No. 111) last time.
• Nelson Cruz: On second thought, after ranking Cruz at No. 89, it became clear that was a bit too pessimistic for a guy who was the only big leaguer to reach 40 homers in 2014. Will the power production come down, especially with the move to Safeco Field? Yes. Can Cruz still do a lot of damage in the M's improved one-through-nine? Also yes.
• Matt Holliday: Yes, the 35-year-old is slowing down some, but his .272-83-20-90 line last year was plenty productive, and the Cardinals offense almost has to be better after finishing tied for seventh-fewest runs in MLB with (ahem) the Phillies.
• Yoenis Cespedes: Not that we're putting any stock into it, but it was nice to see Cespedes smash a grand slam in his first game while wearing a Tigers uni. One gets the feeling that we haven't yet seen the best of Cespedes, especially in his walk year, and the two-time reigning Home Run Derby champ could go for 30 homers and 100 RBI in Detroit's dangerous lineup. 
• Carlos Gonzalez: Here's Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post on how the former perennial 20-20 man got started this spring: "For the record, Gonzalez looks terrific has he returns from knee surgery that ended his 2014 season. He joined Troy Tulowitzki and Corey Dickerson for a batting practice session Friday morning and was the clear star of the show. He hit several moonshots over the fence." OK, we'll bite and move him back into the top 50 overall.
• Josh Donaldson: The more we think about Donaldson hitting around Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion in the hitter- and homer-friendly Rogers Centre, the more we get excited about a guy who bashed 29 homers, scored 93 runs and drove in 98 while getting half of his at-bats in Oakland's spacious O.Co Coliseum.

Meanwhile, the big fallers dropped because of the following:

• Wil Myers: Myers didn't drop too far—only from No. 124 to 141—but that reflects the concerns over his having to hit at Petco Park, where it is especially difficult for right-handed hitters to do damage (more on that in a moment).
• Daniel Murphy: As a player with limited fantasy upside because of his non-major contributions in home runs and stolen bases, Murphy is destined to slide on and off the back end of the big board, depending on how he's playing at a particular time. As we head into drafts, the aim should be on upside, which he lacks.
• Yan Gomes: Dropping Gomes 12 spots is mainly about the choice to devalue catchers a bit overall. As a reminder, this is for one-catcher leagues; but if you play in a format that requires two starters, then you'll want to bump up the top half-dozen backstops a bit.
• Hunter Pence: After he suffered a fractured left wrist upon being hit by a pitch in Thursday's spring training game, word is Pence will be out up to eight weeks, according to Steve Gardner of USA Today. That would be early May—enough time to push Pence to the fringe of the top 100 players. Unfortunate, particularly for a player who has played at least 154 games each of his seven full years, including all 162 each of the past two.
• Kenley Jansen: Another untimely injury here, as Jansen's time table after undergoing surgery to remove a growth from his foot likely puts him out until May, per Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times, and knocks him just outside the top five among closers. Bummer.
• Joey Votto: As of Thursday, Votto still hadn't suited up with his Reds teammates for a spring game, because he continues to take his recovery and rehab from last year's quad strain extra slow, as Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. At some point—and soon—there needs to be a sign that he's not only healthy but back to being productive, or owners everywhere are going to fall further off the bandwagon.
• Dustin Pedroia: A 22-spot drop for Pedroia speaks to his utter lack of fantasy value a year ago (.278 BA, 72 R, 7 HR, 53 RBI, 6 SB). There's still hope that a healthy Pedey can be a strong starting second-sacker, but let's make him prove it before overpaying for him, eh?
• Justin Upton: Let's bookend this segment by getting back to that discussion on the scary park factors for Petco, which suppresses the home run rate for right-handed hitters by some 19 percent below league average, per Stat Corner. Even for a slugger like Upton, that's challenging enough to make one think twice before picking him in the top 50.

Wrapping Up

Even though it may not feel like it judging by the wintry weather in most of the country, spring games have begun. That means the fantasy baseball season has, too. Officially.

Now is when owners everywhere must begin ramping up their prep work for their upcoming drafts and auctions. On the to-do list? Read as much fantasy material as you can, including lists of sleepers, busts, top prospects and position rankings—like the Bleacher Report 300.

Then, if you want some draft/auction exercise, go do a mock or two to get the blood pumping. And if you're the kind of owner who likes to get their hands a little dirty, start investigating injured stars and their recovery timelines, and consider researching how players on new teams might be impacted.

Oh, and while it's good to pay attention to performances in March, don't let a terrific or terrible spring alter a player's value much at this stage, especially if it's a veteran.

And, of course, go ahead and actually watch some of the exhibition action to catch a look at players you're targeting.

That's right: Baseball is back on, folks. And your fantasy draft will be soon, too.

Statistics are accurate through March 5 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, except where otherwise noted.

Need more fantasy baseball help? Have a comment about the rankings? Come pepper me with your thoughts and questions on Twitter today at 11 a.m. ET: @JayCat11 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com