BBSBL Top 75 Value (10-1)

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10. 1B Frank Thomas
Big Hurt makes the list at #10. He is somehow having a better year than his previous MVP campaign. A little over halfway through the season and he's already hit 30 homers. His OPS is an unreal 1.107. He's practically top 10 in every major offensive category. He was pretty much the major reason Chicago made it all the way to the World Series last year, and the reason why they've come roaring back to tie up the division with Kansas City. He plays very good defense and is great in the clutch. He'll be due for a big pay raise next season.

Five Year Outlook: Thomas is 31 and still in his prime, but in five years he will likely be on the decline. With Thomas goes Chicago's title hopes, so I'd imagine waldo will be doing everything he can to surround Thomas with the pieces to get the job done this time around. Thomas will be stellar for the next few years and hit the decline right as Chicago swings back into rebuild mode.


9. SP Todd Van Poppel
TVP has become quite the pitcher after his PDs turned his talent up to awesome levels. His ratings are now sky high and his production is finally catching up to them. He has become the ace of the Oakland pitching staff. Sub 3 ERA and a good WHIP, TVP has the complete package. He has a few years left on his contract, and unfortunately has no loyalty, but I'm sure broph will be willing to give him a fat contract. Only 27 years old, TVP still has a long time in this league.

Five Year Outlook: TVP will have a very bright future and will be one of the dominant pitchers in the AL. Oakland would hope to win a title within the next few years. Five seasons from now I expect TVP to possibly have a Cy Young under his belt and probably putting up even better numbers than now.


8. SS Nomar Garciaparra
In what was a very close race, Garciaparra emerges as the top SS in the league, and the most valuable. He is B/B/A/A/A/G in talent and has amazing ratings. His production is top notch, hitting .337 and posting a .957 OPS. He has solid power, speed, and amazing intangibles. He's loyal and only 25 years old. For the second year in a row, he's an all-star and will be looking to help bring Boston playoff success once again, and hopefully a title. Easily one of the most valuable infielders in the league.

Five Year Outlook: He will be well into his prime in five seasons, and it'd be a colossal failure if Boston hasn't won a world series by then. Garciaparra will definitely be doing his part and probably won't be anywhere else but Boston. He'll be putting up the same insane numbers he's doing now.


7. SP Kerry Wood
Another member of the ridiculous Chicago Cubs pitching staff. Kerry Wood may arguably be the Cubs' best pitcher. He's already received two good PDs this season. His talent ratings now sit at B/G/B/G/B and he's only 22! He's posting a 0.93 WHIP and for now a low 3s ERA. He has A Duration and good consistency. Only downside is he is injury prone, and he hasn't fielded very well this year. When you can put a guy like this at the END of your rotation and it make sense, that's ridiculous. Would be the ace on almost every other team in the league.

Five Year Outlook: I think the Cubs will be pulling a few Cy Youngs to multiple players within the next five seasons. Wood already looks like a complete stud, it'll be interesting to see how good he is in five seasons. He'll only be 27 and will be tearing through NL lineups across the board. If the Cubs don't win at least one title, I don't really know what to say.


6. RF Vladimir Guerrero
Guerrero may not be having as good of a year he had last season, but he's one of the best young hitters in the league. At only 23 years of age, he has talent ratings of B/G/A/G/G/B, a cannon for an arm, and decent speed and base-stealing ability. It's unfortunate Montreal couldn't franchise him, but I'm willing to bet they will throw a lot of money at Vlad when it comes time to re-sign him. He's not as good of a defender as you'd like and you'd like his Walks to be higher, but all things considered, I'd say you can look past that. Not many players out there have more value than Vlad.

Five Year Outlook: Once he gets his Walks up, Vlad will be an on base savant and an absolute nightmare for opposing pitchers. Vlad will only be 28 years old and will be anchoring the offense of the Expos, who should have a bright future should styro ever decided to try and compete for a full season.


5. RF Manny Ramirez
Manny Ramirez found his way to Boston and hasn't looked back since. Ramirez is one of the best sluggers in the league. The past two seasons he posted over 1.000 OPS and is pretty damn close to that so far this season. He probably won't beat out Thomas or Griffey for MVP, but he'll be just as crucial to his team's success. And he was freshly signed to a relatively cheap contract for a player of his age and caliber. Ramirez is without a doubt one of the most valuable hitters in the league.

Five Year Outlook: Like I said previously, Boston should and probably will win a World Series in the next five years. Ramirez will play a huge part in that. He will likely put up the same big time numbers each year, and will always be in the MVP talks. He'll be 32 in five years and will still have Top 25 value most likely.


4. CF Ken Griffey Jr.
Griffey could arguably be even higher than this. He is THE slugger in BBSBL. Brilliant talent and a 15 in homers. Ridiculous. He has been going off in Seattle for four years now. If only we had a Seattle GM to witness it all. He's locked up for 4 more years, has good intangibles, and is a great defender. He hits for average well and posts a great OBP. If Seattle had a GM, they'd probably be able to compete with a guy like Griffey.

Five Year Outlook: I'm really hoping he can get to 600 HRs. That'd be pretty awesome. Griffey will continue to be the league's best slugger throughout the rest of his contract. Perhaps once we get a Seattle GM he'll either lead them deep into the playoffs, or obtain a fine bounty for his services. Regardless, he's in his prime, and will barely be on the decline in 5 years. Sick.


3. 1B Todd Helton
Oh what could have been. I know I bring it up often, but man can you imagine Helton in Coors right now? Anyways, Helton is a beast. Pretty simple. He's what guys like Pujols, Holliday, and Cabrera hope to become, and what guys like Manny and Vlad wish they could beat. He's been firing on all cylinders since day one. His MVP season last year was absolutely nuts, and while he isn't quite putting up those numbers this time around, he is still running train on the competition. Did I mention he's 25? Oh and loyal, too, by the way. He's clutch and a pretty good defender, and he will probably single-handedly keep the Blue Jays relevant, in spite of Game.

Five Year Outlook: Not one. Not two. Not three. Not four...you get the idea. He'll probably win the majority of the MVP awards in the next five seasons. Though it's a tough division, and teams are doing their best to gift picks and players to the Red Sox, but I think the Blue Jays will have their year soon. Guys like Helton are just too good to hold back. He'll only be 30 in 5 years, so he'll probably still be Top 5-10 on this list then.


2. SP Pedro Martinez
Pedro Martinez is top dog in terms of the best pitcher in the league, but isn't quite top value, even though he is very close.. After two decent years in Montreal, he's gone on to Boston (Detroit for a little bit) and become the pitcher he was always supposed to be. He had a filthy year last season and is once again putting up ridiculous numbers. 2.55 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, with 15 Wins a little halfway through the season? Yeah I say it's safe to say he'll win the Cy Young this season. If you haven't seen his ratings, I'd suggest you check them out. Oh, he's also clutch, consistent, and will eat up the innings. He isn't loyal, but he has a strong desire for winner, and I don't ever see the Red Sox ever being irrelevant, at least not in a few years when it's time for an extension. Best pitcher in the league and almost the most valuable.

Five Year Outlook: Have I mentioned the Red Sox should win a World Series soon? Yeah, they have this guy. Pedro Martinez will dominate the AL in pitching, with only a few guys probably competing with him for Cy Youngs. In five seasons he'll still be in his prime and he'll still be dominant.


1. SP Johan Santana
Finally, the big cheese. And guess what? Another Cubs pitcher? Yup. Johan Santana still gives the Houston Astros nightmares. Santana is the Cubs' franchise player, and rightfully so. He's 20 years old and has posted sub 3 ERAs in both of his major league seasons. Both seasons he has also posted sub 1 WHIPs and is probably a frontrunner for the Cy Young award this season. His ratings are amazing, his talent undeniable, and his production is almost second to none. A Duration, a great groundball percentage, and oh yeah, HE'S 20! So nasty. He may not be quite Pedro YET but value-wise, he's right up there.

Five Year Outlook: Several Cy Youngs, probably a World Series or two, and a LOT of wins. I'll make a bold prediction and say Johan Santana gets 300 wins. I've heard it's rare in OOTP, but I think Johan can do it. Hell, he'll only be 25 in five years, and will likely have over 100 wins.

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And now the breakdown of which teams had the highest amount of Top 75 Value players.

Chicago Cubs: 8
Montreal Expos: 6
Oakland A's: 5
Florida Marlins: 5
San Diego Padres: 5
Texas Rangers: 4
Cleveland Indians: 4
Houston Astros: 4
Toronto Blue Jays: 4
Boston Red Sox: 3
Kansas City Royals: 3
Atlanta Braves: 3
New York Yankees: 3
New York Mets: 3
Chicago White Sox: 2
Cincinnati Reds: 2
Los Angeles Dodgers: 2
Philadelphia Phillies: 2
Seattle Mariners: 1
San Francisco Giants: 1
Colorado Rockies: 1
Baltimore Orioles: 1
Anaheim Angels: 1
Milwaukee Brewers: 1
Minnesota Twins: 1
Detroit Tigers: 0
St. Louis Cardinals: 0
Pittsburgh Pirates: 0

And that concludes the first ever BBSBL Top 75 Value article! I'll see you next time for the next edition, where I'll be upping it to Top 100![/center]