Today's Fantasy Rx

For the second year in a row we're presenting a prospect list specifically geared towards fantasy baseball with no consideration of "peak" or "long-term potential" other than what a player will contribute in standard 4x4 and 5x5 leagues.

We've implemented two significant changes to our lists this year. First, we're separating our two lists into three more specific lists. The top 150 prospects list is meant for Ultra drafts, the top 42 prospects for 2003-04 is meant for traditional roto leagues with three-round minor league drafts, and our new top 25 prospects list is intended exclusively for owners in extremely deep leagues who desire the best prospect trade bait.

Our second change involves how we generated the first two lists. For every prospect I discussed in the fall team prospect and Major League Rule 5 draft articles I compiled his likely value in 2003 and 2004, along with his 2003 upside and his five-year upside. I averaged these values, weighted heavily towards possible and likely 2003 contributions, to provide a rough ranking before we finished tweaking the list due to playing time changes, team roster depth, and injuries.

A few players on the first list will be minor league veterans who only need a chance to succeed in the majors. I designated these players with an asterisk for those of you only interested in drafting more traditional prospects.

Rule 5 draftees have a ^ next to their names; their placement on the list assumes they remain with their new teams. Ignore them if returned to their former franchise as they have practically no chance of breaking camp with their old team.

Before beginning, we want to note our appreciation for all the resources available to everyone interested in minor leaguers from established analysts like John Sickels, Tony Blengino, Deric McKamey, Kevin Goldstein, and everyone at Baseball America. We hope you enjoy these two days of prospects.

Note: We employed MLB rookie guidelines, so no one here has exceeded 130 MLB AB or 50 MLB IP, or has accumulated 45 days on an MLB roster prior to September 1st of any season.

* - denotes players not on a 40-man roster nor considered a prospect due to age

^ - denotes players selected in the 2002 Major League Rule 5 draft

Rotohelp's Top 150 AL Ultra Fantasy Prospects for 2003
1. Hideki Matsui, OF, NYY
2. Travis Hafner, 1B, CLE
3. Joe Borchard, OF, CHW
4. Brandon Phillips, 2B, CLE
5. Mike Cuddyer, OF, MIN
6. Mark Teixeira, 3B/1B, TEX
7. Rocco Baldelli, OF, TB
8. Victor Martinez, C, CLE
9. Andres Torres, OF, DET
10. Franklyn German, RP, DET
11. Eric Munson, DH/3B, DET
12. Ben Broussard, 1B/OF, CLE
13. Ken Harvey, 1B/DH, KC
14. Coco Crisp, OF, CLE
15. Chris Snelling, OF, SEA
16. Francisco Rodriguez, RP, ANA
17. Todd Sears, 1B, MIN
18. Jack Cust, DH/OF, BAL
19. Rontrez Johnson, OF, KC^
20. Miguel Olivo, C, CHW
21. Omar Infante, SS, DET
22. Ryan Ludwick, OF, TEX
23. Jayson Werth, OF, TOR
24. Willie Bloomquist, UT, SEA
25. Marshall McDougall, IF, TEX^
26. Lance Carter, RP, TB
27. Kevin Cash, C, TOR
28. Lew Ford, OF, MIN
29. Greg LaRocca, IF, CLE*
30. Kevin Youkilis, 3B, BOS
31. Juan Rivera, OF, NYY
32. Shawn Fagan, 3B/1B, TOR
33. Jose Contreras, SP, NYY
34. Robb Quinlan, OF, ANA
35. Freddy Sanchez, 2B, BOS
36. Chone Figgins, 2B, ANA
37. Ryan Bukvich, RP, KC
38. Esteban German, 2B, OAK
39. Billy Traber, SP, CLE
40. Jody Gerut, OF, CLE
41. Jermaine Clark, UT, TEX
42. Mike Restovich, OF, MIN
43. Graham Koonce, 1B, OAK
44. Jason Hart, OF, TEX
45. John-Ford Griffin, OF, TOR
46. Mike Ryan, OF, MIN
47. Mike Neu, RP, OAK^
48. Grant Balfour, RP, MIN
49. Justin Morneau, 1B, MIN
50. Mark Hendrickson, SP, TOR
51. Aquilino Lopez, RP, TOR^
52. Gerald Laird, C, TEX
53. Cody Ross, OF, DET
54. Drew Henson, 3B, NYY
55. Jeremy Bonderman, SP, DET
56. Jeremy Hill, RP, KC
57. Travis Chapman, 3B, DET^
58. Cliff Lee, SP, CLE
59. Rich Harden, SP, OAK
60. Bobby Crosby, SS, OAK
61. Jason Jones, 1B/OF, TEX
62. Alexis Gomez, OF, KC
63. Colby Lewis, SP, TEX
64. Laynce Nix, OF, TEX
65. Mike MacDougal, RP, KC
66. Michael Nakamura, RP, MIN
67. Jamal Strong, OF, SEA
68. Pete LaForest, C, TB
69. Alex Escobar, OF, CLE
70. Chris Bootcheck, SP, ANA
71. Josh Hamilton, OF, TB
72. Jon Rauch, SP, CHW
73. Chad Harville, RP, OAK
74. Aaron Taylor, RP, SEA
75. Edwin Almonte, RP, CHW
76. Buddy Hernandez, RP, OAK^
77. Andy Shibilo, RP, BOS
78. Brad Voyles, RP, KC
79. Josh Bard, C, CLE
80. Gabe Gross, OF, TOR
81. Aaron Miles, 2B, CHW*
82. Angel Berroa, SS, KC
83. Delvin James, SP, TB
84. Jason Standridge, SP, TB
85. Brad Thomas, SP, MIN
86. Alex Graman, SP, NYY
87. Tim Hummel, IF, CHW
88. Marcus Thames, OF, NYY
89. Earl Snyder, UT, BOS
90. Mario Valenzuela, OF, CHW
91. Jose Morban, IF, MIN^
92. Jason DuBois, OF, TOR^
93. Mike O'Keefe, 1B/OF, OAK
94. Gary Burnham, 1B, TOR
95. Jim Rushford, OF, TEX
96. Jason Arnold, SP, TOR
97. Javier Lopez, RP, BOS^
98. Rich Fischer, SP, ANA
99. Mike Rose, C, OAK*
100. Hector Luna, SS, TB^
101. Dewon Brazelton, SP, TB
102. Jimmy Gobble, SP, KC
103. Jason Beverlin, SP, CLE
104. Nathan Haynes, OF, ANA
105. Jason Grabowski, UT, OAK
106. Andy Beinbrink, IF, TB
107. Angel Santos, IF, BOS
108. Adam Johnson, SP, MIN
109. Ian Ferguson, SP, KC
110. Ben Kozlowski, SP, TEX
111. Evan Rust, RP, TB
112. Joe Valentine, RP, OAK
113. Kevin Witt, 1B/OF, DET*
114. Cliff Brumbaugh, OF, CHW*
115. Luis Rodriguez, SS, MIN
116. Brian Myrow, IF, NYY
117. Andy Phillips, 2B, NYY
118. Jeff Pickler, 2B, TEX
119. Kevin Reese, OF, NYY
120. Casey Kotchman, 1B, ANA
121. Ricardo Rodriguez, SP, CLE
122. Fernando Rodney, RP, DET
123. Arnaldo Munoz, RP, CHW
124. Roy Smith, RP, OAK
125. Jason Davis, SP, CLE
126. Travis Hughes, SP, TEX
127. Jason Stanford, SP, CLE
128. Jorge Cordova, RP, DET
129. Derrick Van Dusen, SP, TEX
130. Mike Smith, SP, TOR
131. Felix Diaz, SP, CHW
132. Rett Johnson, SP, SEA
133. Jason Shiell, RP, BOS
134. Lee Gardner, RP, TB
135. John Rheinecker, SP, OAK
136. Julio DePaula, SP, NYY
137. Howie Clark, IF, TOR*
138. Alfredo Amezaga, IF, ANA
139. Carl Sadler, RP, CLE
140. David Elder, RP, CLE
141. Allan Simpson, RP, SEA
142. Luis de los Santos, SP, TB
143. Gary Majewski, RP, TOR^
144. Joe Mauer, C, MIN
145. Jose Lopez, IF, SEA
146. Brian Tallet, SP, CLE
147. Mario Ramos, SP, TEX
148. Jeremy Brown, C, OAK
149. Grady Sizemore, OF, CLE
150. Clint Nageotte, SP, SEA

Rotohelp's Top 42 AL Fantasy Prospects for 2003…
who should merit keeping at $10 in 2004 per traditional rules
1. Hideki Matsui, OF, NYY
2. Travis Hafner, 1B, CLE
3. Joe Borchard, OF, CHW
4. Brandon Phillips, 2B, CLE
5. Mike Cuddyer, OF, MIN
6. Mark Teixeira, 3B/1B, TEX
7. Rocco Baldelli, OF, TB
8. Victor Martinez, C, CLE
9. Andres Torres, OF, DET
10. Franklyn German, RP, DET
11. Eric Munson, DH/3B, DET
12. Ben Broussard, 1B/OF, CLE
13. Ken Harvey, 1B/DH, KC
14. Coco Crisp, OF, CLE
15. Chris Snelling, OF, SEA
16. Francisco Rodriguez, RP, ANA
17. Todd Sears, 1B, MIN
18. Jack Cust, DH/OF, BAL
19. Miguel Olivo, C, CHW
20. Omar Infante, SS, DET
21. Ryan Ludwick, OF, TEX
22. Jayson Werth, OF, TOR
23. Kevin Cash, C, TOR
24. Lew Ford, OF, MIN
25. Kevin Youkilis, 3B, BOS
26. Juan Rivera, OF, NYY
27. Shawn Fagan, 3B/1B, TOR
28. Jose Contreras, SP, NYY
29. Freddy Sanchez, 2B, BOS
30. Billy Traber, SP, CLE
31. John-Ford Griffin, OF, TOR
32. Justin Morneau, 1B, MIN
33. Gerald Laird, C, TEX
34. Cody Ross, OF, DET
35. Drew Henson, 3B, NYY
36. Jeremy Bonderman, SP, DET
37. Cliff Lee, SP, CLE
38. Rich Harden, SP, OAK
39. Bobby Crosby, SS, OAK
40. Jamal Strong, OF, SEA
41. Gabe Gross, OF, TOR
42. Jason Arnold, SP, TOR

Rotohelp's Top 25 AL Fantasy Prospects for 2003…
who shouldn't substantially contribute in the majors before 2005
1. Joe Mauer, C, MIN
2. Casey Kotchman, 1B, ANA
3. Jeremy Brown, C, OAK
4. Grady Sizemore, OF, CLE
5. Josh Hamilton, OF, TB
6. Jose Lopez, IF, SEA
7. Laynce Nix, OF, TEX
8. Shin-Soo Choo, OF, SEA
9. Clint Nageotte, SP, SEA
10. Jimmy Gobble, SP, KC
11. Kris Honel, SP, CHW
12. Johan Santana, SP, ANA
13. Russ Adams, 2B, TOR
14. Jonny Gomes, OF, TB
15. Ian Ferguson, SP, KC
16. John Rheinecker, SP, OAK
17. David DeJesus, OF, KC
18. Jon Rauch, SP, CHW
19. Rich Fischer, SP, ANA
20. Jhonny Peralta, SS, CLE
21. Alex Escobar, OF, CLE
22. Pete LaForest, C, TB
23. Chris Bootcheck, SP, ANA
24. Rob Henkel, SP, DET
25. Hanley Ramirez, SS, BOS

Today's Fantasy Rx: If you don't already subscribe to Kevin Goldstein's daily minor league newsletter of box scores and other interesting notes, please visit The Prospect Report to sign-up today.