This article is part of our The Daily Duel series.
This will be the final column of the baseball season for FanDuel. Hopefully you had a fun season playing on their site and were able to use this column as a tool when making your lineups. Let's take a look back position-by-position at who were some of the better players on winning lineups.
First Base
Coming into the season, it was expected that Jose Abreu was "Major League" ready but most wouldn't have predicted he would be at an All-Star caliber level. Abreu sits with 35 home runs, 35 doubles and an impressive .315 batting average. Anthony Rizzo had a stellar season with 31 homers on a Cubs team that should be a contender sooner than later. Lucas Duda and his 28 home runs were a surprise, and he continually had a cheap price tag throughout the season.
Second Base
Jose Altuve, Jose Altuve, Jose Altuve. The elite players coming into the season (Robinson Cano, Dustin Pedroia and Jason Kipnis) were largely disappointing (more so the latter two), leaving the door open for Altuve to make his mark. Altuve did just that with a whopping .343 batting average and 56 stolen bases. Probably the biggest surprise at the position was Dee Gordon, who scored 90 runs and stole 64 bases. Including the "top-3" at the position, it will be interesting to see how all of these players are priced at the beginning of next season.
Shortstop
The shortstop position was dominated by Troy Tulowitzki when he was playing in Coors before another injury derailed his season. After his injury, this turned into a position that was largely punted with occasional gems turned in by Ian Desmond, Hanley Ramirez and Jose Reyes. Danny Santana had a nice run in the second half, and he was inexpensive when he initially entered the Twins starting lineup. Finally, it would be a shame to leave out Derek Jeter, who had a nice final 10 games to finish his DFS career.
Third Base
Here's another position where the anticipated elite players fell short of season-long expectations. Adrian Beltre came the closest to achieving his value. Meanwhile, Evan Longoria and David Wright fell short of expectations. Josh Donaldson and Anthony Rendon crushed southpaws, while Nolan Arenado raked at Coors. Josh Harrison was a pleasant surprise, but the MVP at the position went to Todd Frazier, who contributed across the board with 28 home runs, 77 runs, 84 RBI and 20 stolen bases. The jump in stolen bases is what really puts Frazier over the edge, as only five players at the position racking up more than eight steals.
Outfield
Mike Trout was continually among the highest-priced players at the position and continually delivered. Both Rockies – Charlie Blackmon and Corey Dickerson – mashed at home, while Michael Brantley put together a 20-20 campaign and could still get to 100 runs and RBI. Astros castoff J.D. Martinez found a home in Detroit and was a fantasy beast. Bryce Harper was largely a disappointment while fellow youngster Giancarlo Stanton had some huge fantasy games with several double-digit performances before his injury.
That's going to be a wrap for this season, hope you had fun playing on FanDuel, and make sure you check out football if you haven't already. And remember that basketball and hockey seasons are right around the corner, too.
