00:00So at the top of this list, Nick Kurtz ranks as the number one first baseman, ADP of 20.
00:07I disagree with this because I think the guy after should be number one.
00:11That's Vladivar Guerrero Jr. ranked as two and ADP of 22.
00:15So it's kind of just a preference.
00:16Do you prefer having a bit more miles on the car because you know what you're going to get?
00:21You like the lineup?
00:22Or do you prefer having the new shiny toy that has a great track to drive around, if you will?
00:28Let's start there.
00:29Is Kurtz there so much more so because of the park factor?
00:33Or are there other things that I might be missing, Joe?
00:36I think the park factor is a big part of it.
00:38And I think it should be.
00:40And you look at this Little League ballpark in Sacramento that they're playing in.
00:43It's really fun.
00:44It's a good time there if you like the athletics offensively.
00:48And I do.
00:49And Nick Kurtz was a darling of this program going into last year.
00:53And then in April, I don't know how many times we screamed from the rooftops,
00:55Hey, add Nick Kurtz.
00:56It's going to be good.
00:58Just trust us.
00:59And, you know, sometimes you add these rookies and they don't always pan out.
01:01But Kurtz certainly one that did.
01:03He had a fantastic year in 2025.
01:04You look back at the stats of Nick Kurtz and it was brilliant for him.
01:08He had 36 homers in just 117 games.
01:11He had 291.
01:12He drove in 86 runs.
01:14He scored 90 runs.
01:15So he's the real deal.
01:16I do believe in Nick Kurtz.
01:18I'm good with him being the first guy off the board because historically speaking, you know, Vlad Guerrero Jr.
01:23As great as he was last year, he's had a little up and down in his career.
01:26If you want to take Vlad first because it makes you feel warm and fuzzy because you've seen more of
01:32him and you have a longer track record, I don't think there's an argument against that.
01:37I think it's a perfectly good logic, but I understand people looking at the upside of Kurtz because I think
01:41if you're trying to bet on one of these guys hit 40 home runs, it's more likely you're going to
01:45get that from Kurtz, even if that batting average backtracks a little bit.
01:48And if you're somebody that said, no, I'd rather just have my 30 with the high batting average and maybe
01:52Vlad is your guy.
01:53So I think that battle at one and two is really interesting.
01:55And then you have Pete Alonzo right behind that, Bryce Harper coming in after that as the fourth guy, the
02:0036 overall, Raphael Devers, who eventually, you know, did put together a pretty good season with the San Francisco Giants
02:07at five and then Matt Olsen at six.
02:09To me, this is where that teardrop happens.
02:12Now, you might disagree, but I want to get your thoughts on that because Freddie Freeman, to me, is a
02:17player that started to show his age a little bit and show the wear and tear.
02:19He's played a lot of games, a lot of postseason games.
02:23I love Freddie Freeman. We all love Freddie Freeman.
02:25If you love baseball, you love that guy.
02:27But to me, he is a notch below all these other guys because of the power.
02:31And I think Freddie Freeman at this stage is not a guy you're looking at to hit 35 home runs
02:34anymore.
02:35But all the other guys above him, I think, all have that potential to get to that 35, maybe even
02:41push 40 mark.
02:42What do you think about that teardrop off?
02:44Do you put Freddie Freeman because of his elite bat to ball skills still up there with that group?
02:48Or is he a notch below these top five or six?
02:52No, there's a difference between logic and emotion, especially when you're talking about money or wagering or trying to win
02:57a fantasy league.
02:58I'm arguably one of the biggest Freddie Freeman fans out there.
03:01I'm a throwback guy.
03:03I don't think we'll see a player like Freddie Freeman again, sadly.
03:06But with that said, I agree wholeheartedly with what Joe is saying here.
03:10Because when you look at that top list of Kers, Vlad, Pete Alonzo, Bryce Harper, Rafi Devers, and Matt Olsen,
03:16Matt Olsen is my target.
03:17I'm expecting a lot of bounce backs from Braves.
03:19But I circle Matt Olsen right there as being there's some recency bias there.
03:24So I think he would be ranked maybe a little bit better.
03:27But there's a chasm from Olsen to Freeman.
03:30Then I like, I'll go down the list if it's okay.
03:33Freeman is next.
03:33Then it's Josh Naylor, then it's Ben Rice, and it's Vinny P, Vinny Pasquantino.
03:37I'd like to stop there because I think Ben Rice is an exciting player.
03:42And if for some reason you miss out on one of those first, what is it, eight first basemen,
03:47and Ben Rice is sitting there who also will still have catcher eligibility.
03:51I know you're reading reports he slept wrong and hasn't started swinging a bat.
03:54I'm not worried.
03:54I think Ben Rice in a breakout season can really help the Yankees.
03:58So right there is where I want to draw another line and get your thoughts, Joe.
04:02From the Matt Olsen down to maybe the Vinny Pasquantino,
04:05is there someone other than Ben Rice that you would choose?
04:09Yeah, I like Josh Naylor still.
04:11And it's a good lineup around him.
04:12And unlike some other guys, when he went to Seattle,
04:15he really didn't necessarily drop off all that much.
04:18You go look in September, he had 364 there.
04:21He had four home runs in August, four home runs in September.
04:24He's a very consistent guy.
04:25So I like him.
04:26I like Pasquantino also, especially with the adjustments they made to that ballpark.
04:30I think a lot of us don't realize, or a lot of people don't realize,
04:33if Vinny Pasquantino hit 30 home runs last year,
04:36it was very quiet because that team was very quiet.
04:38He drove it 113 runs.
04:39He had 260 again.
04:40Like, that's his normal range.
04:41That's what he gives you.
04:42So Ben Rice is a nice player.
04:44Ben Rice might also have to catch a little bit, too,
04:46depending on how they use him in this lineup.
04:48I like Ben Rice.
04:49I live very close to Somerset, New Jersey, right, where I go,
04:53and I've seen the Yankees AA team a bunch.
04:55Ben Rice was the guy that I remember reporting to you,
04:58and you said, how was the game last night?
05:00And I said, I like Ben Rice.
05:02Ben Rice is like, Spencer Jones, eh, you know, he was like Richie Sexy.
05:05He's going to strike out a million times, whatever it is.
05:07But Ben Rice, that's the player I like.
05:09George Lombard, eh, George Lombard is a really good athlete.
05:12I don't think he's a baseball player yet.
05:13I really just don't see that.
05:14But Ben Rice, and look, Ben Rice had a good year.
05:17But Pasquantino and Naylor I have a little bit more faith in,
05:19a little bit deeper into their careers.
05:21So for me, those are my guys towards the end.
05:24But I think it tells you if you're in a fantasy league that's a little more shallow
05:27or a 10-team league, first base is pretty deep.
05:29You can find some power there.
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