Top-10 ranks: Welcome, Robinson Cano

Updated: January 6, 2011, 2:21 PM ET
By Eric Karabell
Every season I get asked why I rank St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols at the very top of my rankings when I know he plays the deepest position in fantasy baseball. It's a fair question. My answer is simple, really, and it focuses on his consistency. Pujols is at or near the top of the league leaders in runs, RBIs, homers and batting average every season, and he even steals bases. The position he plays is largely irrelevant to me when he's that reliable and safe.

Of course, after Pujols, I pay a lot more attention to position scarcity, which is why I can justify placing more middle infielders than first basemen in my top 10. Yep, you will not find Joey Votto, Adrian Gonzalez or Mark Teixeira in my top 10, because I will not draft them that early. They're awesome players, all likely to outperform Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki on the Player Rater, but Tulo plays a considerably weaker fantasy position.

To see why David Wright makes Eric's top 10 and Joey Votto doesn't, you must be an ESPN Insider.