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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Rogue Valley musicians shine in OLLI’s spring class schedule Work your body to save your braaaaains Ashland robotics team fares well at Oregon City Ashland Independent Film Festival announces this year's lineup ASHLAND: High school principal receives national award Education Rogue Valley musicians shine in OLLI’s spring class schedule Work your body to save your braaaaains Ashland robotics team fares well at Oregon City ASHLAND: High school principal receives national award Willow Wind students raise money for water Environment Mt. Ashland Ski Area: Low snow closes 'bunny hill' chairlift for beginning skiers With pre-season conditions worst in 25 years, catastrophic wildfires expected in region this summer Legislature might be divided on clean fuels bill, but these Ashlanders weren't Ashland Rowing Club members put their backs into Emigrant Lake clean-up The birdman of Bellview Business Ride & Drive: 2015 Honda Civic sedan Silvio Calabi: Mercedes-Benz ML250 raises the diesel 4×4 stakes Ride & Drive: 2015 Chrysler 300 Silvio Calabi: Volvo XC60 is sexy safety in an SUV Ride & Drive: 2015 Audi R8 Politics and elections Mark L. Hopkins: Looking for a political straight shooter Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Ballots on Jackson County marijuana tax go out today Kate Brown sworn in as Oregon's 38th governor Gov. Kitzhaber steps down, federal investigation begins State News Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Kate Brown sworn in as Oregon's 38th governor Federal investigation of Kitzhaber to focus on potential financial crimes Gov. Kitzhaber announces resignation Read Gov. John Kitzhaber's statement on his resignation Nation - World Leonard Nimoy, famous as Mr. Spock on 'Star Trek,' dies Obituaries William F. Christofferson Death Notices Death Notices Death Notices Ramona G. (Austin) Fletcher Shareable Bank of America is predicting a massive Tesla collapse Mars One attracts science fiction geeks and people who hate society This $1 million Mercedes is like an armored private jet for the road Sports Latest Stories Dynamic offenses square off in SOU-Midland first-round matchup SOU women end first-round slump, crush Robert Morris by 25 Grizz snowboard team heads to state with repeat potential No. 10 SOU women brace for national tourney breakfast bracket ASHLAND: Oak Knoll to host free FootGolf event High school Grizz snowboard team heads to state with repeat potential Grizzlies let second-half lead slip away in season-ending loss to CV Williams named first-team all-star Owls stun No. 8 Raiders Norvell goes from newbie to state favorite Southern Oregon University Dynamic offenses square off in SOU-Midland first-round matchup SOU women end first-round slump, crush Robert Morris by 25 No. 10 SOU women brace for national tourney breakfast bracket Raiders tied for third, Gutches two wins from four-peat at NAIA nationals SOU's Maguin advances to 400 final Voices Latest Stories Kent Bush: The Internet is governed by people who have never sent an email Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Letters to the Editor, March 11 Landgren cartoon: Farewell to circus elephants Landgren cartoon: Potholes Editorial Our View: No need for blame in Hannah Thomas-Garner case Our view: Ashland tackles school attendance areas the right way Our View: Spelling out safety Our View: Our View: A growing concern Letters Letters to the Editor, March 11 Letters to the Editor, March 9 Letters to the Editor, March 7 Letters to the Editor, March 5 Letters to the Editor, March 4 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Guest Opinion: Ashland schools failed to protect my son from bullying Guest Opinion: There is nothing uniform about the Uniform Crime Report Guest Opinion: Growth carries risks Guest Opinion: Legal poisons in our waters Columns Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Kent Bush: Things will never change unless we change them Guest Opinion: Ashland schools failed to protect my son from bullying Council Corner: Solar power in Ashland's future Mark L. Hopkins: Looking for a political straight shooter Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Community blog: Take a peek at poet Scott Wozniak Community blog: Memorize poems with your whole body Alice DiMicele plays Unitarian Fellowship Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Theater Ticket Availability Ticket Availability Ticket Availability 'She Stoops' rises on SOU stage Review: OSF keeps the comedy afloat in 'Much Ado' Music Alice DiMicele plays Unitarian Fellowship The Farr Side: Another career highlight for Kelly Clarkson Music on the Mountain: Ski area launching concert series Victor D. Infante: Just in time for Valentine’s Day, some favorite breakup songs The Farr Side: Smith dominates, Beck surprises at Grammys Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Movies Ashland Independent Film Festival announces this year's lineup AGING HAPPENS: Ashland synagogue hosts screening of Chopra film Laid-back Liam Neeson and Ed Harris get vicious in ‘Run All Night’ Pop Culture Notebook: ‘Community,’ ‘Avengers’ and ‘The Man From U.N.C.L.E.’ on the horizon Antionette Kerr: Nimoy’s legacy lives on in ‘Star Trek’ Food and Drink Sammich does it Chicago-style Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories American Association of University Women Ashland American Association of University Women Ashland Derek Kelly: Putting the pieces back together Page H. Onorato: The 10 commandments for the Southern cook Page H. 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Fantasy Sports: There are plenty of quality producers at third By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette DailyTidings.com By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette Posted Mar. 9, 2015 @ 9:14 am Updated Mar 9, 2015 at 9:34 AM By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette Posted Mar. 9, 2015 @ 9:14 am Updated Mar 9, 2015 at 9:34 AM » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Last week, I expressed my hope of finding some more power at the third base position after shuffling through shaky shortstops. Well I found some, including multiple 20-homer players, but not a single 30-homer guy from last season. I suppose the steroid era is over. And that fact, in a roundabout way, leads me to something I have been looking for a window to address, and seeing as I just opened that one myself, I will continue to be self-serving and take this opportunity. There are numerous ways to keep score in fantasy leagues, which makes all player rankings a little arbitrary. For example, there are many points leagues that skew heavily toward favoring power hitters, with those extra bases adding up to extra riches. And, oh, the riches that did come along with those ubiquitous/infamous/hallowed PEDs. I, however, gauge a player’s value in a more traditional rotisserie format where homers and RBIs carry the same weight as batting average and steals. That accounting brings me to a potentially controversial No. 1 third baseman in the Rangers’ Adrian Beltre. Beltre turns 36 next month, and after hitting at least 25 homers in seven of the last eight seasons — the outlier being an injury-marred, 111-game 2009 campaign — he dipped to 19 last year. He still batted at least .300 for the fourth time in five seasons, though, and his .324 mark was the second best of his career, trailing only his monster year of 2004 when he batted .334 along with 48 homers and 121 RBIs. I’ll take that consistency, even if Beltre evens out in his final seasons as more of a 20-homer guy than a 30-homer stud. Also, with full healthy seasons from teammates Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder, Beltre’s 77 RBIs and 79 runs from last season should see an uptick. This isn’t to say that Josh Donaldson hasn’t been great over the last two seasons. The former Athletic and current Blue Jay gained notice in 2013 when he batted .301 with 24 homers, 93 RBIs, 89 runs and five steals. If he posted another season like that last year, it would be impossible to not put him at No. 1 now. His .255-29-98-93-8 line he did record, however, muddles things. Donaldson was better than Beltre in four of five categories, but that 69-point deficit in batting average between them still pushes me toward the long-term, steady veteran presence. I do not have any sabermetrics that prove why this should be the case, though, so I can understand if you would select Donaldson first. I would just then be excited that it gave me the chance at Beltre. Who you take a chance on after that starts to becomes much more a gamble. I realized things were not as rosy as I hoped at the hot corner, when eligible first basemen like Chris Davis and Carlos Santana were showing up much higher in 3B rankings. This gamble pulls in two directions. The first revolves around the fear of diminishing returns on emerging players who put together solid seasons. The Reds’ Todd Frazier amassed a line of .273-29-80-88-20 last season that compares very well with the darling Donaldson. Naysayers will point out, however, that he grabbed those 20 steals in 157 games in 2014, but had only 10 swipes in 319 games over three seasons before that. Pittsburgh’s Josh Harrison came from even deeper in the depths of nowhere to go .315-13-52-77-18 in 2014. Then you hear of how that was the first time he hit double-digit homers — at any level of pro ball. His average also took a big jump after batting .250 in parts of three seasons in the majors. If you don’t want to place faith in such players’ ability to continue to surge, there are gambles on the other side. Sure, Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria has put up some great numbers in his career, but I have a tough time translating his 2014 stats of .253-22-91-83-5 into thinking I really want him more than Frazier. The Mets’ David Wright has spent multiple seasons in the top player discussion among third basemen, but he came out with a .269-8-63-54-8 2014 campaign. So even if he gets a little improvement over those numbers this year, and Harrison falls back a little bit, they could end up roughly analogous. Finally then there comes a player on each end of this lottery that further highlights its opposing ends. The Cubs have a top prospect in Kris Bryant who appears ready to crack the majors this season. If the 23-year-old can come anywhere near the .325-43-110-118-15 line he posted between Double A and Triple A last season, he could be on his way to superstar status. And remember when Alex Rodriguez held that status, possibly above all other players in the game? We know he will now come nowhere near that in his return to the field, but if he still puts together a mild season of .270-20-70-70-5, won’t that still have value? Yeah, I guess the steroid era really is over. Josh Bousquet writes for The Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette. You can contact him at [email protected]. By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette DailyTidings.com By Josh Bousquet The Worcester Telegram & Gazette Posted Mar. 9, 2015 @ 9:14 am Updated Mar 9, 2015 at 9:34 AM » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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