Fantasy Baseball 2011: Pablo Sandoval Worthy of Being Starting Third Baseman

Fantasy Baseball 2011 Could See the Return of Kung Fu Panda

It still fairly boggles to mind that the San Francisco Giants managed to win the World Series despite getting relatively nothing out of Pablo Sandoval, the very man who hit .330 with 25 home runs and 90 RBIs in 2009.

We all know why Sandoval's production dropped to .268, 13, and 63 in 2010. It's because the guy absolutely ballooned, and his bat speed suffered accordingly. Clearly, he needed to get in shape.

He did just that, and Giants fans everywhere are pretty darned excited about the idea that the Kung Fu Panda they came to love in '09 will be back. So too, I think, are many fantasy owners.

That being said, there are still a lot of "ifs" surrounding Sandoval, and the general consensus appears to be that he is barely worthy of being your starting third baseman. ESPN has him ranked No. 11 among third basemen, and CBS Sports has him at No. 12 in their rankings. When you consider how weak the third base crop is this year, that's even worse than it sounds.

As far as both ESPN and CBS Sports seem to be concerned, owners are going to be forced to pretty much roll the dice at third base once Jose Bautista (who is something of a risk in his own right) is off the board. The way I see it, if I'm going to roll the dice on a player, I'd rather take Sandoval than somebody like Martin Prado or Casey McGehee.

It's all about upside, folks. And the best part about Sandoval is that he showed us in '09 what he's capable of, and I'm of the mind that banking on him getting back to that level is not as much of a risk as people are making it out to be. For one, the weight is gone. Secondly, it's hard not to be encouraged by the fact that Sandoval has hit .290 with three homers and 12 RBIs this spring.

If I may be so bold as to steal from ESPN, there's also this possibility to consider: "pitchers might be more apt to throw to him now that he no longer inspires as much fear and he shouldn't be so unlucky this time around."

Basically, Sandoval could be treated as the weakling on an elementary school softball team. If so, Sandoval will make them pay. And if you follow my advice, you could be the lucky guy reaping the benefits while the others do rain dances in hopes of getting something out of their third baseman.

For more baseball coverage, check out our list of Each Team's Biggest Target Heading Out of Spring Training.

Eva Green Lauren Conrad Arielle Kebbel Jessica Paré Leelee Sobieski