Welcome to the fourth edition of the second base preview! This week will be part one of a two-part best ball series. I personally love playing in many best ball leagues and find there are many different strategies you can take that lead to hitting the money. This week we will take a look at BB10’s and how to go about drafting the second base position. Next week we will take a look at RTSports in the same way. There are a few other sites that offer the best ball format, but these are the two I play the most and would recommend either. Let’s dive in!  

Roster Configuration and Scoring

BB10’s are 12 team leagues that use a weekly points system. They offer three types of contest payouts: Top-3, 2X, and classic. 

Key things to take note of (for second baseman):

  1. Deep bench; 20 of your 33 roster spots are your bench. This allows you to take more routes with your draft and puts less of a focus on multi-position players (though they multi-position guys are always good in best ball formats) 

  2. Only TWO outfield slots and FOUR pitching slots. That is far different from anywhere else I’ve seen. I don’t think it changes the value of pitchers too much, but it certainly makes top outfielders less valuable in my opinion, thus making all other hitting positions slightly more important. 

  3. With at-bats being -1.00 and walks (and hit by pitches) only canceling that out, walks are not good in this format, base hits carry far more weight.

  4. Doubles and triples are no better than a single. 

  5. No penalty for hitters striking out. 

  6. No penalty for hitters being caught stealing. 

Position Flexibility

As stated above, players who can play multiple positions are great for the best ball format because it gives you a better chance at a higher scoring optimized lineup. Of the second baseman being drafted in the top-20 (at the position), six of them play only second base: Jose Altuve , Ozzie Albies , Keston Hiura , Cavan Biggio , Gavin Lux , and Brandon Lowe . Of those same top-20, three of them are eligible at three positions: DJ LeMahieu , Max Muncy , and Jeff McNeil . It is wise to give all multi-position eligible players a slight bump in value (sometimes a big bump, depending on the site) and is something to keep in mind when playing in any best ball league. 

Best Targets

DJ LeMahieu (1B/ 3B / 2B – ADP: 35.5) – LeMahieu is being selected as the fourth-second baseman off the board, but he was just 10 points shy of being the top-scoring player at the position last season. Not only was he nearly the top scorer last season, but he also brings that three-position eligibility to the table. He consistently hits over .300 and doesn’t walk a lot, which is perfect in this format. He is expected to hit leadoff for one of the highest-scoring offenses in baseball. 

Jeff McNeil (OF / 3B / 2B – ADP: 64.5) – We love the three positions that he brings to the table and he is a hits machine. He is expected to bat leadoff for the Mets and should be in a prime spot to accrue a lot of runs scored. His poor stolen base rate from last season (5 steals, 11 attempts) does not matter in this format, so we just have to hope he keeps going for them. 

Mike Moustakas (2B / 3B – ADP: 80.4) – I like the move to Cincinnati for Moustakas and he is slated to hit cleanup in what should be a high scoring offense. He will have plenty of RBI opportunities and his power will play greatly in The Great American Ballpark (Reds home field). His added 3B eligibility is a nice cherry on top to a nice value at his ADP. 

Niko Goodrum (2B / SS / OF – ADP: 235.0) – I love a guy like Goodrum in this format for two reasons: cost and flexibility. With an ADP north of 200, he is very easy to land and he can play three crucial positions. If he has a good week, there’s a strong chance he cracks your lineup somewhere and drafting players like him allows you to draft more pitchers. 

Worst Targets

Gleyber Torres (2B / SS – ADP: 25.3) – Torres is a really good ballplayer, but he’s getting overvalued a bit here. He is being selected as the first second baseman off the board, but despite a great season last year, he finished as the seventh-highest scoring player at the position with 687 points. That was over 100 points fewer than Ketel Marte (799) and LeMahieu (789). Torres isn’t a terrible pick, but he is being overvalued and there are better routes to take. 

Cavan Biggio (2B – ADP: 115.3) – I don’t want to keep beating a dead horse here, but I have no idea what people are thinking drafting this guy at 115 in this format. He sucks at hitting and draws a lot of walks… in a format where hits dominate and walks are useless. On top of that, he only plays second base! This is not only the worst second baseman you can take; he’s one of the worst overall values of any position in this format. He shouldn’t be going in the top-150 picks, let alone have an ADP of 115. Fade. 

Brandon Lowe (2B – ADP: 157.9) – Like Biggio, there are many reasons to not like Lowe. He hit .270 last season, which is fine, but his .244 xBA tells me not to expect a repeat performance in the hitting department. Next, we have to consider playing time issues. He struggled against lefties last season (hitting just .242) and could easily find himself on the bench when the Rays face a lefty. If those two things aren’t enough, he also only plays second base.