With the season nearing the official halfway marker, I thought it would be both fun and educational to take a look back at the consensus first round of fantasy baseball using Relative Positon Value. Some of these names have held their own, while others…well, not so much. But just how good/bad they’ve been can be quantified using RPV. To review, RPV take a players point totals and compares them to the Fantasy League Average (or FLA) at that position. The result is a percentage of just how much better than the FLA that player has been in terms of production.

Here’s the tale of the tape using average ADP top 15:

1. Mike Trout +13% RPV

2. Bryce Harper 0%

3. Paul Goldschmidt +14%

4. Clayton Kershaw +43%

5. Josh Donaldson +28%

6. Carlos Correa -1%

7. Giancarlo Stanton -42%

8. Nolan Arenado +26%

9. Manny Machado +14%

10. Andrew McCutchen -30%

11. Anthony Rizzo +19%

12. Miguel Cabrera +7%

13. Jose Altuve +38%

14. Mookie Betts +20%

15. Kris Bryant +9%

To create this RPV, I took a group of the top 16 players at each position with the theory being, most teams have one “ace” pitcher or a No. 1 outfielder. Sixteen is also a nice number that covers most league depths to get a general view. In a 20-team league, these numbers would be even starker, both positively and negatively.

Speaking of negative, let’s talk about Giancarlo Stanton. He was drafted as a No. 1 outfielder and a franchise player. He’s been neither. In fact, he’s a startling -42% RPV below the Fantasy League Average of first tier outfielders. Andrew McCutchen isn’t far from his depths of despair with an embarrassing -30% himself. Mike Trout has been good, not great. Bryce Harper has been average as a No. 1 outfielder. The real gem has been Mookie Betts and his +20% from the 14th overall spot. He’s been a terrific value.

The infielders have been a much sounder investment overall. The “Big 3” at 3B (Donaldson, Arenado and Machado) have all been strong first round investments. Even Kris Bryant’s +9% has been respectable. Anthony Rizzo has been the best of the first basemen, but a strong second half from Paul Goldschmidt could close that gap. Miguel Cabrera hasn’t been the top tier bat we’ve grown accustomed too, and it’s possible we’re seeing a slight decline for this once great slugger. Owners that took the leap on Carlos Correa have gained nothing. Instead they own a Fantasy League Average shortstop. You could argue taking Correa actually set them back based on the players that were passed over in favor of him.

The real gems of the fantasy first round have been Clayton Kershaw’s magnificent +43% over the other best 16 top pitchers (again, not starting pitchers as a whole, just the best of the best he’s still a +43%!) and the diminutive Jose Altuve. Altuve’s +38% over his fellow second baseman has been a boon for fantasy owners, yet some still question his validity as a true franchise fantasy player. They’re just not paying attention.

To re-order this list based on RPV it would look something like this:

1. Clayton Kershaw +43%

2. Jose Altuve +38%

3. Josh Donaldson +28%

4. Nolan Arenado +26%

5. Mookie Betts +20%

6. Anthony Rizzo +19%

7. Paul Goldschmidt +14%

8. Manny Machado +14%

9. Mike Trout +13%

10. Kris Bryant +9%

11. Miguel Cabrera +7%

12. Carlos Correa -1%

13. Bryce Harper 0%

14. Andrew McCutchen -30%

15. Giancarlo Stanton -42%

I guarantee that first round did not exist in any draft last preseason. This weekend we’ll do the same for Auction Leagues to see who’s returned the most value based on Relative Position Value per Dollar (RPVPD). After that, a look at what the RPV first round should look like considering the entire player pool, not just the highest drafted assets during draft season.

Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17) is the seven-time best-selling author of the Fantasy Black Book Series for baseball and football. He hosts Fantasy Sports Tonight on Sirius/XM Fantasy Sports Radio and the Dear Mr. Fantasy Podcast.