Ryan Howard Will Go High in the Free 2009 Fantasy Baseball Drafts

When the Philadelphia Phillies 1st baseman Ryan Howard swings his bat, he swings for the fences, pure and simple. He is purely a long ball hitter, in 2008 he had 48 Home Runs, 149 RBIs and an anemic .251 batting average. He almost broke the 200 strikeout barrier last year. There is virtually no finese in his swings, it is just a pure, unadulterated power stroke.

I have seen Ryan Howard in the top 5 picks of the 2009 Fantasy Baseball Draft Rankings. I have also seen Howard being picked as low as 17 in the 2009Fantasy Baseball Draft Rankings. Why this discrepancy? He strikes out too often. In the last two years he has struck out 199 in each season. While this can be a liability for some Fantasy Baseball Leagues that subtract strikeouts, there are leagues that don't count strikeouts, these are the leagues where he will be in the top 5 picks.

Ryan Howard was a 2001 Philadelphia Phillies Draft Pick. He is 29 years old, so he is in his prime. He should hit as well, or even better then he has hit in the last three years. He has hit 58, 47 and 48 Home Runs respectively in the past 3 years. 50+ Homeruns in 2009? This isn't asking too much, he should be able to do it, barring an injury. His RBIs are equally respectable - 149, 138 and 146 in 2008. I don't see why he can not hit 150+ in 2009. If Rollins can recover from his subpar 2008 season, and Utley can get on base, Howard should be able to bring them home. I am assuming that Raul Ibanez will be protecting Ryan Howard in the 5th batting position. Ibanez is a consistent hitter who has knocked in over 100 runs in Seattle, a pitcher's park, for the last three years. Ibanez has also been hittling an average .290 in the last three years, so pitchers will have to think twice about walking Howard, who averages about 100 walks a year.

Ryan Howards fielding percentage last year was .988. He committed 19 errors (the most in his career) and was instrumental in 128 Double Plays.

Ryan Howard is also capable of hitting for average, he hit .313 in 2006. Maybe he could duplicate this feat in 2009. I am sure that many Ryan Howard fans would love to see that happen. So, how high you pick Ryan Howard in your 2009 Fantasy Baseball Draft will depend on how your league will treat his strikeouts. In my 2009 Fantasy Baseball Draft, he will go very high, just on his offensive numbers