Top 5 Tampa Bay Rays Rookies - Fantasy Baseball Draft Strategies 2009

The Tampa Bay Rays are coming back from their 4-1 loss in the World Series in the previous season. The Tampa Bay Rays are looking to continue the momentum of their first excellent season into 2009. The top 5 rookies for the Rays 2009 season are David Price, Wade Davis, Jeremy Hellickson, Tim Beckham, and Jeff Niemann.

#1 Tampa Bay Rays Rookie - David Price - Pitcher - Fantasy Baseball 2009

David Price is pretty much the undisputed best rookie of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, as well as arguably the best rookie in all of baseball. Price is revered by Major League Veterans for his style of pitching. Price pitches in the low 90's, yet maintains excellent control. Price is a very strong choice for the 2009 fantasy draft. According to Mlb.com, Price is coming off an excellent 2008 season, touting a 1.93 in his rookie year. Price is a solid rookie for the 2009 Fantasy Draft as he is likely to continue improving and continue having more excellent appearences in the 2009 season.

#2 Tampa Bay Rays Rookie - Wade Davis - Pitcher - Fantasy Baseball 2009

Wade Davis should be ready to enter the Rays roster some time in 2009. Davis is another strong candidate to continue the trend of strong Rays rookie pitchers. Davis is a strong candidate for the 2009 Fantasy Draft as he is relatively unknown outside of the minor league scene. Davis is touting a 2.72 ERA in his 2008 season, and has been continuing to improve his ERA every year. Being on a powerhouse like the Tampa Bay Rays is likely to excell Davis's career and help him improve further.

#3 Tampa Bay Rays Rookie - Jeremy Hellickson - Pitcher - Fantasy Baseball 2009

The rays seem to have a strong outlook for pitchers in the 2009 season. Hellickson is a solid player, showing command on his pitches as well as consistancy. Consistant players are always a strong choice for the Fantasy Draft as you know what to expect. Although touting a 3.94 ERA according to the Minor League Statistics site for his 2008 season with Montgomery, it was his first year in double A. Hellickson is likely to be an average pitcher, yet very consistant. He is a good choice for the Fantasy Draft of 2009 as he will likely remain stagnant on the rankings.

#4 Tampa Bay Rays Rookie - Tim Beckham - Shortstop - Fantasy Baseball 2009

Beckham is an athletic, supremely talented player with great potential in defensive ability at the Major League level. His actions are solid, fluid and consistant. He has a solid right arm, and shows power as needed. His athletic ability should help him develop further with the bat, though even if he didn't his defensive ability and speed alone would still keep him among the top prospects for the 2009 fantasy draft.

#5 Tampa Bay Rays Rookie - Jeff Niemann - Pitcher - Fantasy Baseball 2009

And rounding out the top 5 rookies for the Tampa Bay Rays 2009 season comes the average and solid pitcher in Jeff Niemann. Niemann hasn't shown explosive performances, or amazing shows. Instead Niemann maintains consistant pitching throughout his season and only seeks improvement on aspects that actually need improvement. His 2009 season is likely to be one of the bench, although he will probably used in a few situations. Look for Niemann in the future to be one of the mainstay pitchers for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Baseball Reference

Tampa Bay Rays Stats

http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/TBR/2008.shtml

Offical Tampa Bay Rays website

Stats

http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=456034