By Ray Flowers
April 22, 2008 4:31pm CDT

Who is the most valuable fantasy player going? Are saves "worth" more than stolen bases? How do you compare a hitter to a pitcher on an equal playing field? We at Rototimes have a tool called the Player Rater, and each week I will discuss the top-50 fantasy baseball players based upon the rankings of this tool. Based on the following parameters: mixed league, 12-teams, standard 5x5 scoring, 14 hitters, nine pitchers, with a $260 salary cap.

You can find the actual Player Rater tool here

1. Chase Utley, 2B, PHI: Has homered in five straight games and leads baseball with nine home runs overall, so it's not really hard to see why he is ranked first when you toss in 18 RBI and 17 runs.

2. Hanley Ramirez, SS, FLA: Annihilating pitchers to the tune of a .355-6-16 line from the leadoff spot. What kind of damage could he do from the third hole?

3. Chipper Jones, 3B, ATL: Already dealing with an injury to his leg, but as always, when healthy, few are better. He currently leads the NL in batting average (.453) and is second in OPS (1.235).

4. Derrek Lee, 1B, CHC: Is hitting .358 with seven home runs. He didn't hit his seventh home run last season until July 15th.

5. Michael Bourn, OF, HOU: Is just killing his team's with a substandard .216 batting average but this speedster already has 13 SB in just 19 games, including seven in his last seven games.

6. Mark Reynolds, 3B, ARI: How is this for a hot start? Reynolds has a better batting average (.303) than Ryan Braun, more home runs (six) than Alex Rodriguez, more RBI (19) than Miguel Cabrera and more runs scored (17) than any third baseman not named Aramis Ramirez.

7. Pat Burrell, OF, PHI: With all the attention being heaped on Utley, Burrell has quietly exploded to an NL outfield-leading seven home runs and 19 RBI.

8. Lance Berkman, 1B/OF, HOU: Has scored 18 runs with 14 RBI and three SB for the Astros.

9. Manny Ramirez, OF, BOS: Is only 1-for-7 against lefties, but against right-handers he is hitting .358-6-20 in 67 AB.

10. David Wright, 3B, NYM: Somewhat overlooked in the early going, Wright is off to the best start of his young career, hitting .343 with four HR, 19 RBI and three SB in 18 games.

11. Rafael Furcal, SS, LAD: The Dodgers have all kinds of problems on offense but Furcal is not one of them, as he continues to sizzle right along with a .392 average and 17 runs scored in 19 games.

12. Nate McLouth, OF, PIT: It's an easy game really. McLouth has a hit in all 19 Pirates games this season, which has led to a .375 batting average.

13. Brandon Webb, SP, ARI: The D'Backs best pitcher is 4-0 with a 1.86 ERA and 0.79 WHIP. In four starts, Webb has allowed one run twice and two runs twice.

14. Jacoby Ellsbury, OF, BOS: Taking advantage of the injury to Coco Crisp to run wild with eight SB and 16 runs scored in just 47 AB.

15. Miguel Tejada, SS, HOU: Whether he is 31, 33 or 53, this guy can still rake, as he has two home runs, six RBI and 10 hits over his last five games.

16. B.J. Upton, 2B/OF, TB: Over his last 10 games, he has at least two hits six times to raise his average to .338.

17. Daisuke Matsuzaka, SP, BOS: In five starts, Dice-K is 4-0 with 28 K in 28.2 IP, though he still needs to cut down on the BB (17).

18. Micah Owings, SP, ARI: Is 4-0 with a 2.42 ERA and 0.88 WHIP this year and dating back to the All-Star game last season he has a 1.02 WHIP over his last 98 IP.

19. Conor Jackson, 1B, ARI: Trick question: Which first baseman leads the position in average (.368) and OPS (1.158) and is tied for the lead in runs (18) and RBI (17)?

20. Chris Young, OF, ARI: Has only one home run in his last 11 games but still has five on the year to go along with 17 runs scored.

21. Mike Jacobs, 1B, FLA: Hitting .301 with six home runs, though he just can't figure out lefties (5-for-25 for a .200 average).

22. Eric Byrnes, OF, ARI: Continues to spray the ball all over the field with hits in 16 of 19 games.

23. Albert Pujols, 1B, STL: So far the concerns about his elbow haven't materialized and he's hitting .354 with 19 BB and only six K.

24. Xavier Nady, OF, PIT: Dating back to the start of last season, Nady is hitting .289-24-89-67-4 in 506 AB.

25. Josh Willingham, OF, FLA: An overlooked late-round grab, Josh has five jacks with 13 runs and 11 RBI on the young season.

26. Jake Peavy, SD, SP: Has allowed one or zero runs in three of four starts, leading to a 1.20 ERA and 0.90 WHIP.

27. Ben Sheets, SP, MIL: Will miss his scheduled start on Wednesday because of his triceps injury, but has posted a 0.96 ERA and 0.64 WHIP in four starts.

28. Alex Rios, OF, TOR: The Jays budding superstar has just one home run in six games and just two in 20 contests this season.

29. Aramis Ramirez, 3B, CHC: In his last two games, Aramis has five hits, including two home runs with six RBI to push his OPS to .972.

30. Jason Isringhausen, STL, RP: In nine appearances he has one win and seven saves for the surprising Cardinals.

31. Nick Markakis, OF, BAL: Picked right up where he left of last year and is hitting .313 in the early going. Also showing a lot of patience at the plate, which has led to a stellar .457 OBP.

32. Cliff Lee, SP, CLE: Off to an amazing start with a 0.40 ERA, 0.44 WHIP and 20 K in 22.2 IP, this after being an abject failure last season (6.29 ERA, 1.52 WHIP).

33. Raul Ibanez, OF, SEA: Already has five home runs and 16 RBI despite no long balls in eight games. Still, he has 16 hits in his last 10 outings covering 43 AB (.372).

34. Matt Holliday, OF, COL: Started the year like a 39-year-old back up catcher, going 1-for-14. Since then, he has hit like, well, Matt Holliday (.373-3-11 in 14 games).

35. Justin Upton, OF, ARI: Has kept the average up at .384 but he has failed to go deep in eight games with just one RBI in his last six games.

36. Carlos Zambrano, SP, CHC: 3-1 with a 2.67 ERA in five starts. The biggest difference this season has been his impeccable control, with only five BB in 33.2 IP (1.34 BB/9).

37. Carl Crawford, OF, TB: Has seemingly scored every time he has reached base with 17 runs in 19 games despite a pathetic .279 OBP.

38. Jonathan Papelbon, RP, BOS: In 10 IP he has seven saves, 16 K, one walk and a 0.90 WHIP.

39. Tim Lincecum, SP, SF: As good as advertised, "The Franchise" (what a nickname, by the way) has a 10.56 K/9, a 3.00 K/BB and a 1.57 ERA in his four starts.

40. Josh Hamilton, OF, TEX: The Rangers' slugging outfielder has four bombs and 19 RBI in 20 games, not to mention a .305 batting average.

41. Javier Vazquez, SP, CWS: Picked up where he left off last year and owns a 3-1 record with a 1.14 WHIP and 27 K in 25.1 IP.

42. Joe Crede, 3B, CWS: Though his average has fallen from .406 to .286 the past 10 games, he still has three home runs and eight RBI in that time.

43. John Smoltz, SP, ATL: The ageless wonder has overcome a few minor health issues to dominate hitters in his three starts (all wins) - 0.56 ERA, 1.00 WHIP with 21 K in 16 IP.

44. Ervin Santana, SP, LAA: Well lookie here, we might have found ourselves a pitcher. Santana has a 3-0 record with a 2.76 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and a 3.67 K/BB ratio.

45. Vernon Wells, OF, TOR: The star center fielder has gone cold of late without a home run in 12 games and just three hits in his last 20 AB.

46. Chone Figgins, 3B, LAA: He leads AL third basemen in batting average (.368) and already has seven SB on the season.

47. Bill Hall, OF/3B, MIL: Six home runs and 16 RBI are great, but a .200 batting average and one strikeout for every 3.26 AB are awful numbers.

48. Ian Kinsler, 2B, TEX: Kinsler has five SB in his last 10 games but has only one home run on the season and just six hits in his last 28 AB (.214).

49. Mark Hendrickson, SP, FLA: Off to an early 4-1 start, Hendrickson has just 14 K and 10 BB through 30.2 innings, leading to a poor 4.11 K/9 and a terrible 1.40 K/BB mark.

50. Ryan Ludwick, OF, STL: Has only 48 AB on the season but has used them to great success, leading to a .375 average, four home runs and a 1.257 OPS.