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Top 10 fantasy baseball second basemen for the 2023 season

By Michael Cahill

ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 22: Marcus Semien #2 of the Texas Rangers hits a run scoring double against the Los Angeles Angels during the third inning at Globe Life Field on September 22, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 22: Marcus Semien #2 of the Texas Rangers hits a run scoring double against the Los Angeles Angels during the third inning at Globe Life Field on September 22, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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We continue on in our fantasy baseball rankings, this time with second basemen. This is one of the weaker positions in fantasy baseball, with an elite few at the top, a decent few at the back of the list and in the just missed section, and not much to speak of after that.

This list is a ranking of the top 10 fantasy baseball second basemen you should target for your team.

First, a few second basemen who just missed the list:

Trevor Story was right around league average in his first season in Boston. He slashed .238/.303/.434/.737, which is an OPS+ of 102. He hit 16 homers, 22 doubles, drove in 66 runs, and scored 53. He missed significant time in the second half, and he will miss at least the first half of 2023 as well. If you want to draft him and stash him in the hopes of him playing in the second half, that’s a route you can take, just know that there aren’t any guarantees.

Ketel Marte had an up-and-down season in 2022 and is looking to return to his elite form. He slashed just .240/.321/.407/.727, which is an OPS+ of 106. He hit 12 homers, 42 doubles, drove in 52 runs, and scored 68. He’s been an every-other-year performer for a few years now, and if that pattern continues, 2023 will be a good one. In 2018, he had an OPS+ of 102, it jumped to 149 in 2019, returned to 97 in 2020, jumped to 143 in 2021, before returning to 106 last year. He is a strong bounceback candidate.

Brendan Rodgers is coming off of two solid years in Colorado, but I think there’s more in the tank for him. In 2022, he slashed .266/.325/.408/.733, which is an OPS+ of 96. He hit 13 homers, 30 doubles, drove in 63 runs, and scored 72. He improved his walk rate pretty drastically, from 4.6% in 2021 to 7.9% last year. There’s also more power that he has yet to tap into. His ground ball rate is still way too high at 52.2% last year. If he can hit the ball in the air more, he is a prime breakout candidate. If you have keepers, he is one to think about as a stash-away run the final rounds as he is scheduled for shoulder surgery that could cost him the 2023 season.

Isaac Paredes broke out last year in Tampa. He slashed .205/.304/.435/.740, good for a 114 OPS+. He hit 20 homers, 16 doubles, drove in 45 runs, and scored 48 in 111 games. Contact is always going to be in issue, but he doesn’t strike out as much as you’d think (17.6% strikeout rate) and he takes his walks too (11.5% walk rate). His BABIP was very low last year at .195, so expect a bump in his slashline across the board.

These are all guys that you should be content with on your fantasy baseball teams. With the honorable mentions out of the way, let’s look at the top 10 fantasy baseball second basemen you should target for your team in 2023.

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