Top 20 Most Valuable Fantasy Players Since 1980

One of the end goals of building the fantasy all-star teams of the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s was creating an all-time ranking of fantasy baseball superstars—the players who have helped people win fantasy leagues with their volume of production in standard 5×5 scoring categories

Those standard categories are batting average, runs, home runs, RBIs and stolen bases for hitters and wins, saves, strikeouts, ERA and WHIP for pitchers. Fantasy baseball was created in 1980, giving us a 40-season sample from which to draw.

To determine the ranking of all-time fantasy stars, I graded players on their best seven seasons, applying more weight to the “worst” of the seven seasons to reward sustained excellence.

In some ways, one can follow the BBWAA awards to determine the best fantasy players ever. After all, the writers don’t award players for mediocre statistics. But baseball writers also consider factors like position played or leadership qualities or key performances in a pennant race. None of that is considered here, nor is the Hall of Fame’s character clause invoked.

The top closers don’t quite measure up to the the value of top hitters or starting pitchers, so no closers are included in this ranking, but the identities of the most valuable since 1980 are no surprise. Billy Wagner ranks No. 1 because of his historic strikeout rate, followed by Craig Kimbrel, Mariano Rivera, Joe Nathan, Trevor Hoffman and Aroldis Chapman.

1. Barry Bonds, OF

Seven MVP awards, 762 home runs, 2,558 walks and five 30-30 seasons—those are all-time records held by Bonds. Actually, he and his father Bobby share the record for 30-30 seasons, but the point is made. Bonds is one of the great offensive players of all time, and even muting one of his greatest real-life skills—he led his league in walks a record 12 times—he impacted all five Roto categories like no other player in the past 40 years.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
2001	36	SFG	476	129	73	137	13	.328	MVP-1
2002	37	SFG	403	117	46	110	9	.370	MVP-1
1993	28	SFG	539	129	46	123	29	.336	MVP-1
2004	39	SFG	373	129	45	101	6	.362	MVP-1
1992	27	PIT	473	109	34	103	39	.311	MVP-1
1996	31	SFG	517	122	42	129	40	.308	MVP-5
1990	25	PIT	519	104	33	114	52	.301	MVP-1

 

2. Randy Johnson, LHP

With five Cy Young Awards, a record six 300-strikeout seasons—including nine league-leading totals—and 303 career wins, Johnson provided immense value as a real-life and fantasy ace. His high innings totals amplified his contributions to ERA and WHIP. What’s most impressive is that Johnson carried a 1.43 WHIP—thanks to a walk rate of 5.7 per nine innings—through his first five seasons and didn’t turn in his first truly great year until he was 29.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
1999	35	ARI	272	17	0	364	2.48	1.02	CYA-1
2001	37	ARI	250	21	0	372	2.49	1.01	CYA-1
2000	36	ARI	249	19	0	347	2.64	1.12	CYA-1
2002	38	ARI	260	24	0	334	2.32	1.03	CYA-1
2004	40	ARI	246	16	0	290	2.60	0.90	CYA-2
1995	31	SEA	214	18	0	294	2.48	1.05	CYA-1
1997	33	SEA	213	20	0	291	2.28	1.05	CYA-2

 

3. Alex Rodriguez, SS/3B 

Rodriguez regularly delivered elite totals in four categories—and factored in stolen bases in a number of seasons. That he spent his first 10 years at shortstop made him perhaps the hottest fantasy commodity ever. That’s why it’s surprising that two of Rodriguez’s three MVP seasons came as the Yankees’ third baseman, and compared with league norms, those two seasons made the largest fantasy impact, too. Rodriguez, Ernie Banks and Vern Stephens (in a wartime season) are the only shortstops ever to led their league in home runs. In fact, Rodriguez led his league five times, which is more than any post-World War II slugger but Mike Schmidt (eight), Ralph Kiner (eight) or Harmon Killebrew (six).

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
2007	31	NYY	583	143	54	156	24	.314	MVP-1
2005	29	NYY	605	124	48	130	21	.321	MVP-1
2001	25	TEX	632	133	52	135	18	.318	MVP-6
1996	20	SEA	601	141	36	123	15	.358	MVP-2
2002	26	TEX	624	125	57	142	9	.300	MVP-2
2000	24	SEA	554	134	41	132	15	.316	MVP-3
1998	22	SEA	686	123	42	124	46	.310	MVP-9

 

4. Pedro Martinez, RHP 

Martinez collected three Cy Young Awards, five ERA titles and a pair of 300-strikeout seasons. He is widely recognized as one of the most dominant pitchers in history but doesn’t get enough credit for his finesse. Martinez is one of 18 pitchers to top 3,000 career strikeouts, and among that exclusive group of power pitchers, he has the best ERA+ and lowest WHIP, including a single-season record 0.74 in 2000, compiled in the heart of a hitter’s era. In fact, Martinez’s 154 ERA+ ranks as the second best since integration, while his 1.05 WHIP ranks fourth best.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
2000	28	BOS	217	18	0	284	1.74	0.74	CYA-1
1999	27	BOS	213	23	0	313	2.07	0.92	CYA-1
1997	25	MON	241	17	0	305	1.90	0.93	CYA-1
2002	30	BOS	199	20	0	239	2.26	0.92	CYA-2
1998	26	BOS	234	19	0	251	2.89	1.09	CYA-2
2003	31	BOS	187	14	0	206	2.22	1.04	CYA-3
2005	33	NYM	217	15	0	208	2.82	0.95

 

5. Albert Pujols, 1B 

Pujols won three MVP awards in the 2000s but probably would have claimed at least one more had he not been in the National League when Barry Bonds was winning four straight trophies from 2001 to 2004. In his 20s and early 30s, Pujols was an all-time great player, hitting .300 in 10 different seasons, topping 40 homers seven times, scoring 100 runs 10 times and driving in 100 runs 14 times. Pujols has tailed off in his late 30s but is poised to pass Willie Mays (660) for fifth on the all-time home run list and Alex Rodriguez (2,086) for third on the RBI list.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
2009	29	STL	568	124	47	135	16	.327	MVP-1
2003	23	STL	591	137	43	124	5	.359	MVP-2
2006	26	STL	535	119	49	137	7	.331	MVP-2
2005	25	STL	591	129	41	117	16	.330	MVP-1
2004	24	STL	592	133	46	123	5	.331	MVP-3
2010	30	STL	587	115	42	118	14	.312	MVP-2
2008	28	STL	524	100	37	116	7	.357	MVP-1

6. Roger Clemens, RHP 

Clemens won a record seven Cy Young Awards, his first in 1986 when he was 24, his last in 2004 when he was 42. That made him a fantasy mainstay who dominated four pitching categories in three different decades. Clemens won 354 games, claimed seven league ERA titles—the most by any pitcher since World War II—and struck out 4,672 batters, the third most all time. 

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
1997	34	TOR	264	21	0	292	2.05	1.03	CYA-1
1998	35	TOR	235	20	0	271	2.65	1.10	CYA-1
1986	23	BOS	254	24	0	238	2.48	0.97	CYA-1
1988	25	BOS	264	18	0	291	2.93	1.06	CYA-6
1991	28	BOS	271	18	0	241	2.62	1.05	CYA-1
1990	27	BOS	228	21	0	209	1.93	1.08	CYA-2
1987	24	BOS	282	20	0	256	2.97	1.18	CYA-1

 

7. Rickey Henderson, OF 

Henderson absolutely dominated two of the five hitters’ categories in fantasy, ranking as the all-time leader with 1,406 stolen bases and 2,295 runs. He has three of the eight 100-steal seasons in major league history and led his league in that category a record 12 times. Only Babe Ruth (eight) and Ted Williams (six) led their league in runs scored more often than Henderson did (five times). Henderson also enhanced his stolen base opportunities with 2,190 walks, second only to Barry Bonds all time.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
1985	26	NYY	547	146	24	72	80	.314	MVP-3
1990	31	OAK	489	119	28	61	65	.325	MVP-1
1982	23	OAK	536	119	10	51	130	.267	MVP-10
1988	29	NYY	554	118	6	50	93	.305	MVP-18
1986	27	NYY	608	130	28	74	87	.263
1984	25	OAK	502	113	16	58	66	.293
1980	21	OAK	591	111	9	53	100	.303	MVP-10

 

8. Jeff Bagwell, 1B

Bagwell owns the only two 30-30 seasons ever from a first baseman, and the only first basemen to steal more career bases than Bagwell (202) all began their careers more than 100 years ago. Bagwell’s steals gave him an added dimension at a position devoid of speed, making him a true five category first baseman who regularly hit .290 and topped 30 homers, 100 RBIs and 100 runs.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
1994	26	HOU	400	104	39	116	15	.368	MVP-1
1999	31	HOU	562	143	42	126	30	.304	MVP-2
2000	32	HOU	590	152	47	132	9	.310	MVP-7
1997	29	HOU	566	109	43	135	31	.286	MVP-3
1998	30	HOU	540	124	34	111	19	.304
2001	33	HOU	600	126	39	130	11	.288	MVP-7
1996	28	HOU	568	111	31	120	21	.315	MVP-9

 

9. Greg Maddux, RHP 

Maddux never had the best stuff in baseball, but he had the best command and the most efficient plan. He won four Cy Young Awards in a row from 1992 to 1995, recording a 1.98 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in that span while leading the league in innings each season. Maddux’s durability is remarkable and his reliability critical to his fantasy value. Among pitchers to debut in the past 50 years, he is the only one to top 5,000 career innings. The only seasons between 1988 and 2008 that Maddux didn’t make at least 30 starts were the strike-shortened years of 1994 and 1995—and even then he topped 200 innings.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
1995	29	ATL	210	19	0	181	1.63	0.81	CYA-1
1998	32	ATL	251	18	0	204	2.22	0.98	CYA-4
1994	28	ATL	202	16	0	156	1.56	0.90	CYA-1
1993	27	ATL	267	20	0	197	2.36	1.05	CYA-1
1997	31	ATL	233	19	0	177	2.20	0.95	CYA-2
1992	26	CHC	268	20	0	199	2.18	1.01	CYA-1
2000	34	ATL	249	19	0	190	3.00	1.07	CYA-3

 

10. Ken Griffey Jr., OF

“The Kid” was the transcendent star of the 1990s. He hit for average, he popped 40 homers seven times, drove in 100 runs eight times and swiped at least 15 bags eight times. And that swing! That smile!

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
1997	27	SEA	608	125	56	147	15	.304	MVP-1
1996	26	SEA	545	125	49	140	16	.303	MVP-4
1998	28	SEA	633	120	56	146	20	.284	MVP-4
1993	23	SEA	582	113	45	109	17	.309	MVP-5
1999	29	SEA	606	123	48	134	24	.285	MVP-10
1991	21	SEA	548	76	22	100	18	.327	MVP-9
1992	22	SEA	565	83	27	103	10	.308	MVP-17

 

11. Manny Ramirez, OF 

For all his shortcomings as a defensive player and on the basepaths, Ramirez was a hitting savant who was good for a .300 average, 35 homers and 120 RBIs annually during his prime. Batting fourth for the epic 1999 Indians, the last team to score 1,000 runs, Ramirez drove in 165 runs, the highest single-season total since the high-scoring 1930s.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
1999	27	CLE	522	131	44	165	2	.333	MVP-3
2005	33	BOS	554	112	45	144	1	.292	MVP-4
2000	28	CLE	439	92	38	122	1	.351	MVP-6
1998	26	CLE	571	108	45	145	5	.294	MVP-6
2008	36	TOT	552	102	37	121	3	.332	MVP-4
2002	30	BOS	436	84	33	107	0	.349	MVP-9
2004	32	BOS	568	108	43	130	2	.308	MVP-3

 

12. Mike Trout, OF

Trout burst on the scene with a Rookie of the Year season in 2012. Three MVP seasons and three MVP runner-up season followed in the next seven seasons. Trout is a fantastic real-life player who does everything on both sides of the ball. He also contributes in all five fantasy categories, too, and has led his league four times in runs scored. Trout loses a bit of ground compared to other fantasy superstars because of comparatively low RBI totals.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
2012	20	LAA	559	129	30	83	49	.326	MVP-2
2016	24	LAA	549	123	29	100	30	.315	MVP-1
2013	21	LAA	589	109	27	97	33	.323	MVP-2
2014	22	LAA	602	115	36	111	16	.287	MVP-1
2019	27	LAA	470	110	45	104	11	.291	MVP-1
2015	23	LAA	575	104	41	90	11	.299	MVP-2
2018	26	LAA	471	101	39	79	24	.312	MVP-2

 

13. Frank Thomas, 1B 

Big Frank won back-to-back American League MVP awards in 1993 and 1994 and had three other top-three finishes. In his prime he was a four-category monster who had four seasons with at least a .300 average, 40 home runs, 100 RBIs and 100 runs. Since integration, only Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols and Willie Mays had more. The 1994 strike cost Thomas a chance at a fifth .300-40-100-100 season. He missed by two home runs when the season came to a premature end in mid-August.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
1994	26	CHW	399	106	38	101	2	.353	MVP-1
1996	28	CHW	527	110	40	134	1	.349	MVP-8
1997	29	CHW	530	110	35	125	1	.347	MVP-3
1993	25	CHW	549	106	41	128	4	.317	MVP-1
2000	32	CHW	582	115	43	143	1	.328	MVP-2
1992	24	CHW	573	108	24	115	6	.323	MVP-8
1991	23	CHW	559	104	32	109	1	.318	MVP-3

14. Miguel Cabrera, 3B/1B 

Cabrera has won four batting titles and has led his league in home runs and RBIs twice each. In 2012 he put everything together to win the first major league Triple Crown since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. Cabrera’s 12 seasons with at least 100 RBIs are third most since integration, trailing only Alex Rodriguez and Albert Pujols.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
2013	30	DET	555	103	44	137	3	.348	MVP-1
2012	29	DET	622	109	44	139	4	.330	MVP-1
2010	27	DET	548	111	38	126	3	.328	MVP-2
2011	28	DET	572	111	30	105	2	.344	MVP-5
2006	23	FLA	576	112	26	114	9	.339	MVP-5
2014	31	DET	611	101	25	109	1	.313	MVP-9
2005	22	FLA	613	106	33	116	1	.323	MVP-5

 

15. Larry Walker, OF

Diametric forces acted on Walker’s time with the Rockies, which lasted 10 seasons. On the one hand he received a boost from Coors Field, the best hitting environment in major league history. But on the other, he averaged roughly 120 games per season as he dealt with nagging injuries. Walker’s MVP campaign in 1997 is perhaps the best fantasy season since 1980, and from that year through 2001, he hit .357 in more than 2,200 at-bats.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
1997	30	COL	568	143	49	130	33	.366	MVP-1
1999	32	COL	438	108	37	115	11	.379	MVP-10
2001	34	COL	497	107	38	123	14	.350	MVP-24
2002	35	COL	477	95	26	104	6	.338	MVP-20
1998	31	COL	454	113	23	67	14	.363	MVP-17
1995	28	COL	494	96	36	101	16	.306	MVP-7
1992	25	MON	528	85	23	93	18	.301	MVP-5

 

16. Max Scherzer, RHP 

Scherzer entered rarified air when he won his third Cy Young Award in 2017. Every other pitcher in the thee CYA club is enshrined in the Hall of Fame, save for special case Roger Clemens and the active Clayton Kershaw. Scherzer is at least two seasons away from 200 wins and 3,000 strikeouts, benchmarks that would all but punch his ticket to Cooperstown.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
2018	33	WSN	221	18	0	300	2.53	0.91	CYA-2
2017	32	WSN	201	16	0	268	2.51	0.90	CYA-1
2016	31	WSN	228	20	0	284	2.96	0.97	CYA-1
2015	30	WSN	229	14	0	276	2.79	0.92	CYA-5
2013	28	DET	214	21	0	240	2.90	0.97	CYA-1
2019	34	WSN	172	11	0	243	2.92	1.03	CYA-3
2014	29	DET	220	18	0	252	3.15	1.18	CYA-4

 

17. Clayton Kershaw, LHP

It’s easy to take Kershaw’s historic standing for granted because he’s been so consistent since he emerged as the Dodgers’ ace as a 21-year-old in 2009. No starting pitcher since World War II has a lower ERA (2.44) or WHIP (1.00) than Kershaw. The only thing holding him back from a fantasy perspective are lower innings totals, which mute the overall value of his shiny rate stats.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
2015	27	LAD	233	16	0	301	2.13	0.88	CYA-3
2014	26	LAD	198	21	0	239	1.77	0.86	CYA-1
2011	23	LAD	233	21	0	248	2.28	0.98	CYA-1
2013	25	LAD	236	16	0	232	1.83	0.92	CYA-1
2017	29	LAD	175	18	0	202	2.31	0.95	CYA-2
2012	24	LAD	228	14	0	229	2.53	1.02	CYA-2
2010	22	LAD	204	13	0	212	2.91	1.18

 

18. Sammy Sosa, OF

Sosa is the only player in history to hit 60 home runs in a season and not lead his league—and he did it three times. At least he got some measure of redemption by leading the National League with 50 homers in 2000 and 49 in 2002. In his best seasons, Sosa put up monster totals for homers and RBIs while hitting for high averages.

Year	Age	Tm	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	Award
2001	32	CHC	577	146	64	160	0	.328	MVP-2
1998	29	CHC	643	134	66	158	18	.308	MVP-1
2002	33	CHC	556	122	49	108	2	.288	MVP-9
2000	31	CHC	604	106	50	138	7	.320	MVP-9
1999	30	CHC	625	114	63	141	7	.288	MVP-9
1995	26	CHC	564	89	36	119	34	.268	MVP-8
2003	34	CHC	517	99	40	103	0	.279	MVP-8

 

19. Curt Schilling, RHP

The ace or co-ace for four World Series rotations—1993 Phillies, 2001 D-backs, 2004 Red Sox, 2007 Red Sox—Schilling retired with the best strikeout-to-walk ratio in history. Five pitchers of the 2010s, headed by Chris Sale, have surpassed him. Schilling posted three 300-strikeout seasons, which is the same total as Sandy Koufax and more than any pitcher in history but Nolan Ryan and Randy Johnson.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
2002	35	ARI	259	23	0	316	3.23	0.97	CYA-2
1997	30	PHI	254	17	0	319	2.97	1.05	CYA-4
2001	34	ARI	257	22	0	293	2.98	1.08	CYA-2
1998	31	PHI	269	15	0	300	3.25	1.11
2004	37	BOS	227	21	0	203	3.26	1.06	CYA-2
2000	33	TOT	210	11	0	168	3.81	1.18
2006	39	BOS	204	15	0	183	3.97	1.22

 

20. Justin Verlander, RHP

The consistent greatness and durability of Verlander may be underappreciated. He has more top-five Cy Young Award finishes (eight) than all but three pitchers in history: Roger Clemens (10), Greg Maddux (nine) and Randy Johnson (nine). Verlander has fronted eight October rotations and has accumulated the sixth-most postseason innings and the highest strikeout total. But it’s the 225 regular-season wins, 3.33 ERA and 3,006 strikeouts that fantasy owners noticed the most.

Year	Age	Tm	IP	W	SV	SO	ERA	WHIP	Award
2019	36	HOU	223	21	0	300	2.58	0.80	CYA-1
2018	35	HOU	214	16	0	290	2.52	0.90	CYA-2
2011	28	DET	251	24	0	250	2.40	0.92	CYA-1
2009	26	DET	240	19	0	269	3.45	1.18	CYA-3
2016	33	DET	228	16	0	254	3.04	1.00	CYA-2
2012	29	DET	238	17	0	239	2.64	1.06	CYA-2
2010	27	DET	224	18	0	219	3.37	1.16	CYA-11