Top Ten Chicago baseball players (by position)

A month ago, Phil posted the Top Ten best baseball players in the city. That list featured five pitchers, two left fielders and nobody on the right side of the infield, hardly a complete baseball team. So now, with Opening Day merely hours away, here are the Top Ten Chicago baseball players featuring one player at every position, voted on by the TTCS staff.

10: Starting pitcher- Carlos Zambrano over John Danks

The Cubs are hoping to get six months of Zambrano’s 2008 first half, when he went 10-3 with an ERA of 2.84. The Sox are praying for the same out of Danks, who pitched 30 more innings and allowed four fewer earned runs before the All-Star break than after. Z earned the edge due to better pitching stats, longevity and because I am honestly scared of insulting him.

9: Relief pitcher- Bobby Jenks over Carlos Marmol

Kind of an obvious one, considering Marmol wasn’t good enough in spring training to beat out Kevin Gregg for the Cubs’ closer job. He still has some nasty stuff, but needs to develop the consistency that Jenks has acquired. The Sox closer has averaged 37 saves a season over the past three years and is a key to the Sox’s success in 2009.

8: Catcher- Geovany Soto over AJ Pierzynski

AJ is one of the most polarizing figures in recent Chicago baseball memory: adored on the South Side, hated on the North. That makes this selection even sweeter for Cub fans, who before Geo broke out last year, hadn’t seen a quality catcher since Randy Hundley. Soto was an All-Star starter last season and should have that spot on lockdown for the next decade or so.

7: First base- Derrek Lee over Paul Konerko

Lee had a strange season in 2008, hitting only 20 home runs, his lowest in a season where he played at least 100 games since 1997. At the same time, he still hit over .290 and drove in 90 runs. Konerko’s season was also up-and down, mainly due to an oblique injury that forced him to miss 40 games. He did turn it on towards the end of the season, hitting nine home runs in September and October.

6: Second base- Mike Fontonoet over Chris Getz

In the battle of two first time starters, the Cubs lefty gets the edge based on experience and expectations. Getz saw limited action last season for the Sox, earning only seven at-bats in ten games, but is expected to be a solid addition to the lineup in ’08. Ozzie and Co. will be pleased if he posts numbers comparable to Fontenot’s 2008, where he hit .305 with 40 RBI in a part-time role, while Lou is expecting #17 to continue his improvement.

5: Shortstop- Alexei Ramirez over Ryan Theriot

The Cubs shortstop hit .307, stole over 20 bases and played solid defense, yet still was unanimously voted against in this matchup. That just showed how good the Cuban Missile is, even without ever playing shortstop before. Assuming he takes more than 18 walks this year- Theriot had 73 despite hitting much higher in the batting order- this position will be Ramirez’s for a long time.

4: Third base- Aramis Ramirez over Josh Fields

Of the ten positions, this one is probably the widest gap between the Cubs and Sox. Fields has been a top prospect for the South Siders for a while, and with Joe Crede now on the division-rival Twins, the former Oklahoma State quarterback will have to prove the hype was for real. But he’s not even in the same discussion as Aramis, who is right up there with A-Roid, David Wright and Chipper Jones as the best hot corners in MLB. Expect another .290 average, 30-plus homers and 110 or more RBI season from Ramirez in ‘09.

3: Right field- Jermaine Dye over Milton Bradley

As the biggest addition to either team over the winter, Bradley has a lot to prove to the Wrigley faithful, mainly involving his health and his temper. He also has to prove that he can be as consistent as JD, who has played 138 or more games and hit 28 or more homers each of the past four seasons.

2: Center field- Fukudome/Johnson over Wise/Anderson

So you know how compelling this matchup is, two of the five votes for center field went to an unlisted option C: neither. Yeah, it might be rough up the middle for both the Cubs and Sox. Kosuke Fukudome and Reed Johnson earn the slight edge on Dewayne Wise and Brian Anderson, but that’s like saying being poked in the eye feels slightly better than a punch to the stomach.

1: Left field- Carlos Quentin over Alfonso Soriano

In 2008, Quentin hit .288 with 36 homers and 100 driven, all superior to Soriano’s .280, 29 and 75. On the other hand, Soriano had 11 outfield assists and only five errors, compared to Q’s five assists and seven errors. So basically, these two are almost identical. The slight edge went to the Sox left fielder because he is six years younger and is asked to do more as a middle-of-the-order hitter.