2011 Fantasy Baseball Rankings: OF

Three great outfielders battled mercilessly for the top spot in our 2011 fantasy baseball rankings. Each has his merits, and all should be selected in the first round of your drafts.

Ryan Braun is the most highly regarded, topping most sets of rankings at the outfield position. He had a down year for power last season, never managing to go on a big home-run binge. However, he's a five-category contributor, hitting over .300 while notching at least 100 runs and 100 RBIs in each of the last two seasons. He's also hit 57 HRs and stolen 34 bases over that two-year stretch. At 27 years old, he's as rock solid as they come.

Carl Crawford is another play used to being selected high in fantasy drafts. Throw out a 2008 season hit by injury and Crawford has hit at least .300 with more than 10 HRs and 45 SBs in every year since 2005. Oh, and in 2004 he only fell short of that feat in average, where he hit "just" .296. In Boston, Crawford will be surrounded by great hitters and should enjoy another fantastic statistical season.

The new kid on the block is Carlos Gonzalez, who hit .336 with 34 HRs, 117 RBIs, 111 runs and 26 SBs, MVP-type numbers. He's pretty average on the road, so he may hold less value to those in head-to-head leagues, but there was no better hitter in the game in his home ballpark last season. Expected regression -- I don't think he's anywhere near a .336 hitter long-term -- causes Gonzalez to come in just behind Braun and Crawford.

1. Ryan Braun, MIL
2. Carl Crawford, BOS
3. Carlos Gonzalez, COL
4. Matt Holliday, STL
5. Josh Hamilton, TEX
6. Jose Bautista, TOR
7. Nelson Cruz, TEX
8. Matt Kemp, LAD
9. Shin-Soo Choo, CLE
10. Andrew McCutchen, PIT
11. Jason Heyward, ATL
12. Andre Ethier, LAD
13. Hunter Pence, HOU
14. Jayson Werth, WAS
15. Jacoby Ellsbury, BOS
16. Shane Victorino, PHI
17. Alex Rios, CWS
18. Ichiro Suzuki, SEA
19. Corey Hart, MIL
20. Jay Bruce, CIN
21. Justin Upton, ARI
22. Delmon Young, MIN
23. Torii Hunter, LAA
24. Mike Stanton, FLA
25. Drew Stubbs, CIN
26. Curtis Granderson, NYY
27. Chris B Young, ARI
28. Vernon Wells, LAA
29. Nick Markakis, BAL
30. Carlos Lee, HOU
31. B.J. Upton, TB
32. Jason Bay, NYM
33. Bobby Abreu, LAA
34. Grady Sizemore, CLE
35. Juan Pierre, CWS
36. Michael Cuddyer, MIN
37. Nick Swisher, NYY
38. Colby Rasmus, STL
39. Adam Jones, BAL
40. Carlos Quentin, CWS
41. Angel Pagan, NYM
42. Aubrey Huff, SF
43. Michael Bourn, HOU
44. Adam Lind, TOR
45. Rajai Davis, TOR
46. Ben Zobrist, TB
47. Austin Jackson, DET
48. Carlos Beltran, NYM
49. Travis Snider, TOR
50. Raul Ibanez, PHI
51. Jose Tabata, PIT
52. Brett Gardner, NYY
53. Andres Torres, SF
54. Vladimir Guerrero, BAL
55. Denard Span, MIN
56. Manny Ramirez, TB
57. Marlon Byrd, CHC
58. Magglio Ordonez, DET
59. Lance Berkman, STL
60. J.D. Drew, BOS
61. Alfonso Soriano, CHC
62. Jason Kubel, MIN
63. Coco Crisp, OAK
64. Desmond Jennings, TB
65. Logan Morrison, FLA
66. Ryan Raburn, DET
67. Franklin Gutierrez, SEA
68. Alex Gordon, KAN
69. Dexter Fowler, COL
70. Garrett Jones, PIT

• If you just don't pick high enough to nab one of our top three outfielders, Matt Holliday is an excellent alternative. He's been stellar since coming to St. Louis, posting a .353/.419/.604 line after being traded to the Cardinals in 2009 and then hitting .312 with 28 HRs last season. With Albert Pujols anchoring the lineup for at least one more season, Holliday should enjoy plenty of lineup protection and post another great fantasy line in the process.

• Youngster Jason Heyward was in the middle of breaking out in his first Major League season before injury caused his numbers to tank in June, when he hit .181 in the month. He also managed just one home run over 153 at-bats in June and July combined. He finished the season strong and is primed to make a run at a Holliday-like .300 average with 20-plus home runs. He's being drafted earlier and earlier in leagues, for good reason -- he's one of the best young players in the game.

• Mike Stanton is another young outfielder taking the fantasy world by storm. A massive strikeout rate will make it hard for Stanton to post a quality batting average, but even at 21 years old he has one of the better power swings in the game. He notched 22 HRs in his rookie season despite receiving just 359 big-league at-bats. He dominated Double-A before his call-up, with 21 HRs in 192 at-bats as well as a .313 batting average. He could produce better than Jose Bautista this year at a fraction of the cost.

• Digging deeper into the position, Juan Pierre has become a bit underappreciated in fantasy leagues. He's generally good for a solid batting average and run total while posting league-leading numbers in the steals category. Consider how high owners are willing to take low-average, high-power hitters. Doesn't Pierre give you almost as much upside in fantasy leagues while coming at a much cheaper cost? You'll obviously have to balance a selection of Pierre with power in your lineup, but odds are you've drafted plenty of power by the time Pierre has been selected.

• Keep an eye on Desmond Jennings. The five-tool fantasy star has bred easy comparisons to Carl Crawford, the man whom he'll be responsible for eventually replacing in the lineup. The Rays brought in veterans Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez to hold the fort, but Jennings should see the field as soon as the Rays have passed the cut-off point to start his arbitration clock the following year. The 24-year-old OF hit .278 with 37 SBs in 399 at-bats last season, so he should be good for a speed boost to your fantasy lineup the second he steps on the field.