Most valuable hitters?

[Ben (Rays GM)]

I'm curious which players the league thinks have the most value when taking into account how many years they're under control for. Which guys have the most value to their teams? Who has the most trade value?

Is it an elite player who's only under control for just one more year like Pujols or Hanley Ramirez, or two years like Troy Tulowitzki? There are a few top guys under control for three years like Evan Longoria, Joey Votto or Carlos Gonzalez, and if you want a guy for four years you might take a look at Andrew McCutchen, Jacoby Ellsbury, Casey McGehee, Brett Gardner, Gordon Beckham, Colby Rasmus, or Elvis Andrus. Maybe you'd prefer one of the two catchers under control for five years like Buster Posey or Carlos Santana. Other guys under control for five years include Jason Heyward, Mike Stanton, Logan Morrison, Starlin Castro, Ike Davis, and Austin Jackson. Then there are also the prospects; do you go with guys who are nearly major league ready like Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Domonic Brown, Freddie Freeman, Brandon Belt, or Desmond Jennings? Or do you go with someone a little further away like Bryce Harper or Mike Trout? Who am I missing?

[angels]

I think guys like Longeria, Gonzalez and Votto are the most valuable because they are proven and cost controlled for years.

[drewosborne]

It's the guys in the middle that have already proven MLB value. Guys coming up like Mous and Hos are great to have, but those guys fizzle also. That's why in the first year, I have traded for a guy that is an MVP type player with two years to go and why I'm still trying to get a guy with 3 years....

[Ben (Rays GM)]

Yeah, Longoria, Votto, and Gonzalez are definitely up there. Of the guys who you expect to be first or second round fantasy players next year, they're the only ones who have three years left. But Posey is probably a third round player and he's got five years left, so he's gotta be in there. And then there's Heyward with five years...

Those are probably my top five. Although I think Gonzalez is a bit overrated, so I could see replacing him with one of the four year guys (McCutchen's gotta be the best of that bunch) or fifth year guys (Santana, or Stanton if you're worried about Santana's injury and his durability as a catcher).

Votto, Longoria, Heyward, Posey are my top four though.