Sometimes in fantasy sports, you find a player who everyone and their mothers are infatuated with. And sometimes, said player gets a lot of love for numbers that just don't add up.

This can occur for any number of reasons: perhaps a player's supporting cast has improved or maybe he's in a contract year and folks are expecting career-high stats. Whatever the reason, remember that fantasy baseball is about numbers, not names.

Look at Atlanta Braves outfielder Andruw Jones. How many fantasy owners traded him mid-season (while barely hitting over .200 and not driving the ball) to poor saps who thought that Mr. Jones was due for a breakthrough? Those of you who acquired him probably kicked yourselves all the way to the finish line, but at least you learned a valuable lesson.

Just because a guy's a household name, doesn't mean he is guaranteed fantasy gold. With that in mind, UPDATE! counts down the five most overrated fantasy players in all of baseball.

New York Mets, OF
2007 Stats: .276 AVG, 33 HR, 112 RBI, 93 R
Comment: Fantasy owners will gush about Beltran to no end, citing his five-tool abilities and power-hitting streaks. He was regularly drafted in the first round of fantasy drafts this season, and those in love with his game will tell you he was worth it. While his season totals are nothing to sneeze at, let's face it, he is not, repeat, NOT worthy of a first round pick. At best Beltran should be a late-second round choice in 2008 drafts. He's always nicked up with some injury or another and his streakiness is maddening. During April, August and September (his best months), Beltran hit .323 with 20 HR, 73 RBI, 55 R and 13 SB in 72 games. But in May, June and July, Beltran was atrocious, hitting just .228 with 13 HR, 39 RBI, 38 R and 10 SB in 72 games. A first-round choice should, above all else, produce consistently. How many losses did Beltran owners in head-to-head league's suffer because of a streaking Beltran?

Seattle Mariners, SP
2007 Stats: 14-7, 3.92 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 165 SO
Comment: Look, we all know that Hernandez is a world-class talent with a seemingly bright future ahead of him. But the kid is just 21-years old and it may take him some time to truly develop. Going into fantasy drafts this season, King Felix was regularly being taken as a Top 10 pitcher, based mostly on his tremendous upside — it certainly wasn't because of his 4.52 2006 ERA. This season Hernandez had a worse strikeout rate than his 2006 campaign and his 4.29 road-ERA made him a tough pitcher to start on a regular basis. However, based on his strong finish to the season &mdash: he finished September with a 4-0 record and a 3.35 ERA — you get the feeling that fantasy owners are going to treat him like a Top 10 pitcher on draft day yet again. Don't make the same mistake as everyone else. Treat him as a No. 3 or No. 4 starter in your 2008 baseball draft.

Chicago Cubs, 1B
2007 Stats: .317 AVG, 22 HR, 82 RBI, 91 R
Comment: When Lee set career-high totals in every category except stolen bases in 2005, the fantasy world stood up and took notice. After playing in just 50 games last season, many viewed Lee as a big time steal in the second or third round, especially with all the off-season additions the Cubs made. Lee made those fantasy owners who drafted him giddy with delight after a .392 April. After all, who cares if a guy who hit 46 HR just two years prior has only one long-ball through the first month? As long as they're hovering around .400, everything is okay. As you can see, Lee's average took a big fall as the season progressed and he ended up hitting less than half of the homers of his breakout 2005 campaign. But the most damning evidence against Lee? His road/home splits. At Wrigley Field, Lee was terrific: .371 AVG, 16 HR, 49 RBI, 55 R and 5 SB in 75 games. But on the road, Lee was anemic, hitting just .265 with 6 HR, 33 RBI, 36 R and 1 SB in 75 games. You may feel tempted to take Lee in the first three rounds, but if there are still a lot of first base options available, pass on this overrated Cub.

New York Mets, SS
2007 Stats: .280 AVG, 12 HR, 57 RBI, 119 R
Comment: If there was a single player who most exemplified the spirit of the "Just Quit" Mets in 2007, it was Reyes. His body language, cocky attitude and lackadaisical play in the field made him the most overrated shortstop in baseball. But it was his inconsistencies, lack of power and his failure to drive in runs that made him the most overrated player in fantasy baseball. After hitting 19 HR and 81 RBI in 2006, people thought it was safe to expect 20-25 HR and 85-95 RBIs from Reyes this season as his game developed. He was regularly drafted No. 2 overall on fantasy boards heading into this season and, boy, did he disappoint. Sure the stolen bases were there, but with that high octane offense, Reyes should have scored 130-plus runs with little difficulty. And 57 RBI from a first round position player? What is up with that? Reyes hit a respectable .280 this year, but from a first rounder, you expect a lot more. His second half was especially disconcerting as he hit just .251 and mustered just five stolen bases in the last month of the year, virtually nullifying his value to head-to-head leaguers that needed him for the playoffs. All in all, it was a horrible season for Reyes and under no circumstances should he be drafted ahead of Florida Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez or Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins heading into the 2008 baseball draft.

Chicago Cubs, OF
2007 Stats: .299 AVG, 33 HR, 70 RBI, 97 R
Comment: Heading into this season, Soriano was a consensus early first-round pick among fantasy owners, who expected big things from a man who hit 46 HR and stole 41 bases a year earlier in the pitcher's ballpark of RFK Stadium. You do not need a genius to see that 70 RBI and 19 SB are disappointing season totals for Soriano, but because those figures came attached to 30-plus HR and just under 100 runs, Soriano was atoned for his fantasy sins. Many owners, unfortunately, are going to look at his late-season surge as a reason to treat him like a first-rounder again in 2008, but a close look at his splits may have fantasy players thinking twice. In June and September, easily his best months, Soriano hit .328 with 25 HR, 45 RBI, 46 R and 3 SB in 56 games. Those are staggering numbers, but if you take a peek at his season totals in the rest of the season, he batted just .278 with 8 HR, 25 RBI, 51 R and 16 SB in 79 games (a pace that would extrapolate to about 50-55 RBI and under 20 HR). Seeing the night and day contrasts in Soriano's game should have fantasy owners weighing their options heavily before snagging him with an early pick come draft day.



Starbonell is UPDATE! Major League Baseball Editor.