Fantasy Baseball Player Rankings & Projections
2010 Outfield Preseason Preview
Justin Upton
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He is a monster talent who can finish.as
high as number one if he reaches his full potential, but
at age 22 he also remains a gamble if selected too high
in the draft. |
8. Justin Upton - D'Backs - 2010 Preview:
What a breakout season for the 2005 first overall pick. 22-year-old
batted an even .300 and smacked 26 home runs while stealing 20 bases.
As a rookie in 2008 he showed the power by hitting 15 home runs
with 356 at bats, but stole just one base and batted just .250.
The speed was expected, but the rise to .300 so soon was a pleasant
surprise (he was a career .285 hitter in the minors). He cut his
strikeouts down dramatically which is always a great sign for a
young hitter. In 2008 he struck out 34% of the time and that fell
to 26% in 2009. The sky is the limited for the young talent. As
usual, drafting a young player comes with the risk of regression,
but it also comes with the tremendous upside of one Justin Upton.
2009 Statistics:
.300 - 26 HR's - 86 RBI's - 84 Runs
2010 Projection: .288
- 22 HR's - 79 RBI's - 100 Runs
9. Adam Lind - Blue Jays - 2010 Preview:
Possibly the biggest surprise of 2009 (if not, his teammate Aaron
Hill) smashed 36 home runs and knocked in 114 runs in his first
full season as a starter. He hit the fantasy-stud magical marks
of 30 home runs, 100 RBI's and a .300 average. Lind didn't come
out of no where. He batted .318 in his minor league career and hit
55 home runs with 1,581 at bats. So the lefty's sweet-swing if for
real and big things could be in the cards for Lind, but you can
never be too sure with such an inexperienced player. Often they
regress in the second or third years, so don't over draft Lind,
but don't let him fall either.
2009 Statistics:
.305 - 35 HR's - 114 RBI's - 93 Runs
2010 Projection: .288
- 36 HR's - 110 RBI's - 90 Runs
10. Jayson Werth - Philies - 2010 Preview:
The line on Werth is simple. He hit 36 home runs and stole 20 bases
in 2009 after he hit 24 home runs and stole 20 bases with 418 at
bats in 2008. Players like that do not grow on trees, especially
ones who are surrounded by talent like Werth is. It would help if
he were to resign with the Phils so those worries won't hang over
his head, but it could also inspire to play his best ball for a
top contract. Either way he is a 20-20 shoe-in and a 30-30 hopeful.
2009 Statistics:
.268 - 36 HR's - 99 RBI's - 98 Runs
2010 Projection: .270
- 31 HR's - 97 RBI's - 100 Runs
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11. Ichiro Suzuki - Mariners - 2010 Preview:
He is a lifetime .333 hitter who can steal bases and that always
makes for a good starting fantasy outfielder. His stolen bases were
down to a career-low 26, partly due to age, partly due to the Mariners
offense. Suzuki is usually good for 30-40 stolen bases. The Mariners
have made several off season moves to beef up their offense (Chone
Figgins, Casey Kotchman and Milton Bradley) and Suzuki will benefit
by getting better pitches, more runs, more RBI's and possibly more
flexibility in stealing bases.
2009 Statistics:
.352 - 11 HR's - 46 RBI's - 88 Runs
2010 Projection: .338
- 10 HR's - 60 RBI's - 103 Runs
12. Jason Bay - Mets - 2010 Preview:
He only batted .267, but Bay was a fantasy-stud in most other categories.
He belted 36 home runs, 119 RBI's and he even stole 13 bases. He
is a lifetime .280, so his average should improve greatly in 2010,
but his move to New York puts everything in question. Citi Field
turned David Wright into a 10 home-run-hitter and saw Daniel Murphy
lead the team with just 12 home runs. The Mets claim that the hitting
will get better as players adjust to the new park in 2010. Either
way, it just isn't great news that Bay went from Fenway to Citi
Field. It's not to say Bay cannot do as well or even better Bay
is still that good. Let's not forget he played (and did well) in
Pittsburgh for goodness sakes.
2009 Statistics:
.267 - 36 HR's - 119 RBI's - 103 Runs
2010 Projection: .282
- 28 HR's - 104 RBI's - 99 Runs
13. Nelson Cruz - Rangers - 2010 Preview:
He had a monster first half of the season smashing 22 home runs
and stealing 13 bases with 296 at bats. After the All-Star break
he hit a bit of a slump and then he hit the DL and even spent some
time on the bench at the end of the season. He finished the second
half with just 11 home runs, seven stolen bases while batting .255
with 165 at bats. The slump may have been do to the injury, but
either way Cruz would have been a 40 home-run-hitter if he had played
a full season. Any player that is a 40 home run, 20 stolen base
candidate is a dangerous fantasy player. The Rangers have a big-time
offense which includes Vladimir Guerrero, Ian Kinsler, Chris Davis,
Josh Hamilton, Michael Young and Elvis Andrus all of who should
aid Cruz in having a standout 2010.
2009 Statistics:
.260- 33 HR's - 76 RBI's - 75 Runs
2010 Projection: .271
- 36 HR's - 98 RBI's - 93 Runs
