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2021 First Look Fantasy Values: Outfielders

ronald acuna fantasy baseball rankings MLB Injury news DFS lineup picks

Nicklaus Gaut uses the first Steamer projections for the 2021 season to project early fantasy values, comparing them to early ADP, covering outfielders in part three.

The baseball offseason may officially begin with the end of the World Series but the projections offseason began last Thursday night with the release of the first Steamer projections for 2021. Created and maintained by mathematics teacher Jared Cross and his former students, Steamer remains the industry standard for non-aggregated projection systems, as well as forming the basis for many popular projection systems like RazzBall and Depth Charts.

Projections systems aren't perfect. If they were, we'd all be like Biff in Back to the Future II. Every year, different systems perform differently, in regards to accuracy and do better in some years better than others. Some do better with hitters, some with pitchers, and not just overall but within each category. Projections may not be perfect predictions (although, this guy...) but they can provide reasonable starting points, with Steamer consistently providing some of the best.

We started with first and second base, seeing the ascension of Baby Vlad to full-size status and Nick Madrigal standing tall. And then we tried to burn it all down with the most contentious topic America could ever discuss...Adalberto Mondesi, top-five (overall!) fantasy asset. Luckily, RotoBaller is all paid-up on our "Thunderdome" insurance policy, so now we can move on to the outfield and let me get back to doing what I do best...Waxing poetic about Randy "Macho Man" Savage-zarena.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and resources:

 

Methodology

*If you've already read part one on 1B and 2B or part two on SS, thank you! Please skip ahead to p. 349 (Outfielder) to avoid rereading.

As mentioned, I converted  Steamer projections into fantasy dollars using a basic z-score method. As a refresher, z-scores is a popular statistical method for converting the totality of a player's scored categories, into a single number, by putting home runs, stolen bases, etc,  on a level playing field for comparison's sake. This is done by going category by category, calculating how each player's total compares to the rest of the league. Hitting 50 home runs may sound like a lot but not if everyone in the league hit at least 45 HR.

To calculate a z-score, you take the player's stat, subtract the average of the player pool, and then divide by the standard deviation of the player pool. For example, Steamer projects Freddie Freeman to hit 33 home runs, with the average of the player pool being 16.7 HR, with a standard deviation of 10.0.

(33 - 16.7)/10 = 1.6 z

A 0.0 z-score is equal to the league average, so Freeman's 1.6 z-score is saying that his 33 home runs are 1.6 standard deviations above the league average. This method is applied to each category (although the method is different for ratio stats) and each z-score is added together. This total z-score is then divided by the total z-scores in the player pool greater than zero and converted to dollars by dividing it by the total amount of fantasy dollars you have allocated for hitters or pitchers, using your chosen split.

This isn't the only valuation system and I'm not saying it's the best but it is reliable and widely used, much like Steamer. We're not trying to set these valuations and projections in stone, we just want to use them as an early and reliable touchstone as we dive into draft season. So, disagree! Whether in regards to playing time or talent rates, I'll be disagreeing plenty. But at least we'll be starting from a point of reasonableness.

 

Player Pool Caveats

When calculating z-scores, the player pool used is of major importance, with the pool getting watered down the bigger it gets. If you add 100 players who average 2 HR to a pool where the averages is 17 HR, the overall average is obviously going drop. For this exercise, I used a 150 PA minimum and a 12-team standard 5x5 roto league.

Feel free to quibble with the number; you should. I myself use a much more targeted player pool when making my own valuations, curated specifically for fantasy purposes. Pablo Sandoval is projected to hit seven home runs in 153 plate-appearances but do I really want him in my pool of players to be evaluated considering he has a massive negative fantasy value and won't be rostered?

But once again, I'm going for more of a neutral look in these valuations, so the player pool is set at a flat 150 PA, a total of 377 players. Just so you see how much player pool size can change valuations, moving to a 250 PA min leaves you with 305 batters (and the pool only loses eight players that were drafted in the top-430 of the 2 Early mock drafts). Ronald Acuna's top value jumps from $47 to $63; player pool matters.

The last caveat is about catchers, whom I treat as their own separate entity from the general player pool. We can get more into this when we get to them but the values for the other positions are being done without the dumpster fire of catching stats dragging everything down. This has a similar effect as limiting the pool by plate-appearances. For reference, Acuna's value with catchers in the pool is about two dollars lower than without.

Finally, a note about disagreeing and how to adjust. Projections are essentially made up of two building blocks. The playing time components (PA, IP) and the talent-rates, which is each projected stat divided by your chosen denominator (HR/PA, K/batter faced, etc). So keep in mind you might only be disagreeing with the overall value because of one or the other, not necessarily both, parts of the projection.

For example, Andres Gimenez is projected to be a below-replacement player but that's much more about his playing time than his projected talent. If he were to get 600 PA instead of his currently projected 421 PA, his line would be, 14 HR - 65 R - 64 RBI - 33 SB - .247 AVG, and his fantasy value would jump to $11.9, coming in as the #13 shortstop, just ahead of Marcus Semien.

 

Outfielders

Name pos ADP adp_rank stm_rank $ Val PA HR R RBI SB AVG
Ronald Acuna Jr. OF 2.6 2 1 49.1 683 42 115 99 28 .279
Juan Soto OF 5.4 4 2 41.8 651 38 104 109 12 .304
Cody Bellinger 1B,OF 13.8 6 3 36.8 642 40 101 112 12 .282
Mike Trout OF 4.6 3 4 36.4 671 40 116 105 10 .282
Christian Yelich OF 10.9 5 5 36.1 670 35 104 97 18 .279
Mookie Betts OF 2.2 1 6 33.2 685 32 110 88 19 .272
Eloy Jimenez OF 43.7 12 7 27.6 632 39 90 107 1 .288
Luis Robert OF 34.9 8 8 24.8 610 29 79 85 23 .260
Marcell Ozuna OF 37.4 9 9 24.5 647 35 90 104 5 .276
J.D. Martinez UT 80.9 19 10 24.4 651 35 94 106 3 .277
Kyle Tucker OF 38.6 10 11 23.0 618 30 84 91 19 .256
Bryce Harper OF 18.3 7 12 22.2 663 36 97 96 13 .249
Starling Marte OF 42.6 11 13 20.7 646 20 76 77 22 .268
Eddie Rosario OF 97.9 23 14 19.8 630 30 83 100 5 .274
Randy Arozarena OF 116.8 30 15 19.6 627 25 80 78 21 .258
George Springer OF 59.6 15 16 19.3 639 32 97 81 7 .269
Byron Buxton OF 128.4 32 17 19.2 531 26 74 78 19 .264
Giancarlo Stanton UT 102.6 26 18 18.2 588 41 89 103 4 .250
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. OF 94.8 22 19 17.8 618 29 79 91 8 .270
Charlie Blackmon OF 81.1 20 20 17.4 609 25 84 80 6 .284
Franmil Reyes UT 157 39 21 15.8 631 37 87 98 1 .260
Aaron Judge OF 57.2 13 22 15.2 609 36 96 88 6 .248
Alex Verdugo OF 134.1 35 23 15.1 615 16 81 72 8 .291
Michael Conforto OF 72.4 18 24 15.0 648 32 90 92 6 .255
Tommy Pham OF 102.2 25 25 14.6 575 21 80 71 15 .267
Trent Grisham OF 57.8 14 26 14.3 639 24 90 74 15 .253
Anthony Santander OF 184.9 47 27 14.2 639 30 83 90 5 .262
Max Kepler OF 166.8 41 28 13.9 668 31 99 84 7 .250
Michael Brantley OF 145.2 37 29 13.1 606 18 75 79 5 .289
Nick Castellanos OF 85.3 21 30 11.1 651 28 87 87 3 .259
Victor Reyes OF 223.7 55 31 10.2 591 12 69 56 18 .273
Teoscar Hernandez OF 64.1 16 32 9.8 614 31 79 88 9 .240
Victor Robles OF 163.6 40 33 9.3 594 16 68 64 22 .250
Wil Myers OF 111.7 28 34 9.0 622 27 78 81 13 .239
Ian Happ OF 143.2 36 35 8.9 636 29 87 80 9 .240
Jorge Soler OF 126.7 31 36 8.7 616 33 83 89 3 .245
Andrew Benintendi OF 220.6 54 37 8.6 622 17 83 68 13 .257
Randal Grichuk OF 184.3 46 38 8.5 618 32 81 93 3 .246
Ryan Mountcastle 1B,OF 156.7 38 39 8.3 551 24 67 78 3 .275
Ramon Laureano OF 131.9 34 40 7.5 625 23 77 76 11 .248
Andrew McCutchen OF 207.4 51 41 7.2 628 26 87 69 9 .245
Lorenzo Cain OF 265.9 67 42 6.7 604 13 73 56 16 .262
Austin Hays OF 242.2 61 43 6.4 548 23 66 68 11 .255
Kyle Schwarber OF 192.9 49 44 5.9 547 33 79 82 4 .238
Raimel Tapia OF 248 64 45 5.7 557 10 64 55 14 .275
Mike Yastrzemski OF 115.2 29 46 5.0 664 22 84 72 8 .247
Joc Pederson OF 337.6 78 47 4.9 527 29 76 73 4 .249
Bryan Reynolds OF 287.4 71 48 4.5 596 18 71 68 6 .267
Joey Gallo OF 131 33 49 4.3 638 39 85 94 6 .209
Corey Dickerson OF 340 81 50 4.3 573 20 67 69 5 .267
Avisail Garcia OF 367 97 51 4.1 593 21 70 71 8 .254
Mark Canha OF 227.2 56 52 3.9 632 23 79 80 5 .247
Clint Frazier OF 190.1 48 53 3.7 579 25 73 78 6 .245
A.J. Pollock OF - 54 3.2 540 25 69 74 7 .245
Aaron Hicks OF 238.7 60 55 2.7 611 24 81 76 8 .234
Justin Upton OF 353.4 91 56 2.6 572 28 73 81 5 .237
Leody Taveras OF 265.4 66 57 2.5 577 12 66 51 21 .244
Austin Meadows OF 69.1 17 58 2.4 471 20 63 60 10 .256
Josh Naylor OF 382.2 100 59 2.1 490 17 62 63 4 .278
Hunter Dozier 1B,OF 218.2 53 60 1.8 636 21 76 78 5 .246
Myles Straw OF 356 93 61 1.4 490 4 54 42 26 .252
Willie Calhoun OF 272 69 62 0.9 555 23 66 72 2 .257
Dylan Carlson OF 167.4 42 63 0.9 532 18 62 63 11 .249
David Peralta OF 300 73 64 0.8 553 18 64 69 2 .269
Mitch Haniger OF 332.3 77 65 0.5 607 24 77 68 7 .237
Alex Dickerson OF 283 70 66 -0.5 466 18 60 61 2 .275
Brandon Nimmo OF 230.7 57 67 -0.6 616 18 83 61 8 .240
Dominic Smith 1B,OF 101.6 24 68 -0.6 539 22 65 71 3 .252
Adam Duvall OF 271.4 68 69 -0.7 569 30 71 82 2 .231
Kevin Pillar OF 340.9 82 70 -0.9 506 15 56 59 10 .257
Adam Eaton OF 303.9 74 71 -1.2 508 12 65 51 9 .264
Alex Kirilloff OF 339.8 80 72 -1.6 427 14 53 54 6 .277
Stephen Piscotty OF 350.5 89 73 -2.2 541 21 64 69 4 .247
Kole Calhoun OF 213.4 52 74 -2.2 600 25 74 74 4 .232
Nick Senzel OF 232.9 59 75 -2.2 450 14 55 49 13 .252
Ryan Braun OF 403 104 76 -2.9 434 18 54 60 6 .257
Jason Heyward OF 338.2 79 77 -3.0 570 17 67 63 5 .250
Tyler Naquin OF - 78 -3.5 441 15 52 56 5 .268
Kevin Kiermaier OF 255 65 79 -3.5 503 15 54 55 16 .233
Manuel Margot OF 243.1 63 80 -3.6 405 10 46 43 17 .253
Kyle Lewis OF 102.7 27 81 -4.0 654 22 71 75 6 .229
Jackie Bradley Jr. OF 356.3 94 82 -4.4 561 20 65 65 10 .226
Harrison Bader OF 357 95 83 -5.5 495 17 57 56 11 .233
Robbie Grossman OF 326 76 84 -5.6 494 12 59 51 9 .250
JaCoby Jones OF 402 103 85 -5.8 538 16 61 56 11 .233
Yasiel Puig OF 242.2 62 86 -6.2 353 15 44 49 9 .255
David Dahl OF 297.4 72 87 -6.8 413 14 50 51 6 .258
Franchy Cordero OF 396 102 88 -7.2 378 14 46 48 7 .259
Dexter Fowler OF - 89 -7.8 576 18 66 60 8 .225
Andrew Stevenson OF 351.3 90 90 -7.8 488 8 51 45 11 .253
Gregory Polanco OF 364 96 91 -8.0 458 19 53 57 8 .229
Cristian Pache OF 346.9 83 92 -8.5 480 11 52 51 8 .248
D.J. Stewart OF - 93 -9.0 400 17 50 51 5 .243
Shogo Akiyama OF 355.4 92 94 -9.3 391 9 47 38 8 .264
Josh Reddick OF - 95 -9.4 426 12 48 49 3 .264
Roman Quinn OF 347 84 96 -9.6 362 8 39 35 19 .231
Brett Gardner OF 409 107 97 -9.6 452 13 53 49 8 .239
Jesse Winker OF 178.4 45 98 -9.7 347 14 46 44 2 .271
Nomar Mazara OF 407.2 106 99 -10.3 402 17 49 55 2 .246
Jo Adell OF 201.6 50 100 -11.3 487 16 52 56 6 .230
Shin-Soo Choo OF 375.3 98 101 -11.5 433 13 56 41 8 .233
Anthony Alford OF - 102 -11.7 411 9 41 39 16 .227
Oscar Mercado OF 349.2 88 103 -12.0 330 8 39 35 11 .250
Yairo Munoz OF - 104 -12.6 309 9 37 36 8 .259
Delino DeShields OF 417 109 105 -12.6 380 5 42 33 16 .234
Christin Stewart OF - 106 -12.8 437 18 51 54 1 .235
Tim Locastro OF - 107 -13.2 346 6 40 32 12 .246
Nick Markakis OF 176 43 108 -13.3 376 8 42 42 2 .270
Trey Mancini OF 231 58 109 -13.6 309 14 41 41 1 .261
Adam Haseley OF 349 87 110 -14.0 391 10 42 42 4 .254
Ian Desmond OF - 111 -14.9 352 12 40 41 5 .242
Aristides Aquino OF - 112 -15.1 288 16 36 42 4 .234
Jake Bauers OF - 113 -15.5 309 11 37 37 6 .242
Jace Peterson OF - 114 -15.8 365 8 40 37 8 .238
Jay Bruce OF - 115 -16.2 318 16 39 45 2 .232
Adam Engel OF - 116 -16.2 393 9 42 41 8 .230
Jordan Luplow OF - 117 -16.3 300 11 37 38 4 .245
Chas McCormick OF - 118 -16.8 355 8 39 36 7 .239
Sam Hilliard OF 348.6 85 119 -17.3 282 10 32 34 7 .236
Edward Olivares OF 380.3 99 120 -17.5 260 6 28 28 8 .255
Harold Castro OF - 121 -17.6 379 5 36 35 4 .258
Jose Marmolejos OF 415 108 122 -18.2 350 11 36 39 2 .245
Matt Kemp UT - 123 -18.9 317 13 36 39 2 .233
Tyler O'Neill OF 348.9 86 124 -19.2 266 13 32 36 3 .230
Austin Slater OF 311.6 75 125 -20.3 239 7 28 25 5 .251
Rusney Castillo OF - 126 -20.7 250 5 26 26 4 .263
Mallex Smith OF - 127 -21.7 182 2 22 15 11 .241
Taylor Ward OF - 128 -22.1 234 7 27 27 4 .240
Jarred Kelenic OF 177.8 44 129 -22.6 223 7 24 25 5 .236
Jake Marisnick OF - 130 -23.0 213 8 24 25 5 .228

We start with a big disagreement right at the jump, as Steamer strongly disagrees with Mookie Betts being on top of the 2 Early mocks. Well, pardon me but I think I strongly disagree with Steamer. I'm not saying he's my number-one but these projections feel pretty light, especially on batting average.

Since when is Betts a .272 hitter?

Season PA HR R RBI SB AVG wOBA wRC+
2014 213 5 34 18 7 .291 .361 129
2015 654 18 92 77 21 .291 .351 120
2016 730 31 122 113 26 .318 .379 136
2017 712 24 101 102 26 .264 .339 107
2018 614 32 129 80 30 .346 .449 185
2019 706 29 135 80 16 .295 .380 135
2020 246 16 47 39 10 .292 .390 149
Steamer 685 32 110 88 19 .272 .372 137

Projecting Betts to a .284 AVG instead (seven more hits) and keeping everything else the same, would move Betts from sixth to third, finishing behind only Juan Soto and Ronald Acuna Jr.

Speaking of Ronald Acuna Jr., he is in a place where Steamer and ADP definitely agree on his phenomenoness. The only difference is that Steamer thinks he's not only the number-one outfielder but exists in a class of value all by himself:

Name ADP PA HR R RBI SB AVG $ Val
Ronald Acuna Jr. 2.6 683 42 115 99 28 .279 49.1
Juan Soto 5.4 651 38 104 109 12 .304 41.8
Cody Bellinger 13.8 642 40 101 112 12 .282 36.8
Mike Trout 4.6 671 40 116 105 10 .282 36.4
Christian Yelich 10.9 670 35 104 97 18 .279 36.1

Remember when people were worried about Acuna after he started slow, hitting just one home run and stealing one base in his first 15 games and slashing .214/.353/.357? That worry was quickly forgotten after Acuna proceeded to hit 8 HR in his next 11 games, finishing the year with a .413 wOBA and 157 wRC+.

But he also added an all-new wrinkle to his game...Did you know that he had an 18.8% BB%?  There is zero doubt about his power and Atlanta doesn't seem inclined to take away his green light on the basepaths anytime soon. So pitchers can either challenge Acuna and take their chances with the wicked hit stick, or put him on and let him potentially steal his way around. Regardless, that's fantasy gold for us, players.

Just because Juan Soto comes in second in fantasy values doesn't make him any sort of second fiddle. Having only recently turned 22-years-old, Soto continues to put up silly numbers, and going to his Baseball Savant page shows you a sea of red:

Just for good measure, Soto also had a .494 xwOBAcon and 20.9% BB% that was in the top-1% in 2020, in addition to the 1% accolades above, as well as a 14.3% K% that was in the top-9%. He just doesn't have any holes. Like, at all. And no, not on the basepaths either, as Soto continues to be a crafty base stealer. He had 12 SB (1 CS) in 2019 and then had 6 SB (2 CS) in just 47 games in 2020. Steamer projects 12 SB in 2021 but I see that as more of a floor and think 15+ SB is at least on the table.

Well, Steamer thinks the White Sox outfield is going to be pretty decent, with Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert clocking in as the sixth- and seventh-best fantasy outfielders.  Robert and his speed potential is going to make him more appealing to fantasy players, in fact going about nine picks before Jimenez in early ADP. But Steamer sees Eloy as the better overall option, being projected significantly better in every category besides stolen bases, including a nearly 30-point advantage in batting average.

Jimenez raised his average exit velocity on FB/LD from 96.6 mph to 97.7 mph and his barrel-rate from 12.8% to a 16.4% Brl%, putting him in the top-4% of baseball. His K% and BB% both roughly stayed the same from his rookie year, as did his xSLG, xwOBA, and xwOBAcon, but his 55.7% hard-hit rate was an eight-point increase - and in the top-2% of hitters.

But Jimenez didn't just hit the ball harder, with more barrels. He did it across all pitch groups while seeing fewer fastballs, more breaking balls, and still passing with flying colors. Looking at his x-stats, his performance stayed steady against breaking and offspeed pitches but saw significant jumps against fastballs, even as he saw less of them.

Besides that, Jimenez's exit velocities on fastballs and offspeed pitches saw big jumps, giving more indicators that he's not getting fooled by non-fastballs and isn't missing when he does see one:

Year Type % xBA xSLG wOBA xwOBA EV
2019 Breaking 38.2 .228 .464 .328 .308 90.2
2020 Breaking 43.3 .232 .465 .313 .300 90.8
change 5.1 .004 .001 -.015 -.008 0.6
2019 Offspeed 11.6 .236 .400 .329 .300 85.6
2020 Offspeed 11.4 .248 .403 .292 .304 87.3
change -0.2 .012 .003 -.037 .004 1.7
2019 Fastballs 50.1 .305 .593 .357 .396 92.6
2020 Fastballs 45.3 .337 .647 .432 .411 94.3
change -4.8 .032 .054 .075 .015 1.7

No one has ever paid off for me as well as Marcel Ozuna did in 2020 after I ran my mouth on him incessantly (and obnoxiously) throughout the offseason and drafted him on literally every last one of my redraft teams. The payoff was handsome, in terms of fantasy value, with Ozuna earning as a virtual consensus top-five hitter, hitting 18 home runs in 60 games, with 38 runs, 56 RBI, and a .338 AVG. More like, Boom-zuna, am I right? (I slay myself).

There's no sneaking up on your competition in 2021, however, with Ozuna clocking in at a 37 ADP. Steamer ( and me) still thinks that's a fair price, as the projections and ADP both have him as the ninth-best outfielder and a top-25 hitter. The biggest question is where the current free agent will land, as Ozuna spent 2020 in a favorable ballpark with two of baseball's best hitters hitting in front of him.

***We Now Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Programming to Bring To You the Latest Player That Nicklaus Will Talk About Incessantly From Now Until Forever Or Until He Runs Out of Gas. Which is Never...We're Sorry***

In a way, I'm more than a little annoyed that the entire world knows about Randy Arozarena after he broke records for the most home runs, hits, and total bases in a single playoff run. After following him through the minors as a Cardinals fan and then being furious that Tampa Bay rooked John Mozeliak again, I had fully planned on sneakily drafting my man Savage-zarena on every team in 2021. Alas, the only cheap profit I'm going to earn is picking up him up for pennies of FAAB after the Rays traded Jose Martinez, because Randy won't be going cheap after hitting 10 home runs during Tampa's postseason run.

Putting my man(dy) crush aside, I'm not the only one that thinks Arozarena is the real deal because Steamer essentially sees him as Luis Robert -lite ("Now without the 22% SwStr%, only while supplies last!)

I'll just leave this here:

Steamer 2021 ADP PA HR R RBI SB AVG
Luis Robert 35 610 29 79 85 23 .260
Randy Arozarena 117 627 25 80 78 21 .258

Their early ADP suggests that fantasy players believe in 2020's production and are ready to move Trent Grisham and Teoscar Hernandez into a new tier of superstar, but Steamer is projecting caution. That's the rub with projections, isn't it though? Sometimes they can be slow on the uptick with players that either lack a ton of major league plate appearances or have recently leveled up in talent.

In Grisham's case, Steamer really only doubts the speed, projecting him for just 15 SB after he stole 10 bases in the abbreviated 2020 season. If you keep everything else the same but bump him to 25 SB (not outrageous considering he was pacing for 27 SB in 2020) than Grisham's value would jump from OF 26 (#58 overall hitter) to OF 13 (#32 overall hitter). This is right in line with his current draft price of OF 14 and the #36 overall hitter.

There is a much bigger sample for Hernandez, who lit up for 16 HR in 50 games, after hitting a combined 48 home runs in 259 games in 2018-2019 after coming over from Houston in a 2017 trade. Hernandez showing that much pop isn't a big surprise, as he's always had good exit velocities and hard-hit rates. But a .289 AVG in 2020 after a .230 AVG and .239 AVG the previous two seasons, is quite a leap.

That leap, however, is backed with a lot of x-shininess, with Hernandez's large jumps in average, slugging, and wOBA all backed up by their expected-counterparts:

Season PA BA xBA SLG xSLG wOBA xwOBA
2018 523 .239 .238 .468 .506 .328 .347
2019 464 .230 .220 .472 .455 .325 .318
2020 207 .289 .295 .579 .613 .384 .381

Never soft-hitting, Hernandez took his hardness to a new level in 2020:

2019 2020 +/-
Brl% 11.7 18.0 +6.3
Max EV (mph) 112.1 115.9 +3.8
Avg EV (mph) 91.2 93.3 +2.1
FB/LD EV (mph) 96.2 98.2 +2.0
Hard% 42.3 53.1 +10.8

Having an elite barrel-rate and exit velocities doesn't guarantee success, or else Miguel Sano, Joey Gallo, and Gary Sanchez would be the best players in baseball. But it's a solid start. What's just as inspiring is Hernandez's continued improvements against the different pitch grouping, particularly against offspeed pitches and fastballs:

Year Type

%

pa BA xBA SLG xSLG wOBA

xwOBA

2018 Breaking 32.6 153 .250 .217 .472 .435 .322 .297
2019 Breaking 32.2 164 .179 .175 .404 .367 .271 .261
2020 Breaking 32.5 65 .136 .190 .271 .331 .204 .245
Year Type

%

pa BA xBA SLG xSLG wOBA

xwOBA

2018 Offspeed 9.9 52 .188 .217 .313 .350 .236 .279
2019 Offspeed 10.1 52 .224 .210 .388 .325 .263 .247
2020 Offspeed 14.6 37 .286 .262 .514 .496 .350 .327
Year Type

%

pa BA xBA SLG xSLG wOBA

xwOBA

2018 Fastballs 57.5 318 .243 .253 .493 .568 .346 .382
2019 Fastballs 57.7 247 .267 .255 .539 .546 .373 .371
2020 Fastballs 52.9 105 .385 .372 .792 .832 .496 .486

Steamer definitely doesn't agree with his early draft price. Hernandez was drafted around the 40th hitter (64th-overall) in the 2 Early mocks but Steamer projects him as just the 81st-hitter. Only 31 home runs feel light but the big discrepancy is the projected .240 AVG that his drafters have to be assuming is going to be a lot higher.

Speaking of breakouts that Steamer doesn't believe in, Dominic Smith is projected wa-aay below where he's being drafted around pick-100. I disagree pretty strongly with Steamer here, both in terms of his talent and playing-time projections. First, his projected 550 PA feels super-light after he took over full-time duties in New York last season and finished with 199 PA in 50 games. Granted, that was with a DH that the Mets won't have available* in 2021 but considering his competition, I think Smith's bat keeps him in the lineup most every day.

Update: Shortly after this was published, Buster Olney reported ($) that the universal DH is now a "safe bet" for 2021. This would seem to virtually assure that Smith has an everyday role.

In terms of talent, Smith was smoking the ball all season long. He had a .304 xBA (top-5%), .568 xSLG (top-6%), .374 xwOBA (top-8%), and .454 xwOBAcon (top-8%). And while moving from 88.3 mph to 89.8 mph was only a modest boost for his average exit-velocity, it was much more impressive seeing his max EV go from 108.5 mph to 110.7 mph and his EV on FB/LD jump from 91.8 mph to 94.9 mph. All in all, Smith ended with a 46.8% hard-hit rate that was up 12-points, not to mention a barrel-rate that rose nearly five-points to 13.5%.

The power is for real and so is the batting average, in my opinion. I really wish that his ADP wasn't already in the top-100 but I'm still pretty sure that I'll have plenty of exposure. Especially because of his dual-eligibility and the fact that I think first base is sneaky weak. I'm sorry but I'm just not excited about relying on Pete Alonso, Luke Voit, Paul Goldschmidt, or Matt Olson at their current ADP. In drafts where I don't end up with a premium option like Freddie Freeman or Jose Abreu, picking up Smith at his current price is going to feel pretty juicy.

This is the part of the article where I very quietly mention that one of my 2020 favorites, Victor Reyes, is projected by Steamer to return roughly the same value as Nick Castellanos. And this is the part where I quietly tiptoe away.

More 2020 Fantasy Baseball Advice




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Sits Out Tuesday's Game
Arizona Cardinals2 hours ago

Calais Campbell Returns To Arizona
Lucas Giolito2 hours ago

To Make A Rehab Start On Wednesday
Jevon Carter2 hours ago

Ruled Out Tuesday
Dalen Terry2 hours ago

Unavailable Against Raptors
Brayan Bello2 hours ago

To Make Rehab Start On Tuesday
Julian Phillips2 hours ago

Out On Tuesday
Alexis Díaz2 hours ago

Alexis Diaz Throws Live BP On Tuesday
Jalen Smith2 hours ago

Available Against Raptors
Max Scherzer2 hours ago

Day-To-Day After Getting Cortisone Shot
Lonzo Ball2 hours ago

Still Out On Tuesday
Freddie Freeman2 hours ago

Likely Out Until Friday
Kevin Huerter2 hours ago

Cleared For Tuesday's Matchup
Willson Contreras2 hours ago

Taking First Day Off
Josh Giddey2 hours ago

Will Play On Tuesday
Dalano Banton2 hours ago

Starting Against The Hawks
Royce O'Neale2 hours ago

Unavailable Against Bucks
Jerami Grant3 hours ago

Out Again On Tuesday
Bradley Beal3 hours ago

Out On Tuesday
Ron Holland II3 hours ago

Tagged With A One-Game Suspension Tuesday
Anfernee Simons3 hours ago

Ruled Out Versus The Hawks
Trae Young3 hours ago

Officially Available Tuesday
Marcus Sasser3 hours ago

Suspended For One Game On Tuesday
Giannis Antetokounmpo3 hours ago

Will Play On Tuesday
Jimmy Snuggerud3 hours ago

Ready For NHL Debut Tuesday
Edouard Julien3 hours ago

Making First Start Of The Season
Isaiah Stewart3 hours ago

Suspended For Two Games On Tuesday
Jacob Trouba3 hours ago

Set To Rejoin Ducks Lineup Tuesday
Jonathan Kuminga3 hours ago

Ruled Out On Tuesday
Troy Terry3 hours ago

On Track To Play Tuesday
Dylan Crews3 hours ago

Not Starting Against Blue Jays
Jaylen Brown3 hours ago

Questionable Versus Miami
Jonathan Marchessault3 hours ago

Remains Out Against Blue Jackets
Lourdes Gurriel Jr.3 hours ago

Sitting Out In New York
Alex Laferriere3 hours ago

Expected To Return On Tuesday
Paul Goldschmidt3 hours ago

Hitting Leadoff Again
Jonathan Aranda4 hours ago

Christopher Morel Sitting Against Pirates
Luke Schenn4 hours ago

A Game-Time Decision Tuesday
Jose Siri4 hours ago

Making Another Start In Center Field
Dante Fabbro4 hours ago

Returns Against Predators
Brett Baty4 hours ago

Sitting Against A Right-Hander
Kyle Higashioka4 hours ago

Back In The Lineup, Jonah Heim Takes A Seat
Detroit Lions6 hours ago

Alim McNeill Could Miss Start Of Regular Season
Tennessee Titans6 hours ago

Justin Hardee Sr. Returning To Titans
Washington Commanders6 hours ago

Brandon Coleman Moving To Right Tackle For Commanders
Raheem Blackshear7 hours ago

Returning To Carolina
Kirk Cousins7 hours ago

Not Expected To Attend Voluntary Offseason Training
NFL7 hours ago

NFL Ownership Votes To Move Kickoff Touchbacks To 35-Yard Line
Olli Määttä7 hours ago

Olli Maatta A Game-Time Call On Tuesday
Jordan Greenway7 hours ago

Remains Sidelined On Tuesday
Dallas Cowboys7 hours ago

Cowboys Willing To Make Micah Parsons The Highest-Paid Non-QB
Jordan Staal7 hours ago

Doubtful For Wednesday
Matt Roy7 hours ago

Not Traveling With Team
Geno Smith7 hours ago

Raiders Working On Extension With Geno Smith
Chris Godwin7 hours ago

Buccaneers Optimistic Chris Godwin Will Be Ready For Week 1
Josh Norris7 hours ago

Not Traveling With The Team On Tuesday
Los Angeles Rams7 hours ago

Coleman Shelton Expected To Start Again In 2025
Brady Tkachuk7 hours ago

Not Playing On Tuesday
Los Angeles Rams8 hours ago

Rams Open To Drafting A Quarterback
Kyren Williams8 hours ago

Rams To Discuss Long-Term Deal With Kyren Williams
Aaron Rodgers8 hours ago

Signs "Pointing" Toward Aaron Rodgers Signing With Steelers
Brock Purdy8 hours ago

49ers Optimistic On Getting Extension Done With Brock Purdy
Jordan Spieth9 hours ago

Needs To Find Consistency At TPC San Antonio
Jake Knapp9 hours ago

Making First Appearance At Valero Texas Open
Michael Kim10 hours ago

Looking To Find The Magic Again In San Antonio
Tommy Fleetwood10 hours ago

Is Nearly A Must-Play At Valero Texas Open
Tony Finau10 hours ago

Hoping For Better Approach Play In San Antonio
Eric Cole10 hours ago

Trending In Right Direction Ahead Of Valero
Casey DeSmith14 hours ago

Sharp In Monday's Victory
Mason Marchment14 hours ago

Tallies Two Helpers On Monday
Adam Klapka14 hours ago

Tallies Two Points In Shootout Victory
Ivan Fedotov14 hours ago

Sharp Against Nashville
Matvei Michkov14 hours ago

Continues Hot Stretch On Monday
Luke Hughes14 hours ago

Scores Goal, Adds Assist In Victory
Sam Stevens23 hours ago

Enjoys Nice Result In Houston
PGA23 hours ago

J.T. Poston Seeks To Contend At Valero Texas Open
Denny McCarthy1 day ago

Keeps Making Cuts But Needs To Make More Putts
Brian Harman1 day ago

Off To A Subpar 2025 So Far
Ilya Samsonov1 day ago

Nursing An Upper-Body Injury
Tomas Hertl1 day ago

To Sit Out At Least One More Week
Ryan Preece1 day ago

Has Three Straight Top-10 Finishes For First Time In His Career
NASCAR1 day ago

Bubba Wallace After Third-Place Finish At Martinsville: "What a Great Day"
Todd Gilliland1 day ago

Has Mistake-Free Day At Martinsville, Grabs Another Top-10 Finish
Brandon Moreno1 day ago

Wins Back-To-Back Fights
Steve Erceg1 day ago

Losses Third Consecutive Fight
Drew Dober1 day ago

Gets Knocked Out At UFC Mexico City
Manuel Torres1 day ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Harry Hall1 day ago

Bounces Back In Houston Last Week
Denver Broncos1 day ago

Denver To Take A Running Back In The Draft
CJ Vergara1 day ago

Gets Submitted
Ryan Fox1 day ago

Showing Improvement Heading Into The Valero Texas Open
Édgar Cháirez1 day ago

Edgar Chairez Gets Submission Win At UFC Mexico City
Courtland Sutton1 day ago

"No Timeline" On Courtland Sutton Extension
Vince Morales1 day ago

Drops Decision At UFC Mexico City
Raul Rosas Jr.1 day ago

Gets Decision Win At UFC Mexico City
Saimon Oliveira1 day ago

Still Winless In The UFC
David Martinez1 day ago

Wins His UFC Debut
Kevin Borjas1 day ago

Earns His First UFC Win
Ronaldo Rodríguez1 day ago

Ronaldo Rodriguez Suffers His First UFC Loss
Joel Dahmen1 day ago

Scores Top-20 Finish At Texas Children's Houston Open
Jacob Bridgeman1 day ago

Had Some Rest Heading Into The Valero
Sami Valimaki1 day ago

Finishes Fourth At Texas Children's Houston Open
Maverick McNealy1 day ago

Finishes Tied For 32nd At Texas Children’s Houston Open
Tom Kim1 day ago

Finishes Tied For 36th At Valspar Championship
Rickie Fowler1 day ago

Finishes Tied For 52nd At Texas Children’s Houston Open
Christopher Bell1 day ago

Powers His Way To A Second-Place Finish At Martinsville
Chase Elliott1 day ago

Strong Martinsville Performance Ends With A Top-Five Finish
Kyle Larson1 day ago

Collects A Top-Five Finish At Martinsville
William Byron1 day ago

Places 22nd After Struggles At Martinsville
Joey Logano1 day ago

Claims His First 2025 Top-10 Finish After Up-And-Down Performance
Tyler Reddick1 day ago

Fails To Place In The Top 10 At Martinsville
Denny Hamlin2 days ago

Silences Doubters After Crew-Chief Change
Ty Gibbs2 days ago

Earns Best 2025 Finish At Martinsville Despite Failing Cool Suit
Ross Chastain2 days ago

Has A Great Day At Martinsville
Chase Briscoe2 days ago

Has Solid Run At Martinsville
Erik Jones2 days ago

Disqualified At Martinsville For Weight Violation
Josh Berry2 days ago

Has Top-10 Upside At Martinsville
Joey Logano2 days ago

Don't Overlook Joey Logano This Weekend
Ryan Preece2 days ago

Could Get First Three-Race Top-10 Streak Of His Career
Chase Elliott3 days ago

Looking To Continue Great Runs At Martinsville
Christopher Bell3 days ago

Wins Pole At Martinsville, But Can He Stay Up There?
Ryan Blaney3 days ago

Fast In Practice But Skeptical About Car
Denny Hamlin3 days ago

New Crew Chief Has Terrible Martinsville Record
Steve Erceg4 days ago

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Brandon Moreno4 days ago

A Favorite At UFC Mexico City
Manuel Torres4 days ago

Set For Co-Main Event
Drew Dober4 days ago

An Underdog At UFC Mexico City
Joe Pyfer4 days ago

Looks To Win Back-To-Back Fights
Kelvin Gastelum4 days ago

Set For Middleweight Matchup
Vince Morales4 days ago

In Dire Need Of Victory
Raul Rosas Jr.4 days ago

Looks To Extend His Win Streak
Saimon Oliveira4 days ago

Looks For His First UFC Win
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

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RB
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TE
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