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Jonathan India 2025 Player Outlook: A Value Pick With Room For Improvement Even After 2024 Rebound
1 day agoThe Kansas City Royals acquired second baseman Jonathan India this offseason as he came off the fullest and most productive campaign since he won NL Rookie of the Year in 2021. The former first-round draft pick put together a .248-15-58-84-13 line with a .333 wOBA and 108 wRC+ over 151 games played. Much of his batting average was buoyed by a white-hot stretch in June, during which time the right-handed hitter went 16-for-30 (.533) with an astounding 11 doubles in eight games. An xBA of .266 and an xwOBA of .352 point to potential room for improvement in 2025 as there was some underperformance relative to statistical expectations. The move from Great American Ball Park is a downgrade in terms of home run potential, but Kauffman Stadium ranked third-best in baseball last season in terms of producing doubles, which is more India's hitting profile anyway, not home runs. He recorded a 97th-percentile BB% (12.6%) backed up by a 98th-percentile chase rate (18.4%), so getting on base while hitting atop a potent Royals lineup should prove fruitful for fantasy. RotoBaller likes the 28-year-old's chances of outperforming his NFBC ADP of 251, ranking him at 215 overall.
