We took a glance at the 10 best outfielders to choose from, and the next 10 are an interesting bunch in that they offer a nice compliment in all categories (power, hits, speed).
While the following players won’t offer as much muscle, the trick is not to overload your team with massive power—despite some saying you should—rather adding a balance of homeruns, hits and speed; something that these guys do in fact offer.
Let’s take a look shall we?
11. Nelson Cruz
Ah, Nelson Cruz. Remember this guy? The first half of 2009 was absolutely unimaginable for anyone who actually drafted him as he hit 22 homeruns with 13 stolen bases. But the latter half of 2009 was almost forgettable, as Cruz fell victim to injury, a case of the slumps, and a visit to the bench. But the things is, this guy is a likely 40 homerun hitter with the potential of 20+ stolen bases in any given year; pretty dangerous if you ask me.
2009 Statistics: .260- 33 HR’s – 76 RBI – 75 Runs
2010 Projection: .280 – 35 HR’s – 101 RBI – 96 Runs
12. Carlos Quinten
Quinten was one of those situations in 2009 that landed him a bust tag, but that shouldn’t sway you away from taking a serious look at him; the guy is still that power hitter just waiting to break out.
In just 351 AB Quinten still managed 21 homeruns—think about that for a second while I fix a drink. The knee is healed, the foot is healed, the wrist is healed, and Quinten is ready to provide the type of numbers we expected last year, if he can maintain his health.
2009 Statistics: .236 – 21 HR’s – 56 RBI – 88 Runs
2010 Projection: .280 – 35 HR’s – 100 RBI – 97 Runs
13. Carlos Lee
The consensus is that Carlos Lee has lost a tremendous amount of value and isn’t what he used to be which is just silly. Consistency in a hitter is a wonderful thing, and it’s even better in fantasy.
Lee is maturing into a solid hitter, and to make things better, you literally cannot strike this guy out. With an improved Astros team that can play small ball, Lee should prove a lot of the critics wrong this year.
2009 Statistics: .300 – 26 HR’s – 102 RBI – 65 Runs
2010 Projection: .312 – 27 HR’s – 101 RBI – 64 Runs
14. Jayson Werth
A guaranteed 20-20 player with the chance to become a member of the 30-30 club, Werth played some of his best ball last year. The lefty killer is a rare commodity, and deserves serious consideration from anyone looking to draft a highly balanced player.
The ceiling is very high for Werth, with zero chance of him going backwards barring any unforeseen injuries. He does however, suffer from the slump bug at times, other than that he’s gold.
2009 Statistics: .268 – 36 HR’s – 99 RBI – 98 Runs
2010 Projection: .279 – 30 HR’s – 102 RBI – 101 Runs
15. Adam Jones
Like many outfielders last year, Jones’ season was cut short by the injury bug, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t gonna produce in 2010, in fact, it should be quite the opposite. Jones is fast, has a great deal of power, and could be afforded some extra offensive support from the O’s this year making his fantasy expectations pretty high.
2009 Statistics: .277 – 19 HR’s – 70 RBI – 83 Runs
2010 Projection: .286 – 27 HR’s – 95 RBI – 98 Runs
16. Jacoby Ellsbury
Ellsbury is the type of hitter that will not give you much in the way of power, but if you are drafting solely for your stolen base category he is defiantly your man. Ellsbury had 70 stolen bases last year, 50 stolen bases the year before; any other questions?
2009 Statistics: .302 – 8 HR’s – 60 RBI – 94 Runs
2010 Projection: .305 – 8 HR’s – 65 RBI – 101 Runs
17. Justin Upton
Upton surprised a lot of people last year with his performance, but in my opinion—as with a lot of young talent—those numbers won’t be duplicated this year, and the kid will regress a bit. Still, Upton does have a high ceiling, and if you don’t mind drafting a high-risk/high-reward player, you might want to take a chance on him early.
2009 Statistics: .300 – 26 HR’s – 86 RBI – 84 Runs
2010 Projection: .285 – 20 HR’s – 80 RBI – 97 Runs
18. Shane Victorino
The ‘Flyin' Hawaiian’ is all locked up in Philadelphia, and after a 2009 season that saw him hit 39 doubles, 13 trips, with 25 pilfered bases, one has to think 2010 will be even greater. Shane will hit atop the order, and you can bet he will be available deeper than most think, so grab him if you can and enjoy the ride…or flight.
2009 Statistics: .292 – 10 HR’s – 62 RBI’s – 102 Runs
2010 Projection: .290 – 15 HR’s – 70 RBI’s – 105 Runs
19. Andrew McCutchen
I hate putting McCutchen so low considering he is a season long double threat, but the fact of the matter is Pittsburgh’s stadium couldn’t afford Thor a hefty homerun count as it is a horrid place for fantasy baseball players. Still, McCutchen is worth a look and a stash early until you can get a firm read on him.
2009 Statistics: .286- 12 HR’s – 54 RBI – 74 Runs
2010 Projection: .288 – 15 HR’s – 80 RBI – 90 Runs
20. Nyjer Morgan
It amazes me that still there is very little mention of Nyjer Morgan and his fantasy value, which makes him the perfect best kept secret in the outfield this year; let’s keep this between you and I shall we? Last year, before muffing up his wrist, Morgan hit .307 with 74 runs scored, and 39 RBI, alongside 25 extra base hits and 42 stolen bases in a combined 120 games between Pittsburgh and Washington. He is one of those guys who will be forgotten about at draft time, don’t be the forgetful one.
2010 Projections: .325 – 10 HR’s – 75 RBI – 89 Runs
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