8. Kevin Kiermaier, Tampa Bay Rays Along with a .199 average and 213 strikeouts, he led the AL with 111 walks and had a solid .351 on-base percentage. 2y Buster Olney. 2023 Fantasy Baseball: Outfielders Rankings, Consensus Preseason Rankings for OF | FantasyPros 2023 Fantasy Baseball Rankings Expert Consensus Ranking (32 of 36 Experts) - Feb 28, 2023 Pick. Kolten Wong -- Best Defensive Second Baseman (NL) Francisco Lindor -- Best Defensive Shortstop (AL/NL) Bob Melvin -- Best Manager (AL) Below are the 2021 winners, followed by voting results. Stars and depth help the Dodgers dominate both NL competition and Best Tools voting. Let's keep our 2021 MLB Player Rankings series rolling with a look at the top 25 outfielders. But Ozuna is valued for his bat, for his advanced understanding of how pitchers will try to work against him. It has been suggested that the Indians have been cursed after trading Colavito, a fan favorite, to the Detroit Tigers in 1960. Second baseman Ozzie Albies has been one of the most productive players at the position since his first full season in 2018, and this season is no different. Nearly every player on this list has been an All-Star, and all the rest have a chance to make their first Midsummer Classic this season. Trent Grisham, San Diego Padres Even in his time in the minors, his swing-and-miss rate jumped up a few percentage points. The club also traded away Diego Castillo at the deadline in exchange for JT Chargois and Austin Shenton. My guess, after talking with folks who know him: Yelich was among the players affected by how dramatically the COVID-19 protocol changed processes. Yelich is 29 years old. Despite his defensive limitations, he should be able to find a more lucrative deal this winter. with only his head and one arm free.The . Crow-Armstrong soaking in first Spring Training with Cubs. The 26-year-old finished the season as a 6.0 WAR player, earning a spot among the Gold Glove finalists in center field on top of his excellent offensive numbers. Aside from having a ton of playable depth, the Giants have also slugged an MLB-leading 14 pinch-hit home runs. Springer has been one of the most productive outfielders in the game over the past five years, and he has joined up with a Blue Jays team that averaged 5.03 runs per game in 2020. As the anchor of the Dodgers' package for Betts, Verdugo was the centerpiece in perhaps the most unpopular Boston baseball deal since Babe Ruth was shipped off to the Yankees, and he joined the Red Sox with a well-publicized reputation as a less-than-ideal teammate. At 321 feet, it was the longest on-the-fly throw for an outfield assist tracked by Statcast (since 2015). His shoulder first began giving him problems in 2021. Kaline, also known as Mr. Tiger, made his major league debut at age 18. He also improved dramatically on defense, recording +2 Outs Above Average after finishing at -13 in just 53 games in the field in 2019, so his glove is no longer a reason to keep him out of the lineup. He has never finished lower than third on the MLB pop time leaderboard since Statcast launched, and 2019 was his fastest season yet. It's fitting that Smoltz, Maddux, and Tom Glavine came back-to-back-to-back on this list, because for over a decade . The 27-year-old also has a perfect 99 reaction time rating, 86 arm strength, and 81 arm accuracy. In Trout's only three games in the postseason, as the Angels were swept by the Royals in a 2014 division series, he went 1-for-12 with a solo home run and three walks. At 321 feet, it was the longest on-the-fly throw for an outfield assist tracked by Statcast (since 2015). "There are so many factors that go into it, and I don't want to speak for Soto, but there are certainly some habits you have to develop and reinforce when you are young. Each player was included in the rankings at the position where he played the most innings. He had an average max-effort arm strength of 94.1 mph, seventh-fastest among MLB outfielders (min. Cobb did have some trouble with his arm however. He's not just an MVP-caliber hitter; he has one of the strongest outfield arms in the league. The Tampa Bay Rays bullpen has chewed through an MLB-leading 533.1 innings this season. All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and accurate through Monday's games. The future of Florida's pitching staff is incredibly bright. Myles Straw, Houston Astros/Cleveland Guardians. Regardless of who the Rays plug into the pen, they continue to find success. Fernando Tatis Jr., SS, PadresKey stat: 91.8 mph average max-effort arm strength in 2019. Each player was included in the rankings at the position where he played the most innings. Kimbrel still has explosive stuff with a fastball that sits comfortably in the high-90s and a wipeout curveball that generated a staggering 59.3 percent whiff rate in 2021. Still two years away from arbitration, he will be a cornerstone player for the cost-conscious Rays. Buxton, Taylor and Gallo are such great, award-winning fielders that it's easy to forget about Kepler, who would be the best defensive outfielder on many teams. Few players have joined an organization under more challenging circumstances than Verdugo faced when he went to the Red Sox. ESPN's Paul Hembekides sent this along: "I think his issues in 2020 stem from a lack of confidence -- he just stopped swinging. Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs/San Francisco Giants. Thursday, it's outfielders -- the top 10 left fielders, center fielders and right fielders. He tallied a career-high 42 doubles along with 35 home runs, 84 RBI and 101 runs scored in a 5.9 WAR season. Ramirez is fourth among active outfielders with 129 career assists. Runners were afraid to take the extra base when these outfielders had the ball in their hands. Luis Mieses OF (Prev. But that seemed to be more about a rookie being overly aggressive than anything else. Honorable Mention: Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays. Jordan Wicks- from Kansas State at 6'2 and 220lbs he is 2-0 in 2021 and went 3-0 last year. Similarly, Grisham has played fewer than 120 games in the Majors. March 1, 2023. Nothing less should be expected from a man who was nicknamed "Muscles". His 26 home runs trail only Salvador Perez among all backstops. There are many questions surrounding Barry Bonds' arms, but none of them are about his ability to throw a baseball. His middling defense (-6 DRS, -4.8 UZR/150) and the time he missed kept him from ranking any higher. 17. His arm was so powerful, that while pitching for his mill league, Jackson once broke a catchers arm and was subsequently moved to the outfield because no one wanted to catch for him. Griffey's defensive abilities helped him win the first of his 10 consecutive Gold Gloves at age 20. Hard-throwing top prospect Aaron Ashby has also made three spot starts, and he could make a major impact as a multi-inning weapon out of the bullpen down the stretch. Jesse Barfield had an incredibly strong and an incredibly accurate throwing arm. Laureanos arm is best known for the throw mentioned above, which resulted in a double play after he caught a fly ball hit by Justin Upton at Angel Stadium. Red Sox. Throughout the history of baseball, there have been some outfielders that have had cannons for arms. His shoulder first began giving him problems in . Speaker is the MLB record holder for most career outfield assists with 449. In 2019, 24 players hit 30 home runs or more who qualified at outfield. Free agency, trade talk, offseason news . Bobby Abreu has had one of the strongest and most accurate arms in baseball in recent years. In order to qualify for the leaderboard, a player must have more Two-Star opportunities than team games / 5. Luis Robert, Chicago White Sox The 28-year-old hit .305/.394/.556 for a 140 OPS+ with 32 doubles, 24 home runs and 71 RBI in 485 plate appearances, earning his first All-Star selection. The 30-year-old is hitting .268/.333/.482 for a 105 OPS+ with 22 doubles, 18 home runs and 66 RBI. All in the family: how three generations of Jaquezes have ruled West Coast basketball, Alonso says Aston 'living a dream,' eyes podium. Tier 1: Ronald Acua Jr., Mookie Betts, Mike Trout, Juan Soto, Christian Yelich, Cody Bellinger, Bryce Harper. Walker was known for his abilities at the plate, but he also had a gun for an arm. Throughout the year, we released monthly updates to our position-by-position power rankings, selecting the top 10 players at each spot. Its not as if my defense pick, Andrelton Simmons, has a poor arm. Scouts have long graded position players on five tools that are central to success in the game: hitting, hitting for power, running, fielding and throwing. 7. The eight-time Gold Glove winner even managed to throw out 11 base runners from left field at age 39. Take a look at this strikeout from his MLB debut season in 2021: At the moment Drew Rasmussen releases this fastball, Duran's hands are moving up and back, his leg is elevated, and he has a whole lot of movement to execute to catch up with the 98-mph pitch. Mancini is back after missing 2020 because of Stage 3 colon cancer. At age 19, Kaline recorded 16 of his career 170 outfield assists. Accuracy matters, too. Translation: Realmuto dominates the catcher throwing department. One important stipulation: Each player could only be selected for one of the five tools. Mondesi has a tattoo of a cannon shooting out a baseball on his right arm. Gorbous is the answer to the trivia question: "Who has the longest throw in baseball history"? The identity of the No. He's hit .300 or better in five of the last seven seasons, and in the two he didn't, he batted .299 (in 2017) and was injury-ravaged in the other (2016). Tom Glavine 1987-2002, 2008 (63.6 WAR) Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images. That seems almost impossible. As another player the Arizona Diamondbacks gave away, Adam Eaton continually shows himself to be a gritty . As a matter of fact, the consensus top two outfielders Mike Trout and Mookie Betts also are considered the two best overall players in MLB. He hit .281 with an .800 OPS after the All-Star break, and he capped off the season by winning his first Gold Glove. The Bulldogs and Sooners are joined by California (which is off to a strong 6-1 start) and Ohio State (a . He went three rounds without hitting a home run, and had one extra-base hit in the seven-game National League Championship Series against the Braves. The 26-year-old had 32 doubles, 20 home runs, 20 steals and 94 runs scored, and he was a Gold Glove finalist in left field. That success has come despite myriad injuries and significant roster turnover. He was hitting .283/.394/.596 with 19 doubles, 24 home runs and 17 steals through 82 games at the time of the injury, good for a 3.6 WAR season. How Does Carlos Correa's Deal Impact Dansby Swanson's Market? The double play he executed, reaching down to glove a looper in front of him and throwing toward home, with Marcell Ozuna eventually called out for leaving too soon. But at the least, we know the potential is there. Some of Mookie Betts' former teammates watched him go through the postseason last year and believed he really was out of sorts at the plate.