Here is another in the 2011 Fantasy Sleeper Series, and we move to the American League where Rangers outfielder David Murphy is a fantasy sleeper in mixed leagues in 2011. Murphy had his best year as a major leaguer in 2010, where he hit .291-.358-.449 with 12 HRs, 65 RBIs and 14 SBs in 419 ABs.
Murphy's power dropped from 17 HRs to 12 HRs in 2010, but he increased his SBs from 9 to 14, his BB rate stayed the same at just under 10%, and his K rate dropped from 25% to 17%. Murphy's BA benefitted from a steady LD rate of 19%, and his drop in power can be attributed to a drop in FB rate from 43% to 37% last year, which is below is career average around 39%. With a few more flyballs and a slight bump in his HR/FB%, Murphy could approach the 20 HR level.
Ron Shander projects Murphy to hit .282-.349-.450 with 15 HRs, 67 RBIs and 12 SBs this year. If you consider the fact that Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz have proved to be injury prone, Murphy could outperform his projections with more ABs in 2011.