Ten Outfielders Who Underperformed My 2012 Rankings

Yesterday, I profiled ten outfielders who outperformed my Outfielder Rankings in 2012, and today, I will take a look at ten outfielders who underperformed my outfielders ranked between 41 - 100. Sometimes you can find gems in the latter half of a Top 100 rankings, and you can usually find some busts as well.

You can find my 2012 Top 100 Outfielder Rankings here, but let's take a look at the 10 Underperforming outfielders from 2012.

The Underperformers

1. Peter Bourjos, LAA

Bourjos quickly became the forgotten man in the Angels outfield in 2012, hitting just .220-.291-.315 with 3 HRs, 27 runs, 19 RBI and just 3 stolen bases. I thought Bourjos could build on his 2011 season, and possibly steal 30 bases this season. Little did we all know that some dude named Mike Trout would take MLB by storm and fast become the best player in baseball. Bourjos is probably nothing more than a 4th outfielder unless he is traded.

2. Yonder Alonso, SD

I thought Alonso could reach 20 home runs in 2012, and maybe he would have had he not been traded to the Padres in a blockbuster deal that saw Alonso and three prospects head to San Diego and Mat Latos head to Cincinnati. Alonso hit .273-.348-.393 with 9 HRs, 47 runs and 62 RBI in 2012. Disappointing is an understatement, but the Padres recently announced they would be moving in their fences in 2013, so maybe Alonso could approach 15-18 home runs next season.

3. Carlos Lee, MIA

Lee is just playing out his contract at this point, and is nothing more than a late round pick in NL-only leagues, and waiver wire fodder in mixed leagues. Lee hit just .264-.332-.365 with 9 HRs, 53 runs and 77 RBI this season, easily the worst season of his career. It's easy to forget that he hit 30+ home runs every year from 2003-2007 and was one of the more feared hitters in baseball.

4. Jose Tabata, PIT

Tabata has disappointed fantasy owners for two seasons in a row now, and I wonder if he is nothing more than a AAAA player going forward. He hit just .243-.315-.348 with 3 HRs, 43 runs, 16 RBI and 8 stolen bases this season and he battled injuries for the second season in a row.

5. Chris Heisey, CIN

I thought Heisey should have won the Reds left field job out of spring training, but no one could bash Dusty Baker for keeping Ryan Ludwick's bat in the lineup for a good part of the year. Heisey struggled when he was given a chance, and ended the season hitting .265-.315-.401 with just 7 HRs, 44 runs, 31 RBI and 6 stolen bases in 2012. He hit 11 less home runs in 2012 than he did in 2011, in 70 more at bats as well.

6. Eric Thames, SEA

I thought Thames could claim the Blue Jays left field job to start the season, and that is what he did. What he didn't do was hit and hit for power once he won the job out of spring training, as he triple slashed .232-.273-.399 with 9 HRs, 27 runs and 25 RBI in 2012. He ended the season in Seattle and appears to be a 4th outfielder/pinch hitter type going forward.

7. Jerry Sands, BOS

Sands had the opportunity to seize the Dodgers left field job out of spring training, but did not perform well. He was so bad that he couldn't beat out James Loney for the first base job either. He also struggled in AAA Albuquerque, and was eventually included in the huge deal that brought Adrian Gonzalez to Los Angeles in August. I will be curious to see if Sands can win a job in Boston in 2013.

8. Grady Sizemore, CLE

Sizemore once again spent more time on the DL than he did on the field in 2012, as he was out for the whole season this year. Sizemore has under 450 at bats over the last three seasons, so the guy who once put up a 30-30 season probably cannot be counted on until he can prove he can stay healthy for more than a few hundred at bats. He is a free agent this offseason and it will be interesting to see if he will get anything more than a one year, incentive laden offer.

9. John Mayberry, PHI

Mayberry was a popular sleeper pick last offseason, but he failed to meet the hype given to him by many after his excellent 2011 season which saw him hit .273-.341-.513 with 15 HRs, 37 runs, 49 RBI and 8 stolen bases. He hit just .245-.301-.395 with 14 HRs, 53 runs and 46 RBI in about 180 more at bats than he had in 2011. Some think he should be the right handed first base platoon for Ryan Howard in 2013, so that bares watching in 2013.

10. Nyjer Morgan, MIL

Morgan was relegated to a platoon role in center field for the Brewers, and with the emergence of Carlos Gomez and Norchika Aoki, he could find himself looking for a job this offseason. He hit .239-.302-.308 with 3 HRs, 44 runs, 16 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 17 attempts this season.