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Top 50 NL-only Outfielder Rankings for 2014

Ray offers his thoughts on his Top 50 NL-only outfielder rankings for 2014, including Billy Hamilton, Jay Bruce, Ryan Braun and others.

Stacy Revere

Now that we have completed our consensus position rankings for 2014, it is time to address rankings for those of you in AL only and NL only leagues. I will publish league specific position rankings each day, addressing one position at a time, starting with the NL only position rankings.

In case you missed them, below you will find links to all of our consensus position rankings and projections that we have published to date:

Catcher: Part 1| Part 2

First Base: Part 1| Part 2

Second Base: Part 1| Part 2

Shortstop: Part 1| Part 2

Third Base: Part 1| Part 2

Outfielders: Part 1| Part 2| Part 3

Starting Pitcher: Part 1| Part 2| Part 3

Closers: Top 30 Closers for 2014

Closers in Waiting: 2014 Closers in Waiting

Top 100 Hitters: Top 100 Hitter Rankings for 2014

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen is the fourth guy off draft boards in mixed leagues this season, and is the reigning NL MVP, so he garners the #1 spot this season. With that said, I think Ryan Braun could be the best NL outfielder this season, as I see him returning to the hitter he was before the 2013 season.

Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez was on his way to the best season of his career in 2013, before getting hurt. If he can stay healthy, a big IF, he could be the #1 NL only outfielder this season as well. I ranked Jay Bruce ahead of Giancarlo Stanton as he has been able to stay healthy, and has two 30+ home run seasons under his belt.

I am higher than most on Matt Kemp, and I realize I am taking a risk here, but am willing to stick my head out and rank him ahead of a few other more consistent hitters. My ranking is based on him returning to good health this season. If he can, he could be a top 5 fantasy outfielder.

A little lower down in my rankings, you will find Reds center fielder Billy Hamilton ranked at #17. Of all outfielders drafted in NL only or mixed leagues this season, he is the one that carries the most risk, in my opinion. There are plenty of writers who think he will end up in AAA by July, and others who think he will steal 60-80 bases this season. The issue with Hamilton is we don't know how he will hit major league pitching in 2014, especially after his struggles at the plate in AAA last season.

I have been preaching that outfield in thinner than most positions and that is pretty evident in the National League. After you get past the top 20 or so outfielders, the position gets thin. You can argue that anyone from B.J. Upton to Michael Morse can be the 20th ranked NL only outfielder this season.

After Morse, the position gets even thinner, with a couple prospects, Oscar Taveras, Jake Marisnick and Gregory Polanco primed to see time in the majors at some point this season. The Pirates have let teams know that Jose Tabata is available via trade, so Polanco could be up before June. Pirates GM Neil Huntington was raving about him in a recent interview. Taveras has to prove his ankle, and leg, is healthy, so he will start the season in AAA. Once he proves he is healthy, and is raking, I could see him up with the Cardinals before July. It appears Marisnick is winning the center field battle with Marcell Ozuna, so I ranked him above Ozuna in my rankings.

Top 50 NL only Outfielder Rankings for 2014

Rank

Player

Team

1

Andrew McCutchen

PIT

2

Ryan Braun

MIL

3

Carlos Gonzalez

COL

4

Bryce Harper

WAS

5

Jay Bruce

CIN

6

Giancarlo Stanton

MIA

7

Yasiel Puig

LAD

8

Carlos Gomez

MIL

9

Hunter Pence

SFG

10

Justin Upton

ATL

11

Matt Kemp

LAD

12

Matt Holliday

STL

13

Jason Heyward

ATL

14

Starling Marte

PIT

15

Jayson Werth

WAS

16

Mark Trumbo

ARI

17

Billy Hamilton

CIN

18

Domonic Brown

PHI

19

Michael Cuddyer

COL

20

B.J. Upton

ATL

21

Carl Crawford

LAD

22

Khris Davis

MIL

23

Will Venable

SD

24

Ben Revere

PHI

25

Christian Yelich

MIA

26

Andre Ethier

LAD

27

Curtis Granderson

NYM

28

Marlon Byrd

PHI

29

Justin Ruggiano

CHC

30

Michael Morse

SFG

31

Carlos Quentin

SD

32

Drew Stubbs

COL

33

Denard Span

WAS

34

A.J. Pollock

ARI

35

Eric Young Jr.

NYM

36

Angel Pagan

SFG

37

Junior Lake

CHC

38

Gerardo Parra

ARI

39

Lucas Duda

CHC

40

Jake Marisnick

MIA

41

Chris Young

NYM

42

Corey Dickerson

COL

43

Charlie Blackmon

COL

44

Nate Schierholtz

CHC

45

Oscar Taveras

STL

46

Ryan Ludwick

CIN

47

Peter Bourjos

STL

48

Gregory Polanco

PIT

49

Marcell Ozuna

MIA

50

Chris Heisey

CIN

Fantasy Rundown

If you are looking for more fantasy baseball or football rankings, make sure you check out Fantasy Rundown, your one place on the internet for fantasy rankings, news and information. They provide links to all of the top fantasy site on the 'net.