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Alex Kantecki opened Outfielder week here at Fake Teams with the landscape of the position for fantasy purposes earlier this morning. Now we bring you our consensus fantasy outfielder rankings for 2015. We used a points system for each of the 100 outfielders ranked by each of the Fake Teams writers who participated in the consensus rankings series.
The writers who participated in this series are:
Ray Guilfoyle
Jason Hunt
Rob Parker
Brian Creagh
Timmy Kennedy
Daniel Kelley
Jack Cecil
Nick Doran
Alex Kantecki
Timothy Finnegan
We feel that providing you our consensus position rankings, you get an average ranking from the Fake Teams writers, rather than one writers' opinion, which inherently includes some biases. You will see some players ranked higher by one Fake Teams writer than the others, so this helps the reader see both sides of the argument for/against a certain player who might be getting too much love this offseason.
Each of the position rankings will be split into two parts, rankings and player profiles for outfielders ranked 1 - 50 in part 1, and rankings and player profiles for outfielders ranked 51 - 100 in part 2 to be published on Wednesday morning. Consensus rankings should bring about discussion amongst you, our readers, and the Fake Teams writers who participated in this series.
Digging deeper into the position shows that the outfielder position in 2014 yielded the following:
1. Of the 11 hitters who hit 30+ home runs last season, four came from the outfield, including Nelson Cruz, Giancarlo Stanton, Mike Trout and Jose Bautista.Two others, Justin Upton and Adam Jones, hit 29, so they were oh so close to hitting reaching the 30 home run club.
2. Of the 47 hitters to hit 20+ home runs last season, more than half, 24 came from the outfield ranks, including George Springer, Oswaldo Arcia and Steve Pearce, who all accomplished the feat in 103 games or less.
3. Of the 12 hitters to drive in 100+ runs last season, six came from the outfield, including Trout, Cruz, Stanton, Bautista, Upton and Yoenis Cespedes.
4. Nine outfielders stole 30 or more bases last season, including Braves new outfielder Eric Young and Nationals outfielder Denard Span. With the injury to Melvin Upton Jr., Young could see plenty of playing time in the Braves lineup this season.
5. 23 outfielders stole 20+ more bases last season, including Sam Fuld, James Jones, Carl Crawford and Melvin Upton Jr.
6. Of outfielders with 300+ plate appearances in 2014, 14 of them hit .300 or higher, including Angel Pagan, Carl Crawford, Adam Eaton and Ben Revere.
7. Of the 18 hitters to score 90 or more runs last season, nine were outfielders including Kole Calhoun, Yasiel Puig and Christian Yelich.
8. On the same note, of the 41 hitters to score 80+ runs last season, 22 were outfielders including Charlie Blackmon and Melky Cabrera.
9. Of the 19 hitters to score 80+ runs and drive in 80+ runs, ten were outfielders including Matt Holliday and Jayson Werth.
Now onto our Consensus Top 100 Outfielder Rankings for 2015, for outfielders ranked 1 - 50.
Consensus Fantasy Top 100 Outfielder Rankings for 2015
Rank | Player | Team | Ranking Points | Ray | Jason | Rob | Brian | Timmy | Daniel | Jack | Alex | Nick | Timothy |
1 | Mike Trout | LAA | 1000 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
2 | Andrew McCutchen | PIT | 987 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
3 | Giancarlo Stanton | MIA | 982 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
4 | Jose Bautista | TOR | 967 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
5 | Carlos Gomez | MIL | 962 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
6 | Yasiel Puig | LAD | 930 | 14 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
7 | Adam Jones | BAL | 928 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
8 | Justin Upton | SDP | 898 | 10 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 15 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 |
9 | Ryan Braun | MIL | 897 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 26 | 9 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 11 |
10 | Michael Brantley | CLE | 892 | 22 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 18 | 19 | 9 | 13 | 8 | 8 |
11 | Hanley Ramirez | BOS | 881 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 9 | 33 | 6 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 9 |
12 | Hunter Pence | SFG | 880 | 13 | 11 | 19 | 14 | 9 | 8 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 13 |
13 | Bryce Harper | WSN | 877 | 11 | 18 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 16 | 13 | 12 |
14 | Matt Kemp | SDP | 850 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 13 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 15 |
15 | Jacoby Ellsbury | NYY | 836 | 20 | 20 | 9 | 18 | 27 | 21 | 16 | 8 | 21 | 14 |
16 | George Springer | HOU | 821 | 9 | 19 | 11 | 32 | 24 | 31 | 13 | 17 | 15 | 18 |
16 | Starling Marte | PIT | 821 | 15 | 23 | 13 | 12 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 30 | 16 |
18 | Matt Holliday | STL | 812 | 16 | 12 | 25 | 17 | 22 | 16 | 28 | 25 | 20 | 17 |
19 | Carlos Gonzalez | COL | 811 | 17 | 21 | 16 | 53 | 20 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 20 |
20 | Alex Gordon | KCR | 810 | 23 | 15 | 34 | 15 | 6 | 13 | 29 | 22 | 22 | 21 |
21 | Billy Hamilton | CIN | 808 | 25 | 17 | 12 | 19 | 36 | 15 | 22 | 21 | 16 | 19 |
22 | Jason Heyward | STL | 798 | 31 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 7 | 18 | 25 | 31 | 25 | 23 |
23 | Nelson Cruz | SEA | 778 | 21 | 25 | 28 | 22 | 16 | 33 | 17 | 24 | 19 | 27 |
24 | Yoenis Cespedes | DET | 762 | 24 | 31 | 30 | 21 | 28 | 34 | 21 | 20 | 17 | 22 |
25 | Christian Yelich | MIA | 736 | 33 | 26 | 24 | 29 | 19 | 32 | 30 | 26 | 26 | 29 |
26 | Jayson Werth | WSN | 705 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 26 | 11 | 26 | 45 | 38 | 37 | 38 |
27 | Kole Calhoun | LAA | 701 | 41 | 32 | 33 | 27 | 35 | 40 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 30 |
28 | Brett Gardner | NYY | 682 | 32 | 30 | 40 | 41 | 37 | 23 | 27 | 29 | 35 | 34 |
29 | Mookie Betts | BOS | 677 | 39 | 35 | 21 | 46 | 23 | 28 | 23 | 66 | 28 | 24 |
30 | Corey Dickerson | COL | 660 | 19 | 41 | 22 | 40 | 49 | 12 | 15 | 23 | 28 | |
31 | Jay Bruce | CIN | 658 | 27 | 28 | 37 | 64 | 56 | 22 | 26 | 28 | 27 | 37 |
32 | Melky Cabrera | CHW | 654 | 35 | 33 | 47 | 23 | 38 | 29 | 43 | 37 | 32 | 39 |
33 | Gregory Polanco | PIT | 652 | 36 | 34 | 31 | 38 | 39 | 27 | 35 | 39 | 47 | 32 |
34 | Ryan Zimmerman | WSN | 644 | 37 | 42 | 20 | 45 | 30 | 30 | 42 | 46 | 41 | 33 |
35 | Shin-Soo Choo | TEX | 638 | 26 | 24 | 39 | 44 | 65 | 24 | 47 | 45 | 33 | 25 |
36 | Josh Harrison | PIT | 629 | 51 | 43 | 42 | 48 | 13 | 51 | 33 | 33 | 36 | 31 |
37 | Charlie Blackmon | COL | 619 | 18 | 22 | 35 | 57 | 40 | 73 | 41 | 30 | 40 | 35 |
38 | Marcell Ozuna | MIA | 611 | 29 | 46 | 46 | 47 | 43 | 50 | 31 | 36 | 31 | 40 |
39 | Jorge Soler | CHC | 583 | 30 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 91 | 45 | 39 | 27 | 65 | 44 |
40 | Denard Span | WSN | 582 | 57 | 45 | 41 | 58 | 25 | 42 | 50 | 40 | 44 | 26 |
41 | Wil Myers | SDP | 569 | 38 | 36 | 51 | 62 | 29 | 39 | 49 | 44 | 52 | 41 |
42 | Ben Zobrist | OAK | 563 | 54 | 50 | 70 | 43 | 10 | 25 | 57 | 50 | 46 | 42 |
43 | Brandon Moss | CLE | 559 | 55 | 55 | 38 | 37 | 42 | 62 | 32 | 42 | 43 | 45 |
44 | J.D. Martinez | DET | 544 | 48 | 38 | 26 | 83 | 51 | 60 | 53 | 35 | 29 | 43 |
45 | Rusney Castillo | BOS | 540 | 46 | 52 | 59 | 39 | 48 | 38 | 36 | 53 | 53 | 46 |
46 | Mark Trumbo | ARI | 515 | 34 | 56 | 48 | 77 | 73 | 53 | 38 | 34 | 34 | 48 |
47 | Ben Revere | PHI | 487 | 45 | 40 | 32 | 50 | 79 | 46 | 43 | 38 | 49 | |
48 | Evan Gattis | HOU | 482 | 50 | 51 | 77 | 33 | 60 | 34 | 41 | 45 | 36 | |
49 | Leonys Martin | TEX | 477 | 68 | 37 | 36 | 99 | 88 | 36 | 40 | 32 | 42 | 55 |
50 | Oswaldo Arcia | MIN | 476 | 47 | 47 | 49 | 31 | 41 | 52 | 52 | 63 | 51 |
Steamer Projections and commentary on each of our Top 50 Outfielders for 2015
Note: Since we are ranking our Top 100 Outfielders, I decided that rather than writing a few paragraphs on each, I would write just a sentence or two. In the past, I have written about each of the Top 25, but then selectively wrote about a few of there remaining outfielders that we ranked. Frankly, I don't have the time to write a few paragraphs for each, so if you want more detail about a specific outfielder, please let us know in the comments section below.
In addition, I have provided in the table below the 2015 Steamer projections for each outfielder in our consensus rankings.
Rank |
Name |
AB |
HR |
R |
RBI |
SB |
AVG |
wRC+ |
Commentary |
1 |
Mike Trout |
576 |
31 |
108 |
92 |
21 |
0.296 |
166 |
Overall #1 pick in all drafts this year. Wants to run more this year, combined with 30+ HR power solidifies him at top. |
2 |
Andrew McCutchen |
557 |
23 |
88 |
86 |
16 |
0.300 |
152 |
Was two SBs shy of 4th straight 20 HR, 20 SB season. Power on upswing. Can he hit 30 in 2015? |
3 |
Giancarlo Stanton |
548 |
41 |
95 |
104 |
7 |
0.279 |
159 |
Best power in the game. Has hit 154 HRs in 634 career games, including 3 years of 34+ HRs. Best years are ahead of him. |
4 |
Jose Bautista |
546 |
36 |
97 |
99 |
5 |
0.267 |
149 |
One of the top 5 power hitters in the game. Has hit 187 HRs over last five seasons. Count on 30+ HRs in 2015. |
5 |
Carlos Gomez |
572 |
22 |
79 |
72 |
31 |
0.262 |
112 |
One home run shy of three consecutive 20 HR, 30 SB seasons.Should put up 20-30 season once again in '15. |
6 |
Yasiel Puig |
542 |
22 |
85 |
74 |
13 |
0.291 |
144 |
More power to come, but going too early in drafts for my liking. Has talent to go 20-20 in 2015. |
7 |
Adam Jones |
611 |
27 |
77 |
91 |
7 |
0.274 |
115 |
As consistent as they come. Don't listen to the critics. First round fantasy talent. |
8 |
Justin Upton |
530 |
23 |
70 |
74 |
7 |
0.254 |
124 |
Move to Atlanta didn't hurt power. Move to San Diego won't either. |
9 |
Ryan Braun |
548 |
24 |
78 |
79 |
12 |
0.276 |
124 |
See a very nice bounce back season in 2015. Was still solid in his "down" 2014 season. |
10 |
Michael Brantley |
580 |
14 |
74 |
73 |
15 |
0.291 |
122 |
Career year in 2015, power will regress to norm. Sell high candidate right now in keeper leagues. |
11 |
Hanley Ramirez |
568 | 1 8 | 76 | 77 | 13 | 0.291 | 133 |
I think he has a chance to win the batting title in Boston if he can stay healthy. |
12 |
Hunter Pence |
592 |
19 |
76 |
75 |
11 |
0.268 |
118 |
Very consistent fantasy hitter. Draft, sit back and enjoy. |
13 |
Bryce Harper |
520 |
25 |
78 |
78 |
10 |
0.276 |
135 |
Is 2015 his breakout season? Has 30 HR-90 RBI potential if he can stay healthy. |
14 |
Matt Kemp |
495 |
20 |
63 |
70 |
8 |
0.267 |
124 |
Power returned in 2nd half. Back to the 30 HR hitter he was before injuries. |
15 |
Jacoby Ellsbury |
570 |
16 |
79 |
66 |
32 |
0.272 |
108 |
He is growing on me as the years go by; could he be next 20 HR, 30 SB hitter? |
16 |
George Springer |
533 |
29 |
77 |
79 |
14 |
0.236 |
117 |
Capable of 30 HR, 20 SB season. Candidate to lead AL in HRs and be included in first round talk for 2016. |
17 |
Starling Marte |
536 |
14 |
71 |
60 |
30 |
0.273 |
115 |
Solid growth in 2014. Could be next McCutchen type hitter. |
18 |
Matt Holliday |
518 |
19 |
74 |
73 |
3 |
0.276 |
131 |
Another very consistent fantasy performer. Power in decline, and Cardinals lineup has holes. |
19 |
Carlos Gonzalez |
476 |
24 |
72 |
77 |
11 |
0.281 |
118 |
Can he stay healthy in '15? His games played trend says no. Power in decline. Bid accordingly. |
20 |
Alex Gordon |
571 |
18 |
77 |
72 |
9 |
0.270 |
119 |
In contract year, could see a return to 20 HRs, 10+ SBs and .290 BA. Four straight years of 14+ HRs, 10+ SBs. |
21 |
Billy Hamilton |
511 |
7 |
61 |
39 |
56 |
0.244 |
77 |
Working on bunting and hitting more ground balls to better utilize his speed. Favorite to lead NL in stolen bases. |
22 |
Jason Heyward |
536 |
19 |
79 |
67 |
14 |
0.269 |
125 |
Power in two year decline. Says ATL coaches limited his power. We'll see about that. |
23 |
Nelson Cruz |
520 |
26 |
69 |
80 |
5 |
0.250 |
117 |
Won't hit 40 HRs again, but has a good chance at 30 HRs even in Safeco. |
24 |
Yoenis Cespedes |
551 |
23 |
73 |
85 |
7 |
0.267 |
116 |
Big power, should hit 25+ HRs in Detroit. |
25 |
Christian Yelich |
596 |
14 |
84 |
57 |
20 |
0.270 |
111 |
May not ever hit 20 home runs, but will hit for average, steal bases and score runs. |
26 |
Jayson Werth |
465 |
16 |
68 |
66 |
6 |
0.286 |
134 |
May start the season on DL. Consistent as they come. 160 runs+ RBI and .290 BA in each of last two seasons. |
27 |
Kole Calhoun |
574 |
20 |
80 |
69 |
9 |
0.262 |
118 |
Solid first full season in bigs. Is 20 HRs in his future? |
28 |
Brett Gardner |
589 |
13 |
81 |
59 |
22 |
0.256 |
103 |
The Yankee outfield becoming fantasy gold. Will Gardner run more in 2015? |
29 |
Mookie Betts |
390 |
9 |
57 |
47 |
18 |
0.283 |
116 |
Much hyped in offseason. Should leadoff, capable of 10-13 HRs, 80 runs and 30 SBs. |
30 |
Corey Dickerson |
478 |
21 |
69 |
73 |
10 |
0.285 |
114 |
Can he build on his breakout season? Solid power, but of concern is whether 19.5% HR/FB rate is repeatable. |
31 |
Jay Bruce |
473 |
22 |
59 |
67 |
7 |
0.238 |
104 |
Big bounce back year in store as knee is 100% healthy. |
32 |
Melky Cabrera |
569 |
15 |
77 |
68 |
6 |
0.289 |
115 |
Undervalued and moving to good lineup in hitters park. |
33 |
Gregory Polanco |
520 |
14 |
64 |
54 |
23 |
0.250 |
96 |
Despite disappointing rookie season, he still showed solid eye at plate, a solid primer for breakthrough 2015. |
34 |
Ryan Zimmerman |
When healthy, he is a 20 HR, 80 RBI, .280 hitter, which is valuable. |
|||||||
35 |
Shin-Soo Choo |
536 |
16 |
85 |
60 |
11 |
0.264 |
120 |
See a bounce back season for Choo, but not 20-20 type bounceback. |
36 |
Josh Harrison |
549 |
12 |
68 |
59 |
18 |
0.278 |
108 |
Breakout year will be tough to replicate, but double digit HRs and SBs not out of the question. |
37 |
Charlie Blackmon |
599 |
16 |
82 |
65 |
22 |
0.274 |
90 |
Most fantasy writers don't think he can repeat his 2014 performance. You know what they say when everyone is on the same side, right? |
38 |
Marcell Ozuna |
564 |
23 |
66 |
77 |
4 |
0.256 |
107 |
Is the power breakout for real? Some seem to think so. |
39 |
Jorge Soler |
507 |
24 |
66 |
78 |
4 |
0.262 |
117 |
Needs good health, but could be a 25 HR-80 RBI hitter out of the gate. |
40 |
Denard Span |
579 |
5 |
78 |
47 |
23 |
0.281 |
102 |
In walk year, but was 2014 performance a career year? |
41 |
Wil Myers |
496 |
18 |
60 |
62 |
8 |
0.246 |
109 |
Lots of questions about what kind of hitter he will be after trade to SD. Should hit for 20+ HR if healthy. |
42 |
Ben Zobrist |
572 |
12 |
80 |
65 |
9 |
0.265 |
117 |
Power in decline, but gets on base, scores runs and cans steal double digit bags. Multi-position eligible. |
43 |
Brandon Moss |
430 |
26 |
63 |
72 |
2 |
0.248 |
131 |
Curious if the hip issue will impact his power. Move to Cleveland should thiough. |
44 |
J.D. Martinez |
535 |
23 |
70 |
80 |
6 |
0.273 |
119 |
Will he repeat his breakout in 2015? Tigers will need it. |
45 |
Rusney Castillo |
464 |
13 |
57 |
60 |
15 |
0.279 |
106 |
Has all the tools to put up 10-13 HRs and steal 25+ bases. |
46 |
Mark Trumbo |
521 |
27 |
64 |
79 |
4 |
0.244 |
105 |
Love his power, and he should be available in the middle rounds of most drafts. Should bounce back after down 2014. |
47 |
Ben Revere |
581 |
3 |
62 |
42 |
36 |
0.283 |
85 |
Is he more valuable than Billy Hamilton in fantasy? Hit .306 with 49 SBs last season. |
48 |
Evan Gattis |
524 |
29 |
68 |
81 |
1 |
0.243 |
111 |
Move to Houston should help power, but think he is being overvalued in drafts thus far. |
49 |
Leonys Martin |
519 |
10 |
63 |
57 |
28 |
0.263 |
93 |
Two straight 30+ SB seasons, with improving eye at the plate. Could steal 40 and score 80 runs in healthy Rangers lineup. |
50 |
Oswaldo Arcia |
488 |
25 |
65 |
74 |
4 |
0.258 |
122 |
Love his power, but has trouble making contact. Candidate to hit 30 home runs this season. |
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