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Hitter List 7/10: Ranking the Top 150 Hitters to Own ROS

Jonathan Metzelaar shares his weekly ranking of who will be the top 150 hitters in baseball through the end of the 2019 season.

Hello and welcome to Hitter List, where every Wednesday I’ll be flawlessly ranking the top 150 hitters in baseball from now through the end of the season.

To truly hate something, you must first understand it, so here’s a general overview of how I go about evaluating players so you can be upset with these rankings more thoroughly:

  • Given that these rankings are taking place in a vacuum, I tend to value stolen bases more than home runs. The 5,585 homers hit in 2018 were the fourth-highest total in modern history. And the 2,474 stolen bases from last year were the lowest total since 1994 and the eighth-lowest total since 1969. In other words, stolen bases are a scarce resource getting even scarcer, like competent relievers on the Baltimore Orioles. And home runs are an abundant resource that are becoming more prevalent, like New York Mets fans’ whiny little baby tears. All else being equal, I’ll take the guy with 15 HR/20 SB over the guy with 20 HR/15 SB.
  • I’m generally not a believer in positional scarcity, so position eligibility only comes into play in two instances: as a tiebreaker when two players are fairly evenly matched, or if a player is eligible at catcher, because catcher is a barren wasteland this year filled with adrenaline-fueled maniacs playing guitar riffs while strapped to 18-wheelers. Wait, no, that’s Mad Max: Fury Road, but catcher is just as bleak and weird.
  • I’m an old man who’s afraid of change, so I tend to be low on young players without major league track records.
  • I lean on track record more than recent performance, unless I see a significant underlying change in approach.
  • These rankings apply only to leagues using standard scoring (R, RBI, HR, SB, AVG) and lean more towards rotisserie and H2H categories leagues. Adjust accordingly for other formats.
  • These rankings are meant to be from today’s date through the end of the season. These are purely for redraft, so I’m not taking 2020 into account here at all.
  • A player’s movement in the rankings can be just as much about where guys around them have moved as anything else. A player might move down purely as a result of someone below them rising, and vice versa.

 

[hitter_list_2019 list_id=”33643″ include_stats=”1″]

 

Now onto the recaps:

  • Not too much movement this time around on account of the short week, but this did provide a nice opportunity for me to dive a bit deeper on a few guys and make some ranking adjustments.
  • Injuries: David Peralta, C.J. Cron, Brandon Lowe, and Tommy La Stella all hit the IL this week. Corey Seager and A.J. Pollock will both be activated this Friday.
  • Additions: Jay Bruce and Mitch Garver return to the list this week at the expense of Robinson Cano and Tommy La Stella. Garver’s main issue lately seems to be getting consistent playing time, but when he starts he hits, and he’s arguably been one of the best offensive catchers this year.
  • Michael Conforto has really been scuffling lately, batting just .180 over his last 15 games. Most of the peripherals are in line with what they were last year, when he had a good-not-great season. It’s worth noting that he’s started struggling against lefties again after seemingly putting those platoon splits in his rearview mirror; he’s posting just a 73 wRC+ and .217 average against them this season. It may be time to accept that this iteration of Conforto probably won’t help you much in batting average.
  • After a roaring start to the year, Hunter Dozier has hit just .234 over the past month with four homers. His strikeout rate has slowly crept up over the past month, as has his chase rate. Based on how much hard contact he makes and how much he elevates the ball, you can still probably bank on 25 homers, but the average may settle closer to .275 than the .290 we initially hoped for.
  • The launch angle gains Jesse Winker made last year have completely evaporated this season, and while he’s still contributed a solid 13 homers on the year, they’ve come with the help of an extreme 26% HR/FB. He’s also batting just .171 against lefties and has recently been getting benched fairly regularly against them. I still think there’s a ton of talent here, but if the HR/FB rate normalizes and he continues to be platooned, it really caps his value.
  • There are but three guarantees in life: death, taxes, and an annual freak injury to A.J. Pollock. Pollock is on the verge of being activated after an infection in his surgically repaired elbow that makes me want to dry heave every time I think about it. Pollock was pretty uninspiring prior to hitting the IL, and it’s unclear how his playing time will shake out, but there’s pretty clearly 20/20 potential here that’s worth a roll of the dice if you have a roster spot.
  • After a full season in which he only stole 30 bases, and a first half in which he’s stolen just 15, it’s probably time to admit that Dee Gordon’s elite stolen base contributions are a thing of the past. His sprint speed is in the 79th percentile this year, which is good, but nowhere near what it once was. The fact that he has a career-high fly-ball rate this year is super concerning, and something that I think will continue to eat into his batting average. All told, he’s a solid bench option in shallow leagues that you can plug in when you need a boost in steals. But he’s going to hurt you more than he helps everywhere else.
  • I was pretty high on Yuli Gurriel coming into the year, and he proceeded to make me look silly for the first two months. But he’s come around big-time over the past month, hitting .304 with 10 homers during that span, including seven homers over his last seven games. I love that he’s started elevating the ball more this year, as it has unlocked some power for him without costing him at all in terms of his elite ability to avoid strikeouts. My hope in the preseason was that he could pair a .285 average with 20+ homers, and he seems well on his way to doing just that.
  • Michael Chavis has been producing to this point, but his underlying stats scare me quite a bit. An 18% SwStr and 65% contact rate are bad, and while you could make a case for those numbers if he wereselling out for power, he’s producing a league-average 34% hard hit rate. I’m not sure that speaks to the 24.6% HR/FB being sustainable, and the already-pedestrian .263 average is being floated by a .359 BABIP. I’d be selling while the surface-level stats still look fairly impressive.

Graphic by Michael Haas (@digitalHaas on Twitter)

Jonathan Metzelaar

Jonathan Metzelaar is a writer, content manager, and podcaster with Pitcher List. He enjoys long walks on the beach, quiet dinners by candlelight, and essentially any other activity that will distract him from the perpetual torture of being a New York Mets fan. He's written for Fangraphs Community Research and created Youtube videos about fantasy baseball under the moniker "Jonny Baseball."

18 responses to “Hitter List 7/10: Ranking the Top 150 Hitters to Own ROS”

  1. Sam says:

    With Machado not running, what business does he have being above Bryant? KB is in a better offense for R/RBI, has an AVG 30 points higher, has a better career avg, generally displays better hitting skills (K-BB, ISO, OBP, SLG), and has a higher peak HR with very similar career averages. Seems like the unrealized dream of SB for Machado all that’s keeping him propped up here.

  2. dude says:

    No Jay Bruce? 24 HR’s and should be good for 15-20 more in that small home park.

    • Jonathan Metzelaar says:

      Great call, that’s an oversight on my part. I think I’d likely slot him just outside the top-100.

  3. Jonathan Metzelaar says:

    That’s a compelling argument for Bryant over Machado. I don’t necessarily agree with some of those points though. They’re roughly dead even in R+RBI, and that’s with two months of Machado doing practically nothing baked in. I’m also not sure calling his speed an unrealized dream is fair–he stole 14 bags just last year and stolen bases tend to come in bunches. On top of that, while Bryant may have reached a higher peak in home runs, Machado has been much more consistent with his power output and seems like a pretty safe bet for 30+ in any given year, which is not something I’d necessarily bank on for Bryant based on his track record. It’s definitely close, but I lean Machado just because I think he has a more stable floor and he’s a more complete fantasy contributor if he can get to double-digit steals again.

    • BG says:

      Padres front office doesn’t want him to steal. That’s a change of approach and he should be moved down as such

      • BG says:

        How many weeks of riding the pine does it take until Myers is off the board?!?! Come on man, it’s not like he’s hurt, he’s number 4/5 in that outfield at best…

  4. Facenda says:

    Since you wrote about Yuli Gurriel, let me ask: You have Justin Turner ranked 57 spots above him. I like Turner. I drafted him at a decent mid-round spot. But outside of his batting average, he has done little to help my team. Why do you have him ranked so high? Do you think he and Gurriel are interchangeable at this point? Both hit in good lineups. Gurriel has three-position flexibility. Thanks.

    • Jonathan Metzelaar says:

      They definitely have similar profiles, so I think that’s a great comp. There are a couple of reasons I like Turner a bit more though. He has better plate discipline, which I think over the long haul will translate to more favorable counts and better overall production. He hits more line drives, which are the best batted ball type and generally correspond with higher batting averages. And he hits the ball significantly harder than Gurriel, at a more ideal launch angle. Turner is also younger, and has a longer track record of success (when healthy). I think Turner has gotten a bit unlucky this year, and can be counted on for about five more homers and about 15 more points in batting average than Gurriel in a given year.

  5. Ian says:

    How close is Chris Taylor to breaking (back?) into the top 150?

  6. Greg says:

    Vazquez has been one of the hottest catchers since June 1st

  7. TheKraken says:

    I dont know that 15 sb from a predictable player isnt close to elite at the break. A lot of frauds grab a handful here and there but it isnt sustainable. No reason to be so low on dee imo. He hasnt been healthy either so that pace is probably more like 40 per 162. You know i like gordon though.

  8. Orange WHIPs says:

    The stubbornness on Wil Myers all season despite solid arguments in the comments section here and the fact that he’s now a reserve for the Padres is really something. How many other rankings are just based on gut feelings and preseason expectations?

  9. Jack says:

    Where are you slotting Clint Frazier after he is inevitably traded somewhere he will play every day like Cleveland or Detroit? 90s?

  10. discuss says:

    This post is truly a fastidsious one it helps new web viewers, who are wishing in favor oof blogging.

  11. Ryan says:

    Sat, Jul 13

    Eduardo Escobar hit a solo homer in a loss to the Cardinals on Saturday.

    Advice: Escobar launched his 19th homer of the season with a solo shot off of Dakota Hudson in the fifth inning. It’s his 68th RBI of the season, and he’s slashing .295/.351/.545 on the 2019 campaign. After his 2-for-15 start in March, there haven’t been very many infielders better than Escobar this summer.
    (Rotoworld.com)

    Just absorb that loss now. You’re dead wrong with where he’s at.

  12. Ryan says:

    Just move him up 20 spots next week and provide yourself some credibility.

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