RADIO
BALLER MOVE: Target ~125
CURRENT ADP: 198
ANALYSIS: After nearly a decade in the majors with the Rays, 32-year-old Evan Longoria was dealt to the Giants this offseason. The landing spot is not ideal for fantasy owners, as Longo will remain in a pitcher’s park, but he does have an improved lineup around him with the addition of Andrew McCutchen.
Longoria is coming off of his worst season in the majors, posting just a 96 wRC+. This was mainly due to his 43.4% groundball rate, and a 10% decrease in his fly-ball rate, which led him to just 20 homers in 2017. Do not expect Longoria to post another 36 home run season like 2016, as he had an inflated 15.5% HR/FB rate that year, while he normally hovers around his 2017 mark of 10.5% - expect only 19-22 homers. Futhermore, his average exit velocity was just at 86.9 MPH, a massive drop off from the 91.2 MPH he put up in 2016.
As he continues into his thirties, it’s clear that Longoria is declining quickly, and he is no longer the fantasy asset he once was. He is not as attractive as he once was, but there is still a lot of value left for this bounce back candidate.
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