Mike Yastrzemski (OF, SF) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~ 270

CURRENT ADP: ~300 overall

ANALYSIS: San Francisco Giants Outfielder Mike Yastrzemski had a solid 2019 campaign after making his debut at the ripe age of 28. He made his debut in May and finished the season by hitting .272/.334/.518 with 21 HR, 55 RBI, 64 R, and 32 BB in 381 ABs. This was a solid performance out of Yaz, especially considering he had spent the previous seven years in the minor leagues where he was a career .263 hitter. He also only averaged 10 home runs per season while in the minors and never hit more than 15 in any one season.

His advanced metrics tell us he had an 11.2% barrel rate, an average exit velocity of 88.7 mph, and a hard-hit rate of 42.9%. These numbers tell us that the power we saw in 2019 could continue into 2020 and may not be an outlier. He did have a 26% strikeout rate, so expectations should also be tempered a bit.

If we look a little deeper into Yastrzemski's split stats, we will notice that he is a bit stronger vs left-handed pitching as far as getting on base albeit in far fewer at-bats. This is noted by his .329 average and .382 OBP vs. left-handers compared to .256 and .321, respectively vs. right-handers. He did, however, have 17 of his 21 HR against right-handed pitching and has also found more power on the road as he hit 13 home runs away from Oracle Park.

Overall, Mike Yastrzemski is a bit of a mixed bag. He should be able to contribute some value in areas like batting average, runs, walks, and on-base percentage. He should also hit near the top of the lineup as he spent  267 of his 371 at-bats in the leadoff or No. 2 spot in 2019, which makes him worthy of a spot nearing pick 300.