DJ LeMahieu: Value at the Middle Infield Position
By Bill Pivetz
The middle infield, more specifically second base, is every top-heavy. If you miss out on the top four or five names, then your best bet is to wait until the later rounds to draft this position. I wrote about this topic when comparing Zack Cozart and Jose Reyes at shortstop. Now, I focus on the second base position and DJ LeMahieu. He had great value by the end of 2015 and will have it again next season.
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Throughout his career, 376 games over four seasons, LeMahieu was average across the board. He had nine home runs, 96 RBI, 29 stolen bases and a .276 batting average. His power numbers went up each season while his batting average dropped.
Then, he was able to put it all together for a great 2015 campaign. He played 150 games with 85 runs, 170 hits, six home runs, 61 RBI, 23 stolen bases, 50 walks, 107 strikeouts and a .301 batting average. All of those are career highs. The Colorado Rockies offense finished fifth in runs scored, fifth in RBI and sixth in batting average.
The numbers are great and all, but how does that equate to fantasy baseball value? According to ESPN Draft Results, DJ LeMahieu was not drafted, 260.0 ADP. In the site’s league. He was drafted in the 26th round, pick 312 of a 12-team league.
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At the end of the season, LeMahieu finished as the 35th-best hitter on the Player Rater. He finished fourth among second basemen. He finished ahead of Robinson Cano, Ian Kinsler and Kolten Wong among others. He was owned in 84.2 percent of leagues by season’s end.
When drafting, it’s important to draft the power hitters early. Not many hitters can crush 35-40 home runs in a season. You can find the low-home run, high batting average guys late, which is where DJ LeMahieu falls. That in addition to the ability to steal 25 bases makes LeMahieu a great value.
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. Wait for speed. Wasting an early-round pick on someone like Dee Gordon or Billy Hamilton that can help in just one category hurts your team in the long run. LeMahieu is someone you can wait on and that help you in four stats.
If you can get DJ LeMahieu late as one of the last starting second basemen drafted, he will be your best pick.
Projections: 88 runs, 175 hits, six home runs, 25 stolen bases, .300 batting average
Draft: Round 10