Fantasy Baseball 2018: Is Whit Merrifield a top-tier second basemen?
After bursting onto the fantasy baseball scene, can Kansas City Royals second baseman, Whit Merrifield, repeat his success?
In 2017, Whit Merrifield slashed .288/.324/.460 with a wOBA for .332. He chipped in 19 home runs and 34 stolen bases. He scored 80 runs while driving in another 78. Finishing in the top 15 in steals (2nd), home runs (10th), and wOBA (11th), Merrifield played like a starting caliber second baseman.
While no second baseman really comes close to Jose Altuve in terms of fantasy value, Merrifield is knocking on the door from the top tier. ESPN has him ranked as the 11th second baseman heading into 2018 (108th player overall). By the end of 2018, he should rank just behind Altuve and Jose Ramirez in terms of fantasy value for second basemen. He’ll reach that tier by continuing the growth he made last season.
The Progress
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The first thing to note about Merrifield’s 2017 is that his 19 home runs were maybe the most he’s hit since high school. This power spike can be directly related to a change in his batted ball profile.
In 2016, his 44.7% GB% dragged down his power potential, but in 2017, those ground balls (37.7% GB%, 2017) were lifted into fly balls (40.5% FB%, 2017).
A change in average launch angle also allowed Merrifield to raise his ISO to .172 from .109 in 2016. That launch angle rose to 15.9 degrees from 11.9 in 2016. All of this goes to support the fact that this power surge is the real deal.
Fantasy Outlook
He’s in some unprecedented territory for himself, so the hesitation to trust a relatively inexperienced player (226 MLB games) is there. The floor would be around 10 home runs and with his 28.9 ft/sec sprint speed, 25 steals. This puts him in an Eduardo Nunez type value at the floor, but Merrifield is closer to the top end of his potential with his added power.
What separates Altuve and the rest of the field of second basemen is his power-speed combo. Merrifield is one of five second basemen to hit at least 15 home runs and steal 15 bases in 2017. He’s also the only other player not named Altuve to hit at least 15 homers and steal at least 30 bases.
Next: Fantasy Baseball 2018: Relievers are more important than ever
Ultimately, it comes down to your draft strategy. Maybe you focus on finding more power out of your middle infield spots and chase Brian Dozier. Maybe you lock down steals with Dee Gordon, but if you need a plug-and-play guy at second base, Merrifield is your guy.