Joe Mauer may actually help win your fantasy baseball league

Don’t let prejudice color your opinion. It is time to think again about rostering Joe Mauer in your 2018 fantasy baseball team.

Do not think this article is simply about Joe Mauer and his elite batting average. Although it must be noted that the only players to hit above Mauer’s .325 in the second half of last season were fantasy studs like Jose Altuve, Charlie Blackmon and Joey Votto. You will be surprised at how much Mauer can still offer.

Power is prevalent. You can get 20 home runs from anywhere in the draft. Last season, 117 players hit 20 home runs or more. Do you know how many qualified hitters finished with a batting average over .300? It was less than 50. In fact, it was only 25.

Batting average is one of the standard 5×5 categories so you should be more protective of it in roto and category leagues, but as I said, this article is not simply about Mauer’s elite batting average contribution.

Although the Twins’ first baseman only hit two home runs after the All-Star break, the rest of his production in the second half of the season was significant. In points leagues, he outscored Josh Bell, Joey Gallo, Yuli Gurriel, Matt Carpenter, Mitch Moreland, Logan Morrison, Mark Reynolds, Chris Davis & Eric Thames. A surprisingly good return from a player with a current ADP of 374.

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Mauer still has elite contact skills; he is in the top-5 in contact% and hits to all parts of the fields.

Even as he reaches his mid-30s, the former No.1 overall pick remains one of the toughest hitters to strike out. Last season he had his lowest strikeout rate since 2013, which encouragingly was matched by a big jump in his hard-hit ball rate

The left-hander’s 25% line drive rate is elite, and although he hits fewer fly balls than in previous years, he was unfortunate with a low HR/FB conversion rate of 6.7%.

Advanced metrics love him. Using xStats which converts Statcast data into more objective observations of the game, Mauer should be in line for a bounce-back in production.

The veteran slugged .417, but according to his xSLG, it should have been .508, an increase of 91 points. He looks far more enticing as a late-round pick with .892 OPS.

The other striking feature on Mauer’s xStats page is that based on the launch angle, distance and velocity, he was expected to hit 18 home runs. He actually only hit seven.

If his 2018 results reflect the underlying skills he showed last season, Mauer could be the difference between winning and losing your league.

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We know that players like Chris Davis and Joey Gallo are batting average drains, but in the second half of last season, Mauer hit nearly 100 points higher than highly skilled players like Aaron Judge and Wil Myers. Don’t undervalue the contribution the Twins’ first baseman could make in 2018