2015 Season Recap
It is difficult to keep finding superlatives to describe Mike Trout. Yet again he produced one of the greatest seasons of all-around production with 105 runs, 32 doubles, six triples, 41 home runs, 90 RBI, 92 walks and a .299 batting average (172-for-575). It is also difficult to remember that he is only 24-years-old. 2015 was the first time in his short career that the centerfielder finished out of the top five fantasy hitters. Obviously, his wrist injury and the resulting .218 AVG in August was a contributing factor. The right-hander had a career-best .590 SLG (second highest in the majors) and a career-best .991 OPS (fourth highest in the majors). He even improved upon his MVP-winning season by hitting 41 home runs (another career-best), reducing his strikeout rate from 26.1% to 23.2% and improving his batting average up from .287 to .299. In a season where stolen bases were down by about 10%, Mike Trout’s total slipped for the fourth straight season down to just 11.
2016 ECR™ Expert Consensus Ranking
2016 Season Outlook
With such little separation between the top three hitters on the draft board, Mike Trout, Bryce Harper and Paul Goldschmidt, it is the Angels’ superstar who offers the most proven record of elite production. The 24-year-old has hit 104 home runs over the last three years compared to 75 from Bryce Harper and 88 from Paul Goldschmidt. Trout has also demonstrated greater health by averaging 15 more games than Goldschmidt and 34 more than Harper. His 1.078 OPS in September suggests there are no ill-effects from the wrist injury and the 40.8% hard-hit ball rate represented a new career-high. There is the possibility of more stolen bases this season, especially if Albert Pujols, who notoriously dislikes stolen base attempts while he is at the plate, is out of the lineup at the start of the year. Regardless of your league format, it is unlikely that Mike Trout will still be on the draft board past the third pick. The argument for taking the player who has finished as winner or runner-up of the AL MVP for the last four seasons, as the first overall pick is compelling.
Gavin Tramps is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Gavin, check out his archive or find him @_tramps.