2020 Fantasy Baseball Rankings (AL)

After two years of a low BABIP, Olson's BA finally jumped to .267. It isn't probable he will offer more than that but fantasy owners know 50 HRs and 120 RBIs is truly within reach if he doesn't miss a full month this season.

Abreu outperformed Anthony Rizzo and Paul Goldschmidt last season, knocking 33 homers with 122 RBIs and a solid as always .282 BA. He hasn't slowed down one bit despite the age so you can rely on him to produce once again if you grab him in the 7th round.

LeMahieu may have been the most shocking breakout last year, moving from a .276 hitter with limited power at Coors to all of a sudden 26 HRs, 102 RBIs and a .327 BA away from Coors. You can expect some regression but his 2019 campaign was just too great to discount him in the 6th or 7th round.

After a lousy 2018, it seemed Santana's bat had finally hit the end of career wall, but he bounced back to a tune of 34 homers, 110 runs and saw his batting average soar from .229 to .281. All are expected to regress in 2019, but not enough to make him worth passing on in the 12th round.

Encarnacion is most certainly getting up there in age but his power persists as he knocked 30+ homers again for the eighth straight season. As we all know, the batting average won't be great but we can put up with that for 100+ RBIs and 80+ runs to go with the power.

In terms of overall game, Grandal may be the best catcher in all of baseball, as his OBP will hover just south of .400 and he plays excellent defense but the BA will be closer to that .240 mark and his HRs, RBIs and runs should dip in the ballpark and lineup moves from MIL to CWS.

Gurriel was unbelievable last season going from 13 homers and 85 RBIs to 31 and 104. Even with the power spike, he maintained his .290 BA for the third straight season. Although he is older, it is clear that fantasy owners can still rely on him for plenty of production.

Sano missed over 50 games but still hit 34 homers and drove in 79 runs. With a full season, 50/110/110 is a real possibility but let's not pretend that he hasn't let fantasy owners down a number of times so there is most definitely some risk as well.

Santana's breakout season was absolutely ridiculous on paper. He finished with 28 homers, 21 steals, a .283 BA and 80+ RBIs and runs in just 474 at-bats. He may not be as efficient this season but even if he takes a step back, he would be a steal in the 13th round.

The Orioles had a dismal season but Mancini took his performance to another level with 35 homers, 106 R, 97 RBIs and a .291 BA. He is among the top regression candidates but even with a dip, we are still looking at a potential value in the 10th round because name-value is driving his ADP down.

Voit wasn't anything near the short sample-size explosion we saw in 2018 but he still managed 21 homers, 72 runs and 62 RBIs in just 118 games. While the batting average won't be ideal, you can certainly put up with 30 homers, 90/90 RBis and runs in the 17th round.

Dozier had a strong 2019, batting .279 with 26 homers, 75 runs and 84 RBIs. He won't swipe any bags, but that was good enough to outproduce Rhys Hoskins and Edwin Encarnacion from a fantasy perspective and fantasy owners can expect more four category production this year.

Cron had 30 homers in 2018 and followed it up with 25 last year despite just 125 games played. Should he see a full season of health, 35 or even 40 is a possibility but the cost is a medicore at best batting average.

Lowe didn't have a high prospect pedigree nor did he perform in his rookie debut but he blew up last year for the Rays, hitting 17 homers and driving in 51 runs in just 296 at-bats. Don't be surprised if that grows to 25 and 10 with a solid batting average over a full year.

Canha took a big a big step forward last year, improving his batting average 25 points while he managed 26 homers in just 126 games. That number could become nearly 40 with a full season but the batting average is more than likely going to regress a bit.

Diaz finally received some playing time and the bat was strong as expected with 14 homers in just half a season. The batting average has room for growth too so don't be surprised if a full season gives fantasy owners 25 homers with a .280 average.

Nunez went from 8 homers and a .258 average in 2018 to a breakout performance with 31 homers and 90 RBIs. The batting average certainly won't help fantasy owners, however.

Chavis came out blazing after he made his MLB debut and many were calling him the next great star but he cooled off in a huge way and ended up only hitting .254 but with 18 homers in 347 at-bats. With multi-position eligibility, this is a premiere breakout candidate to target late in drafts.

Vasquez is being drafted as the ninth catcher off the board this season but finished 2019 as the #4 catcher in fantasy with 23 homers and a solid .276 average. Playing in Boston's treacherous lineup certainly dosn't hurt either. His upside isn't as sexy but this is a good bat well worth using as a top 12 catcher.

If you play in a deeper league and are looking for a source of batting average in the later rounds, Cabrera is as solid of a bet as you'll find. Durability is a concern and he won't hit for power anymore though.

Lowe didn't do a ton in his 152 at bats last year but in the minor leagues he made it clear that he is a masher through and through. It would be no surprise if he ended the year batting .290 with 25 homers much like we saw in Trey Mancini's breakout 2019.

Goodrum isn't going to hit even .250 but this a multi-position guy for your bench that will hit a dozen homers and steal a dozen bases.

 

Martinez was only given 334 at-bats last year even though he batted .305 in 2018. His batting average dipped but all of the underlying metrics suggest that was a fluke. If he plays the full season in Tampa, he could prove to be one of the great steals in 2020.

Vogelbach did manage 30 homers as many thought he might but the batting average was so horrendous that there are talks that he may lose his job at some point this season. With that said, with the risk comes upside for 40 bombs and a Joey Gallo like season.

 

 

Pujols is nowhere near where he once was and has some durability concerns but this is still a 20+ homer hitter for the end of your bench with a BA that won't entirely kill you.

Moreland has never been a source of batting average but he does offer power and last year it was plus power with 19 homers in just 91 games. That could become 30-35 with a full season of health this year.

 

Tellez has power galore, as evidenced by his 21 homers in just 370 at-bats. Now, the BA will hurt a bit, but you can afford to deal with that if his homers jump to 35 over a full season.

Ford hit 12 bombs in just 143 at-bats last year after destroying Triple-A pitching to open the year, but there doesn't seem to be a spot in the lineup for him versus righties.

Marwin is a long way removed from batting .303 with 90 RBIs for the Astros in the now infamous 2017 Astros' season, but he still has 20 homer power if he can stay on the field and the batting average shouldn't hurt.

 

 

 

Bauers has not produced at the level many prospect hounds expected but he does have upside to break out this year to a tune of 20 homers, 10 steals and a .250 batting average if he hangs onto the job.

If Astudillo gets more playing time this year, fantasy owners can expect a useful batting average but not much in the way of power or speed.