21 Players Whose Fielding Could Affect Their Fantasy Value

Do any of you use fielding in your fantasy leagues? No. If by some fluke that’s incorrect, the stat being used is something asinine like errors. So it’s not surprising that we utterly ignore fielding when it comes to fantasy baseball analysis.

Major league teams are not ignoring fielding. When it comes to building a competitive roster, they’re relying on fielding more and more – especially teams like the Tampa Bay Rays and Oakland Athletics. Those teams are using fielding values to set playing time, and while fielding is meaningless to fantasy owners, playing time is potentially the most important stat (even though it’s not directly counted). Out there, lurking in your player universe, are guys with solid hitting stats and terrible fielding numbers. In some cases, real world teams will catch on and use a defensive replacement or more-than-occasionally sit the bat-first player.

I wanted to identify a list of players who might sit more than their fantasy owners would like for defensive reasons. I used the standard advanced stats on our leaderboards (UZR, UZR/150, DRS, and def) with a minimum requirement of 500 innings in the field last season. I removed catchers because they were annoying me. The table should be sortable, it’s initially organized by UZR/150. The Def column includes the position adjustment which is why a shortstop can have bad UZR and DRS scores and a decent looking Def.

Let’s pluck out some names. The actual table is at the bottom.

1. Matt Kemp, CF

Kemp was never a good defensive center fielder, but a return from ankle surgery can’t possibly help. Fantasy owners are stashing Kemp in the hopes of a mid-season star. I’m calling that a bad idea. The Dodgers could get Kemp into the lineup as the left fielder, which means Carl Crawford’s playing time may be affected. Meanwhile, I’m expecting Andre Ethier to play fairly regularly.

2. David Freese, 3B

The advantage with Freese is that there really isn’t anyone backing him up. It’s also unclear if Mike Scioscia would even consider a late game defensive replacement. This is one to monitor.

3. Miguel Cabrera, 1B

Well, he’ll almost certainly lose third base eligibility next season. That’s a shame.

4. Michael Saunders, CF

I didn’t know this, but Saunders is actually pretty bad in center field (I thought he was acceptable). With Abraham Almonte competing for playing time, Saunders could quickly move down the defensive spectrum. Luckily for him, Corey Hart is in no way an outfielder and Dustin Ackley is on thin ice in left.

5. Adam Dunn, DH

We’ll see how Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko split designated hitter. I have a feeling Konerko isn’t going to hand Dunn the job as many assume (that may be because they both struggle). Jose Abreu is banged up at the moment, so there’s that.

6. Michael Cuddyer, OF

Cuddy is really terrible in the outfield. That hasn’t stopped the Rockies in the past (ahem, Brad Hawpe), but they do have four center fielders at their disposal. Cuddyer almost certainly will be subbed out late in games and benched in certain match-ups. The only redeeming factor is that he could push Justin Morneau out of the lineup rather than sit.

7. Carlos Beltran, OF

The Yankees have defensive replacement Ichiro Suzuki hanging out on the bench and Alfonso Soriano isn’t terrible in the field. Unfortunately for Beltran, he’ll have to share designated hitter with Soriano, Brian McCann, and Derek Jeter (at least). He’ll be a little frustrating to own if you don’t have a deep roster. When he does start, a defensive replacement is almost guaranteed.

8. Rickie Weeks, 2B

He’s been pretty awful in the field these last two seasons. With Scooter Gennett pushing for playing time, the few of you hoping for a Weeks renaissance will be disappointed.

9. Asdrubal Cabrera, SS

Cabrera has always been a poor fielding shortstop. Francisco Lindor is getting close, and that proximity could interfere with Cabrera’s playing time later in the year. He could also move to third for the Indians which would probably hurt Lonnie Chisenhall and/or Yan Gomes most. A trade is possible, perhaps probable (maybe the Angels solve their Freese problem with Cabrera).

10. Melky Cabrera, OF

Another Cabrera. If he doesn’t tap back into his modest power stroke, he will find himself cut in short order. The glove isn’t the only reason why, but it’s not helping.

11. Will Venable, CF

I really like Venable, but he’ll get stuffed back into some kind of platoon if/when Cameron Maybin returns to action. He’s not a center fielder but he’s perfectly adequate in a corner. He’s just competing with way too many decent players in the Padres outfield. Chris Denorfia also loses value when Venable is bumped back to the corner.

12. Logan Morrison, 1B

Not that anybody is drafting Morrison for anything but “maybe Smoak gets hurt,” but I can’t rule out Morrison as Plan B to Hart or Ackley. If so, it shouldn’t take long to figure out that he doesn’t belong in the outfield.

13. Nick Franklin, 2B

It’s a tiny sample, but poor defensive marks at second base lead me to believe that maybe he isn’t a shortstop. That cuts his fantasy potential substantially.

14. Jed Lowrie, SS

Lowrie isn’t a good shortstop, but he should slide straight over to second base when Addison Russell gets the call. That mostly affects players who aren’t fantasy assets like Alberto Callaspo, Eric Sogard, and Nick Punto.

15. Will Middlebrooks, 3B

There’s more pressure on his bat than glove, but if both aren’t on track by sometime in May then Garin Cecchini could get a look.

16. Dan Uggla, 2B

We make a big deal about his bat, but if you look at all major league second basemen, he’s perfectly adequate with the stick. The problem has always been the glove. I’m not sure the Braves have enough margin of error to live through another year of Uggla at second. It’s a shame they don’t have the balls to go with the better option. At some point, Uggla will lose his job entirely and some sad sack fantasy owner will lament his passing.

17. Matt Holliday, OF

Holliday has been getting progressively worse in the field. The Cardinals have the personnel to do some late game substitutions.

18. Nick Markakis, OF

It’s about time for the Orioles to move on from Markakis. He was a replacement player last year – in part because he’s a poor fielder. They should start phasing him out this season if they’re smart.

19. Daniel Murphy, 1B/2B

The problem isn’t his defense so much as the roster crunch. The Mets are itching to see Eric Young in the infield. Who knows what’s up with Ike Davis and Lucas Duda. Murphy won’t lose playing time, he’ll either move to first base more regularly or get traded. The funny thing is, I think the Mets will be close enough to contending that they might care about a few defensive runs here and there. That’s a prediction for Atlanta and Washington to substantially underperform expectations – the Mets will still have a bad team.

20. Torii Hunter, OF

Hunter turned in a poor defensive season in 2013. I just got done saying I won’t bet against this guy, but the Tigers do need to at least put a backup plan in place for 2015. With the potential for his bat to fade at any time, a +15 run outfielder could possibly outperform Hunter.

Not Listed

Corey Hart, OF

Stop the madness. It shouldn’t take the Mariners too long to figure out that whatever modest benefit Hart provides with the bat is returned threefold in the field. Saunders should slide into right field full time once sanity checks in.

The Table

Num	Name	Team	Inn	UZR	UZR/150	DRS	Def
1	Eduardo Nunez	NYY	608.1	-20.6	-40.7	-28	-17.4
2	Matt Kemp	LAD	576.1	-16.2	-35	-6	-15.3
3	Alexi Amarista	SDP	507.1	-12.3	-28.1	-5	-11.4
4	Juan Francisco	MIL	532.1	-8.7	-27.1	-3	-13.2
5	Raul Ibanez	SEA	824.1	-16.7	-25.9	-19	-20.9
6	David Freese	STL	1050.2	-16.5	-22.7	-14	-14.7
7	Delmon Young	– – –	503.1	-9.4	-22.2	-10	-12
8	Michael Young	– – –	890.2	-14	-20.2	-20	-12.5
9	Miguel Cabrera	DET	1234.2	-16.8	-19.9	-18	-14.6
10	Michael Saunders	SEA	627.2	-9.6	-19.7	-14	-8.5
11	Adam Dunn	CHW	627	-8	-19.1	-12	-13.4
12	Michael Cuddyer	COL	992	-13.4	-18.9	-16	-18.5
13	Carlos Beltran	STL	1138.1	-15.3	-18.7	-6	-21.1
14	Shin-Soo Choo	CIN	1333	-16.9	-17	-17	-14.6
15	Rickie Weeks	MIL	815.2	-9.7	-16.9	-15	-8.3
16	Asdrubal Cabrera	CLE	1099.2	-12.8	-16.8	-16	-7.1
17	Ronny Cedeno	– – –	627.2	-7.6	-16.6	-5	-4.3
18	Aramis Ramirez	MIL	657	-5.6	-16	-12	-4.5
19	Ryan Zimmerman	WSN	1245.2	-14	-14.9	-1	-11.9
20	Melky Cabrera	TOR	620.2	-7.3	-14.8	-5	-10.5
21	Will Venable	SDP	594	-7.2	-14.5	-4	-10.2
22	Logan Morrison	MIA	691.2	-7.5	-14.3	-4	-13.4
23	Justin Upton	ATL	839.2	-8.1	-13.9	-8	-12.4
24	Derek Dietrich	MIA	502.1	-5.9	-13.7	-6	-5.1
25	Domonic Brown	PHI	1123.2	-10.7	-13.6	-7	-16.5
26	Brandon Moss	OAK	801.2	-6.5	-12.2	-12	-13.4
27	Josh Willingham	MIN	607.2	-6.3	-11.9	-8	-9.4
28	Aaron Hicks	MIN	701.1	-6.9	-11	2	-5.7
29	Angel Pagan	SFG	579.2	-4.8	-10.9	-9	-3.8
30	Edwin Encarnacion	TOR	698.2	-5.7	-10.8	-8	-11.7
31	Adeiny Hechavarria	MIA	1297.1	-9	-10	-3	-2.3
32	Giancarlo Stanton	MIA	1031.1	-7.8	-9.9	-7	-13.1
33	Dayan Viciedo	CHW	892.2	-6	-9.7	-5	-10.6
34	Nick Franklin	SEA	828.1	-6.8	-9.6		-5.3
35	Jordy Mercer	PIT	594	-4.7	-9.4	-2	-1.6
36	Jed Lowrie	OAK	1023.1	-6.8	-9.2	-18	-1.5
37	Chris Johnson	ATL	1020	-6.6	-8.6	-6	-4.9
38	Trevor Plouffe	MIN	1035.2	-7.4	-8.6		-5.6
39	Paul Konerko	CHW	652.2	-4.1	-8.5	-3	-9.7
40	Christian Yelich	MIA	505.1	-2.9	-8.5	-2	-5.5
41	Will Middlebrooks	BOS	797.2	-4.3	-8.3	-8	-2.9
42	Jose Reyes	TOR	793	-5.3	-8	-4	-1.3
43	Adam Jones	BAL	1394	-6.8	-7.9	-2	-4.4
44	J.B. Shuck	LAA	765.2	-4.4	-7.8		-8.3
45	Jon Jay	STL	1285.2	-7.3	-7.5	-10	-5.1
46	Omar Quintanilla	NYM	814	-4.6	-7.5	-8	-0.4
47	Erick Aybar	LAA	1203	-6.6	-7.5	-7	-0.4
48	Josh Hamilton	LAA	717	-4.4	-7.4	-8	-8
49	Adam Lind	TOR	620	-3.9	-7.4	-7	-9.2
50	Dan Uggla	ATL	1161.2	-5.9	-7.1	-19	-3.9
51	Matt Holliday	STL	1150.1	-5.1	-7	-13	-11
52	Desmond Jennings	TBR	1188.2	-5.8	-7	-6	-3.7
53	Jonny Gomes	BOS	634	-1.7	-6.6		-4.9
54	Nelson Cruz	TEX	906.1	-4.3	-6.5	-3	-8.9
55	Pablo Sandoval	SFG	1152	-4.7	-6.3	-5	-2.7
56	Jason Kipnis	CLE	1292.1	-6.3	-6.3	-1	-4.1
57	Chris Parmelee	MIN	525	-2.2	-6.1	4	-4.9
58	Nick Markakis	BAL	1381	-6.6	-5.8	-7	-13.7
59	Daniel Murphy	NYM	1334.1	-4.9	-5.3	-13	-2.6
60	Torii Hunter	DET	1236.1	-4.1	-5.1	-10	-10.5
61	Carlos Quentin	SDP	556	-1.7	-5.1	-5	-4.6
62	Justin Smoak	SEA	1084.1	-4.2	-5	-8	-13.5
63	Justin Ruggiano	MIA	709	-2.8	-5	-5	-1.6
64	Michael Brantley	CLE	1293.1	-4.1	-4.9	2	-10.8
65	Prince Fielder	DET	1323.2	-5.2	-4.8	-13	-16.5
66	Andre Ethier	LAD	645.1	-1.8	-4.7	-3	-0.7
67	Lonnie Chisenhall	CLE	697	-2.4	-4.6	1	-1.2
68	Placido Polanco	MIA	849.2	-2.4	-4.5	3	-0.9
69	Austin Jackson	DET	1145.2	-3.8	-4.5	3	-1.8
70	Garrett Jones	PIT	618	-2	-4.4	-1	-7.3
71	Aaron Hill	ARI	741	-2.3	-4.2	-9	-1.1
72	Alejandro De Aza	CHW	888.2	-2.7	-4.1	-18	-1.2
73	Todd Helton	COL	910.1	-3.3	-4.1		-11.1
74	Jayson Werth	WSN	1072	-3.3	-4.1	1	-8.8
75	Alberto Callaspo	– – –	769	-2.1	-3.7	-6	-0.8
76	Ben Revere	PHI	708	-2.3	-3.6	-5	-1.1
77	Gaby Sanchez	PIT	652.1	-1.7	-3.6	-3	-7.3
78	Bryce Harper	WSN	800.1	-2	-3.6	4	-6.2
79	Starlin Castro	CHC	1418	-3.3	-3.5	-8	4
80	Juan Pierre	MIA	564.1	-1.1	-3.4	4	-4
81	Kyle Seager	SEA	1425	-3.8	-3.2	-8	-1.3
82	Ike Davis	NYM	781	-1.8	-3.1	1	-8.5
83	Jose Altuve	HOU	1261.2	-2.1	-3	-3	0.1
84	Conor Gillaspie	CHW	940	-2.4	-2.9	-4	-0.8
85	Dexter Fowler	COL	921.1	-1.9	-2.8	-3	-0.3
86	Jimmy Rollins	PHI	1318.1	-2.7	-2.7	-15	4.1
87	Wil Myers	TBR	604.2	-0.9	-2.5	-4	-4
88	Matt Dominguez	HOU	1312.1	-2.4	-2.4	8	-0.1
89	Ryan Howard	PHI	650	-0.9	-2.1	-1	-6.5
90	Matt Carpenter	STL	1108	-1.6	-2		0.3
91	Adam LaRoche	WSN	1272	-2.3	-2	1	-13.2
92	Coco Crisp	OAK	919	0.1	-1.8	6	1.7
93	Everth Cabrera	SDP	847.2	-1.1	-1.7	-3	3.2
94	Chris Davis	BAL	1377.2	-1.2	-1.4	-7	-13
95	Adrian Beltre	TEX	1289.2	-1.2	-1.4	-5	1
96	Gordon Beckham	CHW	884.1	-0.5	-1.3	-3	1
97	Marco Scutaro	SFG	1033.2	-0.8	-1.2	-7	1
98	Ian Kinsler	TEX	1095.1	-1	-1.2	11	0.9
99	Nate Schierholtz	CHC	1041	0.2	-1.1		-5.1
100	Jean Segura	MIL	1251	-1.1	-1.1	3	5.3
101	Didi Gregorius	ARI	894.2	-0.6	-1	-1	4
102	Michael Bourn	CLE	1098.1	-0.5	-0.9	3	1.3
103	Justin Morneau	– – –	1189.1	-0.8	-0.8	5	-11
104	Neil Walker	PIT	1144	-1.4	-0.8	9	0.6
105	Brian Dozier	MIN	1255.1	-0.9	-0.7	9	1.3
106	Brad Miller	SEA	561	-0.2	-0.5	-2	2.7
107	Matt Adams	STL	597.2	-0.5	-0.5	-2	-5.6
108	Pedro Alvarez	PIT	1328.1	-0.3	-0.4	3	1.9
109	Mike Trout	LAA	952.2	0.1	-0.3	-9	1.7
110	Brett Gardner	NYY	1166.1	-0.5	-0.3	6	1.5
111	Drew Stubbs	CLE	785	0.1	-0.2	-6	-3.9
112	Brett Lawrie	TOR	888.2	-0.1	-0.1	4	1.4
113	Ryan Braun	MIL	503	0.2	0.3	4	-2.4
114	Hanley Ramirez	LAD	651	0.2	0.5	3	3.6
115	Emilio Bonifacio	– – –	710.2	0.5	0.9	10	1.7
116	Robinson Cano	NYY	1350.1	0.8	1.3	6	3.1
117	Mark Reynolds	– – –	500	0.6	1.6	-5	-3.7
118	B.J. Upton	ATL	975.1	1.1	1.6	2	2.7
119	Jedd Gyorko	SDP	1008	1.7	1.8	-1	3.4
120	Chase Utley	PHI	1071	1.5	2	-4	3.4
121	Joey Votto	CIN	1430.2	2.2	2.1	6	-10.1
122	Eric Hosmer	KCR	1372.1	2.5	2.2	3	-9.3
123	Nick Swisher	CLE	910.1	1.8	2.2	6	-6
124	Omar Infante	DET	1025.1	2	2.4	-5	3.8
125	Eric Sogard	OAK	865	1.5	2.6	5	2.9
126	Freddie Freeman	ATL	1290.2	2.4	2.6	7	-8.7
127	Marlon Byrd	– – –	1168.1	2.1	2.6	12	-3.9
128	Brendan Ryan	– – –	854	2.1	3.2	6	6.5
129	Allen Craig	STL	775.2	2.1	3.3	-1	-4.5
130	Howie Kendrick	LAA	1043.1	2.6	3.4	-3	4.4
131	Donovan Solano	MIA	806.1	2.4	3.4	4	3.8
132	David DeJesus	– – –	616.2	1.7	3.5	-6	2.7
133	Lyle Overbay	NYY	1031	2.7	3.7	5	-6.1
134	Martin Prado	ARI	881.1	2.7	3.8		4.2
135	Nate McLouth	BAL	1138.2	2.8	3.9		-3.1
136	Alex Rios	– – –	1365.2	3.8	4.1	-5	-3.3
137	Brandon Crawford	SFG	1226	3.8	4.2	2	10.1
138	Norichika Aoki	MIL	1288.1	3.2	4.3	13	-3.4
139	Ian Desmond	WSN	1400	4.4	4.4	-3	11.6
140	Paul Goldschmidt	ARI	1446	5.4	4.4	13	-7
141	Pedro Florimon	MIN	1099.2	4.3	4.5	12	9.9
142	Hunter Pence	SFG	1431.1	5.5	4.6	-7	-1.9
143	Mitch Moreland	TEX	1176	3.6	4.6	1	-6.5
144	Jhonny Peralta	DET	935.2	3.5	4.8		8.3
145	Yonder Alonso	SDP	771	3.1	4.8	7	-3.5
146	David Wright	NYM	1003.1	3.7	4.9	5	5.4
147	Alexei Ramirez	CHW	1400.2	5.5	5	1	12.7
148	Elvis Andrus	TEX	1288.2	4.6	5	11	11.2
149	Brian Roberts	BAL	540.1	2	5.1		2.9
150	J.J. Hardy	BAL	1417	6	6.1	8	13.3
151	Eric Young	– – –	790.1	3.9	6.2	2	-0.1
152	Brandon Barnes	HOU	913	4.8	6.2	7	6.4
153	Adrian Gonzalez	LAD	1291	5.7	6.5	11	-5.4
154	Anthony Rendon	WSN	714.1	3.4	6.6	-5	4.6
155	Stephen Drew	BOS	1093.1	5.3	6.7	-2	10.9
156	James Loney	TBR	1277.2	6.1	7.2	4	-4.8
157	Brandon Belt	SFG	1174.1	5.1	7.2	4	-5
158	Alfonso Soriano	– – –	1163.1	7	7.3	1	1
159	Alex Gordon	KCR	1364.1	8.6	7.3	16	1.6
160	Chris Getz	KCR	541	3	7.5	5	3.9
161	Jose Bautista	TOR	966	5.5	7.6	4	0.6
162	Troy Tulowitzki	COL	1029.1	6.6	7.6	6	11.9
163	Zack Cozart	CIN	1308	6.4	7.7	4	13.1
164	Mark Ellis	LAD	950	5.4	7.8	12	7
165	Vernon Wells	NYY	623	3.4	8	5	0.2
166	Pete Kozma	STL	1051	6.7	8	8	12.1
167	Chase Headley	SDP	1235	7	8.2	5	9.2
168	Jose Iglesias	– – –	571.2	3.4	8.3		6.3
169	Andrew McCutchen	PIT	1378	6.9	8.4	7	9.3
170	Brandon Phillips	CIN	1347	8.6	8.5	1	10.9
171	Anthony Rizzo	CHC	1415	8.3	9.2	16	-3.9
172	Carlos Gonzalez	COL	857	7.1	9.5	10	2.7
173	Yasiel Puig	LAD	773.1	4.7	9.7	10	0.7
174	Denard Span	WSN	1300.2	10.2	9.9	3	12.4
175	Mike Moustakas	KCR	1129.2	7.6	10	-3	9.6
176	Jay Bruce	CIN	1438.2	10.2	10.1	18	2.8
177	DJ LeMahieu	COL	750	6.4	10.3	10	7.7
178	Mark Trumbo	LAA	1030.2	8.5	10.5	2	-0.4
179	Josh Donaldson	OAK	1373	9.9	11.1	11	12.3
180	Dustin Pedroia	BOS	1398	10.9	11.7	15	13.3
181	Alcides Escobar	KCR	1388.1	10.9	12.1	4	18
182	Yunel Escobar	TBR	1320	10.7	12.2	4	17.5
183	Jacoby Ellsbury	BOS	1188.1	10	12.9	13	12
184	Andy Dirks	DET	868.2	9.4	13.1	6	5
185	Todd Frazier	CIN	1256.2	9.7	13.3	5	11.9
186	Mike Napoli	BOS	1097.1	9.7	13.3	10	0.3
187	Yoenis Cespedes	OAK	801.1	8	13.6	4	3.9
188	Ryan Flaherty	BAL	515	5.9	14.1	3	6.8
189	Carl Crawford	LAD	835.2	8.6	14.2	1	4.3
190	Clint Barmes	PIT	804.1	8.9	14.2	12	13.1
191	Leonys Martin	TEX	974.1	10.3	14.3	14	12
192	Ben Zobrist	TBR	1017.1	10	14.7	7	11.8
193	Colby Rasmus	TOR	1002.2	11.2	15.2	11	12.9
194	David Murphy	TEX	980.1	10.8	15.5	8	5.8
195	Darwin Barney	CHC	1237.1	12.5	15.5	11	14.7
196	Evan Longoria	TBR	1289	14.6	16.2	12	16.8
197	Ichiro Suzuki	NYY	993.1	11.6	17.8	7	6.5
198	Luis Valbuena	CHC	760.2	8.3	18.6	6	9.7
199	Gregor Blanco	SFG	550	7	20	5	7.9
200	Starling Marte	PIT	1038.1	10.2	20.1	20	4.9
201	Jason Heyward	ATL	697.2	11.6	21	15	8
202	Josh Reddick	OAK	966.1	16.4	22.3	13	11.4
203	Nolan Arenado	COL	1110	20.7	22.5	30	22.6
204	Lorenzo Cain	KCR	761.1	12.8	23.9	17	14.2
205	Andrelton Simmons	ATL	1352.1	24.6	23.9	41	31.6
206	Chris Denorfia	SDP	530	9.9	24.8	9	7.2
207	Jarrod Dyson	KCR	571.2	10.4	25	6	11.3
208	David Lough	KCR	577.2	10.8	25.2	10	7.8
209	Carlos Gomez	MIL	1242	24.4	27.2	38	26.5
210	A.J. Pollock	ARI	915.2	17.4	28.6	15	19
211	Manny Machado	BAL	1390	31.2	31.8	35	33.6
212	Gerardo Parra	ARI	1042.1	26.6	32.3	36	21.3
213	Juan Lagares	NYM	819.2	21.5	33.1	26	22.9
214	Juan Uribe	LAD	900.1	24	35.3	15	25.5
215	Shane Victorino	BOS	913.1	25	35.3	24	20.3