In recent days, we’ve run through the most notable catchers, second basemen, shortstops, first basemen, and third basemen who are slated to reach the free-agent market once the offseason rolls around in several months. Next up: center fielders (players’ listed ages are for the 2021 campaign).
Top of the Class
- George Springer (31): After a relative down season in 2018, Springer bounced back to top form last year. He ended with a monster .292/.383/.591 batting line, 39 home runs, and strong grades on his glovework in center and right field. If teams feel they’ll be able to trust him up the middle for a few more campaigns, they’ll presumably be all the more motivated to bid.
- Starling Marte (32): Based upon performance to date, Marte is the only other potential star of the class. Trouble is, a high-end performance in 2020 would mean the Diamondbacks are sure to exercise his $12.5MM club option rather than paying a $1MM buyout. They gave value to get him this winter with just that scenario in mind. Marte is a career .287/.341/.452 (116 wRC+) hitter as well as a quality baserunner and defender (though metrics were less enthused with his work in the field in 2019).
Other Potential Regulars (based upon 2019 playing time)
- Jackie Bradley Jr. (31): Though he remains well-regarded as a fielder and baserunner, Bradley just hasn’t gotten it done offensively for some time now. He has settled in as a roughly ten percent below-average hitter over the past three seasons. If he can bounce back to his well-above-average form from 2015-16, he’d obviously stand to substantially boost his earning outlook.
- Brett Gardner (37): The grizzled veteran keeps grinding out useful seasons, filling in reliably when a need (seemingly inevitably) arises in the Yankees’ outfield. Whether the club will exercise a $10MM club option or instead pay him a $2.5MM buyout remains to be seen, but odds are the sides will work something out if Gardner remains productive and wants to go for a 14th campaign in the Bronx.
- Kevin Pillar (32): Pillar is to center field what Freddy Galvis is to shortstop. Neither has really performed to the typical standard of a year-in/year-out regular, but each has done just enough, stayed on the field, and landed in the right situations to gather up tons of playing time. That’s not to disparage Pillar’s value — like Galvis, he’s a gamer who’s worthy of a significant role on a big-league roster — so much as to say his future likely doesn’t lie in everyday duties. Pillar’s glove is no longer elite and he owns a lifetime .296 on-base percentage.
Top Timeshare Candidates
- Jarrod Dyson (36): Still a burner on the bases and in the field, Dyson’s bat has fallen off quite a bit over the past two seasons. Even as a very marginal MLB hitter he’s a useful player, but it’s tough to guess how much longer he’ll remain one.
- Enrique Hernandez (29): Though he couldn’t sustain a 2018 uptick with the bat, Hernandez remains a highly useful player. Much of the appeal lies in his versatility; last year, he appeared at every spot on the field except outside of the battery.
- Jake Marisnick (30): Outside of a career year in 2017, Marisnick has profiled as a speedy, glove-oriented part-time player. So long as he remains an elite defender who provides palatable offensive work, he’ll hold appeal.
- Cameron Maybin (34): The market didn’t buy fully into Maybin’s surprising showing last year with the Yankees (.285/.364/.494), as he rode a hefty .365 BABIP and benefited from a Statcast spread between results (.363 wOBA) and expectations (.337 xwOBA) based upon batted-ball quality. But the fact he trended up in hard contact shows that Maybin could yet have some more seasons in the tank.
- Michael A. Taylor (30): Tantalizing though his physical tools may be, Taylor just hasn’t consistently produced at the plate in the majors. He was buried in the minors for most of 2019 but ended up delivering when the Nats most needed it in the postseason. Taylor has had one roundly impressive MLB campaign (2017), so perhaps it’s not impossible to imagine him turning into an interesting open-market target with a strong showing in 2020.
“yes but Trashtros”
So basically unless the jays move biggio to cf or they make a major trade acquisition they will enter another season with Grich as the every day cf. cause I don’t know if you want a 32-33 year old big money CF who maybe has 1-2 seasons left at the premium position and at that point probably not giving great value defensively
Garrett Mitchell!!! Please Blue Jays answer my prayers and don’t draft Lacy.
Highest ceiling in the draft class imo, it’s worth the risk for long-term stability in CF for me.
I’m okay with drafting a high ceiling CF. Seems like every year jays use the top pick or competitive pick on a pitcher. But I feel like you take the best bat available this year and figure out where they’re going to play down the road. Window to compete starts this season/next so don’t know if you want to draft someone who is at least 4-5 years away
Mitchell is already 21 and should be quick to the majors, so this shouldn’t be a problem.
Bear in mind that while Mitchell has very enticing tools, he also has had only 1 real breakout year with the bat. Scouts were hoping that he turned the corner last year, but this year was going to be a very big year for him to prove he could keep it going and cement his place among the very top prospects in this draft. That, along with being a Type 1 diabetic, means that he carries real risk.
Jonathan Villar has a chance to debut as high as third on this list, depending on what the others do in 2020 and whether Villar can be even just average defensively in CF.
Villar 100% helped me win my dynasty league title … but the Os dumping him for what amounts to a used jock and 2 bags of balls to Miami pretty much killed what value he had as Baltimore is a much better hitter’s park than Miami so many of his HR are gonna turn into doubles or outs killing his FA and fantasy value sadly cuz I really am a huge fan
the difference between the Giants front office now and 5 years ago is I don’t have to worry they will go sign dyson to a 100M 5 year deal with a 6th year player option. I believe putting Bobby Evans again in charge is a condition The players introduced to the new CBA
Kike Hernandez sucks
Matt Kemp, or should I say Fat Kemp, is worse.
I’ll take Kiki as a 4th outfielder and utility player! He can dig and murders lefty pitching.
Don’t know how much of Springer’s stats were due to cheating, but he’s the most talented option on this list. Even with the scandal, a number of teams will bid on him, especially if he has a decent year once the season finally gets under way.
Can Mookie play CF?
Yeah, he’s played in 192 games in centerfield, 187 were starts and 171 were complete.
Michael Taylor isn’t going to be a free agent this offseason. He has 4 years, 129 days of service time according to his baseball reference page right now.
He is check spotrac
Yeah that says he’s a free agent after the 2020 season, but how? He’d only have 5.129 in service time after this season.
Unless they just have his service time wrong, which they could.
Yeah it says he’s a first time free agent in 2022 on his B-R page.
Paying top money to 31-37 yr old CFs in the hope most of them will recapture lightning in a bottle or maintain peak production. Yikes.
Something is wrong when the first time a player has an opportunity to cash in with FA they are already on the downhill side of their career.