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It seems crazy to include all 80+ outfielders in one fantasy baseball outfield rankings article. After the top ~60 though, it's a huge crap shoot full of injury prone bouncebacks, deep sleepers, deeper sleepers, and waiver wire fodder. Rest assured, we will cover all the sleepers you can handle, deep sleepers too, injury bouncebacks, and much over the next two months. For now, our esteemed crew of writers will highlight and shed light on some of their most eyebrow raising rankings for the players we will actually be drafting.
As with our first base, second base, third base, shortstop and catcher fantasy baseball rankings, we've asked our writers to submit rankings for Outfielders in 2015, and we have calculated composite scores to showcase RotoBaller's site average. Rankings from one person represent just one opinion, so the goal of these composite fantasy baseball rankings is to give you a good sense of how we as a site view these players. We'll be releasing the rest of our positional rankings this weekend before updating them in February and finalizing them in March. Enjoy!
Editor's Note: Be sure to check out all of RotoBaller's 2015 fantasy baseball rankings articles & rankings analysis to prepare for your drafts. Let's win some leagues!
2015 Fantasy Baseball Outfield Rankings
Brad Johnson (Lead MLB Editor)
Plugging Adam Jones as the 21st outfielder will throw many of you for a loop. I worry about the all-or-nothing nature of his skill set. He relies on hitting baseballs very hard. On the one hand, it's good to invest in players who hit harder than the competition. The risk is anything that throws him off - a small injury, mechanical issue, mental distraction, etc. He never walks so his entire value is tied up in above average pop.
Harris Yudin (MLB Writer and Editor)
In 2012, Wil Myers was ranked as MLB.com's third best prospect in all of baseball. He crushed 37 home runs and posted an absurd .314/.387/.600 slash line between Double-A and Triple-A in 2012. He was traded to the Rays in exchange for ace James Shields prior to the 2013 season. In 2013, he hit 27 home runs and knocked in 110 runs between Triple-A and the majors. Why is an injury-plagued sophomore season turning everyone against the former top prospect? Myers just turned 24 in December. I don't care that Petco is a pitcher's park - so was the Trop, and there are plenty of players up in Los Angeles that have done just fine in pitcher's parks. I fully expect Myers to breakout this year, possibly even cracking the top 15 OF.
Kyle Bishop (MLB Writer and Editor)
I slotted Jayson Werth in at 12th, four spots higher than anyone else. I'm admittedly biased since he's been my favorite player for the better part of a decade. I also realize that he's entering his age 36 season. But over the last three years, Werth has slashed .303/.394/.479. His .382 wOBA and 144 wRC+ both rank sixth among qualified outfielders over that span. We compiled these rankings before his shoulder surgery, but there were no complications and minimal rehab time is expected. Perhaps assuming a full, healthy season is too optimistic. If it happens, though Werth could be one of the best value picks of 2015.
Billy Hamilton, on the other hand, figures to break a lot of hearts. Three of my colleagues have him in the top 20, and I have to question their sanity - or at least whether they saw any games in the second half. It's bad enough that he barfed up a .200/.254/.257 line after the break, but he only stole 18 bases, which is the entire reason anyone had him on their roster. He also managed just a 71% success rate on the year. That's far too low for a guy with his speed. You can have him, Leonard.
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Jeff Kahntroff (MLB Writer)
Starling Marte’s low ranking is a bit of a head-scratcher to me. Yes, Marte’s BABIP likely will regress a bit, but it should still be high due to his astounding speed. He’s only 26, steals a lot of bases (71 in 270 games last two years), and has underrated power (13th in fly ball distance last year). If he plays a full season, he could easily hit 20 home runs and steal 40 bases while producing a good batting average in a good lineup.
Corey Dickerson is also being rated too low. He could bat in the middle of a lineup featuring Troy Tulowitski, Carlos Gonzalez, Justin Morneau and Nolan Arenado. He will be 26 for most of the season. He was 20th in fly-ball distance last year. In 650 plate appearances at his pace, he would have slashed .312/33/101/103 with 11 steals. While projecting players who have been platooned is often dangerous, Dickerson does not appear to have a significant platoon split in the minors and was not awful against lefties (.724 OPS) this year. Some regression is likely, but he has far too much going for him to be the 20th-ranked outfielder.
Kyle Braver (MLB Writer)
As my ranking reflects, I'm looking forward to a nice bounceback season from Carlos Gonzalez in 2015. While CarGo has never exactly been healthy, it's still worth remembering that last year was still the first season in the last four years that he failed to record a 20/20 finish in home runs and stolen bases.
Another hitter I'm high on relative to his consensus ranking is Shin-Soo Choo. Despite playing 155 and 154 games in 2012 and 2013, his first year as a Ranger was lost to injuries and ineffectiveness. I don't think that his underlying skillset disappeared over the offseason, however, and with a strong lineup surrounding him, I think this year's Choo could come at a nice bargain.
Josh Leonard (MLB Writer)
Great googly moogly! Did Adam Jones get ebola?!?! Why is he ranked so low?
Was it because he averaged 26 HR, 96 R, 85 RBI and 13 SB with a slash of .280/.323/.472 over the last 6 seasons? He is possibly the most consistent and reliable outfielder in all of baseball. He has been in the top 10 in all of MLB in games played since 2010. Its baffling, to say the least, when fellow RotoBaller Brad Johnson (@BaseballATeam) would rank players such as Kole Calhoun, Shin Shoo Choo, Steve Pearce and JD Martinez ahead of Jones. Each OF mentioned has never even posted one season close to Jones’ average over the past 6 seasons. Sorry Brad, but ranking Jones #21 is egregious!
On the flip side, I have stolen base phenom Billy Hamilton ranked at #14 and everyone else took a dump on his head. Maybe I am falling for the SB hype? With a composite rank of #29, nobody else is as high on him as me. Hamilton will lead the league in SB this season. He might even hit 10 HR with 80 R. Those would be a nice addition to winning the SB category wire to wire in 2015. It’s arguably similar to drafting someone like Chris Carter at 1B exclusively for HR.
Alex Roberts (RotoBaller Co-Founder)
You want to know what bold looks like? Adam Jones at #21 (Brad J), George Springer at #9 (Kyle Bishop), Shin Soo Choo at #10 (Brad J), Bryce Harper at #6 (Kyle Braver), Starling Marte at #11 (Jeff K), and Matt Kemp at #12 (Meeeeeee). I love me some bold rankings, and with the number of quality players you have at outfield, it's no surprise the rankings are all over the map.
I'll be straight about it: this is the most important position on draft day (yes, more than starting pitcher). It's the position that will win you leagues if you draft right. There are gobs of elite outfielders, and if you can draft yourself a crew of legit standouts, your team will very likely be able to make up whatever gaps you have at shortstop, second base, catcher, third base, starting pitcher and relief pitcher (aka the positions you should ignore until round 6 of your draft 95% of the time). Unless all the outfielders I love get snatched up super early, the first five rounds of my drafts will have two 1B and three OF, 90% of the time, without a doubt.
Now on to the love hate part of this entry. Apparently I really love Matt Kemp, Jacoby Ellsbury, Starling Marte and Billy Hamilton this year. And apparently I don't like Bryce Harper (I don't). All that is quite true actually. Here's why:
- Kemp posted 600+ ABs from 2008-2011 and averaged 290-29-97-97-32. He was a no-brainer 1st round pick until health derailed his 2012-2013. He bounced back last year, accruing 541 ABs en route to a monstrous second half which saw him regain his fly ball form and put up a dreamy fantasy line of 298-17-58-42-3. The truth is, if Kemp is fully healthy he's a top 5-10 OF. His composite ranking of 24.4 is based 90% on injury fear, and 10% upside. Kemp isn't the right call if you've drafted both Bryce Harper and Carlos Gonzalez, but with the right complement of outfielders, Kemp is an enormous value if he is the 20th OF off the board.
- Billy Hamilton could steal 70-80 bases. He could blow away other similarly ranked outfielders on steals alone. Drafting him allows you to focus on pure power hitters at other positions. His BA should sit around 250, and he'll have a healthy Jay Bruce, Joey Votto and Devin Mesoraco batting behind him. At the low price of the ~25th OF off the board? Yes please.
- I'm expecting a repeat of 2014 for Ellsbury (271-16-70-71-39), but I hold out hope for improvements in BA and R + RBI due to a slightly improved Yankee lineup. If you can get 55-60 SB + HR and a league average BA with the 15th OF off the board, that's a bargain.
- Marte could be one of the biggest steals of the entire 2015 draft. If you paid attention to his final two months of 2014 where he batted .332 with 8 HR and 12 SB, and made huge strides in his contact, fly ball, and power rates), then you are salivating for his 2015. He is 26 years old, entering his prime, and in a very good lineup. Pay for the 2013-2014 Marte (~24th ranked OF), and you might be rewarded with a borderline top 10 OF when all is said and done.
- Last year RotoBaller Co-Founder Uncle Leo and I wanted to write an article titled "If you draft Bryce Harper you will lose your league". I guess we were lazy and didn't write it. And right too. We were certainly right about that. If Harper is the eigth OF off the board, then I would write that same article again this year. Stay away from him at that lofty price. If you can draft players like Ryan Braun, Adam Jones, Justin Upton and Hunter Pence instead of Harper, do it and don't think twice. There is simply too much risk with Harper - risk in the way he plays and risk in the lofty projected ceiling which he hasn't come close to reaching.
(Rankers are: BJ = Brad Johnson, AR = Alex Roberts, KBr = Kyle Braver, KBi = Kyle Bishop, JL = Josh Leonard, JK = Jeff Kahntroff, HY = Harris Yudin, JB = Justin Berglund)
2015 RotoBaller Fantasy Baseball Outfielder (OF) Rankings
| Player | BJ | AR | KBr | KBi | JL | JK | HY | JB | Composite |
| Mike Trout (LAA - LF,CF) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Andrew McCutchen (PIT - CF) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2.3 |
| Giancarlo Stanton (MIA - RF) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2.8 |
| Jose Bautista (TOR - RF,1B,CF,DH) | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4.6 |
| Carlos Gomez (MIL - CF) | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4.6 |
| Yasiel Puig (LAD - CF,RF) | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6.5 |
| Michael Brantley (CLE - LF,CF) | 7 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 8.3 |
| Bryce Harper (WSH - LF,CF,RF) | 9 | 15 | 6 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10.1 |
| Ryan Braun (MIL - LF,RF) | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 12 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 10.5 |
| Adam Jones (BAL - CF) | 21 | 7 | 13 | 17 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 10.5 |
| Justin Upton (ATL - LF,RF) | 11 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 11.1 |
| Carlos Gonzalez (COL - LF,RF) | 15 | 13 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 12.5 |
| Hunter Pence (SF - RF) | 12 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 15 | 14.0 |
| George Springer (HOU - CF,RF) | 13 | 16 | 20 | 9 | 10 | 18 | 14 | 19 | 14.9 |
| Jacoby Ellsbury (NYY - CF) | 23 | 9 | 22 | 18 | 11 | 10 | 15 | 12 | 15.0 |
| Corey Dickerson (COL - LF,CF) | 24 | 17 | 14 | 19 | 19 | 12 | 21 | 21 | 18.4 |
| Jason Heyward (STL - CF,RF) | 17 | 26 | 16 | 14 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 18 | 19.4 |
| Jayson Werth (WSH - RF) | 16 | 27 | 18 | 12 | 26 | 19 | 17 | 23 | 19.8 |
| Yoenis Cespedes (BOS - LF,CF,DH) | 22 | 18 | 24 | 20 | 16 | 28 | 16 | 16 | 20.0 |
| Matt Holliday (STL - LF) | 18 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 24 | 21 | 18 | 17 | 20.3 |
| J.D. Martinez (DET - LF,RF) | 14 | 25 | 17 | 22 | 33 | 17 | 31 | 27 | 23.3 |
| Matt Kemp (LAD - LF,CF,RF) | 34 | 12 | 23 | 36 | 22 | 20 | 26 | 22 | 24.4 |
| Shin-Soo Choo (TEX - LF,CF,DH) | 10 | 21 | 15 | 15 | 43 | 42 | 30 | 20 | 24.5 |
| Starling Marte (PIT - LF,CF) | 43 | 19 | 19 | 24 | 32 | 11 | 32 | 30 | 26.3 |
| Christian Yelich (MIA - LF,CF) | 26 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 30 | 23 | 29 | 26 | 27.4 |
| Nelson Cruz (SEA - LF,RF,DH) | 44 | 30 | 32 | 37 | 15 | 29 | 19 | 14 | 27.5 |
| Brandon Moss (CLE - 1B,LF,RF) | 25 | 28 | 25 | 28 | 40 | 25 | 24 | 33 | 28.5 |
| Kole Calhoun (LAA - RF) | 19 | 23 | 26 | 26 | 31 | 36 | 34 | 35 | 28.8 |
| Billy Hamilton (CIN - CF) | 38 | 20 | 34 | 40 | 14 | 41 | 20 | 24 | 28.9 |
| Alex Gordon (KC - LF) | 29 | 31 | 31 | 33 | 34 | 34 | 27 | 25 | 30.5 |
| Mookie Betts (BOS - SS,RF) | 28 | 24 | 30 | 25 | 36 | 24 | 35 | 49 | 31.4 |
| Melky Cabrera (CWS - OF) | 27 | 33 | 27 | 31 | 39 | 40 | 37 | 29 | 32.9 |
| Jay Bruce (CIN - RF) | 48 | 32 | 28 | 38 | 21 | 39 | 25 | 41 | 34.0 |
| Steve Pearce (BAL - 1B,LF,DH) | 20 | 37 | 43 | 46 | 28 | 26 | 46 | 31 | 34.6 |
| Brett Gardner (NYY - LF,CF) | 33 | 34 | 39 | 34 | 38 | 37 | 40 | 36 | 36.4 |
| Rusney Castillo (BOS - OF) | 36 | 38 | 45 | 30 | 29 | 27 | 47 | 42 | 36.8 |
| Jorge Soler (CHC - RF) | 30 | 36 | 44 | 23 | 54 | 38 | 36 | 40 | 37.6 |
| Wil Myers (TB - CF,RF) | 62 | 39 | 35 | 43 | 25 | 47 | 23 | 32 | 38.3 |
| Josh Harrison (PIT - 2B,3B,RF,LF) | 32 | 35 | 37 | 39 | 35 | 60 | 38 | 38 | 39.3 |
| Gregory Polanco (PIT - CF,RF) | 63 | 47 | 47 | 29 | 27 | 35 | 28 | 39 | 39.4 |
| Marcell Ozuna (MIA - CF,RF,LF) | 46 | 45 | 42 | 41 | 37 | 44 | 43 | 37 | 41.9 |
| Mark Trumbo (ARI - 1B,LF,RF) | 39 | 41 | 38 | 49 | 42 | 43 | 49 | 34 | 41.9 |
| Oswaldo Arcia (MIN - LF,RF) | 35 | 43 | 46 | 32 | 50 | 46 | 42 | 44 | 42.3 |
| Lorenzo Cain (KC - CF,RF) | 37 | 44 | 40 | 35 | 48 | 58 | 39 | 45 | 43.3 |
| Charlie Blackmon (COL - LF,CF,RF) | 57 | 40 | 68 | 50 | 23 | 53 | 33 | 28 | 44.0 |
| Ryan Zimmerman (WSH - 3B,LF) | 42 | 46 | 41 | 54 | 47 | 32 | 41 | 61 | 45.5 |
| Khris Davis (MIL - LF) | 40 | 49 | 52 | 44 | 44 | 45 | 44 | 51 | 46.1 |
| Ben Zobrist (TB - 2B,SS,RF,LF) | 31 | 50 | 36 | 42 | 55 | 73 | 53 | 47 | 48.4 |
| Evan Gattis (ATL - C,LF) | 45 | 51 | 33 | 45 | 60 | 63 | 45 | 46 | 48.5 |
| Coco Crisp (OAK - CF,DH) | 55 | 52 | 50 | 52 | 57 | 30 | 54 | 53 | 50.4 |
| Carlos Beltran (NYY - RF,DH) | 47 | 57 | 49 | 53 | 56 | 31 | 64 | 59 | 52.0 |
| Michael Cuddyer (NYM - 1B,RF) | 59 | 70 | 55 | 66 | 45 | 57 | 51 | 43 | 55.8 |
| Alex Rios (TEX - RF,DH) | 71 | 42 | 62 | 51 | 53 | 59 | 60 | 52 | 56.3 |
| Ben Revere (PHI - CF) | 52 | 62 | 56 | 57 | 67 | 61 | 57 | 48 | 57.5 |
| Denard Span (WSH - CF) | 53 | 64 | 58 | 55 | 58 | 71 | 48 | 54 | 57.6 |
| Yasmany Tomas (ARI - OF) | 51 | 65 | 48 | 73 | 41 | 77 | 68 | 50 | 59.1 |
| Steve Souza (TAM - OF) | 41 | 77 | 53 | 48 | 79 | 50 | 69 | 57 | 59.3 |
| A.J. Pollock (ARI - CF) | 50 | 78 | 57 | 47 | 64 | 62 | 66 | 56 | 60.0 |
| Avisail Garcia (CWS - CF,RF) | 58 | 72 | 66 | 60 | 49 | 48 | 59 | 70 | 60.3 |
| Desmond Jennings (TB - CF) | 65 | 67 | 65 | 68 | 51 | 55 | 55 | 58 | 60.5 |
| Josh Hamilton (LAA - LF,CF,RF,DH) | 73 | 61 | 64 | 58 | 46 | 65 | 62 | 55 | 60.5 |
| Austin Jackson (SEA - CF) | 56 | 53 | 51 | 67 | 66 | 67 | 71 | 68 | 62.4 |
| Joc Pederson (LAD - CF,LF) | 79 | 68 | 71 | 69 | 52 | 52 | 56 | 64 | 63.9 |
| Josh Reddick (OAK - RF) | 61 | 74 | 60 | 65 | 78 | 33 | 76 | 66 | 64.1 |
| Dexter Fowler (HOU - CF) | 54 | 69 | 59 | 63 | 77 | 49 | 65 | 80 | 64.5 |
| Danny Santana (MIN - 2B,SS,CF) | 49 | 54 | 67 | 74 | 73 | 64 | 67 | 71 | 64.9 |
| Adam Eaton (CWS - LF,CF) | 77 | 75 | 77 | 56 | 59 | 66 | 58 | 60 | 66.0 |
| Curtis Granderson (NYM - LF,CF,RF) | 74 | 73 | 54 | 62 | 69 | 81 | 63 | 63 | 67.4 |
| Carl Crawford (LAD - LF) | 69 | 48 | 80 | 71 | 68 | 54 | 78 | 77 | 68.1 |
| Marlon Byrd (PHI - RF) | 76 | 80 | 70 | 77 | 61 | 70 | 50 | 69 | 69.1 |
| Nick Markakis (ATL - RF) | 64 | 76 | 69 | 76 | 62 | 83 | 61 | 62 | 69.1 |
| Allen Craig (BOS - 1B,LF,RF) | 60 | 60 | 76 | 61 | 74 | 78 | 79 | 67 | 69.4 |
| Martin Prado (NYY - 2B,3B,LF) | 68 | 58 | 61 | 70 | 70 | 79 | 74 | 78 | 69.8 |
| Torii Hunter (MIN - RF) | 70 | 59 | 81 | 79 | 65 | 72 | 72 | 75 | 71.6 |
| Drew Stubbs (COL - CF,RF) | 66 | 56 | 79 | 72 | 81 | 80 | 77 | 65 | 72.0 |
| Rajai Davis (DET - LF,CF,RF) | 72 | 55 | 63 | 78 | 84 | 74 | 83 | 74 | 72.9 |
| Michael Morse (MIA - 1B,OF) | 84 | 66 | 74 | 85 | 86 | 51 | 52 | 86 | 73.0 |
| Norichika Aoki (KC - RF) | 75 | 63 | 82 | 80 | 71 | 76 | 75 | 72 | 74.3 |
| Angel Pagan (SF - CF) | 82 | 71 | 72 | 64 | 76 | 69 | 80 | 81 | 74.4 |
| Arismendy Alcantara (CHC - 2B,SS,CF) | 81 | 82 | 85 | 59 | 63 | 82 | 82 | 76 | 76.3 |
| Michael Bourn (CLE - CF) | 83 | 83 | 73 | 84 | 85 | 56 | 70 | 79 | 76.6 |
| Juan Lagares (NYM - CF,RF) | 67 | 79 | 78 | 75 | 82 | 75 | 87 | 83 | 78.3 |
| Jon Jay (STL - CF,RF,LF) | 78 | 81 | 84 | 81 | 75 | 86 | 88 | 73 | 80.8 |
| Michael Saunders | 85 | 84 | 87 | 87 | 87 | 68 | 73 | 87 | 82.3 |
| Domonic Brown (PHI - LF) | 86 | 87 | 75 | 83 | 83 | 85 | 84 | 82 | 83.1 |
| Dustin Ackley (SEA - 2B,LF,CF) | 80 | 88 | 83 | 82 | 80 | 84 | 85 | 85 | 83.4 |
| Dayan Viciedo (CWS - LF,RF) | 87 | 85 | 86 | 86 | 72 | 87 | 86 | 84 | 84.1 |
| Colby Rasmus | 88 | 86 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 81 | 88 | 86.9 |
