Justin Upton 2019 Outlook: A Top-25 Outfielder With Plus Power
5 years agoLos Angeles Angels outfielder Justin Upton's first full year in Anaheim has to be considered a success. He hit .257/.344/.463 with an .808 OPS, 30 home runs, 85 RBI, 80 runs scored and eight stolen bases in 613 plate appearances over 145 games. He didn't quite match his career marks from 2017 when he spent the majority of the season with the Tigers before being traded to the Angels, as he hit 35 long balls, scored 100 runs and drove in 109 runs that year. But the good news is his walk and strikeout rates haven't fluctuated much in the last three seasons, and he's managed to hit at least 30 bombs in that span. Upton's power alone makes him a top-25 fantasy outfielder, and his durability has been a real plus. He has played in at least 145 games every year since 2011 when he was with Arizona. His biggest drawback is the fact that he strikes out almost 30 percent of the time and doesn't draw all that many walks. Upton also is no longer a lock to give you double-digit stolen bases anymore. He continues to square balls up when he makes contact, however, posting a career-high 43.8 percent hard-contact rate in 2018. Upton is our 18th overall outfielder and is a lock for at least 25-30 homers with good health as well as solid counting stats other than steals.