X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Join the Best Live Fantasy Chat Community!

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Ozzie Albies Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

We continue our rankings debate with a look at a young player whose draft stock seems to be rising by the day and could be a make-or-break selection in many drafts.

RotoBaller's expert writers have come up with our consensus rankings for mixed leagues, but that doesn't mean we agreed on everything. In this space, we'll hear from rankers with the biggest differences of opinion on a well-known player and have them defend their position against each other.

Today, the subject of discussion is Braves' second baseman Ozzie Albies. An impressive late-season cameo has fantasy owners dreaming big on his 2018 potential. Kyle Bishop is a believer, while Bill Dubiel likely won't even consider Albies in drafts this spring.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and weekly lineup resources:

 

2018 Draft Rankings Debate - Ozzie Albies

Ranking Tier Player Position Kyle Nick Pierre Jeff Harris Bill
200 13 Ozzie Albies 2B/SS 148  245 297 147 270 291

 


Kyle Bishop's Ranking: #148 overall

Ozzie Albies only turned 21 a month ago and he's already reached the major leagues. That doesn't happen without serious talent. While 57 games isn't the largest sample in the world, Albies already looks like he belongs. He hit .286/.354/.456 in those contests, with six home runs and eight stolen bases in nine attempts. Throughout his minor league career and its aggressive promotions, the Braves' less-heralded phenom has shown great bat-to-ball skills, along with a good grasp of the strike zone and blazing speed. Last season, he also put up the best isolated power marks of his career (.156 at Triple-A, .171 in the majors), demonstrating that he has the ability to be more than just an empty batting average. The 5-foot-9, 160-pound Albies will never be a big-time power hitter, but he has enough pop in his bat to crack double-digit home runs.

Albies is expected to hit second in the Braves' lineup, between Ender Inciarte and Freddie Freeman, so he'll have plenty of opportunities to score runs. So far in his career, he's stolen bases at a 35 SB per 600 plate appearances clip. That 600 PA benchmark, by the way, is one he's surpassed in each of the last two seasons. An area often overlooked when weighing the pros and cons of young players is the grind of a full season's worth of plate appearances; Albies has proven he can handle it.

You'll have plenty of other avenues to chase power and RBI in the current landscape. A player who could finish in the top five in stolen bases while flirting with 100 runs and a .300 batting average is a good deal harder to find. That's why Albies' ADP has been rising all spring, and it's why he'll still turn a profit on that middle-round investment.

 

Bill Dubiel's Ranking: #291 overall

Albies is no doubt destined for great things in his career for all of the reasons Kyle listed above. However, my "triflin'" ranking (Kyle's words, not mine) is a result of my perennial Debbie Downer-ness when it comes to rookies. Albies has shown everyone that he has nothing left to prove in the minors, and he's currently projected to start at second base and bat second for the Braves in 2018. That organization is leaning hard into their next generation of talent, and Albies will be at the forefront of that movement.

However, as Kyle mentioned we've only seen him in 57 big league games, and I'm not ready to look at last year as the only standard to project from. For example, he posted career-high ISO numbers in AAA and the majors last year (.156 at Triple-A, .171 in the majors). While it's certainly possible that he's added a bit of pop as he's matured (he is only 21, after all), I'm not ready to buy that kind of power boost. I still expect his true power profile to end up much closer to .120-.130, which obviously limits his fantasy upside.

The speed is real, and Albies may very well be a candidate to steal 30 bags if he's able to maintain his aforementioned success rate. He'll certainly have plenty of opportunities to establish himself, as again the Braves are more concerned about developing their young talent than winning at this point. Hitting between Ender Inciarte and Freddie Freeman certainly is a nice position, but outside of the two of them who can you rely on--and I mean truly rely on, not hope for--to produce? Tyler Flowers? Nick Markakis? Until hitters like Ronald Acuna, Johan Camargo and Dansby Swanson develop, the Braves lineup isn't going to be posting a ton of runs. I think he'll be much closer to 75-80 runs scored than 100 in 2018.

I admit that my current ranking of Albies may be too low. However, I won't be moving it anywhere near Kyle's in the coming weeks, as I don't see the young infielder as anything more than 25-30 SB, 80 runs scored and a batting average around .275. The speed numbers will increase his value in roto formats, but from a mixed/points perspective I don't see much upside in Albies fantasy outlook for 2018.

 

More 2018 MLB Ranking Debate Articles




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Garrett Whitlock7 hours ago

Still Not Cleared For Mound Work
Max Scherzer7 hours ago

Serves Up Two Homers In Rehab Start
John Means7 hours ago

Could Start Sunday
Alec Marsh7 hours ago

X-Rays Come Back Negative On Alec Marsh
Francisco Lindor7 hours ago

Comes Alive With Two Long Balls
Shohei Ohtani7 hours ago

Three Doubles For Shohei Ohtani
Mike Trout7 hours ago

Cracks MLB-High 10th Homer
Corey Seager9 hours ago

Removed From Game After Being Hit By Pitch
Naz Reid9 hours ago

Named Sixth Man Of The Year
Mitchell Robinson9 hours ago

Questionable For Game 3
Joel Embiid9 hours ago

Questionable For Game 3
DJ LeMahieu9 hours ago

To Be Shut Down For A Week
Zack Gelof9 hours ago

Likely Heading To Injured List
Alec Marsh9 hours ago

Leaves Game After Being Hit By Comebacker
Bam Adebayo9 hours ago

Looks Good In Win Over Boston
Ozzie Albies9 hours ago

Runs The Bases Wednesday
Kristaps Porzingis9 hours ago

Struggles Offensively In Game 2
Jayson Tatum10 hours ago

Has A Decent Showing On Wednesday
J.P. Crawford10 hours ago

Dealing With Oblique Soreness
Jaylen Brown10 hours ago

Leads The Way In Game 2
A.J. Puk10 hours ago

Rejoining Bullpen When Healthy
Zack Gelof10 hours ago

Nursing Abdominal Soreness
Tyler Herro10 hours ago

Gets It Done On Wednesday Night
Thairo Estrada10 hours ago

Experiencing Hamstring Tightness
Manny Machado10 hours ago

Expected To Return Friday
Sean Murphy10 hours ago

Hasn't Resumed Swinging
Cristian Javier10 hours ago

Plays Catch Wednesday
Christian Yelich11 hours ago

Still Not Swinging
Dallas Cowboys11 hours ago

Cowboys Pick Up Micah Parsons' Fifth-Year Option
Ezekiel Elliott12 hours ago

Cowboys Meeting With Ezekiel Elliott
Cincinnati Bengals12 hours ago

Trey Hendrickson Requests A Trade From Bengals
Carlos Correa12 hours ago

Could Return Soon
Nic Claxton13 hours ago

Nicolas Claxton The "No. 1 Priority" For Nets In Offseason
Grayson Allen13 hours ago

Not Ruled Out For Game 3
Nikola Jovic13 hours ago

Available For Game 2
Ryan Lomberg14 hours ago

Could Be Back For Game 3
Cam Talbot14 hours ago

Starts Game 2 For Kings
Logan Thompson14 hours ago

Heads Out For Another Win Wednesday
Jake Oettinger14 hours ago

Tries To Bounce Back Wednesday
Jani Hakanpaa14 hours ago

Remains Out On Wednesday
Tyler Myers14 hours ago

Battling The Flu
Michael Penix Jr.15 hours ago

Could Be Among Top-Four Quarterbacks Selected
Jared Goff15 hours ago

No New Deal “Imminent” For Jared Goff
J.J. McCarthy17 hours ago

Broncos Interested In J.J. McCarthy
Detroit Lions17 hours ago

Penei Sewell Becomes Highest-Paid Offensive Lineman
Justin Fields17 hours ago

Steelers Not Expected To Pick Up Justin Fields' Fifth-Year Option
Rashod Bateman17 hours ago

Ravens Sign Rashod Bateman To Contract Extension
Ja'Marr Chase18 hours ago

Bengals Exercise Ja'Marr Chase's Fifth-Year Option
Amon-Ra St. Brown18 hours ago

Lions Agree To Four-Year Extension With Amon-Ra St. Brown
Nicolas Hague18 hours ago

Out For Vegas On Wednesday
James van Riemsdyk18 hours ago

To Make Series Debut Wednesday
Sam Bennett18 hours ago

To Miss Significant Time
William Nylander18 hours ago

Looking Unlikely For Game 3
Brett Pesce18 hours ago

Likely Out For Remainder Of First Round
Thatcher Demko18 hours ago

Listed As Week-To-Week
Ilya Sorokin18 hours ago

To Start Game 3
Cale Makar21 hours ago

Registers Two Assists In Game 2
Tom Wilson21 hours ago

Notches Two Points In Tuesday's Loss
Alexis Lafrenière21 hours ago

Alexis Lafreniere Collects Two Assists In Game 2 Victory
Filip Forsberg22 hours ago

Leads The Charge As Nashville Ties Series
Victor Hedman22 hours ago

Posts Two Assists In Game 2
Carter Verhaeghe22 hours ago

Hits Overtime Winner In Game 2
Sam Bennett22 hours ago

Sustains An Upper-Body Injury In Game 2
James Harden22 hours ago

Settles For 22 Points In Game 2
Luka Doncic22 hours ago

Leads All Scorers With 32 Points In Game 2
Damian Lillard22 hours ago

Scores 34 Points In Losing Effort
Tyrese Haliburton23 hours ago

Collects A Double-Double In Game 2 Win
Pascal Siakam23 hours ago

In Fantastic Form Once Again Versus Milwaukee
Devin Booker23 hours ago

Leads Suns With 20 Points In Game 2
Anthony Edwards23 hours ago

Struggles In Game 2
Daniel Gafford1 day ago

Returns To Game 2
Karl-Anthony Towns1 day ago

Has A Rough Night On Tuesday
Jaden McDaniels1 day ago

Erupts In Game 2
Andrew Peeke2 days ago

Considered Week-To-Week
Brandon Aiyuk2 days ago

Trade Remains "Very Much In Play"
Denver Broncos2 days ago

Broncos Pick Up Fifth-Year Option On Patrick Surtain II
New England Patriots2 days ago

Patriots Haven't Received "Serious" Offers For No. 3 Pick
Kadarius Toney2 days ago

Still In Chiefs' Plans
Jake Browning2 days ago

Bengals Re-Sign Jake Browning
Brandon Aiyuk3 days ago

49ers Have Received Calls Regarding Brandon Aiyuk
Dak Prescott3 days ago

Not Trying To Be Highest-Paid Player
Zach Wilson3 days ago

Broncos Acquiring Zach Wilson From Jets
Matt Ryan3 days ago

Officially Retires From NFL
Cincinnati Bengals3 days ago

Sam Hubbard Recovering From Ankle Surgery
Tyler Reddick3 days ago

Survives At Talladega For First Win Of 2024
Brad Keselowski3 days ago

Finishes Second At Talladega After Last-Lap Wreck
Anthony Alfredo3 days ago

Gets Best Finish For Beard Motorsports Since 2022
Todd Gilliland3 days ago

One Of The Strongest At Talladega
NASCAR3 days ago

Bubba Wallace Finishes 36th At Talladega Superspeedway
Kyle Larson3 days ago

Fails To Deliver Value In DFS At Talladega
NASCAR3 days ago

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Finishes Fourth At Talladega
Noah Gragson3 days ago

Surprisingly The Most Consistent Driver At Talladega
Shane Van Gisbergen3 days ago

Shane van Gisbergen Acquits Himself Nicely In Drafting Debut
Michael McDowell3 days ago

Ends Talladega Wrecked From The Lead
Alex Bowman3 days ago

Quietly Captures Top-Five Finish At Talladega
Daniel Hemric3 days ago

Surges To Ninth-Place Result At Talladega
Harrison Burton3 days ago

Squeezes Into Top 10 At Talladega
NASCAR4 days ago

Bubba Wallace Will Start 14th For the GEICO 500
Tyler Reddick4 days ago

Avoid Rostering Tyler Reddick At Talladega?
John Hunter Nemechek4 days ago

Should DFS Players Roster John Hunter Nemechek At Talladega?
Joey Logano4 days ago

Expect Joey Logano To Compete For The Win At Talladega
Denny Hamlin4 days ago

Is Denny Hamlin Recommended For Talladega?
Justin Haley4 days ago

Is A Top DFS Value At Talladega
William Byron4 days ago

Is One Of The Top Favorites To Win Talladega
Christopher Bell4 days ago

Is Best Suited As A Tournament Play At Talladega
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF