March 18, 2022

Squeezed by an abundance of talent in Houston, Toro got his shot in Seattle following a rare inter-division trade deadline swap. The results were so-so, as Toro made solid contact with a 13% strikeout rate, but hit just .252 with a .695 OPS and .115 ISO. Toro was in line for a regular role with the Mariners in 2022, but the offseason acquisitions of Adam Frazier and Eugenio Suarez complicate things for him. The 25-year-old is currently penciled in as Seattle's DH, but as a team with an eye on contention, upgrades may still be to come for the Ms, plus the eventual return of Kyle Lewis may relegate Toro to the bench. As it stands, Toro should get a chance to prove himself to Scott Servais and the Seattle brass at the start of the season, but unfortunately there's not much to like in this profile. Let's start with Toro's quality of contact, or lack thereof. The ball putters off his bat with just an 86.8 MPH average exit velocity and a mediocre 33.9% hard hit rate last season. In fairness, Toro never profiled as a power hitter, but he doesn't offer much in the batting average department either. A career .220 hitter, Toro had just a .247 xBA and .313 xwOBA last season, so he's not exactly getting unlucky at the dish. He does offer a little speed with six steals and 76th percentile sprint speed, but it would be hard to envision him getting more than 10 steals in a given year. Toro has been getting some buzz as a late round sleeper, but he profiles as more of a utilityman/bench type than a true starter. He does a little bit of everything, which in 5x5 Roto means he helps you with nothing. His current NFBC ADP is 262, which seems late, but around that price you could have players that offer a little more in certain categories, such as Andres Gimenez for steals or Miguel Sano for power. Pass on Toro late in drafts and look elsewhere for your high upside lottery tickets.--Elliott Baas