2 years agoTampa Bay Rays outfielder Manuel Margot had a solid year at the dish, slashing .274/.325/.375 and posting the best wRC+ of his career (106). He only played in 89 games due to a knee sprain that he suffered in June but came back in late August. During the short season, Margot stole seven bases (12.7 over 162 games), but that hardly compares to his almost 23 steals per 162 games from 2019-2021. He's lost sprint speed every year since he debuted and was only in the 66th percentile in 2022 after placing in the 87th percentile last year. If Margot isn't running the bases, he can't compensate for it with power. The 28-year-old slugged just three homers this season, and his 5.1% barrel rate from 2021 represents his career high. Plus, Margot's never had an ISO above .153, besides his .162 mark during his 10-game debut in 2016. There will be improvements (4.6% HR/FB in '22), but not enough to go deep even 15 times. Fantasy managers might think they can bank on a decent batting average. However, despite his .274 average this season, he owned a .332 BABIP, the highest over his seven seasons and will probably be closer to his .264 xBA or career .254 mark in 2023. Margot won't provide a lot of raw production next year. Moreover, because of his lopsided splits (88 wRC+ vs RHP in 2022, 80 wRC+ over his career), he's never averaged more than 127 games during a campaign in Tampa, so fantasy managers can't even benefit from volume stats. Margot is a cheap option (295 ADP), but still, an overpay.--Spencer Seguin