January 8, 2020

With a 32 ADP in all NFBC leagues, is Pittsburgh Pirate Starling Marte finally starting to get some respect? The 31-year-old finished as the #24 hitter in 2019 - after finishing as the #27 hitter in 2018 – by providing strong numbers across all categories; slashing .295/.342/.503 with 23 HR, 82 RBI, 97 R, and 25 stolen bases, in 586 plate-appearances. The stolen bases were down from the 33 SB he grabbed in 2018 but Marte continues to be a great source of speed in addition to everything else he brings to the table, especially considering how much stolen bases continue to go down across the league. Steamer is projecting the Pirates outfielder to have virtually the same season in 2020 (.285 AVG, 22 HR, 81 RBI, 85 R, 26 SB) but it also projects him to reach 630 plate-appearances – which would be his most since 2015. That might be asking a little too much, though, because while Marte has mostly kept the injury bug away these past two seasons, he still seemingly gets dinged up at least once a year. It was a wrist injury that did it in 2019, with Marte missing the last three weeks of the season with the ailment, but all indications point to him being fully healthy by Spring Training. It’s a shame that the rest of the world has caught on to Marte’s five-category goodness, as his draft price no longer gives you a buffer for him suffering any sort of drop-off due to injury or otherwise. Given his well-rounded and fantasy-friendly skillset, however, Marte continues to have one of the highest floors of those players in the early-to-middle rounds and could be a draft-day steal if you’re in a league where he drops.--Nicklaus Gaut - RotoBaller