Fantasy Baseball: Who’s Hungry?
The Bad Guy is here to take a look at the difference between Justin Upton’s 2009 and 2010 seasons. One of the most talked about players coming into this year, the 22 year old has to be considered one of the bigger disappointments so far this year.
Justin Upton Diamondbacks OF -After putting up a line of 84 R, 26 HR, 86 RBI, 20 SB, and a .300 AVG in only 138 games in 2009, Upton had many experts drooling over what they thought would be a monster 2010. Through almost three months of the season, he has failed to live up to the lofty expectations. While his HR and SB numbers resemble what they were last season through June 15th (12 HR, 9 SB in 2009 and 10 HR and 9 SB in 2010), his AVG, OBP, and SLG are all much lower. Another difference between this year and last year is Upton’s batting average against left handed pitching. He is only batting .224 vs LHP so far this season, as opposed to the .377 he hit against southpaws in 2009, but for someone as talented as Upton is, that number doesn’t have anywhere to go but up. His batting average on balls in play is also 26 points lower than it was last season, and while a .364 BABIP is certainly hard to repeat, he just needs to start making more contact. Therein lies the most concerning issue - Upton is striking out at a historic rate. He is currently whiffing once every 2.71 ABs (down from 3.83 in ’09), and if he continues at his current pace, will finish the year with 231 Ks, breaking his teammate Mark Reynolds’ record of 223. You have to believe that Upton will eventually start to see the ball better, and once he does, you’ll remember why you used such a high draft pick on him. I say that Arizona’s young stud finishes the season with 25-30 HRs, 20-25 SB and a .275+ avg. Now might be a good time to try and steal him away from a less than thrilled owner, but you need to act fast before he starts to get hot.
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