2016 AL East Rankings by Position: Left Field
By Nate Wardle
2. New York Yankees – Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks, Dustin Ackley
I wrote at the end of last season that Brett Gardner is what he is at this point. He is going to be the Yankees’ starting left fielder, and his previous two years are nearly identical. So, he will have around 20 stolen bases, 15 HRs, 25 2Bs, 90 runs, and just over 60 RBIs. He isn’t a bad player, but at 32 and around 13 million dollars, it isn’t the type of player the Yankees were looking for. But, they Yankees have other issues, so Gardner will start almost every game.
Gardner has played in over 145 games in each of the last three years, so he has been durable. He also was an All-Star in 2015, his first All-Star appearance. Gardner has rated as a guy between 3 and 3.5 WAR each of the last three years, but had a negative defensive WAR last year. Gardner has had the fifth-best power-speed rating in the AL for each of the past two years, so one can expect him to continue to have a good combination of speed and power.
While the numbers don’t jump off the page at you, the Yankees’ left fielder will be a solid player who has the ability to change a game with both his speed and his power. That consistency allows him to remain the second-best in the AL East at left field.
He also has a new, improved backup this year. Hicks comes over from the Minnesota Twins, where he is best known for some of his highlight catches. He is a very solid defender, but continues to be a work in progress at the plate. I would say that at his best he may be a similar player to Gardner, although he has yet to show any kind of real consistency in the major leagues.
Next: The time to perform is now...