2016 AL East Rankings by Position: Center Field
By Nate Wardle
2. Toronto Blue Jays – Kevin Pillar, Dalton Pompey, Ezequiel Carrera, Junior Lake
That doesn’t, however, mean that Pillar is too far behind Jones. However, Pillar doesn’t have the body of work of Jones. Pillar was a utility outfielder and defensive specialist in 2013 and 2014. But, in 2015 he busted out, hitting .278/.314/.399 with 12 HRs, 31 2Bs, 56 RBIs, 76 runs in 159 games. One thing worth noting is that Pillar played in 22 more games than Jones, and had 22 fewer total bases.
Pillar had equal dWAR and oWARs of 2.8, giving him a great total of 5.2 WAR. Pillar led the AL in games played by an OF at 159, led in putouts with 440, had the second-best defensive WAR for an OF (we will get to first in a second), and the fourth-best stolen base percentage in the AL at 86.21% after stealing 25 bases. And, he was constantly showing up with the latest top defensive highlight.
The other difficult thing is how you rate a center fielder. Are you looking for a speed guy, a power guy, or someone who can do a bit of everything? Pillar has the speed advantage over Jones and is a little better defensively. But, when the slash line isn’t much different, the guy with more power (and a better career track record) gets the edge.
Pompey will battle for the left field job, as discussed previously, but also can backup in center. Ezequiel Carrera was the utility man last year for the Jays, and likely will be again in 2016.
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