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2016 AL East Rankings by Position: Center Field

By Nate Wardle

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Aug 26, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Kevin Kiermaier (39) catches the ball and then runs into right fielder Daniel Nava (7) during the ninth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Tropicana Field. Minnesota Twins defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 26, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Kevin Kiermaier (39) catches the ball and then runs into right fielder Daniel Nava (7) during the ninth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Tropicana Field. Minnesota Twins defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Tampa Bay Rays – Kevin Kiermaier, Desmond Jennings, Mikie Mahtook

And if Pillar is #2, then Kiermaier is #2b. In his second full season the young Ray hit .263/.298/.420 with 10 HRs, 25 2Bs, 40 RBIs, 62 runs and 95 strike outs in 151 games. You will notice, Kiermaier’s stats offensively are worse than Jones in more games. However, Kiermaier was also a leadoff hitter who is more of a speed guy, stealing 18 bases for the Rays and hitting 12 triples, second in the AL.

Kiermaier had a ridiculous dWAR of 5.0, by far the best in the American League. Combine that with an oWAR of 2.7 and his 7.2 WAR was behind only Mike Trout and Josh Donaldson. Kiermaier was another player typically featured among outfield highlights night-in and night-out. He led in assists by a center fielder, had the best Total Zone Runs and the best range/9 innings as a CF. It was a fantastic year for Kiermaier defensively.

The man he supplanted for the CF job, Desmond Jennings, will be the backup in CF for the Rays. Jennings has continued to underachieve, but is just fine for a 4th outfielder.

Next: What is there to rank him higher?

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