AL East Positional Rankings: Young Stars Push Gardner at Left Field
By Nate Wardle
2. Boston Red Sox – Andrew Benintendi, Chris Young
I think this is the only team where my top two players in my preseason rankings actually were the top two at the position. In this case, they were the only two who started over 10 games.
Benintendi started 116 games in left field and played in 151 total, hitting .271/.352/.424 with 20 home runs, 26 doubles, 84 runs scored, 90 runs batted in and 20 steals to go along with the rest of those statistics.
Benintendi combined a 0.4 defensive WAR with a 1.9 offensive WAR to come out at 2.6, a respectable number for the rookie left fielder playing against the treacherous Green Monster.
He did struggle with errors, making five of them, and one has to wonder if that has to do with the challenging left fielder in Boston. His range was also below league average, although several other metrics were favorable for the young star.
Young filled in left field, spelling Benintendi in 34 starts while Benintendi played center field. It wasn’t a great year for the veteran, who hit .235/.322/.387 with seven home runs and 12 doubles. Comparably, in fewer games in 2016 he hit more home runs and had more doubles.
Benintendi will be back for Boston for many years to come, and as he continues to improve will lay claim to being the best left fielder in the AL East.