One of the biggest trades of the year took place a mere month into the season when the Miami Marlins traded the 2023 National League Batting Champion Luis Arráez to the San Diego Padres. While the Padres are in the thick of the N.L. wild card race, the star infielder hasn’t put up the same production that he did in South Beach a year ago.
While he is in the middle of a much more talented lineup, that has not translated to more success. In the previous couple seasons, Arráez was a slam dunk daily starter in fantasy but now, it is fair to have some thought on how to use him moving forward.
Consistent Batting Average
The main positive which should give fantasy owners some hopefulness is the fact that Arráez’s batting average continues to be consistent from his whole career. The Padres leadoff hitter is hitting .305 this season which should allow fantasy owners to believe the other key offensive statistics should come along in the near future. He continues to get base hits everyday which means that Arráez is far from hurting fantasy teams.
Fantasy owners need consistency and that is what Arráez has provided throughout this whole season even if his production elsewhere is down. Another key statistic that is crucial for fantasy owners is that the Padres infielder strikes out 5.1% of the time which is in the 100% percent tile in the MLB. It would be a tough pill to swallow if the three time all star was striking out more and not providing enough power production.
Arràez Power Numbers Need to Increase
While it is important that the batting average hasn’t dipped at all since joining the Padres, it is still cause to concern with the home run and runs batted in numbers being down. Arráez has only three home runs to go along with 29 RBI’s this season. Compared to 2023, the former Marlins player had 10 home runs to go with 69 RBIs. While Arráez is still one of the best hitters in baseball, these 2024 statistics aren’t ones that fantasy owners want out of a teams first few picks.
Owners want to see extra base hits and RBIs on a more consistent basis. Arráez has been more than helpful for other more productive run producers on his team like Manny Machado and Jurickson Profar. That doesn’t help fantasy owners who have Arráez rostered.
Arráez continues to be the leadoff hitter and the Padres are very top heavy in there lineup so it seems unlikely the RBI statistic goes up dramatically unless manager Mike Shildt changes the lineup and moves Arráez out of the leadoff spot.
Hope?
While it would be nice if Arráez begun showing sings of getting out of a home run and RBI slump, he is a player who is still a premier hitter in baseball and won’t hurt any starting lineup he is in because of his extremely low strikeout rate. Owners patience is important with Arráez.
People who are desperate for big numbers might choose to try to find another second or first baseman in free agency. But his production won’t dramatically hurt if owners continue to put him in your lineups. Arráez’s fantasy ceiling is quite high with the amount of games het gets hits in and his bottom is far from as low as most players in baseball.
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