Fantasy baseball columnist Joel Colomby ranks the top 60 or so starting outfielders for the American and National Leagues. Dollar values are a guide for rotisserie league and head-to-head auctions.
$30+
Matt Kemp LAD Top-5 pick for sure, but can’t see a 40-40 repeat
Jose Bautista TOR Most of his owners will keep him at 3B over OF
Carlos Gonzalez COL Wrist better so look for something closer to 2010 stats
Ryan Braun MIL Easier to pitch around without Fielder on-deck?
Jacoby Ellsbury BOS Unexpected power makes him the complete package
Justin Upton ARIZ Drop in K rate best sign his career highs no mirage
Curtis Granderson NY Career highs in HRs & RBIs, but also in strikeouts
Giancarlo Stanton MIA OF formerly known as Mike ready to crack 40 HRs
Josh Hamilton TEX Injury risk, but always capable of first-round numbers
$20+
Matt Holliday STL He’ll bat in Albert Pujols’ No. 3 slot in the order
Hunter Pence PHIL Getting out of Houston was a huge fantasy lift.
Andrew McCutchen PIT Could climb into the 30-30 club any season now
Desmond Jennings TB Sleeper, but no stud status until he has a full season
Jay Bruce CIN HR totals have increased each of the past four years
Michael Bourn ATL Could make it four SB titles with full year on Braves
Lance Berkman STL Expect a slight drop off, but 1B eligibility helps
Shin-Soo Choo CLE Rare sub-standard season could undervalue him
Nelson Cruz TEX Great power, but can’t seem to get in a full season
Cameron Maybin SD Steals, but any emerging power will vanish in S.D.
Adam Jones BAL Despite career year, O’s could still deal him
Michael Morse WAS Shed utility tag for good with huge final five months
B.J. Upton TB Speed & power, but hasn’t topped .245 past 3 years
Alex Gordon KC Took him five years to finally maximize his potential
Ichiro Suzuki SEA Move to third in the order will boost RBI numbers
Chris Young ARIZ Three-time 20-20er, but AVG only average at best
Drew Stubbs CIN With a .450 AVG bunting, may be doing more of it
Carl Crawford BOS Bad year, Jan. wrist surgery will hurt draft day value
Jason Heyward ATL Sophomore skid will have him batting eighth to start
Brett Gardner NYY Good bet for 40+ SBs, but could sit vs. some lefties
Austin Jackson DET AVG took a 44-point dive in his second MLB season
Shane Victorino PHIL Could wind up hitting anywhere from first or fifth
Delmon Young DET Free-swinging ways will reduce the value of his HRs
Corey Hart MIL Minor knee surgery in March won’t affect him
Andre Ethier LAD Power somewhere between 31 HRs in ’09, 11 in ’11
Jayson Werth WAS Once again, don’t expect Philly-type numbers in D.C.
$10+
Carlos Beltran STL Good for one more year after a .300 AVG, 22 HRs
Angel Pagan SF Could swipe 40 bags with a full season at leadoff
Josh Willingham MIN Take away DL time and he was on pace for 35 HRs
Peter Bourjos LAA Hip will have to hold up to hold off Mike Trout
Michael Brantley CLE Grady’s injury thrusts him back into the leadoff role
Nick Swisher NYY Big jump in walks boosts value in leagues with OBP
Jeff Francoeur KC Last year’s .285, 20 HRs no surprise, 22 SBs were
Lucas Duda NYM Shorter OF fences at Citi Field will no doubt help
Jose Tabata PIT Breakout year put on hold by two lengthy injuries
Brennan Boesch DET Tigers should start him in first half, Raburn in 2nd
Martin Prado ATL Wasn’t same after 5 weeks out with staph infection
Coco Crisp OAK A proud CF, will move to left affect him at plate?
Matt Joyce TB Inability to hit LHPs may return him to a platoon
Eric Thames TOR Keeps LF job after hitting better than expected in ’11
Torii Hunter LAA At 36, still a safe bet to hit around .265, 15-20 HRs
Vernon Wells LAA Hit .187 versus RHPs and, at 33, turnaround doubtful
Logan Morrison MIA Tweeting issues aside, future power & healthy BB rate
Colby Rasmus TOR As long as he chases breaking balls, AVG stays low
Denard Span MIN Missing two months with a concussion is a red flag
Melky Cabrera SF Tough new home field, rising K rate suggest stats drop
Nick Markakis BAL Always one owner still hanging on his 20-20 in ’07
Alex Rios CHW Despite his .227 AVG, may wind up batting No. 3
Jason Bay NYM Still producing reliable numbers at a decent price
David DeJesus CHC Possible late gem as Cubs have him back in leadoff
Jason Kubel ARIZ LF starter, though Parra is clearly the better option
Alfonso Soriano CHC Once a four-category star, only the power is left
Emilio Bonifacio MIA Won’t repeat near-.300 AVG or, thus, the 40 SBs
Lorenzo Cain KC Speedster showed surprising March pop with 4 HRs
SAFE FOR A FEW BUCKS — Dexter Fowler COL, Michael Cuddyer COL, Marlon Byrd CHC, Ryan Ludwick CIN, J.D. Martinez HOU, Juan Rivera LAD, Nyjer Morgan MIL, Andres Torres NYM, Raul Ibanez NYY, Seth Smith OAK, Will Venable SD, Carlos Quentin SD, Franklin Gutierrez SEA
UPSIDE POTENTIAL — Gerardo Parra ARIZ, Nolan Reimold BAL, Alejandro de Aza CHW, Dayan Viciedo CHW, Jordan Schafer HOU, Jerry Sands LAD, Ben Revere MIN, Yoenis Cespedes OAK, Alex Presley PIT, Julio Borbon TEX
MINOR-LEAGUE WATCH — Mike Trout LAA, Domonic Brown PHIL, Bryce Harper WAS
