Devers has potential to be a top-five fantasy 3B
Colin Henderson breaks down what Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers has done so far this season and why he has the potential to finish among the top five at his position.
Video Transcript
COLIN HENDERSON: After a disappointing 2020 season, Rafael Devers looked primed to take this year by storm. After a slow start at the plate, Devers is starting to heat up, and has improved his slash line to .271, .362, .542, with 5 homers, 15 ribbies, and 10 runs scored through Monday.
This slash line is no joke as Devers is in the 94th percentile in hard hit percentage, the 95th percentile on average exit velocity, and the 95th percentile in expected batting average. His batting average on balls in play this year is only .250, much lower than his career average of .321, so he's in line to start seeing some more hard hit balls find places to land, with many of them in the bleachers. While he's never going to be fleet-of-foot, Devers still has 10 stolen base potential, with a career high of 8 in 2019, and still has slightly above average sprint speed.
The position might be incredibly deep, but Devers, the seventh third baseman taken in Yahoo drafts this year, has all the potential to end the year in the top five.
