2025 Fantasy Baseball: Lawrence Butler Profile, Preview, Predictions
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Lawrence Butler came to the majors with a high strikeout rate in the minors, and his bat was exposed early in 2024. After a trip back to AAA, he was an excellent waiver wire find in deep formats. Butler controlled the strike zone better while showing a power/speed skill set.
Lawrence Butler just hit his SIXTH home run THIS WEEK 🔥 pic.twitter.com/9TPovTRAls
— MLB (@MLB) August 31, 2024
OF – Lawrence Butler, OAK (ADP – 70.2)
Over six seasons in the minors, Butler hit .257 with 260 runs, 54 home runs, 232 RBIs, and 74 stolen bases over 1,461 at-bats. His play showed growth in 2023 between AA and AAA (.284/67/16/70/21 over 366 at-bats), leading to his first chance in the majors. With Oakland, he only put 26 balls in play over 123 at-bats, with minimal stats in runs (10), home runs (4), and RBIs (10).
The A’s gave him a starting job early last year, but Butler played his way back to AAA after 41 games and 106 at-bats (.179/8/2/7/3) due to a high strikeout rate (29.8). At AAA, his bat improved (.255 with 25 runs, four home runs, nine RBIs, and seven stolen bases over 110 at-bats). He showed patience at the plate (16 walks – 12.7%) while whiffing 25 times (19.8).
Oakland called him back up in mid-June, leading to an impactful run in July and August (.314/42/18/45/8 over 185 at-bats). His batting average (.280) was respectable in September, but Butler had lower counting stats (11 runs, two home runs, four RBIs, and six stolen bases). The A’s gave him 61.9% of his at-bats (412) from the leadoff spot. He handled himself well vs. left-handed pitching (.291/11/5/10/5 over 86 at-bats).
His strikeout rate (24.0) for the year was much improved while moving closer to the league average with his walk rate (7.8). Butler ranked 44th in exit velocity (91.1 mph) and 40th in hard-hit rate (47.4). His HR/FB rate (19.0) was slightly higher than his minor-league career path.
Fantasy Outlook: Despite a short resume of success, Butler is respected in the early draft season in the high-stakes market. With a repeated approach and 550 at-bats, he has the tools to be a 25/25 player in 2025 with some batting average risk. I kicked Brent Rooker last year due to his strikeout rate, but someone in the A’s coaching staff unlocked the keys to his power bat with fewer strikeouts. Let’s say we have trust issues here, and I don’t view Butler as a foundation bat in my team builds.
RANKINGS
Top 5 Catchers | Catchers 6-10 | Catchers 11-15
Top 5 First Basemen | First Basemen 6-10 | First Basemen 11-15
Top 5 Second Basemen | Second Basemen 6-10 | Second Basemen 11-15
Top 5 Shortstops | Shortstops 6-10 | Shortstops 11-15
Top 5 Third Basemen | Third Basemen 6-10 | Third Basemen 11-15
With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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