2025 Fantasy Baseball: Xander Bogaerts Profile, Preview, Predictions
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After signing with the San Diego Padres, Xander Bogaerts hasn't earned his keep. His power is fading, along with his overall stats. Can he have a bounce-back season in 2025?
Xander Bogaerts clubs his 10th home run of the season. pic.twitter.com/eEgAZWSX4g
— MLB (@MLB) September 15, 2024
2B – Xander Bogaerts, SD (ADP – 160.6)
Two years into his $280 million contract with the Padres, Bogaerts has been a bust. In 2023, he gave fantasy supporters a disappointing feel from May through August (.244/37/9/32 over 386 at-bats) except for his output in steals (12). His season started well in April (.308 with 21 runs, six home runs, 13 RBIs, and one steal over 107 at-bats) while delivering a life raft finish in September (.418/25/4/13/6 over 103 at-bats).
Bogaerts had further demise last season while missing 51 games with a left shoulder injury (fracture). His average hit rate (1.442) is approaching Judy territory while having continued fade in his contact batting average (.324 – between .375 and .390 from 2020 to 2022). He struggled against lefties (.223/11/2/7/4 over 94 at-bats). Bogaerts didn’t have a pulse in his bat in any month.
His strikeout rate (17.1) beat his career average for the second consecutive season, with a demise in his walk rate (6.1 – 8.4 in his career). Bogaerts has a fading hard-hit rate (33.0), with three years of regression. His exit velocity (88.1 mph) doesn’t suggest a rebound in power.
Fantasy Outlook: In the real world, doing your job poorly is never rewarded with an elite paycheck. Bogaerts will make $25 million this year while having San Diego on the hook for the same amount until 2033.
Most fantasy drafters will avoid adding him to their team, and his recent outcomes support these beliefs. Sometimes, betting on the come pays off. A veteran bat who hasn’t paid off since 2019. At best, he is a neutral player in four categories, with power being the wild card in his equation.
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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