Major League Baseball’s Projected Tenth Men Of The Year
In basketball, a sixth man can be extremely vital to a team. He is most trusted off the bench and can fulfill nearly any role given to him. Baseball teams have a similar role and it is absolutely underappreciated. In baseball, these players are called utility or super-utility players. They can usually bat anywhere in the lineup or play anywhere in the field. This is an attribute scouts look for more and more in young players which is ultimately versatility. Most of these players can play anywhere in the field other than pitcher or catcher. Here are ones that will in fact be most impactful for their teams in 2021 as tenth men of the year.
American League: Marwin Gonzalez (Boston Red Sox)
Marwin Gonzalez possesses the rare talent to be able to literally and figuratively cover all the bases on a baseball field. He doesn’t play one position. How often is it a super-utility player plays six or more positions in a season and in fact receives MVP votes? Well, Marwin did that back in 2017 as an Astro, hitting .303 with 23 home runs and 90 runs batted in. Since then, he was a mainstay as a Twin with similar production exerting himself at many positions at a top-level. Expect him to do this as well as a Red Sox alongside fellow super-utility man, Enrique Hernandez.
2021 Projections: .266, 18 home runs, 69 runs batted in
Runner up: Enrique Hernandez
National League: Chris Taylor (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Now with Enrique Hernandez off to the east coast, Chris Taylor’s role as a super-utility player will even be expected great upon by the Dodgers. Not that he wasn’t doing it before, but now with him and rookie Zach McKinstry battling it out, Taylor will be the man to “cover all bases”. Chris Taylor has played six-plus positions the last few years. Across an average 162 game span the last three years, he’s batting .269 with 20 home runs and 75 runs batted in. Expect more of this at even more of a heightened level. Taylor had a bounce-back season in 2020 which ended on a high note. Although he may see more action at second base, look for him to play many positions in 2021.
2021 Projections: .272, 22 home runs, 65 runs batted in
GO AND SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR SIMBULL. THEIR PLATFORM ALLOWS YOU TO INVEST IN YOUR FAVORITE TEAM AND EARN MONEY EVERY TIME THEY WIN. USE PROMO CODE “vendetta” WHEN YOU DEPOSIT.
