2018 MLB Draft Guide Player Profile: Andrelton Simmons

Andrelton Simmons

At the moment, it’s virtually impossible to find a single MLB player capable of making a bigger difference in the field than three-time Gold Glove Award winner Andrelton Simmons. The Angels shortstop added to his defensive hardware collection in 2017, but more importantly to fantasy managers, he also finally realized perhaps his full, all-around potential on the offensive side during what was his sixth MLB campaign.

A pull-happy Simmons launched 17 baseballs out of the yard back in 2013 for the Braves, but that display of power in his first full big-league season came along with a mediocre .248/.296/.396 slash line and just six stolen bases over 658 plate appearances. Across the next three seasons, he would go on to average only five homers per year while swiping a total of 19 bags. However, along the way, Simmons adjusted his approach at the plate and learned to use all fields to find base hits.

In 2017, Simmons rediscovered his power, swatting 14 homers and 38 doubles across 647 plate appearances. And yes, he began to pull the ball at a high rate (45.3%) once again. Although, this time, his batted-ball profile was much more conducive to producing a respectable batting average than it was in 2013.

With that progressing batted-ball profile, Simmons also posted his highest walk rate (7.3%) to date last year. That’s still not a great mark, but we are talking about a hitter that has always been, and likely always will be, a “free swinger”. That walk rate helped Simmons get on base better than a third of the time for the first season of his career and, in turn, paved the way toward a career-high 19 steals. Maintaining that discipline will be key in 2018.

Over 158 games for the Halos last season, Simmons was deployed fifth or sixth in the batting order a combined 128 times. He is likely to be bumped down a spot or two this year, as the club put in plenty of work to deepen the lineup this offseason. Even if he sees most of his at-bats from the seven or even eight hole, Simmons is still plenty capable of justifying, or possibly outperforming, his Mock Draft Army standing as the 13th shortstop (179.2 overall) off the board.

Finding a middle infielder, or any player for that matter, in the mid-to-later rounds who can reasonably be expected to deliver 15 home runs and 20 stolen bases along with a solid batting is no easy task at all. Simmons, in the midst of his “prime” at age 28, fits that bill. As far as some other categories go, an upside of 80 runs and 80 RBI is also realistic in what is shaping up to be a potent Angels offense.