Dodgers

Dodgers: Joc Pederson Listed Among Top Left Fielder’s, per ESPN

Joc Pederson is now in his final year with the Dodgers and the club will have to come to a decision soon regarding his future with the team. Pederson had the best year of his career in 2019, crushing 36 home runs and accumulating 3.0 WAR as a platoon player. It is not completely out of the question to say that Pederson is the best platoon player in the league.

At just 27 years old, Pederson is entering his prime years. While he might not be well-suited for a future in the outfield, an American League team could definitely utilize his bat well as a designated hitter.

Buster Olney of ESPN.com recently wrote up columns for his positional top tens and for left fielders, Joc Pederson just barely missed the cut.

There are a lot of really good, young players out in left field these days. Washington Nationals superstar Juan Soto, Astros leadoff man Michael Brantley, and Rangers slugger Joey Gallo all rank in the top ten.

Olney on Joc

This is the specific excerpt regarding Pederson:

“He has been included in about a billion trade rumors, but the Dodgers have clung to him because of the big damage he does against right-handed pitchers — 36 homers in 401 at-bats last season (and no homers vs. lefties in 49 at-bats).”

A big chunk of the reason why Pederson is likely not ranked amongst the top ten is because he is a platoon player. It is hard to justify him over a guy like Marcell Ozuna or Jeff McNeil, despite a career-high in home runs last season.

After an off-season spent beating around improvements for the leadoff spot in the lineup, Joc once again figures to get the lion’s share in the number one spot in Dave Roberts’ scorecard in 2020.

NEXT: MLB.com Calls Cody Bellinger the Next Best to Trout in CF in Baseball

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