Sure, MLB fans are still waiting for pitchers and catchers to report to spring training, but it’s never too early to start preparing for the upcoming fantasy baseball season.
Unfortunately, that preparation is not starting on a positive note. We’re taking a look at a downside of fantasy baseball—regression—and the players coming off fantastic 2015 campaigns that are most likely to fall short of matching those spectacular numbers.
Fluctuating player performance on a yearly basis is nothing new, and a drop in production can happen for any number of reasons. Age, advanced metrics that raise questions, a new team and/or new teammates can all factor into a player struggling to replicate his previous numbers.
Don’t take a player’s appearance on this list to mean that they should be avoided at all costs in your fantasy draft. In most cases, that’s as far from the truth as you can get. But expectations should be tempered if you’re considering one when you’re on the clock.
That said, let’s take a look at the 10 most likely regression candidates, listed alphabetically, for the 2016 fantasy baseball season.