Is Jeff Kent undervalued this year?

[cannonarm21]

I keep seeing Utley go between picks 12-18, and Kent is falling to the late 4th, early 5th. Kent is as consistent as they come at a pretty shallow position. I was pretty surprised when I compared Kent stats against Utley's.

KENT (10 more AB's then Utley)
.289, 29 HR, 109 RBI'S, 100 RUNS, 6 SB

UTLEY
.291, 28 HR, 105 RBI'S, 93 RUNS, 16 SB

Just seems Kent could be worth a 3rd rounder. While I realize Utley has more upside, I could argue Kent's consistency against that.

[Madison]

Utley's upside is why he's going earlier. He could do something along the lines of .310-35-110 with 100 runs and 20 steals. As much as I like Kent (I seem to end up with him on several teams each year), he won't put up those numbers in LA.

As to Kent's draft position, yes, he's going later than he should, but it's always nice to scoop up someone who falls too far.

[olympia0731]

Another thing, is that the difference between 16-20 steals and 6 steals is huge. I think that kent may be a bit undervalued, but is nowhere near Utley

[Pochucker]

I also seem to remember that Kent had surgery (minor) on his wrist or he aggravated it during this recent off season. Not sure which.

[Redefine9d]

Kent might be a bit undervalued but he also is getting older and coming off surgery. Utley's upside is tremendous and he could develop into a future first rounder. Kent might be had at a cheap cost this year, but I'm still a bit weary of him.

[Sp_Da_Man]

To answer your question, Kent probably is a bit undervalued.

If you can't Utley, Figgins & maybe even Soriano in the first few rounds you might be able to hold off & Kent in the 4th-5th or so.

[The Jury]

Kent might be a bit undervalued but he also is getting older and coming off surgery. Utley's upside is tremendous and he could develop into a future first rounder. Kent might be had at a cheap cost this year, but I'm still a bit weary of him.

He is getting older but his skills have not deteriorated and he still has one of the quickest strokes in the game.

[davidmarver]

Using the twos stats last season is decieving because Utley didn't have a starting spot (for sure) until May. That was about 60-70 at bats missed, so you should multiply Utley's stats by 600/540 (difference in at bats) and his numbers leap over Kent's a little bit further. It gives the line of .291, 103 runs, 31 homeruns, 117 rbi, 18 stolen bases. That said, I still think Kent is being slightly undervalued.

[perlick29]

Kent's a guy who if you you dont draft should be traded for at about mid-season, because IMO the Dodgers will look to trade him to a better contender come the deadline. A team like Oakland might consider renting him which would put him in a bit better hitting situation.

That being said I think his numbers this year will be slightly below last year since he was declining slightly before rebounding last year. Utley is a better pick but Kent is still top 5 2B so draft him accordingly. I dont think he's way undervalued, but good for everyone if he's slipping you can snatch him.

[tinfoilxtouch]

I've seen Kent going a bit later than he probably should. I'm sure his age and attitude play into that. He isn't a very popular guy, and people like drafting players they can pull for.

That being said, I think Utley is also going a bit higher than he should. With one season in the majors to base everything on, I'm not sure he should be a top-15 pick like I've seen. Even if he duplicates those numbers, that doesn't put him that high in the draft. Position scarcity plays into it, but that shouldn't make him a Jason Bay level pick.

Just to note, there is ONE league I'm in that took the same point of view as this thread's starter. They drafted Utley 33 and Kent 34.