What's up with P. Fielder

[parise123]

There is no doubt Adrian is the better player, he'd be a 2nd rounder (maybe even 1st) if he didn't play in San Diego. However, Fielder is definitely a good buy low right now..he started off slow last season as well and eventually picked it up...

[Ender]

Lets not leave out more hits runs homers and RBI's for Adrian yet he still goes 2 rounds later.

Last year sure. I think Fielder is higher upside, Gonzalez is safer. Not sure where they were going in your leagues but Fielder was a 3rd round and Gonzalez a 4th rounder in mine. Given the park I'd be surprised to see Gonzalez hit 40 HR and I'd probably take the under on 35. With Fielder I won't be surprised at all to see 40 HR though I'd probably take the under still

I think both are capable of higher AVG as well, we probably saw the floor AVG wise for both of them last year. I was just pointing out that some of your complaints about Fielder were a bit offbase. This isn't an Adam Dunn type of guy, his AVG is going to go up before it goes down most likely. He does not strike out much at all for a power hitter.

[keeks137]

I heard he was back on the sauce. And by sauce I mean meat (and possibly, some sauce as well). So I don't think you can blame it on the veggies anymore.

Fielder will be fine though. Excellent post about the above average pitching he's been facing thus far.

[KronJon]

I've thought he was extremely overrated since his 50 HR season.

Granted, he's still worth having as I expect him to consistantly put up about a .270 AVG with 30 HR and 100 RBI. He just isn't this beast that some people think he is.

[CadensDad]

Buy low, that's whats up.

+1

[The Artful Dodger]

First off with A-Gonz, I think his potential on paper is about the same as Fielder, but a couple of things can keep Gonzo in check of meeting or exceeding 40 HR. Of course, one would cite the Petco factor as the main reason. Looking at just the HR total at home, he was actually pretty decent, but his away OPS was markedly better than it was at Petco. In fact, 4 of his 5 HR this year have been on the Pads' road trip (the one at home came off an opposite field HR). It looks like Gonzo will have to keep up his away power direction to go over 35, to have any chance of reaching 40. He strikes out more than Fielder while his splits against lefties declined a bit last year. A-Gonz has legitimate 40 HR power and maybe he can improve his HR total at home with the Summer day games at Petco (even with the sea breezes), but I think he'll settle at 35.

As for Fielder, Ender pointed out nicely about all the points on why he's slumping. He's actually more patient this year than one would think, given a good walk total in the PA he's logged, which is typical Fielder. If he can dodge the bad luck, I think he's a good bet to rebound to 40 HR. The better lineup protection compared to A-Gonz also makes him a better bet to notch R/RBI albeit it could be a marginal difference.

[Tis]

I definately targeted A Gon as well this year, way underrated. Mostly due to his team I think. Imagine what he would do in the TX lineup, or NYY? More guys on base, better pitches, better ballparks. He'd be competeing with Tex for first round honors.

Fielder... never been a fan, I really think were not going to see the vicinity of 50 HR again.

[Steve-o]

I heard he was back on the sauce. And by sauce I mean meat (and possibly, some sauce as well). So I don't think you can blame it on the veggies anymore.

I am 95% sure this is correct. My recollection is that he quietly gave up his vegetarian diet at the end of last year.

[BillyHallDisciple]

He'll be fine. I can't believe how much people panic over the first two weeks of the season. I think he's a lock for a minimum 35 homers, 100 RBI, .275 BA - numbers I'll gladly take from my 1B position. This is about what I expected when I drafted him and I'm sure he'll match or exceed those totals.

If anything, I'm sure the vegetarian diet probably helped him slim down a little bit, which was obviously necessary... so I say kudo's to him on that.

Fielder will heat up and bombs will be flying out of the park again sometime real soon. I'd say right now is definitely when you want to buy low from Fielder owners in your league with little patience.

[DaShiz23]

I definately targeted A Gon as well this year, way underrated. Mostly due to his team I think. Imagine what he would do in the TX lineup, or NYY? More guys on base, better pitches, better ballparks. He'd be competeing with Tex for first round honors.

Fielder... never been a fan, I really think were not going to see the vicinity of 50 HR again.

Agreed 100%

I grabbed AGon on two teams, one for my CI spot (Pujols at 1st) and another as a starter with Dunn as my OF/1B. Great value for where he went.

I see Fielder as a guy who will never live up to expectations. 35hrs may become his ceiling sooner than many think. Meat or no meat, pitchers have figured him out, IMO.