Ranking the 15 projected starting National League center fielders

The reigning NL MVP, Bellinger also won a Gold Glove in 2019 (albeit at right field, has made 74 career starts in center). It was a remarkable year all-around for the 24-year-old as he hit .305 with a 1.035 OPS, 47 homers, 115 RBIs, 121 runs, and 15 steals. He has connected on 111 home runs over his first three seasons.

Just 22 years old, Acuna won NL Rookie of the Year in 2018 and finished fifth in NL MVP voting in 2019. Last season, he hit for a .280 batting average, .883 OPS, smashed 41 homers, scored a NL-leading 127 runs, and stole a NL-leading 37 bags. He has one of the strongest arms at his position.

Marte was traded to the Diamondbacks after eight seasons with the Pirates. In 2019, he finished with career-bests in OPS (.845), homers (23), runs (97), and RBIs (82) while also swiping at least 20 bases for the seventh straight year. He’s a two-time Gold Glove winner as a left fielder but hasn’t been quite as valuable a defender in center.

Turning 34 on April 13, Cain took home his first Gold Glove in 2019. He took a large step backwards though offensively from his first year in Milwaukee when he finished seventh in NL MVP voting. His batting average dipped from .308 to .260, his OPS from .813 to .697, and his stolen bases from 30 to 18.

Finishing sixth in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2019, Robles was also a Gold Glove finalist as he was superb in the field. The 22-year-old hopes to improve more at the plate although his final numbers weren’t all that bad (.255 batting average, 17 homers, 33 doubles, 28 stolen bases).

A bulging disc in his neck limited Nimmo to just 69 games last year. While a .221 batting average was far from good, drawing 46 walks helped his on-base percentage be a solid .375 (close to his career mark of .387). His outfield defense is adequate, and he’s well-experienced in all three spots.

Turning 32 on April 16, Akiyama heads to the states after nine seasons of raking the ball in Japan. Whether that will translate to MLB remains to be seen. In 143 games in the Japan Pacific League last year, he batted .303 with an .864 OPS, 20 home runs, and 112 runs. According to MLB.com, he is a six-time Pacific League Gold Glove winner in center field.

Making his MLB debut on June 4 of last year, Haseley showed the potential to be a Gold Glove-winning outfielder in the near future during his 67-game stint. He has room to grow at the plate (.266 batting average, .720 OPS in 242 plate appearances), and it’s possible as he is a career .292 hitter in the minors.

A Gold Glove finalist in 2019, Bader is fabulous in the field but wasn’t close to league-average at the plate last year. His ugly season at bat consisted of a .205 batting average and .680 OPS. He’d shoot up this list if his 2020 season is closer to what he did in 2018 (.264 batting average, .756 OPS).

Dahl is another example of a player who has taken advantage of playing his home games at Coors Field. At home, he hit .349 with a 1.000 OPS, and those numbers plummeted to .254 and .751 respectively on the road. He also doesn’t have the range out in center field that the top guys at the position do.

Spending the majority of the year in AAA last year, Happ did play 58 games for Chicago in 2019. He hit well (.264 batting average, .898 OPS, 11 home runs), numbers that were all better than his time in AAA. He plays all over the field (average center fielder), and he needs to cut down on his high strikeout rate.

The 25-year-old Cordero has spent most of his time in the minors, but he did go 5-15 with four walks for San Diego last year. He struggled in his time with the Padres in 2018, but he’s been excellent in AAA (.305 batting average, .925 OPS in 115 games).

At the age of 35, Dyson is still one of the fastest players in the game. He’s an excellent base runner (250 career stolen bases, only been caught 44 times), but his hitting numbers haven’t been impressive the last two years (.216 batting average, .601 OPS). His speed helps to make him reach balls that most outfielders would be unable to get to.

While Duggar has proven to be a solid center fielder in his two years with San Francisco, that hasn’t been the case at the plate. In 281 plate appearances last year, he hit for a .234 batting average and .619 OPS. He doesn’t draw many walks and has just 32 extra-base hits in 402 career at bats.

Brinson has arguably been the worst hitter in baseball over the last two seasons. He at least clubbed 11 homers in 2018 because he didn’t have any last year. Hitting over the Mendoza line would be an accomplishment for him as he hit a putrid .173 in 2019 (.199 in 2018) with an unsightly .457 OPS.