![Brett Gardner remains one of the better defensive outfielders in the game. - [Image Source: Flickr / Keith Allison]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2018/3/21/660x290/b_502x220x82/brett-gardner-remains-one-of-the-better-defensive-outfielders-in-the-game-image-source-flickr-keith-allison_1899141.jpg "Brett Gardner remains one of the better defensive outfielders in the game. - [Image Source: Flickr / Keith Allison]")
American League starting left fielders have a nice mix of veterans (Justin Upton, Brett Gardner) and a few young players that seem to be on the rise (Andrew Benintendi, Trey Mancini).
Here are my rankings for the projected starting American League left fielders. As a subjective list, many of the players can almost be considered interchangeable as to where they are ranked. To see my rankings for the projected starting American League third basemen, click here. For National League, click here.
1. Justin Upton - Los Angeles Angels
- 2017 stats: 635 PA, .273 BA, .901 OPS, 35 HR, 44 2B, 0 3B, 109 RBIs, 100 R, 14 SB
Upton was named to his fourth All-Star team, won his third Silver Slugger, and finished 16th in American League MVP voting in 2017.
The 11-year veteran posted career-highs in OPS, home runs, doubles, and RBIs. He has at least 26 long balls in each of the last five seasons.
2. Brett Gardner - New York Yankees
- 2017 stats: 682 PA, .264 BA, 21 HR, 26 2B, 4 3B, 63 RBIs, 96 R, 23 SB
Not only is Gardner a solid contributor on offense, but he also won a Gold Glove in 2016 and easily could have last year. He went the entire season without making an error and had 12 outfield assists (10 in left field). His 21 homers surpassed his previous career-high of 17.
3. Andrew Benintendi - Boston Red Sox
- 2017 stats: 658 PA, .271 BA, .776 OPS, 20 HR, 26 2B, 1 3B, 90 RBIs, 84 R, 20 SB
The 23-year-old Benintendi finished as the runner-up to Aaron Judge in American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2017.
Last August was a superb month for him as he hit .333 with a .979 OPS, six homers, and nine steals in 26 games.
4. Michael Brantley - Cleveland Indians
- 2017 stats: 375 PA, .299 BA, .801 OPS, 9 HR, 20 2B, 1 3B, 52 RBIs, 47 R, 11 SB
Injuries have played a role in keeping Brantley’s name away from best outfielder lists after he finished third in American League MVP voting in 2014.
He played in just 90 games last year which is still far more than the 11 he played in 2016.
5. Trey Mancini - Baltimore Orioles
- 2017 stats: 586 PA, .293 BA, .826 OPS, 24 HR, 26 2B, 4 3B, 78 RBIs, 65 R, 1 SB
Mancini finished third in American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2017. A little bit of a late bloomer (just turned 26), he would like to see improvement on his over 4:1 strikeout to walk ratio (139 strikeouts, 33 walks.
He may spend time at designated hitter with Mark Trumbo hurt to start the year.
6. Eddie Rosario - Minnesota Twins
- 2017 stats: 589 PA, .290 BA, .836 OPS, 27 HR, 33 2B, 2 3B, 78 RBIs, 79 R, 9 SB
Rosario put up career-bests in nearly every offensive category in his third season of 2017. Still not a strong point, he showed improvement by walking 35 times last year after only walking 27 times total in his first two seasons.
7. Ben Gamel - Seattle Mariners
- 2017 stats: 550 PA, .275 BA, .735 OPS, 11 HR, 27 2B, 5 3B, 59 RBIs, 68 R, 4 SB
Gamel is expected to miss a couple weeks to start the season with a strained oblique. Entering the year with just 33 major league games to his belt, Gamel cratered in the second half after a great start.
Before the All-Star break, he hit .323 with a .828 OPS. After, those numbers dipped all the way down to a .227 batting average and .639 OPS.
8. Curtis Granderson - Toronto Blue Jays
- 2017 stats: 527 PA, .212 BA, .775 OPS, 26 HR, 24 2B, 3 3B, 64 RBIs, 74 R, 6 SB
The 37-year-old Granderson has batted .237 or lower in five of the last six seasons. Due to his ability to draw walks and his power though, he has a .333 on-base percentage and .780 OPS over that time frame. He has hit at least 20 homers in every full season since 2007 (played in just 61 games in 2013).
9. Matt Joyce - Oakland Athletics
- 2017 stats: 544 PA, .243 BA, .808 OPS, 25 HR, 33 2B, 0 3B, 68 RBIs, 78 R, 4 SB
Receiving the most plate appearances of his 10-year career, Joyce had a nice first season with the Athletics in 2017.
While he had an impressive offensive season, his range isn’t great in the outfield.
10. Derek Fisher - Houston Astros
- 2017 stats: 166 PA, .212 BA, .663 OPS, 5 HR, 4 2B, 1 3B, 17 RBIs, 21 R, 3 SB
The 24-year-old Fisher made his major league debut on June 14 of last season. While he struggled at the plate, he hit .318 with 21 home runs and 26 doubles in 84 games at AAA in 2017. He likely won’t play everyday as there will be games Marwin Gonzalez will be out on the field rather than as the designated hitter.
11. Mikie Mahtook - Detroit Tigers
- 2017 stats: 379 PA, .276 BA, .787 OPS, 12 HR, 15 2B, 6 3B, 38 RBIs, 50 R, 6 SB
The 28-year-old Mahtook received his most playing time in 2017 and performed well.
He also showed improved plate discipline later on as after just three walks before the All-Star break, he had 20 after.
12. Alex Gordon - Kansas City Royals
- 2017 stats: 541 PA, .208 BA, .608 OPS, 9 HR, 20 2B, 2 3B, 45 RBIs, 52 R, 7 SB
The three-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner is coming off two straight bad seasons, with 2017 being his worst. The 34-year-old Gordon had career-lows across the board in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.
13. Nick Delmonico - Chicago White Sox
- 2017 stats: 166 PA, .262 BA, .856 OPS, 9 HR, 4 2B, 0 3B, 23 RBIs, 25 R, 2 SB
Delmonico had a successful first 49 games stint in the majors in 2017. After a torrid start though, he hit just .194 in his last 30 games.
Still, he showed great plate discipline in walking 23 times in his brief time in the big leagues.
14. Mallex Smith - Tampa Bay Rays
- 2017 stats: 282 PA, .270 BA, .684 OPS, 2 HR, 8 2B, 4 3B, 12 RBIs, 33 R, 16 SB
The speedy outfielder has stole 16 bases in each of his first two seasons. Smith won’t provide much in the power category, but his speed allows him to cover a lot of ground in the outfield.
15. Drew Robinson - Texas Rangers
- 2017 stats: 121 PA, .224 BA, .753 OPS, 6 HR, 5 2B, 0 3B, 13 RBIs, 11 R, 0 SB
Robinson’s first season in the majors in 2017 didn’t provide for a high batting average, but he displayed the pop in his bat that was also seen in the minors. He hit 41 home runs and 49 doubles in the minor leagues in 2015-16. While he may get the first crack at left field, Willie Calhoun may eventually take over.
