Dan Szymborski’s ZiPS projections are a good measure of what to expect from players in the upcoming baseball season. We'll take a look at the Rangers' projections on a position-by-position basis. Szymborski can be found on Twitter at @DSzymborski.
Today we'll look at the projections for the Rangers designated hitter. Prince Fielder rebounded after a highly disappointing 2014 season, which saw him play just more than 40 games and hit three homers in his first season in Texas, to led the Rangers in hitting, homers (tied with Mitch Moreland) and RBIs. He didn't rediscover his 30-homer power, but he produced at an all-star caliber.
Fielder: 603 plate appearances, 26 doubles, 18 home runs, 74 RBIs, .271 batting average, .355 on-base percentage, .422 slugging percentage
These projections aren't too far off Fielder's numbers from 2014 from a power standpoint, but from a batting standpoint they're down and don't seem to think Fielder will be able to replicate his banner year from an all-around hitting perspective. Last year, Fielder hit .305/.378/.463 with 23 homers and 98 RBIs, so the numbers are a bit of dropoff across the board.
Even still, it seems safe to assume Fielder might never be a 30-homer, 100-RBI guy again, and those numbers that are projected might be about as good as we can hope for at this point in his career, and if that's the case, you have to think the Rangers will take it.
