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Detroit Tigers: Which Tigers do you want on your fantasy team?

By Andy Patton

DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 17: Nicholas Castellanos #9 of the Detroit Tigers celebrates with Jeimer Candelario #46 of the Detroit Tigers as he crosses the plate in front of catcher Rob Brantly #44 of the Chicago White Sox after hitting a two-run home run during the sixth inning at Comerica Park on September 17, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 17: Nicholas Castellanos #9 of the Detroit Tigers celebrates with Jeimer Candelario #46 of the Detroit Tigers as he crosses the plate in front of catcher Rob Brantly #44 of the Chicago White Sox after hitting a two-run home run during the sixth inning at Comerica Park on September 17, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images) /
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DENVER, CO – AUGUST 30: Nicholas Castellanos #9 of the Detroit Tigers watches the flight of a third inning solo homerun against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on August 30, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – AUGUST 30: Nicholas Castellanos #9 of the Detroit Tigers watches the flight of a third inning solo homerun against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on August 30, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /

Nicholas Castellanos

Rotoballer rank: 132 Target round: 14

Nicholas Castellanos had a stellar fantasy season last year, hitting .272 with 26 home runs, 101 RBI and 73 runs scored. It was a true breakout season for the slugger, who was in the midst of a breakout in 2016 before breaking his wrist and missing a huge chunk of the season.

There is plenty of reason to assume Castellanos’ power is legit. His 43.4% hard-contact rate was elite last season, placing him tenth in the league. He cut his strikeouts down to 21.4%, the lowest mark of his career.

Castellanos has all the tools of a fantasy darling. However, the Tigers offense could impact Castellanos as well. If the players around him are struggling to get on-base, Castellanos may see a dip in his runs and RBI numbers. However, hitting behind Cabrera (as he is expected to do) should help Castellanos see better pitches and hopefully drive in more runs.

FanGraph’s ZiPS projections give a lot of love to Castellanos heading into 2018. They project him to hit .285 with 28 home runs, 97 RBI and 67 runs scored. Those type of numbers would make Castellanos easily one of the top-100 fantasy players of the season. For that, he is absolutely worth a look in the 12-15 round range.

The move to right field may challenge Castellanos, but his offense is already at above average levels and shows no sign of slowing down. Draft Casty with confidence as a fantasy baseball asset.

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