Sizemore, Grady

- Outfield, Cleveland Indians

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Baseball Player Info

AL
Age	28
Bats or Throws	Left

Editor review

Going a Size up?

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Reviewed by SteveP
February 21, 2010
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Last updated: February 21, 2010

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This is Sizemore's age-27 season, and none of his secondary numbers reflect any diminution of his considerable skills despite a lost season due to injuries. Assuming he is healthy (and all indications are that he will be) he represents a high-end power/speed combination. Batting average is always a concern with Sizemore, but other than last year his career low is .268. That's not a plus, but it's not a huge minus.

The question here is context. The Indians look like a team with a whole lot of nothing on base unless Michael Brantley can succeed right away at the big league level. Other than Shin-Soo Choo, there are no "plus" on-base players and the signing of Russell Branyan is not going to help this. The days of Travis Hafner and V-Mart in their prime and on the Tribe are over. Whatever Sizemore does, it will be without a lot of help. Even with an ideal lineup for Sizemore, with Brantley and Cabrera in front and Choo behind, it's hard to put together enough runs to move his runs and RBI from good up to excellent. .275-95-28-95-35 in 625 AB

Positives / Upside	Sizemore is entering his age 27 season, and all indications are that his elbow and other issues have been resolved. He had improved his strikeout rate prior to 2009, and for all the difficulties of 2009, he maintained that improved rate (down to 5:1 from a more dangerous 4:1). Likewise his groundball, flyball and contact rates were largely unchanged. Sizemore didn't take a step back -- he was "just" hurt (tell that to the commish in your money league). That means a great opportunity for you if he is healthy. We have Size going for $33 or 31st, but he's essentially the same player that was the first outfielder taken in many, if not most leagues last year. While due to batting average concerns we couldn't see him as a better prospect than Braun or Kemp for this season, there's no question that if he returned to his 30+/30+ levels, he would earn first-round money. And other than health, there appears to be nothing to keep him from doing so. .290-100-30-100-35 in 650 AB
Negatives / Downside	The Russell Branyan signing doesn't in any way fix the potential context problems that all Cleveland hitters will face (including everyone's darling pick Choo). Michael Brantley brings considerable on-base skills to the team, but he has struggled the first time through in both double- and triple-A, and there's every possibility that he will do the same in the show, in which case Sizemore might have less attractive options hitting in front of him (or he even gets moved to the front of the order). It's also not uncommon for players with this type of ailment to lose power. .265-70-20-70-20 in 450 AB
Recommendation	Buy at cost
Draft Position	31