Left Field
LF Andrew Benintendi, Boston Red Sox
.279/.361/.449, 478 PA, 62 R, 17 HR, 67 RBI, 14 SB
2.0 fWAR, 2.2 bWAR
Benintendi isn’t hitting quite as well as he hit in a 34-game sample last season. His batting average and slugging percentage are lower than last year, but much of that could be due to a BABIP that’s regressed from .367 to .302. He’s still been the best rookie left fielder in baseball and a key part of the NL East-leading Boston Red Sox hitting attack. Mookie Betts is the only position player on the Red Sox who has clearly been better than Benintendi so far this year. Earlier this week, he crushed a pair of three-run homers to help lead the Red Sox to victory over the Yankees.
In a world without Aaron Judge, Benintendi would be the leader for the AL Rookie of the Year Award. He’s projected to finish the season with 2.6 WAR (per FanGraphs), which would put him as one of the 20 best Red Sox players in their age 22 season. He would slot in between 1987 Ellis Burks and 1991 Phil Plantier.
Honorable Mention
LF Guillermo Heredia, Seattle Mariners
.287/.348/.395, 313 PA, 38 R, 6 HR, 22 RBI, 1 SB
1.5 fWAR, 1.7 bWAR
Outside of the Pacific Northwest, it’s likely that few baseball fans know of Guillermo Heredia. The Mariners signed him as an amateur free agent in March of 2016. He played in Double-A, Triple-A, and with the Mariners last season and showed good speed on the bases and strong defense in the outfield. With the Mariners this season, Heredia has played mostly left field and center field, providing good defense and a slightly above average bat.