I’ve mentioned before (and will mention again multiple times) that I do my own projections, but I check to see what Steamer is doing for projections, because we partner with them and it would be A) Irresponsible not to check. B) Stupid. C) There’s no C. D)umb E) Stupid, dumb and irresponsible were kinda the same so how is there an E is there wasn’t really a B, C or D? F) Stop lettering shizz! G) Damn it! H) That’s it! I) quit! So, I mention Steamer projections because I was casually looking for sleepers for the 2025 fantasy baseball season, and checking out what they were saying to see if I missed something. I sorted by steals and saw Acuña with 51. Okay, makes sense, nothing weird there. Then I saw Corbin Carroll with 41 and I was like, “Yeah, I can see that. He is very fast.” Then third for most projected steals is where I saw Victor Robles with 37 steals, and I literally fell out of my seat. No exaggeration. Plus, I was standing in a chair so it was an especially high fall. Who’s going to pay for my doctor’s bill? Victor Robles or Steamer? I demand answers! So, what can we expect from Victor Robles for 2025 fantasy baseball and what makes him a sleeper?
PSYCHE! I’ve begun to roll out my 2025 fantasy baseball rankings on the Patreon. Don’t wait for the rankings to come out next month. Also, I set us up with Gladiator draft to shake the rust off for my first 2025 fantasy baseball draft. For those unaware, a Gladiator draft is a 15-team league, and the 23 you draft are the 23 locked into your roster all season. That’s it, no FAAB, no lineup setting, nothing to do after the draft ends. It’s as easy as drafting players who will perform well and never get hurt. It’s also only $50 vs. the $150. There’s only a certain number of these drafts, so the pool for overall prizes is shallower too. When we’re done with this, I will set up a DC. The draft starts on Thursday at noon, but it’s a slow draft, so you don’t have to be near a computer. Come draft with me! Here’s the link. Anyway II, the Victor Robles sleeper:
Last year, Victor Robles received a new lease on life with the Mariners. With an excellent FICO score, he was approved for “hitting leadoff” and “in front of Julio Rodriguez.” Of course, the lease turned out to have some fine print that read, “Julio Rodriguez is now only good in the month of September.” Still, what a joy for Robles. Also, don’t say “what a joy” aloud around strangers because they will have permission to punch you in the mouth. In the 2nd half last year, Robles hit .323 with 26 steals in 53 games and 198 ABs. That came with a 17 K% and 5.8 BB%. The weird thing is you might be thinking to yourself, “How did the Mariners make him a good hitter and can they do it again for JRod?” Good question. Dot dot dot. Not! I reversal’d your ass. In a partial season (107 ABs) with the Nats the year before, Robles hit .299. Going back the year before that (that’s called 2022), and he wasn’t quite this hitter, but he’s 27 until May and has shown himself to be a new and improved Hit Tool guy with speed. You don’t have a ~16 K% across two years by luck. He looks like a .285 hitter with 35-steal speed. That’s excellent.
But, ya know, you can find steals cheap, right? SAGNOF, after all. Jacob Young is 6th on the Steamer list for steals at 31 steals; he has exceptional speed; is being drafted even later than Victor Robles; semicolons are fun, and way more fun than semiconductors. Honestly, Jacob Young isn’t a bad late name to put in your rear pocket when you’re about to lay on your stomach, but this is about Victor Robles and is he just steals? Well, no, I said he was a .285 hitter. Too bad he never hit for power. [intern whispers in ear] What!? Damn it! I just climbed back up on this chair and fell off again. Maybe I should stop standing on chairs. Victor Robles hit 17 homers in 2019. Yes, that was the year the ball was juiced out the gills as they say at bodybuilding competitions amongst fish. In a half year last year, he hit four homers and only three in 53 games with the M’s. Don’t think he’s going to suddenly hit 20 homers or something ridiculous. Ten homers isn’t obscene, though.
Let’s do a recap and wrap this up like we’re Erykah Badu, he has double digit power, possibly. Should hit around .285. Will hit leadoff. And has 30+ steal speed. Someone with that potential who has never reached those heights? Steven Kwan. He went 14/12/.292 last year. He’s being drafted fifty spots in front of Victor Robles. C’mon. Pete Crow-Armstrong (who I like) went 10/27/.237 last year. Essentially same speed and power, but fifty points off in average. He’s being drafted eighty spots higher than Robles. Mmkay. For 2025, I’ll give Victor Robles projections of 76/8/47/.287/34 in 471 ABs with a chance for much more.
