Player Profile #104: Howie Kendrick | 2B | LAA

I just got through telling you about how I think Chris Young should be a top-100 player but George, my co-contributor, doesn’t value him as highly. The inverse is true for Howie Kendrick. Who knows which of us is right, but either way they’re definitely two of the most polarizing players in fantasy. Kendrick will give you a good average, some useful stolen base totals and a good amount of runs, but his power output will either make or break his draft value. Can he reproduce the 18 homers he had last year or is it back to the days or 10? We’ll soon find out. Best case scenario: Brandon Phillips (CIN) Similar players: Dustin Ackley (SEA), Derek Jeter (NYY), Nick Markakis (BAL) Worst case scenario: A repeat of his injury-shortened 2009. Strengths Balance, streakiness. Kendrick does a little bit of everything. That can be extremely useful in the early-to-mid rounds of the draft as you can get some great values later on by taking one- or two-category specialists. Players like Kendrick...