It’s easy to forget how terrible Nick Swisher was at the beginning of last season, so let me remind you. On June 1 the outfielder was batting .213 with three homers and 20 RBI. Compare that to the year before when he was batting .317 with nine homers and 28 RBI at the same point. Swisher won’t come close to batting .300, and even .280 is a bit of a stretch, but he would have been right around 30 homers once again last season if not for his atrocious start. Because of the lineup and park he plays in, Swisher can put up very good R/HR/RBI numbers that offset his lack of speed and below average batting average.
Best case scenario: Corey Hart (MIL) sans steals
Similar players: Torii Hunter (LAA), Logan Morrison (MIA), Nelson Cruz (TEX) when Cruz has an extended DL stint
Worst case scenario: Josh Willingham (MIN)
Strengths
Lineup, power, consistency. Swisher can approach 30 homers with over 80 runs and RBI. It’s hard to see him not putting up these numbers. Seriously...
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