Nady Comes Back To The NL Central

01/26/2010 9:20 PM -  Fred Zinkie

By: Fred Zinkie

The Cubs have improved their outfield depth by signing Xavier Nady to come off the bench.  Nady is a big health risk but has more potential than most backup players.  Let’s take a look at the fantasy value of all affected Chicago outfielders.

Xavier Nady – He is coming off a second Tommy John surgery on his elbow.  That fact alone makes him a big injury risk for 2010.  He will start the year as a backup player and when you combine his projected role with his injury history he becomes a non-factor in mixed leagues.  His upside makes him worth a pick in NL-Only leagues.  Teams in that format can carry backup players with solid skills like Nady.  If he hits well during the season or if an injury to a starter occurs he can have short term value.  Don’t forget – we are talking about a player that isn’t very old and was drafted in almost all formats last year.  The starting outfielders in Chicago are decent but there is definitely the opportunity for Nady to earn some playing time.

Marlon Byrd/Kosuke Fukudome – If these two players can hit well then they have nothing to worry about.  But we have to remember that we aren’t talking about Sosa and Bonds here.  Byrd was brought in to start regularly in CF and the team likes Fukudome in RF.  But you can find reasons to doubt each of them.  Byrd was great in 2009 but hasn’t had too many productive years in his career and is leaving a friendly hitting environment in Texas.  Fukudome has struggled to hit lefties at times since joining the Cubs.  He also offers little power or speed for an outfielder.  If Nady is healthy his skill level is pretty comparable to both of these players so it is quite possible that he could steal playing time during 2010.