Kyle Farmer

Despite having his best major league season in 2021, Farmer is a source of frustration for Reds fans. That's not on Farmer, but on the Reds' front office, who opted not to improve the shortstop position in the offseason, instead settling first on Eugenio Suarez and then on Farmer after Suarez did not work out. While Farmer was fantastic in July (.395/.456/.691), he tapered off and his overall rate stats (.316 OBP, .416 SLG) were just ok for a player in Great American Ballpark. Just as it's inadequate for the Reds to rely upon Farmer as a full-time shortstop, he doesn't provide enough category juice to be your fantasy shortstop and is a good bet to regress in 2022. That being said, his opportunities are unlikely to decrease, as Cincinnati has committed to a full rebuild and Suarez is no longer in the infield mix.

In 2019, Farmer traded away contact in exchange to add power, but in 2020 he reversed the equation, going homerless in 70 plate appearances, but lowering his K% from 29.9 to 18.6. Sample size caveats aside, is the trade-off worth it? While it's generally true that OBP is undervalued and SLG overvalued, with Farmer the offense hasn't risen enough to the level for it to matter. He's the definition of a replacement-level utility player, one who can play multiple positions in a pinch, but one that you wouldn't want to start for your roto team unless you're in a pinch.

Farmer spent most of the 2019 campaign in the majors, logging time at all four infield positions as well as behind the plate. He also showed some pop with his bat for the first time in his big-league career, slugging nine home runs and registering a .180 ISO in 197 plate appearances. That touch of power was a nice surprise, but it came at a price as Farmer's 67.8% contact rate was well below his his major- and minor-league career norms. Not coincidentally, the 29-year-old's strikeout rate jumped to an uncharacteristic 30.3% while both his batting average (.230) and xBA (.226) tumbled. Farmer wasn't expected to make the team out of spring training last season, but he solidified his spot on the club with his versatility -- he even logged a garbage-time outing as a relief pitcher. That versatility should keep Farmer on the roster in 2020, but he isn't likely to be more than a utility player.