Impact Analysis: Adam Dunn, Washington Nationals

February 16, 2009 @ 00:00:00

By Keith Hernandez
Edited by Tim Heaney

Chico Harlan, of The Washington Post, reports the Washington Nationals signed free-agent first baseman/outfielder Adam Dunn (Arizona Diamondbacks) Wednesday, Feb. 11, to a two-year deal worth $20 million.

Arrival

Dunn will add a much needed source of power to the Nationals' lineup this season. The team ranked second worst in the National League in 2008 with just 117 home runs and scored the third fewest runs in the majors (641). He has been a consistent left-handed power bat, posting five straight seasons with at least 40 home runs.

Last year with the Diamondbacks and Cincinnati Reds, he hit .236 with 40 home runs and 100 RBIs. He is not known for a high average, but he has a .381 career on-base percentage.

Dunn gives the team some flexibility. The team is expected to insert him at first base, but he has the ability to play left field and right field, too. Dunn's move to the nation's capital could prove a tad costly. Nationals Park is known to be a field that disfavors left-handed sluggers such as Dunn. However, his bombs tend to travel a long way.

Inside the numbers

Despite his big all-or-nothing cuts, Dunn remains patient in the box and ranked third in the majors with 4.32 pitches seen per plate appearance last year. His batting eye ratio also increased for the second straight season.

Dunn's isolated power of .277 was also the fifth highest in the league, and he continues to be efficient at converting his flyballs to homers with at least a 20 percent rate in each of the last five seasons.

A slightly worrisome sign has been his increase in groundballs since 2006 - 36 percent of his batted balls were skimmers last year. His line-drive rate also normalized for the second straight year after an anomalous 2006.

Fantasy baseball outlook

Despite his move to an offensively challenged Nationals squad, Dunn is expected to remain a fantasy source of power numbers, although his RBI total should suffer. This news might cause fantasy owners to be hesitant, but he remains a solid pick who might fall to the early middle rounds and provide good value.

As usual, be sure to back up your team with at least a competitive cumulative batting average with your earlier picks if you're in position to draft the bopper.

KFFLians are saying....

Comment

 

---

What do you think? We want to hear from you!

Name: E-mail: Please, enter the number that you see

Comment Guidelines

Keith Hernandez

Keith, an editor with KFFL, joined the team as a Hot off the Wire analyst in 2008 and has been playing fantasy sports since 2005. He is involved in MLB, NFL and NASCAR content. He graduated from the University of California-San Diego in 2005 with a B.A. in Communications and was a four-year starter as a member of the baseball program.

Talk Sports 24/7!
KFFL Sports Forums: Over 24,000 strong and growing!

One Day FREE Fantasy Contest - $350 in cash prizes (05/25)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: John Danks placed on DL (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: The substandard Roy Halladay (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Player Prospecting: Danny Hultzen, Roger Kieschnick, more (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: Austin Jackson headed to DL (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Closer Hot Seat: Addison Reed, J.J. Putz, Ernesto Frieri, more (05/24)
Fantasy Baseball Diamond Market: Brian Roberts seeing the light at the end of the rehab tunnel (05/24)
I am not afraid of Hakeem Nicks' foot injury (05/24)
Fantasy baseball closer depth charts - AL (05/24)
Fantasy baseball closer depth charts - NL (05/24)