Colorado Rockies fantasy baseball choice: Trevor Story or Nolan Arenado?

How about an interesting question from a fantasy baseball perspective? Who has more fantasy value for the Colorado Rockies in the 2019 season: Nolan Arenado or Trevor Story?

Both will anchor what is hoped to be an improved Colorado Rockies lineup this season with the addition of Daniel Murphy and new hitting coach Dave Magadan, who talked to us in an exclusive interview about his approach to his new job. But should fantasy players look at Trevor Story or Nolan Arenado if they have a pick to make between the two men holding down the right side of the Colorado infield?

There are a couple of things to consider when choosing.

First, Arenado will likely be batting in the second spot when the 2019 season opens on March 28 in Miami. That means he will have more at-bats (an estimated 15 more this season than last season if he is second in the order) and our own Jake Shapiro discussed in-depth in this article what other benefits the Colorado offense could potentially see from their All-Star third baseman batting earlier in the lineup. It’s a good read for fantasy baseball players.

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Could this move up in the order take RBI opportunities away from Arenado? It’s possible … but it could also give some of those opportunities to Story. However, don’t forget that last season Arenado “just” drove in 110 runs after three consecutive seasons with 130 RBI or more. Another triple-digit RBI season is absolutely attainable in 2019, wherever he hits in the order.

Second, likely batting cleanup this season (with Charlie Blackmon leading off, followed by Arenado and Murphy), Story will have ample opportunities to improve upon the career-high 108 runs he drove in last season.

Story has also shown his speed again this spring, a reminder that he stole 27 bases last season. Arenado will not be a stolen base threat, having stolen 13 bases in his Major League career. So if this is a category in your league, that is something to consider.

As a reminder, both players were in the MVP conversation during parts of last season, with Arenado finishing third in the balloting. Both will likely be in the hunt for postseason awards again this season.

Both are also ranked second or third at their position in most fantasy draft analyses. Both are in line for a tremendous 2019 … and that would be the case whether they played their home games at Coors Field or not. These are good hitters with tremendous power capabilities.

Barring injury, both will also see 150 games of action, meaning ample time at the plate.

So is there a bad choice you could make between the two? No. Arenado has proven consistency since really bursting on the national scene in 2015. Story had a Major League debut for the ages in 2016 and has provided power and speed ever since when healthy.

Our advice? You can’t go wrong with either, but we’ll still take Arenado with a fantasy pick over Story simply because of past history and his avoidance of injuries thus far in his career.

Who would you take and why? Let us know in the comments section below.