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Colorado Rockies: This is their perfect lineup for the 2021 season

By Noah Yingling

DENVER, CO - AUGUST 16: A detail of the scoreboard honoring the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues on display during a game between the Colorado Rockies and the Texas Rangers at Coors Field on August 16, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - AUGUST 16: A detail of the scoreboard honoring the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues on display during a game between the Colorado Rockies and the Texas Rangers at Coors Field on August 16, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /
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Josh Fuentes of the Colorado Rockies
PHOENIX, ARIZONA – SEPTEMBER 26: Josh Fuentes #8 of the Colorado Rockies gestures toward the stands after scoring a run against the Arizona Diamondbacks on an RBI single by Daniel Murphy #9 during the fourth inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on September 26, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images) /

Josh Fuentes would hit sixth and play first base for the Rockies in their perfect lineup.

Fuentes broke out in 2020 when he hit .306/.320/.439 with an OPS+ of 90. However, the peripheral stats seem to indicate that Fuentes was a beneficiary of some very good luck.

For example, his BABIP (Batting Average on Balls in Play) was a staggering .406, when league average is around .300. Additionally, he had a wOBAcon of .432 when the league average is .370, his barrel rate was only 1.4 percent (league average is 6.4 percent), his hard-hit percentage was 23.9 (league average is 34.9), his average exit velocity was 84 MPH (league average is 88.4), and his launch angle was 10.6 degrees (11.9 is league average).

In 2021, first off, he needs to be more patient at the plate. His chase rate was a staggering 38.8 percent (league average was 28.2 percent) and he only walked twice in the season. Twice. That’s it.

Defensively, he was the Rockies second-best player (behind his cousin) with a mind-boggling 9 Defensive Runs Saved in just 30 games played. That’s the best defensive numbers that the Rockies have had at first base since Todd Helton.

His bat will need to keep developing as over a 162-game season, those peripheral stats will catch up to the overall results that he had but considering the Rockies’ current options, he will likely be their everyday first baseman regardless.

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