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After the 2018 season, the Mariners sent away James Paxton to the Yankees in exchange for Justus Sheffield, but now Paxton is back in Seattle where his career started. The “Big Maple” has a critical veteran role in the 2021 Seattle rotation and it will be interesting to see how he bounces back from his unimpressive 2020 season. What does he have to offer for the 2021 fantasy baseball season? Here is some James Paxton fantasy baseball advice.
Mariners James Paxton fantasy baseball advice
There is nothing more exciting than a Mariners reunion! James Paxton was one of my favorite players and I am so excited to see how he does in 2021. Spring Training has been weird for Paxton because the team had issues with Paxton’s visa, which made him miss a large portion of Cactus League games. So, we haven’t seen a whole lot of James Paxton compared to most of the players on the team.
The big left-hander has made one start and he looked great. There were worries about how Paxton would be this season after dealing with injuries in 2020, but he seems like his normal self. James threw 4.1 innings and allowed just two hits and a run. The Big Maple also struck out eight batters and his fastball was sitting around 93-94 mph.
Good to see Paxton throwing hard. For context, here’s his avg four seam fastball velocity over the years, according to baseball savant.
— SoDo Mojo (@SodoMojoFS) March 21, 2021
2020: 92.1
2019: 95.4
2018: 95.4
2017: 95.5
2016: 97.5 https://t.co/sSUd3DWbVM
Where is the Mariners starting pitcher ranked?
According to Fantasy Pros, James is the 194th player in fantasy baseball. He is right behind Royals outfielder Andrew Benintendi and right before Phillies pitcher Zach Eflin. Among pitchers, he is the 71st ranked player.
I think he is in a respectable spot in the rankings. Prime James Paxton would be a bit higher in the rankings, but he isn’t the same player he was five years ago. But, you never know. If Paxton can stay healthy, he can be an elite pitcher and a fantastic fantasy baseball asset.
Should you draft James Paxton?
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I highly recommend drafting James Paxton for a few reasons. In fantasy baseball, you can gamble on a couple of high-risk high-reward picks and you should use one of those tickets on Paxton. The Big Maple has dealt with injuries throughout his career which makes him a very risky pick, but as I said before when he’s able to say on the field he can be great. In 2017, he finished with a 2.98 ERA and 156 strikeouts in 136 innings. That was arguably the best season of his career.
Another reason why the Big Maple is a good pick this season is that he is back in Seattle, a pitcher-friendly ballpark compared to Yankee Stadium. It isn’t the biggest factor of performance, but I am sure it can have some impact. Plus, he had the best years in Seattle so “he’s back home.”
Additionally, he doesn’t have any injury designations or problems that we know of going into 2021. This is a huge green flag for Mariners fans and potential Paxton fantasy owners. On top of that, Paxton could really benefit from a six-man rotation. To my knowledge, this would be the first time Paxton is a part of an untraditional six-man rotation. It would give James an additional day of rest which could be a game-changer for the veteran.
When should you draft the Mariners starter?
I think you should follow the Fantasy Pros ranking and draft him where he is valued. I think the Big Maple is accurately valued especially based on how poor he was last season. Once you see players like Triston McKenzie, Andrew Heaney, Clint Frazier, Paul DeJong, and Nick Madrigal start to be selected, that’s a good time to start teeing up Paxton.
However, if you are in a keeper league or dynasty league where the injury risk is a little more important, you should wait on Paxton. Honestly, that injury risk might not even be worth it for your team if you can select a younger pitcher like Dustin May or Cristian Javier who are ranked much lower than Paxton.
Nonetheless, James Paxton shouldn’t be one of your top three starting pitchers. Hopefully, you will have enough solid pitching so by the time you get to James Paxton, he will be a solid fourth, fifth, or even sixth starting pitcher on your team.