Andre Ethier

A fractured tibia suffered in spring training resulted in Ethier spending most of his time during the 2016 season rehabbing at the Dodgers' facility in Arizona. He managed to make it back in September and appear in 16 regular season games plus the playoffs, but he wasn't at 100 percent and appeared in most games as a pinch hitter. Last year will go down as a lost season for the veteran, but he could be a decent bounce-back candidate if he returns to full health in 2017. He remains basically a platoon player, making 422 plate appearances against right-handers between 2015 and 2016 and just 49 facing southpaws, but that has buoyed his rate numbers in recent years. As long as Ethier is healthy, he's likely to get the majority of starts in left field, but with regular days off against left-handers. It's also worth noting the Dodgers considered using him as a leadoff hitter before his injury.

Ethier was once again more or less a platoon player in 2015 given his struggles against left-hand pitching, but he still put up the best numbers we've seen from him in several seasons. With 350 of his 395 at-bats coming against right-hand pitching, Ethier batted a strong .294/.366/.486 with 14 home runs and 53 RBI. His OPS versus right-handers was a very good .900, and with the struggles of teammate Carl Crawford, Ethier received plenty of playing time. He is owed $38 million through 2017, so like Crawford, he'll be difficult to move, but he should generate some trade interest if the deep-pocketed Dodgers are willing to pay a portion of his contract to facilitate a deal. He will be out of the Dodgers' outfield mix for at least the first two months of the season after breaking his right tibia in spring training, and can therefore be ignored in shallower formats.

Ethier made the transition from overpaid to a walking punchline in 2014, delivering career lows in each part of his slash line while becoming the most expensive reserve outfielder in MLB history. At his peak, Ethier's best tool was power, but he's exceeded 12 home runs just once over the past four seasons (2012). With three years remaining on a five-year, $85 million extension he received in June 2012, Ethier's future with the Dodgers is in doubt. Even if the financial aspect of rostering him was removed from the equation through the Dodgers' likely willingness to eat a very large share of the remaining money on his deal, the list of suitors for a 32-year-old outfielder with a near-replacement-level bat and average-at-best defense in the outfield is understandably short.

Ethier managed to stay healthy for most of the year, playing in 142 games and batting .272/.360/.423. While solid, those numbers are disappointing from a guy making $17 million a year and with a 31-106 season already under his belt. That year (2009) may wind up as his career season unless Ethier suddenly figures out left-handed pitching (.220, .222, and .221 against them the past three years). He may very well be in a platoon situation in 2014, perhaps even with another organization given the Dodgers' outfield logjam.

Ethier's 149 games played represented his highest total since 2009's 160. He finished with a .284/.351/.460 line that included 20 home runs and 89 RBI. A couple areas to watch include his walk rate, which dipped to 8.1 percent last year versus a 9.5 percent career rate and he continues to struggle against left-handers, batting just .218/.270/.324 against them. Ethier turns 31 in April, and as long as he can stay healthy, he should be good for similar numbers in 2013.

2011 was the second consecutive season in which injuries limited Ethier to fewer than 140 games. The difference in 2011 over the prior year however, was a huge drop in his power output. Ethier batted .292/.368/.421, but his home-run output dropped from 23 to 11 in just 30 fewer at-bats. There's no easy explanation for the drop in power, as the finger injury he suffered in 2010 should not have been an issue. Ethier will return to the Dodgers in his final year before free agency. You can probably expect him to be more of the 2010 Ethier than last year's disappointing version.

Ethier was putting up another MVP-type performance, batting .392/.457/.744 on May 14, when an unfortunate broken finger sidelined him for two weeks. He wasn't the same hitter the rest of the way, batting .263/.341/.418 post-injury. Hand injuries tend to linger, but an offseason of rest and rehabilitation should put Ethier right back on track as one of the NL's better hitters in 2011.

Largely due to a major league best six walk-off hits (four home runs), Ethier placed sixth in the NL MVP race last season, batting .272/.361/.508 with 31 home runs and 106 RBI. Ethier notched career-highs in all categories, including runs scored with 92 and he even chipped in six stolen bases. The average would have looked a lot better if not for a late-season swoon in which Ethier hit just .202 after Aug. 26. Count on that not being a trend and figure Ethier's average rebounds to the .280s with similar power numbers in 2010.

After winning the starting left field job on Opening Day, Ethier struggled to assert his everyday status versus highly-paid veterans Juan Pierre and Andruw Jones, though injuries eventually opened the door for the man who led the club with 20 homers. Ethier hit .305/.375/.510 in 525 at-bats on the year and finished with a sizzling .462 in September. The Dodgers' outfield is likely to be crowded again in 2009, but expect similar, if not increased, playing time for this rising star.

Ethier hit .284/.350/.452 in 447 at-bats while splitting the corner outfield at-bats with Matt Kemp and Luis Gonzalez. With just 13 homers and no stolen bases, Ethier isn't a huge fantasy asset and considering his OPS was 115 points lower against left-handed pitching than righties, he's also susceptible to a platoon situation. With the signing of Andruw Jones, he'll likely be fighting for at-bats yet again in 2008.

Ethier made general manager Ned Colletti and his staff look smart after they acquired him in the Milton Bradley trade before the 2006 season. After being recalled from Triple-A in May, Ethier hit .352/.403/.545 prior to the All-Star break, but struggled thereafter, particularly in September (7-for-49) when he eventually lost his job to Marlon Anderson. Ethier admitted to being "mentally-drained" from the long season, but the offseason should do him some good. Expect him to be the team's full-time left-fielder and his line of .351/.378/.468 against southpaws should keep him immune from platoon situations.

Ethier enters the 2006 season as one of the most talked about outfield prospects in baseball, having hit well at Double-A Midland (.319/.385/.497) and then hammering the ball in Arizona over the winter (.366/.495/.598 in 82 AB including 21 BB and just 10 K). His track record prior to 2005 was spotty at best, and there still isn't a great deal of power in his game (18 HR in a full-season at Double-A in a good hitters' park), so there's some caveat emptor in play here. He can't steal a base to save his life, so his value will come from power numbers and little else.

Coming out of Arizona State, Ethier needs to progress up the ladder quickly. His season at Single-A Modesto was decent, but there's not a lot of power here and he stole just two bases in seven attempts, so it's hard to see him projecting as an eventual full-time major leaguer.

Third-round pick out of pick out of Arizona State, Ethier still needs develop into a more powerful hitter.