Terrmel Sledge

Sledge spent most of 2006 in Triple-A, but is expected to serve as San Diego's primary left fielder and leadoff man in 2007. He should start primarily against right-handed pitchers, yielding to Jose Cruz Jr. against lefties. The 30-year-old Sledge has good power and speed, but doesn't steal many bases and has not done much at the major league level. His career major league average is just .267, but he has routinely hit over .300 in the minors. 4/3 Update: Sledge had a good spring (.309, six homers and 14 RBI in 68 at-bats) and is expected to start in left field against right-handed pitchers. He will begin the year hitting eighth in the lineup.

Sledge missed most of the year with a hamstring injury, and then got passed around like a hot potato in the offseason, ending up in San Diego. Petco won't do his bat any more favors than RFK Stadium did, so don't expect an improvement on his 2004 numbers even if he manages to get regular at bats.

Sledge finally got a chance and neither disappointed nor amazed, instead battling through some nagging injuries to post a 799 OPS. On the bright side, all he lost from his stellar 2003 Triple-A line was some singles (his walk rate and ISO were comparable to the year before) so better health and/or better luck could translate to much better results.

Sledge ripped through Triple-A in 2003, ripped through the Arizona Fall League with Team USA, and kept right on ripping in winter ball. The fact that Frank Robinson held Team USA's reins should give Sledge a leg up this spring, if for some reason he's even forced to compete for a spot. He won't make anyone forget Vlad, but he should be one of the early favorites for NL Rookie of the Year.

His numbers at Double-A last year (.301/.401/.437) make him someone to keep an eye on this spring if the Expos are auditioning for outfield help, as they probably will be. At 26 though, the future is now for Sledge.