Travis Demeritte

Demeritte, a first-round pick in 2013, has shown some skills in the minors which have not yet translated to major-league success. He hit .286/.387/.558 hitting in front of the home folks in Triple-A Gwinnett for Atlanta in 2019 before being sent to Detroit in a trade. Detroit has kept him at the major-league level, but the results have been nowhere near the same. Demeritte can make hard contact (91.3 mph career average), but the issue has been the number of non-contact events at the plate around those batted balls. He has had particular trouble with the major-league fastball, and the irregular playing time he receives as a reserve outfielder for a bad team could be part of that problem. There is no reason to draft Demeritte until he can show he can catch up to big-league velocity.

Demeritte is a former first-round draft pick who has now twice been traded at the trade deadline by contenders looking for pitching help. Demerritte has hit for 20 or more home runs in three different minor-league seasons, so the .286/.387/.558 slash line while in Triple-A last season is not all tied to the new baseball in that league. He did not show the same level of performance in his time with the Tigers, which was also his first exposure to regular-season MLB pitching. His average exit velocity last year was higher than those of Cody Bellinger and Mike Trout, and he had a top-40 hard-hit rate last year, which speaks to what he can do at the plate when he does make contact. The aggressive approach leads to issues making contact which have plagued him throughout the minors. If he can fix that problem, he has the skills to add another 20-plus homer season to his resume.

Demeritte's game is all about extremes, and in 2016 he was treated to some extreme park factors to complicate his profile. The Rangers traded him to the Braves for pitching help in late July, moving Demeritte from High Desert, one of the most hitter-friendly parks in the minors, to Carolina, a pitchers' paradise compared to any Cal League park. While his numbers predictably dipped after the trade, the fact that he managed to post a 138 wRC+ and .860 OPS in the Carolina League should stabilize his dynasty league value, as he proved that High Desert was not playing kingmaker. He has plus power, specifically to the pull side, and enough speed to steal double-digit bases annually. Unfortunately, major contact issues that typify his below-average hit tool have been apparent ever since he got into pro ball. Demeritte is a worthwhile lottery ticket in deeper dynasty leagues, but nobody should be surprised if he flames out in the upper levels.