Kevin Newman

Newman posted a 109 wRC+ during his first full big-league campaign in 2019, but over the past two seasons he's slashed .226/.268/.302 with six home runs, 49 RBI and six stolen bases in 192 games. The 28-year-old is a high-contact hitter (career 10.9 percent strikeout rate and 5.2 percent walk rate), but his propensity for hitting groundballs (47.5 percent) limits his upside for fantasy purposes. Newman should still receive plenty of opportunities given Pittsburgh's options in the middle infield, but he'll need to drive the ball more in order to regain fantasy relevance.

Newman came up as a quick high-contact hitter throughout the minor leagues who relied upon his bat-to-ball skills and his feet to produce runs. He looked overmatched in 2018, but surprised us all with a rather productive, too-good-to-be-true offensive line in 2019. We all expected some regression for Newman in 2020, but not the fall back to square one of his career. Newman still excelled in his batted-ball skills, but the outcomes off his bat were rarely productive as he had six extra-base hits on the season and the final slash line means he likely hits eighth or ninth in the 2021 lineup, depending on whether the universal DH goes into hiatus in the senior circuit. He has eligibility at both middle infield spots, but it's difficult to view him as more than a MI option in NL-only leagues and free-agent fodder in mixed leagues unless the stolen bases resurface.

Newman flashed good bat-to-ball skills in the minors, but an otherwise meager profile made it difficult to be bullish about his fantasy prospects entering 2019. The Pirates supported that view by first giving Erik Gonzalez and Cole Tucker trials as the primary shortstop, but Newman seized the role in late May and didn't look back. From June 1 onward, Newman hit .301 with 11 homers, 15 steals, 54 runs and 51 RBI, making him found gold for those who poached him off the wire. The Statcast readings create doubt about his chances to repeat as a double-digit home-run hitter -- he ranked in the bottom fifth percentile of hitters in both exit velocity and hard-hit percentage -- but a .291 xBA adds some legitimacy to his actual output in that category. Perhaps more importantly, his role as the team's leadoff man should continue to afford him plenty of running chances in spite of his non-elite speed.

The jump to the highest level of professional baseball proved tough for Newman. However, those struggles shouldn't define his season. His much larger body of work at Triple-A Indianapolis was impressive, even for a 24-year-old at that level. His carrying tool was on full display as Newman struck out just 10.5% of the time and hit over .300. Newman also swiped 28 bases in his 109 games with the team's top affiliate, though he's not a true burner. He had never managed more than 13 steals in a season prior to 2018, he was caught on the basepaths 11 times in his 39 attempts last season and his 29 ft/sec sprint speed per Statcast, while good, did not rank among the elite. The big negative with Newman is the lack of power. He's topped out at five home runs in a season and his ISO has topped out at .128. Jordy Mercer moved on in free agency, seemingly creating an opening for Newman, but he'll have to nail down a starting job in spring training.

The problem with betting on an older hitter with a presumed plus hit tool and little else, is that when the hit tool doesn't quite deliver as promised, there's not much left. That was the case for Newman in 2017, and he has now failed to hit .290 or better during multiple stints at Double-A and a 40-game run at Triple-A to close out last season. The power probably isn't coming at this point, and he is no longer a plus runner or even an above-average defender at shortstop. This points to a future as either a bottom tier everyday player or a low-impact utility infielder. Newman is entering his age-24 season and figures to make his MLB debut this year, but there's just not much to see here from a fantasy perspective.

Newman is arguably Pittsburgh's most promising middle-infield prospect. After playing well for more than half of a season for Double-A Altoona, he will likely move to Triple-A Indianapolis in 2017. That would set himself up for a major-league debut in September or 2018. The 23-year-old University of Arizona product began 2016 with High-A Bradenton. He hit .366/.428/.494 in 189 plate appearances before earning a promotion to Altoona. While his numbers dropped off (.288/.361/.378), he maintained his plate discipline with a 26:24 BB:K. Defensively, he committed only two errors in 257 chances. The only real knock on Newman is his lack of power. He's totaled seven homers in two seasons. Still, he's positioned himself well as a solid batting-average prospect with a major league future on tap.

Although Newman didn’t meet with immediate success in the NYPL — he slashed .226/.281/.340 in 173 PA — an injury to fellow shortstop prospect, Cole Tucker, prompted the Pirates to promote Newman to Low-A West Virginia. Surprisingly, the 2015 first-round pick produced better offense for the Power than he did for the Black Bears. He batted .306 with a .743 OPS in 110 PA. Prior to the draft, Newman was thought to be further advanced defensively than at the plate. He’ll look to build upon a good foundation in 2016.