Asdrubal Cabrera

The difference between Cabrera's time in Texas and his time in Washington was night and day. It looked like he might be close to done during his run with the Rangers, as he had a sub-.400 SLG in an all-time power season and was barely above replacement level overall in 93 games. Texas couldn't find a trade partner at the deadline and just went ahead and released Cabrera. The Nationals signed Cabrera the day after his release and he went on to slash .323/.404/.565 over the remainder of the regular season, with more walks than strikeouts. He raised his season OPS more than 70 points in just 38 games with Washington and played a sizable role for the club in the World Series. His 11.1 BB% will likely regress (career 7.8%) and nothing about the skill set really excites you, but Cabrera still makes enough contact (20 K%) and should play enough after re-signing with the Nats to be useful as a middle infielder.

If the season ended July 27, Cabrera would have posted a career-high 124 wRC+ in his age-32 season. Unfortunately for the Phillies squad that acquired him on that day, he recorded just an 83 wRC+ over his final 49 games. Still, his overall .262/.316/.458 line was fine for a middle infielder, and his positional flexibility made him a versatile option for fantasy owners in deeper leagues. The veteran has posted a wRC+ between 104 and 120 in each of the last four seasons, but has offset that by playing poor defense. He's expected to play third base after signing with the Rangers -- a favorable landing spot in terms of park and playing time. He could spend a fair amount of time near the middle of the order, keeping him very much relevant for at least one more year.

Cabrera fell short of a second straight 20-homer season, but the 32-year-old nonetheless continued to enjoy a late-career power revival in 2017. His 46 extra-base hits were supported by an excellent 36.8 percent hard-hit rate, and Cabrera made himself a tough out even when he wasn't swinging by posting the second-best walk rate of his career. Though he thrived at the dish, Cabrera was forced from the shortstop position by mid-June after displaying poor range in the field. He originally fought the move and requested a trade, but later recanted and embraced a full-time utility role, splitting duties at second and third base. It's expected Cabrera will see most of his starts at the hot corner in 2018, but he'll retain eligibility at three positions in most formats, with that versatility offering a nice little bump to his fantasy value. Don't expect much, if any, help in the steals department, however, as his stolen-base total ticked down each of the last three years.

Cabrera's production last season at shortstop would be considered excellent in most years. But Cabrera's solid 2016 got lost in the shuffle with so many young, flashy up-and-comers manning the position. On the other hand, if Cabrera can match or even approach last season's production, he's a great consolation prize for those opting to fade middle infield. Can he do it? Almost all of Cabrera's underlying metrics were in line with historical levels. The primary driving force for the power surge was a 14 percent HR/FB, the highest of his career, well above his nine percent average. This was supported by a big leap in hard-hit rate, checking in at 37 percent, above his 30 percent career norm. Chances are Cabrera will drop below twenty homers though he has eclipsed the mark twice in six years so it's not certain.

There wasn’t much excitement surrounding Tampa Bay’s acquisition of Cabrera last offseason because he appeared to be on the downside of his career as a middle infielder who was struggling to hit for average and was sliding in his power indicators. Heading into Father's Day weekend last season, Cabrera’s slash line was down to .199/.259/.308 through 66 games as an everyday player and the signing looked like a bust. A 2-for-4 that weekend started a hot streak that saw him bat .317/.357/.525 in his final 80 games. He’s a decent bet for double-digit home runs and another double-double season is possible in his first year with the Mets, even if not in an everyday role to start the year. One thing to keep in mind with him is that he isn’t a full-season guy in that he’s only once played at least 150 games in a season and that was five years ago.

The deadline deal that sent Cabrera to Washington from Cleveland didn't spark any sort of resurgence in his bat. Between the two stops, he ended up posting numbers very similar to his somewhat disappointing 2013 campaign: a batting average in the .240s, weak on-base percentage, solid power for a middle infielder and a handful of steals. His defense, never his calling card at shortstop, played much better at second base with the Nationals. Signed by the Rays as a free agent, he may see everyday at-bats between the middle-infield spots following the trade of Ben Zobrist and Yunel Escobar in January.

Cabrera's offensive slide continued again last season, as he hit just .242 with 14 homers, after dealing with nagging back, wrist and quadriceps injuries. He'll make $10 million in 2014 and is getting to the point where the Indians might decide to move him in a trade, if they think some of their middle-infield prospects are ready. Cabrera still offers above-average power from the shortstop spot but needs to turn around the downward trend. By all indications, he'll return as the Opening Day shortstop for Cleveland in 2014, but it's becoming easier to wonder if 2011 will go down as the most productive season of his career.

Cabrera took a step back (.270, 16 homers, 68 RBI, nine steals) from his breakout performance in 2011 thanks to a second-half slump (.251, five homers, 26 RBI in 64 games) in which he was limited due to leg, back and wrist injuries. The nagging injury issue isn't anything new for Cabrera, but the Indians hope the offseason addition of Mike Aviles will give the team a viable option to backup Cabrera at shortstop. He'll be back as the team's everyday shortstop and figures to put up similar numbers again, although the Indians appear to be willing to trade him for a viable arm for the starting rotation.

Cabrera enjoyed a breakout season, but it comes with a few warning flags. He really struggled in the second half, perhaps due to a litany of nagging injuries to his ankle, knee, back and wrist and while his command of the strike zone (44:119 BB:K) is solid it certainly doesn't represent a change in approach at the plate that would support his huge power increase. He had never hit more than six homers in a season prior to last year's outburst so one has to wonder if he'll be able to approach the 25-homer mark again. He'll be back as Cleveland's starting shortstop but a repeat performance seems unlikely despite entering his age-26 season.

Cabrera's season was derailed by a broken forearm in mid-May that kept him sidelined until late July as he failed to follow up on his breakout season (.308 average, 68 RBI, 17 steals) of 2009. He no longer offers second-base eligibility as he's moved over to shortstop on a full-time basis now, but he should easily improve over last year's line now that he's healthy as he anchors a spot in the top third of the Indians lineup.

It was a breakout season for the 23-year-old Cabrera, hitting .308 with 68 RBI and 17 steals. He's finally been moved over to shortstop, though his 28 games at second base last season should still give him one more year of eligibility at the keystone in most formats. There's room for growth here if he can avoid the nagging little injuries and he'll enter the season as the team's starting shortstop and No. 2 hitter.

Cabrera was a trendy sleeper pick heading into the season and struggled out of the gate before a hip injury compounded the problem in June. He got sent to Triple-A for six weeks to straighten out his game and came back to hit .320/.398/.464 in the season's second half. The Indians have talked about moving him over to shortstop but Cleveland is counting on him to be an everyday player wherever he winds up defensively. He could be a moderate source of power and speed up the middle if the Indians let him run.

Forgive the fine folks in the Emerald City if they spit out their lattes each time they hear the name of Eduardo Perez. Overmatched and struggling as a 20-year-old at Triple-A, the Mariners shipped Cabrera to Cleveland in a deadline deal in the middle of 2006. The Indians took their time with Cabrera and he rewarded them in spades by not only exceeding expectations at Double-A to start the season, but also taking over the second base duties for the Indians as they almost reached the World Series. Whether he sticks at second base or pushes Jhonny Peralta over to third base and takes over at shortstop remains to be seen. He's not going to give you a ton of pop from a middle infielder right now but Cabrera could have a couple of 15-homer, 20-steal seasons at his peak if the Indians let him run.

Cabrera has emerged as the heir apparent to patrol short for the Tribe and may come sooner than later, if Jhonny Peralta's struggles continue. After coming over to the Tribe in the Eduardo Perez deal, Cabrera hit .263 with a .632 OPS in 52 games at Triple-A Buffalo. Still only 20 years old, Cabrera's defense will continue to keep him in the lineup and if he can approach the .881 OPS year he had in 2005, Peralta may be wearing another uniform before long. As it stands, Cabrera will start the season in Buffalo, with every opportunity he needs to stay.

In an organization loaded with middle-infield prospects, Cabrera perhaps made the biggest strides in 2005. But while his glove is near major league ready, his bat needs more seasoning. His average dropped at each stop he made last year from Mid-A Wisconsin to High-A Inland Empire to Triple-A Tacoma (.318, .284, .217). Cabrera is one of the Mariners' Top 10 prospects, but the abundance of middle infielders will make it hard for him to crack the Seattle roster any time soon.