Nick Maton

In his first year in Detroit, Maton saw his most playing time yet at the MLB level, but he struggled to get anything going offensively. The utility player slashed .173/.288/.305 in 249 at-bats across 93 games. He played at second base, third base and shortstop for the Tigers but didn't see any time in the outfield after making 20 outfield appearances a year earlier for Philadelphia. About the only positive in Maton's 2023 offensive profile was his 13% walk rate, but he also struck out nearly 25% of the time, which is a fairly high rate for someone who didn't display much power. Heading into 2024, the 26-year-old will likely occupy a similar utility role. While that figures to give him some real-life value, his fantasy prospects aren't as promising. The best-case scenario is that Maton seizes an everyday role at some point and starts to produce more at the plate, perhaps closer to the .855 OPS he recorded in 2022 with the Phillies. For now, however, he's mostly off the fantasy radar.

Maton opened last season in the minors and didn't make his first big-league appearance of the year until June. He homered in his season debut but suffered a shoulder sprain less than a week later, an injury which kept him out for around two months. He spent the final third of the season in the majors, mainly filling a bench role. While his .250/.341/.514 slash line in 85 trips to the plate may suggest he deserved more opportunities, his role looks fair when his performance is examined more closely. He didn't make contact very often, posting a 34.1 K%, and that contact wasn't of particularly good quality, as his 6.7% barrel rate and 31.1% hard hit rate indicate. He's unlikely to continue producing similar results if those underlying numbers remain the same, and his .230/.350/.391 line in 121 career Triple-A games tells a similar story. Maton's defensive flexibility should continue to earn him a bench spot, but don't expect much more than that. Being traded to the Tigers should better his chances of increased playing time, though his fantasy potential remains limited.