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Whenever a free-agent hitter is looking for a home, and a fantasy owner is asked where he’d like to see the player end up, the list obviously starts with the Colorado Rockies. Hitting in Denver is unlike hitting anywhere else and it’s for this reason that we, the fantasy community, fully endorse Ian Desmond choosing the Rockies as his new home. Oh, the guy certainly got paid, too, and that must have played a larger role than him simply seeing his statistics blossom, but hey, why can’t we all be winners here?
Evaluating Desmond in just about any other home venue, including if he had returned to the Texas Rangers, would have been a tad more difficult, for while he’s an annual provider of home runs and stolen bases, coming off his fourth 20-20 campaign in five seasons, he’s oh-so streaky and is full of swing and miss, so the batting average can be problematic. Not anymore! He’s in Coors Field half the time! Everyone hits in Denver, and Desmond instantly becomes a top-50 option to me, even though we long for the recent days he was our starting shortstop.

The Rockies, full of expensive, lefty-hitting outfielders as well as legitimate blooming star David Dahl, claim Desmond will be their new first baseman, which is a bit of a jolt, since that’s generally the one position we never have trouble finding options. Even if this is the case, and I’m dubious it will be the lone position he plays, Desmond is currently only outfield-eligible in fantasy. He did not play any infield position in 2016 for the Rangers. He’s an outfielder. Perhaps he adds first-base eligibility. He’s certainly capable of filling in for awesome shortstop Trevor Story if need be, but let’s not get greedy in wishing he adds shortstop eligibility, too. I mean, he already joined the Rockies. Merry Christmas!

For statistical evaluation, no matter where Desmond ended up, he’s established a cool baseline for reaching 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases, which we love. Eight other players achieved 20/20 in 2016. Desmond has a track record for doing it. He also hit .285, well above expectations but buoyed by a career-high .352 BABIP, which we’d ordinarily expect to regress. But with half the games in Denver, and Desmond hardly slowing on the basepaths, perhaps it continues. Defending NL batting champ DJ LeMahieu posted BABIPs of .364 and .393 the past two seasons. Anything is possible.

So what do we know for sure? Desmond is on the Rockies. Awesome! He’s a first baseman, though for us he’s an outfielder, and perhaps eventually a middle infielder, too. We also need to know which lineup spot he’ll appear in most, but the Rockies aren’t likely to tell us anytime soon. There’s a big difference in hitting second, as Desmond did more than 70 percent of the time for the Rangers, and hitting sixth and seventh, which is how the Nationals deployed him in 2015. We want more at-bats and more chances to score runs. We assume the Rockies have more changes to make but for now, I think he’s just as likely to again hit second in the lineup -- hey, it worked in 2016! -- as fifth or sixth in the lineup. Top-20 outfielder? Why not top-10?

Well, detractors will point out several factors working against Desmond, even as he plays in the thin air, and they’ll start with the strikeouts. Of course, an improved Desmond lowered his K rate from 29 percent to 23 percent, which is a big deal. Yes, it’s tougher to hit .300 with many strikeouts, but Desmond has actually flirted with high batting averages before, and now he’s striking out less, making more contact. A slow Freddie Freeman hit .302 and was ninth in strikeouts. Kris Bryant won an MVP, and tied for 22nd in whiffs. Houston’s speedy George Springer is a better comp for Desmond, though he walks considerably more, and he hit .261 with his many strikeouts. Put Springer in Coors Field and yeah, I think he’d hit a lot better.

Another concern is streakiness; Desmond was awful the first half of 2015, and hit a mere .237 in the second half of 2016, albeit with seven home runs and six stolen bases. The BABIP normalized from .402 in the first half to .287 and that was one factor, but a .287 BABIP isn’t all that low. What happened? Fewer hard-hit balls, fewer line drives and this being a strikeout guy, that’s a problem. But nobody thought he’d hit .322 and slug .524 the first half, so we expected regression. Why can’t he hit between .280 and .290 again with Denver as the backdrop? I think he can. I will grant that this is a more valuable option in roto leagues than head-to-head, but then again, for the weeks the Rockies play six or seven home games, how many options are more valuable?

Ultimately, Desmond was fantasy’s No. 8 outfielder on the Player Rater last season, and 37th overall, and while he loses coveted (but overrated) shortstop eligibility, his hitting stats shouldn’t fall. For now, the sure things among my top-10 outfielders are Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Kris Bryant, Starling Marte, Bryce Harper and Charlie Blackmon, and it’s looking likely the Rockies will try to trade Blackmon. That’s it. Oh, I like Ryan Braun, Christian Yelich, Trea Turner, A.J. Pollock and a few others as well, but I’m a fan of reliable, five-category fantasy producers and that’s what Desmond is, and now with the best hitting park around as his home for half of his games. He’s a top-10 outfielder.