Best and worst outfielders in MLB for July 2016

Maybe he's simply the best player in the game. Last season saw Trout hit .299 with 41 homers, 90 RBI, 32 doubles, a .402 on-base percentage and a staggering .992 OPS. Sadly for the rest of the AL West, that's not going to be his ceiling moving forward. Oh, and Trout has finished in the top two in MVP voting in each of his first four full seasons, winning the award in 2014. Ridiculous. 

It was about six years ago that Byrd was having a career season en route to his first and only All-Star appearance. That seems like ages ago. Last year between Cincinnati and San Francisco, Byrd hit .247 with a .290 on-base percentage. And while he did knock 23 homers, he struck out nearly 30 percent of the time he stepped to the plate. Add in a negative WAR, and it's apparent Byrd is a shell of his former self.

An argument could be made that Cespedes never lived up to expectations as a member of the A's. He failed to tally more than 82 RBI in each of his first two full seasons with the team, hitting just .240 in 2013. Since leaving Oakland, it's been a different story. The Cuban prodigy finished last season with a .291 average with 35 homers, 105 RBI and a total of 83 extra-base hits. He also earned his first Gold Glove, boasting the best outfield arm in all of baseball. 

Want to talk about a player who's fallen flat on his face? After signing a five-year, $72 million deal with Atlanta prior to the 2013 season, Upton hit .184 with a 39 percent strikeout rate. He then followed that up by posting a .208 average the next season before being dealt to San Diego. Unfortunately, it didn't get much better in Southern California. Last year saw Upton hit just five homers in 205 at-bats while posting a 30 percent strikeout rate. Ouch! 

Still only 26, it's amazing what Stanton has been able to accomplish. Despite missing over half of the 2015 season to injury, the three-time All-Star still hit 27 homers while driving in 67 runs in just 74 games. Think about those numbers for a second. That came on the heels of him knocking 35 homers while leading all of baseball in slugging percentage (.555) and total bases (299) in 2014. Most will point to Trout and Harper as the game's best outfielders, but Stanton is a rock star in his own right. 

It hasn't necessarily worked out too well for Bourjos after a solid start to his career with the Angels. After being dealt to St. Louis leading up to the 2014 campaign, the outfielder posted a .216 batting average with a sub .300 on-base percentage. Considering he's hit just eight homers during that span, the veteran is a major liability at the plate. Add in a negative defensive WAR last season, and there's not much to like here. 

What Harper did in the nation's capital last season was absolutely absurd. He led the National League in runs scored (118), homers (42), on-base percentage (.460), slugging (.649) and OPS (1.109). A true Triple Crown candidate if there ever was one, Harper is one of those generational five-tool talents who comes around every once in a while. If he continues at this pace, the enigmatic outfielder will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. 

Once considered a top prospect of the Nationals, Taylor hasn't panned out in the majors. He did hit 14 homers and steal 16 bases in his first full season last year, but a 34 percent strikeout rate and .282 on-base percentage told us a story of a youngster who struggled big time. Unfortunately, it hasn't been much better in 2016. 

An MVP candidate this season, Betts broke out big time at the age of 22 in 2015, hitting .291 with 18 homers, 77 RBI and 21 stolen bases. He did so while posting a 1.4 defensive WAR and putting up 10 assists from center. Continued progression here suggests that Betts will be among the game's best all-around players, if he isn't already. 

This 24-year-old former first-round pick has done nothing of substance since entering the majors. This past season alone saw him hit .227 with a .264 on-base percentage while posting a 30 percent strikeout rate. That's simply not going to get it done. 

Remember when Jones was traded from Seattle to Baltimore in a package for Erik Bedard? Man, that was such a long time ago. It also came when he was considered an underperforming talent. Not so much anymore. Jones has earned four consecutive All-Star appearances and three Gold Glove awards over the past four years. This very same span has seen Jones average 30 homers and 90-plus RBI per season. 

It's been a decade since Jeff Francoeur put up back-to-back 100-RBI seasons. Heck, it's been that long since he was an above-average player. But here he is, still getting a chance to strut his stuff in the majors. The 32-year-old posted a disastrous .286 on-base percentage while posting a negative 1.7 defensive WAR with Philly last season. Yes, time has passed this veteran by. 

Some will point to Coors Field as a reason for Gonzalez's success at the plate, but it's important to note that nearly half his homers have come away from Colorado since the start of the 2014 campaign. Last season saw Gonzalez put up a career high in homers with 40 while driving in 97 runs. It was his best performance since finishing third in the MVP voting back in 2010. 

Once considered a top prospect for the Marlins, things have not gone according to plan for Marisnick since being traded to Houston. He hit just .236 with 36 RBI and a .281 on-base percentage last season. Add in a 31 percent strikeout rate, and it's hard to imagine this 25-year-old outfielder becoming a reliable everyday player. 

Want to talk power numbers? There's no other player who's been as consistent in this category in baseball as Bautista over the years. He's averaging 39 homers and 100 RBI over the past six seasons. What's amazing about this is that Bautista averaged just 15 homers in his first three seasons in the majors. While he doesn't provide much on defense and is somewhat injury-prone, Bautista's power enables him to make this list. 

Santana entered the majors to much fanfare, hitting .319 with 20 steals as a rookie in 2014. It's been completely downhill since. He hit just .215 with an absurdly low .241 on-base percentage without a homer in 261 at-bats last season. Ouch! More than this, Santana posted a negative defensive WAR while committing 16 errors at short last season. I guess it's good he's been moved to the outfield. 

The National League MVP back in 2013, Cutch earned five consecutive All-Star Game appearances before a somewhat slow start in 2016. That very same span has seen him average 25 homers and 85-plus RBI while batting well over .300. He's also earned a Silver Slugger award and finished in the top five in MVP voting each season. 

Two homers in 255 at-bats while playing half your games at Coors Field? This was Barnes' reality last season. That's just sad. He also drove in just 17 runs while posting a negative defensive WAR. In all fairness, it's not like Barnes has the talent to be counted on. Unfortunately, that's exactly what the Rockies did last year. Rely on him.