Best in Baseball: AL Position Players
| 22
|
by Tom Miller
At the beginning of the 2007 MLB season, I did a "Best in Baseball" series. In them, I covered who I thought were the best players for each team at each position in each league. After having had a full season to reflect on my choices, I’ve revised my lists.
I’m going to start by choosing the best position player from each team in the American League. Here it goes:
- Baltimore Orioles: Nick Markakis, RF
- At the beginning of the year, I picked Miguel Tejada, praising his energy, durability, and run-producing ability, all things that amount to diddly-squat. RBIs are extremely overvalued, and the “energy” that he provided was not only nonexistent this season, it doesn’t make up for the below-average defense and declining physical skills. Now, Markakis has just finished his second season in the major leagues, and he led the Orioles in BA (.300), slugging percentage (.485), OPS (.847), total hits (191), doubles (43), and HR (23). He’s clearly the best offensive player on this mediocre team, and as far as I can tell (I don’t watch him play on a regular basis), his defense is average to slightly above average.
- Boston Red Sox: David Ortiz, DH/1B
- Mike Lowell had a career year in 2007 and is currently a free agent, Manny Ramirez had a down year (for him, anyway; .296/.388/.493, 20 HR in only 133 games) and Ortiz (despite dealing with lingering injuries all year long) led the Red Sox in most offensive categories. Those included BA (.332), OBP (.445), slugging percentage (.621), and his OPS was a whopping 1.066, good for second in all of baseball, only a single percentage point behind Alex Rodriguez. The 2007 Red Sox were very balanced, and Ortiz, even without playing defense, is the best player on that championship team.
- New York Yankees: Robinson Cano, 2B
- The Yankees are really in disarray right now. Their best player left, their catcher, closer, and #2 starter are all free agents (although the last three are expected to resign with the team). That leaves only two position players who can be considered above-average: Cano and Derek Jeter. Jeter is 33 and has been steadily growing worse at short, and Cano is 25 and has increased his defensive prowess enough to be deemed a plus fielder. Cano had 67 XBH compared to Jeter’s 55, and their OPS’ are nearly identical (.841 to .840, respectively). There’s also the matter of reimbursement. Jeter’s 2007 salary was $21,600,000, compared to Cano’s $490,800. All in all, I’ll take the young second baseman over the aging shortstop.
- Tampa Bay Rays: B.J. Upton, CF
- For this pick, I yield the floor to ArmchairGM’s resident Rays expert, the venerable Manny Stiles:
- “I'm biased towards Delmon Young, Scott Kazmir just doesn't get enough respect and C.C. (Carl Crawford) is a safe choice (great personality, sickly gifted athlete), but if you want to sound like you have an idea about what you know instead of what everyone else says... B.J. Upton. B.J. is probably the most all-around talented of them all. When he moved to center, the team gelled players relaxed and as he settled in, he was an impact on every game. Sure he made some errors and bad throws, etc. but he is still way young and the centerpiece of this team for years to come. He is bone skinny and looks like a little kid - which I think throws most people off - but he is ridiculously strong compared to what he looks like. Also my pick for Ray player most likely to put up monster numbers next year. He was the Rays All-Star (at second base!) until he hurt his quad in May. When (Baldelli went down, BJ took center and made it his. He didn't bat under .300 all season!
- If Elijah Dukes wasn't such a poon hunter, we'd be talking about him the way people talked about Bo Jackson. Dukes is a "once a generation" athlete. He physically reminds me of a middle linebacker crossed with a taller Mike Tyson. Disgusting natural skills, cannon arm, running back speed, amazing eye, unbelievable bat control (Yes, I know his batting average was .190) a mean scowl and Daddy-strength in a 21 year old.
- Pena is the clubhouse Sunray. Upbeat. He was thankful to be in baseball and finally learned how to relax and not press and whammo! HR and RBI!!! Five years from now we might be saying David Price or Evan Longoria. It's a good time to be a Rays fan - only way to go is up!"
- Toronto Blue Jays: Vernon Wells, CF
- I had a really tough time picking the Blue Jays’ best player. On the one hand, Vernon Wells is a 3-time Gold Glove winner, had a career year in 2006 (32 HR, an .899 OPS), and he got paid to the tune of $126 million over 7 years. On the other hand, he has so far earned that money by lowering his batting and on-base percentages by about 50 points, and his slugging percentage was a whopping 140 points. Alexis Rios does not have the track record of a Vernon Wells, but he was easily the best offensive player on the Blue Jays in 2007. if forced to choose, I would go with Wells because of his stellar defense and the very real possibility of a 2008 bounce back year.
American League Central
- Chicago White Sox: Paul Konerko, 1B
- After Jermaine Dye’s breakout 2006 season, in which he finished 5 th in MVP voting, won the Silver Slugger, bashed 44 HRs, and finished with an OPS of 1.005, I was prepared to name him a superstar. However, something happened this season that I didn’t predict. Dye (and the rest of the White Sox) took a giant step backwards, finishing a dreadful 72-90, just barely out of the cellar in the AL Central. My other options (besides the 33-year-old corner outfielder) are first basemen Paul Konerko and DH Jim Thome. Thome, by all accounts a great guy, became a member of the 500-HR club this year, but he’s 37 and doesn’t play defense. Konerko is only 31 and plays a good first base, and he continues to be a dangerous force in the White Sox offense, having hit 30+ HR and having posted an OPS of .841 or higher in the past 4 years. Because of all of this, Konerko get the nod over Dye and Thome.
- Cleveland Indians: Grady Sizemore, CF
- The Indians have a lot of young talent on their ALCS roster. There’s rookie 2B Asdrubal Cabrera (21 years old), DH Travis Hafner (30), C Victor Martinez (28), SS Jhonny Peralta (25), and their 25-year-old centerfielder. Cabrera’s only a rookie, and while he has tremendous skills, he hasn’t realized his potential yet. Hafner is a tremendous offensive presence, but his 2007 numbers were substantially lower than his 2006 totals, partly because he dealt with lingering injuries for most of the year. Martinez has managed to fix the one glaring hole in his game, his defense. More specifically, his throwing improved dramatically: Martinez threw out 32 % of potential base stealers in 2007, up from only 18 % in 2006. His offensive numbers also were better this year than last, as he hit a career-high 25 HR and had 65 XBH, with an OPS of .879, 2 nd -best in MLB behind Jorge Posada. Despite Martinez’s breakout year, Sizemore is a bona fide superstar, and his 2007 season was not a disappointment. His OPS of .852 was good for 3 rd among AL centerfielders, he increased his walks from 78 to 101, and he won the outfield Gold Glove this year (and actually deserved it, oddly enough).
- Detroit Tigers: Magglio Ordonez, RF
- At the beginning of the year, I chose Carlos Guillen as the best player on the Tigers. His 2007 numbers (.296/.357/.502) are noticeably lower than the 2006 totals (.320/.400/.519), although still pretty impressive in their own right. So why the change? There are two reasons for that, really. Reason number one: While the numbers are among the best in the league for a shortstop, Guillen is moving to first base for the 2008 season, and his numbers aren’t on the same level as the top-tier first basemen, such as Albert Pujols, Justin Morneau, or Ryan Howard. Reason number two: If not for Alex Rodriguez’s off-the-charts 2007 season, Magglio Ordonez would have been the 2007 AL MVP. He led the Tigers in most important offensive categories, including BA (.363, which also led the majors), OBP (.434), slugging percentage (.595), doubles (54), and HR (28). Curtis Granderson had a great year too, combining great offensive numbers with exceptional center field defense, but Ordonez is among the league’s elite, and Granderson is not at that point yet.
- Kansas City Royals: Alex Gordon, 3B
- A couple of guys on the Royals had better statistical seasons than Gordon, including Mark Teahen, their right fielder, and David DeJesus, the center fielder. Neither had outstanding seasons, but Gordon had a very difficult April and May (through May 30, he had a batting average of .195 and an OPS of only .585). Much of his early struggles can be attributed to his inexperience, as Gordon jumped from AA to the major leagues, a tough transition for any player. Despite this, the 23-year-old franchise player had an exceptional June, hitting .327 with an OPS of .883, showing why he was the preseason AL ROY pick for most of these guys. The rookie gets the nod over the other guys because of his talent and potential to be a franchise player, two things that Teahen and Dejesus do not have.
- Minnesota Twins: Justin Morneau, 1B
- This would have been Torii Hunter if he stayed with the Twins. Unfortunately for Minnesota, their Gold Glove-winning center fielder will be taking his exceptional defense and infectious smile elsewhere. The Twins have major offensive problems, finishing 12 th in the AL in runs scored in 2007, with the second-fewest HR hit among these American League teams. Their only two viable options for my (dubious?) honor are catcher Joe Mauer and first baseman Justin Morneau. My preseason pick was Mauer, and I chose him because of the more difficult position that he plays. Oddly enough, that’s the reason that I’m taking Morneau now. At 6’5", Mauer is a very large catcher, and this year he missed significant time due to injuries. I fear that the beating he takes behind the plate will hurt the rest of his game and shorten his career. Morneau, while his numbers were down from their 2006 MVP level, still hit 31 HR and had a respectable .835 OPS. If the Twins can get black holes of offense out of their lineup (mainly this guy), Morneau could be even more productive.
American League West
- California Angels: Vladimir Guerrero, RF
- I spent my first article praising the youth that the Angels have, and stating that despite that youth, the Angels’ best player was a 31-year-old outfielder with a bad back. Nothing has happened since then to change my opinion. Despite dealing with the aforementioned back issues, Guerrero still played in 150 games (41 of those at DH) and was extremely productive, leading the Angels in OBP (.403), slugging percentage (.547), OPS (.950), doubles (45), HR (27), and walks (71). Whether or not the Angels land Alex Rodriguez, I would argue that Guerrero is still the centerpiece of this offense.
- Oakland Athletics: Nick Swisher, RF
- The A’s had a forgettable season, their annual July hot streak never materializing (the opposite happened, with Oakland posting a 9-18 July record) and the only really positive thing coming out of the season was the emergence of Jack Cust. The 28-year-old had a breakout season, with 26 HR and an OPS of .912 in despite not playing in a game until May 6 th. However, a 28-year-old with no position and one very good season is more likely to be a one-hit wonder than a great player. I’m not saying Cust won’t be a great player, but I’d like to see him do it for more than one year before I crown him the best on his team. Swisher, on the other hand, has been very good for the second year in a row, managed to increase his walks while decreasing his strikeouts, and he supplants Eric Chavez as my choice for the best player on this mediocre Athletics team.
- Seattle Mariners: Ichiro Suzuki, CF
- Adam Jones is a legitimate phenom, and Adrian Beltre finally won his first Gold Glove this year, but Ichiro had his best season since 2004, posting a .351 BA (in 3 of his 7 seasons in the majors, he has had a BA of .350 or higher; that’s Tony Gwynn-esque) while leading the Mariners in OBP (.396) as primarily a singles hitter. Let’s throw in the fact that his won his 7 th consecutive Gold Glove this year, and this pick becomes very easy.
- Texas Rangers: Ian Kinsler, 2B
- Texas is a mess right now. The Rangers’ biggest offseason addition, Kevin Millwood, was absolutely terrible, and they traded away their best player, Mark Teixeira, at midseason. Shortstop Michael Young had a down year (his .784 OPS is his worst total since 2003), but he almost wins by default. Fortunately, this is my one chance to actually look smart. At the beginning of the season, I wrote “Keep an eye on 2B Ian Kinsler, he’s going to have a monster year.” I was almost right. 20 HR, 23 SB (in only 25 attempts), a team-leading .796 OPS, and a subpar season by just about everybody on that team leads to Kinsler winning this contest. Next year it will be this guy.
A couple of notes:
- All statistics came from either ESPN.com's baseball site or from baseball-reference.com.
- Special thanks to Manny Stiles for his Rays-related contribution.
- I realize Gold Glove Awards are not the most accurate way to define who is the best fielder at each position, (see Jeter, Derek or Palmeiro, Rafael), but the 2007 awards seem pretty reasonable. Gold Gloves are generally given to very good fielders, even if they are mostly given to players who are adept at hitting as well as fielding.
