The Current Best MLB Player at Every Position
Voting for the 2022 MLB All-Star Game is well underway, which, in theory, should tell us who baseball's current best players are.
But there's a fine line between "best" and "most popular."
All-Star voting takes care of the latter.
We'll handle the former.
Though our stated goal is to identify the "current best" players at each position, that doesn't mean regurgitating the guys who lead the majors in 2022 wins above replacement. That was one of the biggest data points taken into consideration, but we're also accounting for performance in previous seasons and current health (sorry, Jacob deGrom, Fernando Tatis Jr., etc.) in an effort to identify the best of the best.
It comes down to one question: If you were starting a franchise from scratch and could choose one player from each position with the goal of winning the World Series in each of 2022, 2023 and 2024, who would you take?
None of the decisions was easy. But we ended up with one heck of a starting lineup.
Catcher: Willson Contreras, Chicago Cubs
1 of 11
Defensively, heck no, Willson Contreras is not one of the best catchers. He has a good arm, but as far as things like pitch framing and defensive runs saved, he's average at best. In those departments, Yadier Molina, Travis d'Arnaud and Sean Murphy are the cream of the crop.
But Contreras more than makes up for it with his bat, as he leads catchers this season in both home runs (12) and OBP (.398). He has made 16 starts as the Cubs' designated hitter, as they understandably want him in the lineup as often as possible.
This is Contreras' seventh consecutive season with an on-base percentage of at least .339, and he is well on his way to a fourth season with at least 20 home runs. While you could make the case that his brother, William, or Dodgers catcher Will Smith is deserving of this spot, Willson's long-established success gives him a leg up on the competition.
Also, with Contreras an impending free agent on a team that is 17 games below .500, we'll see a ton of "Where Will the Best Catcher in the Majors Land?" articles in the buildup to the Aug. 2 trade deadline, so you might as well start accepting him as the best.
First Base: Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
2 of 11
First base has three strong candidates to choose from.
If all you care about are home runs, Pete Alonso is unquestionably your guy. Not only does he lead the position with 18 this season, but he also has 124 round-trippers dating back to the start of 2019, which is 27 more than his closest challenger (among first basemen). However, as both a baserunner and a fielder, he rates as one of the worst at the position, and his career .260 batting average isn't great. He'll likely be an All-Star this season, but we can do better.
Of the other two candidates, Freddie Freeman would have edged out Paul Goldschmidt before the season began. Freeman was the NL MVP in 2020 and played a huge role in the Braves' 2021 World Series title. And his new six-year, $162 million deal made him the highest-paid first baseman.
But while Freeman has been (by his standards) just OK this season, Goldy is putting together quite the MVP campaign.
As of Thursday morning, Goldschmidt leads the NL in hits, batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage and tops the majors with a 1.070 OPS. He has a career batting average identical to Freeman's (.295) to go along with slightly better career OBP and slugging marks. He's also a four-time Gold Glove recipient and a six-time All-Star who has gotten a share of the NL MVP vote eight times.
Goldschmidt turns 35 in September, so he wouldn't be the first baseman off the board first in a dynasty draft. But if you're trying to win it all in the 2022-24 range, he's the pick.
Second Base: Tommy Edman, St. Louis Cardinals
3 of 11
I waffled on this one for longer than I care to admit because second base is overrun with good-not-great options.
If you want to stick with the guy who has been Ol' Faithful for the better part of a decade, it's hard to argue with Jose Altuve. He hasn't been much of a runner over the past five years, but the pint-sized 32-year-old is still one of the best slugging second basemen. He hit 31 home runs last year and is on a similar trajectory this season. And he has a career batting average north of .300.
Marcus Semien is also a great "long-term dividends" option, as he finished third in the AL MVP vote in both 2019 and 2021. Since the start of 2019, he has been the most valuable second baseman, and by a considerable margin, as far as FanGraphs is concerned. After a dreadfully slow start this season, he has come around in recent weeks.
Other viable candidates include new-to-second-base Trevor Story, potential 30-30 club member Jazz Chisholm Jr. and possible 2022 batting champ Luis Arraez—though he has spent most of his time at first base this season. You could also make the case for Ketel Marte and DJ LeMahieu, though neither is having a great 2022 campaign.
But we've got "Current" in the headline, so the most valuable second baseman is St. Louis' Tommy Edman.
It's not all that close either. He's arguably the best defensive middle infielder. He's indisputably one of the best baserunners in the majors. And while he's not a slugger, his bat holds a fair amount of extra-base pop.
Aside from the number of candidates, the main reason I waffled on this is that Edman has spent most of his time over the past four weeks at shortstop, as the Cardinals have had to get creative since designating Paul DeJong for assignment. But Edman still gets occasional starts at second and won a Gold Glove there in 2021.
Third Base: Jose Ramirez, Cleveland Guardians
4 of 11
A little over a month ago, the pick probably would have been Nolan Arenado. After 23 games, he was batting .361 and operating at a 162-game pace of 49 home runs and 162 RBI. Combine that with his nine Gold Gloves and the fact that he has been on the NL's roster for six consecutive All-Star Games, and it would have been an easy choice.
In the 38 games since then, however, Arenado is batting .217, is averaging roughly one extra-base hit for every four games played and has opened the door for a three-horse race in which he isn't even a competitor.
Rather, it's down to Rafael Devers, Manny Machado and Jose Ramirez.
And Ramirez is in the lead by at least a nose.
Machado has tapered off since his liquid hot magma start, but he is still looking good for NL MVP as the leader of the insatiable Padres. Devers may well lead the AL in runs, hits, doubles and batting average this season and has been at the heart of Boston's rise from its early ashes. Move either of those guys to second base or shortstop and they take the cake at that position.
But Ramirez has finished top-six in the AL MVP vote in four of the past five years, and barring injury, he'll extend that streak to five out of six. Pete Alonso is coming for his crown, but Ramirez leads the majors with 62 RBI. And after not running at all in April, Jo-Ram is up to 11 stolen bases, good for the most among qualified third basemen.
If you want to put extra emphasis on defense and award this spot to Arenado instead, I won't fight you on it. He's a great candidate. But WAR accounts for value added on defense, and even in 30 fewer games played, Ramirez is 5.7 FanGraphs WAR ahead of Arenado dating back to the start of 2017.
Shortstop: Trea Turner, Los Angeles Dodgers
5 of 11
It's a shame Fernando Tatis Jr. can't get and stay healthy because he would be the choice. Even though he has only played in 273 games since the start of 2019 while most guys have played in at least 380, the only "shortstop" with more home runs than Tatis' 81 is Marcus Semien—and he has been almost exclusively a second baseman since last season. Tatis is also a career .292 hitter who steals bases at a clip of 31 per 162 games.
But we've yet to see Tatis this season, which leaves Trea Turner without much competition.
All due respect to Tim Anderson, Xander Bogaerts, Francisco Lindor and red-hot rookie Jeremy Pena, but Turner is in a class of his own.
Among the 268 players who have recorded at least 500 plate appearances since the start of the 2020 season, Turner's .322 batting average reigns supreme, his 57 stolen bases rank third behind Starling Marte (65) and Whit Merrifield (59), and he's top-40 in home runs with 48. Though he has yet to win a Gold Glove, he's not a liability on defense.
One year removed from an offseason in which Corey Seager, Javier Baez, Carlos Correa and Trevor Story all signed nine-figure contracts as free agents, I cannot wait to find out who manages to put together the type of eight-year, $300 million contract offer it'll take to sign this impending free agent.
Left Field: Yordan Alvarez, Houston Astros
6 of 11
Three years ago, Yordan Alvarez was almost exclusively a DH for the Astros. Last year, 71 percent of his starts came at DH, and he was lifted for a defensive replacement in nearly half of his starts in left field.
But he's becoming more of a regular in the field these days, making roughly half of his starts in left. He's top-30 in the majors in innings played in left field in 2022, and, well, it's not like anyone else in that top 30 is making much of a case for this spot.
No offense to Ian Happ, Austin Hays, Tommy Pham and Andrew Benintendi, who have performed admirably in left field for teams that have otherwise been less than stellar. But they can't hold a candle to Alvarez's 17 home runs and .312 batting average.
Kyle Schwarber is keeping pace with Alvarez in dingers (16), but he could literally get hits in 30 consecutive at-bats and still be looking up at Alvarez in batting average.
The guy to watch out for is Randy Arozarena. Tampa Bay's left fielder did a whole lot of nothing in his first 25 games this season, but he's batting roughly .300 with seven home runs and eight stolen bases since Mother's Day. He was the AL Rookie of the Year in 2021, and his 10-homer run through the 2020 postseason was one of the greatest of all time.
Arozarena could catch fire and track down the star of the Astros if Alvarez lets his foot off the gas.
Center Field: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
7 of 11
For most of his career, Aaron Judge's home has been in right field with occasional "days off" at designated hitter.
But did you know Judge has made more starts in center field in 2022 than he has made in right field?
It has been a recent development—half of his starts in center have come since May 25—and it will surely make it easier to boot either Joey Gallo or Aaron Hicks out of the lineup if they don't come around soon.
Most importantly to us, it means we no longer need to choose between Judge and Mookie Betts for right fielder.
It does, however, mean no Mike Trout in this lineup, which is a painful decision.
The three-time AL MVP is batting nearly .289 with 16 home runs, but he trails Judge in basically every category this season. And since Judge fully arrived on the scene in 2017, his FanGraphs WAR (28.6) is comparable to Trout's (32.0), so we're not disregarding half a decade of evidence to crown the guy who's mashing at a 65-HR pace right now.
As with Trea Turner, there has been a lot of talk about what kind of deal Judge might strike this offseason. I doubt it'll be a 10-year contract, but if he stays healthy and wins AL MVP, get ready for Judge's average salary to eclipse Trout's $35.5 million figure.
Far beyond that premier duo, George Springer would be third in the pecking order, followed by thriving younger guys like Julio Rodriguez, Adolis Garcia, Cedric Mullins and Bryan Reynolds.
Right Field: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
8 of 11
Even with Aaron Judge counting as a center fielder and Bryce Harper entrenched as Philadelphia's DH because of his elbow injury, right field is overflowing with great candidates.
The preseason leader in the clubhouse was Juan Soto. His batting average on balls in play has been dreadful by his standards, but he has 13 home runs, is drawing a ton of walks and is having a fine campaign overall.
"Fine" doesn't cut it in right field, though, where Taylor Ward has had a sensational breakout year, Kyle Tucker is on pace for 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases, Ronald Acuna Jr. has been incredible since his return from a torn ACL and five-time Gold Glove recipient Mookie Betts is putting on a clinic at the plate.
From April 30 through June 1, Betts hit .358 with 14 home runs, a 162-game pace of 76 blasts. He started slow for the first three weeks and has been in a funk over the past 10 days, but the 2018 AL MVP is still top-10 in the majors in wins above replacement, both on Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.
Betts also has three outfield assists, has yet to commit an error in 128 chances and rates as the best defensive right fielder in 2022. But he'll need to continue thriving if he wants to hold on to this spot, as Acuna and others are hot on his tail.
Designated Hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
9 of 11
Even if we disregard the pitching portion of his repertoire, Shohei Ohtani is a top candidate for this DH spot.
Since the start of last season, he has 59 home runs and 33 stolen bases, which is good enough for top-10 in the majors in both categories. The only other players north of 45 and 25, respectively, are Jose Ramirez (52 and 38) and Marcus Semien (51 and 26).
Could his batting average be higher and his strikeout rate be lower? Sure. But the only real case against Ohtani would be a case for Bryce Harper, who has superior batting average, OBP and slugging marks, albeit with nine fewer home runs and 13 fewer stolen bases.
If we allow Ohtani's pitching to factor into that showdown between the 2021 AL and NL MVPs, though, the stalemate becomes a landslide victory for the Angel.
In 33 starts since the beginning of 2021, Ohtani has a 3.31 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings and a 4.0 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The only other pitchers with at least 100 innings and better marks in those four categories are Max Scherzer, Gerrit Cole, Corbin Burnes and Carlos Rodon. Not bad company for a guy whose haters want you to believe he's just a C+ starting pitcher.
Starting Pitcher: Corbin Burnes, Milwaukee Brewers
10 of 11
The eternal struggle in picking baseball's best active starting pitcher is finding a guy who can stay on the mound. If Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Stephen Strasburg, Lance Lynn and Brandon Woodruff were each fully healthy with 12 or 13 starts this season, this becomes a wildly different conversation.
As is, you could make the argument for at least 15 different guys, ranging from established veterans like Justin Verlander, Shane Bieber and Gerrit Cole to red-hot newer stars like Shane McClanahan, Nestor Cortes, Alek Manoah and Tarik Skubal.
But if we broaden our scope to include everything since the beginning of 2020, it's a two-horse race between Corbin Burnes and Zack Wheeler, both of whom have benefited from keeping long balls to a minimum.
Burnes has gotten touched up in the home run department this season, but among pitchers who have logged at least 150 innings since the start of 2020, Wheeler and Burnes are Nos. 1 and 2 in home run rate, allowing 0.54 and 0.56 per nine innings pitched, respectively. Neither hands out many walks either, so the damage done on those infrequent home runs is usually limited.
Between these two aces, though, Burnes has the much better strikeout rate. In fact, with the exception of deGrom, Burnes' 12.44 K/9 rate is the best among the 134 pitchers above that 150 IP threshold. He also has a better ERA (2.39) than Wheeler (2.82) and by far the lowest FIP (2.09) if we once again exclude deGrom.
Long story short, we'll take Burnes, with the understanding that he's probably just keeping that throne warm until deGrom's triumphant return.
Relief Pitcher: Liam Hendriks, Chicago White Sox
11 of 11
Were this decision based solely on this season, New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes might be the pick. He allowed one run in his first 2022 appearance and hasn't given up anything since, boasting a 0.29 ERA and giving the Yankees a tough decision when Aroldis Chapman (Achilles) returns from the injured list, likely in the next couple of weeks.
However, this season is hardly an adequate sample size for relief pitchers. We have to look back at least two seasons, in which case we again face a difficult decision between two great options: Milwaukee's Josh Hader and Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks.
Hader is unquestionably the more unhittable of the two. Dating back to the start of 2020, his BABIP against is a minuscule .200, and his K/9 is 15.35. Among the 97 relievers with at least 90 innings during that time, Hader ranks No. 1 in both categories. In spite of a recent outing against Philadelphia in which he allowed two home runs, his 0.74 HR/9 IP ratio in that period is much better than Hendriks' 1.11 mark.
But walks are where Hendriks decimates Hader. While the Brewers closer has walked nearly 10 percent of batters faced in his career, the White Sox closer has allowed just 1.33 walks per nine innings pitched over the past two calendar years, which gives him a staggering 10.4 K/BB ratio.
Hendricks has blown three saves this season, but he inherited multiple runners in all three of those situations. When he gets to start the ninth inning with the bases clear, he's arguably the best in the business.
.jpg?w=600 "Report: Falcons, Jags Make DT Trade")
.jpg?w=600 "SmackDown Before WrestleMania 🔠")
.jpg?w=600 "WWE Hall of Fame Recap 👏")
.jpg?w=600 "New NBA Mock Draft 📝")
