Bleacher Report's MLB 25 in '25: Predicting the Top 25 Third Basemen in 2025
Welcome to B/R's MLB 25 in '25 rankings!
In the coming weeks, we'll take a crack at predicting who the 25 best players will be at each position in five years, during the 2025 season.
Loyal readers will remember we did something similar in 2015 with our "20 for '20" series.
That edition had a few hits (see: Rendon, Anthony) and a few swings and misses (see: Jagielo, Eric), and there will undoubtedly be some whiffs this time around. That's just the nature of the beast.
However, I like to think I've grown a good deal as a talent evaluator in those five years, so hopefully this one is more hit than miss.
Players are ranked according to their long-term upside, path to playing time, production and projectable tools. Ages refer to how old a player will be on July 1, 2025.
Along with analysis on the 25 third basemen selected, you'll find a list of notable veteran omissions based on age and expected regression. We also predicted the top 10 third base prospects for 2025, complete with a few college players who are 2021 draft prospects.
This is going to be a lot of fun, and I look forward to discussing my picks in the app throughout the process.
Let's get started.
Catch up on our MLB 25 in '25 series: Catchers, First Basemen, Second Basemen
Notable Veteran Omissions
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The following players were excluded because of age and expected regression. Their 2025 age is included in parentheses:
- Matt Carpenter (39)
- Yandy Diaz (33)
- Josh Donaldson (39)
- Eduardo Escobar (36)
- Todd Frazier (39)
- Jedd Gyorko (36)
- Jake Lamb (34)
- Evan Longoria (39)
- Kyle Seager (37)
- Justin Turner (40)
- Gio Urshela (33)
- Joey Wendle (35)
Top 10 Third Base Prospects in 2025
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A big part of this process was projecting prospects into future MLB roles. As such, whittling down the list enabled us to predict who will be the 10 best third base prospects in 2025:
- 1. Brett Baty, New York Mets
- 2. Keoni Cavaco, Minnesota Twins
- 3. Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals
- 4. Luis Toribio, San Francisco Giants
- 5. Alex Binelas, University of Louisville (2021 draft prospect)
- 6. Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles
- 7. Brady House, Winder-Barrow High School, Georgia (2021 draft prospect)
- 8. A.J. Vukovich, Arizona Diamondbacks
- 9. Christopher Morel, Chicago Cubs
- 10. Reginald Preciado, San Diego Padres
Nos. 25-21
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25. Jonathan India, Cincinnati Reds (2025 Age: 28)
Despite a disappointing start to his pro career since going No. 5 overall in the 2018 draft, India still has the offensive polish to be an everyday player. He hit .350/.497/.717 with 21 home runs during his junior season at Florida to send his draft stock soaring, and he looks like a prime candidate for a post-hype breakout in the minors.
24. Miguel Vargas, Los Angeles Dodgers (2025 Age: 25)
Signed for $300,000 nearly two years after he defected from Cuba, Vargas hit .308/.380/.440 with 38 doubles in 124 games between Single-A and High-A in 2019 with a strikeout rate below 15 percent. He's more hit than power, and he'll never be more than an average defender at third base, but he's an underrated prospect worth keeping a close eye on as the Dodgers sort out the future at the hot corner.
23. Eugenio Suarez, Cincinnati Reds (2025 Age: 33)
The Reds have Suarez signed through the 2024 season with a $15 million club option for 2025, so it will be interesting to see if he's still in Cincinnati five years from now. He slugged a career-high 49 home runs in a 3.9-WAR season in 2019, but he also led the majors in strikeouts (189), and then he hit just .202 with a .312 on-base percentage this year. His swing-and-miss-heavy approach won't age well, but his power and defense should.
22. Ryan Vilade, Colorado Rockies (2025 Age: 26)
Vilade filled up the stat sheet at High-A in 2019, hitting .303/.367/.466 with 27 doubles, 10 triples, 12 home runs, 71 RBI, 92 runs scored and 24 steals. He has the highest ceiling of any corner infield prospect in a Colorado system loaded with them, and after starting his pro career at shortstop, he now looks like the heir apparent to Nolan Arenado at the hot corner.
21. Isaac Paredes, Detroit Tigers (2025 Age: 26)
Paredes has outgrown the shortstop position, but he has the bat to fit at third base. He hit .282/.368/.416 with 23 doubles, 13 home runs and 66 RBI in 127 games as a 20-year-old at Double-A in 2019. He's also been raking in the Mexican Winter League, hitting .375/.461/.602 with 21 extra-base hits in 36 games, and he is the leading candidate to be Detroit's starting third baseman in 2021.
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Nos. 20-16
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20. Mark Vientos, New York Mets (2025 Age: 25)
Vientos held his own as a 19-year-old in full-season ball in 2019, hitting .255/.300/.411 with 27 doubles, 12 home runs and 62 RBI in 111 games. His 60-grade power and strong throwing arm fit well at third base, and he should have a chance to establish himself in the big leagues before Brett Baty pushes his way into the MLB picture.
19. Austin Riley, Atlanta Braves (2025 Age: 28)
Riley has slugged 26 home runs in 131 games in the majors, but there are a lot of holes in his game. He's hit just .232 with a .288 on-base percentage and 31.2 percent strikeout rate in 503 plate appearances, and he also posted ugly defensive metrics (-8 DRS, -12.4 UZR/150) at third base in 2020. His youth and power potential give him a high enough ceiling to crack these rankings, but there's a lot of work to do.
18. Carter Kieboom, Washington Nationals (2025 Age: 27)
Kieboom has looked overmatched at the MLB level the past two seasons, hitting .181/.309/.232 with 49 strikeouts in 165 plate appearances. However, his minor league numbers are tough to ignore. In 2019, he hit .303/.409/.493 with 24 doubles, 16 home runs and 79 RBI in 109 games at Triple-A, and he has the athleticism to be a standout defender at the hot corner with more reps.
17. Brian Anderson, Miami Marlins (2025 Age: 32)
Since the start of the 2018 season, Anderson has quietly racked up 8.9 WAR, good for 40th among all position players during that stretch. He had a career-high 119 OPS+ with 11 home runs and 38 RBI in 2020, and he also provides positive value defensively with the versatility to play right field. He may never be a star, but he's a rock-solid MLB player.
16. Nolan Gorman, St. Louis Cardinals (2025 Age: 25)
Thanks to what MLB.com called "massive raw power" and a good enough feel for hitting to be more than just an all-or-nothing slugger, Gorman has one of the brightest offensive ceilings in the St. Louis farm system. He struck out 152 times in 125 games between Single-A and High-A, so he still needs to further refine his approach, but the tools are there for him to be a middle-of-the-order force.
Nos. 15-11
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15. Kody Hoese, Los Angeles Dodgers (2025 Age: 27)
The No. 25 overall pick in the 2019 draft, Hoese demolished lesser competition during his junior season at Tulane, hitting .391/.486/.779 with 20 doubles, 23 home runs and 61 RBI in 58 games. An imposing 6'4", 200-pound slugger, his mix of polished hit tool and impressive raw power makes him the perfect replacement for Justin Turner at third base and in the middle of the Dodgers lineup.
14. Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs (2025 Age: 33)
How big of a factor will injuries be for Bryant over the next few seasons? He's just a year removed from posting a 132 OPS+ with 31 home runs in a 3.7-WAR season, but the nagging injuries he has dealt with the past few seasons are a good indication he won't age as gracefully as some others on this list. There is also the question of where he will be playing when 2025 rolls around.
13. Nolan Jones, Cleveland (2025 Age: 27)
Arguably the most disciplined hitter in the minor leagues, Jones has a .409 on-base percentage and 17.3 percent walk rate in four minor league seasons. It remains to be seen how much of his raw power will translate to in-game production, but he has a chance to be a 30-homer guy if everything clicks. His long-term ceiling remains a bit of a mystery, but he's the best prospect in the Cleveland farm system.
12. Josh Jung, Texas Rangers (2025 Age: 27)
A three-year starter at Texas Tech who hit .348/.455/.577 with 33 home runs and 181 RBI in 191 games during his time on campus, Jung is expected to rocket through the Texas farm system. He's more hitter than slugger at this point, but his floor might be a .275 average and 20 home runs, and there's plenty of room for more power if he gets better at pulling the ball.
11. Anthony Rendon, Los Angeles Angels (2025 Age: 35)
Rendon will still have two years and $77.1 million left on his contract at the start of the 2025 season, and he'll turn 35 years old a couple of months after Opening Day. One of the best pure hitters in baseball, he should age better than most, even if he loses a step defensively. After dealing with some injury issues early in his career, he has played in 90 percent of his team's games since the start of 2016.
10. Jordan Groshans, Toronto Blue Jays
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2025 Age: 25
With a 6'3", 205-pound frame that still has plenty of room to fill out, Jordan Groshans has always appeared destined to outgrow the shortstop position. The presence of Bo Bichette in Toronto makes a future move to third base even more likely.
The No. 12 overall pick in the 2018 draft has played just 71 games since beginning his pro career, with a foot injury cutting short what was shaping up to be a breakout 2019 season.
He hit .337/.427/.482 with eight extra-base hits in 23 games at Single-A before he was sidelined, and with average-or-better tools across the board, it's easy to project him as a future star.
There's still a lot to prove before he arrives in the majors, but he checks all the boxes to be a two-way standout at the hot corner and a core piece in Toronto.
9. Yoan Moncada, Chicago White Sox
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2025 Age: 30
Yoan Moncada looked like a budding superstar in 2019, hitting .315/.367/.548 with 34 doubles, 25 home runs and 79 RBI in a 4.8-WAR season.
However, his .406 BABIP led all qualified hitters, and that led to some questions about the sustainability of his breakout performance. A .225/.320/.385 line and 31.2 percent strikeout rate in 2020 seemed to support those concerns.
If he's going to take the next step and consistently put up the elite numbers he did in 2019, he will have to improve his approach at the plate.
I'm a believer in his tools and long-term upside, but he's a bit more of a wild card than some of the players listed ahead of him in these rankings.
8. Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies
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2025 Age: 34
In the five seasons prior to the shortened 2020 campaign, Nolan Arenado hit .300/.362/.575 for a 129 OPS+ while averaging 38 doubles, 40 home runs, 124 RBI and 6.3 WAR.
He has won a Gold Glove Award in each of his eight MLB seasons, he is a five-time All-Star, and he has finished in the top 10 in NL MVP voting five times.
However, he will turn 34 years old shortly after Opening Day in 2025, and it remains to be seen how leaving Coors Field would impact his offensive production.
Technically, he is signed through the 2026 season with his current eight-year, $260 million contract, but between trade rumors and his opt-out following the upcoming season, there is a good chance he'll find his way to another team at some point in the next few years.
7. Alec Bohm, Philadelphia Phillies
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2025 Age: 28
Alec Bohm went No. 3 overall in the 2018 draft after a stellar junior season at Wichita State, and he needed just 165 games in the minors before he reached the majors.
He hit .305/.378/.518 with 30 doubles, 21 home runs and 80 RBI in 125 games in his only full minor league season, climbing two levels to close out the year at Double-A.
Promoted in early August for his MLB debut, he hit .338/.400/.481 with 11 doubles, four home runs and 23 RBI in 44 games to finish runner-up to Devin Williams in NL Rookie of the Year voting.
He has just scratched the surface of his elite raw power, and while he may never be a standout defender at third base, he's been better than expected defensively after many assumed he'd move across the diamond to first base immediately after he was drafted.
6. Matt Chapman, Oakland Athletics
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2025 Age: 32
Matt Chapman is arguably the best defensive player in all of baseball, regardless of position, and he figures to add plenty more Gold Glove Awards in the years to come.
He's also an accomplished slugger just a year removed from a 36-homer, 91-RBI season in which he earned his first All-Star selection and finished sixth in AL MVP voting.
However, there are some holes in his offensive game.
He's a .255 career hitter and struck out a staggering 54 times in 152 plate appearances last season before undergoing season-ending hip surgery in September. The 27-year-old is a really good player, and his mix of defense and power is enough to snag a spot in the top 10, but he has likely already reached his peak and the strikeout numbers in 2020 are alarming.
5. Manny Machado, San Diego Padres
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2025 Age: 32
After a lackluster first season of a massive 10-year, $300 million contract, Manny Machado bounced back in a big way to finish third in NL MVP voting for a contending San Diego Padres team.
He hit .304/.370/.580 with 12 doubles, 16 home runs and 47 RBI, picking up the slack down the stretch when fellow MVP candidate Fernando Tatis Jr. went cold at the plate.
Along the way, he posted a higher WAR total (3.1 to 2.6) in 60 games of action than he did in 156 games the previous year. A strong season defensively at third base (7 DRS, 5.4 UZR/150) contributed to his value beyond his offensive production.
Machado has already played nine MLB seasons, but he's just now entering prime age. There's no reason to believe he'll suffer any sharp decline in production between now and the 2025 season.
4. Jose Ramirez, Cleveland
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2025 Age: 32
Jose Ramirez was the runner-up to Chicago White Sox slugger Jose Abreu in AL MVP voting this past season, posting a career-high 163 OPS+ while tallying a ridiculous 34 extra-base hits in 254 plate appearances.
That marked his third top-three finish in the balloting in the last four seasons, and during the "down" year in between he hit .255/.327.479 with an .806 OPS. He recorded 16 home runs and 48 RBI in 44 games after the All-Star break.
Francisco Lindor may be the face of the franchise in Cleveland, and losing him is going to be a major blow when the time comes. But Ramirez is the team's best offensive player.
He turned 28 years old in September, so he should still be in the prime of his career in 2025. It remains to be seen where he'll be playing, though, as his contract only runs through 2023 if Cleveland exercises both of its options.
3. Rafael Devers, Boston Red Sox
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2025 Age: 28
It's fair to wonder if Rafael Devers will still be playing third base when the 2025 season rolls around, but for the sake of these rankings, we're assuming he stays put.
The former top prospect arrived as a bona fide star in 2019, hitting .311/.361/.555 with 54 doubles (tops in the AL), 32 home runs, 115 RBI and 129 runs in his age-22 season.
Given his raw power potential and minor league track record, it's not out of the question to think a few more of those doubles could turn into home runs in the years to come.
He struggled badly out of the gates in 2020 but rebounded to hit .298/.341/.556 with nine doubles, seven home runs and 31 RBI over his final 30 games.
We still haven't seen the best he has to offer offensively, but his defensive game (-6 DRS, -10.6 UZR/150 last season) remains a question mark.
2. Ke'Bryan Hayes, Pittsburgh Pirates
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2025 Age: 28
Ke'Bryan Hayes led all rookies with 1.9 WAR last season, narrowly edging out Luis Robert (1.8), Kyle Lewis (1.7) and Jake Cronenworth (1.6)
He only played 24 games.
It's unlikely he would have maintained that pace over a full season, but that extrapolates to a 12.8 WAR season over a full 162-game schedule.
Long viewed as a future Gold Glove winner, Hayes showcased his elite glovework while hitting .376/.442/.682 with 14 extra-base hits in 95 plate appearances.
There's not much to be excited about in Pittsburgh these days, but Hayes looks like the type of player who could develop into the next face of the franchise.
1. Alex Bregman, Houston Astros
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2025 Age: 31
Detractors will be quick to point to his role in the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal, but there's no ignoring how good Alex Bregman is and will be for years to come.
In 2019, a year after the initial sign-stealing allegations, he hit .296/.423/.592 with 37 doubles, 41 home runs, 112 RBI and 122 runs while tallying more walks (119) than strikeouts (83) in a 9.1 WAR season.
Even in a down year by his standards in 2020, he had a 116 OPS+ in 42 games.
A shortstop at LSU and early in his pro career, he has also steadily developed into a quality defender at third base. With incumbent shortstop Carlos Correa's long-term future with the team up in the air, there's a chance Bregman could ultimately move back to shortstop down the line, but for now he earns the top spot on our third basemen list.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.
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