99: 2. Man United's FA Cup win proves Garnacho is a key player and Maguire must leave, NBA Power Rankings: Kevin Durant's return could rock the West. The versatile Varsho is a good enough all-around player to play both catcher and center field. +9 Jake Marisnick, Astros. 26. In Steven Kwan put together a 5.5-WAR debut season with an old school game built on contact ability, speed and defense. Kiermaier missed most of the 2022 season with a hip injury but has long been one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball. In early March, Statcast introduced Catch Probability, which allows us to evaluate outfield defense in an entirely new way. The defensive stats will reflect their time solely at shortstop. So basically, in this short sample, hes proven he has 40+ HR power, hes one of the fastest players in the game, hes one of if not the best defender, and hes hit .289 in that span. 1. A quick thought about Gallo, who struggled in his first months in New York: The Yankees should consider putting him in the leadoff spot and encourage him to just do what he does best, which is to get on base. So McNeil gets the Statcast defensive award at second base in the NL for his career-best +8 OAA there this season. That, plus his reputation as a playoff performer, should put him on plenty of teams' radars this offseason. He hit 11 home runs and stole nine bases in just 56 games, but he only had a .738 OPS. If that isn't enough, he's also been one of the most consistent batters in the Marlins' lineup this season. The 30-year-old posted a 136 OPS+ with 40 doubles, 35 home runs, 82 RBI and an NL-leading 117 runs scored in 142 games. We suggest quickly reading about those stats at the links attached. While offensive stat lines have been highlighted more often and offensive players are given more plaudits, you cannot underestimate the value of defense. His plus-plus speed gives him more range than most at the keystone, and his solid arm strength stands out as well. We don't have arm value rolled into this just yet, though that's on the road map.While the still-unsigned former Giant, however, tracked down a slightly lower percentage of balls than Marte, he did make more outstanding plays, like this: Center field Jackie Bradley Jr. is so smooth. He dealt with a series of nagging injuries last season that limited him to 122 games, and his OPS+ -- which was a staggering 186 in 2018, when he was the AL MVP -- fell to 128 last season. How high/low, in degrees, a ball was hit by a batter. The only issue with Betts is he did drop a bit last year offensively due to a hip injury, and he doesnt look all the way healthy yet. The latter stat measures the number of runs an outfielder prevents and keeps the baserunners from advancing extra bases. window") of the runner is at least 30 ft/sec. The barrel stays through the zone so long that he can pepper any type of pitch in any direction. He once again tallied more walks (135) than strikeouts (96) while hitting .242/.401/.452 with 25 doubles, 27 home runs, 62 RBI and 93 runs scored. Edman was in a similar situation to Lopez, playing both second base and shortstop for the Cardinals (and a little third base and a little outfield). On the per-game DRS leaderboard, Gallo ranks No. It's time to put a bow on the 2022 MLB season with Bleacher Report's final positional rankings. These are some of the biggest names in the sport, and it's going to be tempting to grab one or more of them in the early stages of your drafts. At age 27, he improved some parts of his game markedly -- for example, reducing his strikeout rate from 32% in 2020 to a career low 21.2% last season. When Mike Trout is healthy, no one is better at baseball. We'll be doing a lot with this in the season to come.So far, so good. 0.67 Gm and Chances/Team Game (fielding), Catch up on the Top 25 in 2022 series: Catchers, First Basemen, Second Basemen, Shortstops, Third Basemen. Signed for a mere $15,000 out of the Dominican Republic in 2014, he's best suited for second base and has seen most of his professional action there. Pitchers. Since there are three times as many outfielders as there are other positions on the diamond, it made sense to add an honorable mention list of 25 guys onto our top 25 list. A .230/.305/.388 career hitter in 534 plate appearances entering the 2022 season, Ward was one of the year's biggest surprises. The funny part is that might not even be his best season. He is one of the best pure hitters in the game today, and the six-year, $115 million extension he signed in June already looks like an absolute steal for the Astros. He hit over .300 with a 130 wRC+ in his first year in 2019, had a bad 2020, but was incredible in 2021 with a 142 wRC+. In Manchester United's Premier League games in 2022/2023, he has made ten appearances and scored one goal. The No. Hes a five-tool player thats one of if not the most fun to watch. Per Langs, in a note last summer: "From 2019 to 2020, he had a huge drop-off in swing rate (45.2% to 34.6%), which was the largest in MLB. Since 2017, Springer ranks in the top 20% in baseball for max exit velocity, chase rate, barrel rate, sprint speed and expected slugging. Since 2020, including 2022, he has 35 HR, a 5.9 fWAR, a 158 wRC+, and 22 DRS. (Remember that these numbers are specifically relative to each position, so while Betts' +22 is the highest number you see here, the bar is lower in right than it is in center, so when compared to all outfielders, Inciarte (+25) and Hamilton (+24) just barely edge him out.) 25. Williams and DiMaggio were sons of California, southern and northern, respectively. Masataka Yoshida, LF. Kevin Kiermaier, Tampa Bay Rays. Lopez's +14 OAA made him a top-10 fielder overall in MLB. His 149 OPS+ ranked eighth among all qualified hitters and trailed only Aaron Judge (211) and Yordan lvarez (187) among outfielders. They use their tactical skills to link the defence and midfield to get wins. The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Just as Cleveland faced a seemingly perpetual quandary about when to trade Francisco Lindor, the Pirates will have to decide if and when the time is right to flip Reynolds for younger trade assets. So given the fact that this ball drops 93 percent of the time, and he made the play, he receives a +0.93 for it. The Nationals superstar is on a Hall of Fame trajectory -- his career 160 OPS+ is the fourth highest any modern-era (since 1900) player has recorded through his age-22 season (min. With enhanced command of the strike zone, Trout generated a slash line of .333/.466/.624 in his first 36 games and then didn't play again. In the center of the defense is newly acquired outfielder Hunter Renfroe. The MLB awards Gold and Platinum Gloves for the year's best defensive players. The young third baseman, who was awarded the Fielding Bible Award in 2021 has been one of the biggest reasons for the Pirates' surprising start to the season. Runs saved by middle infielders based on their conversion rates as both the lead man and pivot man on double play opportunities. Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. Shortstop: Jorge Mateo, Orioles+11 Outs Above Average. He is sporting a UZR of 3.0 and an ARM of 2.8. Catcher: Jose Trevino, Yankees+17 framing runs. He finished fifth in fWAR among all American League players last season. time of a pitcher's first movement or pitch release. Do we really need to say much beyond the name? Acuna Jr. has hit since the day he stepped foot in the big leagues as a 20-year-old. We have accounted for defensive and offensive production since 2019, with an emphasis on 2021. 2 spot in the lineup between NL batting title winner Jeff McNeil and the one-two punch of Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso. Second teamOur second team includes two more Top 100 Prospects: Braves catcher Shea Langeliers and D-backs outfielder Corbin Carroll. Although Acua is not expected back until early May, his fantasy upside keeps him in the first-round conversation. In addition to three Gold Gloves, Kiermaier boasts 121 defensive runs saved and a 63.3 ultimate zone rating since the '15 . The best hitter on the Pittsburgh roster by a landslide in 2022, Reynolds led the team in OPS+ (126), hits (142), extra-base hits (50), home runs (27), RBI (62), runs scored (74) and total bases (250). Third base: Alex Bregman, Astros+8 Outs Above Average. If he stays healthy, he could do that and then some. Lets marvel at the all-around game that is Mookie Betts. No player in this tier hit more homers last season than Haniger, who returned from a lengthy absence to record 39 dingers, 100 RBIs and 110 runs scored. Despite a mere .268 career OBP, he's valuable to Houston because his glove is so elite. Though Tommy Edman would deserve a Statcast award here, he's going in as a utility player. The 33-year-old led MLB with 47 steals in 2021, reaching the 40-mark for the third time in his career. Then there are Yelich and Bellinger, the NL MVP Award winners in 2018 and 2019, respectively. One of the most well-rounded players in the sport, Kyle Tucker continued his rise as a bona fide superstar for the Houston Astros in 2022. Evaluates an outfielder's throwing arm based on how often runners advance on base hits and are thrown out trying to take an extra base. 98: 4. Brandon Nimmo was a 5-WAR player for the first time in his career in 2022, just in time to test the free agency waters. Now it's time to finalize those rankings while expanding the list to the 25 best at each position. For infielders and outfielders, that's Outs Above Average, which uses a plus/minus system for every fielder based on the out probability of all of his chances. 32 NFL players who could change teams this offseason, UFC 285's Shevchenko by the numbers: It all adds up to domination, 5 things to know as Antoine Davis is set to pass 'Pistol' Pete's scoring record, Sizing up the player of the year winners in all 32 Division I men's conferences. An All-Star and Gold Glove winner for the first time, Happ hit .271/.342/.440 for a 119 OPS+ with 42 doubles, 17 home runs, 72 RBI, 72 runs scored and 4.4 WAR in 158 games. order to rank the player, the necessary number of hitless at bats were Harrison Bader, St. Louis Cardinals. In our honorable mentions, we have guys who could win an MVP award. Throughout the year, we released monthly updates to our position-by-position power rankings, selecting the top 10 players at each spot. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. We give an extra bump to elite defense, and well dock a player if the defense is well-below average. d'Arnaud was the only NL catcher with double-digit runs saved from pitch framing, putting him ahead of Omar Narvez, Yadier Molina and Toms Nido. Kepler was just as good whether he was facing a lefty hook or a righty slice in right field, as he posted a +6 OAA vs. right-handed hitters and +5 OAA vs. left-handed hitters. Only seven other big leaguers had at least 30 homers, 100 RBIs and 100 runs scored in 2021. Scores from any date in Major League history, Minor, Foreign, College, & Black Baseball, Frequently Asked Questions about MLB and Baseball, Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE. 2023 Regular Season 2023 Spring Training 2022 Regular Season 2022 Postseason Important Dates Team by Team Schedule National Broadcasts. He not only makes spectacular plays thanks to his smooth actions, exceptional range, quick hands and strong arm, but he's also a reliable defender who rarely boots a routine grounder. Harper plays the position. He swung at 29.7% of first pitches in '19, 13.4% in '20 and 22.5% in '21, so not fully back there.". ". The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. C: Shea Langeliers, Braves (No. . With Acua recovering from a torn ACL and Trout coming off a season in which he played just 36 games, Soto leads our outfield rankings. Here are the top 10 outfielders at each of the three spots, based on feedback from evaluators, as well as Hembekides and Sarah Langs of MLB.com. DRS. Outfielders make up 11 of the first 29 players (including seven of the first 19) in MLB.com's Top 800 fantasy rankings for 2022. +12 Adam Duvall, Reds Kris Bryant - Already went over him in the top 20 1st basemen for 2022 fantasy baseball. He has a 140 career wRC+ and 105 home runs in 395 games. If we know the Catch Probability of a batted ball, then it's simple enough to add a value to it. Second base: Jonathan Schoop, Tigers+27 Outs Above Average. For catchers, we'll use pitch framing runs -- the amount of runs a catcher saves his team by getting extra called strikes on borderline pitches. actual value and not the value used to rank them, therefore some Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database. Let's look at the top Defensive midfielder of 2022. As Bellinger foundered last summer and some agents began to speculate whether the Dodgers might not tender him a contract, a highly ranked executive shot that idea down quickly. Statcast Leaders Baseball Savant Top Prospect Stats. 5. Kicking off the list is one of the record-breaking five Gold Glovers of the St. Louis Cardinals in 2021. The 24-year-old is followed by Harper, Betts and Trout, who have combined for six MVP Awards. Turning down a $230 million extension from the Yankees before Opening Day, Aaron Judge is betting on the league viewing him as a top-five outfielder in free agency and by every metric, he is. When we combine left field, right field, and center, we get an incredibly hard list to rank. Utility: Nicky Lopez, Royals+14 Outs Above Average. The Cardinals seem to regularly find an unheralded rookie who emerges as a key contributor, and in 2022 it was Donovan who started the year as the team's No. Webb, prospect . For LF, CF, RF fielding stats, we The last time Trout played more than 140 games was 2016, and hes no longer a base-stealing threat. Springer is two homers away from 200 in his career and has a career slash line of .270/.360/.499 with a 135 wRC+. Tier 1: Juan Soto, Ronald Acua Jr., Bryce Harper, Mookie Betts, Mike Trout, Kyle Tucker, Luis Robert. reported to spring camp saying the hip feels "great. With that, he became just the second player in Astros history with a 30-homer, 25-steal season, joining Hall of Famer first baseman Jeff Bagwell who did it twice. Peter is the Co-Founder and Director of Content Strategy of Justbaseball.com and the Co-Host of the Just Baseball Show. As such, this article will take a look at five of the best defensive midfielders currently in the Premier League as of November 2022. Mike Trout missed 30 games at midseason with a back issue and still finished eighth in AL MVP voting while taking home his eighth Silver Slugger Award. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. 3)Though Allen is just 5-foot-8 and 166 pounds, he's so dynamic at shortstop that he commanded an over-slot $2 million bonus as a third-round choice from a California high school in 2017. 4/MLB No. He is truly the one player in baseball with zero holes. Explanation of Andrew Benintendi, Kansas City Royals/New York Yankees. Despite his age and limited upper-minors experience, he didn't miss a beat in the majors, hitting .297/.339/.514 with 27 doubles, 19 home runs, 64 RBI, 75 runs scored and 20 steals in 22 attempts over 114 games. It was the best framing season of his career, as d'Arnaud improved from +1 to +11 framing runs from 2021 to '22. Juan Soto is the second-best player in baseball and checks in at number two on our outfield list because of some dude named after a fish. Underneath the deep disappointment that the 2021 Mets represented, Nimmo had an excellent season, posting a .401 on-base percentage. MLB The Show 22. In this series, youll find our rankings for the best players at each position in Major League Baseball. With the injury-prone label fading after back-to-back healthy seasons, teams can feel a bit more comfortable signing him to a long-term deal this winter, and he hits the open market for the first time as one of the highest profile players in the history of MLB free agency. A battle for No. For example, a fielder who catches a 25% Out Probability play gets +.75; one . Ramon Laureano, Oakland Athletics. How much time, in seconds, it takes a runner to get from In 2020 he shot up as one of the best players in the league. His wRC+: 2019: 161 (5th best) Many thanks to him. Hes locked in as an early-round pick. 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