The countdown rolls on.
It began on Tuesday, when I unveiled the first 10 names on my list of the 100 best players in Major League Baseball in 2023, running from 100th to 91st place. Today’s installment covers the next span from 90th to 81st:
90. Aaron Civale (Guardians-Rays)
89. Luke Raley (Rays)
88. Edouard Julien (Twins)
87. Jordan Montgomery (Cardinals-Rangers)
86. Bailey Ober (Twins)
85. Tanner Bibee (Guardians)
84. Michael King (Yankees)
83. Emilio Pagan (Twins)
82. Evan Phillips (Dodgers)
81. Marcus Stroman (Cubs)
The rankings, as I previously explained, are determined by each player’s overall base value (OBV), with ties broken according to respective ratios of bases per out (BPO). Click here to learn more about the process.
Below are brief profiles of today’s 10 players, eight of whom (coincidentally) are pitchers. I’ll be back next Tuesday to fill the slots between 80th and 71st place.
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90. Aaron Civale (Guardians-Rays)
OBV: 44
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .583
ERA: 3.46
Other pitching stats: IP 122.1, W-L 7-5, SO 116
Notes: Civale pitched very well for Cleveland — going 5-2 and 2.34 in 13 starts — but he faded after being traded to Tampa Bay at the end of July. He worked at least six innings in seven different starts for the Guardians, then reached the same threshold only once for the Rays.
89. Luke Raley (Rays)
OBV: 44
Primary position: RF
BPO (batting): .862
BA: .249
Other batting stats: PA 406, HR 19, RBI 49
Notes: Raley performed poorly in part-time duty for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2021 and Tampa Bay in 2022 — batting below .200 both seasons — but he blossomed in 2023. He swatted 19 homers in 118 games as a utility man, playing six different positions.
88. Edouard Julien (Twins)
OBV: 44
Primary position: 2B
BPO (batting): .874
BA: .263
Other batting stats: PA 408, HR 16, RBI 37
Notes: Julien played AA ball in the Twins’ minor-league system last year, batting precisely .300. Scouts assumed that he needed more seasoning before making the jump to the majors. But he silenced the doubters in 2023 by leading Minnesota in on-base percentage (.381).
87. Jordan Montgomery (Cardinals-Rangers)
OBV: 45
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .624
ERA: 3.20
Other pitching stats: IP 188.2, W-L 10-11, SO 166
Notes: Montgomery proved to be a lifesaver for Texas after being dealt away by St. Louis at the end of July. He went 4-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 11 regular-season starts for the Rangers, then notched three postseason victories as Texas rolled all the way to a world championship.
86. Bailey Ober (Twins)
OBV: 45
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .600
ERA: 3.43
Other pitching stats: IP 144.1, W-L 8-6, SO 146
Notes: Minnesota piled up more strikeouts (1,560) than any other pitching staff in the American League, and Ober made a key contribution. He notched 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings in 26 starts. He held opponents to two earned runs or fewer in 17 of his appearances.
85. Tanner Bibee (Guardians)
OBV: 45
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .596
ERA: 2.98
Other pitching stats: IP 142.0, W-L 10-4, SO 141
Notes: Bibee’s emergence may have given Cleveland the confidence to trade veteran Aaron Civale (see No. 90 above) to Tampa Bay. The Guardians won 14 of the 25 games that the rookie started, and he was personally credited with 10 of those victories.
84. Michael King (Yankees)
OBV: 45
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .563
ERA: 2.75
Other pitching stats: IP 104.2, W-L 4-8, SV 6, SO 127
Notes: King has slowly moved up the pecking order in the Yankees’ bullpen since his debut in 2019, while also seeing duty as a spot starter. He set personal records in 2023 for games (49) and innings pitched (104.2). Most of his starts — six among his total of nine — came in September.
83. Emilio Pagan (Twins)
OBV: 45
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .490
ERA: 2.99
Other pitching stats: IP 69.1, W-L 5-2, SV 1, SO 65
Notes: Pagan knocked around with four big-league clubs before landing in Minnesota in 2022. His 2023 stats suggest he has found a home. His relief appearances generally came in the sixth, seventh, or eighth inning, and he finished with an ERA a tick below 3.00.
82. Evan Phillips (Dodgers)
OBV: 45
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .465
ERA: 2.05
Other pitching stats: IP 61.1, W-L 2-4, SV 24, SO 66
Notes: Phillips wasn’t quite as sharp in 2023 as a year earlier, though nobody expected him to duplicate 2022’s stunning 1.14 ERA. But he remained extremely dependable for the Dodgers at 2.05, and he solidly filled the closer’s role after Craig Kimbrel left Los Angeles in free agency.
81. Marcus Stroman (Cubs)
OBV: 46
Primary position: P
BPO (pitching): .592
ERA: 3.95
Other pitching stats: IP 136.2, W-L 10-9, SO 119
Notes: Few pitchers began the 2023 season in better fashion than Stroman, who spun a 2.28 ERA in his first 16 starts for Chicago. The rest of the year didn’t play out as nicely. Injuries put Stroman on the shelf for a month and a half in midsummer, and he finished near 4.00 on the ERA scale.