Baseball’s best third baseman toils in relative obscurity in Cleveland.
Jose Ramirez has been a fixture at that position for the Indians/Guardians since 2016. Opponents know all about him, as indicated by the 20 intentional walks they gave him last season, the most for any batter in either league. Sportswriters are equally familiar, which is why they annually put him near the top of their Most Valuable Player lists.
But casual fans generally seem to be unaware. If Ramirez had produced two-year totals of 65 homers and 229 RBIs in a New York uniform, he might be heralded as a national star. But he achieved those statistics in 2021 and 2022 for Cleveland, which is definitely not a major media market.
Yet there is no doubt of Ramirez’s supremacy, according to my ratings of current third basemen.
The rankings are confined to the 28 players who made at least 750 plate appearances from 2020 through 2022 and spent more than half of their time as third basemen. (All of each player’s statistics were taken into account, even those accumulated at other positions.)
My formula lines up the players at each position from top to bottom, then assigns scores of 1,000 points to the leader and 0 points to the tailender. The scores for everybody else are determined by their relative placements between top and bottom.
Ramirez heads the standings of third basemen with the requisite 1,000 points, followed by Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres at 978.
There’s a considerable gulf between the two leaders and the rest of the top five. Nolan Arenado of the St. Louis Cardinals and Austin Riley of the Atlanta Braves are tied for third place with 819 points apiece, and Rafael Devers of the Boston Red Sox is fifth at 761.
I’m devoting successive Thursdays to a position-by-position review of the top players in the majors. Previous installments focused on catchers, first basemen, second basemen, and shortstops. We move to the outfield next week.
Baseball’s top 15 third basemen are listed below, with statistical breakdowns for the five leaders.
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1. Jose Ramirez (2020-2022)
Score: 1,000 points
WAR: 15.2 total, 4.8 per 500 PA, 1.0 defensive
Averages: .276 BA, .539 SLG, .959 BPO
Scoring: 439 R generated, 139 per 500 PA
Totals: 367 G, 379 H
Notes: Ramirez isn’t merely the best third baseman in baseball; he’s one of the best at any position. He finished second, sixth, and fourth in the balloting for the American League’s Most Valuable Player the past three seasons. He has led the AL in doubles two times and in runs scored once.
2. Manny Machado (2020-2022)
Score: 978 points
WAR: 15.0 total, 4.9 per 500 PA, 1.7 defensive
Averages: .291 BA, .522 SLG, .891 BPO
Scoring: 415 R generated, 135 per 500 PA
Totals: 363 G, 397 H
Notes: Machado has never won an MVP trophy, though he has finished among the top five vote-getters on four occasions. The most recent was last year, when he placed second in the National League race. If he hits 17 homers this year, he’ll reach 300 for his 12-season career.
3. (tie) Nolan Arenado (2020-2022)
Score: 819 points
WAR: 13.5 total, 4.6 per 500 PA, 4.6 defensive
Averages: .270 BA, .502 SLG, .793 BPO
Scoring: 339 R generated, 115 per 500 PA
Totals: 353 G, 360 H
Notes: Arenado swings a powerful bat — he led the NL in home runs in 2015, 2016, and 2018 — but he is best known for his skills in the field. He has won the league’s Gold Glove at third base continuously since his rookie season of 2013. That’s 10 trophies and counting.
3. (tie) Austin Riley (2020-2022)
Score: 819 points
WAR: 11.9 total, 3.8 per 500 PA, 1.8 defensive
Averages: .281 BA, .514 SLG, .849 BPO
Scoring: 353 R generated, 113 per 500 PA
Totals: 370 G, 392 H
Notes: Riley, who just turned 26, didn’t settle in as Atlanta’s third baseman until the Covid-shortened season of 2020. His breakout came a year later with 33 homers and 107 runs batted in. He finished seventh and sixth in the past two years’ elections for the NL’s MVP.
5. Rafael Devers (2020-2022)
Score: 761 points
WAR: 8.7 total, 2.9 per 500 PA, -1.5 defensive
Averages: .283 BA, .522 SLG, .845 BPO
Scoring: 385 R generated, 126 per 500 PA
Totals: 354 G, 390 H
Notes: Devers has been Boston’s third baseman since 2018, and he isn’t going anywhere. The Red Sox have locked him up with a contract that runs through 2033. His combined totals for 2021 and 2022 were 65 homers and 201 RBIs.
Next 10
7. Ryan McMahon
8. Alex Bregman
9. Matt Chapman
10. Gio Urshela
11. Joey Wendle
13. Yandy Diaz
14. Ke'Bryan Hayes
15. Luis Urias