TOP 100
A NEW SEASON, A NEW PECKING ORDER: THE BEST BALLPLAYER ON THE PLANET IS ... YOU GUESSED IT. BEYOND THAT THERE WERE PLENTY OF SURPRISES (NO BRYCE IN THE TOP 10?!)AND FRESH FACES (HELLO, TOMMY PHAM) WHEN SI'S BASEBALL EXPERTS GOT TOGETHER TO RANK THE BEST PLAYERS IN THE GAME RIGHT NOW
1. MIKE TROUT, OF, ANGELS
Trout's combination of power, speed and defense make him the game's best player by a wide margin; his 26.7 WAR over the past three years is about five wins ahead of second-ranked José Altuve. The gap would be even wider had the Millville Meteor not missed six weeks in 2017 due to a torn ligament in his left thumb, interrupting what was shaping up as his best offensive season. He still set career highs in on-base percentage (.442), slugging percentage (.629) and OPS+ (187). Remarkably, it's very possible that the best player in baseball is still getting better.
2. JOSÉ ALTUVE, 2B, ASTROS
3. KRIS BRYANT, 3B, CUBS
4. MAX SCHERZER, SP, NATIONALS
5. JOEY VOTTO, 1B, REDS
6. MOOKIE BETTS, OF, RED SOX
7. CLAYTON KERSHAW, SP, DODGERS
8. NOLAN ARENADO, 3B, ROCKIES
Doubt hovers over Arenado because he plays in Coors Field. Sure, he has a huge split in batting average, but his power numbers (19 homers at home, 18 on the road) are close, and his OBP has improved. At any altitude, he's the best defensive third baseman in the game. Arenado, just 26, has won five Gold Gloves. Third base is baseball's deepest position, but no one else can match his skill—in fact he may be the best defender at any infield position.
9. CARLOS CORREA, SS, ASTROS
10. PAUL GOLDSCHMIDT, 1B, DIAMONDBACKS
11. COREY KLUBER, SP, INDIANS
12. BRYCE HARPER, OF, NATIONALS
Strictly by the numbers, Harper isn't a top 20 player: He had an incredible MVP performance in 2015, but his weighted career stats were brought down by injury-filled '16 and '17 seasons. Still, Harper's ceiling is so high that, by pedigree and promise, he belongs near the game's truly elite players. And as limited as he was last year, playing only 111 games, he still hit .319/.413/.595 as a 24-year-old. With Harper, it's not what he's done but what he can do that makes him a top 20 player.
13. GIANCARLO STANTON, OF, YANKEES
14. AARON JUDGE, OF, YANKEES
He's played one full season. He may not hit 52 home runs again. But his plate discipline, raw power and hitting maturity make Judge one of the game's elites. Last year he took 127 walks to build a .422 on-base percentage, which trailed only Joey Votto and Mike Trout. He scored an AL-high 128 runs. He finished with a higher OPS+ (171) than Giancarlo Stanton (165), who hit 59 home runs. Now, he'll alternate between DH and rightfield with Stanton, which will allow him even more focus on his hitting.
15. FRANCISCO LINDOR, SS, INDIANS
16. JOSH DONALDSON, 3B, BLUE JAYS
17. COREY SEAGER, SS, DODGERS
18. MANNY MACHADO, ORIOLES
Machado's move from third base to shortstop is one of the most fascinating story lines of the season; with his elite range he should remain one of the game's top defenders. He did struggle offensively in 2017—he finished with career lows in batting average (.259) and OBP (.310)—but he's still an extra-base hitting machine who has three consecutive seasons of 30-plus homers. And he's only 25, still capable of becoming a top 5 player..
19. JUSTIN VERLANDER, SP, ASTROS
20. CHRIS SALE, SP, RED SOX
21. JUSTIN TURNER, 3B, DODGERS
22. FREDDIE FREEMAN, 1B, BRAVES
23. ANTHONY RIZZO, 1B, CUBS
24. ZACK GREINKE, SP, DIAMONDBACKS
25. STEPHEN STRASBURG, SP, NATIONALS
His stuff might be the best of any pitcher alive: a 97-mph fastball, a vanishing changeup, a curveball that loops like an out-of-control roller coaster. But when you have that arsenal, nothing ever feels good enough. Forget the hype, and forget the haters: When Strasburg is on, there's almost no pitcher on earth you'd rather have, and even when he isn't, he's still one of the best starters in the league.
26. JOSÉ RAMÍREZ, 2B, INDIANS
27. GEORGE SPRINGER, OF, ASTROS
28. CHARLIE BLACKMON, OF, ROCKIES
29. BUSTER POSEY, C, GIANTS
30. ADRIÁN BELTRÉ, 3B, RANGERS
31. CARLOS CARRASCO, SP, INDIANS
Are you ready to accept that Carrasco is one of the best pitchers in the game? The righty was dazzling in 2017, with career bests as a starter in innings (200), strikeouts (226), ERA (3.29) and WAR (5.4). Then again, none of those were terribly far off from what he did the previous year. Were it not for the presence of Corey Kluber, Carrasco would be the Indians' ace. As is, he's arguably the game's best No. 2 starter.
32. ANDRELTON SIMMONS, SS, ANGELS
33. ANTHONY RENDON, 3B, NATIONALS
34. ROBINSON CANÓ, 2B, MARINERS
35. NOAH SYNDERGAARD, SP, METS
36. MADISON BUMGARNER, SP, GIANTS
37. LORENZO CAIN, OF, BREWERS
38. TREA TURNER, SS, NATIONALS
39. CHRISTIAN YELICH, OF, BREWERS
The former Marlin sneaks up on you. He has never appeared in the postseason or the All-Star Game. He has spent much of his career as the third-best outfielder on his own team. But he does everything well. He hits for average and moderate power; he hits to all fields; he walks; he steals bases; he plays a credible centerfield. He's done all this for four straight years—and he's only 26. The major question facing Yelich and his new employers in Milwaukee is whether he can become more than someone with a slugger's frame but the swing of a slap hitter. The Brewers will need him to.
40. CODY BELLINGER, 1B, DODGERS
41. BRIAN DOZIER, 2B, TWINS
42. KYLE SEAGER, 3B, MARINERS
43. KEVIN KIERMAIER, OF, RAYS
44. JACOB DEGROM, SP, METS
45. MARCELL OZUNA, OF, CARDINALS
46. NELSON CRUZ, OF, MARINERS
47. JUSTIN UPTON, OF, ANGELS
48. GARY SANCHEZ, C, YANKEES
49. CARLOS MARTÍNEZ, SP, CARDINALS
50. MICHAEL FULMER, SP, TIGERS
51. TOMMY PHAM, OF, CARDINALS
One of the breakout stars of 2017, the 29-year-old outfielder was an astonishing 6.4-WAR player in his first full season. With third baseman Matt Carpenter and catcher Yadier Molina aging into their mid-30s, Pham is now the centerpiece of the Cardinals' lineup.
52. JAKE ARRIETA, SP, FREE AGENT
53. YU DARVISH, SP, CUBS
54. JOSÉ ABREU, 1B, WHITE SOX
55. A.J. POLLOCK, OF, DIAMONDBACKS
56. BRETT GARDNER, OF, YANKEES
57. YOENIS CÉSPEDES, OF, METS
58. ENDER INCIARTE, OF, BRAVES
59. LUIS SEVERINO, SP, YANKEES
60. ELVIS ANDRUS, SS, RANGERS
After seven years of being a mediocre hitter who offered speed and little else, the 29-year-old reinvented himself over the last two seasons. The former slap hitter bought into the fly ball revolution and hit 20 home runs in 2017 after just 35 the previous eight years combined, and also had a career-best .471 slugging percentage. He's something entirely new—and entirely more valuable.
61. J.D. MARTINEZ, OF, FREE AGENT
62. KENLEY JANSEN, RP, DODGERS
63. CRAIG KIMBREL, RP, RED SOX
64. CHRIS TAYLOR, OF, DODGERS
65. IAN KINSLER, 2B, ANGELS
66. JOSH REDDICK, OF, ASTROS
67. EVAN LONGORIA, 3B, GIANTS
68. BYRON BUXTON, OF, TWINS
We've all dreamed of what the No. 2 pick in the 2012 draft, one of the game's most tantalizing talents, could do. He can look lost at the plate, but Buxton's time may finally have arrived: After another slow start in 2017, he made mechanical adjustments and laid waste to the AL in the second half, hitting .309/.358/.538 from July 1 through the end of the season.
69. ALEX BREGMAN, 3B, ASTROS
70. JON LESTER, SP, CUBS
71. DALLAS KEUCHEL, SP, ASTROS
72. KYLE HENDRICKS, SP, CUBS
73. MARCUS STROMAN, SP, BLUE JAYS
74. JACKIE BRADLEY JR., OF, RED SOX
75. JONATHAN SCHOOP, 2B, ORIOLES
Find another second baseman in his mid-20s with a plus glove and 30-homer power. Sure, Schoop hasn't learned how to take a pitch (he finished 2017 with 35 walks and 142 strikeouts), but he is establishing himself as one of the most powerful infielders in the big leagues.
76. EDWIN ENCARNACIÓN, 1B, INDIANS
77. DANIEL MURPHY, 2B, NATIONALS
78. ERVIN SANTANA, SP, TWINS
79. BRANDON CRAWFORD, SS, GIANTS
80. JOSÉ QUINTANA, SP, CUBS
81. ANDREW MILLER, RP, INDIANS
82. BRANDON BELT, 1B, GIANTS
83. DIDI GREGORIUS, SS, YANKEES
84. GIO GONZALEZ, SP, NATIONALS
85. DJ LEMAHIEU, 2B, ROCKIES
86. COLE HAMELS, SP, RANGERS
87. ZACK COZART, SS, ANGELS
88. JEAN SEGURA, SS, MARINERS
89. JOHNNY CUETO, SP, GIANTS
90. KEVIN PILLAR, OF, BLUE JAYS
91. WILLSON CONTRERAS, C, CUBS
92. MATT CARPENTER, 3B, CARDINALS
93. LANCE LYNN, SP, FREE AGENT
94. DAVID PRICE, SP, RED SOX
95. J.T. REALMUTO, C, MARLINS
96. J.A. HAPP, SP, BLUE JAYS
97. ERIC HOSMER, 1B, PADRES
98. ROBBIE RAY, SP, DIAMONDBACKS
The best way to counteract the effect of juiced balls is to keep hitters from hitting them, and Ray is among the best in that department. In 2017, hitters made contact only 68% of the time when they swung at a Ray offering, lowest among pitchers with at least 120 innings. Ray's 15--5, 2.89 ERA season was made possible by both his development of a lethal curveball and some luck on balls in play; his numbers might take a half step back in '18. His left arm has become one of baseball's treasures.
99. ODÚBEL HERRERA, OF, PHILLIES
100. TODD FRAZIER, 3B, METS
His batting average has fallen in each of the past three years, and his on-base percentage was just above .300 in both 2015 and '16. Even so, Frazier's tremendous power (102 homers over three years), good plate discipline and above-average defense make him a reliable two-way contributor, just enough to beat out Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun—and the Angels' mystery man, Shohei Otani—for the last spot on this list.
SI.COM
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