This situation happens when an outfielder can make a great throw to try to nail the runner that is heading home. He has also done a solid job handling the staff with a 3.87 ERA behind the plate. Adj ER Saved - Our metric for catcher value in staff handling (similar to Catcher ERA but with important adjustments) Kelenic had a rough rookie year for. Mookie Betts, Dodgers. 8 prospect in the game. The identity of the No. MLB Tonight: Outfield Arm. The 27-year-old already has career-highs in OPS+ (109), hits (126), doubles (29), home runs (25) and RBI (75). Through all the excess options, it becomes even more important to find the top values and to not settle for "good enough" production. Edmonds had phenomenal range while he was younger, and there are many instances in which he scaled the outfield wall to retrieve would-be home runs. ESPN's Paul Hembekides sent this along: "I think his issues in 2020 stem from a lack of confidence -- he just stopped swinging. Honorable Mention: Arizona Diamondbacks, Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants. Wil Myers, San Diego Padres; Kyle Tucker, Houston Astros; Charlie Blackmon, Colorado Rockies; Nicholas Castellanos, Cincinnati Reds, Buster Olney's top 10s for 2021: Ranking MLB's best outfielders, NBA investigating after Morant shows gun in video, QB Young 5-10 1/8, 204 pounds at NFL combine, Horns' Robinson: Versatility worthy of early pick, Edey leads Wooden finalists; Bama's Miller off list, Chase Elliott out indefinitely after tibia surgery, Jays' Guerrero to miss WBC with inflamed knee, Sources: Patriots tell QB Hoyer he's being cut, Ledecky sees 9-year win streak in U.S. snapped, Inside the long-awaited return of Jon Jones and his quest for heavyweight glory, The future of the NFL combine: Is there really a chance it could end forever? In an empty Fenway Park on Aug. 7, Verdugo had a big day -- two home runs, both over the Green Monster, for the left-handed-hitting Verdugo, and then he took a home run away from Travis Shaw in the ninth inning. He even threw a ball 100.8 mph on April 21, though it didnt result in an assist. Clemente's arm was not only powerful but it also featured laser-like precision. He was ranked the 40th-best free agent this offseason, per Giants Baseball Insider's rankings. Through Williams's age 21 year -- two seasons -- he had 203 walks, 54 homers and an OPS of 1.041 in 293 games. But that seemed to be more about a rookie being overly aggressive than anything else. 7. The MLB Tonight panel breaks . Cobb's 392 outfield assists are second all-time. Despite his defensive limitations, he should be able to find a more lucrative deal this winter. It has been suggested that the Indians have been cursed after trading Colavito, a fan favorite, to the Detroit Tigers in 1960. Similarly, Grisham has played fewer than 120 games in the Majors. Sometimes he looked like he was guessing wrong over and over and over, with the befuddlement covering his face as he walked away from the plate. Despite playing only eight seasons, Jackson managed to rack up 49 assists. One of the tougher players to slot on this list, Buxton played in only 61 games while missing time with a hip strain and fractured hand. If you don't have coaching that can support that, then the player needs to be very stubborn with his thinking, which, in my opinion, requires a strong independence. For a boost in the batting-average category, target McNeil, Verdugo or Brantley. Sign up to receive our daily Morning Lineup to stay in the know about the latest trending topics around Major League Baseball. That success has come despite myriad injuries and significant roster turnover. The goal is to decide which team has the best catchers, infielders, outfielders, bench, starting pitchers and relief pitchers. Hard-throwing top prospect Aaron Ashby has also made three spot starts, and he could make a major impact as a multi-inning weapon out of the bullpen down the stretch. He has 19 homers in 63 postseason games, and only three players have more: Manny Ramirez (29), Bernie Williams (22) and Derek Jeter (20). In addition to the fact that he ran the fastest ever-recorded 40-meter time at the NFL combine (4.08 seconds), the two-sport star had one of the best arms in baseball history. 6. This tier includes a number of power-speed options, led by Tucker and Robert, who both went 30/30 in the Minors in 2019 and continued to contribute on multiple fronts in '20. So how do you rank a player who didn't have his first 2020 plate appearance until Aug. 30, but may have been the first- or second-best player in October, depending where you want to stack Corey Seager? Cedric Mullins hit .225/.290/.342 with seven home runs and 10 steals in 115 games scattered across his first three big league seasons. Ozzie Albies, Dansby Swanson and Freddie Freeman, 505 PA, .235/.309/.504, 56 XBH (31 HR), 76 RBI, 75 R, 4.3 WAR. Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs/San Francisco Giants. With the unique 2020 season behind us, it's time to turn our attention to the hot stove season. As the anchor of the Dodgers' package for Betts, Verdugo was the centerpiece in perhaps the most unpopular Boston baseball deal since Babe Ruth was shipped off to the Yankees, and he joined the Red Sox with a well-publicized reputation as a less-than-ideal teammate. Some of Mookie Betts' former teammates watched him go through the postseason last year and believed he really was out of sorts at the plate. Like with many of the other top outfielders on this list, runners knew not to try for extra bases when the ball was anywhere near Barfield's hands. Let's get right into it. After back-to-back 20-plus-homer seasons in 2018 and 2019, Teoscar Hernandez showcased a more well-rounded offensive game last year, hitting .289/.340/.579 for a 146 OPS+ in 50 games to finish 11th in AL MVP voting and win a Silver Slugger Award. Stars and depth help the Dodgers dominate both NL competition and Best Tools voting. That's why the model. His contract and track record mean more is expected of him, but he was still a top-15 outfielder. During nine full MLB seasons, Mike Trout has won three MVP awards, made nine All-Star teams and posted 75 WAR, per FanGraphs (Betts is the next-closest during that span with 40.2). Gorbous is the answer to the trivia question: "Who has the longest throw in baseball history"? Reels. In order to qualify for the leaderboard, a player must have more Two-Star opportunities than team games / 5. With the Astros first pick the 2021 draft, they took a prospect who fell right in their laps. How Does Carlos Correa's Deal Impact Dansby Swanson's Market? Hot Stove Tracker Starting Lineups Transactions . 10. Crow-Armstrong soaking in first Spring Training with Cubs. The home run he stole from Freddie Freeman in the NLCS, his leap perfectly timed. 6 player in the Razzball Player Rater, despite playing just 130 games; give him Vladimir Guerrero's 161 games and he would've topped him for the No. He also once again took home Gold Glove honors in a 6.3 WAR season. Part I: Hit toolPart II: Power toolPart III: Run toolPart IV: Fielding tool. All told, he hit .333 with 17 homers and a 1.158 OPS over 43 games in 2020. The eight-time Gold Glove winner is one of the best defensive center fielders in major league history. In 2015, Marte had a 16-1 number (A-DP) as part of perhaps baseball's best fielding outfield. Luis Robert is one of the best prospects in baseball and he's set to take over in center. PART - Positioning, Balls hit in air, Range, and Throwing for Infielders; Range & Positioning on balls hit in air for Outfielders. On the back of plus-plus speed, Kiermaier shows off tremendous instincts for the position. The top 10 center fielders, based on input from folks under the MLB umbrella: Another historical comp for Trout, unfortunately, is the link that is developing with Ted Williams: their paucity of postseason opportunity. Mervis' busy spring preparing him for Majors. . After a terrific finish to the 2019 season with the Chicago Cubs, Nick Castellanos signed a four-year, $64 million contract with the Cincinnati Reds in free agency. Here are the Cubs' 2023 Top 30 prospects. The 24-year-old led the team in OPS+ (147) while hitting .294/.359/.557 with 37 doubles, 30 home runs, 92 RBI and 14 steals in what was essentially his first full season in the majors, aside from last year's shortened slate. He entered spring training far from assured of a spot on the Baltimore Orioles' Opening Day roster, but he won the starting center field job and went on to have the biggest breakout season of 2021. Even though Meusel played just 11 seasons, he still recorded 157 outfield assists. has him drawing comparisons to Hall of Famer Ted Williams. 2021:Second-Team All-American Athletic Conference selection as an outfielder Started 58 of 59 games played in centerfield Batted .262 (53-for-202) with nine home runs and 33 RBI Scored 35 runs and walked 26 times Swiped 9 of 13 bases (69.2 percent) Jordan Wicks- from Kansas State at 6'2 and 220lbs he is 2-0 in 2021 and went 3-0 last year. He's not just an MVP-caliber hitter; he has one of the strongest outfield arms in the league. Thursday, it's outfielders -- the top 10 left fielders, center fielders and right fielders. Even at age 36, Ichiro was consistently able to throw out runners trying to take an extra base. The Tampa Bay Rays began the offseason by declining their $4.5 million club option on catcher Mike Zunino, who logged a 50 OPS+ and minus-0.2 WAR in 118 games with the team in 2019 and 2020. He is considered to be one of if not the best center fielders of all-time. Hernandez was signed as a super-utility . The San Francisco Giants have had 16 different players tally at least 100 plate appearances this season, and that group does not count prized deadline pickup Kris Bryant. Something that jumped out to Giants staffers last year was Yastrzemski's fearlessness in two-strike counts: After the count reached no balls and two strikes, he hit .222; after the count was 1-2, his OPS was 1.033. That duo has started all but one game behind the dish for the Rays this year and posted the following combined stat line in the process: Zunino, 30, was an All-Star for the first time this year. Top Outfield Defense in the Minor Leagues: Kevin Kiermaier ( Tampa Bay Rays) Though Kiermaier wasn't the unanimous winner in this category, his defense earned universal praise across the scouting community. In addition to a standard strength-training regimen for upper body and arm strength, outfielders can perform daily throwing drills, such as one-knee throwing and long tosses, to build their. On the other hand, the league still hasn't had a chance to develop a counterattack against the right-handed-hitting masher. Tom Glavine 1987-2002, 2008 (63.6 WAR) Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images. September 10, 2021 | 00:05:48. 17. With three more home runs from Albies, the 2021 Braves will become only the second team in MLB history to have all four primary infielders tally 25 home runs, per ESPN Stats & Information's Jared Berson, joining the 2008 Florida Marlins. Yes, Gallo hit .160 with a 38.6 percent strikeout rate after the Rangers traded him to the Yankees. After missing much of the 2019 season and all of last year with a gruesome injury, Haniger finally returned to action, posting a 122 OPS+ with 39 home runs and 100 RBI for the upstart Mariners. At age 19, Kaline recorded 16 of his career 170 outfield assists. Reynolds hit.302/.390/.522 with 35 doubles, 24 home runs, 90 RBI and 93 runs scored for a 146 OPS+ despite having little in the way of protection in a bad Pittsburgh lineup. It's worth remembering that during the 2018-19 seasons, Pham had an on-base percentage of .368 and scored 179 runs in 282 games. The eight-time Gold Glove winner even managed to throw out 11 base runners from left field at age 39. He's already ranked pitchers and infielders, and he will follow these with the top 10 teams on Friday. In five-and-two-thirds career innings, Colavito only gave up one hit. Nearly every player on this list has been an All-Star, and all the rest have a chance to make their first Midsummer Classic this season. Who Are the Best Outfield Arms in MLB? But that represents the bulk of the 26-year-olds big league experience. No other infielder came close to matching his average arm strength on Statcast-measured throws. There's no doubting that the Chicago Cubs farm system is vastly improved from where it was in 2021. Mike Yastrzemski, San Francisco Giants. Despite missing almost all of September with a hairline fracture in his left thumb, Bez tied for third in Defensive Runs Saved (26) and placed second among all players in Outs Above Average (+19). Joey Votto travels with Ted Williams' book "The Science of Hitting" and has built a Hall of Fame rsum based on a lot of the principles that Williams espoused -- like not doing the pitcher a favor by chasing pitches out of the strike zone. 2023 MLB Top 30 Prospects; Rankings; Players; Draft; Store; . Quinn said, "Meusel's arm was the best I ever saw. Runners were hesitant to try to take an extra base when the ball was hit to right in Coors Field between 1995 and 2003. He struggled in 2020, with his slugging percentage (.312) matching his on-base percentage. No position in fantasy baseball is deeper than the outfield. Here are five options going much later in drafts than they should based on their . Fernando Tatis Jr., SS, PadresKey stat: 91.8 mph average max-effort arm strength in 2019.