So in our 2020 media days, those of you who participated chose your top batters, and your top pitchers. I've done features on top players by position, hidden gems, etc. So I thought I would do an analysis of the players you feel are the best, along with some grades. I will start with the top Hitters. DH Miguel Cardenas (CHW)- There is not much of a body of work here for Cardenas. He is certainly a great pure "hitter", but he is lacking in power and of course, is a DH. That certainly hurts his value in my opinion. Very similar batter to Edgar Martinez and we can only hope his career is as good as Edgar's. Grade: B- CF Ramon Adormo (BAL)- Very, very interesting pick here. Adormo is the #2 hitter in one of the best offenses in the league, and has excellent speed and eye. 30 steals and 30 doubles last season, and he is only 27. His OPS of .767 last year, combined with 153 strikeouts tends to lower his value. Great speed and this attributed to 103 runs scored last year. He has an excellent skillset and excels at getting on base and playing great defense. Grade: B- 3B Brodie Green (CIN)- The 32 year old 3B for the Reds has an impressive resume as his career begins to wind down. His career has been highlighted by solid speed with 180 SB and a career .822 OPS. Unfortunately with such a large body of work, he has never led the league in anything. Decent hitter, but nowhere near the skillset of others on this list. Grade: C- LF Lynwood Abbott (BOS)- Hard to believe Abbott is only 25 years old, but the kid made his debut at 22. Certainly considered one of the leagues true talents and a 5 tool player. Of concern is his inability to hit LHP. In 2018 he led the league with 10 triples and then last year he led in IBB with 15. Certainly a dangerous player and the best on this list so far. Still needs a more complete resume, but overall a great player. Show me you can lead the league in something Grade: B LF Christian Yelich (MIA)- This 28 year old LF has been one of the best hitters we have ever seen in the Dugout. He won the Rookie of the Year, has 5 All-Star appearances, 1 Gold Glove and 2 MVP's. He's led the league more seasons, in more categories to count which includes wOBA and OPS a whopping 4 times. He also adds speed to his game. He's suffered some injuries throughout his career, which has affected his fielding, but he is still an amazing player. Grade: A+ SS Woody Scarlett (CHI)- The 23 year old Scarlett somehow got chosen by one of our better GM's in the league. Why? I have no idea. He is a defensive wiz at SS, and a solid contact hitter. Unfortunately his body of work is small, but on potential alone, he doesn't belong in this list. Grade: F LF Dave Moore (BAL)- At 27 years old Moore has become the best power hitter in the game. His rise to the career leaderboards in HR is the quickest in Dugout History. He adds 1 Gold Glove, 2 MVP's and 2 All-Star awards to his resume. He's led the league in Slugging % and OPS twice and other categories several times. He adds a better health history and defense than Yelich as well. Probably the most dangerous hitter in the league. Grade: A+ In conclusion both Dave Moore and Christian Yelich are head and shoulders better than any other batters in the league. The question remains though... which is the best? If we look at Career Metrics and "Black Ink" Moore has the edge. Leading his league 14 times in relevant categories compared to Yelich's 12. Had Yelich remained healthy his entire career could he be rated higher? No one knows. Certainly we are splitting hairs here. The fact that both are nearly the same age, will be a fascinating discussion for when the league begins it's voting on the Hall of Fame. Until then... I have to give the edge to Moore.
Great work. Moore and Yelich are obviously better if you take into consideration their defensive abilities. If I'm an AL team though and I'm purely looking for a hitter, I still think Cardenas is tops imo.
No I was surprised at that too. Add the guys in this list and change it from 2012-2020 and see what that gives you
East coast bias. But really it was close for me between Huck and Moore, Moore slightly edged him. Huck is coming off probably one of the best seasons in Dugout history though.
