Every year, MLB Network ranks the top players at each position and puts them in a top 10 list. It’s fun seeing the different lists from analysts and the reasoning as to why they put that player there. This year, MLB Network is letting the fans vote.
Lists are fun, especially during the off-season. With no baseball going on, it allows fans to debate, but more importantly, to talk baseball.
This list is solid, especially due to being a fan-voted list. There aren’t many names that were left off it. But you could argue for Christian Walker to be there too.
You can’t argue that Paul Goldschmidt doesn’t belong near the top of this list, though. He’s coming off a year where he won the National League MVP award. He led all of baseball in slugging, OPS, and OPS+.
“An excellent list. You can flip flop Goldschmidt and Freeman but those guys are the best,” one fan explained.
“The fans are voting with their hearts not with any understanding of the numbers. This is a popularity contest,” said another.
Obviously, anything fan-voted is going to be a popularity contest. You can’t expect fans to think logically when it comes to their favorite teams or players.
Some fans argue that Anthony Rizzo is ranked too high, but he’s incredibly popular as he plays for the New York Yankees. Others believe Christian Walker should be up there, but it can be argued that many across the league aren’t too familiar with him. The Arizona Diamondbacks aren’t the most popular team in the MLB.
MLB is in good hands with the level of talent across the board
