We’re almost two months into the regular season and I feel like all of my teams have run the Gauntlet from American Gladiators. Every time I think I’ve got a leg up on the competition, Nitro smashes me in the face with a jousting staff. This week we saw Manny Machado and Cavan Biggio miss time, along with DJ LeMahieu hitting the paternity list for a couple of days. Mike Moustakas continues to flip flop between healthy and not healthy and the rest of the third base pool is in a deep, deep slump. Let’s get to the list and we’ll talk about some of the movers.
| Rank | Player | Position | Team | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jose Ramirez | 3B | Indians | – |
| 2 | Rafael Devers | 3B | Red Sox | +1 |
| 3 | Alex Bregman | 3B | Astros | +1 |
| 4 | Nolan Arenado | 3B | Cardinals | +1 |
| 5 | Manny Machado | 3B | Padres | -3 |
| 6 | Kris Bryant | 3B/OF | Cubs | +1 |
| 7 | DJ LeMahieu | 1B/2B/3B | Yankees | -1 |
| 8 | Max Muncy | 1B/2B/3B | Dodgers | +1 |
| 9 | Anthony Rendon | 3B | Angels | -1 |
| 10 | Yoan Moncada | 3B | White Sox | – |
| 11 | Tommy Edman | 3B/SS/OF | Cardinals | +4 |
| 12 | Justin Turner | 3B | Dodgers | -1 |
| 13 | Matt Chapman | 3B | Athletics | -1 |
| 14 | Eugenio Suarez | 3B | Reds | -1 |
| 15 | Josh Donaldson | 3B | Twins | -1 |
| 16 | Austin Riley | 3B | Braves | +2 |
| 17 | Ryan McMahon | 1B/2B/3B | Rockies | +3 |
| 18 | Eduardo Escobar | 2B/3B | Diamondbacks | +6 |
| 19 | Gio Urshela | 3B | Yankees | -2 |
| 20 | Isiah Kiner-Falefa | 3B/SS | Rangers | +5 |
| 21 | Kyle Seager | 3B | Mariners | -2 |
| 22 | Mike Moustakas | 1B/2B/3B | Reds | -6 |
| 23 | Jean Segura | 2B/3B | Phillies | -2 |
| 24 | Alec Bohm | 3B | Phillies | -2 |
| 25 | Joey Wendle | 2B/3B/SS | Rays | NR |
Two weeks ago a reader that calls themselves “BillyJillikers” commented that I still had Manny Machado over Rafael Devers. While I defended it at the time, Devers has clearly been the better player to start the year. The question for us is will he continue to outpace Machado for the rest of the season? While I still maintain that I like the Padres lineup when fully healthy and they should outproduce the Red Sox lineup when fully healthy, there’s no denying that Devers has been a beast. The cherry on top that made making the switch easier, was that Machado has been dealing with a nagging shoulder injury that has kept him out of the last 6 games. I slid Machado below a glob of third basemen that I really like, but hopefully, he won’t miss too much more time.
Next up on the big movers’ list is Tommy Edman. The Cardinals’ leadoff man is third in the league in stolen bases and while he won’t contribute too much pop, he adds plenty of value in runs scored and batting average. Following Edman is a glob of veterans that are struggling in a bad way. Justin Turner, Matt Chapman, Eugenio Suarez, and Josh Donaldson have been chilly, while Austin Riley has been red hot, putting me in quite a predicament. Ultimately, for now, I left the veterans where they are, but I would have no problem with slotting Riley in between Chapman and Suarez.
Ryan McMahon and Eduardo Escobar took a step forward for me. Yes, both are on poop teams, but both have consistently putting up stats. Both have been decent power threats and while their counting stats aren’t going to blow you away, they’re not going to kill you either.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa made his list debut last week and this week he shoots up another five spots. Like Edman, Kiner-Falefa has provided the unique skillset of the stolen base to start the year, as he ranks 2nd in the league with 10 steals. Like his red-bird counterpart, he’s also been a consistent source of batting average and has even managed to pop five homers.
Two weeks ago, I wrote that I “shouldn’t make rest of season judgments based off a two-week hot streak by Joey Wendle“. Well, Mr. Wendle took that personally and has continued to rake. On the year, Wendle has provided six homers and three stolen bases while batting at a .310 clip. Age 31 breakout anyone? As for the rest of the season, I’m not ready to anoint Wendle the chosen one, but he has taken over the spot that Cavan Biggio once held.
Alright, now it’s your turn! Let me know what I got wrong and if you have any questions, leave a comment and we’ll keep the conversation going.
