Colorado Rockies: Ranking Nolan Arenado among MLB's third basemen

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DENVER, CO – SEPTEMBER 29: Nolan Arenado #28 of the Colorado Rockies circles the bases after hitting a solo home run in the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field on September 29, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

A few weeks back, Steve Phillips told MLB Network Radio that his top three third basemen in baseball right now are Kris Bryant, Josh Donaldson and Nolan Arenado of the Colorado Rockies … in that order. I think Phillips might be going against general consensus for no real reason beyond a few basic offensive stats and an eye test. In a really solid article, Jake Misener over at Cubbies Crib took a little deeper, more insightful look at Kris Bryant going head-to-head with Nolan Arenado.

With these articles in mind, I thought I would take a swing at “power ranking” the league’s best third basemen going into the 2018 season.

No. 5 – Alex Bregman
There isn’t a ton of elite-level third basemen going into the 2018 season. Manny Machado is a shortstop now. Justin Turner just injured his wrist. I’m giving the edge to Alex Bregman over Anthony Rendon just based on postseason success.

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So, with that said, going into his third season in the majors, Bregman will continue to elevate himself as a top tier third basemen. It is wild that a lot of Bregman’s performance simply relies on something that you can’t find on Baseball-Reference or FanGraphs… pure swagger.

That is not to say the talent and ceiling aren’t there though … because they are. His clutch hitting in the World Series wasn’t just a single stroke of luck. His sophomore season started off a bit rough offensively and defensively, which could be attributed to the lack of at-bats and field time last spring, as he played for Team USA behind Nolan Arenado in the World Baseball Classic. However, as you can see below, he obviously adjusted and greatly improved during the second half of the season.

First or Second Half
Split	G	GS	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
1st Half	84	79	329	289	40	74	21	1	8	27	8	33	56	.256	.338	.419	.757
2nd Half	71	69	297	267	48	84	18	4	11	44	9	22	41	.315	.367	.536	.903

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com

For a player who is so early in his career, he carries himself at the plate like a veteran, indicated by his contact percentage at 85.7%, third among third basemen from both leagues according to FanGraphs. As a career shortstop converted to third baseman, he grew into his own by the end of the season defensively as well. This is the season where Alex Bregman puts it all together for an elite year.

No. 4 – Jose Ramirez
Jose Ramirez has quietly progressed to become one of Major League Baseball’s finest hitters. Baseball-Reference has Ramirez at a .318 average with 29 home runs, 83 RBI and an OPS of .957 in 2017. He also led the American League with 56 doubles. Ramirez isn’t just a free-swinging extra-base machine. The switch-hitting Ramirez has a superior eye for contact, leading his third base compadres in contact percentage, according to our friends at FanGraphs.

He isn’t just a great hitter though. Jose Ramirez is a pure athlete through-and-through. This is reinforced by his ability to play multiple positions throughout his five seasons in the league. While he spent a lot of time filling in for the injured Jason Kipnis last season, the majority of his games are played at third base.

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It also says something about Jose Ramirez to be the best player on the Cleveland team that won over 100 games last season. He started third base for the American League All-Star team. Ramirez also finished third in the American League MVP race.

No. 3 – Josh Donaldson

In the audio clip that started this article, Phillips mentioned that Josh Donaldson isn’t properly rated as one of the top third basemen in the league. I don’t know what he means by that. Since Donaldson was called up with the Oakland Athletics in 2012, he has the second highest WAR rating, only behind Mike Trout, according to FanGraphs. He won the American League MVP in 2015, finished fourth in the 2013 and 2016 American League MVP.

However, when talking about top three talents at a single position, there isn’t going to be much to separate guys…but there is still some separation.

Standard Batting
Year	Tm	Lg	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+
2017	TOR	AL	113	496	415	65	112	21	0	33	78	2	76	111	.270	.385	.559	.944	144

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com

Looking at his overall body of work in 2017, Josh Donaldson had a down year compared to Bryant and Arenado. That’s not a knock on his production. Donaldson had a great year … just not as great when put in a line with the top two on the list. Some of his down production could be blamed on a leg injury he suffered in the early spring.

Going into the 2018 season (also a contract year), there isn’t a single thing that would indicate Josh Donaldson won’t perform at an elite level.

No. 2 – Kris Bryant

We are essentially debating preference when ranking athletes that perform at this high of a level. Kris Bryant is a star third basemen, without any doubt. However, this last season, it was clear the Chicago Cubs had a bit of a hangover. It is also worth mentioning that Bryant was coming off a MVP season, and expectations were extremely high. So, let’s take a look and see how he did from an offensive standpoint from his MVP season in 2016 to this last season.

Standard Batting
Year	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+
2016	155	699	603	121	176	35	3	39	102	8	75	154	.292	.385	.554	.939	146
2017	151	665	549	111	162	38	4	29	73	7	95	128	.295	.409	.537	.946	143

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com

His overall numbers took a bit of dip from a production standpoint in 2017. Knowing this, I think it may be hard for a casual onlooker to see that Kris Bryant got even better as a hitter this last season. Bryant lowered his strikeouts and increased walks, batting average, on-base percentage and on-base plus slugging. He’s becoming more patient and disciplined. He will be a force this season … and we haven’t even seen him put this all together yet.

No. 1 – Nolan Arenado

I am not going to pretend that Nolan Arenado is light years ahead of Kris Bryant. He is not. Their offensive styles are just a little different.

Bryant is clearly more disciplined. Arenado swings a little harder. But Coors. I know, I know. When comparing players who play at Coors Field versus those who don’t, OPS+ is the only stat that matters, right? Well, Baseball-Reference has Bryant beating out Arenado slightly with a 143 OPS+, compared to a 132 OPS+, respectively. Arenado hit for a higher average, more power, and more runs driven in.

Standard Batting
Year	G	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+
2017	159	100	187	43	7	37	130	3	62	106	.309	.373	.586	.959	132

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com

I do think we are splitting hairs when comparing the elite, offensive talent of Bryant and Arenado. However, Arenado and Bryant are not even in the same barbershop when compared defensively. That’s where I give the edge to Arenado over Bryant.

Next: Seven bold predictions for the NL West in 2018

In fact, there aren’t many defenders of any position in the MLB that can compare to Nolan Arenado. Last season alone, Arenado had 20 DRS to Bryant’s 1 DRS, according to FanGraphs. He’s won five Gold Gloves and a Platinum Glove during his short career. We may be witnessing a once in a lifetime defensive talent.

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Colorado Rockies: Ranking Nolan Arenado among MLB’s third basemen

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