Rank |
First Name |
Last Name |
Team |
| 1 | Troy | Tulowitzki | Col |
| 2 | Hanley | Ramirez | Bos |
| 3 | Ian | Desmond | Was |
| 4 | Jose | Reyes | Tor |
| 5 | Starlin | Castro | ChC |
| 6 | Danny | Santana | Min |
| 7 | Alexei | Ramirez | CWS |
| 8 | Jhonny | Peralta | StL |
| 9 | Ben | Zobrist | Oak |
| 10 | Jimmy | Rollins | LAD |
| 11 | Xander | Bogaerts | Bos |
| 12 | Erick | Aybar | LAA |
| 13 | Elvis | Andrus | Tex |
| 14 | Alcides | Escobar | KC |
| 15 | Jung-Ho | Kang | Pit |
| 16 | Asdrubal | Cabrera | TB |
| 17 | Chris | Owings | Ari |
| 18 | Javier | Baez | ChC |
| 19 | Jed | Lowrie | Hou |
| 20 | J.J. | Hardy | Bal |
| 21 | Jean | Segura | Mil |
| 22 | Andrelton | Simmons | Atl |
| 23 | Brandon | Crawford | SF |
| 24 | Jordy | Mercer | Pit |
| 25 | Stephen | Drew | NYY |
| 26 | Francisco | Lindor | Cle |
| 27 | Yunel | Escobar | Was |
| 28 | Zack | Cozart | Cin |
| 29 | Nick | Franklin | TB |
| 30 | Didi | Gregorius | NYY |
| 31 | Wilmer | Flores | NYM |
| 32 | Josh | Rutledge | LAA |
| 33 | Bradley | Miller | Sea |
| 34 | Chris | Taylor | Sea |
| 35 | Miguel | Sano | Min |
Notable Higher Ranked Player
Danny Santana: My Rank- 6 ECR- 16
Given the write-up for Gordon above, it might be a bit shocking to see me rank a low-walk rate player like Danny Santana so high. He, too, is in line for BABIP regression from an unsustainable .405 mark, but when you square up the ball for a line drive rate of 26.0%, you’re going to have a sky high BABIP. It takes quite a while for line drive rate to normalize and Santana’s will probably dip. The young shortstop is probably closer to a .275 hitter than a .300 hitter, but the stolen bases are legit. He swiped 20 in 24 chances in only 101 games played. A full season of work will allow him to steal 25-to-30 even with his average dropping substantially. He should also be able to smack a half-dozen dingers. As long as Santana hits atop the order like I expect, my ranking for him will remain the same.
Notable Lower Ranked Player
Elvis Andrus: My Rank- 13 ECR- 7
I’ll open things up with a compliment for Elvis Andrus. I like his lineup slot (second) since it should award him some chances to score runs. A healthy Rangers lineup should make a run at the 91 runs he scored in 2013 possible, however, the rest of his statistical profile is scary. Andrus offers no pop. Zero. Zip. Zilch. He’ll be a drag in power, RBI and a .265-.270 average is more acceptable than it is good. The reason Andrus even cracks the top 15 at the position for me — beyond the position being an offensive wasteland — is his ability to steal bases. The young-veteran shortstop stole 27 bases last year and 42 the year before. Unfortunately, his efficiency was lacking last year as he was caught 15 times. No longer playing for Ron Washington, it’s not a given Andrus will continue to get the green light if he’s unable to shore up his efficiency. There is risk associated
