We will be going through the First Baseman in the MLB and discussing who we think are the best Offensive and Defensive First Baseman in the 2015 season. Hope you enjoy who I picked and I hope to get your feedback on my selections. So kicking it off on this topic is-
#10) Matt Adams (St. Louis Cardinals)
This 26 year old finally had his first full season as a starting first baseman, It went pretty well, Not the numbers that the Cardinals were hoping to see. But with more experience and playing for the “Always Winning Cardinals” will help improve him in 2015. His defense wasn’t all that great but it was good enough to get the job done. Having 9 errors on the season is almost normal for a guy who doesn’t have a ton of experience at the big level.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.288 15 68 26 9 .993
#9) Carlos Santana (Cleveland Indians)
You will never get good batting average from this guy but you can always count on 20+ homeruns and around 100 walks a season from this guy. Leading the lead in walks with 113 in the 2014 season wasn’t nothing really new for Santana. He is just a walking machine. Playing him anywhere but first base will hurt your defense a ton and make you lose games. Coming into the league as a catcher didn’t work out well for them, Decided to move him to third base. Bad idea. Finally found a good home for him at first base and DH (Designated Hitter).
2014 stats (94 games at 1B)
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.231 27 85 113 5 .995
#8) Edwin Encarncion (Toronto Blue Jays)
This guy can straight out hit the cover off the ball. Over the past five seasons with Toronto, Encarncion has hit 150 home runs, averaging 30 a season. Any team would love to have that in the middle of your lineup on a daily biases. His batting average is so so and will be good enough for what he does. Now playing defense is going to hurt you. that’s why we are ranking him towards the bottom of the top ten. If he could play defense, then this man could be one of the top ranked first baseman in the league.
2014 stats (80 games at 1B)
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.268 34 98 62 8 .988
#7) Freddie Freeman (Atlanta Braves)
You can say Freeman had a down season in 2014 but it really wasn’t a bad season. For him it was, but for most teams in the MLB would of loved to have a hitter of his kind in the lineup for them. Average, homeruns, RBI’s went down, but walks went up a ton. His defense improved in the 2014 season. So you could say he was better in certain ways but had a down fall in some categories.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.288 18 78 90 5 .996
#6) Justin Morneau (Colorado Rockies)
This guy has been in hibernation mode over the past few years. Winning the MVP in 2006 with the Minnesota Twins and crushing homeruns on a normal at-bat. He finally peaked back out to have a really good year, winning the National league Silver Slugger Award in 2014. You don’t have to worry about him on defense cause the guy will snag everything that comes over to him. Great defender and had another solid year on defense, with only 4 errors.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.319 17 82 34 4 .997
#5) Albert Pujols (Los Angeles Angels)
Pujols might go down as one of the best players to play the game. He is on the back end of his career but still putting up good numbers but not as good of numbers as he did when he came into the league. His defense has been pretty much the same his entire career. A career .994 FPCT (Fielding Percentage) is pretty darn good, for someone who has been in the league for 13 seasons. His 2014 season was better than his injured 2013 season, knocking in over 100 RBI’s again.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.272 28 105 48 3 .990
#4) Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs)
In 2013 Rizzo had a good season as a rookie but he came out in 2014 and showed he can be an elite first baseman at the age of 25. Slugging out 32 homeruns and increasing his batting average a ton in 2014. Having a season high with 9 errors in 2014 was his worse season so far. Even tho he’s only played in 3 seasons in the MLB. The guy can play good defense and whenever the Cubs decide to bring up Kris Bryant and when he is ready to hit the big leagues, Bryant and Rizzo will be a dangerous duo.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.286 32 78 73 9 .993
#3) Adrian Gonzalez (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Adrian Gonzalez has had an excellent career, offensively and defensively. Over the past eight seasons, he has averaged over 100 RBI’s per season. Being the team captain for the Dodgers is a big role for him, leading this team to the playoffs over the past few years. Been named to the All-Star team four times in his career and four time Gold Glove winner and two Time Silver Slugger Award winner. It has been a very successful career so far Gonzalez.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.276 27 116 56 6 .996
#2) Jose Abreu (Chicago White Sox)
Coming into the 2014 season as a rookie at the age of 27, Jose Abreu exploded into the scene. Had a great season, offensively and led all first baseman in homeruns. Abreu made the All-Star team, won the rookie of the year award, Silver Slugger Award, and came in fourth in the MVP voting. That’s a crazy good rookie season. Now his defense isn’t all that great but its not bad at all really. Have 6 errors is not horrible but not great but the Chicago White Sox felt it was good enough with the type of offensive skill he brings to club.
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.317 36 107 51 6 .994
#1) Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers)
Nine All-Start games, two MVP’s, a Triple Crown, and five Silver Slugger Awards in a 12 year career, that’s not to shabby. Leading the Tigers to the playoffs the past four seasons has led Miguel to great leadership in the clubhouse. He’s never been know for his defense but you can see over the past few years, playing first base, he has shown improvement. Winning the Triple Crown in 2012, was the first time anyone has won it since 1967 (Carl Yastrzemski).
2014 stats
AVG HR RBI’s BB E FPCT
.313 25 109 60 5 .995
There we go, That’s my top 10 First Baseman for 2015.
Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer. – Ted Williams
