We will be talking and going over who I think are the Top 10 best Second Baseman going into the 2015 season. Kicking it off at #10 is the one and only:
Chase Utley (Philadelphia Phillies)
2014 Stats– (11 HR, 78 RBI’s, 10 SB, .270 BA) (11 E, .985 FPCT)
Utley has had a pretty decent career so far. In 13 seasons, he is a 6 time All-Star and has 4 Silver Slugger Awards under his belt, plus he has a World Series Ring from 2008. Utley is not known for good defense. Makes a lot of errors most seasons, but he makes it up for his good hitting. His power has gone down over the years. Since 2009 Utley hasn’t hit more than 20 home runs in a season.
#9) Dustin Pedrioa (Boston Red Sox)
2014 Stats– (7 HR, 53 RBI’s, 6 SB, .278 BA) (2 E, .997 FPCT)
Rookie of the Year Award (2007), MVP (2008), 4 All-Star games, 4 time Gold Glove Winner and a Silver Slugger Award. I would say that’s been a good career over the past ten seasons. His lack of power over the past few years hasn’t really slowed him down, playing stellar defense and having a good batting average still makes him in the top ten Second Baseman. Plus don’t forget he has two World Series rings.
#8) Neil Walker (Pittsburgh Pirates)
2014 Stats– (23 HR, 76 RBI’s, 2 SB, .271 BA) (5 E. .992 FPCT)
Walker has been your typical average second baseman who gets the job done, when you need him to do it. Only having one Silver Slugger Award and that’s about it. He puts up some good numbers and contributes all over the field. Having his best season in 2014 with 23 HR and 76 RBI’s, shows more improvement from each season he plays. He has helped the Pirates make it back to the postseason for consecutive seasons.
#7) Howie Kendrick (Los Angeles Dodgers)
2014 Stats– (7 HR, 75 RBI’s, 14 SB, .293 BA) (11 E, .984 FPCT)
Kendrick will give you the offensive numbers you want from a second baseman. Playing for the Los Angeles Angels his entire career, in the offseason of 2014-2015, he was traded down the road to the Los Angeles Dodgers. His defense has dropped over the past few seasons. Coming into the league in 2006, he was pretty reliable to scoop up anything coming by him. But since 2012, Kendrick’s defense has gotten worse, if it wasn’t for his offense, this guy would be in trouble to making it in the big leagues.
#6) Ben Zobrist (Oakland Athletics)
2014 Stats– (10 HR, 52 RBI’s, 10 SB, .272 BA) (6 E, .980 FPCT)
Zobrist can play any position on the field. He has played every spot except catcher and pitcher in his 10 year career. Mainly he plays Second Base. Ben is good to give you a good amount of walks and good batting average. He gets on base for his team to get them runs. But for his sake, he has played for the Tampa Rays for his entire career until 2015 when he was traded to the Oakland A’s in the off-season. Playing for the Rays wasn’t always the best fit for his abilities. He never really had any other talent around him beside Evan Longoria to seceded to win Championships.
#5) Dee Gordon (Miami Marlins)
2014 Stats– (2 HR, 34 RBI’s, 64 SB, .289 BA) (12 E, .981 FPCT)
2014 was Gordon’s first full season in the MLB. The kid can FLY around the bases. Led the league in stolen bases with 64. He gives you good average on offense, and if he gets on base…… Every pitchers nightmare. Now he has a ton to improve on his defense. Racking up 12 errors last season, wasn’t the greatest. Give him a few years of experience and he could develop into a very good defender.
#4) Brian Dozier (Minnesota Twins)
2014 Stats– (23 HR, 71 RBI’s, 21 SB, .242 BA) (15 E, .980 FPCT)
Dozier has been in the league for three seasons now and every year he keeps on getting better. In 2014, he slugged 23 home runs as a team and career high. The Twins signed Dozier to an extension over the off-season to keep him in Minnesota for the next four years. His defense still needs work. having 15 errors last season is not good for your everyday second baseman. It will improve over the years as Dozier gets more experience and is starting to become the new face of the organization.
#3) Ian Kinsler (Detroit Tigers)
2014 Stats– (17 Hr, 92 RBI’s, 15 SB, .275 BA) (9 E, .988 FPCT)
You could say 2015 could of been Kinsler’s best season. Improved on Defense. Career best .988 FPCT (Fielding Percentage) and career best with 92 RBI’s. Kinsler will give you Power, Speed and good Defense. Plus he can be a leadoff hitter if you need him too. Great all around player and great leadership.
#2) Robinson Cano (Seattle Mariners)
2014 Stats– (14 HR, 82 RBI’s, 10 SB, .314 BA) (9 E, .987 FPCT)
Everyone knows Cano from the Yankees years. Hitting 25 plus home runs and 100 plus RBI’s. His first season as a Mariner wasn’t as good as they hoped but it was a great year for him. Power was down and so was his RBI’s but his batting average was still there. Normal defense from Cano. Wasn’t great but wasn’t bad. With the Mariners bringing in Free Agent Nelson Cruz, expect Cano’s numbers to rise again.
We have finally made it to my number one guy for the 2015 season for Second Basemen. Last but not least, this guy had a breakout season and everyone should know who he is. Playing Second base for the Houston Astros:
Jose Altuve
2014 Stats– (7 Hr, 59 RBI’s, 56 SB, .341 BA) (10 E, .986 FPCT)
This guy had a breakout season, Batting .341 and 225 hits, Leading the MLB in both categories. A true leadoff hitter he has become. He is a nightmare for pitchers. 56 stolen bases in 2014. Now his defense isn’t the greatest but he will get better. Only being 24 years old and playing for a very young team (Houston Astros) could be a very dangerous team down the road. Especially moving to the American League to add that DH to the line-up.
That wraps things up for my Top-10 Second Baseman.
The triple is the most exciting play in baseball. Home runs win a lot of games, but I never understood why fans are so obsessed with them. -Hank Aaron
