This is the third in a series that looks at the five best players at each position for every Major League team. The focus of this article is the second basemen and shortstops with the Arizona Diamondbacks, a franchise that began play in 1998.
The Best Second Basemen and Shortstops in Diamondbacks History
Second Basemen
5. Junior Spivey – He was a reserve infielder on Arizona’s 2001 championship team, then started and earned an All-Star selection after hitting .301 with 16 home runs and 78 runs batted in the following year. Spivey played 321 games overall in three seasons with the Diamondbacks.
4. Aaron Hill – He hit .315 during Arizona’s run to the playoffs in 2011 and hit a home run in an NLDS loss. Hill drove in 241 runs in 525 games over four seasons, and he also earned a Silver Slugger award in 2012.
3. Orlando Hudson – He hit .294 in 403 games over three seasons in Arizona. Hudson’s best season was in 2007 when he was an All-Star, won his second gold glove with the Diamondbacks, and helped his team reach the National League Championship Series (although he was unable to play in the postseason due to a hand injury).
2. Ketel Marte – He started as a reserve shortstop on Arizona’s last playoff team in 2017, then moved back and forth between second base and center field before going back to second for the past two seasons. Marte led the National League with 12 triples in 2018, then earned his only All-Star selection to date the following year (while also finishing fourth in NL MVP voting). He is in his seventh season with the Diamondbacks, amassing 332 RBIs in 726 games and hitting .283.
1. Jay Bell – After starting at shortstop for Arizona’s first season in 1998, he moved over to second base for the rest of his time in the desert. Bell was selected as an All-Star after posting a .289-38-112 stat line in 1999 and driving in three runs in a loss to the Mets in the Division Series. He finished with 304 RBIs in 616 games over five seasons, and he was a reserve with the Diamondbacks during their run to the title in 2001.
Shortstops
Honorable Mention – Didi Gregorius – A solid fielder who found his offensive footing in his second season with Arizona in 2014. Gregorius would be higher on the list if he had shown the same offensive prowess he did with the Yankees over the next four seasons.
5. Geraldo Perdomo – After a brief stint in 2021, Perdomo has started alongside Marte for the past two seasons. In 2023, Perdomo was named an All-Star and has shown improvement both at the plate (five home runs and 33 RBIs in 74 games as compared to 5-40 in 148 games last season) and on defense (he has committed just two errors the season after 14 in 2022).
4. Alex Cintron – A late-season call-up during the 2001 title season, Cintron was a reserve on the 2002 Diamondbacks playoff team before moving into the starting lineup for the next three years. Spivey’s double-play partner hit .279 in 439 games over five seasons in Arizona.
3. Nick Ahmed – Now in his 10th season, Ahmed’s two best seasons were 2018-19 when he combined to hit 35 home runs, drive in 152 runs, and win two Gold Gloves. He has driven in 317 runs in 863 games with Arizona. Ahmed was a member of the franchise’s last playoff team in 2017, although he did not play in the postseason after breaking his hand early in the season and then fracturing his wrist during a rehab stint.
Upcoming
Other articles in the Diamondbacks series:
Catchers and managers
First and third basemen
Outfielders – coming soon
Pitchers – coming soon
Main Image: Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK
