Pitchers and catchers reported to spring training this week, so it’s about that time of year again. Baseball is back! To kick things off, here are the top first basemen in major league baseball today.
2018’s Top 10 First Basemen in MLB
10 Justin Smoak
Smoak broke onto the scene last season, with a break out All-Star 2017 campaign. He had career highs in doubles (29), home runs (38), RBI’s (90), walks (73), batting average (.270), slugging percentage (.529), and on-base percentage (.355). The 31-year old should continue his success in 2018.
9 Carlos Santana
The Phillies signed Santana this offseason to a three year, $60 million deal. Santana has been a consistent performer offensively for the Indians all eight years he played there. He is a career .250 hitter, and averages 20 homers, 30 doubles, and 75 RBI’s per season. The biggest plus from Santana is his ability to stay on the field, as he has appeared in 150+ games in every full season he has played.
8 Wil Myers
Myers was the 2013 AL Rookie of the Year with the Tampa Bay Rays. Though his first couple of seasons he had trouble staying on the field, he has played 150 games the past two years. Myers has been the lone bright spot on a disappointing Padres team. Combined for 2016 and 2017, he hit .251 with 58 home runs, 168 RBI’s, and 58 doubles.
7 Edwin Encarnacion
Encarnacion has been an offensive force since breaking out in 2011. He has hit 35+ home runs, drive in 100+ run’s, and has finished in the Top-20 in MVP voting in five of the past six seasons. In his first season in Cleveland, Encarnacion hit .258 with 38 home runs, 20 doubles, and had 107 RBI’s last season. In his 14th year in the league, Encarnacion is a gamer.
6 Jose Abreu
Abreu has been an offensive force since signing with the White Sox form Cuba. In 2014 he won Rookie of the Year and a Silver Slugger award, hitting .317 with 36 home runs and 107 RBI’s. In 2017, he finished fourteenth in MVP voting after hitting .304 with 43 doubles, 33 home runs, and driving in 102 runs. Playing for the White Sox, Abreu doesn’t get the hype and attention his play deserves.
5 Cody Bellinger
Cody Bellinger is the future of first base in Major League Baseball. The lefty came up last season for the Dodgers and showed the world just who he is and what he can do. Bellinger won the NL Rookie of the Year, and finished ninth in NL MVP voting after hitting .267 with 39 home runs. Bellinger was a sweet, and easy swing from the left side of the plate. The kid obviously has a few things he can improve upon, but the future is bright for the LA Dodgers first baseman.
4 Freddie Freeman
Freeman has been one of, if not, the best offensive first basemen since he came into the league. In his rookie year in 2011, he finished second in Rookie of the Year voting and hit 21 home runs and 30 doubles. Since then, Freeman has only improved. Freeman is a two time All Star and has finished in the top-6 in MVP voting twice. Despite an injury abbreviated 2017 season, Freeman hit .307 with 35 doubles, 28 home runs, and 71 RBI’s. Freddie Freeman will be a key part of the resurrection of a young and upcoming Atlanta Braves ball club.
3 Anthony Rizzo
Anthony Rizzo is the man, there isn’t much to not love about him both on and off the field. He is a cancer survivor, and a World Series champion. The lefty is a slugger, and one of the better defensive first baseman in the game. Rizzo has hit 30+ home runs the past four seasons and has drive in 100+ runs the past three. Three of the past four season he has made the All-Star team, and finished thirteenth, tenth, and fourth in MVP voting. Anthony Rizzo, legend on and off the field.
2 Joey Votto
Votto is one of the true gamers in baseball today. Over his eleven year career, Votto has consistently torn the cover off the ball. In nine of his eleven big league seasons, he has hit for an average above .300 and has 20+ home runs. He is a five time All-Star and the 2010 National League MVP. With his career marks of .313, 257, 830, and still some gas left in the tank Votto is a for sure Hall of Famer some day.
1 Paul Goldschmidt
Goldy has been the best first baseman in baseball the past couple of years. He has been named to the All-Star game every year since his break out year in 2013 and has finished in the Top-10 in MVP voting three times. Goldschmidt is also a three time Silver Slugger and Gold Glove award winner. For his career, Goldschmidt is a .299 hitter with 232 doubles, 176 home runs, and 627 RBI’s. Goldschmidt is a true professional, he’s is going to be a top player in the league for a long time.
Check out our list from last year of 2017’s top first basemen here!
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