MLB Top 100: #100-91
Welcome to my second annual edition of my MLB Top 100, where I rank the 100 best players in Major League Baseball heading into the new season. I had too much fun putting this list together last year, and felt like I did a decent job at hitting on most of my placements. As with any player rankings, especially as extensive as a 100 player list, there is going to be some guys that made the list that probably shouldn’t have, and there is going to be guys that didn’t make the list that probably should have in hind sight. Before I jump in to the first ten players on this year’s edition, I wanted to highlight some bad picks I had last year. The reason I’m not highlighting any big hits is because this ranking is largely dependent on track record for me, so it’s rare for a player to be here based on upside alone. The fourteen players below are players that either didn’t live up to my ranking of them in 2024, or they completely surpassed my ranking. You can find last year’s edition here.
Biggest misses:
Marcus Semien (18)
Adolis Garcis (32)
Luis Robert Jr (34)
Sean Murphy (44)
Ketel Marte (53)
Nolan Arenado (54)
Paul Goldschmidt (60)
Vladimir Guerrero Jr (64)
David Bednar (72)
Nolan Jones (75)
Josh Lowe (77)
Tarik Skubal (90)
James Outman (96)
Matt Chapman (98)
The credentials for players making my top 100 this year in comparison to last year didn’t change much. Track record is king - you have to have shown you can play at a high level in the show. Contrary to the new age belief that postseason performance is random, postseason performance is certainly a factor here. If you can perform when the lights are brightest, you get a bump. Durability, injury history, and aging curve plays a factor. And of course, it’s all about the numbers. What did change is how a view certain player types. For instance, every speed/defense guy that made the list last year were moved down this year due to my ever-adapting opinions on defensive and baserunning numbers. For all I know, they may get a bump up next year. Another example, and likely the most prominent, is that last year’s list included 26 pitchers - 20 starters and 6 relievers - while this year’s list has 32 pitchers - 28 of which are starters and 4 relievers. They’re also all condensed within #15 and #89, so it gets pretty pitcher heavy in the middle of the list. Pitcher haters beware. There are also 29 newcomers on this year’s edition, which means 29 players dropped from this list. 71 players stuck around, which will be the number to beat next year.
And if you couldn’t tell already, I’ll be breaking this up into ten different pieces as a form of housekeeping so you don’t have to read for over an hour or wear out your thumb scrolling to find your favorite player, so I hope that helps. However, you’ll have to wait a bit for the entire list as this will be a series leading up to Opening Day. Now, enough talking, here’s #100-91 on my 2025 MLB top 100:
100. Patrick Bailey (26), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 448 HR, 8 HR, 46 RBI, 4 SB, .234/.298/.339, 81 wRC+, 20 DRS, 4.3 fWAR
Kicking off this year’s top 100 is my token defensive specialist that possesses little to no offensive talent, that being the best defensive catcher in the game of course, Patrick Bailey. Brenton Doyle was this guy last year at #99, and spoiler alert, he actually moved up the ranking this year, so hopefully this is good mojo for Bailey. The bat did make some improvements, but not enough for it to mean much. On the defensive side however, Bailey is world-class. His 20 DRS led all catchers and ranked 3rd overall. His FRV of 22 and Fangraph’s defensive rating (DEF) of 37.0 both led all of baseball. To put into perspective just how good he was, the difference between Bailey and 2nd place in DEF was the same difference between 2nd and 19th place.
99. Joc Pederson (33), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 449 PA, 23 HR, 64 RBI, 7 SB, .275/.393/.515, 151 wRC+, 3.0 fWAR
At 99 is Joc Pederson, who quite frankly I didn’t imagine ever making my top 100 when I started it last year. But I can’t disregard the season he had in 2024. We know he provides nothing on the bases or in the field, but his bat made up for it in a big way. He was a top 10 hitter in the league according to wRC+, and also managed a career high wOBA (.391) and xwOBA (.378). He’s entering his age 33 season and doesn’t have to worry about defensive ability as a full-time DH, so I like for the bat to remain at a solid level in 2025.
98. Byron Buxton (31), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 388 PA, 18 HR, 56 RBI, 7 SB, .279/.335/.524, 142 wRC+, 2 DRS, 3 OAA, 3.7 fWAR
The only thing baseball fans want in this life is a fully healthy season from Byron Buxton. While we didn’t quite get that in 2024, he did appear in 100+ games for the first time since 2017, and did it in solid fashion. His wRC+ ranked 2nd among center fielders with at least 300 PAs, and was on pace for nearly 6 fWAR over 162 games. Because of the injury risk, there’s an obvious cap on what we can expect from Buxton, keeping him here in the high-90s. However, based on his success in 2024 and the raw tools he still has, Buxton could shoot up this list with a fully healthy season.
97. Josh Naylor (27), 2024 rank: #86
2024: 633 PA, 31 HR, 108 RBI, 6 SB, .243/.320/.456, 118 wRC+, -6 DRS, 1 OAA, 2.3 fWAR
I had 10 first basemen make this list which is something I did not expect, and Josh Naylor happens to be the first off the board here. Although his ceiling offensively is not exceptionally high, he has established himself as one of the more consistent hitters over the past three seasons, logging a .450+ SLG, and at least a 115 wRC+ every year since 2022. He also put up a career high in HR and BB% while maintaining his above average contact skills. Entering his age 27 season, I believe he’s primed for a career year.
96. Jordan Westburg (26), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 447 PA, 18 HR, 63 RBI, 6 SB, .264/.312/.481, 125 wRC+, -10 DRS, -4 OAA, 2.8 fWAR
In his sophomore campaign, Jordan Westburg took some big strides, establishing himself as one of the better third basemen in baseball. If he had played closer to a full season (107 games in 2024), he might have ranked higher. Minimum 400 PAs, Westburg ranked 4th among third basemen in both wRC+, SLG, and ISO (.216), while ranking 5th in OPS (.792). Defensively, his numbers keep him lower for now, but it’s also important to note that he played nearly half of his games at second base in 2024. His numbers may improve if third base becomes his permanent home as he performed much better there.
95. Andres Gimenez (26), 2024 rank: #66
2024: 633 PA, 9 HR, 63 RBI, 30 SB, .252/.298/.340, 83 wRC+, 20 DRS, 19 OAA, 2.8 fWAR
Andres Gimenez is the first speed/defense specialist to appear on the list, and you’ll notice that all of the speed/defense guys that follow also took a hit from their 2024 ranking. As I mentioned in the intro, my baseball philosophy is always evolving. Gimenez had an elite season offensively in his 2022 campaign but regressed to below league average in each of the last 2 seasons, giving us a better picture of what to expect from him at the plate moving forward. However, this is a platinum glove winner at second base that has also stolen 20+ bags in each of the last three seasons, and 30 in each of his last two seasons. His 20 DRS and 19 OAA at second base both ranked 2nd in all of baseball. That type of talent always has a place on this list for me.
94. Colton Cowser (25), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 561 PA, 24 HR, 69 RBI, 9 SB, .242/.321/.447, 120 wRC+, 3 DRS, 11 OAA, 4.0 fWAR
Colton Cowser cracks the top 100 after finishing in 2nd place in the AL rookie of the year voting. Cowser really established himself as a multi-tool threat, displaying a combination of power at the plate and very good defense across all three positions in the outfield. His athleticism leads me to believe he has 30 HR/20 SB upside. There are some concerns in the contact department, but his above average plate discipline helps. The offensive profile is similar to Riley Greene’s before his 2024 breakout, so I like for Cowser to take a similar step forward.
93. Triston Casas (25), 2024 rank: #94
2024: 243 PA, 13 HR, 32 RBI, 0 SB, .241/.337/.462, 119 wRC+, -1 DRS, -2 OAA, 0.6 fWAR
There might not be anyone higher on Triston Casas’s bat than I am, which is why he sneaks on the top 100 despite missing more than half of 2024. Since he debuted in 2022, he has about a season and a half worth of PAs, and in that timeframe ranks top 10 in OBP (.357), SLG (.473), OPS (.830), and wRC+ (125) among first basemen. His 14.2 BB% in that time as well ranks 6th among all hitters, speaking to his elite discipline which opens up the plate for him to do damage with his plus power. He doesn’t provide much defensively or on the bases which gives him a lower ceiling, but I do like for him to have a big year at the plate entering his age 26 season.
92. Steven Kwan (28), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 540 PA, 14 HR, 44 RBI, 12 SB, .292/.368/.425, 131 wRC+, 10 DRS, 3 OAA, 4.1 fWAR
Like his former teammate Gimenez, Steven Kwan is a speed/defense specialist at heart, but actually hit at a high level in 2024. Despite a lack of raw power, Kwan recorded his 2nd season with a wRC+ north of 120 since he debuted in 2022 and his 2nd 4.0+ fWAR season. His SLG and OPS were both career highs while he also led all left fielders in DRS, really solidifying himself as one of the premier left fielders in baseball.
91. Mark Vientos (25), 2024 rank: N/A
2024: 454 PA, 27 HR, 71 RBI, 0 SB, .266/.322/.516, 133 wRC+, -5 DRS, -7 OAA, 2.9 fWAR
Mark Vientos had an underwhelming start to his career, but really came alive in 2024, especially in the postseason. I don’t care what the numbers suggest about postseason performances being random - if you perform when it matters, you get a bump up. Vientos did just that, but had some impressive numbers in the regular season as well. Minimum 400 PAs, his wRC+, SLG, and OPS (.837) all ranked 3rd among third basemen. There’s speculation on whether or not he’ll stick at third base full time which hurts his profile a slight bit and has yet to provide much on the bases. However, entering his age 25 season, I think he’s just getting started offensively.
