Frascella's Top 200 MLB Players: Damn, This Took a Lot of Work!

 

Photo Credit: YouTube & Light Blue Sports

When MLB free agency EXPLODED and my New York Mets were the talk of the town - particularly high-octane owner Steve Cohen - I wanted to get a sense of the contracts vs. the player's actual ranking in the league. Thus, I started ranking every single player in the MLB. I've been doing this for a few weeks now, and I must honestly admit defeat. To date, I've only been able to rank 1,003 players. 

Still, that's not bad, right? Let's take a look at my criteria before we jump into the list: 

1. The 2022 MLB season gets 65% of the weight in my ranking system. 

2. 20% of the weight goes to my own personal evaluation of the player. 

3. 10% of the weight goes to the player's general reputation and evaluation amongst analysts, other players, coaches and fans. "General rep." 

4. 5% of the weight goes to feedback comments from my ranking team, including: 

- Steve @vanhorn_44 on Twitter 

- Frank @hammerscoming

- Billy @Yanknuts1981

- Jamie @garlander25

- Matt @LegendSportsVP

- "Ill" Bill @illbill1000

- Mark @markyoso 

And don't forget to Follow me on Twitter @LegendSports7 for all things baseball, football and basketball! 

5. The stats I focused on for position players were: WAR, wRC+ and OPS. 

6. The stats I focused on for starting pitchers were: WAR, ERA and WHIP. 

7. The stats I focused on for relief pitchers were: WHIP, ERA, Saves and/or Holds. 

8. As I rank the players for you here, you'll see some of the stat notes and research points I was looking at during my lengthy process. 

All right, let's f'n go!!

TIER 1 

1. Shohei Ohtani: 2^nd in WAR, #28 wrc+, #10 OPS, #6 ERA, #12 WHIP

2. Aaron Judge: 1^st in WAR, #2 wrc+, #1 OPS

Tier Notes (stream of consciousness): Right now, I have Shohei Ohtani as the second-best baseball player of all time behind Babe Ruth, and Judge just had one of the most dominant offensive seasons in the history of the game.

TIER 2

3. Bryce Harper: 162 in WAR, #35 wrc+ (only played 99 games)

4. Paul Goldschmidt: 5^th in WAR, #5 wrc+, #3 OPS

5. Freddie Freeman: 18^th in WAR, #9 wrc+, #5 OPS

6. Yordan Alvarez: 7^th in WAR, #3 wrc+, #2 OPS

7. Manny Machado: 7^th in WAR, #11 wrc+, #6 OPS

8. Jose Ramirez: 15^th in WAR, #34 wrc+, #13 OPS

9. Mookie Betts: 11^th in WAR, #20 wrc+, #11 OPS

10. Mike Trout: 13^th in WAR, #6 wrc+

Tier Notes: Most will likely have Trout higher, but I'm still concerned about reports that suggested his latest back issues are going to "linger" for the rest of his pro career... I initially had Alvarez at No. 4 overall, but my ranking team said "too soon, Junior" - they wanna see more over a longer period of time and I get that... I understand if Harper's current injury would make people push him down to like No. 6 or 7 for now... we'll see how his recovery goes, I'm optimistic. 

TIER 3

11. Nolan Arenado: 4^th in WAR, #12 wrc+, #7 OPS

12. Juan Soto: 26^th in WAR, #19 wrc+, #15 OPS

13. Sandy Alcantara: 3^rd in WAR, #5 ERA, #9 WHIP

14. Rafael Devers: 52^nd in WAR, #29 wrc+, #8 OPS

15. Austin Riley: 9^th in WAR, #26 wrc+, #9 OPS

16. Jose Altuve: 35^th in WAR, #7 wrc+, #4 OPS

17. Trea Turner: 41^st in WAR, #66 wrc+, #32 OPS

18. Ronald Acuna: 130 in WAR, #131 wrc+, #62 OPS (Only played 119 games)

19. Xander Bogaerts: 22^nd in WAR, #47 wrc+, #19 OPS

Tier Notes: All things considered, Sandy Alcantara is the best pitcher in baseball right now... the Altuve/Turner/Acuna area was tough, very difficult to rank and split hairs there. 

TIER 4

20. Justin Verlander: 18^th in WAR, #1 ERA, #1 WHIP

21. Pete Alonso: 52^nd in WAR, #23 wrc+, #12 OPS

22. Julio Rodriguez: 15^th in WAR, #17 wrc+, #14 OPS

23. Corbin Burnes: 62^nd in WAR, #18 ERA, #8 WHIP

24. Carlos Correa: 28^th in WAR, #31 wrc+, #19 OPS

25. Fernando Tatis: Was suspended for testing positive for a banned substance 

26. Vladimir Guerrero: 70^th in WAR, #53 wrc+, #27 OPS

Tier Notes: I almost put Tatis at the back end of Tier 3, but let's play the "wait and see" game in terms of production without the banned substance... Correa's long-term injury concerns holding up his signing pushed him down a few spots from my initial ranking. 

TIER 5

27. Shane McClanahan: 70^th in WAR, #8 ERA, #3 WHIP     

28. Jose Abreu: 60^th in WAR, #37 wrc+, #23 OPS

29. Alex Bregman: 48^th in WAR, #42 wrc+, #25 OPS

30. Dylan Cease: 11^th in WAR, #3 ERA, #20 WHIP

31. Aaron Nola: 15^th in WAR, #23 ERA, #7 WHIP    

32. Gerrit Cole: 173 in WAR, #30 ERA, #14 WHIP

33. J.T. Realmuto: 9^th in WAR, #69 wrc+, #25 OPS

34. Jacob deGrom: 3.08 ERA, 0.75 WHIP (only made 11 starts) 

Tier Notes: This group seems pretty logical and safe to me, though deGrom would be higher if he was a bit younger and/or had more durability... Realmuto is the best catcher in baseball right now, hands down. 

 TIER 6

35. Francisco Lindor: 28^th in WAR, #73 wrc+, #46 OPS

36. Framber Valdez: 85^th in WAR, #11 ERA, #24 WHIP

37. George Springer: 70^th in WAR, #52 wrc+, #30 OPS

38. Bo Bichette: 88^th in WAR, #62 wrc+, #39 OPS

39. Julio Urias: 41^st in WAR, #2 ERA, #6 WHIP 

40. Zack Wheeler: 38^th in WAR, 2.82 ERA, 1.04 WHIP    

41. Alek Manoah: 18^th in WAR, #4 ERA, #10 WHIP

42. Max Fried: 18^th in WAR, #7 ERA, #13 WHIP    

43. Carlos Rodon: 28^th in WAR, #13 ERA, #15 WHIP

44. Jeff McNeil: 22^nd in WAR, #25 wrc+, #18 OPS

45. Kyle Tucker: 33^rd in WAR, #61 wrc+, #33 OPS

46. Yu Darvish: 48^th in WAR, #20 ERA, #4 WHIP

47. Starling Marte: 79^th in WAR, #43 wrc+, #29 OPS

Tier Notes: Those 3 Mets can be interchangeable on any given day... Lindor, McNeil or Marte could all be the best of the 3 in a particular week or month... McNeil's numbers show he's MUCH better than No. 44 overall, but my ranking team knocked him down from the high 20s or low 30s... Urias/Wheeler/Manoah/Fried and Rodon are extremely difficult to rank - razor thin margins. 

 TIER 7

48. Max Scherzer: 31^st in WAR, 2.29 ERA, 0.91 WHIP

49. Shane Bieber: 88^th in WAR, #12 ERA, #17 WHIP

50. Edwin Diaz: 105 in WAR, 32 saves, 1.31 ERA

51. Matt Olson: 100^th in WAR, #103 wrc+, #39 OPS

52. Kyle Schwarber: 194 in WAR, #65 wrc+, #22 OPS   

53. Clayton Kershaw: 79^th in WAR, 2.28 ERA, 0.94 WHIP  

54. Zac Gallen: 35^th in WAR, #9 ERA, #2 WHIP

55. Nestor Cortes: 60^th in WAR, 2.44 ERA, 0.92 WHIP

56. Corey Seager: 62^nd in WAR, #114 wrc+, #56 OPS

57. Tim Anderson: #150 wrc+ (only played 79 games)

58. Luis Castillo: 62^nd in WAR, 2.99 ERA, 1.08 WHIP

59. Anthony Rizzo: 186 in WAR, #50 wrc+, #28 OPS

60. Byron Buxton: 70^th in WAR, #44 wrc+ (only played 92 games)

Tier Notes: Anderson and Buxton need to stay healthy if they wanna climb this list... Diaz is the only closer who makes the top 50... Kershaw/Gallen/Cortes is too close to call for so many different reasons. 

TIER 8

61. Willson Contreras: 76^th in WAR, #54 wrc+   

62. Luis Arraez: 52^nd in WAR, #56 wrc+, #42 OPS   

63. Brandon Nimmo: 38^th in WAR, #46 wrc+, #41 OPS

64. Will Smith: 62^nd in WAR, #70 wrc+, #33 OPS

65. Logan Webb: 45^th in WAR, #15 ERA, #26 WHIP

66. Tyler Anderson: 57^th in WAR, #10 ERA, #11 WHIP

67. Joe Musgrove: 105 in WAR, #17 ERA, #18 WHIP

68. Logan Gilbert: 105 in WAR, #22 ERA, #30 WHIP

Tier Notes: Contreras and Smith are the 2nd and 3rd best catchers in the game, respectively... Arraez is like the American League's Jeff McNeil... Webb/Anderson/Musgrove and Gilbert have been pretty consistent in recent years. 

TIER 9

69. Andres Gimenez: 6^th in WAR, #32 wrc+, #17 OPS   

70. Marcus Semien: 22^nd in WAR, #163 wrc+, #76 OPS

71. Dansby Swanson: 22^nd in WAR, #124 wrc+, #52 OPS

72. Jeremy Pena: 45^th in WAR, #207 wrc+, #93 OPS

73. Teoscar Hernandez: 141 in WAR, #60 wrc+, #35 OPS

74. Rhys Hoskins: 113 in WAR, #95 wrc+, #43 OPS

75. Kevin Gausman: 118 in WAR, #25 ERA, #36 WHIP      

76. Triston McKenzie: 70^th in WAR, #19 ERA, #5 WHIP  

77. Brady Singer: 51^st in WAR, 3.23 ERA, 1.14 WHIP

78. Spencer Strider: 85^th in WAR, 2.67 ERA, 0.99 WHIP

79. Cristian Javier: 85^th in WAR, 2.54 ERA, 0.95 WHIP

Tier Notes: Purely based on analytical stats, Gimenez was one of the absolute best all-around players in baseball last season... Pena strikes many as a potential long-term star for the Astros... Singer and Strider seem like they are gonna be around a long, long time in top tiers. 

TIER 10

80. Ty France: 118 in WAR, #75 wrc+, #53 OPS

81. Blake Snell: 128 innings, 3.38 ERA, 1.20 WHIP

82. Brandon Woodruff: 141 in WAR, 3.05 ERA, 1.07 WHIP

83. Michael Harris: 31^st in WAR, #41 wrc+

84. Tony Gonsolin: 47^th in WAR, 2.14 ERA, 0.87 WHIP

85. Yandy Diaz: 94^th in WAR, #15 wrc+, #23 OPS    

86. Kyle Wright: 88^th in WAR, #21 ERA, #25 WHIP

87. Jeffrey Springs: 88^th in WAR, 2.46 ERA, 1.07 WHIP

88. Bryan Reynolds: 118 in WAR, #78 wrc+, #37 OPS

89. Randy Arozarena: 130 in WAR, #82 wrc+, #56 OPS

90. Jazz Chisholm: 162 in WAR, #33 wrc+ (only played 60 games)

91. Eloy Jimenez: #22 wrc+ (only played 84 games)

92. Taylor Ward: 79^th in WAR, #39 wrc+, #19 OPS

Tier Notes: Splitting hairs between these Rays, when it comes to Yandy/Arozarena and Springs - Rasmussen is coming very soon, too... Reynolds is pretty consistent... Chisholm, Eloy and Ward have the upside, obviously. 

TIER 11

93. Adley Rutschman: 33^rd in WAR, #49 wrc+

94. Drew Rasmussen: 125 in WAR, 2.84 ERA, 1.04 WHIP

95. Emmanuel Clase: 130 in WAR, 42 saves, 1.36 ERA

96. Pablo Lopez: 118 in WAR, #33 ERA, #28 WHIP

97. Justin Turner: #88 wrc+, #46 OPS 

98. DJ LeMahieu: 76^th in WAR, #120 wrc+, #75 OPS

99. Ozzie Albies: #260 wrc+ (only played 64 games)

100. Josh Bell: 118 in WAR, #90 wrc+, #49 OPS

Tier Notes: Turner and LeMahieu are basically the same guy, right? Clase comes in as the second-best reliever in the world... Albies will need to bounce back this upcoming season. 

 TIER 12

101. Jake Cronenworth: 62^nd in WAR, #156 wrc+, #87 OPS

102. Chris Bassitt: 105 in WAR, #28 ERA, #23 WHIP      

103. Alejandro Kirk: 76^th in WAR, #63 wrc+, #48 OPS

104. Willy Adames: 52^nd in WAR, #155 wrc+, #66 OPS 

105. Cedric Mullins: 79^th in WAR, #174 wrc+, #91 OPS    

106. J.D. Martinez: #107 wrc+, #45 OPS

107. Giancarlo Stanton: #130 wrc+ 

108. Eugenio Suarez: 70^th in WAR, #57 wrc+, #44 OPS

109. Michael Brantley: #72 wrc+ (only played 64 games)

110. Martin Perez: 38^th in WAR, #14 ERA, #37 WHIP

111. Ryan Pressly: 33 saves, 2.98 ERA, 0.89 WHIP

112. Tommy Edman: 13^th in WAR, #161 wrc+, #83 OPS

113. Steven Kwan: 27^th in WAR, #86 wrc+, #54 OPS

114. Miles Mikolas: 173 in WAR, #24 ERA, #16 WHIP

115. George Kirby: 130 innings, 3.39 ERA, 1.21 WHIP

116. Michael Kopech: 194 in WAR  

117. Ketel Marte: #200 wrc+, #80 OPS

118. Patrick Sandoval: 101^st in WAR, 2.91 ERA, 1.34 WHIP     

119. Salvador Perez: 141 in WAR, #158 wrc+

Tier Notes: Kirk was out-of-this-world good, I couldn't believe it... was nice to see Suarez bounce back after some bad years... is Martin Perez really THIS good now? Edman and Kwan were two of the best all-around players in '22 actually... hard to judge Sal Perez at his age, now. 

 TIER 13

120. Sean Murphy: 94^th in WAR, #93 wrc+, #64 OPS

121. Josh Hader: 36 saves, 5.22 ERA, 1.28 WHIP

122. Hunter Renfroe: 151 in WAR, #87 wrc+, #35 OPS

123. Ryan Helsley: 141 in WAR, 19 saves, 1.25 ERA

124. Nick Castellanos: #254 wrc+, #107 OPS

125. Kris Bryant: #79 wrc+ (only played 42 games)

126. Eric Lauer: 158 innings, 3.69 ERA, 1.22 WHIP

127. Christian Walker: 35^th in WAR, #92 wrc+, #38 OPS

128. Anthony Santander: #100 wrc+, #54 OPS

129. Gleyber Torres: 62^nd in WAR, #126 wrc+, #63 OPS

130. Merrill Kelly: 94^th in WAR, #26 ERA, #22 WHIP

131. Andrew Benintendi: 105 in WAR, #94 wrc+, #56 OPS    

132. Scott Barlow: 130 in WAR, 24 saves, 2.18 ERA

133. Devin Williams: 4^th in Holds, 15 saves, 1.93 ERA, 1.01 WHIP

134. Bobby Witt: #223 wrc+, #87 OPS

135. Luis Robert: #143 wrc+ (only played 98 games)

136. Ian Happ: 57^th in WAR, #106 wrc+, #51 OPS

137. C.J. Cron: #209 wrc+, #50 OPS    

138. Amed Rosario: 62^nd in WAR, #198 wrc+, #93 OPS

139. Nate Lowe: 102 in WAR, #24 wrc+, #16 OPS

140. Trevor Story: 162 in WAR, #216 wrc+ (only played 94 games)

141. Adolis Garcia: 88^th in WAR, #141 wrc+, #66 OPS

142. Trey Mancini: #189 wrc+, #97 OPS

Tier Notes: The Braves have their catcher of the future now in Murphy... Hader was god awful but I'm sure he'll bounce back to some extent... Barlow is a quietly steady reliever... Lowe had a fantastic season. 

TIER 14

143. Cal Raleigh: 79^th in WAR, #99 wrc+

144. Taijuan Walker: 153 in WAR, 3.49 ERA, 1.19 WHIP

145. Jameson Taillon: #34 ERA, #21 WHIP

146. Jordan Romano: 125 in WAR, 36 saves, 2.11 ERA

147. Brandon Lowe: #185 wrc+ (only played 65 games)

148. Wander Franco: 153 in WAR, #119 wrc+ (only played 83 games)

149. Daniel Bard: 79^th in WAR, 34 saves, 1.79 ERA   

150. Jonathan India: #251 wrc+ (only played 103 games)

151. Ke'Bryan Hayes: 57^th in WAR, #304 wrc+, #118 OPS

152. A.J. Minter: 1^st in Holds, 5 saves, 2.06 ERA, 0.91 WHIP

153. William Contreras: 130 in WAR, #36 wrc+

154. Brandon Drury: 153 in WAR, #89 wrc+, #31 OPS 

155. Daulton Varsho: 41^st in WAR, #168 wrc+, #70 OPS

Tier Notes: Some of the most promising young catchers in the game, here... Raleigh and Contreras obviously, while Varsho is also a part-time catcher... Franco and Hayes are the upside youngsters here... Walker and Taillon were steady starters. 

TIER 15

156. Raisel Iglesias: 17 saves, 2.47 ERA, 0.97 WHIP

157. Liam Hendriks: 37 saves, 2.81 ERA, 1.04 WHIP  

158. Ha-Seong Kim: 41^st in WAR, #176 wrc+, #100 OPS

159. Brendan Donovan: 62^nd in WAR, #59 wrc+

160. Jean Segura: #180 wrc+ (only played 98 games)

161. Jose Quintana: 94^th in WAR, #16 ERA, #33 WHIP

162. Oscar Gonzalez: #91 wrc+ (only played 91 games)

163. Jesse Winker: #157 wrc+, #109 OPS

164. Jordan Montgomery: #29 ERA, #19 WHIP

165. Nico Hoerner: 48^th in WAR, #169 wrc+, #74 OPS

166. Frankie Montas: 144 innings, 4.05 ERA, 1.25 WHIP

167. Brendan Rodgers: 52^nd in WAR, #277 wrc+, #76 OPS

168. Johnny Cueto: 94^th in WAR, 3.35 ERA, 1.23 WHIP

169. Robbie Ray: #32 ERA, #31 WHIP

170. Christian Yelich: 151 in WAR, #146 wrc+, #73 OPS 

Tier Notes: Kim, Donovan and Hoerner all had outstanding years... Montas was horrible with the Yankees, but I think he'll right the ship some... Montgomery feels like a regression candidate to me. 

TIER 16

171. Vinnie Pasquantino: #38 wrc+ (only played 72 games)

172. Oneil Cruz: 186 in WAR, #173 wrc+ (only played 87 games)

173. Nick Lodolo: 141 in WAR, 131 Ks in 103 innings 

174. Tyler O'Neill: #212 wrc+ (only played 96 games)

175. Cal Quantrill: #27 ERA, #32 WHIP

176. Dean Kremer: 130 in WAR, 3.23 ERA, 1.25 WHIP

177. Ranger Suarez: 173 in WAR, 3.65 ERA, 1.33 WHIP

178. Joe Ryan: 194 in WAR, 3.55 ERA, 1.10 WHIP

179. Marcus Stroman: 162 in WAR, 3.50 ERA, 1.15 WHIP

180. Jon Gray: 127 innings, 3.96 ERA, 1.13 WHIP 

181. Matt Chapman: 94^th in WAR, #113 wrc+, #65 OPS

Tier Notes: Obviously we have transitioned to a bunch of upside players, here... I really liked what I saw out of Pasquantino, early... Cruz looks potentially explosive... Lodolo could approach the top 100 next season... Suarez came through in some tough spots for his squad. 

TIER 17

182. Max Muncy: 141 in WAR, #166 wrc+, #95 OPS    

183. Ross Stripling: 141 in WAR, 3.01 ERA, 1.02 WHIP

184. Tyler Stephenson: #48 wrc+ (only played 50 games)

185. Sonny Gray: 186 in WAR, 3.08 ERA, 1.13 WHIP

186. Alex Cobb: 153 in WAR, 3.73 ERA, 1.30 WHIP     

187. Mark Canha: 173 in WAR, #68 wrc+, #59 OPS 

188. Andrew Vaughn: #138 wrc+, #68 OPS

189. Alexis Diaz: 113 in WAR, 10 saves, 1.84 ERA, 0.96 WHIP

190. Michael Wacha: 102 in WAR, 3.32 ERA, 1.12 WHIP

191. Luis Garcia: 157 innings, 3.72 ERA, 1.13 WHIP 

192. Gio Urshela: 113 in WAR, #111 wrc+, #60 OPS

193. Jurickson Profar: 113 in WAR, #152 wrc+, #87 OPS

194. Jhoan Duran: 130 in WAR, 8 saves, 1.86 ERA, 0.96 WHIP 

195. Ryne Stanek: 194 in WAR, 1 save, 1.15 ERA, 1.22 WHIP   

196. Felix Bautista: 153 in WAR, 15 saves, 2.19 ERA

Tier Notes: Getting toward the end of the 200 and we still have a lot of strong relievers in here (Diaz, Duran, Stanek and Bautista)...Canha and Vaughn were very similar on paper... not exactly sure what to think about the direction of Muncy's career at this point. 

TIER 18

197. Nick Pivetta: 153 in WAR, #42 ERA, #42 WHIP  

198. Austin Hays: 186 in WAR, #179 wrc+, #92 OPS

199. Seth Brown: #118 wrc+, #69 OPS

200. Javier Baez: 153 in WAR, #116 OPS, #291 wrc+

Honorable Mention: Alex Verdugo: #195 wrc+, #76 OPS

Honorable Mention: Josh Rojas: 105 in WAR, #159 wrc+, #72 OPS

Honorable Mention: Chris Flexen: 137 innings, 3.73 ERA, 1.33 WHIP

Honorable Mention: Hunter Greene: 194 in WAR, 4.44 ERA, 1.21 WHIP

Honorable Mention: Patrick Wisdom: #188 wrc+, #83 OPS

Honorable Mention: Jason Adam: 14^th in Holds, 153 in WAR, 8 saves, 1.56 ERA

Tier Notes: I fully expect Greene to be well into the top 200 next season... Adam could have easily been in there, but I got flooded with similar relievers in the upper echelon... Hays, Brown, Verdugo and Rojas still have the potential to elevate their games as we move forward.

All right... this was a freakin' grind! Please bring all the debate to Twitter. Bring the fight to @LegendSports7 on Twitter - all questions and comments are ALWAYS welcome! 

John Frascella is a published baseball author who has been covering the MLB for 19 years. Follow him on Twitter @LegendSports7 for all things baseball, football and basketball.