Is Jose Ramirez the best third basemen in the MLB?

Jose Ramirez is among the best in the league but is the Cleveland Guardians third basemen the best?

It seems silly to propose the question but fans in Cleveland may not realize that Jose Ramirez is in contention for the best third basemen in the Majors and why shouldn’t he be? Without even getting into the stats of it all, Ramirez is the only player in the Majors to finish in the Top 6 four times in the last five years and three times in the Top 3 of the AL MVP voting.

That’s pretty impressive.

Yet, does that make him the best player in the league at his position? Well, MLB Network sure seems to think so. They released their Top 10 and Ramirez was No.1, followed by Boston’s Rafael Devers, Houston’s Alex Bregman, Los Angeles Dodgers’ Justin Turner, former Guardian turned New York Yankee’s Josh Donaldson, Los Angeles Angels’ Anthony Rendon, San Diego’s Manny Machado, St. Louis’ Nolan Arenado, Chicago White Sox’s Yoan Moncada, and Colorado’s Kris Bryant.

But is Ramirez the true cream of the crop?

The Cleveland Guardians have the best third basemen in Jose Ramirez

Everyone is going to have their own opinion and granted, this isn’t the most open-and-shut evaluation as there are a few guys who are certainly in consideration alongside Ramirez. So what separates Ramirez from the pack and what keeps the contest close?

Well, his clutch hitting is pretty good, and while no one player can carry a baseball team, Ramirez is among the few that make you think it’s possible that they could. His timely hitting, versatility at the plate, and patience make him a hard out.

Yet, baseball is played in two facets for many and that includes batting and fielding. While Ramirez isn’t a bad fielder and is quite good at the hot corner, the truth is that there are better defenders than Ramirez, albeit not many.

That would be the one area where you could argue that some of the guys on the list behind him have an advantage but when you have a perennial MVP candidate, it’s going to take more than a fancy glove to disprove Ramirez’s top spot for third basemen.