MLB players weigh in on top 100: Hits and misses of MLB Rank

Our hope was that players would ditch their social filters while critiquing our rankings and weigh in as if they had just swallowed a carafe of truth serum. Like Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson, who was stunned by the standing of Mike Trout, against whom he has played 44 games in his career.

“I know there’s always recency bias,” Olson said, “but I’m a little more swayed by the guys who have been there and done it for a while … Mike Trout at 19. That’s ridiculous.

“Nolan Arenado at No. 44? Goldschmidt at 47? That’s pretty wild.”

Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa, known for his knowledge of advanced analytics, had the same reaction to Trout’s standing: “Oooooh, I don’t like it. I don’t like it. Obviously, he’s had injuries and hasn’t been on the field as much, but when he’s on the field, he’s top 5, for sure.”

The sentiments of Olson and Correa reflected a common theme heard from most of the players we spoke to: Many felt accomplished peers did not get enough credit for what they have done, and very young players got too much credit for future expectations. Corbin Carroll landing at No. 10 over the likes of Trout and Bryce Harper raised some eyebrows. Julio Rodriguez, who has one more season of experience than Carroll, is behind him in the rankings, which surprised Correa.

“I think I would put Julio over Corbin Carroll,” Correa said. “Corbin had a good year; Julio proved he could do it in the second year [of his career], which is the toughest year. And there’s just an aura around Julio, that he’s going to do something special every time he steps on the field.”

Kyle Farmer, Correa’s teammate in Minnesota, agreed that Rodriguez should be higher on the list: “He’s my dark horse for AL MVP. He’s going to have a really good year. That contract [that Rodriguez got last year] is going to push him.”

Correa agreed with Ronald Acuna Jr.’s position at No. 1 and Aaron Judge at No. 2, but he disagreed with the order of the next two players on the list. “I’d put Mookie Betts ahead of Juan [Soto], because he is an all-round player who can do everything. Juan is one of the best hitters in the game, but Mookie’s defense just sets him apart.”

One NL reliever opined that Corey Seager was too high on this list at No. 6, but Farmer thought his former teammate from his days with the Los Angeles Dodgers was too low. “I think Corey Seager should be No. 2,” Farmer said. “I played with that guy for so long in the minors, and watching him in the World Series [last fall] was just incredible. He puts up numbers every friggin’ year.”

Farmer also pointed out Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez at No. 17, saying, “He’s always underrated — always. He’s one of the best hitters in the league every year, and every year, he does the exact same thing. The sneaky speed — as an infielder, you always have to be ready with him, because he doesn’t look like he’s fast, but he’s fast.”

Another veteran who players thought landed too low on this year’s list was Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto at No. 60. “He should be higher,” Farmer said. “That guy is the best catcher in the league. I just like the way Realmuto goes about his business.”

Some players believed that Rafael Devers was too low at No. 30, given his production; over the past five seasons, Dever has an adjusted OPS+ of 131. Devers himself glanced over the list while sitting on a couch in the Boston Red Sox clubhouse and focused on one player he thinks should be higher: the Houston Astros’ Kyle Tucker, who is at No. 28. “He does everything,” Devers said. “He can run, he can field, he can hit. He can do everything. Gold Glover. He needs to be at about [No.] 20.”

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Farmer agreed: “Tucker is underrated on that team, because he gets overshadowed by Yordan Alvarez.”

Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman thought Matt Chapman was too low at No. 82 and believes that teammate Gunnar Henderson (No. 37) will climb the list this year. The Orioles’ Kolten Wong was among several players who felt that Luis Arraez was too low at No. 42. “If you’re winning back-to-back batting titles in two different leagues, then you should be up there,” he said.

Kenley Jansen said he assessed the list through the prism of his own experience — who was difficult to pitch against? — and with that perspective, he focused on Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at No. 35. “Corbin Carroll over Vladdy?” Jansen said, pointing at Guerrero’s name. “That guy in that lineup — I mean that guy is a distraction. Some of the names on this list that I faced don’t stress me as much as [Vladdy] stresses me.”

Farmer took a similar tack in asserting that he thinks Braves ace Spencer Strider, who sits at No. 15, is a top-10 player.

“Facing him is not fun,” Farmer said. “His fastball absolutely yells at you as it comes by. He’s my front-runner for Cy Young this year in the NL.”

He wasn’t the only pitcher whose ranking seemed low.

“I like Zack Wheeler; I’d like to see him higher,” Correa said. “I’d probably flip Zack [over] Corbin Burnes.” Correa was also shocked to see Sonny Gray at No. 80 following a year in which he finished second in the AL Cy Young Award voting.

“Who’s at 100?” Farmer asked as he scrolled to the bottom of the list, before seeing another old friend. “Walker Buehler? Hasn’t pitched in two years and he’s in the top 100. I love Walker, he’s one of my good buddies, but you have to play to be in the top 100, right?”

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Braves reliever A.J. Minter acknowledged he has his own biases — namely, for his teammates — and advocated for Ozzie Albies moving ahead of Henderson. He was among a number of players who took issue with how low relief pitchers are on the list — Josh Hader is the highest at No. 61 — and how few relievers were included, despite the fact that relievers, as a group, have been assuming a larger share of innings in recent seasons.

“I wished I’d see more relievers on here, more closers,” Minter said. “You’ve got Devin [Williams, at No. 99] barely making it, and he’s definitely been one of the more dominant relievers-slash-closers in the past three years.”

Every player we interviewed disagreed with the placement of at least one player. A few pointed to Elly De La Cruz (No. 72) and Anthony Volpe (No. 95) as too high, given their relative inexperience. But few disagreed with the premise entirely.

“I got to say — this is a pretty solid list,” Correa said. “I like this list a lot. If you did this list, then you know baseball.”

Now, after seeing where his own name is on the top 100, he’s looking ahead to the 2025 edition.

“You put me at 78,” Correa mused. “That’s going to change for next year.”