Although the third baseman category is dominated by one player, unless you have the first pick in the draft, you are not likely to have the opportunity to draft Detroit Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera. After Cabrera, there are many good options to consider. Here are my rankings for the top ten third basemen for the 2013 baseball season.
#10. Pablo Sandoval – San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants received a huge push in the 2012 World Series from Pablo Sandoval with a game 1 performance for the history books with three home runs in a game that was started by Tigers ace Justin Verlander. Pablo was red hot in the playoffs with six home runs, while he only had 12 home runs in the entire regular season with 64 RBI. Sandoval played in only 108 games last season, but looks to come out strong after a brilliant postseason performance.
#9. Alex Rodriguez – New York Yankees UPDATE: Surgery for Alex Rodriguez, Could Miss Half of Season
Alex Rodriguez had a very average performance in his 122 games last season. With 18 home runs and 57 RBI, Rodriguez had the lowest numbers of his career in a season where he played over 100 games. Rodriguez makes this list only because of his overall talent and past production. After being benched for much of the playoffs, his outlook as a Yankee is not very good. A trade may be the best thing for Alex and for fantasy owners.
#8. Aramis Ramirez – Milwaukee Brewers
In his first year with the Milwaukee Brewers, Aramis Ramirez looked like a new man. Ramirez had 27 home runs, 105 RBI, batting average of .300, and a career high in steals with nine. At the age of 34, he isn’t getting any younger, but looks to be a solid producer at third base.
#7. David Wright – New York Mets
After a poor 2011 performance, David Wright returned to his old form with an .883 OPS in 2012. Wright had 15 steals, 21 home runs, and 93 RBI. Wright is once again an elite third baseman prospect for your fantasy team. There are better options for the upcoming season, but you could do much worse as well.
#6. Chase Headley – San Diego Padres
For having such a great season, Chase Headley went mostly unnoticed in the world of sports. Headley’s career high for RBI in a season prior to 2011 was 64. In 2012, Headley had 115 RBI and 31 home runs while batting .286. Before Headley reaches the top of this list, we need to be sure that he can string a couple of solid seasons together. His performance last year was unprecedented, it is unknown whether he can match his incredible performance in the upcoming year.
#5. Ryan Zimmerman – Washington Nationals
Ryan Zimmerman recently had surgery on his right shoulder that bothered him throughout this past season. He is now on schedule to enter spring training completely healthy. Back to full health in 2013, Zimmerman should be able to improve on his 25 home runs and 95 RBI, both of which were in the top six of all third basemen.
#4. Adrian Beltre – Texas Rangers
Adrian Beltre had one of the best seasons of his 15 year career in 2012. Beltre had 36 home runs, 102 RBI, and a .321 batting average. Although his age is starting to creep up on him, he doesn’t seem to be slowing down. Expect a slight reduction in his numbers this upcoming season, but he remains a top five third baseman.
#3. Hanley Ramirez – Los Angeles Dodgers
Hanley Ramirez is a converted short stop who is now the Los Angeles Dodgers’ third baseman. Although he had a career high in strikeouts in 2012 with 132, he managed 24 home runs, 92 RBI, and 21 steals, which led all third basemen in steals. Expect a big full season for Ramirez in a Dodgers uniform as he hit his stride late in the ’12 season when he finally settled in on his new team after being traded from the Miami Marlins. Look for Ramirez to break 100 RBI and 30 home runs with a similar steal count and a batting average around .260.
#2. Evan Longoria – Tampa Bay Rays
Don’t let Evan Longoria’s injury riddled season stop you from considering him the second best third baseman to draft in 2013. The Tampa Bay Rays obviously aren’t concerned about his injury as they extended his contract an extra six years and by $100 Million. Longoria will return to his previous form and hit for 100 RBI, around 30 home runs, and have a batting average in the neighborhood of .295. Other owners in your fantasy league may wait on Longoria because of his low numbers from last season due to injury, so pick him up before they even realize what happened. Evan Longoria will be a huge pickup for your team on draft day.
#1. Miguel Cabrera – Detroit Tigers
Miguel Cabrera is the hands down top choice for the third base position in your fantasy draft. Cabrera won the AL Triple Crown for the first time in 45 years. Cabrera batted .330 with 44 home runs, 139 RBI, and an incredible .999 OPS. Cabrera is not only the top choice at third base this season, he is the top choice overall. Cabrera is extremely reliable as he has played at least 150 games in each of the past 9 seasons, and has never had less than 25 home runs or 100 RBI.
More Content From This Contributor
2013 MLB Win-Loss Predictions; Division Winners
Top 10 MLB Fantasy Players Not to Draft: 2013 Baseball Prospects to Stay Away From
Outfielder Sleepers, Top 10 2013 MLB Fantasy Baseball of Underrated Players to Draft
2013 Closer Sleepers; MLB Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitchers & Closers to Draft
2013 Starting Pitcher Sleepers; Top 10 Underrated MLB Fantasy Baseball SP Players to Draft
