MLB: The 2017 All Rookie Team – Hitters
By Kyle Cardoza
First Baseman: Yuli Gurriel
Many can argue that Cody Bellinger deserves this spot, but to ensure Gurriel earned his recognition, Bellinger was moved to the outfield crew.
As baseball fans have seen the past few days, Houston is a dangerous team for several reasons, one being its intimidating lineup. The Cuban first baseman fits right in, as he exceeded expectations this year for the Astros.
Gurriel isn’t as elite as the household names on the corner – Joey Votto, Freddie Freeman, Anthony Rizzo – and his numbers aren’t stacked in the upper echelon. But he was still a critical piece in Houston’s 101-win season.
His WAR is not too impressive, a modest 3.2, but he did hit nearly .300 with an .817 OPS. He gets the nod over Josh Bell mostly because he played on a more successful team, and because his numbers edged Bell’s by a slight margin.
Gurriel also led all first basemen in doubles, which propelled his slugging percentage to a solid .486. He beat out a handful of renowned hitters in that category, including Matt Carpenter and Wil Myers.
Compared to his teammates, Gurriel may not be a shining star. But he’s still an everyday player for arguably the best team in the American League.
One last point: had A’s first baseman Matt Olson played more games, he would have easily earned this spot. He boasted a 3.0 WAR, 1.003 OPS and rocketed 24 home runs in just 189 at-bats.
Third Baseman: Rafael Devers
The Pablo Sandoval experiment failed. Travis Shaw was long gone. Devin Marrero and Josh Rutledge weren’t answers.
Rafael Devers was the solution.
While the Dominican played in just 58 games, he finished with an impressive .284 average, smacking 10 home runs and garnering 30 RBIs. He had a better on-base percentage and slugging percentage than every other Red Sox third baseman, with the exception of Eduardo Nunez, who played four games in the hot corner.
In that time span, Devers managed to accumulate a higher WAR than some other promising up-and-comers at third, including Maikel Franco and Ryan Schimpf. Had he completed a full season at Fenway, he may have even passed up Comeback Player of the Year candidate Mike Moustakas and solid slugger Kyle Seager.
Devers put up similar numbers to one other young player – not a rookie – that has been deemed a top prospect before: Alex Bregman.
The Houston hot corner specialist finished his season with a .284/.352/.475 triple slash with 19 bombs and 71 RBIs. Both should be considered as part of the future at third base for their respective organizations.
Who will take the big leap into elite status next season?