![24 August 2016: Arizona Diamondbacks First base Paul Goldschmidt (44) [7900] slides back to first as Atlanta Braves First base Freddie Freeman (5) [7105] holds him on during a game between Atlanta Braves and the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase field. (Photo by Kevin French/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/fa04a1ab6b19f883f4d499af9de3d01d3b86f09bb1c438aaead386c2dec98a73.jpg "24 August 2016: Arizona Diamondbacks First base Paul Goldschmidt (44) [7900] slides back to first as Atlanta Braves First base Freddie Freeman (5) [7105] holds him on during a game between Atlanta Braves and the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase field. (Photo by Kevin French/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)")
2. Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
Freddie Freeman is a close close second to Goldschmidt. He posted a .309/.388/.505 with an .892 OPS.
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While the Braves star doesn’t have quite the home run pop that Goldschmidt does he just so happened to lead the league in doubles and helped lead Atlanta out of it’s rebuild to the NL East division crown.
All of this led Freeman to finishing 4th in the MVP voting at the end of the year. Plus at just 29-years-old Freeman is still in his prime and will likely continue to be an important part of the Braves new contention window.
1. Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
Paul Goldschmidt has been in every All Star game since 2013, while also being worth about 6 WAR in each of those years on average.
But specifically in 2018, Goldschmidt slashed .290/.389/.533 with a .922 OPS and 33 home runs. That line earned Goldschmidt a sixth place finish in MVP voting and his fourth Silver Slugger award.
The 31-year-old earns the top spot because not only is he one of the best hitters in the game but he also is a Gold Glove caliber defender (three in his career). Goldschmidt also presents a lot of value on the basepaths. While he only stole seven bases in 2018 he once stole 32 and 18 just two years ago in the 2017 season.
How complete of a player is led to the Cardinals trading for him in an attempt to make it back to the postseason, and if Goldschmidt performs up to the standard we expect they’ll have a pretty good chance.