MLB best: The top 3 third basemen right now
By Ben Fadden
3. Justin Turner (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Justin Turner has been one of the best third basemen in the league for the better part of the last five seasons since he arrived at Chavez Ravine, including three of those five seasons with a batting average well over .300.
Last season, Turner got hit in the hand by Kendall Graveman, breaking his left wrist during Spring Training, sidelining Los Angeles’ star for the beginning of the year.
That injury led to speculation by so many people including me that thought that the Los Angeles Dodgers had finally come back down to Earth, as the club was struggling in April and May, but once Turner came back, they were back.
He went on to hit 14 home runs with a batting average north of .300 in addition to an on-base percentage over .400.
The Dodgers went on to lose the Fall Classic to the Boston Red Sox, but during the series he hit .333 and scoring two runs, just showing that he is as important to the Dodgers as Mookie Betts is to the Red Sox.
In 2019, Turner is projected to hit 17 home runs with a .286 batting average and a .370 on-base percentage.
He is sure to have a great year with the addition of A.J. Pollock, meaning he will get more RBI’s because Pollock is one of the best lead off hitters in the game. He will also be getting more protection this year after huge years from Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy.
My #2 third basemen already has more gold gloves than David Wright and Alex Rodriguez combined…