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Atlanta Braves: Is Austin Riley the most underrated third baseman in MLB?

ByNoah Yingling|
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 29: Austin Riley #27 of the Atlanta Braves smiles in the dugout after scoring in the seventh inning of game 2 in a series between the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies at Truist Park on September 29, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Casey Sykes/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 29: Austin Riley #27 of the Atlanta Braves smiles in the dugout after scoring in the seventh inning of game 2 in a series between the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies at Truist Park on September 29, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Casey Sykes/Getty Images)

Austin Riley had a phenomenal 2021 season and he was a huge reason why the Atlanta Braves won the 2021 World Series.

In 2021, the 24-year-old Riley led the NL in games played (160) and he hit .303/.367/.531 with 33 doubles, 33 homers, 107 RBI, and an OPS+ of 132. He also led all NL players in Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) at the third base position, which helped him get an fWAR of 4.2 and an rWAR of 6.1, the latter of which was second among primary third basemen. He came in seventh in NL MVP voting and won a Silver Slugger Award.

However, he didn’t get an All-Star nod and he didn’t even get nominated for a Gold Glove Award.

He was snubbed again on Thursday when MLB Network released their list of the “Top 10 Third Basemen Right Now” and Riley didn’t even get on the list.

Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley is one of the most underrated third basemen in the game

“The Shredder,” which is MLB Network’s computer system that develops these lists, completely left off Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley off of their “Top 10 Third Basemen Right Now” list.

One of the biggest problems with the list is that it considers the last three seasons. In 2019 and 2020, Riley only played in 131 games and he hit .232/.288/.488 with an OPS+ of 86.

But entering the 2022 season, Riley is only of the top 10 third basemen in the game.

The humans that had their own lists on the show included host Brian Kenny, analyst and former MLB infielder Bill Ripken, special guest Hannah Keyser of Yahoo! Sports, and the “sabermetric super panel” of MLB.com’s Mike Petriello and Sarah Langs as well as former SABR President Vince Gennaro.

Brian Kenny ranked Riley all the way up at #2, just behind Cleveland Guardians third baseman José Ramírez, who was also #1 on “The Shredder.” Ripken, Petriello, and Langs had Riley at #5, Gennaro had him at #6, Keyser had him at #7.

Fans had Riley at #3.

So, overall, at least by the analysts, it doesn’t look like Riley is underrated but by “The Shredder,” he most definitely is but if he has a similar season in 2022, Riley will most definitely be on the list next offseason.

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