Baltimore Orioles: Manny Machado Among Baseball’s Top Third Basemen
By Nate Wardle
1. Toronto Blue Jays – Josh Donaldson, Darwin Barney
Prediction: 1st, Donaldson, Darwin Barney, Matt Dominguez
Josh Donaldson had another excellent year, keeping the Jays in first in the rankings. Donaldson hit .284/.404/.549 with 37 HRs, 32 2Bs, 99 RBIs, 122 runs, and a whopping 109 walks, most in his career. Donaldson was an All-Star for the third year in a row, with an oWAR of 7.2. He was in the top five in both on-base percentage and slugging in the American League.
No, Donaldson is not as good defensively as Machado, finishing with a dWAR of 0.4 and range numbers that were below the league average. Donaldson also made 14 errors at third base.
Darwin Barney proved to be a super utility guy for the Blue Jays and did an excellent job at third.
2017 will add another year to this intriguing rivalry, which started with these two fighting against each other back in Oakland.