Baltimore Orioles: J.J. Hardy Remains Near Bottom For Shortstops
By Nate Wardle
1. Boston Red Sox – Xander Bogaerts
Preseason prediction – 1st, Xavier Bogaerts, Brock Holt, Deven Marrero
The Red Sox young shortstop continued his ascent to one of the best offensive shortstops in the game in 2016. Bogaerts hit .294/.356/.446 with 21 HRs, 34 2Bs, 89 RBIs, 115 runs during the season for Boston. He had the fifth-most hits; sixth-most runs scored as a 23-year-old. The All-Star finished the year with an oWAR of 4.7, his best number so far in his career.
The only place where he gets dinged is on his defense. While not at the bottom of the league for his position, his dWAR was -0.1, and his range numbers were also below league average. Add in negative runs saved metric, and it gives Bogaerts something to work on in 2017.
However, the young star has shown his offensive abilities, and despite the struggles in the field, it is enough for him to keep his reign at the top in the shortstop rankings, and I anticipate him starting 2017 in the same spot.
As always, have a counter argument? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section!