By the time you read this, two regular-season games already will have been played in Australia. Only 2,428 to go.
For those of us who love the sport, this feels like a superb time for competitiveness — there is a lot of contention belief all over the landscape — and for prospects. One scout rattled off Astros shortstop Carlos Correa, Twins outfielder Byron Buxton, A’s shortstop Addison Russell, Mets starter Noah Syndergaard and Cubs shortstop Javier Baez and third baseman Kris Bryant as generating a lot of buzz this spring, making this “an exciting period for prospects, maybe the best depth we have had in 10 years.”
Does anything make a baseball fan feel better than expectation that his team will contend and that more top-tiered players on the way? It felt like a good time to ask about the best of the sport. So I did. And 18 scouts and executives were kind enough to respond to my request for their five best players, starting pitchers, relievers, managers, general managers and teams going into the 2014 campaign.
A few things: Not everyone answered every question — some were particularly squeamish on the GM subject. But some obvious patterns were established. For example, Mike Trout and Miguel Cabrera were named on every ballot for best player, and Clayton Kershaw on every ballot for best starter.
But there also were some surprises. Here are the results:
Best player
Trout and Cabrera were 1-2, Andrew McCutchen was named on all but one ballot, then there was a huge dropoff to Robinson Cano fourth, and a tie for fifth among Yadier Molina (“Insane offensive production, excellent defense, and durability at the hardest position in the game. He is the furthest separated from his peers”), Buster Posey (“really striking what he’s able to do offensively given his position and the ballpark he plays in”) and Paul Goldschmidt. Troy Tulowitzki just missed out, while Dustin Pedroia, Giancarlo Stanton and Chris Davis were named on multiple ballots. Joey Votto, Evan Longoria and — fascinating to me, at least — Ryan Braun were tabbed once each.
The admiration for Trout’s “overflowing toolbox” was universal, with one GM saying, “He is basically the real-life version of Robocop.”
A scout offered: “Where is the weakness in his game? And he is just 22.” Cabrera universally was cited as the toughest hitter in the game. One personnel head said, “No one you want to see come up against you less in a big spot – and it is not close.”
One scout summed up McCutchen this way: “He is drama-free, cool and unselfish.”
Best starter
Kershaw was on five more ballots than anyone else, with the panel gushing not just about his skills on the field, but what a terrific ambassador for the sport he is off the field. One assistant GM lauded, “power stuff, power mentality, true ace.” A personnel head said, “What you want on the mound, in the clubhouse, in your community.”
Justin Verlander, coming off for him a down season, and Jose Fernandez, in his first campaign, finished tied for second.
On Verlander, an AL assistant GM said, “He can hit triple-digit velocity with three secondary pitches that are all above average. They don’t make them like this.”
An NL assistant GM on Fernandez: “He has a 94-98 mph fastball, maybe the best curve in the sport, and maybe more than anything he has that drive that he wants to beat you. You can feel it. Like when Pedro [Martinez] was in his prime.”
Felix Hernandez and Yu Darvish tied for fourth, with Adam Wainwright, David Price and Max Scherzer deadlocked just behind them, and Chris Sale and Cliff Lee tied in the next group.
Want some encouragement, Mets fans? Matt Harvey got two votes, despite the likelihood he will miss this season. A GM said he was going to vote for Verlander, “but there’s a chance that he just is the new Verlander.”
Madison Bumgarner, Gerrit Cole, Zack Greinke, Jon Lester, Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmermann each received a vote.
Best reliever
Craig Kimbrel was listed on all but one ballot, with one scout describing the Atlanta righty as “the definition of a power, shutdown closer.” Aroldis Chapman finished just one vote short of unanimous. So you have an idea what the Reds will be missing with their closer gone for at least six weeks after having a bone fractured near his left eye last week when he was drilled by a line drive. An assistant GM on Chapman: “If you ever wondered what Randy Johnson as a closer would look like, this is it.”
Kansas City’s Greg Holland (“a fastball/slider combo that rivals Kimbrel’s”) and the Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen (“a gentle giant with a power cutter”) tied for third, and the World Series closers, Boston’s Koji Uehara (“his strikeout-walk ratio of 101-9 was ridiculous”) and St. Louis’ Trevor Rosenthal (“When he takes something off for extra command, it’s still 95 mph”) tied for fifth. The only other reliever to get multiple votes was Detroit’s Joe Nathan, who is the active save leader with Mariano Rivera retired.
Among those receiving one vote was Rivera, with an NL personnel head saying, “If he comes out of retirement he would still be the best closer in the world.” Rivera’s Yankees successor, David Robertson, got one vote, as did Oakland’s Sean Doolittle and Jim Johnson, Tampa Bay’s Grant Balfour, Miami’s Steve Cishek and Minnesota’s Glen Perkins.
Best managers
Tampa Bay’s Joe Maddon received the most votes, getting appreciation for the loose yet professional atmosphere for his roster. St. Louis’ Mike Matheny was second. One scout summed up the duo: “Maddon has created a tremendous culture in a non-traditional way; Matheny has created a tremendous culture in a traditional way.”
Cleveland’s Terry Francona (“great mix of old school and new school. Players love and respect him”) and San Francisco’s Bruce Bochy (“Not many clubhouses buy into what the manager is selling as much as the Giant clubhouse does”) tied for third, and Boston’s John Farrell was fifth. Baltimore’s Buck Showalter and Pittsburgh’s Clint Hurdle were tied for sixth and the Yankees’ Joe Girardi and Oakland’s Bob Melvin for eighth.
Minnesota’s Ron Gardenhire, the Dodgers’ Don Mattingly and the Angels’ Mike Scioscia also each got a vote.
General managers
“Moneyball” might not have won the Oscar, but Oakland GM Billy Beane led in this voting, with one personnel man saying, “He continues to find ways to be ahead of trends.” Beane was followed by Tampa Bay’s Andrew Friedman (“I vacillate between calling him a ninja or a Jedi”), Detroit’s Dave Dombrowski (“year in and year out gets the job done — small trades, big trades, free agents, never scared to make a move”) and St. Louis’ John Mozeliak (“has stayed the Cardinal course, allowing good developers and scouts do their jobs, with a good blend of smart Sabremetric and baseball people”).
I was stunned by the fifth choice, Minnesota’s Terry Ryan. He was the Twins GM from 1994-2007 and took over again in 2011 with the organization floundering. Ryan is respected for his honesty, integrity and development of players. He actually has missed spring training while recuperating after having a cancerous lump removed from his neck.
The Yankees’ Brian Cashman, Atlanta’s Frank Wren and San Francisco’s Brian Sabean tied for sixth, followed by Boston’s Ben Cherington. Arizona’s Kevin Towers, Texas’ John Daniels, Cleveland’s Chris Antonetti, Pittsburgh’s Neal Huntington and San Diego’s Josh Byrnes.