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Fantasy Baseball 2014: Early Top 20 Third Base Rankings

Ray publishes his early top 20 third base rankings and discusses a few of them, including Manny Machado, Pedro Alvarez, and others.

By Ray Guilfoyle
Elsa

Today, I continue my early 2014 position rankings, and I give you my early take on the top 20 fantasy third baseman for 2014. I will not offer much in comments here, as I will save them for our 2014 Consensus Position Rankings that will publish beginning in January.

To date, I have published my early catcher, first base, second base and shortstop rankings, and you can find them in the links below, in addition to my early top 50 hitters and top 25 starting pitchers:

Catcher

First Base

Second Base

Shortstop

Early Top 50 Hitters for 2014

Early Top 25 Starting Pitcher Rankings for 2014

Now let's take a look at my early top 20 fantasy third base rankings for 2014:

Rank

Name

Team

1

Miguel Cabrera

Tigers

2

Adrian Beltre

Rangers

3

David Wright

Mets

4

Evan Longoria

Rays

5

Josh Donaldson

Athletics

6

Ryan Zimmerman

Nationals

7

Pedro Alvarez

Pirates

8

Matt Carpenter

Cardinals

9

Pablo Sandoval

Giants

10

Kyle Seager

Mariners

11

Martin Prado

Diamondbacks

12

Chase Headley

Padres

13

Brett Lawrie

Blue Jays

14

Aramis Ramirez

Brewers

15

Xander Bogaerts

Red Sox

16

Manny Machado

Orioles

17

Todd Frazier

Reds

18

Nolan Arenado

Rockies

19

Chris Johnson

Braves

20

Mike Moustakas

Royals

Pedro Alvarez, PIT

If you are looking for a pure power hitter in the infield, there aren't many better than Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez. Alvarez had a breakout season in 2013, hitting 36 home runs and drove in 100 runs, but hit just .233 and struck 30% of his plate appearances. If you can deal with the low BA, he helps you in the two power categories and will score 60-70 runs as well. He is what he is, a two outcome hitter - home runs and strikeouts. He has more value in standard fantasy and roto leagues than in points leagues due to his propensity to whiff.

David Wright, NYM

If you want a third baseman who won't hurt you in any of the five standard categories, Wright is your guy. I drafted Wright in the second round of a recent mock draft, mainly due to his ability hit for power and steal bases. Wright played in just 112 games in 2013, hitting .307 with 18 HRs, 63 runs, 58 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 20 attempts. He may not be the 30 home run hitter he was several years ago, but he still provides fantasy owners with solid five category production.

Pablo Sandoval, SFG

I might have Sandoval ranked a little high, but i expect him to have a bounce back, or better, season in 2014. His 2013 season was disappointing, as he hit .279 with 14 home runs and 79 RBI. His power is in a two year downtrend, but 2014 is his walk year, and I anticipate a bounce back from him.

Manny Machado, BAL

Yeah, he is ranked pretty low here, and the reason is due to the knee surgery Machado had after the season, and the news that he won't be ready for the start of the 2014 season. I tend to be very conservative when it comes to injuries, sometimes to my detriment. As we get closer to our January consensus rankings, we should have an update on how he is progressing in his rehab.

There is also the recent news that the Orioles still see him as a shortstop, and with J.J. Hardy in the last year of his contract in 2014, the Orioles could move Machado to shortstop in 2015, which would be a tremendous boost to his fantasy value.

Fantasy Rundown

If you are looking for more fantasy baseball rankings, make sure you check out Fantasy Rundown, the one stop spot on the internet for all the fantasy baseball information you will need to win in 2014.

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