The Top 25 Active Position Players To One Day Make It To Cooperstown - First Ten

 The Top 25 Active Position Players To One Day Make It To Cooperstown - First Ten 

There are a lot of active position players who may very well end up in Cooperstown. Despite the heavy pitching advantage, I have noticed that many of the fielders and sluggers of today’s game compare favorably against those of other times. A good portion of the players on my active lists will burn out and not make the Hall of Fame (take a look at what happened to Tim Lincecum), but as of now, these players are on the right track to baseball immortality. Let’s look at the list. 

Number 25: Giancarlo Stanton (rightfielder, .268/.359/.546, 312 home runs, 796 RBI, .980 F%)

Giancarlo Stanton has 312 career home runs going into his age 31 season, so it is not unrealistic to assume that he will reach 500, which would guarantee his enshrinement. He was the NL MVP in 2017 with a league leading 59 home runs and 132 RBI’s, and has hit 30 or more home runs in five of his seven full seasons. However, Stanton’s batting average is sketchy and his fielding is atrocious, not to mention the fact that he can’t stay healthy, so he pretty much has to hit 500 to ensure himself a Hall of Fame plaque. 

Number 24: Josh Donaldson (third baseman, .272/.369/.508, 225 home runs, 656 RBI, .958 F%) 

In an era of many great third basemen (Longoria, Arenado, Rendon, Machado, himself), Donaldson has proven that he is one of the best in the game. He was the AL MVP in 2015 and is a fine glove with excessive power. He had a late start to the game, playing his first full season at 27, and is 35 years old now. He has only 1,066 hits and a less than spectacular batting average, so he will be a longshot candidate at best. 

Number 23: Salvador Perez (catcher, .269/.300/.449, 152 home runs, 535 RBI, .995 F%) 

Perez is a fantastic defensive catcher (five Gold Gloves) with good power and a .333 average last season. He is still a top catcher at 30, still in his prime, but his 992 hits and 187 walks are - unimpressive. If he can dramatically improve his plate discipline and add the slightest bit of speed to his game, the Hall of Fame will likely be calling his name. 

Number 22: Bryce Harper (outfielder, .276/.387/.513, 232 home runs, 668 RBI, .983 F%) 

I know that a lot of you will be shocked to hear that the ever popular Harper is overpaid, overrated, a longshot Hall of Fame candidate. His power and patience are his best tools, and he does have some speed, but he is only a .276 lifetime hitter with an abundance of strikeouts and remarkable inconsistency. For example, he was the NL MVP in 2015, but batted .243 with 24 homers in 2016. He’s batted .257 over the last three seasons and is a below average fielder, but nevertheless is a great player with a legitimate shot at ultimate glory in Cooperstown. 

Number 21: Andrew McCutchen (outfielder, .285/.376/.478, 243 home runs, 853 RBI, .989 F%) 

“Cutch” is a fine player with all five tools that are looked upon as the key to success in baseball. He was the NL MVP in 2013, has won four Silver Sluggers, and led the league in hits and OBP each once. The problem is, he’s 34, and is rapidly losing his skills. McCutchen is still one of the better outfielders out there, but his lack of counting statistics is going to make it tough for him if he wants to make it to Cooperstown. 

Number 20: Andrelton Simmons (shortstop, .269/.317/.379, 67 home runs, 406 RBI, .981 F%) 

Yes, I am an Angels fan. Although Simmons has batting numbers that are not overwhelming, even for a shortstop, he is still a realistic Hall of Fame candidate. He is certainly one of the best defensive shortstops who I have ever seen (he has four Gold Glove awards) and is one of the “L.A. Guns”, along with future Hall of Famers Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon, and Albert Pujols. His slash line is hard to accept, even though this is an overwhelmingly heavy pitchers’ era, and he is 31 years old. Still, with a great season last year, he can still be considered a legitimate Hall of Fame possibility. 

Number 19: Evan Longoria (third baseman, .266/.334/.473, 304 home runs, 1,043 RBI, .966 F%) 

Longoria is a very good power hitter and one of the best gloves ever at third base. His batting and on base averages are not very impressive for a Hall of Fame candidate, but he saves so many hits on a daily basis that he was tenth in the 2011 AL MVP Award voting despite a .244 batting average. The 35 year old was the 2008 AL Rookie of the Year with the Rays, helping the club to its first pennant. He has, in my eyes, about a 50% shot at Cooperstown, so judge it as you will. 

Number 18: Christian Yelich (outfielder, .296/.381/.488, 151 home runs, 522 RBI, .990 F%) 

Christian Yelich is a great hitter and a fine fielder, but he is very inconsistent. He batted only .205 last season, which is really going to hurt his Hall of Fame case. Yelich still is a two time batting champion and a 2018 MVP (he also should have won in 2019, in my opinion). He was pretty good his first five seasons, amazing in his next two, and poor in 2020. He is only 29 and has a very good batting eye, so he may very well turn it around and put up a Hall of Fame career. 

Number 17: Paul Goldschmidt (first baseman, .293/.392/.522, 249 home runs, 828 RBI, .996 F%) 

Goldschmidt is a great defensive first baseman, a six time all-star, and a productive power hitter. His rate stats are nice, and he can swipe a base when he wants to, but at 33 he has a lack of major counting statistics (1,395 hits, for example). He is a great player and still a top first baseman, but he has to reach at least 300 homers and grab many more hits if he wants to guarantee himself a plaque. However, he is one of the league’s best power hitters and is bearing the burden of a pitching era, so he may have a shot even if he falls short of 2,000 career hits. 

Number 16: Nick Markakis (outfielder, .288/.357/.423, 189 home runs, 1,046 RBI, .994 F%) 

Markakis is the epitome of a player who is solid but unspectacular. At 37, he is still going strong, and has won seven fielding titles in rightfield (he is the all time record holder in career fielding percentage at the post) and has hit over 500 career doubles. Markakis offers good staying power, good run production, and remarkable defense. Without the loss of over 100 games in 2020, it looked like he would almost positively garner his 3,000th hit, earning him an automatic induction, but if he doesn’t reach that milestone, he will be on the outside looking in.