No O's in the Sporting News' list of today's 50 best players

[Frobby]

Exactly my point. The more I look at the list, it had to be made before the season began.

Here's fangraphs.com's list of 2008 performances, by value. Nick Markakis ranks 12th. Jeter sneaks in at no. 50. http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=6&season=2008&month=0

But currently, Jeter ranks 55th and Nick ranks 71st. Nick is being dragged down by a very poor defensive rating currently.

[Pedro Cerrano]

He should be higher? Lower?

That seems about right for Longoria, maybe higher if he ends up as a 40 HR guy.

You didn't ask me but I can count the amount of people I'd rather have on my team than Longoria with one hand.*

*and that hand had a few fingers blown off by a grenade in the war.

[catjuggler]

It's actually not that bad of a list. The only Oriole that belongs in there at this point is Markakis, who I would have put in over Jeter, Beckett, Reyes, Cabrera, and Oswalt (maybe a couple others).

After this year Jones may belong.

But other than those two there is nobody that belongs. We're all potential right now.

Cabrera to me doesn't give enough love. I love me some Nick but lifetime Cabrera's OPS is .107 better. He turned 26 last month and already has 681 Rbi. He is only 7 months older than Nick it just seems like he has around forever.

The rest of your list i agree with...and Torii Hunter. If you asked GMs who would you rather have for the rest of the year Markakis or Hunter? you think anyone takes Torii.

[Migrant Redbird]

The Sporting News panel of 100 voters included "13 Hall of Famers, 13 Cy Young Award winners and 12 league MVPs." The article doesn't say what the other 62 voters were (aside from being "other baseball personalities"), nor does it say what the criteria really are, aside from being the "50 greatest players in baseball today".

They didn't say the "best players right now", so I imagine that most voters looked at the kind of career expected, rather than whoever did the best in the 2008 season. (Given magazine publishing lead times, it's likely this poll was taken before the 2009 season began.) That's why Jeter is #9 and Longoria is #20; younger players are inevitably at a disadvantage because they haven't proven they will be able to sustain their current pace for 15-20 years and justify the "greatest" label.

That being said, I think there is still room for a lot of quibbling over the relative position of some players on the list. How can anyone justify ranking Zack Greinke #25, phenomenal as he's been this year, ahead of Jake Peavy at #38 or Roy Oswalt at #46?

I have a lot of respect for Frank Robinson, but his quote on Pujols is a little bit of hyperbole.

Pujols "is the best hitter in baseball right now," Frank Robinson told the magazine. "But also, you could put him at any position -- first, third, outfield -- and he could play it like an All-Star. That's why he's the top player in the game."

Albert played 309 games in the outfield during his first 3 seasons, but he never really developed the essential outfielder's skill of picking up the ball quickly off the bat and selecting the best route to get to it. Albert was so athletic that he could make some fantastic recoveries on balls that he'd misplayed, but he definitely wasn't one of the better outfielders back then, even in left field where he usually played. He had a very strong arm until he injured the elbow in 2003 and he is one of the most intelligent players in the game, but he's slow afoot and really belongs in the infield for good.

Albert is arguably the best first baseman in the game (see The Fielding Bible, Vol II), although he's struggled a little on defense so far this year. He could probably have been a gold glove at 3rd base as well -- if he hadn't injured his elbow and if the Cardinals hadn't acquired Scott Rolen in 2003.

Albert is probably one of the best base runners in the game, despite what is generally described as "below average" speed. He led the Cardinals in stolen bases in 2005 (16 SB, 2 CS -- at least one of which was a busted hit and run play) and he's leading the Cards again this year with 6 (1 CS), which includes stealing bases in 3 consecutive bases. He just observes the game so intently and seems to take advantage of every mistake the other team makes.

Yes, Albert would be an "all star" at any position, but not a defensive standout at most of them. He was a shortstop when drafted and he played 2nd once last year in an emergency, but he really only belongs at 1st base now. If he moved back across the diamond, his injured elbow would become more of an issue. He's a team player and unselfish enough to play anywhere that's best for the team. In 2002, he volunteered to play left field so that Placido Polanco wouldn't have to, and I seem to recall that he volunteered to move back to 3rd base this season when the Cardinals learned that Troy Glaus would begin the season on the DL, but that would not have been in the best interests of the team.

[Mackus]

The Sporting News panel of 100 voters included "13 Hall of Famers, 13 Cy Young Award winners and 12 league MVPs." The article doesn't say what the other 62 voters were (aside from being "other baseball personalities"), nor does it say what the criteria really are, aside from being the "50 greatest players in baseball today".

I would imagine that those "13 HOFers, 13 CYA winners, and 12 MVPs" don't add up to 38 different players.

[Migrant Redbird]

I would imagine that those "13 HOFers, 13 CYA winners, and 12 MVPs" don't add up to 38 different players.

Actually, I suspect they aren't overlapping sets. Of the 13 HOFers, virtually all are probably either CYA or MVP winners. I considered your interpretation, but figured that the article's author probably didn't intend it that way.

[CrimsonTribe]

Jeter and Mo are definitely bad rankings, but how come no one has mentioned that Carlos Delgado is on this list? And Carlos Zambrano? Sheesh.

[Migrant Redbird]

Jeter and Mo are definitely bad rankings, but how come no one has mentioned that Carlos Delgado is on this list? And Carlos Zambrano? Sheesh.

They're all arguably among the 50 greatest players who are currently playing, based upon the body of their careers to date. If you alter the criteria so that it's the guys who are likely to perform the best this season, the results of the poll will be significantly different.

[BaltimoreTerp]

I will gladly accept the opinion of an individual present or former player as being worth thinking about or discussing, either based on knowledge of their opinions or until there is evidence of their opinions.

However, based on what I hear both from those groups as a whole, and often times ABOUT those groups (specifically how little players often pay attention to what is going on outside of their clubhouse), a group opinion from either present or past holds as much water with me as a committee of Oldfan, Sapper, and the WNST twins.

[Migrant Redbird]

That much??? You really are generous tonight!