Atlanta Braves infielder Freddie Freeman and outfielder Ender Inciarte represented their team on Sports Illustrated's Top 100 MLB Players of 2018.
Freeman landed at the No. 22 spot after missing significant time last season with a fractured wrist.
“While he still strikes out too much Freeman’s adjusted on-base-plus-slugging over the last two seasons ranks fourth in baseball behind only Mike Trout, Joey Votto, and Jose Altuve,” Sports Illustrated’s Jack Dickey wrote. “And there’s every reason to think he’d have managed even better power numbers last year had a May wrist fracture not left him a diminished player upon his return... He has declared himself fully healthy, and he’s poised to have an All-Star season for the rebuilding Braves.”
Inciarte, the Braves’ lone 2017 All Star representative, earned the No. 56 spot on Sports Illustrated’s list although Sports Illustrated’s Gabriel Baumgaertner was skeptical of how high Inciarte was ranked.
“Color me skeptical of how high Inciarte is ranked. He is one of the game's most reliable contact hitters and best defensive outfielders, but only 43 of his 201 hits were for extra bases last year, and he took only 49 walks... His defensive range and great arm make him a valuable asset for the Braves (as does the fact that he's due to make just $26.8 million over the next five seasons), but there are a host of players—Byron Buxton and Jonathan Schoop are just two examples—that I'd rather have than Inciarte,” Baumgaertner wrote. “He's a guy that the numbers love just a little bit too much.”
The rest of Sports Illustrated's Top 100 MLB Players of 2018 can be read on Sports Illustrated's official website.
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