To Rowan Kavner
FOX Sports MLB Writer
The most powerful offenses in baseball start at their peak.
Mookie Betts, Trea Turner and Freddie Freeman ignited the top of a thick Dodgers lineup leading the majors in all thrashline categories (.261/.337/.452). Freeman and Turner rank him first and second respectively among his leaders in MLB hits this season, and Betts is the Dodgers leader in wins over substitutions.
Together, they are arguably one of the most formidable trios in the majors. But were they the best?
The question is somewhat subjective, so let’s simplify. Based on his WAR, which considers both FanGraphs (fWAR) and Baseball Reference (bWAR) versions of the stat, these teams boast the most valuable fielding trio in baseball this year.
Own category: los angeles angels — Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, Taylor Ward
Combined fWAR: 15.3 (Ohtani 7.9, Trout 4.8, Ward 2.6)
Combined bWAR: 15.1 (Ohtani 7.9, Trout 4.8, Ward 2.4)
average: 15.2 War
yes this is for looking up fielder baseball trio. And if you just include Ohtani’s streak as a designated hitter, the Angels won’t be on the list. But we can’t give a fair or complete picture without including the value Ohtani adds as a pitcher, so we split the Angels here.
Counting Ohtani’s hitting and pitching WAR, the Ohtani-Trout-Ward trio ranks as the fourth most valuable trio in baseball this year. This is pretty amazing considering Trout has only appeared in his 97 out of his 133 games for the Angels, while Ward has appeared in his 110.
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Five. Houston Astros — Jordan Alvarez, Jose Altuve, Kyle Tucker/Alex Bregman
Combined fWAR: 14.4 (Altuve 5.0, Bregman 4.8, Alvarez 4.7)
Combined bWAR: 14.2 (Tucker 5.0, Alvarez 4.9, Altuve 4.3)
average: 14.3 War
WAR calculations tend to vary slightly from place to place, with each giving more weight to certain stats than others in an attempt to measure a player’s worth in all aspects of the game. This is a complex statistic that inevitably leads to different conclusions aimed at providing a complete picture of the player (see here for a more detailed overview). With that in mind, the Astros present an interesting case.
Baseball Reference features Tucker as a 5.0 WAR player. On FanGraphs’ version, Tucker is worth his 4.1 WAR and comes in 4th place. But regardless of the order in which you rank them, and regardless of which of the four you consider Houston’s top trio, Altuve, Bregman, Alvarez and Tucker are three of the Astros’ high-level talent depths. is shown. Top trio in baseball.
Four. Atlanta Braves — Dansby Swanson, Austin Riley, Michael Harris II
Combined fWAR: 15.2 (Swanson 5.6, Riley 5.4, Harris 4.2)
Combined bWAR: 15.0 (Riley 5.7, Swanson 5.0, Harris 4.3)
average: 15.1 War
There’s a reason both Harris and Riley received midseason extensions.
Harris didn’t make his MLB debut until May 28, but he’s had at least 300 plate appearances this season and is already ranked in WAR’s top 30 among major leaguers. He delivered an incredible boost to an already playoff-bound club led by Riley, who is tied for third in the majors with 35 home runs, and Swanson, who defensively leads all shortstops in the major leagues.
Baseball Reference and FanGraphs disagree on whether Swanson or Riley is the Braves’ WAR leader, but regardless, they are two of the best players in baseball this season and each have MLB fWAR. ranked in the top 10 of
3. new york yankees — Aaron Judge, DJ Remahu, Jose Trevino/Andrew Benintendi
Combined fWAR: 15.6 (Judge 9.1, Trevino 3.5, Lemmahue 3.0)
Combined bWAR: 15.4 (Judge 8.6, Lemmahue 3.8, Benintendi 3.0 KC/NY)
average: 15.5 War
The Braves, Astros, Dodgers and Cardinals have three players worth at least 4 WAR this year. The Yankees are an exception to this list, but one player playing at Judge’s level elevates the entire group to elite status.
Judge is the only Yankees player in MLB’s top 30 in either bWAR or fWAR. Still, for the judges, trios that include Lemahue and either Trevino or Benintendi automatically make the top three of the major. This year, Judge has two more wins than every MLB player except Ohtani (7.9 fWAR). As of Thursday, he has hit 19 more home runs than any other baseball player.
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2. Los Angeles Dodgers — Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Freddie Freeman
Combined fWAR: 17.6 (Betts 6.4, Freeman 6.0, Turner 5.2)
Combined bWAR: 15.4 (Betts 6.2, Freeman 5.0, Turner 4.2)
average: 16.5 War
FanGraphs and Baseball Reference’s versions of WAR differ significantly between Freeman and Turner, with FanGraphs giving each one a higher 1:1 rating than Baseball Reference. Regardless, this might be the top three most balanced in baseball, especially when it comes to offensive value.
All three Dodgers are ranked in the top 30 among OPS eligible players. Betts hit a career-high home run (33), and neither Freeman nor Turner missed a game until August. Manager Dave Roberts gave Turner his first breather of the year on his Sept. 2 as his team held a commanding lead in his NL West (shortstop much to his chagrin) . Turner has hits in every other game he’s played this month, and he has 168 total hits for the year. Freeman is the only major leaguer to have more than that (he had 172 as of Thursday).
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They’re definitely baseball’s top trio…but based on WAR, they aren’t the most valuable. That group lives in St. Louis, after all.
1. St. Louis Cardinals — Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Tommy Edman
Combined fWAR: 19.1 (Goldschmidt 7.1, Arenado 7.0, Edman 5.0)
Combined bWAR: 21.0 (Goldschmidt 7.6, Arenado 7.4, Edman 6.0)
average: 20.1 War
Goldschmidt and Arenado would win Duo of the Year. Add in Edman’s contributions, and the Cardinals also boast a most valuable trio, in fact they’re the only team with three players of his who are worth at least six of his bWAR this year.
Goldschmidt and Arenado already have impressive resumes but are enjoying their careers. Goldschmidt leads his NL in all his slashline categories, with an NL-best 109 RBI and he has 35 home runs. Arenado has a career-best 162 OPS+ in him. Consider the additional defensive prowess of Arenado and Edman — they have above-average outs and rank him #3 and #1 in the NL, respectively — and the distinctive trio are bWAR and fWAR. slightly ahead of the rest in both.
Rowan Kavner covers the Dodgers and NL West on FOX Sports. He was previously the editor of the Dodgers’ digital and print publications. Follow @ @ on Twitter.Rowan Kavner.
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