Our 2025 Shortstop Tier List (with Jolly Olive)

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Dan Patrick Show – "Our 2025 Shortstop Tier List (with Jolly Olive)"

Episode Information:

• Title: Our 2025 Shortstop Tier List (with Jolly Olive)
• Host/Author: iHeartPodcasts and Dan Patrick Podcast Network
• Release Date: January 29, 2025

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Introduction to Tier List Season

[01:57] Martin Luther King III:
"This is my Legacy. Hello and welcome to Wake and Jake. It's time. It's Tier list season. It's the season of the sticks."

Martin Luther King III and co-host Jolly Olive kick off the episode by announcing the commencement of Tier List Season, focusing exclusively on evaluating shortstops in Major League Baseball for the 2025 season.

Top Tier Shortstops

[10:32] Jake:
"Aaron Bleep and Judge is reserved for two men and you could probably deduce who they are just by the name."

The hosts identify Aaron Bleep and Judge (likely pseudonyms for high-profile shortstops) as the top-tier players. These players are highlighted for their exceptional talent, consistent performance, and significant impact on their teams.

[11:00] Jake:
"They are some of the younger shortstops here and they're already the most talented from the looks of it. They also play in the same league and they probably will both end up with MVP hardware at some point."

Jake emphasizes the youth and potential MVP-caliber performance of these top-tier shortstops, positioning them as future stars in the league.

Future MVP Contenders

[12:09] Martin Luther King III:
"Bobby and Gunner side by side. Judging on last season you cannot pick Gunner."

Bobby Witt Jr. and Gunner Henderson are discussed as future MVP contenders. Their combined performance metrics and leadership qualities make them standout players poised for MVP recognition.

Three-Legged Horses (Prospects Needing Improvement)

[34:46] Jake:
"Three Legged Horse is kind of like a little bit what we were just talking about. They're kind of one tool away from moving up."

This category includes shortstops like Ellie De La Cruz and Carlos Correa who possess significant potential but require improvements in specific areas such as strikeout rates and consistency to climb higher in the tier list.

[37:12] Martin Luther King III:
"It's an unreal season. I guess the fear is like you mentioned the strikeouts."

The discussion highlights strikeouts as a critical factor holding back players like De La Cruz, despite their offensive prowess and defensive capabilities.

Wife Swap (Players on the Bubble)

[16:00] Martin Luther King III:
"...Xander Bogarts and Trevor Story just came from the thought of... they're both going to be 32 years old this year. They're both getting paid well above 20mil a year to play their position."

Xander Bogarts and Trevor Story are placed in the "Wife Swap" category, indicating their value is significant but they come with risks such as age and high contracts. Their performance could either solidify their positions or lead to trades/swaps based on team needs and individual outputs.

Hasan Kim Tier

[47:38] Jake:
"Hasan Kim, already the fourth most valuable player from Korea in baseball history."

Hasan Kim is evaluated as a reliable shortstop option, offering consistent performance without the high risk associated with other tiers. His defensive skills and steady offensive contributions make him a valuable asset for any team.

[48:30] Martin Luther King III:
"Jeremy Pena plays a terrific shortstop position. He has been league average for all three years of his career."

Jeremy Pena is also included in this tier, noted for his consistent defensive play and league-average hitting, providing stability to his team's infield.

Notable Discussions and Player Evaluations

• Mookie Betts:
  [29:06] Jake:
  "They belong at the top. No question in my mind."
  [30:39] Jake:
  "Mookie is more around a 140ish OPS plus. That was a 165."

  Mookie Betts is discussed as an exceptional shortstop with remarkable offensive and defensive stats, though his limited games at the position prevent him from being fully placed in the top tier.

• Corey Seager & Francisco Lindor:
  [25:40] Jake:
  "Corey Seger definitely still deserves to be at the top."

  Both Corey Seager and Francisco Lindor are recognized for their leadership and significant contributions to their respective teams, making them key figures in the upper tiers of the list.

• Dansby Swanson:
  [50:13] Jake:
  "I think that's my thing. It's like I..."

  Dansby Swanson is evaluated for his consistent performance and quality defensive play, though concerns about his offensive output and contract value place him in a mid-tier position.

Conclusion and Final Tier Placement

[70:14] Jake:
"This is a big day for Per Domo. He's Hassan Kim and that's okay for this season."

The hosts conclude by reaffirming the tier placements, emphasizing the balance between offensive capabilities, defensive skills, age, contract values, and potential for growth or decline. They acknowledge the dynamic nature of the tier list, anticipating changes as the season progresses and players' performances fluctuate.

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Jake on Top Tier Players:
  [10:32] Jake:
  "Aaron Bleep and Judge is reserved for two men and you could probably deduce who they are just by the name."

• Martin on Future MVPs:
  [12:09] Martin Luther King III:
  "Bobby and Gunner side by side. Judging on last season you cannot pick Gunner."

• Jake on Hasan Kim's Value:
  [47:38] Jake:
  "Hasan Kim, already the fourth most valuable player from Korea in baseball history."

Final Thoughts

The episode provides an in-depth analysis of the current landscape of shortstops in MLB, categorizing players based on their performance metrics, potential for growth, and overall value to their teams. The hosts engage in a nuanced discussion, balancing statistical data with subjective insights, making the content both informative and engaging for listeners interested in baseball analytics.

For a comprehensive understanding and ongoing updates, tune into future episodes as the Tier List evolves with the unfolding baseball season.

Transcript

[Jake]

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[Jolly Olive]

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[Jake]

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[Bobby Bones]

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirrorball trophy from Dancing with the Star. So where else are you gonna find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit of everything. Listen to Lots to Say with Bobby Bones and Matt castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Lexi Brown]

I'm so sick of hearing men talk about women's basketball. This is Lexi Brown and Mariah Rose and we've got a new podcast, Full Circle. Every Wednesday. We're catching you up on what's going on in women's basketball. We've got you with analysis, inside stories and a little bit of tea. Full circle is an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. Listen to Full circle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by E L F Beauty, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports.

[Martin Luther King III]

Welcome to My Legacy. I'm Martin Luther King III and together with my wife, Andrea Waters King, and our dear friends Mark and Craig Kilburger, we explore the personal journeys that shape extraordinary lives. Join us for heartfelt conversations with remarkable guests like David Oyelo, Mel Robbins, Martin Sheen, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and Billy Porter.

[Jake]

Listen to my legacy on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Martin Luther King III]

This is my Legacy. Hello and welcome to Wake and Jake. It's time. It's Tier list season. It's the season of the sticks. Jolly Olive is with us. We're starting off with a bang with the shortstop position as we will go through all 30 players or teams. Is there there might be 31 or 32 if you were here for tier list season last year. Welcome back and welcome home. Becoming awakened Jake staple, thanks to the rhythmic stylings of Jolly Olive Jolly, how are you?

[Jake]

I am good, Jake. I'm excited. We chatted yesterday, and I said, hey, when do you want to start? And you said, tomorrow. I said, okay. And here we are, and we're starting off with a doozy. I'm kind of glad we're starting off with the shortstop tier list because it's hard pause. And I think it's a great way to kick off the season.

[Martin Luther King III]

I hate that you're becoming a confident adult before my eyes. Okay, don't make wiener jokes on this show without me starting.

[Jake]

How you make your bread.

[Martin Luther King III]

What do you mean, we. When we originally dreamed this up last year, we said, let's save shortstops for last. Because we were like, hey, shortstop, shortstop position. That's. You know, there's something to that in baseball. Like, in a way, your best player still kind of ends up there. Like, how many. How many of these guys could you point out and say they're the best player on their team? Like, arguably 10. Yeah. Like, it's. It's a wild thing. And it's also a joke as people go over their prospect list. You know, you got a lot of shortstop prospects and then, well, left fields open. See over there, kiddo. And the shortstop position is stacked, especially because there's a couple fresh names at the top of the list that you guys probably know off the top of your head. If you're listening to Awaken Jake shortstop tier list. But maybe you're not.

[Jake]

Maybe subscribe. By the way.

[Martin Luther King III]

Maybe you're just. If you are, please subscribe. And we. Through the next upcoming couple weeks. Couple weeks leading up to the baseball season. That's just. It's kind of not true. That was a two months.

[Jake]

Well, like, everyone has the day where pitchers and casuals report, and we're like, yeah, we're back. And then no one cares about spring training a little bit.

[Martin Luther King III]

Not, you know, I'm up for that Tokyo game. As we get into these shortstops, I want to do a little bit of. You have to know where you're from to know where you're going.

[Jake]

I like that.

[Martin Luther King III]

Last year I'm going to cut myself off. Tier list. Crack me up. Still, it's like the closest thing that makes me like an actual YouTuber. Otherwise, I'm just an old Italian man who talks sports. I have a couple old things. We'll save that for the end. But the tier Lists are really fun. I think it's just a fun way. If you have no idea. It's a fun way to lump and rank together the shortstops while also keeping a positive beat. Not really trying to bury anyone or be mean. Baseball is a really hard sport and except kind of like Javi Baez.

[Jolly Olive]

We'll.

[Martin Luther King III]

We'll talk about that in a little bit probably soon as we get to the categories. And the other thing that I think drives some of the kids nuts is that this is supposed to be like S tier. We don't play that game here. We make our own tiers. Last year at the shortstop position and BBD's got it up on the screen for the YouTube. The top tier was $300 million well spent. Mookie Seeger Lindor, Trey Turner. The second column bookmark this and I don't know if you're someone that wants to know where baseball's going. Our second row was future MVP winners. It was Bobby and Gunner. Interesting. The third calm going to want to circle this one was wooden leather with Bo Bichette and Dansby Swanson.

[Jake]

That was the third tier.

[Martin Luther King III]

Baseball happens fast.

[Jake]

That's the top eight.

[Martin Luther King III]

Where's gold which there was a glimmer in BBD's eye looking at this one because it was Hassan Kim, Carlos Correa, JP Crawford and Willie Adamus. And I think this was lumped together on Gold Gloves if you wear gold chains. Well and I think Hassan Kim the Padres gold was his oh yeah. Meet me in the middle. Even though he should probably have a.

[Jolly Olive]

Gold I think he might have one.

[Martin Luther King III]

Also an interesting guy on this list just because well in the upcoming one below that and this is interesting cruising it was Ellie De La Cruz and O'Neill Cruz one not on the list anymore.

[Jake]

Center fielder O'Neill Cruz.

[Martin Luther King III]

You'll have to tune into that. And Ellie should be climbing pretty good. Hope was C.J. abrams Volpe Zeke Tovar Jeremy Pena, Zach Netto per domo and I think that's Jose Cabo on the end. Wow. He was in the hope column. Don't look at this line please. Was below that Trevor story Orlando Arcia and Tim Anderson unknown rookies Mason win and we had Gabriel Arias we believe from Cleveland who turned into Brian Rocchio. But is Gabriel Arias also would have.

[Jolly Olive]

Landed in the same category would have.

[Martin Luther King III]

Been in the same box. That's kind of Cleveland Guardians baseball just a little tea.

[Jake]

I think Mason win might be our highest climber.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think by tears and that bottom deer Kenny Pickett shout out to the Former Steelers quarterback going for the Super Bowl.

[Jake]

Yeah. Might have a ring.

[Martin Luther King III]

Super bowl quarterback Kenny Pickett. Also. I decided. I'm really proud of this this morning because it's. Can he pick it? Can he play defense at short?

[Jake]

Oh, a year later, I just got that.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jake]

I thought we were just picking guys.

[Martin Luther King III]

That I. I think you could be dumb and be like, that's kind of a lazy thing. I think that's fantastic.

[Jake]

I disagree.

[Martin Luther King III]

That's the guy's real name, Kenny.

[Jake]

Pick a real thinker.

[Martin Luther King III]

And it was Javi Baez, Brandon Crawford, Nick Ahmed, and Nick Allen.

[Jake]

I miss you, Nick.

[Martin Luther King III]

Near Oakland or formerly Oakland Athletics. And a lot of those guys are no longer on the list. Javi still is kind of. Let's get into this year's. And if you're along for the ride with us, you know, we start off with our categories, and we adapt as we go. If we need to add a category, if we need to remove a category, and I think we might have even gone too deep.

[Jake]

Oh, boy.

[Martin Luther King III]

With our current categories. We got a lot here because we do have nine tiers. We probably should have started. We might have to count ourselves to six or seven next time and go from there if we need to. The top is Aaron Bleep. And judge. The Second category is MVP 2. The third category is three legged horse. Fourth team's best player. And we think that's okay. Question mark. Next column. Hasan Kim, and that's okay. Question mark. Hasan Kim. And that's not okay. Question mark. Wife swap. My favorite Kenny Pickett is back, and I don't think I'll ever remove it because I'm really proud of that.

[Jake]

And if you're upset about that, leave a comment.

[Martin Luther King III]

The bottom. Bottom row is Hobby Bias, so could be anybody. Let's throw Javi on there to start. Oh, and I just.

[Jake]

That's how we're starting.

[Martin Luther King III]

I just want to get it out of the way. Band Aid, because go look at the SAP page. Like, I. This is a guy that's made a ton of money. This is a guy that in Chicago is still a hero. This is a guy that has an awesome baseball resume to a certain date. And it's just been horribly tough for Tiger fans to watch. And I wonder what's going on in Javi's head.

[Jake]

I have no idea.

[Martin Luther King III]

But we're not actually starting there. I think we should do the top. I. I think that's not normally how it works. But with where shortstop has landed. I think there's two top guns, y'all.

[Jake]

Yeah. We were trying to come up with a name for this and I thought you nailed it. You are. You're a YouTuber at your core. We all know it. Aaron Bleep and Judge is reserved for two men and you could probably deuce who they are just by the name. It's Gunner Henderson and Bobby Witt Jr. Because either one of these guys would have been a shoe in for MVP last year had Aaron Judge not had the regular season that he did have.

[Martin Luther King III]

It actually would have been a wild conversation.

[Jake]

I think it would have been a very.

[Jolly Olive]

It would have been fun.

[Jake]

I think Soto finishes above Gunner in voting but I think if Judge isn't there, I think it's the two shortstops at the top just because they played the most difficult position on the field and their stats were so close.

[Martin Luther King III]

Similar.

[Jake]

I said it to you before we started. I said that Gunner won the first half. Remember at the end of May we were talking like Gunner versus Judge, who's going to get it. Bobby won the year. He had a really nice end to his year. He did and really made that contract look like an underpay which you know Gunner, I wouldn't take that extension off her, man. I'd hit frayed and see if I were you. These two belong at the top. They are the some of the younger shortstops here and they're already the most talented from the looks of it. You can cite small sample size as a counter argument. I get that. But they are ranked above a lot of great shortstops here because they've already done things that certain elite shortstops on this list have not done in longer careers and I think that makes it all the more impressive. They also play in the same league and they probably will both end up with MVP hardware at some point. So I never asked me which one I think is better right now because I don't know they're kind of. You can pick either one and start your franchise with them but they definitely both belong at the top.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah, we it's Gunner and Bobby. I'm proud of us that last year's category was future MVPs and they were a tier before below guys that are now probably be a tier below them. But yeah it's Bobby and Gunner side by side. You from last season. Judging on last season you cannot pick Gunner. It's rail thin. The stolen bases, the defense, the war, the homer's. Gunner has them. Bobby had a just slightly better year like a five game better season.

[Jake]

Minimally better.

[Martin Luther King III]

That being said, if you're a Kansas City fan who Is taking your laps on the Internet saying Bobby's the best shortstop. Sure. I tell you what, baseball is a sick sport. That if this season Bobby hits a couple line drives that land in a player's glove and Gunner, instead of turning on a foul ball, straightens one out, it could easily be gunners better this year. But nine WAR seasons don't happen.

[Jake]

They just don't.

[Martin Luther King III]

And these two both did at ages, what, 23.

[Jake]

Same draft class, which I love. Bobby was second overall. Gunner was the first pick of the second round. That's how far he fell.

[Martin Luther King III]

Gunner's younger.

[Jake]

Gunner's younger. How old is Gunner?

[Martin Luther King III]

He's. He turns 24 in June. Bobby turns 25 in June. Look at that.

[Jake]

I'm doing a quick little sad head.

[Martin Luther King III]

Look at that. Get yourself a stat head.

[Jake]

Give me. Give me some stalling time.

[Martin Luther King III]

Good reference to old commercials.

[Jake]

Yeah, they belong at the top. No question in my mind. Just for reference, shortstops in the last 30 years to have a nine war season. Alex Rodriguez.

[Martin Luther King III]

Good.

[Jake]

Gunner Henderson.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

Bobby Witt Jr. End of list.

[Martin Luther King III]

Kind of the end of the list. Although there's one person who I think could have an interesting discussion on this list, but unfortunately, he could have an interesting discussion on any list.

[Jake]

Yeah. Five different. Do you want to stay high? Do you want to just go next tier and you want to go somewhere in the middle?

[Martin Luther King III]

I, you know, I like to bop around. I do think the next. The next real conversation starts with MVP2. But I think there's something we can get out of the way quick. I want to jump to a very unique wake and J category that is labeled wife swap.

[Jake]

That's where I thought you were going.

[Martin Luther King III]

Just because I think I'd be intrigued if I was watching this to know what's going on down there. We have a situation with a couple ball players who I think could have very good contributing 2025s. I think they could take a step back and we could all be like, yo. They're a pair of Red Sox shortstop alums and one's current, Trevor Story. Who? Trevor Story's last full good season is 21. 21 with the Colorado Rockies right before he hit free agency. His 94 games with Boston his first season are solid.

[Jake]

Four war pace.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. Two and a half war. Like kind of what they thought they were signing up with. Trevor Story to a degree. In the past two years, 43 games, 26 games. A guy that had some. No, he didn't have injury concerns coming in. No, no. It was kind of the opposite.

[Jake]

He was viewed as kind of short style.

[Martin Luther King III]

I wanted him on the Yanks and.

[Jake]

I was with you. It was like him, Swanson, a couple.

[Martin Luther King III]

Other guys and hey, knock on wood, he's coming in with the Red Sox this year healthy. And I'm sure we're going to get some spring training isms around him a lot. And they are depending on him pretty significantly in this Red Sox team this year. Let me take that a step back. It would be massive for them if Trevor Story is a guy for them. If not, they do have audibles. Like, they've planned on Trevor Story not being part of the plan if they need it. Trevor Story and Xander Bogarts and the wife swap just came from the thought of, I don't know if these two off the record could be like, hey, Xander, you're staying in Boston. They're going to retire your number. You still get a pretty good payday. Your offensive numbers might still be there a little better because that Green Monster tends to help some righty hitters. Trevor Story, I don't know. San Diego's nice. You don't have to deal with Boston people back in the NL west just screaming at you. You stayed in the NL West. San Diego was in Colorado. That I think, you know, if these two could. I think they'd be open to a conversation. And that's how it starts. And those are the only two I had in that category for now. I'll be. I'll be interested if we find another fit. You think we'd need two other to join that category? Maybe you only need one.

[Jolly Olive]

I thought I might have thought so.

[Martin Luther King III]

We will see. But those are the two that jump to mind that didn't deserve to be on the bottom of this tier list because I could see Xander Bogarts having a nice season. It's a little tougher to picture Story, I'll be honest. He can, though. It's Fenway Park. Tyler O'Neal just went nuts there. Like, Trevor Story could have a.900 OPS in baseball. It'd be a little surprising. It wouldn't be shocking.

[Jake]

Yeah, I think the thing with both of them, besides the Boston thing, they're both going to be 32 years old this year. They're both getting paid well above 20mil a year to play their position. It's just a very similar situation. And I think you nailed it before with like. I think the Red Sox fell into pitfalls in prior years because they didn't plan for Story to be unavailable because it's the front half of this six year contract supposed to be the good.

[Martin Luther King III]

Part, you're supposed to get the good.

[Jake]

Years in the front half. Now we're in the back half. So if you get anything from Trevor Story, it's considered a bonus. And for Bogarts, he has been playing and his first year was pretty good in San Diego. He's a four WAR player, but he took a real big step back last year. And the thing with him is that his contract is more expensive and it's way longer than Story. So that's why I think he falls in this tier. His is more financial, Story is more injury risk, that kind of thing. But they both kind of represent the same thing of our team could take a mat. Like, our team could finish second instead of third or first instead of second in our division if these players play to what we know they're capable of. But I think everyone kind of doesn't feel like that's a possibility unless they, you know, see two good months out of these guys to start the season.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah, the. The next. The next step is unknown for a lot of these players. Thanks, Jake. Wow. But Xander Bogarts, if we didn't see last year, you know, it was a 117 OPS plus on a new team, like, it wasn't.

[Jake]

And like everyone's first year, the contract is always kind of weird.

[Jolly Olive]

You know, first years of contracts, especially when you change leagues, divisions.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Oh, he wasn't even listed last year because he wasn't.

[Jake]

He was.

[Jolly Olive]

He was moving to second base.

[Jake]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Jolly Olive]

Which is. Can be a big part of why last year landed where it did with the shoulder injury he had, like. Yeah, I. I believe in Xander Bogarts.

[Martin Luther King III]

I guess I have slight concerns that there's going to be people above Xander Bogarts that I'm. If I'm being honest with myself, for the 2025 season, I'd rather have Xander Bogarts. But I'm interested to see.

[Jake]

I'm in consideration of just moving the tier up one.

[Martin Luther King III]

Ah, okay.

[Jake]

Splitting the Hassan Kim.

[Martin Luther King III]

Let's see.

[Jake]

Yeah, we don't have to do it now, but that's.

[Martin Luther King III]

Let's see. I might be interested in that. Okay, so that was wife swap. That was Xander Bogarts and Trevor Story. Wife swap. Which. God. Sometimes you hear it again and you're like, I don't know. I don't know. Players tune into stuff. Let's go back to the top because this is where there is immense talent. There's household names for baseball. Jolly, I'll let you kick off MVP too, because I. I don't know. There's a couple Things that I need massaging on.

[Jake]

Sure.

[Bobby Bones]

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirror ball trophy from Dancing with a Star. So where else you going to find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? Based in Nashville, we're more than just your basic NFL show. We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit of everything because we got lots to say. I. I texted you and you texted me back. Now, I don't know if you have the update, but like all the little thumbs up and heart and stuff, like it's all colored.

[Jake]

They change the.

[Bobby Bones]

And the heart's a little pink. It felt like I told you I loved you. I'm going to be honest, it was a little pink.

[Jake]

There was something sentimental when you. When you send it. Yeah, it's like, do I send the heart now?

[Bobby Bones]

I don't like the color edition.

[Jake]

It's extremely pink.

[Bobby Bones]

Listen to Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Martin Luther King III]

Everyone's forgotten who runs this valley.

[Jake]

Time to remind them.

[Jolly Olive]

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[Martin Luther King III]

Our family legacy is this ranch. And I protect, I live my life.

[Jolly Olive]

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[Martin Luther King III]

You know, the first students to settle this valley fighting was all they knew.

[Jolly Olive]

Whether you're a longtime fan or new to the ranch, welcome to the Yellowstone. Bobby Bones has everything you need to stay connected to the Yellowstone phenomenon.

[Martin Luther King III]

I look forward to it.

[Jolly Olive]

Listen to the official Yellowstone podcast Now on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Martin Luther King III]

Let's go to work.

[Lexi Brown]

I'm so sick of hearing men talk about women's basketball. If only there were a professional WNBA player with her own podcast I could listen to. Hey, this is Lexi Brown, WNBA player and professional yapper. And this is Mariah Rose. You may know me from spilling the tea on Hoops for hotties on TikTok. And we've got a new podcast, Full Circle. Every Wednesday. We're catching you up on what's going on in women's basketball. And not just in the wnba, but with athletes unlimited unrivaled and college basketball We've got you with analysis, inside stories, and a little bit of tea. I know you guys have seen a lot of former and current basketball players telling their stories from their point of view, and I just think it's time for the girlies to tap in. We want to share all of the women's basketball stories that you won't see anywhere else. Tune into Full Circle, an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jake]

Presented by Capital One, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports.

[Martin Luther King III]

Welcome to My Legacy. I'm Martin Luther King III and together with my wife, Andrea Waters King and our dear friends Mark and Craig Kilburger, we explore the personal journeys that shape extraordinary lives. Each week we'll sit down with inspiration figures like David Oyelowo, Mel Robbins, Martin Sheen, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Billy Porter and their plus one, their ride or Die as they share stories never heard before about their remarkable journey.

[Jake]

Listen to my legacy on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is my legacy. We named it this tier because the guys we had in mind have had a runner up MVP finish in the last two years, which is a pretty tight window, a pretty exclusive club. I'll start with not the guy that a lot of people might be thinking, I want to start with Corey Seeger because Seeger was someone I went into this thinking, okay, I could probably put him third tier just because of like the injury thing. Like we don't really got to worry about it because you know, if he plays a full season, he might be the best, but he hasn't done that in a while. And then I went back and checked and I just looked at his numbers. 20, 23. He plays 120 games, which is three quarters of a season, and he's a seven war player, which is that nine war pace that we were just talking about with Gunner Henderson and Bobby Wood Jr. Last year. He plays roughly the same amount of games. He's still a five WAR shortstop. He had 30 home runs in both those seasons, OPS plus north of 145 in both those seasons. And by the way, he was like the leader on a World Series team and had their biggest moments and all that stuff. So Corey Seger definitely still deserves to be at the top. And I think if he plays a full season, he has an argument to be in that top tier and he kind of fits it too. Because he's in the American League, judge will probably prevent him from winning an MVP if he plays a full season. So he would fit there if he can stay healthy. I really think that's the only thing that holds Corey secret back from being the absolute top tier. I think the Rangers are getting well worth their money for the contract that they signed for him.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yes. Yeah, keep rolling.

[Jake]

I'll keep going. All right, now I'll talk about my guy. I'll talk about Francisco Lindor last year. I did feel a little funny putting him in the top tier last year because he was a great player in 2023. But a lot of that was after the Mets were out of it, you know, second half. That's when he really charged down 30, 30 and had his best season as a Met. And I think a lot of people were still like, let's see him do it when it matters. And he had that terrible start to the year last year. And then when the team needed him, he was the guy and played with that back injury and showed up in the playoffs. And I think he fits right next to Corey Seager. They signed similar contracts at around the same time. They've now helped their teams get deeper into the playoffs. Obviously, Sigurd won a World Series. It's a very different scenario. But they both kind of feel like the de facto leaders of their team. Like, I think every Mets fan would say, who's the face of your franchise right now? They would say Francisco Lindor. Rangers fans would say, Corey Seeger. Injuries aside, performance aside, like, those are the symbolic faces of those teams. And Lindor is coming off not only his best year as a Met, but by war, one of the best seasons of his career. Only outdone by 2018. Cleveland. So at age 31, we might still be getting some of the better years of Lindor's career. Same logic can be applied to Seeger. So I think they belong together, man.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think they sure do. If I'm reading this correctly. And this. This doesn't matter for the exercise, but I. If you're trying to play a different exercise at home, I think they both have seven years left on their contract.

[Jake]

Yeah, it's pretty similar.

[Martin Luther King III]

Lindor gets paid a little more, which I think. I don't know. Defense and health contracts are contracts. And I think team dependent, it's literally whatever you want. Because I think Seeger's upside is higher.

[Jake]

Yeah, for sure.

[Martin Luther King III]

Upside is higher. He can hit. He has an argument when he's healthy to be the best hitter, one of the best Hitters in baseball. Like, especially if you do the pure hitter game, which is kind of just like, hey, let's not talk about Judge for a second. If I'm being honest, and I think there's some honesty to that. Like, I. What Judge does is maybe the most impressive thing. But it's also, if there's a pitcher who's locked in, Judge can be gotten out. Yeah, he can be gotten out. Where? Soto Seeger, Freddie Freeman, they kind of have a different contact hitter gear. They can turn on that. It's one of those fun bar conversations or podcast conversations that you could do anytime, any day if you really want. What about Luis Arise? What about him? Anyways, that I think it would be funny even if you did contracts and stuff, which were not. And you went around the league and you did, hey, see girl indoor. I think if you're one of the teams that's kind of locked into the playoffs, I think they'd say seeger, yeah. Just because you're like, hey, I can have that in the playoffs. That's a no brainer. If you're a team that is not and needs to grind it out. And you need the 152 games he played last year, which it was the back at the end of the year. Yeah, 160 the year before, 161 the year before that. You'd say, give me Lindor, he's going to switch it. He's top of the lineup, play great defense every day. Like it's, it's a no brainer that those two, a thousand percent should be lumped together.

[Jake]

Yeah. I think before the back he had played every game.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

And then his, his back gave out in the last two weeks of the season and then he played through it at the end.

[Martin Luther King III]

So who else is in there? Joe.

[Jake]

So Dodgers fans are going to get mad at this. When we were doing the tier list, I saw one guy's PNG his picture and I got mad because I'm like, why is he here?

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

He. There's like 12 different tier lists he can be on. He can be in second base, he can be in right field, he can be in center field. And the fact that he's also here and also good drives me nuts. And our Last member of MVP2 is Mookie Betts. He was the runner up in MVP voting in 2023. Just like Corey Seeger. The dude's been bouncing around. Last year his numbers landed in a pretty good place. If you look at the first half, he was like the clear cut front runner. To win MVP before he got hurt. And I just think he belongs. Like, when you think of the athleticism, when you think of the pure hitting talent of this tier, when you think of the leadership of this tier, kind of like, like we talked about before, the symbolism of the teams and how successful all three of these teams have been in the last two years, you attribute that success to their shortstops. And Bets, I think, fully belongs. He's also another big contract guy, 300 million, whatever, whatever the number is with him. And I think all three of these guys, maybe Bets and Seeger a little bit more, are capable of scratching into that top tier if they play to their utmost potential.

[Martin Luther King III]

Wake and Jake listeners, I think heard me get in a weird spot with Mookie because I was like, this breaks everything in baseball. A 31 year old playing shortstop for the first time. And then I. He kind of broke me back.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Scottish. Scottish guy talking about me and Mookie back hooking up. He broke me back. He played 60, 65 games at short. The advanced numbers, which don't work in small sample size and defense, actually didn't hate them. And I liked him that I. I got broken and I was like, well, if someone's gonna do it, make it Mookie. And I, I kind of went the other way. I was like, wait, let's. Let's make Mookie the inner circle hall of Famer, like Util has become such a thing that if you're drawing up your dream MLB lineup, like your top nine all time, maybe Mookie should just be in there in some way. Or maybe it's with a DH and a Util like that. Mookie should be mentioned with all timers, and maybe he's still heading that way. He still. It was 61 starts at shortstop last year. Yeah. You know, again, of Dodger problems. I mean, whatever. I'm not even doing that right now. But what does he look like at shortstop for a full season? Will he be at shortstop for the full season again is, I think, another probably not Dodger question.

[Jolly Olive]

And they have Tommy Edmond on the team.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right. And I.

[Jake]

Everyone can play.

[Martin Luther King III]

Get his picture. Right. No, don't. I guess the thing that, you know, when I see Mookie Betts on any list, I. I assume he should be top of the tier list. But it's interesting with the young guys and Mookie, who is a season removed from an 8.3 WAR season in 2023 and one was on pace for higher last year. I guess the only thing the 2023amongst recent seasons is a bit of an outlier. You know, Mookie is more around a 140ish OPS plus. That was a 165. And I just think, again, it goes back to those young breakout stars, top prospects that have broken out, that are entering their prime, that put up nine more seasons that. I kind of wish I could make an argument for Mookie to move up. I don't know. Mookie could do an Aaron bleep and judge if you wanted to, but I really don't think you can.

[Jake]

There's. There's one asterisk for all of these guys that prevents them from top tier. Mookie is the sample size at short is too small. We haven't seen a full season at short, so I feel like you can't be at the top of the shortstop list. I feel like that's fair. Seger, it's the health. He hasn't played more than 125 games since 2022, two years ago. And then Lindor, I just don't think he matches the same offensive prowess as the other two guys. And maybe he could, but I think his value comes more from playing every day, playing Platinum Glove defense. And, you know, he. He gets his WAR number up that way. So if any of those three overcome that hurdle, then, yeah, you can definitely argue top tier. The thing is, just Gunner and Bobby look like complete packages, and they're also younger. Like, way younger. So that's why I think they belong up there.

[Martin Luther King III]

Anyone else in MVP.

[Jake]

For now? No.

[Martin Luther King III]

Okay.

[Jake]

And that's kind of shocking.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. I'm. I'm interested to see, like you said. I think there's. There's one. There's one other name on our mind that doesn't have an MVP2, but maybe the gig could be like, he's. He's lined up for MVP2 this year.

[Jake]

Spot is super weird, man.

[Martin Luther King III]

We will see. But maybe the truth of it is, and I think we should move with slightly more pace for a couple of these guys, because I think people know the story a little bit. The next column that you name, Jolly, and I don't give a lot of people that power, is Three Legged Horse. And why don't you give me the names you currently have in that category?

[Jake]

Yeah, Three Legged Horse is kind of like a little bit what we were just talking about. Like, they're kind of one tool away from moving up, but I think these. These missing tools are a little bit more significant that hold them back. The guy that I was Having trouble with because I wanted to put him with those other three. And I'll, we'll talk about him first. It's Ellie De La Cruz. He is kind of the opposite of Seeger in my mind where I think of Seeger, I'm like, well his numbers aren't that good. And then I look and I'm. He's amazing, Cruz. I was like, he is already amazing. And then I look and I'm like oh, okay. But he's also 22 years old. Like he has so much room for improvement. The thing with me is that he got caught stealing the most in baseball last year. His stolen base ratio is a little bit deceiving. The counting stats good. The ratio itself not as good. The biggest thing is the strikeouts. He struck out 218 times as a shortstop. I believe that's the most all time by an everyday shortstop. He led MLB by a wide margin. We also have another shortstop that struck out a lot that we'll talk about later. And you know the potential with Ellie De La Cruz, you feel like he's the Red's best player. You know that there's, there's more pop in that bat. That remains to be discovered. He played the full season last year, which is big for me because that kind of lankier body type I feel like always kind of gives me injury concern. But he was out there every day playing shortstop. The thing with him is that the plate discipline has to improve. Like the on base was there. But I think that Ellie can unlock something more and get even better if he's able to just cut down on strikeouts, stay within the zone and become a more disciplined hitter, which he can definitely do because he's going to be 23 right this year.

[Martin Luther King III]

You know Ellie, Ellie is interesting man because everyone's every stat got better last year. Everything obviously passes the eye test. The stolen bases, the home runs. If things tick up. We are Talking about a 30 homer 75 steel player Takunya at shortstop. It's, it's why he's probably going to be a popular MVP bet going into this season. Because this, the stats he can potentially rack up playing at that baseball stadium, which is a factor in it. I mean those homers could jump to if something else clicks for him. It, it could just be an unreal season. I, I guess the fear is like you mentioned the strikeouts.

[Jake]

I just checked. It is the most all time for a short set.

[Martin Luther King III]

It's a lot and hey, maybe it's a new era of baseball. And if that is how Ellie De La Cruz gets out and that's it. That's fine. We adjust. Aaron Judge strikes out a lot. We adjust. That's okay. The batting average got better. The on base got better. The slugging. But still the ops landed at.809, which is great. Which is great. Where wit and Gunner and Seeger and Mookie have landed at different times is a high nines.

[Jake]

Yeah. Like if Gunner and Bobby didn't exist.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

We're way more excited for Ellie because he's their age and he's already really good.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right. Like he might be just raised the bar. He would probably just be in his own column below those older heads being like, please catch me. Our future mvp. That's kind of what we did with.

[Jake]

That would have been him probably by himself. Honestly. Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

I don't. I think if you're being fair about it, I. I don't think you can put Ellie up. And I think the reason you said three legged horse and I think Ellie is kind of that now that he needs to either cut down on the strikeouts or show that everything else can be so good that he can rise above.

[Jake]

Right. I think that's an important part too. Like yeah, he can still be this strikeout guy. Like we've seen plenty of players succeed in that vein. It's just unconventional for shortstop. Like you don't you think shortstop, you think contact bat. And Ellie is a power hitting, you know, not afraid to whiff kind of shortstop. And he can still make that work and be an elite player. But it'd be like just imagine what he can accomplish if that's not a part of his game as much, you know.

[Jolly Olive]

And the strikeout rate from 23 to 24, it did come down and it did trend the right direction.

[Jake]

I didn't know that.

[Jolly Olive]

Two, two and a half percent off.

[Jake]

The strikeout rate though. 31.

[Jolly Olive]

So well over 30. But you do the same cut and you're on 30. It gets not like.

[Jake]

So. Yeah. Second highest strikeout rate in baseball only behind Zach Eloff.

[Martin Luther King III]

Wow. Tough wait for him that I think this is all fair. Willie Adamus. Do we say Willie Adamis yet?

[Jake]

We haven't said Willie. Spoilers.

[Martin Luther King III]

Oops. Let the rest of the row in the three legged horses, Carlos Correa, Willie Adamus and Trey Turner.

[Jake]

Yeah, that's what I got. Where do you want to start?

[Martin Luther King III]

I want to do Correa tidy because if I talk too long, I'm probably going to land in a weird spot. Carlos Correa balled out when he was on the field last year. He's still a defensive weapon, which you can't say that about a lot of players literally using him different on relay throws because he's a defensive weapon. He had a.905 OPS last year in 86 games. 3.7 war. There is an injury factor here. It's the reason he's not on your team or Willie's new team. So that's already going to make me feel better. And I mean he played out of his dome. Like he played 135 games a year before and he had a 94 OPS Plus. So I can't fully believe in what he did last year. I would guess that Willie Adamus would. Excuse me, Carlos Correa would play to his baseball card and be the 826 OPS guy. But with his defensive prowess, that's an amazing baseball player, But I think three legged horses fair.

[Jake]

Yeah, he's a six and a half war player when he plays 162 games, which is that Lindor. Yeah, that's See your territory. But it is the injury concern.

[Martin Luther King III]

86 games, but Seeger's a nine more player.

[Jake]

Exactly. There's. There's levels and with Correa, it's just. He's going to be 30 with. There was the whole circus with the ankle thing. It's. It's scary because it's half a season. You know, like it's. You can't. Your team can't win when they have that much money invested in a player that only plays half the season. So things can change with Correa. And you can also argue it the other way of. Like this might be as good as it gets for a little bit. Like maybe this is going to go the other way. But I don't think that's fair to him. So I feel like he kind of just. He's an awkward fit. Just in general, I feel like he's an awkward fit, but I think he fits this the best.

[Martin Luther King III]

He. If he can put another full one together, it'd be very interesting to see. Says seven war. Is that eight war.

[Jake]

He 37 mil this year.

[Martin Luther King III]

Did seven in 2021. What are the Twins up to? Is he gonna be like a rumored trade guy? Like it was kind of fake rumors. That's hard money to move hard money to. What's his contract actually look like?

[Jolly Olive]

So his contract is structured in the most team friendly way of any. Maybe like big deals.

[Martin Luther King III]

Maybe it's more of if he has a good year, his remaining contract would be three for 95. Essentially.

[Jake]

Right.

[Martin Luther King III]

Now it's all vesting, and then it's all team options.

[Jake]

Right now it's guaranteed four for 130.

[Martin Luther King III]

So if he makes it through this.

[Jake]

Year, it gets a lot better. Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Interesting. And the Twins are in weird TV contract hell. That. Let's see what that is. Willie Adamus and Trey, I think I'll take really quick. Willie put up a massive. Well, he put up a massive contract year. I got scared off by the war for a second.

[Jake]

Counting numbers are really good.

[Martin Luther King III]

32 homers, which go. Look at all the home runs hit last year. That puts Willie in an oddly high spot for a sport that we're like, oh, it's more homers or busts now. 32 ranks higher than you probably think in your head amongst the league. Never mind. Shortstop, 21 stolen bases, which I think that's a career high. And I don't think he's going to do that again. But when you're in a contract year, you show you can do things. And yet I. It's going to be interesting. Leaving Milwaukee, going to San Francisco. I'm interested to see that transition. And maybe we're a little high on him and maybe there's some recency biases. I'm looking at the company he's keeping. 4.3 war. 3 war. 3 war. When we talk about some of these young guns, I don't know, maybe we'll have to circle back on Willie. But the counting stats were incredible last year, and sometimes I don't want WAR to scare me. And then Trey Turner's here, who, ironically had a three war season in what felt like a down year. Man. 2. 95, 3. 38. 807 OPS. Offense was down around the league. That's a one 24 OPS plus. This season's a little more Trey Turner than I expected the stats to look like.

[Jake]

Trey's interesting. We had Trey, top tier last year. Yeah. Yeah. That was $300 million well spent. Everyone from that tier stayed together except Trey, who moves down one. And it's kind of a combination of everyone else in this tier is how I view it. Like Trey's defense is ticking in a scary direction.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

I don't think he's long to be the Phillies shortstop. They have a good answer in Bryson Stott, who is an elite second baseman. I think he could be a great shortstop, but it creates a predicament for Philly because Trey's going to be there, I think, eight more years, maybe more. And you would have hoped that he was. Yeah. So he's Going to be there three, six, nine more years. At $27 million a year, you would have hoped he's the shortstop for at least the front half of the deal. I don't know that's going to happen. Like they're. By this time next year trade might not even be in this tier list. Maybe in a different position tier list. The bat is still very much there at. You know, he was pacing ahead of Lindor at the beginning of the season before he got hurt. He's still a three war player in 120 games. Like it's kind of that Seeger argument a little bit. But yeah, you. You wonder what direction Trey goes in. Whereas I feel like with Willie, we kind of know who Willie is. Like it was what you mentioned. He's been very consistent war wise. He had the counting stats last year. Curious to see where it lands with San Francisco. How much does playing at Oracle affect him? Does it affect him at all? All four of these guys had some sort of question mark around them. I think Trey has a little bit more question marks than maybe the rest of them. But I think they all fit together for that reason.

[Martin Luther King III]

Willie Adam is 16th overall in baseball with 32 homers.

[Jake]

It's really good.

[Martin Luther King III]

You know, like that's plus the 20 steals. There's only like guys that have that combo. Above him are Lindor, gunner Jay Ram and Shohei. Yeah. So if you like to have fun with stats, you can do that. I will be interested to circle back a little bit.

[Jake]

Trey, one of these guys is moving up next year.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jake]

I can confidently say that my pick is Cruz, but I think it could be any of them.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah, I think you can. You could probably say two of these guys. Like, I'm not. If I get a Correa, Trey Turner, good draftkings line on both of them combined. I would take that. Punching that someone putting a five WAR season out of those two. I. I think I would take that. We're starting to hit the interesting part.

[Jake]

I think we try and tackle our Hasan Kim tears.

[Martin Luther King III]

Wow.

[Jake]

Because there's a lot of bodies that go.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jolly Olive]

They're kind of meant to be done in conjunction.

[Martin Luther King III]

Should we move up? Wife swap. Did that happen to split up the Hasong Kim category?

[Jake]

Personally, I would split them.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. Let's do that for now.

[Jake]

There might be one guy that I put in that's not okay. That gets a little offended and maybe.

[Martin Luther King III]

These people end up in wife's op Hasan Kim, and that's okay. I think there's an easy one. I Think it's Hassan Kim, although his free agency has entered the weird area. I think people are scared about the shoulder and he's probably asking for legitimate shortstop money. And when we're doing all this talk about war and what's your best season? Hassan Kim, he can do a dance with a lot of guys that if Hasong Kim is your shortstop heading into the season, you're kind of not worried about your shortstop position, which. That's an interesting way to look at this. Give me, give me the names of who else you'd put in that category.

[Jake]

Real quick. Hasan Kim, already the fourth most valuable player from Korea in baseball history.

[Martin Luther King III]

Look at that.

[Jake]

Yep, it's pretty crazy. Hassan Kim. And that's okay. These guys can play some good deed. They can hit league average and that's all you need from.

[Martin Luther King III]

They can be good. Like you look at your short, contributing your shortstop position and you're like, I'm our shortstop, isn't the problem.

[Jake]

Yes. And a guy that I have pretty much the same as Hasong Kim in terms of things that they do for their team is Jeremy Pena. Jeremy Pena plays a terrific shortstop position. He has been league average for all three years of his career. He's already put together 13 war in three seasons, which is way more than I would have guessed. If you asked me before we shot today, I would have said maybe eight or seven. He's exactly what that team needs to shore up their infield defense. And you know what he's clutched in the playoffs and that's pretty valuable too. So Jeremy Pena I think definitely belongs in that tier. I wouldn't put him any higher because they're oddly lumped.

[Martin Luther King III]

Like you're plus plus defense and league average hitter. Like you can, like you're comfortable with.

[Jolly Olive]

Them in the moment.

[Jake]

Like I like to play that. What would he get paid right now if he was a free agent game? Jeremy Payne is a really interesting one. Like what would he get? I don't know. Maybe it would be big money.

[Martin Luther King III]

You know, I mean it's always interesting with the age part of it. Yeah, you know, I don't. I guess. Where do you have Dansby? Because isn't that the convo?

[Jake]

So I have Dansby and that's not okay. And I'm interesting. I'm willing to be talked out of it. The reason so Dansby did not have a bad year last year. He was a forward player. It was a good season. The reason I have it and that's not okay is because of the contract. The Cubs are paying him $28 million a year and Tansby has shown that he can be an above league average Batman but he hasn't really done that in Chicago yet. He's a first half, second half player and I just feel like it's kind of that conversation of the Cubs could take such a massive step if Dansby had his highest potential year which he just hasn't yet. But then he's like a little low on this list.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah, I'm throwing a little bit of a challenge flag. I mean if, if Dansby, Dansby had a weird year last year and like Cubs fans would have much love, much loved, much loved if Dansby had his second half in his first half because then their whole season outlook probably would have felt different. Yeah but Dansby his WORE the past three seasons four war, 4.8, 5.5. Yeah. Now it is declining every year and you could point at that and he switched teams and I think Atlanta Stadium is a little friendlier to hit than Wrigley. So maybe there's something there for anything.

[Jake]

With first half Wrigley. Guys is always like it's cold, it's windy.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right. Like and I guess Dansby who's been streaking his career and he, he's out there for. He is these guys. Like I know it, it sounds probably a little crazy to people and I, I defended Dansby last year but he's going to be in contention for the Gold Glove at shortstop. Yeah, you know what you're getting and you're looking for a league average hitter. I, I just, I think fans, Cubs fans would probably like if he could just be league average all year and that's the Dansby Swanson they're getting. But that's what they signed up for. And I don't, I don't know. I'm not going to contract shame. Like yeah, I, it's not like they're looking Cubs people and everyone around baseball aren't expecting Dansby to have a 120 ops. Like his best case is probably a 110, 115 ops plus and if you get that nice, that's kind of the best standsby you're going to get. I think if you told Cubs fans hey he's going to have a 100 ops plus on the nose. He's going to be out there every day which you should expect and he's going to play his level of defense, that's what you've signed up for. I think it's Hassan Kim and Jeremy Pena. He just got paid.

[Jake]

That's my thing. It's like I. I guess it's more so with the name of the tier which I don't really want to change because I think it's accurate. It's just like I would never give Hassan Kim that much money. I would never give Jeremy Pena that kind of contract. And the Cubs did because that's what.

[Martin Luther King III]

They'Re racist out there.

[Jake]

Flag.

[Martin Luther King III]

Now it's out there.

[Jake]

I'm done talking. Joey Ortiz is also here.

[Martin Luther King III]

Really?

[Jake]

Yeah, I have him here.

[Martin Luther King III]

Okay. I'm gonna have to circle back on that another time.

[Jolly Olive]

I think when we get to the. And that's not okay Crew. Dansby is well above.

[Jake]

I think so.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yes.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Jolly Olive]

That's where it's solidly above.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jolly Olive]

Wade Miley to the Reds.

[Martin Luther King III]

Okay. Okay. We won't talk about that. He's retiring. I'm putting. I'm putting Dansby up there. I think he's Hassan.

[Jake]

I got outvoted. That's fine.

[Martin Luther King III]

You did.

[Jake]

Cubs fans, let us know if you're okay with how Dansby's been as a Cub. Curious.

[Martin Luther King III]

Okay. Who else is. Hassan came and that's okay.

[Jake]

I have Joey. Joey was an older rookie. He played mostly third last year. But I think everyone kind of knows that he can handle shortstop and he's kind of. He's a league average bat.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. He must.

[Jake]

Defender.

[Martin Luther King III]

He bald. He's young. It's going to be interesting. Like we could very much look back at this and laugh. I think in either direction. Probably not too hot. I guess what scares me is I don't know how high Joey Ortiz can go.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

And having done these listing here, Joey Ortiz could end up.

[Jake]

But are the brewers not okay with him being Hassan Kim? Because I think they're perfect.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think they are. I mean if they. Yes. If they get that out of Joey Ortiz and do I think he could be very solid defensively in league average hitter. Yes. And I think there could be variables in either direction that. Yeah, I'm. I'm fine with Joey Ortiz being there.

[Jake]

I. I get what you're saying though. It is weird seeing him on the same tier as guys that have been doing it for a while.

[Martin Luther King III]

I told them that have like. Because there are. There are people that go to play shortstop at the MLB level and that ends quick. And we're talking about Joey Ortiz could play two months at shortstop and the brewers are like, okay, back to third and that's fine.

[Jake]

I know this might be a nightmare. Sure. Do we want another tier that's like Hasan Kim and they could be better or something like for the kind of unknowns that we can put below the more known guys. Because I also have like CJ Abrams lingering around here. I have Bo's gotta fall somewhere in here.

[Martin Luther King III]

Like Bo's an absolutely wild one.

[Jake]

Oh, I have no idea what to do with.

[Martin Luther King III]

I.

[Jake]

Maybe Bo is wife swap.

[Martin Luther King III]

Bo might be white swap.

[Jake]

Oh, might be wife swap.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think he's looking for a change.

[Jake]

I can't believe how bad it got last year.

[Martin Luther King III]

You love to play at Fenway. Would he love to play in San Diego?

[Jake]

What's Bo's numbers at the stadiums? Let's find out.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think I'm gonna put Bo at white swap for now because dude, the bow. I. I can't believe we're at this part of where we're talking about Boba Shet. But Boba Shet, man, if you erased last season, it was a great player. He flies up this list. He's probably a three legged horse. Bo.

[Jake]

970 career ops at Fenway. 308 career at Petco. It's a lock. He's in wife swap.

[Martin Luther King III]

He would love to get in there. I wonder if we could throw someone else to make everyone a little more comfortable swapping with, I guess jp.

[Jake]

No one wants.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think JP Crawford is hos on Kim and that's okay.

[Jake]

Yeah, I think so too. I also don't think anyone wants to swap with him.

[Martin Luther King III]

Jp.

[Jake]

You know, I mean, no one wants to go Seattle. No one wants to swap JP through that.

[Martin Luther King III]

After that Mariners ballpark article.

[Jolly Olive]

I think if. If JP repeated last year, he'd fall to. That's not okay.

[Jake]

JP was really good in 2023. Yeah, like how quickly? I mean, he had a serious drop off, but he led the league in walks. 133 OPS plus as a shortstop. Got MVP votes.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. And in his 105 games, he racked up two. He had a tough year offensively. In 105 games. He's hurt and yeah, he's a career. 245. 338 on base.

[Jake]

Also sneaky. One of the best contracts in baseball. He's getting 11 mil. Yeah, that's like for what he can do. That's right. Really good.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yes. You know, and his prime years. Okay, so let's put JP. JP's in Hassan Kim and that's okay. Hey, can we get ugly names off the board? Because I can't even look at this right now.

[Jolly Olive]

Thin it out.

[Jake]

Who's rip off? Kenny Pickett.

[Martin Luther King III]

Who's this White Sox guy?

[Jake]

Kenny Pickett. I don't know. Let's find out.

[Martin Luther King III]

Doesn't he have the same initials or something? I'm blanking on his name. Colton Ker.

[Jake]

But not Brendan Shoemake.

[Jolly Olive]

This is Brooks Baldwin.

[Martin Luther King III]

Brooks Baldwin. Close.

[Jake]

Kind of. You could have said any name.

[Martin Luther King III]

The A's guy is Jacob something.

[Jolly Olive]

Jacob Wilson. Who I believe is a well regarded one. We're gonna find out. Kenny Pickett.

[Martin Luther King III]

I put the A's logo up there too. Is Brian Roo. Kenny pick it because he can pick it.

[Jake]

I have this. I have this here is more like a question. Like yeah, Kenny.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think it's Kenny.

[Jake]

No.

[Martin Luther King III]

Because I don't know if.

[Jake]

Yeah, he can. He can pick it.

[Martin Luther King III]

Oh yeah.

[Jake]

90Th percentile.

[Martin Luther King III]

I. I just don't know if he has any offensive profile and I don't think the guards care.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

That. I'm interested to see what that looks like.

[Jake]

Taylor Walls.

[Jolly Olive]

I have here put walls and Xavier.

[Jake]

Yeah. Like I think if Trey Sweeney just plays solid shortstop. He's already more valuable than Javi. Right?

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Which is so sad.

[Martin Luther King III]

But go look at Javi's offensive stats. It's bad. Okay. I want to jump up to team's best player and we think that's okay because I think there's a couple layups. I think Mason win.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

What he did last year. I think there's potential he could climb up this list. I think there's potential he could climb down this list. I know you know you and Foolish got into that nasty fight on Wake and Jake.

[Jake]

I was pro. Mason one, right.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Yeah. What's up?

[Martin Luther King III]

Eat it.

[Jake]

What's up?

[Martin Luther King III]

Eat it. Foolish. But that could come back. That. That could come back. And like he could be a guy that could be next year's Hasong Kim. And that's not okay because the Cardinals are going to ask a lot of him. I love Mason Win. The way he plays is awesome. And I think he could climb up. Potentially climb up this list. You wonder how high. But a Mason win deserves to be a tier above a couple of Joey Ortiz. Jeremy Pena. I think from what proven just that little bit more from what he showed last year. If there's more in there. Mason win. How do you spell that?

[Jake]

With a.

[Jolly Olive]

Both. Both names are kind of not how you'd have guessed.

[Jake]

He was their most valuable player by a lot last year.

[Martin Luther King III]

Five war season.

[Jake]

Yeah. Like he was a tourist. He was 22 years old.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. Like so he.

[Jake]

You're right that he could take a step in either direction. Like we've seen plenty of sophomore slumps. It could go the Other way. Like he could take a step forward and get even better. That I think that he fits kind of perfectly in this tier of like if he is great.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

The Cardinals now have a, you know, Willia Domus, potentially even higher caliber shortstop for so cheap because he's so young. Plus he's got that absolute cannon of an arm which I think is a tool that no other player has in baseball like him. That his upside is tremendous. Like I. I feel like the Cardinals can honestly try and start to build around him if they see.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

A step forward in 20. Like he can realistically be the face.

[Martin Luther King III]

Of that franchise if he takes a slight step up. He's a six WAR shortstop.

[Jake]

Yeah. There's not like, I know we're in kind of a shortstop golden age, which makes this tier list so difficult, but he is in the conversation of being in like that top five tier if he takes another step forward next year.

[Martin Luther King III]

Another guy that I think goes here easily and I wish we would talk more about him. Zach Netto. Where his final stats landed last year are insane. And I mean, there's obviously an Angels caveat here, but it's very similar to Mason win five WAR, 23 homers, 30 steals. Like, that's. It's incredible season.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

If Zach. Zach Netto did that offensive season on the New York Yankees, everyone would be.

[Jake]

Talking about like most underrated player in baseball type conversations.

[Martin Luther King III]

Like crazy stuff. Yeah, crazy stuff. And he did it with his halos. Who do they have a team that again, it's very similar to the Mason win conversation. Hey, two great guys, here's your snapshot. We probably spent too much time on the Big Boy.

[Jake]

I mean, it's just the thing that's messing me up is like, they're all so young. Like, how are they all so good already? It doesn't make any sense in my brain.

[Martin Luther King III]

Well, the sick part is, unfortunately, baseball happens to some guys. Whether it's injury or you've got one hole in your swing or something happens. The Zeke Tovar deserve to be with them.

[Jake]

So Zeke is interesting because Zeke. Zeke struck out 200 times last year, which is. He's one of only three shortstops ever to do that. The other one being Ellie De La Cruz. Last year he also did it. Zeke had a little bit of a plate discipline thing. He's also in a similar scenario to Zach N where he plays for a pretty poor team. So he's the best player far and away, especially with Nolan Jones and guys like won the Gold Glove and kind of know that like Definitely deserved the nomination. I wasn't sure if he was going to win, but he's really nice at shortstop. The thing with me is a.295 on base is right. Not good. Like, that's not major league level. If one part of your game falls off, things can get really bad really quickly. So maybe he is Hassan Kim and that's okay. But also he's another guy that I kind of just believe in. Like, he's. He was 22 last year. Mason Wood was 22 last year. Zach Nano was 23 last year. Like, there's still a realistic path forward for all three of those guys.

[Martin Luther King III]

He's trending up.

[Jolly Olive]

Step up. He took from age 21 to 22, led the league in doubles.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Home road splits aren't that bad, which is wild. He was actually. No, he was slightly better at home. But the Coors effect and I can get rambly on that sometimes. But like, it can hurt you more than it can help you.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

The fact his splits are like, this is pretty wild. That I. He deserves. I think we're rocking him a little bit. I think he deserves to be up there.

[Jake]

Yeah. I think with a lot of Rockies players, sometimes you see the OPS plus and you're like, well. But I feel like that's kind of unfair sometimes because.

[Jolly Olive]

Yeah, that is getting dragged down by just. He played in cores.

[Jake]

Right. Like, I. I would more so like if I saw guys triple A stats and they're crazy. That would make me more like rather than a guy who's in the major leagues doing it and just has the cores effect latched onto him. I think he belongs here because I do think he's the best player on the Rockies.

[Martin Luther King III]

We don't really know about availability yet, but this guy's first two full seasons. 153.

[Jake]

That matters to me.

[Martin Luther King III]

26 homers. Led the NL in doubles with 45. And he won the Gold Glove at age 22. So yes, I. He deserves to be team's best player. And that's another.

[Jake]

And there's also like a. Like he was technically less than Brenton Doyle, which I'm excited to see where Brenton Doyle falls in the center field list when we get there. But they were kind of the same guy. 4 war player around league average, bat really good defensively and it's in.

[Jolly Olive]

That's okay. Question mark.

[Jake]

Why are the Rockies really good at developing players and they just can't get any external talent?

[Martin Luther King III]

The pitching thing is crazy.

[Jake]

It's crazy.

[Martin Luther King III]

A couple of their transactions are crazy. They're more focused on being a business than a baseball team.

[Jolly Olive]

A couple of their non player developments are crazy.

[Jake]

Like their position players are good.

[Martin Luther King III]

The other part that gets me mad is like, I think there's going to be a Rockies article in 5 years or 25 years that's very similar to the Mariners. One that came out that the problem is the Rockies have known their stadium is an issue for 20 years and they never tried anything.

[Jake]

Yeah, like Arizona.

[Martin Luther King III]

They tried one thing. There was one season when they like weren't going to use starting pitchers. Like there was a weird Bud Black season. I forget what it was that night.

[Jake]

Was it one of their playoff years?

[Martin Luther King III]

No. They tried some weird pitching. Didn't work. But I'm not doing the course.

[Jake]

Yeah, no, you're going to get lost.

[Martin Luther King III]

Gets me hot. I'm ready for that advisor gig.

[Jake]

Those three feel like a tear.

[Martin Luther King III]

I would make a pitch for C.J. abrams and I know there's a fear factor in. Last season ended weird. If I wanted to, I could spin that in a positive way. We are maybe too familiar with C.J. abrams. It feels like he's been a big leaguer for a while now. He's still 24. 20 homers last year, 31 steals, 18 homers, 47 steals the year before that. You know, 110 OPS plus last year. It obviously landed in a weird place. There are questions about his defense that could have him on a third base list. Yeah, probably sooner second base than later or something.

[Jake]

My, my take for this is I, I think he ends the year not the shortstop over the Nationals. It got pretty bad defensively last year. I watched a lot of Nationals baseball that's fan and like the bat was really there in the first half. Like best player in the lineup for sure. You were. When he came up in the order, you knew like, okay, this is the at bat. We got to be careful around. They have a lot of talented young players. Like I think James Wood. If you want to do a fun NL MVP sprinkle this year for high odds. He's a guy I would pick with Abrams. I just think he's so defensively limited that I, I can't. I can't imagine that by WAR he'd be the National's best player this season. He was first percentile. I was above average, negative 17. Like bottom of the league by far.

[Martin Luther King III]

So where would you put him?

[Jake]

That's the thing. Because he's not Hassan Kim. Hassan Kim is. His whole thing is that he's going to give you four war and be good defensively. So C.J. abrams is a really weird one. I don't think he needs to change the scenery. I think he's, yeah, fine being a national.

[Jolly Olive]

I don't think he's both. Wife's wife swap.

[Martin Luther King III]

We'll see what happens.

[Jake]

So maybe he is here just kind of like as an asterisk, because I don't really think he fits there, man.

[Martin Luther King III]

Like, what. What would be more surprising to you? Like, C.J. abrams ends up in a bad spot on any list or. We're talking about C.J. abrams, like, the five war player this year. Like, if C.J. abrams ends up in a pit, I don't know, man, that. That guy has all the tools. Hopefully he got a life lesson at the end of last season. Like, what if. What if C.J. abrams took a lot of stuff to heart and he comes in incredible this year?

[Jake]

Like, yeah, it depends on his response to adversity.

[Martin Luther King III]

If I had to bet on C.J. abrams having a one and a half war season or a five war season, I would bet five war.

[Jake]

I can be okay with it because he's, you know, he matches the young factor, too. Prized prospect, 23 years old last year. So that's the same as Netto. I'm okay with it, but I do.

[Martin Luther King III]

Think I understand the fears.

[Jake]

It's. Honestly, I don't know why the Nationals haven't swapped him in Luis Garcia, because Luis Garcia is a really good glove at second base and Abrams was originally a second baseman. If I. If my memory serves me right, I think.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think history is going to look pretty good on your commentary.

[Jake]

We'll see.

[Martin Luther King III]

But I want to see. I. I think the bat is real.

[Jake]

That's very real. He's a good hitter.

[Martin Luther King III]

C.J. abrams could be 30.

[Jolly Olive]

Whatever it is, seems like it's. It is. Okay.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Jolly Olive]

Where exactly a team's gonna use him, we'll find. We'll figure it out.

[Jake]

But really quick. Hang on.

[Martin Luther King III]

What's that?

[Jake]

What do you do in September? Because I remember just these numbers were not. Yeah, I know. Yeah. So he had a 1.127 OPS in June. That month alone, he was like, that's good. Best heard in baseball type thing. Then he was below.600 the next two months.

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jake]

So he was just streaky. Like, his numbers could have ended, in.

[Jolly Olive]

A way, two insane months.

[Jake]

So I think, yeah, I'm sold. I think he could be in that tier because if he just stays consistent, he will be. His bat will carry him to the same values the other three guys.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. And I guess Again, baseball, we talked about, how are there so many young guys on this list? And it's consistency, it's work ethic, it's health, it's. It's all the stuff that of talent and, like, potential. I think of this crew, I still think C.J. abrams might have the most talent and potential.

[Jolly Olive]

Yeah, like things he can do.

[Martin Luther King III]

It's a little tricky with defense and.

[Jake]

Like, I guess what do you think is easier to improve? That's. That's the question you ask yourself with that.

[Martin Luther King III]

I, I think of all these guys as a hitter, I can bake on Abrams the most. Zach Netto might have an argument.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

And in baseball, hitting talks, but it might talk at a different position. It's true. Oh, boy.

[Jake]

So that leaves one.

[Martin Luther King III]

One tier here, Hasong Kim, and that's not okay.

[Jake]

You want to take it away?

[Martin Luther King III]

Scratches his ear. Here are the names. Here are the names remaining. And I. Probably a lot of Yankee fans that are listening to this that are like, hey, Jakester. I'd say, don't call me that. You can call me Jake Ster. Where's Anthony Volpe? I heard a lot of young, talented shortstops get talked about.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

And I didn't hear Anthony Volpe. Well, I think he's currently Hassan Kim, and that's not okay. The expectation for him has been a lot higher. The Yankees have passed on a lot of these other players above him on the list in free agency or trades for his opportunity. There's a lot of ways you can chop up his numbers that are not very pretty offensively. Closer to the worst, if not the worst, than mediocre. The past couple years, he showed a little bit in the postseason. That speaks to Yankee fans.

[Jolly Olive]

Couple good stretches in regular seasons that.

[Martin Luther King III]

You'Ve seen the spark if you're a Yankee fan.

[Jolly Olive]

I think, I think most Yankee fans have seen the vision on him. But.

[Martin Luther King III]

And it could happen. But he has not earned to be with the team's best player. And we think that's okay.

[Jolly Olive]

All those guys took a big step up offensively.

[Martin Luther King III]

He could make a fight for Hassan Kim, and that's okay. But he's currently not. I mean, what's the career ops plus at 83?

[Jake]

My thing with Volpe, because I do think on a lot of teams, if you add an Anthony Volpe, the team gets better. I think that you can say that safely. He's a. He's a three WAR shortstop. A lot of teams could benefit from that. The thing with that is that when you see, oh, he was only 23 last year. So is Zach Natto, so was Zeke Tovar. So was C.J. abrams. So was, you know, the guys at the very top of the list, although they're kind of an alien scenario. So was Elliott La Cruz. Like, there are so many shortstops in the game that are that young that have already demonstrated that they can hit an above league average at the major league level and also play the position well. Plus you add the magnification of playing on the Yankees, the magnification of being a first round pick, like you said, passing on other dudes to get this guy his spot. That. Yeah, I think that this tier is kind of built for him. Of like, that's not okay. Like, we need you to be more than just a guy that can play the position.

[Martin Luther King III]

We need production well in the artistry where sometimes things work out too well. You said Volpe has an 83 OPS plus in his career.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

So does Isaiah Kiner. Falafa, the man who kept the seat warm for him.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

As Corey Seeger hit free agency, IKF balled out Toronto last year. I'll give him credit. He got traded to Pittsburgh and he did the opposite of that. And they're now handing him the keys to the shortstop position to start the year, which I hope things work out for ikf. There's been a lot of confusion in this office and I think sometimes around baseball, how IKF is viewed. He's Hassan Kim and that's not okay. But he's not Hassan Kim. That's the whole deal. That's the whole thing with this category.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Like you're basically wearing a Hassan Kim Halloween costume. Yeah, like I can be that, but you're not.

[Jake]

Like, the Pirates are so much better if they have Hasan Kim, but they also have IKF slotted as their leadoff hitter right now, their lead off shortstop. I think they need. They need him to be more than what he is for them to succeed. Also because they just didn't do anything this off season besides Spencer Horowitz. So it's a little unfair to icaf because I feel like we all kind of know what kind of player he is. Like if you play him at second or third and you have him at the bottom of the lineup, that's a really nice piece. He was good for the Blue Jays last year. But if you have him leading off and playing shortstop and you want him to be Hasan Kim, you might be disappointed.

[Martin Luther King III]

It's just so wild to me that, that Blue J. His time with the Blue Jays is what the Yankees dreamt of. It's what the Pirates have dreamt of. It's what I think Texas briefly dreamt of for IKF. He. He did have 3.2. Warren 83 games.

[Jake]

Damn.

[Martin Luther King III]

But it fell off the cliff. And that's. If you look at his page, that's the clearest outlier of anything that. I don't know. You don't question his work ethic. The guy answered every interview question he was asked. He was well beloved by the Yankees players. I don't know. To look at his baseball card in modern day baseball and say that's going to be our everyday leadoff hitter, that's slight malpractice.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

From the Pirates, who are drawing a lot of ire from their fan base and people outside of baseball. Not outside of baseball, outside of the Pirates. And those two being paired together just feels right. Yep. Also in this category, I guess these are just my shortstops. Geraldo Perdomo for the Snakes this year. Pivot year for him. For whatever reason, he feels like a weakness on the Diamondbacks.

[Jake]

Yeah, he's. He's an interesting one for me because he makes that team better outside of play. He's like a big vibes guy. Like Dalton, I think said he would be. If they had to pick a captain of the team, it would be him, which shocked me. But then I thought about it and I was like, yeah, I guess it would be him. But he kind of is Hasan Kim.

[Martin Luther King III]

No, he's moving up.

[Jake]

I think he's up.

[Jolly Olive]

I didn't realize the platoon split.

[Jake]

I think that he's Hassan Kim and that's okay because he's like their 8 hitter.

[Jolly Olive]

Is there someone he wants to wife swap with? Is he wife swapping Bo?

[Martin Luther King III]

What is this?

[Jake]

I think he's has on Kim and that's okay.

[Martin Luther King III]

I think you're right because his free.

[Jake]

Agency could get real interesting real fast.

[Martin Luther King III]

He's 25. He just turned 25. He had a 101 OPS plus in the games he played. He had 3.5 WAR last year in 98 games.

[Jake]

So you're telling me he's league average and he had a.

[Martin Luther King III]

There's something that feels weird and off about it and I don't know what it is, but I think you're right. He's Hassan Kim and that's okay.

[Jake]

You know what's off? It's the low power.

[Martin Luther King III]

It's very low power. And if you go month by month with him from last year, I think there's one OPS in the eights. Everything is a low six. So that's one of like, what are you getting on an everyday basis?

[Jake]

You'd rather him be consistent for an everyday basis?

[Martin Luther King III]

You're getting. Oh, can he pick it?

[Jake]

He was three and a half war in 98 games.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jake]

I didn't see that before.

[Martin Luther King III]

No.

[Jake]

I thought it was a full season.

[Martin Luther King III]

He's Hasan Kim and that's okay. Even though he could feel better.

[Jake]

Oh, it's a.

[Jolly Olive]

It's a higher average mid to high sixes OPS in those other months. And he went nuts in August.

[Jake]

And all three of us, all three soldiers were August. In August. That's funny.

[Martin Luther King III]

It's weird.

[Jolly Olive]

And eight of his 20 doubles or whatever that number is.

[Martin Luther King III]

I don't know why he gets judged on a slightly different scale, but he does not deserve to be with Volpe. Does not deserve to be with ikf.

[Jolly Olive]

I mean, he, he cleaned up the platoon thing, which was the big issue the year before.

[Martin Luther King III]

I had an old pimple scabbed over and I just picked it and I. Guys, Jake's peeling or maybe blood. Yeah. Perdomo. Yeah. The last two years he's at a 98 ops plus in the glove plays and.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. I, I don't know why he was.

[Jake]

In the best lineup in baseball. He doesn't need to be better than what he was.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah. It's just interesting that I guess he's viewed as the weak link. Yeah. Wow. Okay, so big day for Per Domo. He's Hassan Kim and that's okay. At least for this season. And that's going to be an interesting thing we're going to find out this year because they've got Jordan Lawler coming up. They've got.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

Some interesting ways to look at their upcoming future infield. Yeah. If he can keep doing that. I mean, he's on a five war pace last year. Higher.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

So. And he's 25. Like, what if he gets better?

[Jake]

Yeah, that's.

[Martin Luther King III]

That's the other great baseball game that sometimes happens. The two remaining players, if you've made it to this point of the episode. My God.

[Jake]

Leave a.

[Martin Luther King III]

Like Lando Arcia.

[Jake]

Can he pick it?

[Martin Luther King III]

I think so.

[Jolly Olive]

I might. Oh, I was leaning Haas on Kim and not.

[Martin Luther King III]

Okay, where does numbers land last?

[Jolly Olive]

I don't think the numbers are really bad.

[Jake]

I don't think they need him to be anything more than a guy that can play. Sure.

[Jolly Olive]

I think it. I think he plays shortstop still at a. At a high level that he's above Kenny Pickett and above these guys. But also the Braves have felt like they've had two obvious holes the last two years. I think he's feeding an outfielder.

[Jake]

Can he pick it for me? He's 87th percentile. That's above average. The Braves lineup bangs. He hits like nine.

[Martin Luther King III]

He's braved us a little bit, but that fell off really quickly. And then last year it fell off the whole time. That dude. If he has a bad first month and a half, he might be out. I don't know if he's the Brave shortstop anymore.

[Jake]

He's also. It's getting paid 2 mil here. All they need him to do is just play short.

[Martin Luther King III]

If he hits great, I think he's Kenny Pickett. I think he gets a little too much Braves credit from that good first half of 2023. He hasn't been bad. He was 0.5.

[Jake]

Yeah. He hasn't been above two war since 2017. Since the birth of this company.

[Martin Luther King III]

Since the. The Brewers.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Martin Luther King III]

So I think he's from your OPS Plus.

[Jake]

I also. Xavier Edwards there. I think you're right more as a question.

[Martin Luther King III]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Because he gets.

[Jolly Olive]

I thought we did that a while ago.

[Jake]

Yeah. I just have, like, he needs to get better defensively, but like, he could.

[Martin Luther King III]

If Xavier Edwards had a 128 WRC plus 2.2 war. These are F first time I'm looking at fan graphs. If he did this on your team.

[Jolly Olive]

I might have found it with him. With him, the. The A's guy and the White Sox guy.

[Martin Luther King III]

Oh, slap dicks. No, stop that. Stop. The Blake Snell thing is an all time clip.

[Jake]

Yeah, I got him in. Kenny Pickett. No, I don't care. Sorry.

[Martin Luther King III]

Put together a nice little sample last year.

[Jake]

70 games. That's just. You don't know who he is yet. Yeah, there is. Is that it?

[Martin Luther King III]

That's it.

[Jake]

75 minutes on the clock. Jeez.

[Martin Luther King III]

Crazy.

[Jake]

This is a beefy one, man.

[Martin Luther King III]

This was hard.

[Jake]

I don't think the other ones will be as long or difficult.

[Martin Luther King III]

It's tricky because you don't want to get caught up on the big guys. But there's. There's good conversations with the big guys where, like Aaron Judge. You probably don't have to have that conversation.

[Jake]

It was two of the, like, top five best players in baseball. Like, you gotta have a lengthy discussion.

[Martin Luther King III]

All right. Well, you've already commented what you've loved and you hate. I think Xavier Edwards is the only one I'm not satisfied with. And that's why we ended there. He has an argument for something.

[Jake]

70 games. I need more.

[Martin Luther King III]

Let us know. Well, we did Poorly. We've got one of these coming like every week. Ish.

[Jolly Olive]

Is that the generally the non Monday episode?

[Martin Luther King III]

Right.

[Jolly Olive]

Basically every week.

[Martin Luther King III]

So everyone, thank jolly, thank bbd, let.

[Jolly Olive]

Us know which one should be the next one.

[Martin Luther King III]

Oh, and thank Uncle Dan Wiki Jenkins.

[Jolly Olive]

Production of Dan Patrick Productions, John Boy Media and Workhouse Media.

[Bobby Bones]

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirrorball trophy from Dancing with the Star. So where else are you going to find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit of everything. Listen to Lots to Say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Lexi Brown]

I'm so sick of hearing men talk about women's basketball. This is Lexi Brown and Mariah Rose and we've got a new podcast, Full Circle. Every Wednesday. We're catching you up on what's going on in women's basketball. We've got you with analysis, inside stories, and a little bit of tea. Full circle is an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. Listen to Full circle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports.

[Martin Luther King III]

Welcome to my legacy. I'm Martin Luther King iii and together with my wife, Andrea Waters King, and our dear friends Mark and Craig Kil, we explore the personal journeys that shape extraordinary lives. Join us for heartfelt conversations with remarkable guests like David Oyelo, Mel Robbins, Martin Sheen, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and Billy Porter.

[Jake]

Listen to my legacy on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. This is my legacy.

[Jolly Olive]

Calling all Yellowstone fans, let's go to work. Join Bobby Bones on the official Yellowstone podcast for exclusive cast interviews, behind the scenes insights, and a deep dive into the themes that have made Yellowstone a cultural phenomenon.

[Martin Luther King III]

Our family legacy is this ranch, my protector of my life.

[Jolly Olive]

Listen to the official Yellowstone podcast Now on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.