Guardians News: Andres Gimenez Ranked As A Top 10 Second Baseman By MLB Network

Originally posted on FanNation Cleveland Baseball Insider
By Tommy Wild | Last updated 1/17/24

MLB is full of Superstars and tremendous players. There's no shortage of All-Star talent around the diamond so it can be hard to rank it all.

MLB Network is going through and ranking the top 10 players at each position heading into 2024. Wednesday night's position group was second basemen and the Cleveland Guardians were represented on this list.

Andres Gimenez was ranked as baseball's seventh-best second baseman by MLB Network. He is considered the third-best when looking at just the AL representatives. It's exciting that he's still in the top 10, but this is quite a drop from this same ranking just a year ago when he was viewed as the second-best overall.

Defense will always be what Giminez is best known for and the reason he's one of the top players in the game. He's won the last two American League Gold Gloves for the position and he even took home a Platinum Glove after the 2023 season.

Gimenez ranked in the 100th percentile with 18 outs above average in 2023. He also led all-AL second baseman with 23 defensive runs saved. Those are elite numbers.

Something holding Gimenez back from being ranked higher on this list is his offense. Gimenez was a tremendous hitter during the 2022 season but took a step back last season finishing with a .251 batting average and a 98 OPS+.

There is a reason to be hopeful that Gimenez can return to form heading into 2024. He finished the month of September with a .333/.369/.490 slash line. Perhaps he will be higher on next year's roster if he carries this into next season.

This article first appeared on FanNation Cleveland Baseball Insider and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: