Best of the best: Jose Ramirez named MLB's best at third

When it comes to the best third basemen in Major League Baseball, only a few names come to mind, but there is one who clearly stands above the rest. Cleveland Guardians' Jose Ramirez.

This is not to discount what baseball's other third basemen have accomplished and what their talent levels are, as there is a reason why they are in the conversation for being the top-ranked player at the hot corner, but just a simple acknowledgment that Ramirez possesses an edge over the others who might be under consideration for holding the top spot in a recent list.

Ramirez's performance from last season is what propelled him to the number one spot in Joel Reuter's ranking of third baseman on Bleacher Report, "The 32-year-old had finished in the Top 10 in AL MVP voting seven times in the past eight years, and he had one of the best seasons of his career last year, posting a 143 OPS+ with 39 doubles, 39 home runs, 118 RBI, 114 runs scored, 41 steals and 6.8 WAR in 158 games.". This was more than enough to beat out the rest of the top five, consisting of San Francisco's Matt Chapman, San Diego's Manny Machado, Boston's Rafael Devers, and Atlanta's Austin Riley.

It should also be mentioned that Ramirez has been incredibly consistent throughout his 12-year career, sporting a career .279/.352/.504 slash line with 364 doubles, 255 home runs, and 40 triples with 898 runs scored, 864 RBI, and 243 stolen bases en route to a 130 OPS+. This has led to being a Top-10 finisher in American League MVP voting seven times and finishing within the top six four times in the past five seasons.

The Guardians have been a team that goes as Jose Ramirez goes, having proven that multiple times since becoming a full-time player for Cleveland in 2016. Perhaps one day, those in charge of MVP voting will finally get it right and reward Ramirez with an award he should have won at least once by now.