Seeing as the All-MLB Teams are a part of award season now, it seemed appropriate to reflect on the first 25 years of this century and name an overall All-MLB team.
Players’ performances since 2000 are all that counts, and we are judging players on their individual production rather than team success or accolades.
Catcher: Buster Posey
Top of the fWAR charts at the position and with a higher wRC+ than any other catcher, Buster Posey was a no-brainer for the starting catcher spot.
Posey and Joe Mauer are the only two catchers to have won an MVP award since the turn of the century. Add in Rookie of the Year and three titles, and you’ve got a Cooperstown-worthy career.
First Baseman: Albert Pujols
No one has been worth more than Albert Pujols over the last 25 years. Despite his difficult days as an Angel, just 14 players have a higher wRC+ than Pujols, and he had one of the highest peaks in the 21st century.
The only players with more MVPs than Pujols in big-league history are also included in this team. Miguel Cabrera, Freddie Freeman, and Joey Votto are left competing for a spot on the bench.
Second Baseman: Jose Altuve
It was touch-and-go between Jose Altuve and Chase Utley. The former gets the nod for his 11 extra wRC+ points and a massive stolen base advantage.
Both were perennial All-Stars. Both were leaders on teams that contended for prolonged periods. Altuve, though, had that bit more starpower.
Shortstop: Corey Seager
A World Series MVP with two different teams, Corey Seager’s 136 wRC+ is far clear of any other player with over 25 fWAR at shortstop in the 2000s. Francisco Lindor (121 wRC+) was the strongest contender for this spot.
Seager might seem like a left field selection, but his numbers are elite, even with his injury troubles.
Third Baseman: Alex Rodriguez
José Ramírez, Manny Machado, Nolan Arenado, Adrián Beltré, Evan Longoria, Alex Bregman. There have been many great first basemen in the 21st century, and the list could go on much further.
None came close to Alex Rodriguez. A three-time MVP with a 144 wRC+, Rodriguez was a true superstar at the position. He mixed pure hitting ability with outrageous power, while playing more than solid defense.
Left Fielder: Barry Bonds
Only eight of Barry Bonds’ 22 years in MLB came after the turn of the century. He still won four MVPs, posted almost 60 bWAR, and hit 317 home runs.
Bonds’ 203 wRC+ is 25 points ahead of anyone else. His 27.7% walk rate is nine percentage points ahead of second-placed Juan Soto. His slugging percentage of .724 is, unsurprisingly, in a league of its own.
Center Fielder: Mike Trout
Third in fWAR, Mike Trout’s wRC+ is 27 points ahead of every other center fielder. Ignore the lack of Gold Gloves. Trout was an elite defender in his pomp, while being one of the best baserunners in baseball, and far and away the sport’s best hitter.
Trout was unlucky to only win three MVPs. He unfortunately didn’t have the team success that his peak performances deserved, but that doesn’t take away from just how great he was in the 2010s.
Right Fielder: Aaron Judge
Aaron Judge is second to Bonds in wRC+. He has won three MVPs in a four-year span and has topped the majors in OPS+ in each of those seasons. Getting to 500 home runs seems an inevitability with how Judge is playing.
At the start of the decade, Mookie Betts and Bryce Harper seemed like the frontrunners for this spot. Fernando Tatis Jr. and Soto certainly seemed on the right trajectory. Judge, though, has set himself apart.
Designated Hitter: Shohei Ohtani
Yordan Alvarez is the only DH with a better wRC+ than Shohei Ohtani in the 21st century. Ohtani has 110 more homers than Alvarez, has stolen 165 bases to nine, and can pitch at an All-Star level.
David Ortiz’s counting stats were the only threat to Ohtani, but there’s no way the two-way Japanese megastar can be left off a roster like this.
Rotation: Clayton Kershaw, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Jacob deGrom, Roy Halladay
The front three picked themselves. It got trickier filling out the backend of this rotation. CC Sabathia had the volume. As did Zack Greinke. Chris Sale has peaked twice, Randy Johnson had strong numbers, and Gerrit Cole was pitching his way into the mix before injuries hit.
Jacob deGrom, though, owns the sixth-highest ERA+ in MLB history. Sale is the only pitcher with more than two big-league seasons under his belt to post a better K-BB%. DeGrom’s 2018-21 peak is one of the greatest four-year stretches in MLB history.
Roy Halladay is sixth in fWAR, just behind Sabathia and Greinke. He would be above the pair if it wasn’t for his calamitous year in 2000 as a 23-year-old. Winning a Cy Young Award in 2003 and 2010, Halladay and Greinke had incredibly similar careers, but Halladay has marginally better rate stats.
Of course, Clayton Kershaw, Justin Verlander, and Max Scherzer didn’t need much debate. The trio are far clear of everyone else and have won three Cy Youngs apiece.
Bullpen: Mariano Rivera, Aroldis Chapman, Billy Wagner, Josh Hader, Kenley Jansen, Darren O’Day, Koji Uehara
Mariano Rivera, the all-time leader in ERA+, would be the closer for this hypothetical group. We have gone with a four-three balance, opening up spots for three lefties in Aroldis Chapman, Billy Wagner, and Josh Hader.
Hader leads all relievers (400+ innings pitched) in strikeout rate. Chapman and Kenley Jansen are third and fifth in that category, respectively. Wagner is fourth in left on-base rate.
Darren O’Day might not have the counting stats, but we like mixing in a different arm angle. O’Day was second in left on-base rate and brings another groundball option to complement the hard throwers.
Along with O’Day’s submariners, we have the control of Koji Uehara. He is third in walk rate, third in K-BB%, and seventh in FIP among relievers in the 21st century.
Bench: Yadier Molina, Miguel Cabrera, Mookie Betts, Carlos Beltrán
Yadier Molina edges Mauer out for the backup catching spot. Posey was hardly a liability behind the plate, but Molina’s cannon arm would be useful in late-inning scenarios.
Triple Crown-winning Cabrera was a lock once he had been edged out by Pujols for the starting spot. Between 2004 and 2016, he had a 157 OPS+ with two MVPs and over 40 home runs per 162 games.
Betts’ ability to play second base and shortstop fills a hole on this bench and creates a spot for Carlos Beltrán. That’s two pinch running options, plus a switch-hitter to help navigate late-game matchups. Either player can be used as a defensive replacement for a late-career Bonds.
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