The Boston Red Sox undoubtedly have one of the best tandems on the left side of the infield in Major League Baseball.
The duo will attend the All-Star game together once again, and will likely continue to do so for years to come. While generating buzz for the festivities, MLB.com ranked the top All-Stars in the game.
Rafael Devers is No. 15 on the list, trailing only San Diego Padres’ Manny Machado (No. 14) at the hot corner.
“Devers has been an excellent player for a while, but this is the year he has put it all together,” MLB.com’s Will Leitch wrote Wednesday.
The 25-year-old rising star is easily a top-15 player in the game, and would likely be ranked in the five-to-10 range in most people’s minds.
In somewhat of a surprise, Xander Bogaerts was all the way down at No. 30, but still received praise regarding his handling of adversity this offseason.
“So much for him being threatened by Boston signing Trevor Story,” Leitch said.
Bogaerts trailed Chicago White Sox’s Tim Anderson (No. 11) for the top shortstop spot. The decision to have such a disparity between Bogaerts and Anderson is not only blasphemous, but there is a strong argument to be made that Bogaerts should be ranked higher than his American League teammate.
While the list is questionable at best, it’s probably not worth popping a blood vessel over All-Star participant rankings that bare no weight whatsoever.
J.D. Martinez will also attend the All-Star game but was not listed, as he was likely added to the roster following the creation of the ranking.
NESN.com’s coverage of MLB All-Star Week is presented by Cross Insurance, protecting your team since 1954.
