Sometimes a player is so good at offense that they let it slide at defense. That is the case for these 10 players, as we rank the top 10 worst defenders in 2019.
Note: DRATING, or Defensive Rating, is a defensive measurement stat on Fangraphs.com where 0 is league average, -15 is horrible, and 15 is elite.
10. Trey Mancini
Although I never mentioned it on my website, Mancini announced in April that he had Cancer. My thoughts and prayers — as well as everyone else on Baseball News Now — are with you, Trey. That being said, he wasn’t a very good defender with a -13.4 DRATING.
9. Luke Voit
He’s a solid offensive producer for the Yankees, but his defense is just so horrible. A -13.6 Defensive Rating says that he shouldn’t be in the lineup.
8. Albert Pujols
Pujols should be a DH, but his teammate Shohei Ohtani is currently occupying that position because Ohtani can’t play a position. Pujols still hits home runs for his team, but his -13.9 DRATING is very, very bad.
7. Freddie Freeman
It pains me to do it, but Freeman is a bad defender. He had a -16.2 DRATING, but he is one of the best hitters in the league.
6. Charlie Blackmon
Blackmon has been one of the best offensive producers for a while now, although his defense is very subpar. He had a -16.9 DRATING.
5. Jorge Soler
He has been so bad at fielding throughout his career that he plays DH — but that didn’t stop him from having a horrible year playing defense. He finished the year with 48 HR so his offensive production is good, but I have to put him here.
4. JD Martinez
A corner outfielder for the Red Sox, Martinez had -18.1 Defensive production according to Fangraphs. He is — and has been — one of the best offensive producers throughout the years, but that -18.1 rating doesn’t look so pretty.
3. Josh Bell
A bad player stuck in the NL, Bell was the Pirates main offensive producer. The only problem is that he is horrible, and I mean horrible with the glove. Thank god the DH is coming to the National League, because he hurts his team so much defensively.
2. Shin-Soo Choo
He’s a person that has been taking up the Rangers’ DH spot for a while, and that’s for a reason. Choo had -19.2 Defensive Production for his team in 2019. Although his offense is good, his defense is just so horrible. It’s good that he’s a DH now.
1. Domingo Santana
The worst offensive producer on this list, Santana brings slightly above average offense with horrible, horrible defense. His -22.4 Defensive Rating — and a -35.65 rating in my NETD stat — makes him the worst defender in the league. It’s not even close.