Josh Jung was in position to make a real run at Rookie of the Year when he was in the unfortunate position, standing right in front of a screaming line drive that shattered his thumb and took him out of the lineup. And out of contention.
He experienced yet another pro season spending significant time on the Injured List.
Jung missed forty games but still managed to drive in 70 runs and score 75. He will be twenty-six on February 12, and will head into the 2024 season trying to stay healthy and improve on what was a very productive rookie year.
But mostly trying to stay healthy.
More than his bat, though, he proved he can play third base, probably exceeding even the Rangers own expectations on defense.
With as good as he did, it wasn’t enough to make the Top Ten list at third. If you ask any GM in baseball, they would no doubt tell you they’d rather have Jung than Justin Turner, Isaac Paredes, or Max Muncy.
Barring anything catastrophic, Jung will be firmly planted on this list next year, and into the future. After too many years of placeholders trying to find a replacement for Adrian Beltre, it seems the Rangers have their third baseman.
THIRD BASEMEN
- Austin Riley, ATL (Last year: 3)
- José Ramírez, CLE (2)
- Manny Machado, SD (1)
- Rafael Devers, BOS (4)
- Alex Bregman, HOU (6)
- Gunnar Henderson, BAL (NR)
- Nolan Arenado, STL (5)
- Max Muncy, LAD (8)
- Isaac Paredes, TB (NR)
- Justin Turner, TOR (7)