Meet Ian Desmond, the best shortstop in baseball who doesn’t need a disclaimer in front of his name.
Unlike Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki, who we must preface anything we say or write about with “When he’s healthy,” Desmond needs no such introduction, having played in at least 150 games in all but one of his five full major league seasons.
Since 2012, it’s Desmond who has been the most productive shortstop in baseball not named Tulowitzki or Hanley Ramirez based on FanGraphs‘ wRC+ metric, which measures a player’s offensive value by runs created—and arguably the best if you’re a fan of WAR (Wins Above Replacement).
That he provides that kind of production from the right side of the plate only makes him all the more valuable, given the dearth of quality right-handed power available (San Diego has cornered the market on that commodity, in case you didn’t notice.)
Simply put, Desmond is the kind of dynamic player every team in baseball would benefit from adding to its lineup.
Which teams stand to benefit the most from making a move to acquire him?
Let’s take a look.