The Home of Fantasy Sports Analysis

Dynasty Fantasy BaseballFantasy BaseballMLB Prospects

2023 Third Base Prospect Rankings

By Eric Cross
Miguel Vargas Deep League Fantasy Baseball waiver wire

Welcome to my positional prospect rankings series for 2023. The offseason is always a fun time, especially in the world of dynasty and prospect rankings. This is the time of year when we have additional time to dissect our rankings in many different ways and dive deeper into prospect profiles to see if we have them ranked appropriately. The two most beneficial ways to break them down are by team and position. In this series, I’m going position by position, continuing with my top Third Base Prospect Rankings here today.

Player Notes

  • Right off the bat, we have a trio of potential superstars, but I’m not sure any of them will play at the hot corner long-term. Out of the three, the one with the lowest percent chance of sticking sat this position is Jordan Walker. Could he? Absolutely. But St. Louis happens to have some fellow named Nolan Arenado and his 10-straight gold glove awards locked in at this position through 2027. Walker played in the outfield exclusively during his Arizona Fall League tenure and will play out there moving forward. It doesn’t really matter where Walker winds up as his offensive profile is so damn good. Think about if Eloy Jimenez could steal some bags. That’s what we’re potentially looking at here with Walker. As for Gunnar Henderson and Elly De La Cruz, both will likely play shortstop (or elsewhere for Elly).

  • On the flip side, one prospect that won’t have eligibility here yet that I project to land here long-term is Noelvi Marte. Out in the Arizona Fall League, Marte only played third, and with his added bulk, I highly doubt he sticks at shortstop longterm. After a lackluster first two months of the season, Marte cranked up the heat in late June, slashing .333/.425/.575 with 11 doubles, 13 home runs, and 18 steals in 245 plate appearances from June 25th on. He also walked 12.7% of the time while trimming the strikeout rate to 16.7%. Marte still appears to be adjusting to his bigger frame, but once he does, watch out. Marte could settle in as a .270/30 type in a great home ballpark with the ability to still add around 10 steals annually. Now is a great time to buy in dynasty leagues.

  • I’m going to group Miguel Vargas, Josh Jung, and Brett Baty together here as all three will likely make an impact at the Major League level this season. All three have showcased plenty of potency with the bat throughout their respective minor league tenures. If I had to pick just one to invest in longterm, it would be Vargas. Overall, the AVG/HR between he and Jung will probably be fairly similar, but Vargas can also add a bit of speed as well. With Baty, he has the upside to hit .260+ with 25 home runs annually, but he has a tendency to be too aggressive at times which could limit him a bit.
    • Vargas: 1850 PA, .313/.390/.488, 112 2B, 49 HR, 47 SB, 10.5% BB, 15.4% K, .175 ISO
    • Jung: 675 PA, .311/.381/.538, 43 2B, 30 HR, 8.3% BB, 21.2% K, .227 ISO
    • Baty: 1033 PA, .289/.390/.493, 60 2B, 38 HR, 12.6% BB, 25.8% K, .204 ISO

  • Switching from some near proximity bats to an FYPD bat, Cam Collier is one that we could see push Top 25 overall status by the end of 2023. Collier went the JuCo route in 2022 and established himself as one of the most potent bats in the entire draft class with a great feel for hitting and solid projection left on his frame to add additional bulk and power. He’s already shown that he can drive the ball consistently, but with more line drives than fly balls. Additional added bulk coupled with more batted balls in the air could push Collier into the 25+ homer territory at Great American Ballpark along with a good average and 5-10 steals as well.
  • One of my favorite prospects at this position right now is Junior Caminero. Originally signed by Cleveland A, Caminero came to Tampa Bay in November 2021 and began breaking out in a big way last season. In 271 PA between rookie ball and Lo-A, Caminero slashed .314/.384/.498 with 11 home runs and 12 steals. At just 19 years old, Caminero was highly-impressive in the Lo-A South Atlantic League with a .299/.359/.505 slash line. He’s also had a stellar showing in winter ball with a .286/.357/.571 slash line in 32 games along with 10 home runs and five steals. Thanks to his above-average or better hit tool and raw power with the potential for more, Caminero is rising up rankings quickly and could flirt with Top 25 overall status this season. Go get him.
  • If you’re looking for a buy-low target at this position with plenty of upside as well, look no further than Coby Mayo. The 2020 4th round pick made it all the way to Double-A at age 20 last summer, and even though the results don’t stand out, Mayo projects favorably longterm. There’s double-plus raw power here and a good enough hit tool, when paired with his excellent QoC, to settle in around .260 or so. If he can keep the strikeouts in check, Mayo has middle-of-the-order bat written all over him.
  • One player I saw out in the Arizona Fall League that impressed me quite a bit was Colt Keith. In 80 AFL plate appearances, Keith slashed .344/.463/.501 with as many walks as strikeouts (16) and a trio of steals and home runs. This after an impressive showing in Hi-A last season where he racked up 26 extra-base hits (9 HR) in 48 games with a .301/.370/.544 line. Keith has the skills to produce a high AVG/OBP while adding 20+ home runs as well. Recent news of Detroit moving in the center field fence (and lowering the wall) is an added bonus here longterm as well. Keith is definitely on the rise and could be top 50 overall soon.

  • While Keith impressed in the AFL, Warming Bernabel did not. In fact, Bernabel had one of the worst AFL performances this season. However, I’m not going to let a 15-game AFL sample size alter my opinion of him too much after back to back solid seasons in the minor leagues. Bernabel doesn’t stand out in any one area, but can contribute across the board with .275+/15+/15+ upside in Coors Field. Don’t rush to sell in dynasty leagues given his AFL performance. In fact, if you can buy low on him, I’d definitely kick the tires.
  • FYPD Targets: Cam Collier, Jacob Berry, Tyler Locklear, Sal Stewart, Max Wagner, Trey Lipscomb
  • Redraft Targets (In Order): Gunnar Henderson, Josh Jung, Jordan Walker, Miguel Vargas, Brett Baty, Jordan Westburg, Spencer Steer, Addison Barger, Elly De La Cruz, Curtis Mead, Mark Vientos, Enmanuel Valdez, Jordan Groshans

If you aren’t playing your dynasty leagues on Fantrax, you’re missing out on the deepest player pool and most customization around. For more dynasty and prospect talk, make sure to check out the Fantrax Toolshed Podcast every week!

2023 Third Base Prospect Rankings

Other positions can be found here, along with overall prospect rankings, dynasty rankings, and team prospect rankings.

RankPlayerMLB TeamAgeETA
Tier 1
1Gunnar HendersonBAL21.6Debuted
2Elly De La CruzCIN21.12023
3Jordan WalkerSTL20.72023
Tier 2
4Miguel VargasLAD23.2Debuted
5Noelvi MarteCIN21.32023
6Josh JungTEX25Debuted
7Curtis MeadTBR22.32023
Tier 3
8Christian Encarnacion-StrandCIN23.22024
9Jordan WestburgBAL242023
10Brett BatyNYM23.2Debuted
11Cam CollierCIN18.22025
12Junior CamineroTBR19.62024
13Coby MayoBAL21.12023
Tier 4
14Addison BargerTOR23.22023
15Colt KeithDET21.52023
16Warming BernabelCOL20.72024
17Blaze JordanBOS20.12024
18Zack GelofOAK23.32023
19Yiddi CappeMIA20.52024
20Mark VientosNYM23.1Debuted
21Deyvison De Los SantosARI19.62024
22Eguy RosarioSDP23.4Debuted
23Spencer SteerCIN25.2Debuted
Tier 5
24Eddinson PaulinoBOS20.62025
25Jose SalasMIA19.82023
26Justyn-Henry MalloyDET232024
27Enmanuel ValdezBOS24.12023
28James TriantosCHC202024
29Nolan JonesCOL24.7Debuted
30Gleider FiguereoTEX18.62026
31Jacob BerryMIA21.72024
32Jhonkensy NoelCLE21.52024
33Lenyn SosaCHW23Debuted
34Pedro RamirezCHC18.82025
35Bryan RamosCHW20.92023
36Orelvis MartinezTOR21.22023
37Will WagnerHOU24.52024
Tier 6
38Osleivis BasabeTBR22.42023
39Sterlin ThompsonCOL21.62025
40Werner BlakelyLAA20.92024
41Tyler LocklearSEA22.22024
42Jake AluWAS25.82023
43Eddys LeonardLAD22.22023
44Ian LewisMIA202025
45Casey SchmittSFG23.92023
46Andres ChaparroNYY23.72023
47Willy VasquezTBR21.42023
48Sal StewartCIN19.22025
49Thomas SaggeseTEX20.82024
Tier 7
50Jordan GroshansMIA23.2Debuted
51Jorbit VivasLAD21.92023
52Reginald PreciadoCHC19.72024
53Jonathan OrnelasTEX22.72024
54Max WagnerBAL21.52024
55Malcom NunezPIT21.92024
56Nick LoftinKCR24.42023
57Izaac PachecoDET20.22024
58Yunior SeverinoMIN23.32023
59A.J. VukovichARI21.52024
60Trey LipscombWAS22.62024

Media Credit: Brandon Sloter/Icon Sportswire

Fantrax logo

Fantrax was one of the fastest-growing fantasy sites over the last few years, and we’re not stopping now. We are the most customizable, easy-to-use, and feature-rich platform in the industry. Fantrax offers the greatest fantasy experience for your dynasty, keeper, redraft, and best ball leagues. Fantasy sports doesn’t sleep, and neither does Fantrax, with seasons running 365 days a year. Take your fantasy leagues to the next level now at Fantrax.com!
More fantasy goodness More from author
Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.