Jonah Keri ranks baseball’s most valuable assets 1-50

When I first saw this list pop up on twitter, I thought ho-hum; another list with the players in baseball falling like dominos until we get to Mike Trout at number one.

However, our friend Jonah Keri threw us for a bit of a surprise in ranking the 2017 MLB Trade Values from 50 to 1.

First, the top ten went like this:
10. Trea Turner
9. Nolan Arenado
8. Anthony Rizzo
7. Noah Syndergaard
6. Mookie Betts
5. Carlos Correa
4. Francisco Lindor
3. Mike Trout
2. Kris Bryant
1. Corey Seager

Yes, Corey Seager tops the list at one! Here is what Keri says as to why he’s put there, after being eighth last season:

His first full season netted an All-Star berth, a Silver Slugger award, a Rookie of the Year award and a third-place finish in MVP voting. He’ll be royally underpaid and bound to his team for the next five seasons. He’s an absolute beast of a hitter, but unlike National League titans like Bryant and Joey Votto, he does so while holding down one of the two most challenging spots on the diamond, at shortstop. And somehow, he’s still just 22 years old, making him two years and change younger than Bryant and nearly three years younger than Trout. Dan Szymborski’s ZiPS projection system pegs him performing slightly better than Bryant over the next five seasons, and with just 800 major league plate appearances under his belt, there’s good reason to think he’s going to get even better.

Corey Seager, the crown is yours. Wear it wisely.

So basically, the Dodgers have the gem of all gems in their possession right now. It’s hard to believe that Bryce Harper wasn’t in the top 10, but ranked 14th.