[BirdWatcher]

And now for the remainder of the positions, and our most under the radar stars at each position.

Third base:

Third base is a position in the WPK which is largely dominated by veteran players, with the 37-year old future Hall of Famer Jesus Hernandez still perhaps the best in the game. Trevor Leach, at 34, is perhaps just out of the list of the best at the position, but barely. Among the other at the top of the list are three 30 year-olds, Steven Brown, Kasey O'Neil, and Josh Connelly and a 26-year old in Ken Rowell.
Let's take a quick look at their numbers this season:
-Jesus Hernandez (Los Angeles), .289/.355/.524, 4.9 WAR.
-Steven Brown (Milwaukee), .360/.404/.511, 4.1 WAR (on the IL since July 17th).
-Kasey O'Neil (Boston), .266/.354/.445, 3.8 WAR.
-Josh Connelly (Washington), .269/.356/.431, 2.8 WAR.
-Ken Rowell (Columbus), .278/.349/.407, 3.0 WAR.

But the guy we chose as the most under-rated at this position is 31-year old Kevin Reed of Oklahoma City.




It is hard to believe that this 3-time All-Star and 2-time Gold Glove award winner was signed by the Diamond Kings on a minor league contract after his original team, the Portland Wild Things, who had drafted him 35th overall in the 1968 draft, released him in March of 1970. Not that the Portland organization is known for their great decision making. Reed is a smart ballplayer, a good leader, durable, a great defender and a decent enough hitter. He'll never be a superstar, but he's a heck of a fine ballplayer.

Shortstop:

When it comes to great shortstops in the WPK it is tempting to say the list is Bud Lindsay, and then a bunch of other dudes far behind him. Lindsay, when he can stay healthy (which thank goodness he has for the past nearly three full seasons) is the consensus best player in the WPK. Period. At any and all positions. (Yes, Justin Vargas might quibble a bit with this statement. But probably only a bit.)
And as if his on-field performance weren't enough, Lindsay is also the greatest team leader, greatest role model, greatest example of what a good human should be, this side of Jamar Clay. Sure there are the chants of MVP, MVP that reign down from the stands in San Antonio (and even on the road sometimes.) But beyond that even, it is common to see Lindsay for President signs all around the park, and not that uncommon even to see the more irreverent Lindsay for Supreme Deity signs.
Anyway, enough about the great one. This list is clearly not about the Bud Lindsay's of the world.

After Lindsay (who is hitting .329/.387/.557 with a WPK best WAR of 8.4 and a ZR of +9.5, and would appear to be well on his way to a third straight SJL MVP award), there is another San Antonio player who while he is considered a shortstop probably should have been on the second base list here, since that is the position he mostly plays. Talk about an embarrassment of riches- the Keys just have probably the two best shortstops in the game at the same time. Oh, the other guy is John Mussaw and he is just 24-years old and this is his first full season on the team. While he's hitting a modest .266/.328/.432 he has a fine 5.0 WAR as he is not only maybe even a better fielder than Lindsay (his somewhat weak arm might mean that second base is his future position regardless) and one of the fastest men in the game but also very smart, has plus plus contact ability and developing power. Lindsay light or the second coming of Bud? Too early to tell.

Okay- others on the list and then our choice for most unjustly unheralded:

-Bruce Heath (Jacksonville), .331/.362/.409, 4.6 WAR.
-Chris Blackmore (Brooklyn), .294/.350/.449, 3.9 WAR (maybe the best Canadian in the league currently).
-Mineto Kato (Philadelphia), .271/.316/.370, 2.4 WAR.
-Ren-qing Leong (Detroit), .244/.326/.398, 1.3 WAR (tough sophomore year).
-Chris Tobin (Baltimore), .282/.346/.399, 0.7 WAR (poor defense, -14.0 ZR, has caught up with last year's MGL MVP).
-Rich White (Denver), .293/.341/.405, 3.3 WAR (best ZR of the group at +10.6).

And our underdog:




In his 3rd full WPK season, Jason Damron has emerged as one of the better all-around shortstops in the game (not in a Keys uniform, that is) and thus far has 2 Player of the Week honors to show for it. But with his elite defensive skills and his incredible makeup, Damron should have an excellent career in front of him, in spite of his lack of great foot speed or a hit tool any better than average.

Left field:

It is very tempting to call veteran El Paso left fielder Curtis Horah the most under-rated player at the position, in spite of the fact that he has a real chance of entering the WPK Hall of Fame when his career is over. Here is the essential fact that must be stated about Horah- he has a career ZR in left field of +293. Yes, you read that right- +293! He may just be a left fielder, but he is also almost without a doubt the greatest defensive player of his generation in the WPK. (He is Brooks Robinson, he is Ozzie Smith, he is Willie Mays and Andruw Jones. But in left field. You get the picture.)
At age 29 he has amassed an impressive 80.1 WAR total. And it isn't all defense. He has also put up a career slash line of .293/.356/.425 and has 346 career stolen bases. This season he is hitting .302/.363/.433 with a WAR of 6.6 and a ZR of +22.4. Oh, and he's considered wrecked, so only time will tell how much longer he can keep this up.

Anyway, he's not the guy we chose.
Let's look at some of the other best at the position first:
-Larry Leshane (Pittsburgh), .333/.474/.426, 3.2 WAR (okay, maybe actually this guy is the best Canadian in the game right now).
-Chia-ch'ing Chou (Baltimore), .288/.403/.432, 1.0 WAR (maybe the most over-rated at this point, though a great power hitter and OBP guy).
-Jeremy Brigatti (Brooklyn), .286/.354/.410, 3.8 WAR.
-Cody Kane (Boston), .308/.359/.545, 3.0 WAR.
-Matt Kinney (Baltimore), .290/.351/.500, 2.2 WAR.

And our most under-rated:



Hector Alvares is one of those guys who probably gets ignored too much because he is just so consistent and quiet. Over his 10+ year career he has a 162-game average of 5.0 WAR. He's been an All-Star twice and a Gold Glover twice, but only has led the league in two categories ever, and in the same season (1971) when he led in runs scored and bases on balls. His baseball smarts show up in his ability to steal bases with not tremendous foot speed, his disciplined approach at the plate, and his steady defense. Not a Hall of Fame guy, but a strong candidate for the Hall of the Very Good.

Center field:

This is a position that sees a few youngsters rising to prominence, and it is after all a position where youthful legs are needed.
So, we all watch the rise of El Paso's Pete Wierdekehr (.333/.432/.529, 6.3 WAR) and Pittsburgh's even younger Matt Van der Heyden (.296/.436/.516, 7.4 WAR.)
After that:
-Joe McPhillips (Denver), .274/.373/.471, 4.7 WAR.
-Chase DiMascio (Boston), 277/.339/.424, 3.2 WAR.
-Jose Gutierrez (Charlotte), .313/.362/.459, 3.9 WAR.
-Lazaro Lowndes (Houston), .279/.356/.377, 3.1 WAR.
-Zach McClelland (San Antonio), .296/.351/.411, 3.9 WAR.
-Ryan Showalter (Philadelphia), .326/.404/.515, 5.4 WAR.
-Tommie Signor (Brooklyn), .299/.370/.432, 5.1 WAR.

And our under-rated guy:



Heath Zwieg is such a stabilizing influence in the middle of that defense and the Spinners staff owe him a great deal. Of the center fielders on this list, he has the best ZR at +8.4. He also has that great arm which has led to 12 outfield assists this season, and likely a great many times when runners didn't chance advancement. He's a fine well-rounded ballplayer with great habits and plenty of smarts. He is a bit fragile, but overall he deserves more attention then he gets and it is hard to believe that playing in the biggest market in the game he doesn't receive more press.

Right field:

After Bud Lindsay, probably the two players who might have the greatest right to stake a claim to the title of best player in the game are both right fielders: Justin Vargas of Boston, a 2-time SJL MVP, and Pittsburgh's 28-year old star Bill Winchester. But they get plenty of attention.

Let's look at the list of best right fielders and then round out our list with the most under-rated right fielder.

-Justin Vargas (Boston), .312/.362/.568, 5.9 WAR.
-Bill Winchester (Pittsburgh), .346/.411/.579, 5.1 WAR.
-Jaime Benjamin (Oklahoma City), .292/.367/.498, 3.8 WAR.
-Ryan Rodgers (Brooklyn), .297/.424/.376, 3.9 WAR.
-Ju-ao Ju (Phoenix), .306/.393/.545, 4.4 WAR.
-John Kantlehner (Columbus), .310/.376/.422, 3.5 WAR.


And our final under-rated star:



Yes, that's right, the Brewers own Josh Schaeffer. Having been chosen in the 2nd round of the 1967 draft while his outfield mate Joe McPhillips was the 5th overall pick of the same draft, Schaeffer has been in the shadow of his more talented and charismatic teammate for his entire professional career. But this season Schaeffer is the one with a legitimate MVP claim (though he will have to go through another teammate, Brett Taranto, if he is going to earn it.) Schaeffer is not just the best OBP guy in the game, but he has consistently exceeded his expectations as a contact hitter, has a fair amount of power, and fields his position quite well (+4.0 ZR this season with 12 outfield assists). He has a 162-game average of 6.0 WAR and is on pace for a career-best 7.6 WAR. And while he does have a couple of championship rings, he only has 2 All-Star appearances to show for his efforts. And this is a guy who has been slapped with the lazy label (perhaps a bit too lazily). He may not be the sparkplug McPhillips is, but then again he also doesn't suffer the kind of silly injuries Joe does, and if just keeps consistently performing the way he has, who is to question his approach?