The inaugural Most Valuable Player Award, bestowed by the American League in 1922, was won by a first baseman, George Sisler, who hit .420 for the St. Louis Browns. Nine years later, in 1931, the baseball writers jumped into the awards business, and since then, first basemen have been preeminent in the MVP voting. According to Elias Sports Bureau research, more MVPs have been won by first basemen than at any of the other eight positions.
First base: 29
Right field: 25
Left field: 23
Pitcher: 22
Center field: 19
Third base: 19
Catcher: 16
Shortstop: 15
Second base: 11
But almost a decade has passed since a first baseman finished first in the voting -- Joey Votto in 2010 -- just one indication of how differently teams use the position than in the past.
Because defense at first base is not necessarily a must-have in the way that it is at shortstop or center field, front offices tend to see the spot as an opportunity for maximum offensive efficiency, through left/right platoons, or the use of hitters with very specific skills -- someone adept at hitting high fastballs, for example.
Last year, the Los Angeles Dodgers led all teams in WAR generated at first base at 6.4 without really having an everyday first baseman. Four players pitched in at least 200 defensive innings at the position, and 10 players manned the spot for at least three outs on defense, including reliever Adam Kolarek. Max Muncy appeared at first base a lot, but for the sake of the top 10s, he'll be ranked among the second basemen.
The Dodgers aren't alone in this practice, of course. Leaguewide, the percentage of plate appearances by a team's primary first baseman has steadily declined, per numbers dug up by Sarah Langs of MLB.com:
1989: 76%
1999: 72%
2009: 71%
2019: 65%
Langs thought of another way to qualify this, in a note: "There were 16 players in 2019 who qualified for the batting title and played at least 50% of their games at first base, the generally accepted definition of someone's primary position. That was the fewest in any season since 1990, when there were 15 such players."
Picking a top 10 among first basemen has become much easier than it used to be because there are fewer everyday first basemen. With industry input from all over, here they are.
1. Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
Note: Freeman has tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently not with his team. "It will be a while before we can get him back," manager Brian Snitker said.
Three fragments in his right elbow dragged down his numbers in the final three weeks of the 2019 regular season and prevented him from having his best statistical year -- through Sept. 10, Freeman was hitting .306 with 38 homers, 33 doubles and 117 RBIs, and was at the edge of the National League MVP conversation. Freeman's struggles continued through the Braves' playoff series against the Cardinals, in which Freeman went 4-for-20 with one RBI, and all along he handled the questions with grace, never making excuses. After the Braves were eliminated, he took responsibility for the defeat -- and not long after that, he had elbow surgery.
Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos explained what he has learned about Freeman after joining the Braves a couple of years ago. "Though the numbers have always been great, watching him every day, I still think he's underrated," Anthopoulos said. "He is such a selfless superstar who is all about winning and the organization. Beyond that, he's incredibly durable and plays through ailments that I would guess very few if any players do."
2. Pete Alonso, New York Mets
Midway through the 2019 season, a longtime evaluator approached Alonso and told him how proud he should be about his defensive improvement, because he made it happen in the face of a lot of doubt outside and inside the Mets organization. With Tim Teufel and other Mets instructors guiding him, Alonso logged hundreds of hours on the weakest part of his game, and he's become more than serviceable at the position, sometimes taking away runs.
And of course, he is already established as a lineup anchor. In his first season in the big leagues, he had 15 more home runs than any other player at the position; only Freeman and Jose Abreu had more RBIs; and among first basemen who had enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title, he led in wRC+.
Based on his incredible debut season, a strong case could be made that Alonso should be No. 1 on this list. But for now, Freeman's consistency and defense prevail.
3. Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs
Rizzo mustered the highest on-base percentage of his nine-year career last season, at .405, with his stubbornly effective approach of moving up on the plate and daring pitchers to throw inside. Rizzo had 150 hits, drew 71 walks and led the league in hit by pitches for the third time in his career. Rizzo also won his second consecutive Gold Glove.
Reportedly, the Cubs and Rizzo have deferred the conversation about a possible contract extension. The team holds a $16.5 million option for 2021. But Rizzo's legacy with the franchise has reached the stage where it's hard to imagine him finishing his career in another uniform; regardless of whether he stays or goes, he'll always be a Cub.
4. Carlos Santana, Cleveland Indians
In a season in which the Indians lost many of their front-line players for extended windows, from Francisco Lindor to Jose Ramirez to Corey Kluber, Santana was the lineup anchor in his first season after being reacquired from Philadelphia. He slugged 34 homers, scored 110 runs, reached base at a .397 clip, and the Indians felt he played the best defense of his career -- and they loved his clubhouse leadership.
5. Matt Olson, Oakland Athletics
Because of a broken hamate bone in his right hand, Olson missed all of April and the first six days of May -- and still finished with 36 homers and an adjusted OPS+ of 137, identical to that of Rizzo. Like Rizzo, he won a Gold Glove. He turned 26 in March, so it figures that his best is on the horizon.
6. Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
Goldschmidt's first year with the Cardinals, in the first season of a long-term deal, was something of an inconsistent grind, reflected in his month-to-month OPS:
April: .753
May: .745
June: .583
July: 1.085
August: .705
September: .953
For someone regarded as incredibly consistent in his approach, this must have been difficult at times. But in the end, the Cardinals got to where they wanted to get to, winning the NL Central, and Goldschmidt played in 161 games and hit 34 homers. Sometime in 2020, he'll probably generate the 250th home run of his career.
7. Josh Bell, Pittsburgh Pirates
The slugger's deep second-half slump could not wipe away his breakthrough season. Staffers believe Bell did a better job at sticking with a consistent approach at the plate, and he had a career-high .936 OPS, built on 37 doubles, 37 homers and 74 walks. Moving forward, his challenge is the same as all elite sluggers have had at one time or another in their careers: As opposing pitchers and catchers prefer to pitch around him, he will have to take his walks.
8. Yuli Gurriel, Houston Astros
When he first joined Houston, Gurriel had a reputation as an average defender at best. But he's become more than that, showing decent range and good hands. And he's a good hitter, taking advantage of the run-scoring opportunities the Astros' deep lineup presents. Among the Houston hitters, only Alex Bregman drove in more runs last season.
9. Jose Abreu, Chicago White Sox
Evaluators will often note what Abreu doesn't do well -- he's not a good defender and he doesn't take walks. And he'll hit into more than his share of double plays; last year, he led the AL in that category, with 24. The White Sox have probably valued him more highly than other teams, which explains why they hung on to him through the seasons of rebuild, and why they just locked the 33-year-old into a new three-year deal.
But here's what Abreu does: He posts up, playing in at least 154 games in four of the past five seasons, and he's pretty much a lock to muster 30 homers and drive in a bunch of runs, which is something that players tend to care about more than front-office evaluators. Abreu has 611 RBIs in six seasons in the majors, including 123 last season, and he'll be in the center of the revamped White Sox lineup in 2020.
10. Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds
He spoke at season's end about his disappointment with his 2019 performance, when his slugging percentage dropped to .411. He's 36 and has reached the stage of his baseball life when the question will hover about whether the performance decline he showed last year is permanent. Votto goes into the 2020 season needing 134 hits for 2,000 in his career; he needs 16 homers for 300; he needs 56 RBIs for 1,000.
Best of the rest
Rhys Hoskins, Philadelphia Phillies: This will be an enormous year in Hoskins' career because he's eligible for arbitration for the first time next winter, and the Phillies will look to define exactly what kind of an impact he will have moving forward. Hoskins drew 116 walks, most in the National League, and that's a good thing, but his second-half slide in offense was alarming: He hit .180 after the All-Star break, with just a .361 slugging percentage. As Paul Hembekides notes, Hoskins struggled against breaking balls and velocity after the All-Star break:
First half vs. curves and sliders: .777 OPS
Second half vs. curves and sliders: .536 OPS
First half vs. fastballs: 1.102 OPS
Second half vs. fastballs: .530 OPS
Christian Walker, Arizona Diamondbacks: He stepped into big shoes in Arizona in the first season after the Goldschmidt trade and did fine, with 29 homers.
Luke Voit, New York Yankees: An injury affected Voit at year's end, to the point that he was taken off the active roster for the playoffs. But it's worth reviewing just how good he was for most of the season: In his first 94 games, through July 30, Voit had an OPS of .885 and an on-base percentage of .392. With Miguel Andujar returning from elbow surgery and the Yankees deep in infielders, Voit will probably have to win back his playing time.