Strat-O-Matic Baseball 365

Question ... What active players would YOU consider to be generational players? Once every 30 years kind of players. Guys who would be great no matter when they played.

Me, I'm thinking Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw.

I'd love to hear your top 3 active generational players ...

Top 3 pitchers: Kershaw, Max Scherzer, and Justin Verlander

Top 3 Hitters: Mike Trout, Miguel Cabrera, and Albert Pujols

Top 3 up-and-coming: Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, and at least one of the Jr's (Tatis, Vlad, Acuna)

I think the current generation is the 5 Hamilton mentioned. Soto ohtani tatis vlad and acuna. If I had to say who could be the next guy it’s Julio Rodriguez in Seattle

Great insight. Thanks.

Anyone else have any thoughts?

I would add Degrom to the list as well. Injuries hamper him a bit but when he's not on the DL he is as dominant as I've ever seen. Just look at his card for last season. I've haven't seen a SP card like that before.

Mookie

How has no one mentioned Bryce Harper?

for pitchers Kershaw for sure

Not sure about once every 30 years, maybe only Pujols, Trout, and Kershaw fit that bill. But there are lots of active players on a 1st-ballot HOF trajectory. Greinke, Verlander, Miguel Cabrera, Scherzer, Votto, Goldschmidt, Betts, Machado. Cano would've been in that group too but for the obvious. Post-Trout, the best position player is likely to be Soto or Tatis. But it's not clear we are yet post-Trout. Less clear is who will succeed deGrom as best pitcher.

Salty wrote:How has no one mentioned Bryce Harper?

for pitchers Kershaw for sure

Harper would have been my 4th choice behind Trout, Pujols, and Cabrera for "hitters" and I considered him too old for an "up and comer."

But yes, Harper too. I think he's been a pendulum of over-rated, under-rated, over-rated, under-rated ... players with that much hype are very difficult to properly appreciate for what they are.

I think Juan Soto might eventually fit that category. He's only 23 years old, and already has analysts and baseball talking heads comparing him to Ted Williams. If that's the standard he is measured by, he's going to underwhelm.

Soto is the best hitter in the game right now, at 23. He has one of the best batting eyes I've ever seen (I'm thinking of Joe Morgan right now, or I might say Soto has the BEST batting eye I've ever seen). His defense holds his "star rating" back a little, but The Splinter couldn't field either