Most Underrated Players in the MLB

Hey sports fans, I will be going through my most overrated and underrated in the three major sports. I will start with the all underrated team for MLB. In the coming weeks I will do my lists for the NBA, NFL, and my overrated list in these sports as well.

Here is the list...

Pitcher
Miguel Gonzalez    Baltimore Orioles

I know that some may think this list will be biased based on the fact that it starts with Miguel Gonzalez. However, if you think about it, this guy is certainly severely underrated. The Orioles picked up Gonzalez from the Mexican League. He is making peanuts compared to his peers. Several teams gave up on him or passed up on him including the Boston Red Sox. Since June 12 2012, Gonzalez  is the winningest pitcher (percentage wise) other than all star game starter Max Scherzer.

Catcher
Miguel Montero      Arizona Diamondbacks
Catcher on a contending team that is never talked about. Montero is another guy that many have no idea about. He has a pretty good average, hits at a decent clip, and calls a solid game behind the plate. This is the position I struggled most with, but I feel that Montero is a tad underrated.

1st Base
James Loney          Tampa Bay Rays
James Loney was picked up of the scrap heap. Nobody wanted the guy. He started the year as a platoon guy for the Rays. However, the Rays and much of baseball soon figured out that this guy is really underrated. Loney is a really good 1st baseman offensively and defensively. You could have easily argued that he deserved the all-star team appearance more than Prince Fielder. He is a much better defensive option than Fielder. He doesn't have the same pop as Prince, but he has a much higher average. Loney was one of the best bargins of the offseason.

2nd Base
Matt Carpenter       St. Louis Cardinals
Matt Carpenter has an OBP up around .400. He is a stud at the plate and with the glove. The reason he is underrated is because most people don't know who he is. The guy wasn't even close to overtaking Brandon Phillips as the NL starting 2nd baseman. Carpenter has outperformed Phillips in every category and plays for the better team, but overwhelmingly most think that Phillips is the better player. I however see that currently Carpenter is the best at what he does.

Short Stop
Jean Segura            Milwaukee Brewers
No shortstop was better than Segura in the first half of 2013. However, Segura didn't even crack the starting all star lineup for the National League. It is absolutely insane that this guy wasn't a starter. It's even more insane that many baseball fans have never heard of this guy. The most insane thing I have heard is that the face of the franchise (now that Ryan Braun is suspended) should be Carlos Gomez. Segura has to be the face of the Brewers franchise going forward.

3rd Base
Manny Machado     Baltimore Orioles

Manny Machado was an all star at 21 years old, so how is he underrated? Machado is underrated because of two guys, Bryce Harper and Mike Trout. The fact that those two are heralded as the best young stars in the game makes Machado underrated. Machado is as good as anybody in the game right now. He plays the best defense of the trio and is at the most premium position of the trio. Now I am not saying Machado is clearly better than Harper and Trout, but he belongs in the conversation.

Outfield
Nick Markakis         Baltimore Orioles       Right Field
Starling Marte          Pittsburgh Pirates       Left Field
Coco Crisp              Oakland A's               Center Field
Coco Crisp should have been an all-star. My all-star ballot included Adam Jones, Nick Markakis, and Coco Crisp. Not that Mike Trout didn't deserve it, but I was really hoping either Crisp or Markakis would beat out Jose Bautista. The entire A's organization is underrated and Crisp is the poster child for this. Did you know that the A's only had one all-star each of the last two years. Look at the A's record over those two years and see if that makes sense. Crisp is perhaps the best defensive center fielder, has incredible range, gets on base, and scores runs. He does all the little things for the A's. What a great baseball player.
Starling Marte is not a household name, but he should be. Marte like Crisp does all the little things. He is a main reason that the Pirates are a contender this season. This guy is part of one of the best outfields in baseball. Maybe this October the baseball world will begin to notice.
Nick Markakis is my favorite baseball player. Perhaps there is some bias here, especially coming from a blog that loves the Orioles, but I don't think so. Markakis has been one of the best outfielders in the game of baseball for years. Until Adam Jones arrived, he was also Baltimore's best player, but he has never been an all-star. Markakis has been passed up for the Midsummer Classic for the likes of Ty Wiggington among others. How does Wiggington make it over Markakis? That is insane! This guy should have at least one all-star appearance by now.

Designated Hitter
Luke Scott               Tampa Bay Rays

Scott is a streaky hitter, but he is a great hitter. When Scott gets hot he can put an entire offense on his back. Just look at his hot streak right before the break. He was the main reason that Tampa moved from 4th to 2nd before the break. Now the team is poised to take over 1st in large part due to Scott's production lately. The guy is a severely underrated hitter. There aren't many guys in the league that have more pop than Scott either.

-Noland