We’re almost there, everybody: After a long, cold, frustratingly slow offseason, MLB’s regular season begins on Wednesday, March 20, with the Dodgers and Padres squaring off in Seoul (the 28 other teams will get things started on Thursday, March 28). With precious little time to go until Opening Day, now is the time to start cranking up your fantasy baseball drafts — and we’re here to be your one-stop shop for all things draft prep. We just recently unveiled our top 300 overall for redraft leagues in 2024, as well as top prospects to know; now it’s time to start breaking things down position by position, giving you the lay of the land along with positional rankings, tiers, sleepers, busts and breakouts.
Next up: third base, a position that isn’t quite as shallow as it was last year — thank heavens — but still contains more than its fair share of pitfalls. Jose Ramirez is still a stud, and Austin Riley and Rafael Devers are four-category stalwarts. If you miss out on those names, though, you might be better off waiting on one of the several pick 150 or later breakout candidates on the list below.
2024 fantasy baseball third base rankings
| Rank | Name | Team | ESPN Eligibility | Yahoo! Eligibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Name | Team | ESPN Eligibility | Yahoo! Eligibility |
| 1 | Jose Ramirez | Guardians | 3B | 3B |
| 2 | Rafael Devers | Red Sox | 3B | 3B |
| 3 | Austin Riley | Braves | 3B | 3B |
| 4 | Gunnar Henderson | Orioles | SS/3B | SS/3B |
| 5 | Elly De La Cruz | Reds | SS/3B | SS/3B |
| 6 | Manny Machado | Padres | 3B | 3B |
| 7 | Spencer Steer | Reds | 1B/3B/OF | 1B/2B/3B/OF |
| 8 | Royce Lewis | Twins | 3B | 3B |
| 9 | Nolan Arenado | Cardinals | 3B | 3B |
| 10 | Alex Bregman | Astros | 3B | 3B |
| 11 | Josh Jung | Rangers | 3B | 3B |
| 12 | Ha-Seong Kim | Padres | 2B/SS/3B | 2B/SS/3B |
| 13 | Isaac Paredes | Rays | 1B/2B/3B | 1B/2B/3B |
| 14 | Nolan Gorman | Cardinals | 2B/3B | 2B/3B |
| 15 | Ke’Bryan Hayes | Pirates | 3B | 3B |
| 16 | Alec Bohm | Phillies | 1B/3B | 1B/3B |
| 17 | Jake Burger | Marlins | 3B | 3B |
| 18 | Noelvi Marte | Reds | 3B | 3B |
| 19 | Max Muncy | Dodgers | 3B | 3B |
| 20 | Colt Keith | Tigers | 3B | 3B |
| 21 | Jeimer Candelario | Reds | 1B/3B | 1B/3B |
| 22 | Jordan Westburg | Orioles | 2B/3B | 2B/3B |
| 23 | Luis Rengifo | Angels | 2B/SS/3B | 2B/SS/3B/OF |
| 24 | Maikel Garcia | Royals | SS/3B | SS/3B |
| 25 | Ryan McMahon | Rockies | 2B/3B | 2B/3B |
| 26 | Matt Chapman | Free agent | 3B | 3B |
| 27 | Junior Caminero | Rays | 3B | 3B |
| 28 | Eugenio Suarez | Diamondbacks | 3B | 3B |
| 29 | Justin Turner | Blue Jays | 1B | 1B/3B |
| 30 | Jorge Polanco | Twins | 2B | 2B/3B |
| 31 | Willi Castro | Twins | 3B/OF | 2B/3B/OF |
Third base tiers
Tier 1: Jose Ramirez
Tier 2: Rafael Devers, Austin Riley, Gunnar Henderson
Tier 3: Elly De La Cruz, Manny Machado, Spencer Steer, Royce Lewis, Nolan Arenado, Alex Bregman
Tier 4: Josh Jung, Ha-Seong Kim, Isaac Paredes, Nolan Gorman, Ke’Bryan Hayes, Alec Bohm, Jake Burger, Max Muncy
Tier 5: Noelvi Marte, Colt Keith, Jeimer Candelario, Maikel Garcia, Luis Rengifo
Tier 6: Jordan Westburg, Ryan McMahon, Matt Chapman, Junior Caminero, Eugenio Suarez, Justin Turner, Jorge Polanco, Willi Castro, Michael Busch
Tier 7: Ezequiel Duran, Brett Baty, Wilmer Flores, Tyler Black, Curtis Mead, Yoan Moncada, Geraldo Perdomo, DJ LeMahieu, Cavan Biggio, Oswald Peraza, Jon Berti, Luis Urias, Anthony Rendon, Coby Mayo
Third base sleeper
Ke’Bryan Hayes, Pittsburgh Pirates
A former top prospect and elite athlete/defender, Hayes has always had the physical tools to be a star. What he lacked was the offensive profile — specifically, a swing that hit the ball hard but too often hit it on the ground. That may have changed in the second half of last season, when he slashed .299/.335/.539 with 10 homers over 49 games while upping his flyball rate to 41.5% and pull rate to 35.4%. If those gains were real, there’s five-category upside here, and you know he’s locked into playing time.
Third base breakout
Michael Busch, Chicago Cubs
Even with Cody Bellinger back in the fold, Busch seems destined for regular playing time — at the very least, as the strong side of a platoon — at first base, third base, DH or some combination thereof. He struggled in a brief MLB cameo last year, but the former Dodgers prospect is a .293/.385/.544 career hitter at Triple-A, showcasing plus plate skills and real pull-side power. His ceiling is something like the guy blocking him in L.A., Max Muncy, and he’ll have every chance to win a job in a strong Cubs lineup.
Third base bust
Ha-Seong Kim, San Diego Padres
Kim’s quality of contact didn’t come close to backing up his apparent growth as a hitter, with his hard-hit rate and average exit velocity both dropping from 2022 to 2023. Of course, much of his fantasy value was tied up in his 38 steals last season, but that’s another place where it’s fair to be skeptical – he had just 12 steals in 2022, after all, which is a massive jump even given the new rules. It’s not hard to imagine a world in which Kim backslides to something more like a .250, 12-homer hitter at the plate, meaning he’ll have to really, really run to recoup top-100 value.
Top third base prospects
Junior Caminero, Tampa Bay Rays
Age: 20
Minor League stats: .324 BA (460 AB), 31 HR, .976 OPS, 42 BB, 100 K
ETA: Opening Day?
Caminero entered 2023 as a 19-year-old on the fringes of top-100 lists and ended it as a 20-year-old Major Leaguer, bypassing Triple-A entirely to earn a late-season look from a Rays organization that’s known for being conservative with its prospects. The infielder doesn’t look like much in the batter’s box, but don’t let that fool you: He hits the ball as hard as anyone, and he does it without sacrificing his approach at the plate. He struggled a bit in last year’s MLB cameo, but the trendlines are still pointing way up here, and with Wander Franco’s future in limbo it should only be a matter of time before he finds a path to playing time.
Noelvi Marte, Cincinnati Reds
Age: 22
Minor League stats: .279 BA (348 AB), 11 HR, 18 SB, .812 OPS, 43 BB, 70 K
Major League stats: .316 BA (114 AB), 3 HR, 6 SB, .822 OPS, 8 BB, 25 K
ETA: Opening Day
Marte swung the bat well in his MLB debut last season, but there’s an infield logjam — especially at the corners — in Cincy, meaning he could be one slump away from losing playing time. That said, he’s a good athlete who hits the ball hard and began hitting it in the air more often as he got his feet under him, and there’s real 25-25 potential here if he figures it out and has an everyday job all year.
Coby Mayo, Baltimore Orioles
Age: 22
Minor League stats: .290 BA (504 AB), 29 HR, 45 2B, .974 OPS, 93 BB, 148 K
ETA: Midseason
Speaking of hard-pressed for playing time: Jackson Holliday and Gunnar Henderson will likely force Mayo to find a new defensive home other than the left side of the infield. But a bat like this typically finds its way into the lineup, and the 6-foot-5 Mayo erupted in the Minors last season, obliterating balls in the air to the pull side just like every other O’s infielder. Like with Busch, the Muncy comp is salient here, as Mayo likely won’t be a batting-average standout but should do more than enough damage to make up for it.
Colt Keith, Detroit Tigers
Age: 22
Minor League stats: .306 BA (507 AB) 27 HR, .932 OPS, 60 BB, 121 K
ETA: Opening Day
The extension Keith signed earlier this winter basically guarantees him an Opening Day job at second or third, and the bat certainly seems ready for the challenge. A shoulder injury cut his 2022 breakout short, but when he returned last year, he just kept right on mashing: .325/.391/.585 with 14 homers in 59 games at Double-A, then .287/.369/.521 with 13 homers in 67 games at Triple-A, both of which came in his first taste of those levels. He’s got a swing geared for pull-side power, and while the batting average likely won’t be a boon, something like .270 or so with 25 homers over a full season feels very attainable.
