Ridiculous first base rankings are a slap in the face of Michael Busch

A recent MLB ranking from the YouTuber Foolish Baseball snubbed Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch, and fans have the right to criticize.

This isn’t about nitpicking one or two spots. It’s about a player who clearly established himself as an above-average, impact bat at first base, being treated like an afterthought.

It's a frustrating ranking since Busch was arguably the team's most productive hitter last year. In his second year as a full-time starter, Busch led the Cubs in home runs (34), slugging percentage (.523), OPS (.866), and wRC+ (141). He also posted a respectable 90 RBIs and a solid on-base percentage of .343.

Busch also started 155 games and took major strides in handling left-handed pitching.

Busch is better than several players on the list

While he is certainly not among the top 5 players on the list, Bush posted better offensive numbers than Ben Rice and Andrew Vaughn. And after watching most of the Chicago Cubs' games last year, Busch is much better than league average on defense. Which cannot be said about Vaughn and Rice.

The 28-year-old also cemented himself as a core part of the Cubs' lineup, spending much of the first half in the middle of the team's batting order. This is where he collected many of his RBIs, culminating in a historic performance against the St. Louis Cardinals on the Fourth of July, where he crushed three home runs. And later in the season, when Manager Craig Counsell moved him to the leadoff spot, Busch handled the adjustment well. In the playoffs, Busch also led the team with four homers and a 1.128 OPS.

Underrating Busch doesn’t just shortchange him — it undersells the Cubs’ lineup. He’s not a placeholder at first base. He’s a legitimate middle-of-the-order bat who lengthens the lineup and makes life harder on opposing pitchers. When he’s on, he's a very tough out in the Cubs' lineup.

Bookmark those rankings now. Because if Busch builds on what he showed last season — and there’s every reason to think he can — he’s going to make a lot of these lists look silly by midseason. And Cubs fans won’t be surprised at all.