At the major league level…
… third base is firmly occupied by the future Hall of Famer Chipper Jones – at least for as along as his body will allow him. Chipper will be 37 next April and his games played have once again gone down, not up. But Chipper has been the best hitter in baseball the last two years when he’s been in the lineup, and with his high average and good power he’s still possibly the best number-three hitter in baseball not named Pujols.

Chipper may also be one of the better defensive third baseman in the league, especially on balls he is forced to come in on and make a bare handed throw to first base – something he does better than any other third baseman.

The other component with Chipper Jones is his leadership. He is without a doubt the field general of this team, and that’s another reason he needs to be healthy and in the lineup every game. It’s unfair to say that the Braves must have Chipper in the lineup to win, but he certainly helps, and if we are to get back to our old division winning ways, then one would have to think that Chipper will be at the center of it (but he can’t do it alone).

The future Braves third baseman…
… It’s taken Jon Gilmore a little longer than some to begin to produce in the minor leagues, but after struggling early this season at Rome, he found his stroke in Danville. He is still several years away from a major league debut, but that should be about perfect timing to replace the Hall of Famer Chipper Jones.

Gilmore will certainly have to prove that he can hit above Rookie ball next year. He did a good job of showing that he is capable of being a great hitter at Danville, but it was a stark difference to what he did to start the season at Rome, where he looked completely lost. Hopefully, with the confidence he gained at Danville under his belt, he will continue to put up good numbers once he is promoted.

More for future consideration…
2. Eric Campbell – No other player experience more of a renaissance this year, and likely no other player needed one more than Soup. He struggled again with injuries early in the year, but once he was healthy he showed the power and plate discipline that we saw back in Rome in 2006. He certainly had a bump along the way – call it extreme growing pains – but some players go through that and it’s the kind of player they become on the other side of those growing pains that tells us who they truly are. We’ll know next year if Campbell has come out the other side as a ballplayer. With the talent he’s shown, let’s hope he does.

3. Van Pope – He fizzled once again in repeating double-A, and other than above average defense he has not shown any plus skills or translated his talent into production. He gets listed here because of raw talent, but he may be irrelevant soon.

4. Adam Coe – He continues to under whelm in both the power and plate discipline departments. He finished strong, but still needs to build on several aspects of his game.

5. Jake Hanson – He showed some positives at GCL this year, and is still young enough to have plenty of time to develop. He should find his way to Danville next year.

Photos of Jon Gilmore and Eric Campbell courtesy of Chip Jett.
Photo of Van Pope courtesy of CB Wilkins.