The Los Angeles Dodgers are merrily sitting 7.5 games up from the San Diego Padres atop the National League West division, but the Friars seem to be annoyed at another area that L.A. is currently leading: All-Star Game voting.
Padres announcer Mark Grant recently came after All-Star Max Muncy while campaigning Friars fans to vote for former Dodgers third baseman Manny Machado for the Midsummer Classic.
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“Let’s call it the way it is,” Grant said Sunday. “Manny Machado is a better third baseman than Max Muncy, alright.”
Both of the hot corners are in Phase 2 of All-Star voting. Machado amassed 2,495,554 votes, leading National League third basemen, with Muncy finishing right behind him with a total of 1,665,829.
Over the course of both careers, Machado has had more impressive statistics while playing three additional seasons. He leads Muncy in career batting average and slugging percentage, but Muncy has the edge when it comes to on-base percentage and OPS.
Both have a career OPS+ of 124, over 20 percent higher than the league average, while Machado has a pair of Gold Glove honors, Silver Slugger awards, and six All-Star nods to Muncy’s two.
As for 2025, things get a little more interesting.
Max Muncy has a better bWAR (2.9) than Machado (2.5), more RBIs (55) than his San Diego counterpart (47), and both are tied with 13 home runs on the year.
Machado has the edge in hits, batting average, slugging percentage, and four more stolen bases than Muncy, but the Dodgers’ third baseman has a higher on-base percentage, OPS, and OPS+ in five fewer games than Machado.
Defensively, both are grading out as below-average defenders, with Machado ranking in the 11th percentile in terms of Outs Above Average and Muncy ranking in just the fifth percentile.
To so confidently assert that Machado is better, when there is an air-tight case to be made pointing to the opposite, doesn’t just show a lack of professionalism behind the microphone, but discredits a remarkable season that has been put together by Muncy, especially after such a slow start.
In terms of total statistics across both careers, the answer is Machado, but Muncy still has two World Series trophies that the Padres third baseman — nor his team — is yet to acquire.
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10 Responses
I’ve been a Dodgers fan just about forever, so you get where I’m coming from. Gabe makes a nice argument, but there’s an old saying, “Lies, damned lies and statistics” I like Max, he’s good at the plate, a competent, but no better than fair third baseman and a good guy as far as I can tell. Manny is better at the plate, although Max seems to be having a better year after he got glasses, but Manny is better with the glove and has an absolute cannon of an arm.
Career? Not even close, although by averages they are. Look at the HOF predictors at Baseball Reference. Manny’s are over double. And he’s younger even though he’s been in the league longer.
Now it’s possible the team is better with Max, Machado tends to have an attitude and not always put much effort into it, but Machado is really the better player. That said, I would like to see Max get into the all star game, but I’d like a lot of things I’m not going to get.
Good presentation though Gabe!
Opinions are like buttholes, everyone has one and usually they stink. What would you expect a Padres broadcaster to say about his 3B. Machado is a schmuck and Grant is a putz.
Exactly….Machado is a total schmuck. A real troublemaker. I’m really glad the Dodgers passed on resigning him. I’d rather have Max any day. He’s not perfect but he’s a damn good player and is exactly the kind of personality that exemplifies being a Dodger. He’s produced for the Dodgers over and over again!…… Manny and his manager and broadcaster can go suck it!
Could not have said it better myself! Machado is a sore loser!!!
This is not news. Manny is better then Max.
60 year Dodger fan here. I love Max. I even loved him this spring when it looked like he might have gone “off the cliff.” Has he been a better player than Machado in his career? No. Anyone who argues that is being just as much a “homer” as the Padres announcer. But when the Dodger’s had a close up look at Machado in 2018, they saw something they didn’t like and passed on a long term relationship. That does not mean Max is a better player. Only that the Dodgers are a better team with him. Good enough for me.
As a Padres fan..Right now if the Dodgers announcer said in a game that Freddie Freeman was a better first baseman than Luis Arraez.. I guarantee no Padres podcaster, reporter, blogger or fan would try to refute that in anyway. You should have probably done the same. If you think Grants statement was anything but cold hard facts. You need to start breaking down a different sport.
I don’t think anyone is disputing that Manny is perhaps a somewhat better player than Max as far as stats anyway. However to me, Manny has a certain poison about him. I’m glad the Dodgers passed on him. He’s a trouble maker. He wasn’t a good fit for the Dodgers. They saw that and didn’t try to resign him. Good teams have good chemistry together. Sometimes one player can spoil that. Manny is that type of player. You can have him!
Max is a champion
Well…after last night it’s probably fair enough to say Machado is better. But who would you want in your clubhouse? Too often Machado has shown he’s a chickens**t that belongs in that hot dog stand in San Diego.