Ranking the projected 15 starting American League first basemen in 2020

Turning just 26 right after the regular season begins, Olson has already developed into one of the premier first basemen. He has won two straight Gold Gloves and hit 36 homers last year despite not playing in 39 games.

Last season, Abreu led the AL with 123 RBIs, the fifth time in his six years that he has reached triple digits. He’s not the most sure-handed first baseman, but with a career .293 batting average and 179 homers in six seasons, he clearly can rake at the plate.

Last year at the age of 33, Santana appeared in his first All-Star Game and won his first Silver Slugger. He’s a master at drawing by walks (averaging almost 101 per year over the last nine seasons), and he reached career-highs in 2019 in homers (34 - tied for most of his career), RBIs (93), runs (110), and OPS (.911).

The 35-year-old Gurriel has always provided solid batting averages (albeit with few walks), but last season he provided a new element. After averaging one homer per 35.2 at bats for his career entering 2019, he hit one per 18.2 at bats last season.

With the signing of Josh Donaldson, Sano can transition from third (a position he sometimes had problems manning) to first base. After a miserable 2018 where he hit below the Mendoza line (.199), he rebounded nicely last year blasting 34 homers and finishing with a .923 OPS.

Voit came out of nowhere in 2018 for the Yankees with an outstanding 39-game stretch with the team. He fell back to earth a bit last year, although he was far from bad. He hit 21 homers, walked 71 times, and batted .263.

While he may end up in a bit of a timeshare with Nate Lowe, Choi is both useful at the plate and adequate in the field. He drew 64 walks last season and hit 19 homers in 487 plate appearances.

Cron has his warts (66 walks compared to 252 strikeouts over the past two years), but he still provides value. He has hit 55 home runs in the last two seasons, drove in 152 runs, and posted a .799 OPS.

Toronto is taking a flyer on Shaw in hope that he can regain his form from 2017-18 when he combined to hit 63 homers and drive in 187 runs. Saying 2019 was a disappointment would be a huge understatement as he batted an atrocious .157 on the year.

The 24-year-old Chavis made his MLB debut on April 20 of last year. He split his time between first and second base, but should primarily play first with Mitch Moreland no longer on the roster. The 79th-ranked prospect according to MLB.com entering 2019 batted .254 with 18 home runs in 347 at bats last season.

From 2001-11, Pujols was one of the best hitters of all-time with an incredible 1.037 OPS over that timeframe. From 2013-19, that number has dipped all the way down to .749. The 40-year-old will also likely see plenty of time as designated hitter due to little range in the field.

While he’s just 25 years old and has hit well in the minors, Guzman has yet to really find his mark in the big leagues. Through 723 career plate appearances in 2018-19, he owns just a .229 batting average and .722 OPS.

After a superb 2018 rookie season in which O’Hearn hit 12 home runs with a .950 OPS in 170 plate appearances, he fell back to earth last year. A .195 batting average and .650 OPS aren’t close to marks that teams look for from their first baseman.

The 23-year-old White was ranked as the 100th-best prospect entering 2019 according to Baseball America. Spending last year at AA, he hit .293 with 18 home runs in 92 games.

Davis is getting paid $17 million in each of the next three seasons. Over the past two years, he owns a meager .172 batting average with a .564 OPS. It’s been a while since he was one of the premier power hitters in the game as he led the AL in homers in 2013 (53) and 2015 (47).