ESPN Downgrades Marcus Semien as the 2025 MLB Season Begins

ESPN seemingly believes that Marcus Semien’s best days are behind him.

A year after the former Cal star was ranked No. 24 on its list of top 100 MLB players by the website, Semien slipped to No. 50 this season.

The Texas Rangers’ 34-year-old second baseman is coming off a season in which his numbers dipped. Of course, Semien’s recent career has featured an unusual pattern — big performances in the odd-numbered years, not so much in the even-numbered seasons.

Semien, who finished third in the American League MVP voting with the A’s in 2019, the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021 and the Rangers in 2023, is off to a slow start this season, batting .115 through seven games. But Texas is off to a 5-2 start and the season is long.

ESPN rated Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani as the No. 1 player in MLB, followed by Bobby Witt of Kansas City, Mookie Betts of the Dodgers, Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees and Paul Scene of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Dodgers have nine player on ESPN’s list while Philadelphia, Atlanta and the Yankees each are represented by seven players.

Here’s what ESPN’s Jesse Rogers had to say about Semien:

No. 50: Marcus Semien

“Was 2024 the beginning of a drop in production for Semien? Will his 50th ranking be his highest for the rest of his career? Those are legitimate questions after his OPS dropped below .700 for the first time in a full season since 2014. He was still an All-Star, and some of his numbers indicate he's still a good hitter, starting with his strikeout-to-walk ratio -- it was 1.64 in 2024, which is in line with his better seasons. He also still provides tons of pop from a middle infield position, and that's always a valuable commodity. Collectively, the Rangers seemed to have the proverbial World Series hangover from their 2023 championship season, so maybe Semien was simply caught up in that.”

Season prediction: “Semien enters his age-34 season but, as usual, looks to be in great shape. He'll age gracefully, providing another 25-plus home run season -- though forget about stealing bases. He had just eight last year, in part due to a .308 OBP, and he'll continue to be in single digits from now on.” -- Jesse Rogers

Compare that to what ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote about Semien prior to the 2024 season, when he checked in at No. 24 on their list:

No 24: Marcus Semien

“If the best ability is availability, there is no one in baseball more able than Semien. Over the past six seasons, he has played 859 of the 870 games his teams have played -- tops in MLB with Freeman and 19 more than the third-highest total. These aren't empty games, of course. Semien hits for power (25-plus home runs in each of his past four seasons), gets on base and is among the best defensive second basemen in baseball.

In two of the past three seasons, Semien has finished third in AL MVP voting. It's easy to take for granted his consistency and across-the-board excellence, but with his being at the front of this devastating Rangers lineup, he's primed to remain a top 25 player.”

Season prediction: “Semien becomes the first AL player to lead the league in runs outright for consecutive seasons since Trout went back-to-back-to-back from 2012 to 2014. He'll surpass the 30-homer mark, too, joining four other teammates who do the same.” -- Jeff Passan

Semien fell short of leading the AL in runs scored last season, crossing the plate 101 times to rank seventh in that category. He did play in 159 games, had 650 at-bats and 718 plate appearances.

He hit 23 home runs, drove in 74 runs and batted .237.