MLB 14 The Show’s top rated players according to position

Opening pitch may have already taken place overseas between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks, but we're still a few days away from the release of MLB 14 The Show on PS3 and Vita (May 6 for PS4 version). This year's game is one of the most anticipated yet, as it's really the only authentic baseball simulation available this year. It's also the first baseball game to be released on PlayStation 4.

While the graphics and gameplay improvements have been talked about and teased for months now, there's one giant question mark surrounding the game: player ratings. While we'll have to wait a few more days before we can see the full rosters, an Operation Sports reader, who has the game early, sent the site screenshtos of the top nine players at each position.

At the launch of MLB 14 The Show, we'll have three players rated 99: Miguel Cabrera, Mike Trout, and Clayton Kershaw. Cano, who received a handsom pay day in the free agency this year tops the list of second basemen, while 36-year-old Carlos Beltran remanis the highest rated right fielder. Meanwhile, last year's rookie phenom Yasiel Puig, of the Los Angeles Dodgers, is rated 89.

It's possible these overalls will be adjusted with the first patch — and so on throughout the season — but for now here's what we're looking at:

Catcher (C) 

1. Yadier Molina – 95
2. Buster Posey – 92
3. Matt Wieters – 86
4. Brian McCann – 85
5. Jonathan Lucroy – 84
6. Carlos Ruiz – 84
7. Salvador Perez – 84
8. Wilin Rosario – 83
9. Russell Martin – 82

First Base (1B)

1. Miguel Cabrera – 99
2. Paul Goldschmidt – 94
3. Chris Davis – 92
4. Joey Votto – 91
5. Mark Teixeira – 89
6. Edwin Encarnacion – 89
7. Prince Fielder – 89
8. David Ortiz – 88
9. Freedie Freeman – 88

Second Base (2B)

1. Robinson Cano – 97
2. Dustin Pedroia – 94
3. Jason Kipnis – 88
4. Ben Zobrist – 88
5. Brandon Phillips – 87
6. Ian Kinsler – 86
7. Aaron Hill – 85
8. Chase Utley – 83
9. Jose Altuve – 83

Short Stop (SS)

1. Troy Tulowitzki – 95
2. Jose Reyes – 92
3. Hanely Ramirez – 90
4. Andrelton Simmons – 86
5. Elvis Andrus – 86
6. Jimmy Rollins – 85
7. Jean Segura – 84
8. Ian Desmond – 84
9. J.J. Hardy – 83

Third Base (3B)

1. Evan Longoria – 92
2. Adrian Beltre – 92
3. David Wright – 90
4. Ryan Zimmerman – 88
5. Aramis Ramirez – 87
6. Chase Headley – 86
7. Alex Rodriguez – 84
8. Pedro Alvarez – 84
9. Pablo Sandoval – 84

Right Field (RF)

1. Carlos Beltran – 90
2. Yasiel Puig – 89
3. Jay Bruce – 89
4. Jose Bautista – 87
5. Hunter Pence – 87
6. Bryce Harper – 86
7. Alfonso Soriano – 86
8. Michael Cuddyer – 85
9. Giancarlo Stanton – 85

Center Field (CF)

1. Mike Trout – 99
2. Andrew McCutchen – 94
3. Jacoby Ellsbury – 89
4. Matt Kemp – 89
5. Carlos Gomez – 88
6. Adam Jones – 88
7. Michael Bourn – 86
8. Coco Crisp – 85
9. Jayson Heyward – 84

Left Field (LF)

1. Carlos Gonzalez – 96
2. Yoenis Cespedes – 88
3. Curtis Granderson – 87
4. Shin-Soo Choo – 87
5. Alex Gordon – 87
6. Josh Hamilton – 86
7. Jayson Werth – 85
8. Justin Upton – 85
9. Matt Holliday – 85

Starting Pitcher (SP)

1. Clayton Kershaw – 99
2. Yu Darvish – 95
3. Jose Fernandez – 94
4. Adam Wainwright – 93
5. Matt Harvey – 93
6. Justin Verlander – 93
7. Felix Hernandez – 91
8. Stephen Strasburg – 91
9. David Price – 90

Relief Pitcher (RP)

1. Sean Doolittle – 84
2. Tyler Clippard – 83
3. J.J. Putz – 83
4. Sean Marshall – 83
5. Octavio Dotel – 81
6. Junichi Tazawa – 81
7. Steve Delabar – 81
8. Mark Melancon – 81
9. Ryan Cook – 80

Closing Pitcher (CP)

1. Craig Kimbrel – 96
2. Aroldis Chapman – 90
3. Kenley Jansen – 89
4. Trevor Rosenthal – 89
5. Sergio Romo – 88
6. Koji Uehara – 87
7. Joe Nathan – 87
8. Greg Holland – 87
9. Jonathan Papelbon – 87

Do you agree with the top players at each position? Sound off in the comments below.

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