5 reasons why Manny Machado is as good as Bryce Harper

3. His Arm

There’s more to Machado’s game than his hitting and his glove. He also has one of the best arms in baseball. Harper has an excellent arm, but is it as good as Machado’s? Probably not. Machado and Harper both have incredible arm strength, but Machado is a more accurate thrower.

Machado’s has 27 throwing errors since 2012, while Harper has only 12 in during that time. However, Machado has to throw the ball more often than Harper and is usually throwing a shorter distance, which impacts the raw error totals.

For example, Machado is one of only 12 third basemen to log at least 4,000 innings at third base since 2012. He has the sixth-fewest throwing errors of those 12 third basemen, and of the five who have fewer throwing errors, only Kyle Seager of the Seattle Mariners has more assists than Machado’s 1,022 (fifth-most among qualified third basemen).

To sum it up: Machado’s arm is as good as his glove, and his arm is better than Harper’s.

Next: Positional Value