karl? karl, are you ok?

someone check karl ravech and make sure he doesn't have a fever. minutes ago, on baseball tonight, while singing the praises of various members of the 2005 MLB draft class who have reached the majors already (justin upton, troy tulowitzki, etc.):

And everyone knows about Ryan Zimmerman, the Z-Pack! Arguably the best third baseman in that league, which includes David Wright and whatnot...

wow. the best? listen, ryan zimmerman is a fine young player. he's great defensively, no slouch at the plate, and his best years are ahead of him. but david wright he is not. nor chipper jones. nor miguel cabrera. jesus, those are just three other third basemen in his division. don't forget aramis ramirez.

And you could even make a case for him being the best in all of baseball.

there's a guy who plays for the AL franchise in new york who might have something to say about that. now, i'm really hoping he said "best defensive third baseman", because i like karl. but i'm reasonably sure he didn't say that. and he said what i think he said with almost no conviction, making it even more likely that it wasn't a mistake, but he just couldn't bring himself to really go for it.