- Fernando Tatis Jr, SDP (SS,OF) – This one is a no brainer for me. Tatis has a 162 game average of 125/48/116/31/.292 which would be considered one of the best single season slash lines of the past decade. Even with his health concerns there is no way to pass up that sort of potential. There is only one other player currently in the league with the power/speed upside of Tatis and he is the next guy on the list.
- Ronald Acuna Jr, ATL (OF) – Acuna is in a tough spot this year as he is coming off a torn ACL and may not be ready for the start of the season. If he is good to go he is a player that I will be reaching for in every single one of my drafts. Playing in a stacked Braves lineup that can score in bunches I have no doubt Acuna will produce some insane numbers in all five categories. I’m ranking him as if I expect him to play every game, but feel free to bump him down to the middle of the first if he ends up missing a few weeks.
- Vladimir Guerrero JR, TOR (1B, 3B) – The season that Vladdy Jr had was absolutely insane. Honestly if not for Ohtani’s historic season he would have run away with the MVP. He finished top five in four of the five major batting categories; R(1st) HR(1st) RBI(5th), and AVG(3rd) while making a legitimate run at the triple crown. He obviously won’t help in stolen bases, but who really needs it with that kind of production everywhere else.
- Trea Turner, LAD (SS, 2B) – I absolutely LOVE Turner and I think you could argue for him at any point in the draft. The mid-season trade to LA had no impact on his game and he actually seemed to improve over the last few months of the season. He does not offer the power of the top three guys, but he is no slouch in that department either with a 162 game average of 24. On top of that he led the National League in steals for the second time in his career and will be returning to one of the most stacked lineups in the league. The Dodgers love to bat Turner in the three hole so we could also see an increase in RBI. There may not be a higher upside pick in the draft.
- Bo Bichette, TOR (SS) – Bichette was an absolute monster during his first full season in the big leagues as he was one of just six players to steal at least 25 bases and hit at least 25 home runs in the 2021 season. Batting in the top of an absolutely stacked Blue Jays lineup helped him break both 100 runs and 100 RBI as well. It was a true breakout season for Bichette and at only 23 years old it looks like it may just be the beginning.
- Juan Soto, WAS (OF) – In terms of pure baseball skill I honestly think Soto may be the best player in the league who isn’t named Mike Trout. In OBP leagues I would move Soto up a few spots as he takes tons of walks (led league in OBP in 2020 and 2021) and that will most likely continue as he won’t see many pitches in a weak Nationals lineup. He doesn’t have the speed of some of the other top guys, but you may not find a safer bet in the other four categories.
- Mike Trout, LAA (OF) – Oh how the mighty have fallen. The consensus top pick from 2012-2019 has battled through two injury plagued seasons in 2020 and 2021 and hasn’t played over 140 games since 2016. If you could guarantee me a fully healthy season from Trout I wouldn’t hesitate to take him in the top three, but he comes with some injury risk. The positive side of things is that he will now be hitting in a lineup featuring both Shohei Ohtani and Anthony Rendon so he should have plenty of protection.
- Jose Ramirez, CLE (3B) – Why oh why does he have to play for the Indians, wait no I mean the Guardians (that is going to take some getting used to). Ramirez is one of the best hitters in the league and in 2021 he showed that even with a weak lineup around him he is going to produce All-Star numbers. The average fell a bit in 2020 which may scare some people away, but I am not concerned at all. His average actually improved post All-Star break (.260 vs .273) AND he stole more than twice as many bases (8 vs 19) in the second half of the year. He may not be as flashy as some of the other names on this list and that could cause him to fall to the early second round in some drafts.
- Mookie Betts, LAD (OF) – I think I’m a little too high on Mookie and I may drop him down a bit when I do updated ranks. I thought he would thrive as the Dodgers leadoff hitter and to be honest I even considered that he may average a run per game. That was not the case as Betts struggled in almost every category. I have faith he can turn it around as he was much better post All-Star break and was nagged by injuries all year which may have caused the decline.
- Shohei Ohtani, LAA (OF, UTIL) – Oh boy I always hate ranking Ohtani. Why can’t they just make him one player as both a Pitcher and Hitter and he will be the obvious #1 pick. It’s never that easy though so we have to just focus on him as a batter where he was absolutely amazing (Pre All-Star break). I’m a little scared of drafting him this high as he fell off hard in the second half of the year. Whether it was from fatigue or just the variance evening itself out it is a definite cause for concern. However, he is still a guy capable of going 40-20 and there are not many of those so he should go somewhere in the late first to early second round.
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