Top 75 Shortstop Dynasty Fantasy Baseball Rankings For 2024
Image credit: (Photo by Matt Dirksen/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Shortstop is annually one of the premium positions in dynasty and this year’s crop fits the bill. Nine of the 50 best players in dynasty entering 2024 are shortstops, headlined by Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. We’d expect several more to rank inside the Top 100 once we expand our dynasty list later in the offseason.
Below, find the 75 best shortstops in dynasty entering 2024. You can also find all of our updated fantasy rankings here.
This ranking was the work of the entire team at Baseball America but was curated by Dylan White and Geoff Pontes. Our goal is to balance a variety of scoring formats and provide the best overall list of players regardless of scoring.
*updated February 7th
1. Bobby Witt Jr., Royals (No. 5 overall)
After a strong rookie campaign in 2022, Witt took it to another level in 2023 hitting 30 home runs with 49 stolen bases and a .276 batting average. Witt takes a slight hit in OBP leagues due to his low walk rate, but is still a slam dunk top 5-10 pick in all formats.
2. Gunnar Henderson, Orioles (No. 14 overall)
Henderson hit 28 home runs and scored 100 runs en route to an AL Rookie of the Year award. Henderson has some improvements to make against lefthanded pitching, but heads into his age-22 season in 2024 with the ability to return top-two round fantasy value for the next decade.
3. Corey Seager, Rangers (No. 15 overall)
The Rangers superstar is fresh off a historic playoff run, but it’s his top-20 finish among positional players in 2023 that pushes him inside the top 15 overall. Seager hit .327/.390/.623 with 33 home runs in 2023 and returns as the catalyst of a loaded lineup.
4. Jackson Holliday, Orioles (No. 31 overall)
Holliday burst onto the scene in 2023 with a loud first full professional season, hitting .323/.442/.499 with 12 home runs and 24 stolen bases. Holliday played at all four full-season levels and finished the season with 18 games at Triple-A. Holliday could be up early in 2024. His elite plate skills and on-base ability make him valuable regardless of scoring style or format.
5. Bo Bichette, Blue Jays (No. 32 overall)
Bichette’s stolen bases dropped for the second consecutive season as he dealt with injury. Whether the 20-20 seasons for Bichette are gone is a matter of debate. Still, he’s a career .299 hitter with 20+ home run upside entering his age 26 season.
6. Elly De La Cruz, Reds (No. 33 overall)
De La Cruz is a good measure of your risk tolerance. Few players can match his explosive skills, especially his easy plus-plus power and speed. But De La Cruz needs to cut his strikeout rate and improve his plate discipline to reach his first-round potential. He’s a highly volatile investment.
7. Trea Turner, Phillies (No. 41 overall)
After a down first half that saw Turner hit .247/.299/.389 over the first 88 games of the season, Turner returned to form in the second half hitting .292/.348/.554. Turner seemed to settle into his new surroundings and finished with his third consecutive 20 home run and 20 stolen base season.
8. CJ Abrams, Nationals (No. 49 overall)
Abrams ranked as the No. 8 shortstop in fantasy on the strength of 18 homers and 47 steals, even despite posting a 90 wRC+ in 2023. He’s still young and has many more years to grow as a hitter while already providing elite stolen base numbers and power.
9. Francisco Lindor, Mets (No. 50 overall)
At age 29, Lindor had his first 30 home run and 30 stolen base season in 2023. It’d be foolish to expect Lindor to continue to put up 30-30 seasons as he ages, but he hasn’t stopped running yet. Lindor is on the wrong side of 30 years old but is still one of the best hitters in the game.
10. Oneil Cruz, Pirates
Few players push fantasy managers’ imaginations into hyperdrive the way Oneil Cruz does. His combination of top of the scale power, plate skills and speed provide glimpses of superstar upside. An ankle injury that required surgery robbed managers of his 2023 season, but he’s fully recovered and ready for 2024. Cruz is a risk/reward pick in dynasty that could pay dividends.
11. Matt McLain, Reds
McLain’s prospect status tumbled heading into 2023, but a scorching hot 40 games to open the season with Triple-A Louisville led to a mid-May callup. McLain hit .290/.357/.507 with 16 home runs over 89 games. His 128 wRC+ ranked fifth among all rookies and second basemen with a minimum of 400 plate appearances. McLain qualifies as both a second baseman and shortstop entering 2023, giving him a slight value bump for his flexibility.
12. Anthony Volpe, Yankees
It’s a testament to the depth at the position that after being the first Yankees rookie to win a Gold Glove and have a 20/20 season, Volpe doesn’t crack the top 10 at the position for dynasty. Despite the excellent glove, baserunning value and counting stats, the jury is still out on the hit tool—especially against non-fastballs—but he should be a contributor in the Bronx for a long time.
13. Xander Bogaerts, Padres
Bogaerts is a remarkably consistent workhorse. In the last 10 years not including the shortened 2020 season, Bogaerts’ lowest plate appearance total was 580. He also took advantage of the new baserunning rules to steal a career-high 19 bases in 2023. Bogaerts is on the other side of 30 years old now and his decline phase is likely beginning, but he should age reasonably gracefully, and over the last two years has improved his shortstop defense to be in the upper half of the league. He’s a solid set-it-and-forget-it piece of your roster.
14. Jordan Lawlar, D-backs
In his second professional season, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2021 draft took a big step forward with the bat. Lawlar cut his strikeout rate by nearly 10 percentage points while improving his contact rate, chase rate, and exit velocities. Still only 21 years old, though his MLB debut was less than auspicious, his glove should give him a high floor and he should be able to string together multiple 20/20 seasons with solid batting average and OBP.
15. Ha-Seong Kim, Padres
Kim enjoyed his best year to date in his third season with the Padres, hitting 17 home runs with 38 stolen bases while seeing time at second base, shortstop and third base. He showed balanced plate skills, with increased on-base skills allowing him to get the most out of his skills at the plate. Kim doesn’t hit the ball particularly hard but he shows the ability to elevate enough to run into 13-18 home runs a season.
16. Adael Amador, Rockies
Amador has shown some of the best plate skills in the minor leagues over the last three seasons. In 2023, Amador was one of four players in the minor leagues with a contact rate of 87% or above, an in-zone contact rate of 88% or above, a chase rate of 21% or less and an average exit velocity above 85 mph. While Amador lacks above-average power, his combination of barrel control with fringy raw power allows him to be one of the most complete hitters in the minors.
17. Matt Shaw, Cubs
The former Cape Cod League MVP enjoyed one of the best post-draft debuts, hitting .357/.400/.618 across three levels and reaching Double-A. An exciting combination of hitting ability, power and speed, Shaw looks like a multi-category contributor.
18. Ezequiel Tovar, Rockies
Tovar is an excellent defender, which sets a high floor for playing time, and hit near the top of the order for most of 2023. But the ascendance of Nolan Jones and (hopefully) full seasons from Kris Bryant and Brendan Rodgers may drop Tovar down the batting order unless he increases his production. Tovar posted a .695 OPS last year–and that’s with the Coors BABIP bump. On the positive side of the ledger, he had 15 home runs, 11 stolen bases and is only 22 years old. Expect something like 20 home runs and 15 stolen bases in 2024.
19. Colson Montgomery, White Sox
Despite dealing with injuries in 2023, Montgomery’s underlying data was excellent. The shortstop has a knack for optimizing his best contact, leading to some of the best expected numbers in the minor leagues. Montgomery’s .408 xWOBA, 104.7 mph 90th percentile exit velocity and .433 xWOBAcon showcase his combination of plate skills, hard contact and optimal launch angles. If Montgomery can stay healthy he has an opportunity to see a heavy chunk of his time in 2024 and beyond as the White Sox starting shortstop.
20. Zach Neto, Angels
Neto acquitted himself well enough in his big league debut to validate the Angels’ decision to call him up after just 201 minor league plate appearances. An oblique and back injury essentially cut his debut short in August, before which he had a 99 wRC+ with eight home runs and five stolen bases in 252 plate appearances. Heading into the season at age 23, he is projected as a league-average bat with 20 home runs and 10 stolen bases.
21. Colt Emerson, Mariners
One of the better combinations of contact, approach and power in the class, Emerson hit .374/.496/.549 across two levels in his debut. No player raised his stock like Emerson after the draft, as he’s now viewed universally as a top-10 FYPD pick.
22. Masyn Winn, Cardinals
Long billed for his all-world throwing arm, Winn has developed into one of the more refined hitters in the minor leagues. Despite fringe-average power, Winn has excellent bat-to-ball skills and solid approach. His speed allows him to get the most out of his contact and he has enough power to project for 15-to-18 home runs annually.
23. Dansby Swanson, Cubs
For the second consecutive season, the No. 1 overall pick in 2015 essentially produced 5 WAR or better. Unfortunately for us in fantasy, the bulk of Swanson’s value comes from the defensive side of the ball after winning two consecutive Gold Gloves. After putting up 18 stolen bases in 2022, his nine last year were a disappointment with the new rules. He is in the same cluster as other 20-homer, 10-steal shortstops with average batting average and OBP. He’s incredibly safe, but he’s on the wrong side of 30 years old.
24. Jett Williams, Mets
The Mets’ minor league player of the year–and their No. 1 Prospect entering 2024–had over 100 walks in his first full minor league season, hitting .263/.425/.451 with 13 home runs and 45 stolen bases across three levels as a teenager. Receiving glowing remarks for his maturity and swing decisions, don’t be surprised if the 5-foot-6-inch Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex product is potentially hitting at the top of the Mets batting order as soon as 2025 and putting up 20/20-type seasons.
25. Willy Adames, Brewers
On the surface, Adames took a step backward in 2023. His 94 wRC+ dropped to below-average one year after a 30-homer season in 2022. But his xwOBA, a Baseball Savant metric derived from his exit velocities and launch angles of his batted balls, was actually the highest of his career. Adames has been an elite defender for two years in a row. He may not help your batting average or OBP, but he should give roughly 25-home run power and is just entering his age-28 season.
26. Carlos Correa, Twins
After two seasons of above-average batting average and OP in 2021 and 2022 (with a 137 wRC+), Correa’s bat took a large step back to below league-average in 2023. A lot of that has to do with the plantar fasciitis that plagued him throughout the season. He is still under 30 years old, so hopefully he can come back to full health and offer average four-category value.
27. Jackson Merrill, Padres
Merrill is one of the more refined hitters in the minor leagues. He shows excellent bat-to-ball skills, solid approach, projectable power and one of the more picturesque lefthanded swings you’ll see outside of the major leagues. Merrill will need to develop into above-average game power in order to reach his lofty ceiling of all-star shortstop with contact, approach and power.
28. Ronny Mauricio, Mets
An unfortunate injury will likely rob us of most, if not all, of Mauricio’s 2024. He tore the ACL in his right knee and will undergo surgery while playing winter ball. Mauricio .248/.296/.347 over 108 plate appearances after making his major league debut in 2023. He has huge raw power that he’s still learning to tap into with speed and baserunning ability. Mauricio has always been an aggressive hitter, but he has the bat-to-ball skills and long levers to make it work. He’s a good stash for rebuilding teams.
29. Tommy Edman, Cardinals
Following a career year in 2022, Edman was a popular fade pick entering last season. This proved prescient, as Edman hit .248/.307/.399 and ranked as the No. 24 second baseman in 2023 per the Razzball player rater. This was a precipitous drop for Edman, who ranked No. 4 in 2022 after hitting .265/.324/.400 with 13 home runs, 32 stolen bases and 95 runs. Edman’s skillset became less scarce with the new rule changes and he didn’t seize the opportunity to pad his stolen base totals in 2023. Edman is slated to move to center field in 2024 and it’s not unreasonable to see a happy medium between his 2022 and 2023.
30. Vaughn Grissom, Red Sox
Concerns about Grissom’s playing time likely evaporated once the Braves traded him to the Red Sox in exchange for Chris Sale. Expect something like .270/.350 with 12 homers and 10 steals for multiple years from Grissom, who is still just 23 years old.
31. J.P. Crawford, Mariners
After a stint at Driveline, Crawford exploded in 2023 with a 134 wRC+ and 19 home runs after previously never exceeded 103 wRC+ and nine home runs. Interestingly, his defense has fallen off substantially (ranking near the bottom percentile in Outs Above Average the last 2 years) after previously providing most of his real-life value with the leather. That complicates how to evaluate him. Now nearly 30 years old, Crawford is a workhorse with over 600 plate appearances in each of the last three seasons. Minimally, he should be a compiler with good OBP but with slightly below-average power and speed.
32. Marcelo Mayer, Red Sox
Mayer bought into the Red Sox bat speed training entering 2023 and added significant impact to his underlying power metrics. Unfortunately, Mayer’s plate skills took a hit as he struggled with bat-to-ball skills and approach. A shoulder injury ended Mayer’s season after reaching Double-A. Mayer could debut late in 2024 and provides a contact and power-based profile at shortstop not dissimilar to Corey Seager.
33. Oswald Peraza, Yankees
34. Orelvis Martinez, Blue Jays
35. Jeremy Peña, Astros
36. Trevor Story, Red Sox
37. Thomas Saggese, Cardinals
38. Brooks Lee, Twins
39. Roderick Arias, Yankees
40. Cole Young, Mariners
41. Geraldo Perdomo, D-backs
42. Marco Luciano, Giants
43. Brayan Rocchio, Guardians
44. Leodalis De Vries, Padres
45. Tommy Troy, D-backs
46. Sebastian Walcott, Rangers
47. Carson Williams, Rays
48. Addison Barger, Blue Jays
49. George Lombard Jr., Yankees
50. Arjun Nimmala, Blue Jays
51. Brice Turang, Brewers
52. Jose Perdomo, Braves
53. Joendry Vargas, Dodgers
54. Orlando Arcia, Braves
55. Walker Martin, Giants
56. Luisangel Acuña, Mets
57. Darell Hernaiz, A’s
58. Jefferson Rojas, Cubs
59. Joey Ortiz, Brewers
60. Colin Houck, Mets
61. Amed Rosario, FA
62. Carlos Jorge, Reds
63. Brice Matthews, Astros
64. Tai Peete, Mariners
65. Austin Gauthier, Dodgers
66. James Triantos, Cubs
67. Echedry Vargas, Rangers
68. Kevin McGonigle, Tigers
69. Jacob Wilson, A’s
70. Tim Anderson, FA
71. Edwin Arroyo, Reds
72. Yoeilin Cespedes, Red Sox
73. Ignacio Alvarez, Braves
74. Trey Sweeney, Dodgers
75. Luis Rengifo, Angels