Dynasty: too close to call. Redraft: Cam Schlittler. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has them nearly level, Schlittler #19 and Cruz #21, and the expert consensus agrees (#17 and #48). The community leans Schlittler, FRV 74.6 to 66.6. For 2027 redraft, the consensus has Schlittler ahead, #14 to #32, and Frank's 2027 projection agrees ($27.4 and $20.0).
JD on Cam Schlittler (Oct 2, 2026): I racked my brain trying to come up with a way to rank Schlittler over Misiorowski and have the contrarian take, but it's clear that Schlitter is a very strong #2 to Mis. There is so much to like about Schlittler, but I think my favorite part about him is that he is going to win the AL Cy Young Award without a true wipeout breaking ball or elite changeup. He effectively dominated the AL all year with three variations of a fastball and only needed to feature his CB 10% of the time. This gives me hope that he can age more gracefully than a pitcher who doesn't have anywhere to go with their arsenal as their velocity declines. Just imagine 29 year old Schlittler with a wipeout split. If you wanted to find some cons in his game, his 1.95 ERA had nearly a one-run gap between his 2.85 xERA, which is the 10th-biggest gap for pitchers with a full season workload. He also didn't do a great job the third time through the order (.315 wOBA allowed), where he looked more like a league-average pitcher compared to an elite arm. I heard this argument from Blue Jays fans arguing Dylan Cease should win the Cy Young, treating Schlit as a stats merchant rather than a true horse. I looked into it and Cease was actually worse the third time through the order and through 24 fewer innings so I'm not sure where that came from. Schlittler will be entering his age-26 season in 2027 and should be a betting favorite to win a back-to-back Cy Young. If you can get your hands on him, I have no doubt he will treat you well over the next couple of years.
JD on Oneil Cruz (Oct 2, 2026): This is my favorite ranking in all the top 25 and I'm fully ready for it to blow up in my face. In terms of raw talent, there may not be a player in baseball outside of Elly who has as loud of tools as Oneil Cruz. He absolutely demolishes the ball (94.1 average EV last year), has hit the hardest recorded ball in MLB history (122.9 mph) in 2025, and the second-hardest-hit ball in MLB history (122.4 mph). Why is everyone not salivating over him? Is it maybe that he struck out checks notes 33.2% of the time last year? But the exit velos! Being realistic, Oneil Cruz is a high-risk asset and there's going to be a lot of pain associated with holding him. I do think that a lot of his performance has to do with his team dynamic, as the Pirates were garbage last year and you could tell he wasn't in it mentally. 2026 was a lot different as the Pirates put a fun competitive team on the field and he was dominant and healthy, putting up a 20/30 season in only 368 at-bats. If you had to pick one player outside of the top 20 to bet on being the number one fantasy player next year, I think Oneil Cruz is your best bet. He's also a good bet to hit below .200 and start getting benched halfway through the season. Cruz is your guy if you're a risk-taker, if you like a more predictable player, he's not for you.
Data as of . Consensus boards refresh daily; the staff board moves when it is republished.
| Metric | Cam Schlittler | Oneil Cruz |
|---|---|---|
| Team | NYY | PIT |
| Position | SP | OF |
| Age | 25 | 27 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #19 | #21 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #17 | #48 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | #14 | #32 |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 74.6 | 66.6 |
| Expert Sources | 15 | 15 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #14–#28 | #29–#117 |
| 2027 Projected Value | $27.4 | $20.0 |
| 2026 $ Earned | $40.0 | $25.0 |
| 2027 Projected Rank | #17 | #43 |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Up 2 spots | Up 3 spots |
| Stat | Cam Schlittler | Oneil Cruz |
|---|---|---|
| PA | - | 419 |
| HR | - | 20 |
| R | - | 65 |
| RBI | - | 67 |
| SB | - | 30 |
| AVG | - | .280 |
| OBP | - | .368 |
| SLG | - | .486 |
| OPS | - | .854 |
| wOBA | - | .371 |
| xwOBA | - | .352 |
| Stat | Cam Schlittler | Oneil Cruz |
|---|---|---|
| IP | 193.2 | - |
| W | 14 | - |
| SV | 0 | - |
| ERA | 1.95 | - |
| WHIP | 0.92 | - |
| K | 239 | - |
| K/9 | 11.1 | - |
Price a Cam Schlittler-for-Oneil Cruz trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their 2027 dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer