Dynasty: Eli Willits. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has Willits ahead, Willits #56 and Rodriguez #60, and the expert consensus agrees (#129 and #134). The community agrees too, FRV 58.5 to 54.3.
JD on Eli Willits (Nov 2, 2026): I was down on Eli Willits for so long and was probably too late to adjust to the performance he was putting up in the minors this year. After seeing what he did in 2026, I think the Nationals have a budding star on their hands. Willits hadn't even had his 18th birthday yet when the Nationals took him first overall in 2025 and handed him $8.2 million. However, the slot value for this pick was $11 million, meaning he took a nearly $3 million haircut. I think that poisoned my mind into thinking he was a budget pick that didn't necessarily have the ceiling of other guys in his draft like Ethan Holliday, Kade Anderson, or Seth Hernandez. Rather than looking like Tim Beckham 2.0, Willits has more or less exploded onto the scene, hitting for much more power than I originally expected and being a lot more physical than he was projected to be coming into the draft. Even discounting the 62 stolen bases in 2026, as minor league stolen bases don't tell me anything about a prospect other than how aggressive they are in the minors, he still ran a 17.7% walk rate with only a 21% K rate and slugged 14 home runs as an 18-year-old across three levels. He has an outside chance of hitting the big league roster in 2027, but more than likely will need another year of development, where we should see his power continue to blossom with him knocking down the door of the big leagues in 2028 as one of the most hyped prospects in the minors.
JD on Rainiel Rodriguez (Nov 2, 2026): Rainiel is one of the most exciting prospects in the minor leagues, and potentially has the best pure bat of any prospect today. I don't think there's any chance, long term, he ends up behind the plate as he will probably get moved to first base in the big leagues, so I'm not dinging him with the same catcher discount I might for another prospect. He put up an OPS of nearly 1.000 across 500+ plate appearances in 2026, slugging 27 home runs and adding 11 stolen bases for good measure, with a very reasonable 19% K rate. Hitting over .300 at any level is impressive, but when you can do it while hitting 27 HRs it gets me a whole new level of excited. The only risk here is the body: it seems he loves his fair share of plantains, chicken, and rice. We've seen how this affected a guy like Vlad Jr. and the volatility that comes with the extra weight, but I'm not willing to ding him too much for something that's only potentially a concern down the line. If it weren't for that risk, he might be closer to my number 1 prospect, but I still love him and think he will have a long successful career as a bat-first 1B at the big league level.
Data as of . Consensus boards refresh daily; the staff board moves when it is republished.
| Metric | Eli Willits | Rainiel Rodriguez |
|---|---|---|
| Team | WAS | STL |
| Position | SS | C/1B |
| Age | 18 | 19 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #56 | #60 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #129 | #134 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | - | - |
| Prospect Consensus Rank | #5 | #9 |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 58.5 | 54.3 |
| Expert Sources | 28 | 30 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #43–#269 | #68–#313 |
| 2027 Projected Value | -$24.7 | -$19.8 |
| 2026 $ Earned | - | - |
| 2027 Projected Rank | #1810 | #1637 |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Down 26 spots | No move |
Price a Eli Willits-for-Rainiel Rodriguez trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their 2027 dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer