James Wood, in dynasty and redraft. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has Wood ahead, Wood #4 and Merrill #15, and the expert consensus agrees (#52 and #5). The community agrees too, FRV 81.4 to 70.1. For 2026 redraft, the consensus has Wood ahead, #12 to #55.
JD on Jackson Merrill (Oct 2, 2026): This might be an ultra aggressive ranking that blows up in my face, or I could be a pioneer who sees reality before everyone else. Here is what I see in Merrill: He is 23 years old He just finished his 3rd year in the major leagues (at 23 years old) He has put up above average offensive stats every season (130 wRC+ in 2024, 115 in 2025, 105 in 2026). He absolutely exploded in the 2nd half and was the 5th best player on our player values (only behind PCA, Elly, FTJ, and Jackson Chourio). HE WILL BE 24 YEARS OLD IN 2027! He is similar in age to prospects like Sorota, Baez, Condon, and Tibbs while having 3 seasons in the big leagues under his belt. Ask yourself this question, if Konnor Griffin put up these 3 seasons of performance from 2026 to 2028, would you consider it a success? How excited would you be by Griffin heading into his age 23 season with this performance to start his career? Because I see no reason to rank a player who is still effectively a "prospect" above someone like Merrill who just put up a near 30/30 season at 23 years old. (For reference, Griffin is 16 in the expert consensus while Merrill is 52(!)) Is Merrill a perfect player? Not at all, he is far from it. He doesn't take enough walks and strikes out more than I would like for someone with his exit velocities. But he barrels the ball a ton, has an ideal launch angle, and is just now starting to enter the age where most players hit their prime. Merrill could be a sneaky 40 HR candidate next year, and if he continues to run like he did this year (27 SB) and manages his K rate, you have all of the makings of a top 5 player for 2027. But sure, continue taking the 20 year old prospect because he might turn into Merrill one day in this spot instead.
JD on James Wood (Sep 24, 2026): James Wood just missed being in the top tier of dynasty assets for me, because his injury in the second half derailed what otherwise would have been a monumental season for him. At the ASB, he was on a 162 game pace of 47 HR / 25 SB with a .279/.410/.575 slash, which would have made him far and away the most valuable player outside of PCA this year. He also hits the ball much harder than any of the guys in the top 3 (95.3 avg EV), although that comes with a higher K rate at 28.6%. Unfortunately, that oblique strain really torpedoed his second half and clearly has been affecting him since he came back from the injured list. Interestingly enough, it hasn't necessarily tanked his exit velocities as he's actually at 96.4 avg EV in the last 30 days, but instead caused a dramatic reduction in his barrel rate to 7.7%. I think this is the risk with James Wood and why he is not in the top tier for me. When you run K rates close to 30%, you're prone to some intense streakiness that you don't necessarily want to see from your #1 overall player. James Wood is still an elite asset to own and if I had the fourth pick, I would be very happy taking him here but his warts and second-half 2026 performance keep me from really putting him in the top tier of dynasty assets.
Data as of . Consensus boards refresh daily; the staff board moves when it is republished.
| Metric | Jackson Merrill | James Wood |
|---|---|---|
| Team | SD | WAS |
| Position | OF | OF |
| Age | 23 | 24 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #15 | #4 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #52 | #5 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | #55 | #12 |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 70.1 | 81.4 |
| Expert Sources | 11 | 11 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #15–#87 | #3–#35 |
| Rest-of-Season Value | $1 | $1 |
| $ Earned Year to Date | $25 | $28 |
| ROS Rank (Top 300) | #203 | #214 |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Up 10 spots | Down 1 spot |
| Stat | Jackson Merrill | James Wood |
|---|---|---|
| PA | 664 | 623 |
| HR | 26 | 30 |
| R | 86 | 106 |
| RBI | 87 | 77 |
| SB | 27 | 21 |
| AVG | .254 | .265 |
| OBP | .303 | .388 |
| SLG | .440 | .503 |
| OPS | .743 | .891 |
| wOBA | .320 | .383 |
| xwOBA | .347 | .403 |
Price a Jackson Merrill-for-James Wood trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their rest-of-season dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer