Dynasty: Nick Kurtz. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has Kurtz ahead, Kurtz #10 and Merrill #15, and the expert consensus agrees (#52 and #9). The community agrees too, FRV 82.2 to 70.1.
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 Nick Kurtz (Sep 24, 2026): This ranking should be CJ Abrams' spot, he's done nothing but earn it this year with a 30/30 season. But as the residing president of the Nick Kurtz fan club, it would be irresponsible of me to rank him outside of the top 10 on any dynasty list. I feel like Kurtz is the first player on this list who you can't point to direct production this year to justify their placement in the top 10, which should tell you how I feel about Nick Kurtz's potential. Remember he's only 23 years old and was drafted in 2024 so he has not even entered what should be his prime yet. From this point onward in the rankings, every player is going to have their warts and there is no complete player, so you have to go by upside in a dynasty list like this. Let's talk about his potential upside, he's 98% or greater in the following categories: AVG EV (93.4) Barrel % (18.0%) Hard Hit Rate (57.3%) Bat Speed (78.2 MPH) BB % (18.2%) This profile screams when I hit the ball, I'm absolutely doing damage. I don't think there's a single player in the big leagues outside of maybe Yordan Alvarez and Aaron Judge that have this impressive batted-ball profile, but Nick Kurtz is only 23 years old. Compared to 29 for Yordan and 34 for Judge. The issue is he doesn't always "hit the ball": 32.5% K Rate 36.9% Whiff Rate And both of those stats actually trended worse in 2026 compared to his rookie year, the threat of a low batting average is very real if he doesn't improve on this. If you're at the 10th pick in your dynasty league, all of the surefire bets are gone and everyone has their warts. It's either age, sporadic performance, or some metric in an otherwise reliable skill set that gives you pause. I think Nick Kurtz's combination of youth and upside is the most attractive bet left after the first nine players are spoken for. If your league really values pitching, the Miz is a fine bet at number 10 overall. If you want to put yourself in the best chance to win next year, maybe Yordan is your guy. If you're looking for more of a 30-30 skill set, then I wouldn't fault you for taking CJ Abrams. All I'm saying is don't overlook Kurtz in 2027.
Data as of . Consensus boards refresh daily; the staff board moves when it is republished.
| Metric | Jackson Merrill | Nick Kurtz |
|---|---|---|
| Team | SD | ATH |
| Position | OF | 1B |
| Age | 23 | 23 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #15 | #10 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #52 | #9 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | #55 | — |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 70.1 | 82.2 |
| Expert Sources | 11 | 9 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #15–#87 | #7–#17 |
| Rest-of-Season Value | $1 | — |
| $ Earned Year to Date | $25 | — |
| ROS Rank (Top 300) | #203 | — |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Up 10 spots | Up 1 spot |
| Stat | Jackson Merrill | Nick Kurtz |
|---|---|---|
| PA | 664 | 434 |
| HR | 26 | 21 |
| R | 86 | 62 |
| RBI | 87 | 69 |
| SB | 27 | 7 |
| AVG | .254 | .256 |
| OBP | .303 | .396 |
| SLG | .440 | .483 |
| OPS | .743 | .879 |
| wOBA | .320 | .381 |
| xwOBA | .347 | .374 |
Price a Jackson Merrill-for-Nick Kurtz trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their rest-of-season dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer