Dynasty: Jackson Merrill. Redraft: Oneil Cruz. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has Merrill ahead, Merrill #15 and Cruz #21, but the expert consensus has Cruz ahead (#42 to #52). The community rates them even, FRV 70.1 and 67.3. For 2026 redraft, the consensus has Cruz ahead, #26 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 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 | Jackson Merrill | Oneil Cruz |
|---|---|---|
| Team | SD | PIT |
| Position | OF | OF |
| Age | 23 | 27 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #15 | #21 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #52 | #42 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | #55 | #26 |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 70.1 | 67.3 |
| Expert Sources | 11 | 11 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #15–#87 | #30–#117 |
| Rest-of-Season Value | $1 | — |
| $ Earned Year to Date | $25 | — |
| ROS Rank (Top 300) | #203 | — |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Up 10 spots | Down 1 spot |
| Stat | Jackson Merrill | Oneil Cruz |
|---|---|---|
| PA | 664 | 419 |
| HR | 26 | 20 |
| R | 86 | 65 |
| RBI | 87 | 67 |
| SB | 27 | 30 |
| AVG | .254 | .280 |
| OBP | .303 | .368 |
| SLG | .440 | .486 |
| OPS | .743 | .854 |
| wOBA | .320 | .371 |
| xwOBA | .347 | .352 |
Price a Jackson Merrill-for-Oneil Cruz trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their rest-of-season dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer