Pete Crow-Armstrong, in dynasty and redraft. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has Crow-Armstrong ahead, Crow-Armstrong #1 and Merrill #15, and the expert consensus agrees (#52 and #7). The community agrees too, FRV 78.0 to 70.1. For 2026 redraft, the consensus has Crow-Armstrong ahead, #1 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 Pete Crow-Armstrong (Sep 24, 2026): I agonized over who to rank #1 in this dynasty refresh, and it basically came down to three players for me: PCA, Witt, and Caminero. I think they are in a league of their own and clearly tier 1 players above everyone else. PCA has clearly been the most valuable player for 2027 and anyone holding him on their team had a good shot to win the championship this year. The reason I debated whether this made him the #1 dynasty asset is the fact that he hasn't done it all year. He was objectively terrible to start the season, and he has come on so hot in the second half that it's hard to remember how tough that first stretch was. At one point I had him as low as 35th overall and the consensus dynasty rankings that I track had him as low as 52 overall. He also doesn't have as compelling of a sabermetric profile as Witt or Caminero, as his exit velocities are a touch lower and his strikeout rate is a touch higher than both of them. However, he has an ideal launch angle and is willing to run rampant in every situation and pile up stolen bases. If I had to guess, I don't think PCA finishes as the number one player next year (woah hot take I know, way to call your shot) but on a risk-adjusted basis I think you're more or less guaranteed to get a ton of contribution from him in four of the five categories (ex: AVG) and that plays really well in a 5x5 dynasty format. There's also a certain intangible factor to him that I can't really quantify that makes me think that he really prides himself on being the face of the Cubs, and the potential face of baseball, and I feel like he will want to accumulate counting stats to justify his status. If I have the number one pick in a dynasty league next year, I think I have to go PCA. I wouldn't fault anyone for taking one of the top 3 guys, but PCA is my pick (kicking and screaming).
Data as of . Consensus boards refresh daily; the staff board moves when it is republished.
| Metric | Jackson Merrill | Pete Crow-Armstrong |
|---|---|---|
| Team | SD | CHC |
| Position | OF | OF |
| Age | 23 | 24 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #15 | #1 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #52 | #7 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | #55 | #1 |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 70.1 | 78.0 |
| Expert Sources | 11 | 11 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #15–#87 | #1–#26 |
| Rest-of-Season Value | $1 | $1 |
| $ Earned Year to Date | $25 | $54 |
| ROS Rank (Top 300) | #203 | #244 |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Up 10 spots | Up 4 spots |
| Stat | Jackson Merrill | Pete Crow-Armstrong |
|---|---|---|
| PA | 664 | 726 |
| HR | 26 | 45 |
| R | 86 | 119 |
| RBI | 87 | 107 |
| SB | 27 | 41 |
| AVG | .254 | .280 |
| OBP | .303 | .372 |
| SLG | .440 | .570 |
| OPS | .743 | .943 |
| wOBA | .320 | .400 |
| xwOBA | .347 | .374 |
Price a Jackson Merrill-for-Pete Crow-Armstrong trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their rest-of-season dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer