Dynasty: too close to call. Redraft: Jordan Walker. The FanRanked staff dynasty board has them nearly level, McLean #34 and Walker #36, but the expert consensus has Walker ahead (#27 to #42). The community leans McLean, FRV 67.1 to 54.2. For 2026 redraft, the consensus has Walker ahead, #50 to #82.
JD on Jordan Walker (Oct 20, 2026): Jordan Walker's season stats really overshadowed a concerning trend that we saw post All Star Break and especially September, the batted ball quality really regressed overall to look more in line with his pre-2026 breakout. Here are his Pre-ASB / Post-ASB splits: xwOBA: .373 / .292 Avg EV: 94.2 / 90.4 Barrel %: 14.1% / 11.9% I'm willing to chalk part of this up to my unscientific data point of the post-Home Run Derby championship blues that sometimes effect winners, but I do believe there is a concern trend her that you don't notice if you are looking at the season numbers. At the end of the day he's a 24-year-old with a lot of experience under his belt and the ability to ride the ups and downs of a full season. I still think if you can get him in the third round of a dynasty startup, then you're probably looking at a pretty good asset, but I would stay away from getting him in the second round due to some of the warts in his profile that I don't think he has fully resolved yet.
JD on Nolan McLean (Oct 20, 2026): Nolan McLean stands in a tier of his own for me, because he's in a weird spot where there feels like a big gap between him and the top 7 starters, but he's very clearly better than the next starter after him, Logan Gilbert, mainly due to his age. My favorite thing about McLean is the way he spins it. He has a 98th percentile curveball in xwOBA allowed at .163, and some of the PitchingNinja videos of his highest RPM pitches look like straight witchcraft. Despite his elite-looking curveball, it's actually his sinker that was his most valuable pitch by far, having saved an incredible 27 runs this season, leading to an ERA reduction versus the average of 1.35. That was by far the most valuable sinker in baseball this year in total run value (although Josh Hader(?)) Was better on a rate basis per 100 pitches). I would love to see a guy like McLean with an elite defense behind him, because I feel like the sinker/curveball combo would really play up with a team like the Brewers behind him. Unfortunately he will have to settle with the Mets' defense going forward, who ranked 25th last year, and I don't see a path to them getting much better.
Data as of . Consensus boards refresh daily; the staff board moves when it is republished.
| Metric | Jordan Walker | Nolan McLean |
|---|---|---|
| Team | STL | NYM |
| Position | OF | SP |
| Age | 24 | 25 |
| Staff Dynasty Rank | #36 | #34 |
| Dynasty Consensus Rank | #27 | #42 |
| Redraft Consensus Rank | #50 | #82 |
| FRV (FanRanked Value) | 54.2 | 67.1 |
| Expert Sources | 10 | 11 |
| Dynasty Rank Range | #16–#35 | #39–#168 |
| Rest-of-Season Value | - | - |
| $ Earned Year to Date | - | - |
| ROS Rank (Top 300) | - | - |
| 30-Day Consensus Move | Up 1 spot | Up 2 spots |
| Stat | Jordan Walker | Nolan McLean |
|---|---|---|
| PA | 667 | - |
| HR | 29 | - |
| R | 97 | - |
| RBI | 102 | - |
| SB | 22 | - |
| AVG | .269 | - |
| OBP | .327 | - |
| SLG | .466 | - |
| OPS | .793 | - |
| wOBA | .344 | - |
| xwOBA | .340 | - |
| Stat | Jordan Walker | Nolan McLean |
|---|---|---|
| IP | 14.0 | 179.2 |
| W | 0 | 12 |
| SV | 1 | 0 |
| ERA | 0.00 | 3.16 |
| WHIP | 0.64 | 1.17 |
| K | 17 | 194 |
| K/9 | 10.9 | 9.7 |
Price a Jordan Walker-for-Nolan McLean trade in the Dynasty Trade Calculator · compare their rest-of-season dollars in the Roto & Redraft Trade Analyzer