The calendar has moved to May, which means it’s time to get some positional Shuffle Ups your way. We have enough data to form some actionable opinions (in some cases), or at least educated guesses (in some other cases).
The players below are salaried and ranked as if I were entering a fresh draft tonight. What’s happened to this point is an audition, nothing more. Don’t get hung up on the salaries in a vacuum, which are just comparison tools. Players at the same salary are considered even.
Advertisement
Most of the players who have 1B or 3B eligibility in Yahoo leagues are on this list. I excluded anyone currently on the IL (Eugenio Suárez, for example) and anyone with catcher eligibility (we’ll rank those guys with the catchers). I also ignored anyone in the minors, with one late exception.
Have some respectful disagreement? That’s good, that’s why we have a game. Share your thoughts anytime on social media: catch me on Twitter/X or on Bluesky.
And away we go.
The Big Tickets
$36 José Ramírez
$30 Sal Stewart
$29 Matt Olson
$28 Nick Kurtz
I was concerned about the Cleveland offense to begin the year and that’s been valid, as the Guardians stand 24th in runs. But Ramírez has more walks than strikeouts and is still swiping bases aggressively, even in his age-33 season. He’s already a walk-in Hall of Famer.
Advertisement
Maybe this salary looks high for Stewart, but I was tempted to go even higher. He’s a five-category contributor and he’s controlling his at-bats, with a decent walk rate and an acceptable strikeout rate. All of his hard-hit sliders are Kool-Aid red. I wonder if the Reds regret not fast-tracking him last year, but Stewart is here to stay now.
Some Confusing Veteran Stars
$27 Vladimir Guerrero
$26 Manny Machado
$25 Junior Caminero
$24 Bryce Harper
$22 Jazz Chisholm Jr.
$22 Freddie Freeman
Guerrero is paid like a superstar and there’s plenty to like on his profile. The .354 average speaks for itself and it’s mostly supported through his hard-hit rate. He’s almost impossible to strike out and he’s also carrying a plus walk rate. But Guerrero’s bat tricks don’t include a power profile — he’s still carrying a major ground-ball bias, and his pull rate is under the league average, too. It’s hard to remember a world where Kid Guerrero led the majors in home runs (five years ago, with 48); at this point, it will feel fortunate if he makes it back to last year’s 23.
Advertisement
Chisholm still carries a strikeout problem despite acceptable walk and chase rates. There’s two ways to slice that — you appreciate his respectable zone judgment, but it also means he’s getting beat inside the strike zone more than you’d like. Normally, when you see a .202 average and a .334 slugging tied to a presumable star, you assume the bad-luck signs must be flashing, but Chisholm’s hard-hit metrics support those puny stats. Alas, we can’t go too low on Chisholm, as he’s on pace for about 15 homers and 50 steals.
Harper is a better real-life player than fantasy option these days, not that 2026 Harper is a treat in either column. His running game might be shut down for good and his slugging percentage has snuck below .500 the last two years. The disappointing Philly lineup (he’s part of it, obviously) hasn’t helped his run production. And Harper will likely need maintenance at some point; he hasn’t made it to 150 games since 2019.
The Kids Are Alright
$20 JJ Wetherholt
Advertisement
$20 Austin Riley
$19 Kevin McGonigle
$19 Peter Alonso
$18 Christian Walker
$18 Alec Burleson
$18 Josh Naylor
$17 Yandy Diaz
$17 Maikel García
$17 Alex Bregman
$15 Liam Hicks
$15 Ryan O’Hearn
$15 José Caballero
$15 Jonathan Aranda
$14 Max Muncy
$14 Bo Bichette
I’m over the moon for both Wetherholt and McGonigle, but Wetherholt gets a slightly better rank because he’s offering immediate category juice. Both players have been tabbed as future batting champions, and McGonigle might have the chops to do it as a rookie. We also love that both kids are carrying multiple positions in Yahoo leagues.
Advertisement
I enjoy a good Murakami novel and I’ve enjoyed the first chapter of Chicago’s Murakami — 12 homers, 25 walks. He’s losing 78 batting-average points to left-handed pitching but his power has played against all handedness. The strikeout rate is a mess, of course, but at least he’s swinging at strikes and making loud contact when he does connect. Adam Dunn was a fun player for several seasons, a man defined by the Three True Outcomes. Maybe that’s in Murakami’s range.
I was hoping Alonso had a history of poor starts, but his month-by-month profile is rather balanced. Last year, he pushed off to a .343 open, with seven homers and 28 RBI. This lousy start is new territory, so perhaps it’s just another case of a big-name player changing teams and struggling to immediately justify a meaty contract. The expected stats won’t comfort you much with Alonso, but he’s still just 31, he deserves some patience.
The Two Vargases
$13 Rafael Devers
Advertisement
$12 Josh Jung
$12 Matt Chapman
$11 Miguel Vargas
$11 Brendan Donovan
$10 Jac Caglianone
$7 Jake Bauers
Devers has now played around five months of baseball with the Giants and the returns are in: .228/.323/.414, with 22 homers. He’s obviously a zero on the bases. His roomy home park doesn’t do him any favors, where the slash is .221/.316/.430. It’s fair to criticize the Red Sox for the timing of the Devers trade, and the meager return. But it’s also possible Boston was shrewd to get out from a Devers contract that’s likely to become an albatross soon. Keep in mind, Devers offers no defensive value.
Advertisement
A lot of fantasy managers will see Chicago’s Vargas hitting .215 and automatically discount him, which is a mistake. The category juice is here — six homers, five steals. And he’s been mildly unlucky with his outcomes; his batted-ball profile suggests a .240 average and .467 slugging, roto-worthy stats. All of his plate-discipline metrics are above code, and he’s still just 26. This is a hitter on the rise.
Arizona’s Vargas is a much trickier mystery to solve. Everything he’s done this year has been wonderful and metric-supported; his expected batting average is .351, his expected slugging .520. But we’re talking about a 34-year-old journeyman who’s been a below-average offensive player almost every step of the way (a mediocre 86 OPS+). I’m rooting for Vargas because I love players who swing at anything but make contact anyway, not to mention he covers multiple positions and he’s become a recent pickup of mine. But this is the type of player you extend a tiny leash towards; be ready to bail at the first sign of extended trouble. Root with your heart, but make decisions with your head.
Bargain Bin
Advertisement
$6 Luis Arráez
$6 T.J. Rumfield
$5 José Fernandez
$5 Luis García Jr.
$5 Matt Shaw
$5 Jake Burger
$5 Colt Keith
$4 Brooks Lee
$4 Josh Bell
$4 Nolan Gorman
$4 Brady House
$4 Luke Raley
$4 Royce Lewis
$3 Willi Castro
$3 Alec Bohm
$3 Noelvi Marte
$2 Gavin Sheets
$2 Amed Rosario
$2 Brett Baty
$2 Caleb Durbin
$1 Curtis Mead
$1 Kyle Karros
$1 Mark Vientos
$1 Yoan Moncada
Torkelson’s start felt worse to me than it actually is — he has the same OPS+ as last year, with some extra walks mitigating the drop in power. He’s still on pace to flirt with 30 homers, too. But the Tigers have justly moved him down in the lineup, and it’s likely Torkelson will never truly live up to being a No. 1 overall pick. Sometimes you have the top pick in the wrong year — the top three offensive players from that first round so far are Pete Crow-Armstrong (a legit star, largely due to his defense), Jordan Westburg (held back by injuries) and Garrett Mitchell (useful player). Timing can be cruel sometimes.
Advertisement
Marte is the only minor-leaguer I included here. He’s a former rated prospect and perhaps the Reds were hasty in sending him to the minors after just 11 games. Marte’s mashed at Triple-A, predictably (.404/.466/.615), and should eventually get another chance in the majors. Ke’Bryan Hayes is a defensive wizard, but he’s never going to hit much.
