MLB Rankings: Top Ten Shortstops for the 2024 Season

All stats within this article come from Baseball Reference, Baseball Savant, and FanGraphs. I reference advanced stats such as wOBA, xwOBA, wRC+, OPS+, OAA, BsR, DRS, FRV, Sweet-Spot% and fWAR in my rankings. To find out what they are, I have attached links that will direct you to an explanation. Check those out and enjoy reading!

Welcome to the fourth set of my positional rankings for the upcoming 2024 MLB season. This list will rank the top ten shortstops based on how I believe they will perform in 2024. I will not include any players who are projected to miss the season.

10: Carlos Correa, Minnesota Twins

In my previous rankings, I analyzed multiple players that had a down 2023 season by their own standards, but their seasons were still above the MLB average. That isn’t the case for Correa. The former superstar was extremely disappointing after signing a six-year, $200 million contract. He was worth merely 1.1 fWAR after slashing .230/.312/.399 with a 96 wRC+. He also didn’t look like the former platinum glove winner that he was in 2021, only generating 1 OAA this past season. While he still hit the ball decently hard and walked at a good rate, I’d be worried if he is declining. Multiple teams, like the Giants and Mets, backed out from signing him during the 2023 MLB offseason because of injury concerns. Correa gets a spot on this list because of his resumé and talent showcased prior to 2023, but he desperately needs to bounce back.

9: Dansby Swanson, Chicago Cubs

In his first season as a Cub, Swanson did pretty good. While his offensive production was merely league average, Swanson was arguably the best defensive shortstop in MLB. He led MLB with the most OAA (20) and finished top ten in DRS (18). With elite defense, a .244/.328/.416 slash line, 22 home runs, and a 104 wRC+, Swanson was worth 4.9 fWAR — placing him among the top 20 position players in MLB. It could have been an even better season if Swanson didn’t get into a hitting slump in August and September. Regardless, Swanson will always be a valuable player with his elite defensive abilities. He also had some encouraging offensive developments, such as posting the second-highest walk rate of his career and a .345 xwOBA. If he can have another above-average offensive season like in 2022, he can rise up these rankings.

8: JP Crawford, Seattle Mariners

Like Swanson, Crawford was also a 4.9 fWAR player. However, he did so in a very different way. Crawford was one of the best offensive shortstops, slashing .266/.380/.438 and generating a 134 wRC+. The only shortstop with a higher wRC+ was Rangers’ shortstop Corey Seager (spoiler alert: Seager is number one on this list). Crawford demonstrated elite control of the strike zone, posting a 14.7 walk percentage (BB%), 95th percentile chase rate (18.6%), and 86th percentile whiff rate (18.6%). While he still wasn’t hitting the ball hard by MLB’s standards, 2023 was the hardest he had hit the ball in his entire career. He had the highest hard-hit percentage, barrel percentage, and average exit velocity of his career. The only issue with Crawford is that he is one of the worst defensive shortstops in MLB, generating -8 OAA and -3 DRS in 2023.

7: Xander Bogaerts, San Diego Padres

It was a weird year for Bogaerts. He started the season off incredibly hot, but after getting hit by a pitch from Spencer Strider, Bogaerts dealt with wrist issues and slumped until September. He still finished with a good statistical season as he slashed .285/.350/.440, posted a 120 wRC+, and solidified himself as a good defensive shortstop with 3 OAA. Still, despite being worth 4.4 fWAR, I think it’s valid to have some concerns with Bogaerts going forward. He posted some of the worst batted ball data of his career, and he was a below average offensive player for nearly half of the season. You can blame the wrist injury for this, but I’d also prefer that my shortstop doesn’t have wrist issues.

6: Bo Bichette, Toronto Blue Jays

Bichette provided a valuable lesson for me last year: you can still be one of the best hitters at your position without walking much. Despite a fourth percentile 4.5 BB%, Bichette continued to look like one of the best hitters at his position with a .306/.339/.475 slash line, 125 wRC+, and 20 home runs. He continued mitigating strikeouts and whiffs, while providing legit power for a shortstop. His .361 xwOBA was tied for third-best among shortstops last season. It’s a safe bet that Bichette will hit at least 20 home runs with a wRC+ above 120 almost every season. Despite this, I do think Bichette has a limited ceiling because he chases frequently and is a negative defensive player. 2023 was his best season defensively, yet he still had -3 OAA.

5: Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies

Like Correa and Bogaerts, it wasn’t the best season for Turner. He was extremely disappointing until August, but looked incredible from August onwards, hitting 16 home runs during that time. However, his overall numbers from the season were below his career norm. He finished the season with a .266/.320/.459 slash line, 108 wRC+, and 3.8 fWAR. His biggest issues are that he struck out more, whiffed more frequently, and regressed defensively. He was still a threat on the basepaths, at least, stealing 30 bases and posting 7.3 BsR. Nevertheless, Turner needs to be a better hitter and fielder in 2024 if he wants to pass up some of the younger guys ahead of him.

4: Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles

The 2023 AL Rookie of the Year, Henderson, was everything you could have hoped for. He was worth 4.6 fWAR in his first full season after slashing .255/.325/.489 with 28 home runs and a 123 wRC+. Despite stealing only 10 bases, Henderson was a plus-base runner with 5.2 BsR. He had an eye-popping 95th percentile hard-hit percentage (52%), 91st percentile average exit velocity (92 mph), and 75th percentile barrel percentage (11.4%). He was fine defensively and held his own at both shortstop and third base. It’ll be fun to see how Henderson follows up such an impressive rookie season with many people, myself included, thinking the best is yet to come.

3: Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals

Imagine a Bo Bichette that can play elite defense and steal over 40 bases. That’s exactly who Witt Jr. is. The former top prospect broke out in 2023 after a disappointing rookie season. He slashed .276/.319/.495 with 30 home runs, a 115 wRC+, and 49 stolen bases. He didn’t walk much, but he cut down his strikeouts, improved his barrel rate, and, most impressively, became one of the best defensive players in MLB. With 14 OAA and 10 FRV, Witt ranked among MLB’s best at arguably the most difficult position. This was a year after being one of the worst fielders in the entire sport with -11 OAA and -8 FRV. Most players don’t improve this drastically so quickly. I fully expect Witt Jr. to continue ascending and be in contention for the top spot after 2024.

2: Francisco Lindor, New York Mets

No one doubts that Lindor is good, but he feels underappreciated relative to how good he actually is. 2023 was a great year for him as he slashed .254/.336/.470 with 31 home runs, a 121 wRC+, 31 stolen bases, and 6.0 fWAR. In fact, since Lindor joined the Mets in 2021, he has the second-most fWAR among all shortstops with 16.8 fWAR. He remains of the best defensive shortstops in MLB with 39 OAA since 2021 as well. It’s impressive that he didn’t have a single advanced hitting stat below the 50th percentile in 2023. Keep an eye on Lindor for 2024 as he continues to build on a potential hall of fame resumé.

1: Corey Seager, Texas Rangers

Despite missing over 40 games last season, Seager had the highest fWAR (6.1) among all shortstops. His numbers were absolutely insane, and one can only imagine what they could have been if he didn’t miss time with an injury. Seager had a ridiculous .327/.390/.623 slash line, 33 home runs, and a mind-boggling 169 wRC+. Among qualified hitters, Seager had the third-highest wRC+ in MLB. He was 92nd percentile or better in xwOBA, average exit velocity, barrel percentage, and hard-hit percentage. Seager is a great hitter and has a reputation for being aggressive in advantageous counts (2-0, 3-1, 3-0). He’s so good at understanding when to be aggressive during an at-bat that Baseball Prospectus created a metric known as “SEAGER,” which measures a player’s aggressiveness or passivity when they have an opportunity to do damage. Seager won the 2023 World Series MVP, and could have won the AL MVP if a once-in-a-lifetime player like Shohei Ohtani didn’t exist. I guess he’ll have to settle for being the best shortstop in my rankings.