Kameron Misner: Up-And-Coming Dynasty Player

Welcome back everyone. Yet another week has passed as the first month of the season has nearly concluded.

At this point of the season, what have we learned?

Well, we’ve learned that pitchers are still dropping like flies and that having position depth on your team is as valuable as ever. Your task is now finding the right replacements for struggling players or those who will be living on the IL for a while.

One of those “right” replacements is Kameron Misner of Tampa Bay. The left-handed hitting center fielder is not my typical dynasty target as he is already 27 and started his professional career in 2019 – AFTER playing in the SEC at Missouri for three years. But sometimes the diamonds in the rough are players who are a little older.

So, let’s jump in and take a look at Misner, an up-and-coming dynasty player.

Career Statistics

Road to The Show

Kameron Misner was drafted in 2016 out of Poplar Bluff High School in Missouri in the 33rd round by the Kansas City Royals, which is only a five-and-a-half-hour drive from Misner’s hometown. However, Misner decided to head to the University of Missouri and compete in the SEC. He had an up-and-down career with the Tigers, but in 149 total games, he slashed .302/.424/.489 with 21 homers and 50 steals in 63 attempts.

The Miami Marlins liked what they saw in Misner, taking him in the first round with the 35th overall pick. Misner left college with the reputation of having above average power and speed on the basepaths and as an above average fielder with a great arm in the field. Misner had some of the best tools in his draft class, but the fact that he struggled at times in the SEC saw him drop to the Marlins.

Rough Professional Start

Misner was assigned to Rookie ball after signing with the Marlins, where he appeared in eight games before being promoted to Class A ball. But Misner didn’t exactly dominate the competition. In 42 games, he had a decent batting average and OBP (.270/.388) while stealing 11 bases in as many attempts. But the power was not there as he slugged .362.

COVID came in 2020, wiping out an entire season for Misner to work on his craft. In 2021, he split time between High-A and Double-A ball and slashed .253/.355/.433 with 12 homers, 59 RBI, and 26 steals. That offseason, he was traded to the Rays for Joey Wendle.

In three seasons in the Rays’ system, Misner averaged 18 homers, 175 RBI, and 28 steals (in an average of 120 games) with a .369 OBP and .377 OBP. But he never hit better than .251 (in 2022 at Double-A) and struggled with strikeouts, posting a 32% strikeout rate, though he countered that with a 16% walk rate.

Kameron Misner made his debut last season with the Rays as he appeared in eight games but had only 15 at-bats, collecting one hit while striking out 10 times and failing to draw a single walk.

2025 – So Far

To say Misner is off to a good start this season would be an understatement. Among rookies with more than 50 at-bats entering Friday, Misner was tied for first in runs scored (14), doubles (7), triples (1), and home runs (3) and ranked second in RBI (11). He is also tops in batting average, OBP, and SLG.

As you can see from the chart above, he ranks in the 82nd and 84th percentile in Average Exit Velocity and Squared-Up% while ranking between the 71st and 77th percentile in xSLG, Bat Speed, Chase%, and K%.

The Tools

• Hit

Despite his hot start at the plate this season, this is the biggest question mark concerning Misner. While hitting .302 for his career in the SEC is pretty solid, it is not a great sign of a player who will be great at the plate in the pros. Misner showed that to be the case during his time in the minors with his .247 career batting average.

Kameron Misner has a good eye at the plate as he has always been able to draw walks, though this season his walk rate is only 6.1%.

While he knows the strike zone, Misner has had a tendency to be a bit passive at the plate, putting him behind in the count and leading to that 32% strikeout rate.

His strikeout rate this season, however, is only at 18.3%. And one of the reasons for the decline is that the Rays have encouraged Misner to be more aggressive at the plate this season.

While his Zone Swing% of 61.2% is still below the MLB average of 67%, his Zone Contact% of 85.4% is above the MLB average of 82%. By being more aggressive, it may reduce his walks, but it will likely reduce his strikeouts as well and help him tap into his power.

• Power

Misner has always had good raw power, but it has not always carried over into games. The most home runs he has ever hit as a college player or professional is 21 in 2023. And right now, he is having trouble lifting the ball in the air as he has an 11.6% launch angle this season and 43% ground ball percentage.

But it is early in the year, and a minor tweak or good run of fly balls would drastically change those percentages. And despite the high ground ball percentage, Misner’s three homers in 21 games mean he is on a 162-game pace of 23 homers.

• Speed

Amazingly, Kameron Misner has only one steal this season. I say amazingly because speed is one of his top assets, despite his 6-foot-4 frame. His sprint speed of 28.4 mph ranks in the 85th percentile. During his time in the minors, he stole 120 bases in 504 games. While stolen bases are up across the board in baseball now, speed is still a valued commodity in fantasy baseball, and it is only a matter of time before Misner starts adding more steals to his stat column.

The Verdict

There have been people who compare Kameron Misner to fellow Rays outfielder Josh Lowe. That is a pretty lofty comparison. Just two years ago, Lowe slashed .292/.335/.500 with 20 homers, 83 RBI, and 32 steals.

Misner may not reach that level this year or in any season, but there is no reason to think he can’t be a 20-20 player. His early-season stats are just that – early-season stats. But his expected stats say that he should still have a solid season. His xBA of .265 ranks in the 63rd percentile, and his xSLG of .488 ranks in the 73rd percentile. And his bat speed of 73.4 mph ranks in the 74th percentile.

I added Misner in two of my dynasty leagues over the past two weeks. If you participate in an ESPN league, Misner is currently found on only 10.8 percent of rosters. Over in Yahoo, he is rostered in only 14% of leagues, and in Fantrax, he is on only 54% of teams. If you need help in center field and want to take a chance on a 20-20 player, now is the time to strike.

Thanks for reading, and come back again next week.