Welcome back, friends, to another week of the Top 400 Dynasty Players for 2025. The countdown to No. 1 continues as this week I look at the players ranked between 175 to 151. You will see that this grouping of players falls mostly into one age bracket while the positions vary.
The fact that many of the players are in the same age range is not surprising. A lot of the older players were previously ranked and many of the younger players are ranked higher. This group is a collection of players who are mostly proven commodities. Some still have room to improve, some are a question mark, but many are the players who are ranked below are the reason you win titles – they aren’t superstars, but they will provide solid stats that lead to titles.
Let’s provide a quick breakdown of the 25 players in the rankings this week before diving into the rankings:
- Age 20-24 – 2
- Age 25-29 – 15
- Age 30-34 – 8
Position Breakdown
- RP – 3 | SP – 5
- C – 4 | 2B – 1 | SS – 1 | 3B – 1
- OF – 8
- IF – 1
- IF/OF – 1
175-171
*Age as of April 1, 2025
**Minimum 10 games played at each position listed. If less than 10, then position most played
***Until the Athletics are actually in Las Vegas, players on the team will be listed as OAK
****2024 Rank is where I ranked players ahead of the 2024 season.
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM | POSITION | AGE | 2024 RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 175 | Kumar Rocker | TEX | SP | 25 | NR |
| 174 | Jasson Dominguez | NYY | LF | 22 | 184 |
| 173 | Josh Hader | HOU | RP | 31 | 177 |
| 172 | Heston Kjerstad | BAL | LF | 26 | 196 |
| 171 | Willson Contreras | STL | C | 32 | 118 |
Always An Exception
My lukewarm attitude towards young unproven pitchers is pretty set, but there are always exceptions to everything. Kumar Rocker is one of those exceptions. His road to the majors has been interesting to say the least, but his 2024 season showed the type of talent that made him one of the best pitchers in college at Vanderbilt. Rocker underwent Tommy John surgery in May of 2023 but returned last season to throw 36.2 innings in the minors and another 11.2 with the Rangers.
His minor league stats were outrageous – 1.80 ERA, a 0.791 WHIP with a 13.5 K/9 rate and a 1/2 BB/9 rate. The Rangers gave Rocker three starts but limited his innings. In those starts he had a 3.86 ERA and 1.543 WHIP thanks to six walks in his 11.2 innings. But he also had a 10.8 K/9 rate. His dominance at Vanderbilt against SEC competition and what he did in his return to the minors has me excited about what he will bring to the Texas rotation.
Some Young Guns
Jasson Dominguez has only 87 career at-bats with the Yankees, and he has struggled to the tune of a .207/.310/.437 slash line with six homers and 11 RBI to go with six steals. But there is no denying his skill set. He can hit for power, has above average speed and is going to help in your slash line as well. In 353 career minor league games, Dominguez has 47 homers, 189 RBI and 102 steals with a .274/.373/.444 slash line – and he doesn’t turn 22 until Feb. 7.
There should be a spot in the outfield for Dominguez next season, and you should make a spot on your roster for him. The only reason he is not ranked higher is I am not sure when he will start producing at the levels expected of him.
Heston Kjerstad is similar to Dominguez in that he has limited experience with 129 at-bats. But in those 129 career at-bats with the Orioles, Kjerstad has six homers and 17 RBI with a .248/.336/.411 slash line. This is a player who is ready for the majors as he has nothing left to prove in the minors. In 249 career games on the farm, Kjerstad has a .304/.387/.524 slash line with 42 home runs and 153 RBI while posting decent 21% strikeout rate. While a small sample size, his career Average EV in the majors is 90.7 MPH with a Hard Hit% of 46.5%. The MLB averages in those two areas are 88.4 mph and 39.3%.
Great Production – If Going For A Save
Josh Hader had a very interesting debut season for the Astros. Overall, he had 34 saves and a 13.3 K/9 rate to go with a 3.80 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 71 innings of work. When called on to close games, Hader was outstanding. In his 38 saves opportunities, he had a 2.27 ERA and 0.73 WHIP to go with a 12.1K/9 rate. But in non-save situations, Hader was horrible, posting a 5.34 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 35.1 innings of work. A lot of ugliness came in April when the Astros as a team struggled. Hader appeared in 13 games, and only three of those were in save opportunities. In those 13 April games he had a 6.39 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. The rest of the season he had a 3.24 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP.
An Aging Catcher
Willson Conteras is an outstanding catcher. His 162-game average is 26 homers and 80 RBI and in only 84 games this past season he hit 15 homers while driving in 36 with a .262/.380/.468 slash line. The only real reason why he is ranked here and not a little higher is due to the fact that he is 32. But if you are looking more short term when it comes to the catching position, then grab Conteras early and be happy.
170-166
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM | POSITION | AGE | 2024 RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 170 | Tyler Stephenson | CIN | C | 28 | 287 |
| 169 | Josh Lowe | TB | RF | 27 | 46 |
| 168 | Brendan Rodgers | Free Agent | 2B | 28 | 289 |
| 167 | Byron Buxton | MIN | CF | 31 | 169 |
| 166 | Wilyer Abreu | BOS | RF | 25 | NR |
Solid And Steady
When Tyler Stephenson plays a full season, he is good for double-digit homers and an above average slash line at the catcher position. Stephenson is coming off his best year as he hit 19 homers and drove in 66 for the Reds while slashing .258/.338/.444. His career slash line is .267/.343/.427 and his 162-game average is 17 homers and 72 RBI. That is great production from a catcher.
Looking To Bounce Back
Which Josh Lowe is the real Josh Lowe? In 2023 he displayed all the tools that made him a top prospect as he slashed .292/.335/.560 with 20 homers, 83 RBI and 32 steals in 135 games. But last year saw Lowe suffer a sophomore slump. A Grade 1 oblique strain didn’t help him as he missed the first month of the season. However, when he returned he didn’t produce close to the level he did in 2023.
In 106 games he slashed .241/.302/.381 with 10 homers, 34 RBI and 25 steals. That is quite a falloff. Does that mean Lowe can’t bounce back and be the player he was in 2023. Certainly not. But it does pump the breaks a bit on me declaring him on of the top outfielders out there when there are so many other young players thriving.
Solid Second Baseman
Brendan Rodgers is still looking for his next job in the majors, but I think he is a solid second baseman who at worst will provide solid depth on your team or could sneak into your starting lineup should he improve on last season’s stats. With the Rockies in 2024 he slashed .267/.314/.407, which is pretty much in line with his career line. He also hit 13 homers and drove in 54 runs. Depth as the second base position is not great, which is why Rodgers is ranked ahead of some other players with better numbers at different positions.
Never On The Field
Byron Buxton is a very good baseball player. He has a career OPS+ of 110 and in five of the last six seasons he has produced an OPS+ of 115 or higher. But the problem with Buxton is he is always hurt. The 102 games he appeared in this past season are the most since he appeared in 140 games in 2017. In his 102 games this year he hit 18 homers and drove in 56 runs. His 162-game average is 28 homers and 74 RBI.
The talent is undeniable. But so, too, is his history of being injured. If you think Buxton is going to remain healthy over the next three or so years, then move him up in the rankings. But I am not counting on that.
Going To Get His At-Bats
The Boston outfield is getting crowded, especially when Roman Anthony joins the team. But Wilyer Abreu should still get plenty of at-bats this season and beyond. As a rookie last year he slashed .253/.322/.459 with 15 homers, 58 RBI and eight steals. What he did last season should be his floor. I don’t think he will become a power hitter, but he should add some pop over the coming years while being a solid producer in the slash department.
165-161
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM | POSITION | AGE | 2024 RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 165 | Ryan Helsley | STL | RP | 30 | 222 |
| 164 | Will Smith | LAD | C | 30 | 83 |
| 163 | Steven Kwan | CLE | LF | 27 | 204 |
| 162 | Shea Langeliers | OAK | C | 27 | NR |
| 161 | Cody Bellinger | NYY | RF/CF/1B | 29 | 66 |
One Of The Best
The Cardinals may have struggled on the field, but it wasn’t due to a leaky bullpen. I already mentioned Romero and Kittredge, and then there is Ryan Helsley. He notched 49 saves this season to lead the majors with a 2.04 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. His worst ERA since 2021 is a 2.45 mark in 2023 and his worst WHIP since that year was the one he posted this year. Helsley is consistent and that is hard to find in closers.
A Top 10 Catcher, But Still A Catcher
Will Smith was an All-Star this past season as well as in 2023 and produced 20 homers and 75 RBI, basically the same production he has posted since 2021. But there is a trend with Smith that I am not liking – a decrease in slugging percentage year to year to year. In 2020 he slugged .579. In the four seasons since, his SLG has been .495, .465, .438 and .433. His OBP has also slipped from a high of .401 in 2020 to a career low .327 this year. He is still a top hitting catcher, but he is now 30 and the production isn’t going to get better at this point.
Good, Just Not Great
Steven Kwan is a fine outfielder, and that is OK. What he does really well is make contact and get on base as he has a career average of .285 with a .359 OBP. This past season those numbers were .292 and .368. But until 2024, Kwan was mostly a singles hitter as he hit six homers in 2022 and five in 2023.
This past season he suddenly starting to hit homers as he smacked 14 and slugged .425, which helped him jump up in my rankings a bit compared to last year. I don’t expect him to make another jump and turn into a 20-homer hitter. But there is always room on a team for a hitter with his slash line who will also produce 15 homers (maybe) and double-digit steals.
Breakout Catching Star?
I’m sure the fact that Shea Langeliers plays for the A’s is the reason for this, but it seems no one talks about him. All he does is play nearly every day, appearing in 135 games in 2023 and 137 games this year. And when he is plays, he hits for a lot of power with 22 homers and 63 RBI in 2023 and then 29 homers and 80 this season. Like a lot of the catchers we have talked about, Langeliers is not great in the slash line department, but I’ll take his power every day of the week.
He’s Great, He’s Horrible…He’s Cody Bellinger
I’ve given up on trying to guess what Cody Bellinger is going to do during any given season. He was a Rookie of the Year and an MVP with the Dodgers. He was also the same player who hit .165 and .210 in back-to-back seasons, leading him to land a job with the Cubs in 2023. In his first season in Chicago, he slashed .307/.356/.525 with 26 homers, 97 RBI and 20 steals to finish 10th in the MVP voting.
But in 2024, it was back to the so-so version of Bellinger as he slashed .266/.325/.426 with 18 homers, 78 RBI and nine steals. So who knows what he is going to do in New York with the Yankees this season. He could take full advantage of the short porch in right field or he could crumble under the heightened expectations that come with playing in the Big Apple. The one thing I know for sure is Bellinger will likely play in center field, right field and first base, just as he did in Chicago. That versatility is a nice bonus.
160-156
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM | POSITION | AGE | 2024 RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 160 | Felix Bautista | BAL | RP | 29 | NR |
| 159 | Brandon Nimmo | NYM | LF/CF | 28 | 124 |
| 158 | Jurickson Profar | Free Agent | LF | 32 | NR |
| 157 | Pablo López | MIN | SP | 28 | 58 |
| 156 | Justin Steele | CHC | SP | 28 | 76 |
Back From Injury
Last season I actually left Felix Bautista out of my reliever and overall rankings due to the fact that he was going to miss the 2024 season. That is because with relievers, I just don’t look past the current season except with a few closers. The position is just too volatile to invest in a closer for more than one year. But this is what I wrote ahead of the 2024 season: “The truth is I had him as my top-ranked reliever. However, with the news that he is going to miss all of next season, it is hard to put him in the top spot. If you have no problem letting him sit on your IL all season or have the room to keep him, then he is a certain keeper. But in leagues that limit the number of keepers, it is hard to keep a player who won’t contribute at all.”
Bautista should be healthy this year, making him one of the top closers in the game. In two seasons with Baltimore he has accumulated 48 saves with a 1.85 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and a 14.1 K/9 ratio over 126.2 innings. He should be fully healthy in 2025 and ready to be a top closer again.
The Old Guard
Jurickson Profar and Brandon Nimmo are not likely going to help you five years down the road, or even three. But for next year and 2026, they should still provide winning statistics.
Nimmo is just a consistent source of production. He will hit 20 homers (a few more, a few less, but in that range) and drive in 65 to 70 runs in most years, though he had 90 RBI this past season, a career high. Nimmo also added steals to his game, setting a new career high with 15. His previous high was nine in 2018. The RBI and steals may not be matched next year, but he should provide a 20-70-10 line with a .260/.370/.420 slash line.
Profar is coming off the best season with career highs in homers (24), RBI (85) and slash line (.280/.380/.459). I don’t think Profar duplicates those numbers next season, but I also think he has made adjustments to his game to provide more power on a consistent basis. The numbers will likely drop a bit, but I think he can be a useful player for at least the next two seasons.
Not Spectacular, But Steady Is Good
I was expecting Pablo Lopez to have a better season in 2024 after he finished seventh in the Cy Young voting in 2023. Lopez wasn’t bad in 2024, but he seemed to plateau. His ERA went from 3.66 to 4.08, his WHIP climbed from 1.155 to 1.192 and his K/9 rate fell from 10.9 to 9.6. So maybe Lopez isn’t a top-tier pitcher. That doesn’t mean he should be ignored. In each of the last three seasons he has started 32 games and pitched between 180 and 194 innings. He should provide at least a strikeout per inning and not hurt you with walks.
While Lopez was finishing seventh in the AL Cy Young voting in 2023, Justin Steele finished fifth in the NL voting after posting a 3.06 ERA and 1.171 WHIP to go with a 16-5 record and 9.1 K/9 rate. But 2024 was not as smooth for Steele. He suffered a hamstring injury on Opening Day and at the end of the year he suffered elbow tightness in his left elbow. I can live with hamstring injuries, but elbow problems are always a bit scary.
Does that mean you should pass on Steele? No. Last season he had a 3.07 ERA and 1.099 WHIP with a 9.0 K/9 rate. The strikeout numbers are not top notch, but he doesn’t walk batters and gives up fewer hits than innings pitched.
155-151
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM | POSITION | AGE | 2024 RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 155 | Isaac Paredes | HOU | 3B/1B | 26 | 94 |
| 154 | Kodai Senga | NYM | SP | 31 | 119 |
| 153 | Coby Mayo | BAL | 3B | 23 | NR |
| 152 | Freddy Peralta | MIL | SP | 28 | 109 |
| 151 | Carlos Correa | MIN | SS | 30 | 137 |
The Crawford Boxes Beckon
When Isaac Paredes landed in Houston as part of the Kyle Tucker trade, his stock soared. Why? Well, if there was ever a player suited to play at Daiken Park (formerly Minute Maid Park), it is Paredes. In 2024, only Rhys Hoskins pulled the ball in the air more frequently than Paredes. He’s not one to hit the ball particularly hard, but he gets the loft he needs to give his drives to left field a chance to clear the wall.
Over the last three years he has hit 20, 31 and 19 homers. According to Statcast, when you look at expected home runs by park, he would have hit 21, 28 and 26 homers. He is a dead pull hitter and he will take huge advantage of the short porch to left field.
Can We Get More Than One Game?
After a solid debut season in the States, Kodai Senga was basically MIA last season as he pitched in only one game. In 2023 he was 12-7 with a 2.98 ERA and 1.22 WHIP with a 10.9 K/9 rate and 4.2 BB/9 rate. Solid numbers, but the walk rate was a little scary. Senga is going to have a decent season, assuming he stays healthy, but he will be 32 on Opening Day and not a pitcher to build your rotation around.
Add Some Mayo
The cheer you heard when the Orioles announced they will be moving the left field fence in for 2025 was from Coby Mayo and every other right-handed power hitter who play for Baltimore. Mayo did not leave a good first impression this past season after slashing .098/.196/.098 in 17 games and 41 at-bats. Don’t let that showing keep you from going after Mayo. He hit 25 homers in the minors this past season with a .592 SLG and his career SLG in 390 minor league games is .541.
Solid And Steady
Freddy Peralta deserves some love. He isn’t a pitcher you target to carry your staff, but all Peralta does is produce solid numbers when on the mound for the Brewers. For his career he is 53-36 with a 3.79 ERA, 1.145 WHIP and an 11.3 K/9 rate. Since 2021, his numbers are even better – 3.49 ERA and a 1.099 WHIP to go with an 11.1 K/9 rate. He doesn’t hurt you in WHIP, ERA or strikeouts, so what is there not to like about Peralta?
Injury Concerns – Every Year
Carlos Correa had a really good year for the Twins, hitting 14 homers and driving in 54 while slashing .310/.388/.517 for a .905 OPS and a 152 OPS+. But The problem was that production came in only 86 games. Staying on the field has been a problem for Correa. Only twice in his career has he topped 140 games played. And while the .517 SLG was outstanding this season, it could be an outlier as it is 45 points higher than his career average of .472 and reversed a trend of a declining SLG since 2021.
Come Back Next Week
Thanks for reading. Make sure to return next week when the players 175-151 are ranked in the Top 400 Dynasty Players for 2025.
Previous Top 400 Dynasty Players for 2025 Rankings:
Top 400 Dynasty Players for 2025: 400-301
Top 400 Dynasty Players for 2025: 300-201
Top 400 Dynasty Players for 2025: 200-176
