The Dynasty Guru Annual Ranking Season is upon us!  Up next, first base!  The rankings presented here are the composite rankings of all the writers at The Dynasty Guru, and after healthy debate and only a little name-calling, we are ready to share them with you. The comments below each tier are the work of the writer cited at the end of the section.  Don’t forget to check out Chris and Drew’s analysis of each position on the Join the Ranks podcast.

11 – 20

If the top 10 of our rankings represent the crème de la crème at first base, the 11-20 range is the sweet spot for upside. Sure we can start out by mentioning Freddie Freeman and Yandy Diaz, the two veterans of the group. They set the pace as 20+ home run bats with a great batting average, but are in the final years of their prime. The focus however for dynasty managers will likely be on the rest of this group as it is chock-full of young, exciting names.

Michael Busch deserves mention as the 6’0” lefty continues to assert himself as a premier power and OBP 1B option. Busch built on a strong 2024 with a 34 homer season and a .261/.343/.523 slash line in 2025. He does seem destined to stay in the leadoff spot for the time being in Chicago which will limit his RBI upside, but his 17.1% barrel rate and 47.3% hard hit rate are elite numbers that speak to what he brings to the table in terms of power.

If there’s someone I think who could be this year’s Michael Busch it’s Kyle Manzardo. Manzardo broke out in 2025, hitting 27 home runs for the Guardians, and in 2026 he is expected to shed the platoon label and play full-time, which will be a big boost to his plate appearances. Under the hood Manzardo improved his Barrel% and Hard Hit% from 2024 to 2025, and put up a 111.3 MPH maxEV. Another half-step of development for the 25 year old feels very possible, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Manzardo crests the 30 HR plateau in 2026.

Spencer Torkelson is another multi-year pro looking to further solidify himself as a long-term dynasty 1st base cornerstone. Tork slugged his way back up our rankings with the second 31 home run season of his career in 2025, but both of those seasons were sandwiched around a wobbly 2024 that saw him lose hold of the 1st base job in Detroit. As the adage goes, “if you want to be great, be good for 10 years”, and the task for the former #1 overall pick will be to simply show he can repeat his 2025 performance in 2026.

The final trio of this group I want to bring up are the three who have the least big league experience. Few players in all of professional baseball hit the ball as hard as Jac Caglianone and Bryce Eldridge, and while both players made highly anticipated debuts in 2025, neither had much success. Cags put up a 46 wRC+ in 232 plate appearances, and Eldridge had just a 54 wRC+ in a very small 37 PA cup of coffee. Both players are expected to play significant roles for their clubs in 2026 and beyond, and could be major power bats as they settle in to the big leagues. It’s easy to project Eldridge as a future top 5 dynasty 1B, however Caglianone will likely be on this list for the final time as he is headed to the OF full-time.

But wait, I said trio right? Well Sal Stewart rounds out the 2025 debut group and it’s undeniable that what he did as a 21 year old was incredibly impressive. Over 58 MLB plate appearances Stewart put up a 124 wRC+ with 5 homers after belting 20 home runs and 17 steals in 118 minor league games as he tore through Double-A and Triple-A pitching. Stewart should have a full season of MLB action this season as he enters 2026 as the favorite to play 1st in Cincinnati, and represents the highest floor of these youngsters.

(David Gofman)

21 – 30

I wasn’t expecting it, but the third decade of First Base Ranks has some fun options. In terms of drafting a 15-team start-up, you’re looking at solid CI options and some guys I wouldn’t be too upset to have slot into my 1B roster spot. Let’s dive in!

Alec Burleson is both my and the consensus 22nd 1B player. After three full seasons in the bigs, he’s cemented himself as dependable and not flashy. Burleson qualifies at OF going into 2026 and should bring you roughly 20 homer power added to a triple slash around .275/.325/.440. He’s a great depth piece for contending squads, and honestly, I bet in many startups or trade discussions, you can get him even cheaper than this ranking.

I’m a bit nervous on the value with Spencer Steer currently. There are three items surrounding his value that are tough to ignore, as much as I want to. Steer’s first two years in the league were the hipster version of Josh Naylor; both seasons resulted in north of 20/20 totals for homers and stolen bases. Last year those stolen bases disappeared. He attempted a theft only 8 times and was successful 7 of those. There have been no reports of leg injuries but the team stole HALF the number of bases in 2025 vs their team count in 2024. I can’t say what 2026 will bring for the team’s SB approach, but I’m wary to expect a return to the 2024 green light.

Add to those team philosophy questions, Steer’s contact rates have been getting worse year after year. The Contact% is still in the mid-70s overall, his SwSt% is also up above 11% after being under 10% for his first 3 seasons. None of those are terrible, but none are a trend I want to see.

Lastly with Steer, I’m nervous about the competition for playing time. While none of the players only play 1B, the signing of Eugenio Suarez and the emergence of Sal Stewart have to make Steer a bit nervous. Maybe he can get more outfield reps. Maybe Stewart won’t make the Opening Day roster. I don’t know exactly how everything will shake out. But with a fantasy lens, the other two concerns with Steer make this third playing time concern all the larger.

Enough on Steer. The seemingly immortal Sal Perez is another name I need to highlight. He won’t be as useful in an OBP league as Burelson, but he should hit more homeruns and just as strong of an AVG. Perez’s real value comes from his catcher eligibility. If you’re chasing a title, it’s possible he’s your catcher or CI. If he’s your 1B, hopefully you’re really as competitive as you think. I’m solidly lower on Perez as a 1B than the Gurus as a whole, but I trust the group’s rank here. Father time will come, but he’s worth holding onto when chasing the crown.

And if you roster Perez, a great Josue Briceño is a great name to have at the top of your succession plan. It seems that the Tigers want to give him every opportunity to stay behind the plate, as he caught almost 40 games last year. If he can keep the dual eligibility, our fantasy dreams will go wild with Sal Perez 2.0 comps. 40 homer power is in that dream, though it will be difficult to reach the ceiling at Comerica Park. The Tigers are gearing up for success in 2026, so if Briceno hits the ground running in Triple-A Toledo, it would be a question of when he gets the call to the majors, not if.

And if you can’t get Briceño on your roster, the Gurus stuffed Ralphy Velazquez up into our 27th ranking based on his power potential as well. Not your average masher, Velazquez pairs a strong hit tool with his plus power. 22 homers last year between High-A Lake County and Double-A Akron came with a 19% K-rate between the two levels. And yeah, that Double A K-rate was actually only 15% over 126 plate appearances! The Guardians do work with hit tools, so be on the lookout for a strong season for the 20 year old Velazquez.

The last two names I want to discuss are potential buy-lows. Or potential flame outs in a year. Both Triston Casas and Charlie Condon are well known names, but their future contributions are as cloudy as heck. These two players shouldn’t be targets, but I think their relative costs are going to be very cheap. If you’re chatting up another owner and you can’t quite reach equal trade values on a deal, see what these names add. I’d likely pay a bit above market price just to gamble on their talent playing out. You may run into some sunk cost fallacy from the other manager, but always worth kicking the tires.

(Chris Knock)