Who Should I Draft?
Fernando Tatis Jr. or Juan Soto (2021)
Experts' Pick | ||
| Fernando Tatis Jr. SS - SD  | Juan Soto LF - WSH  | |
Expert |
67% Recommended by 4 of 6 experts |
33% Recommended by 2 of 6 experts |
| Rankings | ||
| ECR | # 4 | # 5 |
| Best Rank | # 1 | # 3 |
| Worst Rank | # 5 | # 7 |
| ADP | ||
| Composite | # 3 | # 5 |
| Best Rank | # 2 | # 4 |
| Worst Rank | # 4 | # 6 |
| Projections | ||
| Runs | 109 | 113 |
| Home Runs | 36 | 37 |
| RBI | 98 | 114 |
| Stolen Bases | 25 | 13 |
| Batting Average | .290 | .314 |
| Misc | ||
| Injury Alert | - | - |
| Expert Ranks | ||
| Site Projections RotoChamp | # 1 | # 7 |
| Dan Harris FantasyPros | # 2 | # 5 |
| Pierre Camus RotoBaller | # 3 | # 5 |
| Brad Camara FantasyPros | # 4 | # 5 |
| Mike Maher FantasyPros | # 4 | # 3 |
| Brendan Tuma BettingPros | # 5 | # 3 |
| Fernando Tatis Jr. SS - SD | Juan Soto LF - WSH | |
| 2020 Stats | ||
| At Bats | 224 | 154 |
| Runs | 50 | 39 |
| Hits | 62 | 54 |
| Singles | 32 | 27 |
| Doubles | 11 | 14 |
| Triples | 2 | 0 |
| Home Runs | 17 | 13 |
| RBI | 45 | 37 |
| Stolen Bases | 11 | 6 |
| Caught Stealing | 3 | 2 |
| Walks | 27 | 41 |
| Strikeouts | 61 | 28 |
| Batting Average | .277 | .351 |
| On Base Pct | .366 | .490 |
| Slugging Pct | .571 | .695 |
| On-base Plus Slugging | .937 | 1.185 |
| Fernando Tatis Jr. SS - SD | Juan Soto LF - WSH | |
| 2021 Projections | ||
| At Bats | 556 | 516 |
| Runs | 109 | 113 |
| Hits | 161 | 162 |
| Singles | 90 | 89 |
| Doubles | 27 | 34 |
| Triples | 6 | 3 |
| Home Runs | 36 | 37 |
| RBI | 98 | 114 |
| Stolen Bases | 25 | 13 |
| Caught Stealing | 8 | 4 |
| Walks | 61 | 110 |
| Strikeouts | 165 | 114 |
| Batting Average | .290 | .314 |
| On Base Pct | .360 | .435 |
| Slugging Pct | .549 | .588 |
| On-base Plus Slugging | .909 | 1.023 |
| Fernando Tatis Jr. SS - SD | Juan Soto LF - WSH | |
| News | ||
| The Padres are working on a contract extension with star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. According to Jon Heyman and Jessica Kleinschmidt, Tatis' contract extension could be 11 years and $320 million. Corbin Young Sun, Jan 10th | Juan Soto agreed to a one-year, $8.5 million deal with the Nationals to avoid arbitration. Jon Mathisen Fri, Jan 15th | |
| Notes | ||
| Tatis Jr. had an outstanding rookie year, but because he had outperformed his statcast data so significantly, many fantasy managers were worried that his numbers would regress in 2020. Although his batting average did come down (to a still respectable .277), he not only staved off regression, but he improved significantly in most areas. He cut his strikeout rate by 6%, upped his walk rate by 2.5%, and led the league in average exit velocity, hard-hit rate, and barrel percentage. The fact that he's likely to throw in 25-30 steals over the course of a full season is just the cherry on top of elite fantasy production. He's a top-five overall pick with little or no downside and massive upside even off his incredible 2020 numbers. Dan Harris - FantasyPros | There aren't enough superlatives in the English language to describe what Soto has done in his career given his young age. Had he merely repeated his incredible 2019 numbers last season, fantasy managers would have been ecstatic. Instead, he upped his walk rate from an elite 16.4% to a truly remarkable 20.9%, cut his strikeout rate down to just 14.3%, and batted .351. Soto does not have the speed or baserunning chops to steal 30 bases in a season, which is the only thing keeping him from being considered worthy of drafting first overall. But given what he's accomplished through his age-21 season, it's truly scary to think of how high his ceiling may be. Draft him as a top-five pick and enjoy the ridiculous production. Dan Harris - FantasyPros | |
| Tatis Jr. set the world on fire during July and August. September wasn't as pretty, however, as the electrifying shortstop hit just 208/.311/.403 in 90 plate appearances. This still generated a 96 wRC+, which means that even at his worst Tatis was only 4% worse than league average. He still hit four homers and stole four bases. Also, it was only one month. Tatis doesn't have a track record long enough for us to feel confident in him as a slump-proof bat, but only Ronald Acuña rivals his 40/40 upside. Brendan Tuma - BettingPros | There isn't a single negative thing to say about the second coming of Ted Williams. Soto get even better last year, his age-21 season, and wound up leading baseball in OBP. The fact that he was limited to 47 games wound up costing him NL MVP honors, as Soto was the best hitter in baseball on a per-game basis in 2020. The floor here is so high. Soto isn't a zero in stolen bases either. He swiped 12 in 2019 and six last summer. Brendan Tuma - BettingPros | |
