Spring training camps are underway, which means it is time to look at the state of baseball. As part of our 2026 MLB season preview, ESPN’s Buster Olney surveyed those around the industry to help him rank the top 10 players at every position as part of his annual positional ranking series.

Today, we rank the best of the best at shortstop.

The objective of this exercise is to identify the best players for the 2026 season, not who might be best in five years or over their career. We will roll out a position per day over the next two weeks. Here’s the rest of the schedule: starting pitchers (Feb. 16), relief pitchers (Feb. 17), catchers (Feb. 18), first basemen (Feb. 19), second basemen (Feb. 20), third basement (Monday), corner outfielders (Wednesday), center fielders (Thursday), designated hitters (Friday).

Cal Ripken Jr. seemed to break the mold for what shortstops could do offensively, hitting home runs and winning two MVP Awards while playing Gold Glove-caliber defense. Later, the trio of Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Nomar Garciaparra was referred to as the Holy Trinity of Shortstops because they were outliers in how good they were offensively.

Those stars paved the way for this era, in which players at this position are more likely than not to excel as hitters. In the NFL, it’s really hard to win without a good quarterback, and in MLB, few teams are satisfied with good-fielding, light-hitting shortstops anymore. Consider those who just missed out on the top 10 list below: Jacob Wilson, who flirted with a batting title; Dansby Swanson, a metronome of production; Willy Adames, who signed a $182 million contract with San Francisco just last winter; Andres Gimenez, who helped Toronto reach the World Series; and Masyn Winn, who might be the big leagues’ second-best defensive shortstop.

This position is loaded in this golden age of shortstops, who are producing more offense than at any time in history. ESPN’s Paul Hembekides dug up these numbers: In 2024, shortstops accounted for 20.4% of position-player fWAR — the highest rate in history. Look at the increasing share of offense generated by shortstops over the last half-century:

1975: 6.0%
1985: 8.5%
1995: 7.8%
2005: 13.1%
2015: 10.6%
2025: 18.4%

Teams are more focused than ever on drafting and developing and/or acquiring high-end shortstops. Look at some of the players currently in the prospect pipeline: Pittsburgh’s Konnor Griffin, Detroit’s Kevin McGonigle, Seattle’s Colt Emerson, George Lombard Jr. of the Yankees and Leo De Vries of the Athletics. Last year, New York’s Anthony Volpe hit 19 homers; this year, he’s playing for his job. Nick Allen did a great imitation of Mark Belanger for Atlanta last year — he played really good defense but didn’t hit much — and the Braves still traded for one shortstop candidate, Mauricio Dubon, and signed another, Ha-seong Kim. They simply could not live with Allen’s 55 OPS+; they went to find another quarterback.

Shortstops are better than ever. Here are the top 10 in 2026.

Top 10 shortstops

1. Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals

He checks every box — elite defense, the kind of hitter who can anchor a lineup, power and lots of speed. After a 9.4 WAR season in 2024, he generated 7.1 last season, which was third most in the American League and would’ve been enough to lead National League position players. Witt led the majors in hits (184) and doubles (47) in 2025. He also had the best defensive metrics of any shortstop and swiped 38 bases in 47 attempts.

And Witt’s drive to improve is relentless. J.J. Picollo, the head of baseball operations for the Royals, wrote in a text, “[Witt] is so easy to deal with because he takes such good care of himself that we have little-to-no concern. More of what we discuss with him is how we can keep him fresh and strong throughout the season.

“Some of the finer points of base stealing are things that are always being discussed, but he is clearly a very good baserunner.”

He is clearly very good at everything.

2. Geraldo Perdomo, Arizona Diamondbacks

Shohei Ohtani has an enormous advantage in the annual NL MVP conversation because of his two-way skills, but if you were to draw up a list of if-not-Shohei candidates, Perdomo would be in the mix. He led all NL position players in WAR last season with 7.0, excelling offensively and defensively and posting an adjusted OPS of 139. The Diamondbacks have loved his progression as a leader as well.

Perdomo’s main area of growth in 2025, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo wrote in a text, “was from the offensive side. Balanced out his [left-right] splits. Maintained great plate discipline while improving his slug.”

“The sky is the limit with him because of his aptitude and willingness to keep learning. He has a massive understanding of what the game inside the game looks like, and thinks like a manager.”

3. Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles

His start mirrored Baltimore’s rough first month to the 2025 season, but in the end, Henderson followed up his monster 2024 performance with a 5.3 WAR season, hitting 17 homers and swiping 30 bases. He is likely to benefit from the upgrades made in the Baltimore lineup — most notably, Pete Alonso. As is the case with shortstops, his performance last year could sometimes be a barometer for how the O’s fared.

In Baltimore’s wins, Henderson’s triple-slash line: .331/.417/.559

In losses, his slash line: .226/.287/.338

4. Francisco Lindor, New York Mets

One of the most important questions for the 2026 Mets is how quickly Lindor can bounce back from his hamate surgery and regain strength in his hand — because they will need his run production. We should take at face value his optimism about being ready for Opening Day, since what his managers and coaches have learned about Lindor during the course of his career is that he posts as well as anyone in the game, playing through discomfort or nagging injuries. He has missed just 15 games in the past four seasons, during which his offense was remarkably consistent:

2022: 125 OPS+
2023: 121 OPS+
2024: 137 OPS+
2025: 129 OPS+

5. Corey Seager, Texas Rangers

Seager is very different from Lindor in that he tends to miss a lot of games — he was out for 60 last year, and he has reached 135 games on the season only once in the past eight years. But when he plays, he is a difference-maker: He generated 6.2 WAR in 102 games last season and has averaged a 139 OPS+ over the past eight. The Rangers might bear more injury worry than just about any other franchise, with Seager, Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom some of their core players — so they don’t have a lot of margin for error. They desperately need Seager to stay in the lineup.

6. Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies

Last year, Phillies manager Rob Thomson asked Turner to focus more on getting on base and less on power — and that worked very well. His 5.2 WAR was the second-best figure of his career, and he reached base with hits and walks 222 times, winning the NL batting title along the way. Philadelphia has gotten value for dollars with Turner; in his three years with the team, he has scored 284 runs and owns a .287/.337/.461 slash line.

7. Jeremy Peña, Houston Astros

With Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa slowing down, and with Yordan Alvarez seemingly fighting injuries all the time, Peña has become the bedrock of this team out of necessity — and he continues to grow in that role. He had the best season of his career in 2025, hitting .304/.363/.477 while continuing to play well defensively. The Astros are quickly nearing a crossroads with the 28-year-old, who will be eligible for free agency following the 2027 season. Houston owner Jim Crane has made it clear he’s not interested in contracts beyond six years in length, and with Peña growing into a star, it might take more than that to retain him.

8. Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers

He willed himself to becoming an above-average defensive shortstop last year, leading all shortstops in defensive runs saved (17), and added another chapter to his Hall of Fame career. Betts, 33, should be a unanimous selection when his name appears on the ballot, but he has miles to go before that happens. Betts has already accumulated 75.2 WAR, which ranks 50th all time, and this year, he’s likely to climb over guys on the WAR leaderboard who’ve already made speeches in Cooperstown — Paul Molitor, Ozzie Smith, Robin Yount, Brooks Robinson and Joe DiMaggio are all within range. (Plus hit king Pete Rose, who finished with 79.6 WAR.)

9. Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati Reds

Last year, he stole 37 bases, clubbed 22 homers and scored 102 runs… and yet there continues to be a feeling that he has more to offer, that the best is yet to come from the dynamic 24-year-old. But that mostly needs to come from his defense — he really struggled down the stretch in 2025 and led the majors in errors for the second consecutive year. A ranking this high is still based on potential, because there are other more reliable shortstops — like Swanson, or Winn — but De La Cruz is still young, with an important year of development ahead.

10. Willy Adames, San Francisco Giants

His batting average hovered in the low .200s for a lot of last season, and the Giants’ investment in him did not pay off in the standings. But Adames finished with 30 homers and an OPS+ of 111, and his second half offered promise of better play ahead — he hit 18 of his homers after the All-Star break and had an .828 OPS.

Honorable mentions

Dansby Swanson, Chicago Cubs: He wasn’t the hitter that Wilson was last year, he doesn’t steal bases like De La Cruz, and he doesn’t have the power of Zach Neto. But Swanson stays on the field — he has missed a total of 33 games in the past five years — and hits enough to be dangerous, with 24 homers, 20 stolen bases and 84 runs scored for 4.5 WAR last year.

Jacob Wilson, Athletics: His hitting style is unusual, with the pre-swing movement he has, but the results are there — in his age-23 season in 2025, he batted .311/.355/.444, collecting 151 hits in 126 games and prompting the A’s to invest a seven-year contract in him.

Zach Neto, Los Angeles Angels: With the franchise struggling, the Angels have pushed their top prospects to the big leagues, and with Neto, it’s worked out — he’s generated 10.2 WAR over the past two seasons. He had 26 homers and 26 steals in just 128 games last year.

Trevor Story, Boston Red Sox: He had his best offensive season in Boston, playing in 157 games and hitting 26 homers. But some rival evaluators felt his throwing was a bit off at the end of the 2025 season.

Andres Gimenez, Toronto Blue Jays: He was hurt for a lot of last year, but when Bo Bichette got hurt last September and Gimenez had to move from second base to shortstop, Toronto’s infield defense got a whole lot better.

Masyn Winn, St. Louis Cardinals: This is a big year for Winn, as he defines his place in the game; for now, he’s defense first, ranking second among all shortstops last season in FanGraphs’ overall defense metric. His OPS+ was 104 in 2024 and dropped to 90 last year, but he’s still just 23 years old.

Colson Montgomery, Chicago White Sox: He got everyone’s attention last year with 21 homers in his first 71 games in the big leagues, for an OPS+ of 130. Montgomery strikes out a ton, with 83 last year, and his history suggests that’s probably going to be part of his game, along with the high-impact damage he does at the plate.

CJ Abrams, Washington Nationals: Some context for Washington’s willingness to discuss him in possible deals over the winter — metrics indicate he was a below-average defender and is average in getting on base (.315 last season), with some power and excellent skills in running the bases. The timing of his ascension might not match that of the Washington rebuild.

Shakhtar Donetsk sporting director Darijo Srna recalls “a couple of times” when the Ukrainian club’s players and staff had to huddle together in their hotel reception, alerted to an incoming drone strike and waiting for the call to head for the air-raid shelter. It happened once on matchday. “We were all in reception together until 6 a.m. but did not go and afterwards we slept until 12, then we had a meeting at 2 and a game at 4 p.m.,” Srna tells ESPN. “We lost, but this is part of our life.”

Tuesday marks four years of this reality. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began on Feb. 24, 2022 and The Center for Strategic International Studies (CSIS) believes it is the deadliest conflict since World War II. Estimates vary, but the CSIS states as many as 140,000 Ukrainians have been killed in addition to 325,000 Russians. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees believes 5.9 million Ukrainians have left the country.

It is all the more remarkable that against this backdrop, Shakhtar’s strategy for survival as a club remains heavily reliant on the transfer market outside Ukraine, specifically signing young players from Brazil.

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The policy began more than 20 years ago, a product of Shakhtar president Rinat Akhmetov’s fondness for the country’s flamboyant football style. The club established an extensive network of contacts in Brazil and over time, created a lineage of players who would join Shakhtar and then, later, an elite European side.

Willian (Chelsea), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Douglas Costa (Juventus), Fred (Manchester United) and Luiz Adriano (AC Milan) are among the big names to tread this path. Most recently, winger Kevin joined Fulham last September in a €40 million transfer, a record fee for the Premier League side.

In total, club sources told ESPN that Shakhtar have signed 47 Brazilian players, who have scored more than 1,000 goals combined, since 2002. (Luiz Adriano, who played between 2007 and 2015, is still the club’s all-time top scorer with 128 goals.) But the money generated through outgoing transfers has become vitally important. Club officials suggest the transfer of Brazilian players has raised in excess of €350m and that revenue stream is more vital than ever in wartime.

“The biggest two sources of income now are UEFA competitions and player sales,” Shakhtar chief executive Sergei Palkin tells ESPN. “That’s it. We have almost zero sponsorship, no matchday revenue, no TV revenue, nothing. To survive here, you have to change the ways to develop the club.”

Shakhtar’s story is a reminder that the conflict has been going on for much longer. Russia occupied and annexed Crimea in 2014, forcing the club’s displacement from their home in Donetsk. They have played European ‘home’ games in six different cities — Krakow, Poland is their base for this season’s UEFA Conference League campaign — and complete domestic fixtures in Lviv, which lies in western Ukraine. The team cannot fly to Poland due to airspace restrictions, and so European away games involve bus rides to the border, with journeys taking up to 16 hours, depending on the destination: in last season’s Champions League, they made trips right across Europe for fixtures at Arsenal and PSV Eindhoven.

Ukraine is experiencing one of the harshest winters on record, exacerbating the debilitating effects of Russian attacks targeting the country’s infrastructure which have left more than a million citizens without electricity, water and heating. The European Union has sent Ukraine almost 10,000 generators since the invasion began in 2022.

“If anybody would tell me at the beginning of 2022 that the war would continue four years, I wouldn’t believe it,” Palkin says. “Four years is a big part of your life.

“Our players, they live in a hotel and opposite the hotel, we have a pitch to train. In Europe, you can easily maintain the level of pitch but in Ukraine it is not possible because of one issue: light. When you have blackouts for one, two, three days, how can pitches survive in these conditions, especially after this severe winter when we had temperatures like -25 [Celsius, -13 Fahrenheit]?

“For my life, I don’t remember these kind of temperatures. We have a training camp in Kyiv and we maintain pitches there because they need a chance to train before games. You need to completely restructure the management of pitches because nobody had experience of doing it in wartime.

“And in modern medical history, you will not find experience like this where you can fully recover players after 16 hours of travel to play again.”

And yet, Brazilian players still join Shakhtar in large numbers. There are 12 listed in their first-team squad, the majority of whom joined the club within the last four years. Says Palkin: “You know why they come? Because they understand, here we create an unbelievable platform for the development of those players to build a bridge to top European football.

“They see all examples. The last one is Kevin. When the war started, we sold David Neres [for €15m]. He didn’t play one game for our club but we sold him to Benfica for more than we paid [€12m]. Even if it is risky for life, to reach something in top European football, they should come to us.

“We are signing a lot of deals now. I spend 70% of my time in negotiations convincing players to come in this very hard time because we have war. I need to show where a player lives, what happens for example when we have air raid sirens, all the security issues.

“I need to be open and explain, but the biggest explanations come when players call our existing players. They explain everything and it helps.”

Marlon Gomes was able to go one better. The 22-year-old joined Shakhtar from Vasco da Gama in January 2024 and consulted his veteran teammate Alex Teixeira, who made the same move in 2010. Teixeira spent six years in Ukraine and later returned to Vasco in 2022 before joining Greek side Panserraikos last month.

“Shakhtar always was a famous club, especially in Brazil,” Gomes tells ESPN. “Among young players with a promising talent, it is really known as a platform you can use to pass to the higher tier leagues.

“Alex Teixeira is a good friend of mine. In my career at Vasco, we speak a lot. Also he told me a bunch of things about Shakhtar — the way they are interested in young Brazilian players.

“When I discovered the history [of Brazilian players who have moved to Shakhtar], I have been thinking and dreaming about the same [journey and] the trophies they won. I was really inspired by those examples. Alex advised me that Shakhtar would be a beautiful option. There is not a single day I regret that decision.”

Gomes’ family, including his seven-year-old daughter Maite, remains in Brazil, where his mother anxiously watches news reports of the ongoing conflict.

“She watches TV and reads all the articles as well and she is getting really worried,” Gomes says. “For my side, I try to keep her calm and explain that in fact not everything is as terrible as can be displayed in the media. Yes, some attacks may occur even in the western part of Lviv where we currently stay but even despite that, the club is doing everything possible to keep us safe.

“During the season, we spent some time in Lviv and some in Kyiv. Whenever people from Brazil ask me something about Ukraine, I only reply with positive things. I really love the city of Kyiv, I believe it is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen and even despite all those terrible moments, I enjoy my life in Ukraine.

“Sometimes you can hear or see the drones attacking Ukrainian cities unfortunately and in fact all the TV, all the media shows part of living in Ukraine but they cannot represent what is going on inside the country. Of course, those events are completely terrible and I am deeply concerned about that but the country keeps living, keeps moving on for day to day and that can be the true inspiration for everybody.”

The adaptation process is vital, Palkin says: “When a new Brazilian player comes, we connect them with each other, they explain everything that is going on here, how we treat everybody, what’s going on, where we live, how we travel.

“When they move here, they can have any personal issues, especially in wartime, and so we have special people involved in all processes of adaptation and they understand what they want, they are always in contact with players and in a position to help any time.

“We create a structure that allows them to adapt very quickly and in wartime, this adaptation is even accelerated because we have no time. Fifteen years ago, we could wait two years for Brazilian players to arrive at the top level. Today, we have one or two months adaptation, and they go straight to the main squad.”

But Shakhtar’s established model of attracting promising players from Brazil and then transferring some of them to Europe’s elite is being squeezed by those top clubs being more willing and able to go direct to the source. Chelsea, for example, agreed a deal to sign Estêvão from Palmeiras in 2024 and Andrey Santos from Vasco a year earlier, while Denner will arrive from Corinthians this summer.

“Chelsea have changed the market in Brazil,” says Srna. “They are buying players not just in Brazil, but Argentina and Ecuador who are 16 or 17 years. Manchester City look too.

“For us it is more difficult than before, but there is still a lot of talent in Brazil. Estêvão for example, was on our list, but it is difficult to fight with Chelsea.”

Palkin explains how Shakhtar have adapted. “What it means for us is if before we signed players who were 18, 19, 20 years old, we need to pay attention to 16-, 17-year-olds,” he says. “And we need to be very quick. If you are not quick, you lose. Speed is the most important condition of how to be successful in the Brazilian market.

“Our president makes decisions very quick. He is not afraid to invest big money into young Brazilian players. He believes in his strategy and therefore even taking into account the war, we are still competitive in this market. Chelsea, City and other clubs are there and they could destroy the Brazilian market for clubs like Shakhtar, Benfica and Porto etc. for financial issues. They pay big money and it is difficult to compete with them.”

Money is a bigger issue when Shakhtar are not competing in the Champions League this season. Revenues are much smaller in the Conference League, but at the same time, there is something bigger at stake: the pride of a nation.

“It is a critical humanitarian platform to keep international attention on Ukraine and provide positive emotions for the people of Ukraine and our fans,” says Palkin. “People living in Ukraine, 90% of all news is negative. Every day, morning, evening, daytime. Emotionally, it is a very big pressure on our people. When we play European competitions and we win, it brings positive emotions.

“All our coaches who stayed during the four years, every time when they prepare a team for Ukrainian or European competitions, in all their speeches, they have words about the people living in Ukraine.”

Srna puts it in even starker terms. “When you play in Europe, you beat someone, the people feel happy because you are sending a message to the whole world: we are here, we fight until the end,” he says.

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Vitali Klitschko honored to receive Arthur Ashe Courage Award

Vitali Klitschko is appreciative to receive the Arthur Ashe Courage Award and stresses the importance of bringing peace to Ukraine.

Shakhtar continue to feel left behind by FIFA. The row over Article 7 — an annex to the game’s regulations that allowed foreign players in Russia and Ukraine to unilaterally suspend their contracts following the outbreak of war in the region. The club estimates this cost around €60m in lost income. And, earlier this month, FIFA president Gianni Infantino claimed that he favours the lifting of a ban preventing Russia from competing in international sport.

“I suggest Infantino visits Ukraine to witness the destruction first hand rather than making this kind of irresponsible statement from a distance,” says Palkin. “Reintegrating Russia while Ukraine suffers from this war, it is a betrayal of the sport’s ‘one family’ claim.

“He should not think about reintegrating Russia: he should think how to create a fund that will finance a rebuild of sport infrastructure in Ukraine. We have unbelievable conditions. Our football is in a very, very critical situation. Infantino should think about this, and not about integrating a country that fully invaded Ukraine and tried to kill our people, our children.”

Shakhtar, like the rest of Ukraine, just keep going. Akhmetov has donated more than $300m to the government since the beginning of the war. He has provided 13 million food kits since 2014 and 700,000 units of medicine to Ukrainians affected. The club provides treatment and rehabilitation of severely injured soldiers, started an amputee team for veterans and opened a shelter for refugees. Shakhtar matches are 90 minutes of escapism.

“Each time we have a domestic game, we are happy to see people in the stand enjoying the game,” says Gomes. “That’s a chance for them to be distracted for those two hours from the cruel reality that they are currently surrounded by.

“If I leave Ukraine, either to another club or back to my homeland, I will keep all the experiences and lessons I have learned here. I will always keep them in my heart and bring them everywhere I go in my future.”

A commanding batting effort from Mitchell Santner and Cole McConchie propelled New Zealand to a competitive 168-run total against Sri Lanka in the Super Eight clash of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at R Premadasa Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

Batting first, New Zealand scored 168-7 in their allotted 20 overs, getting off to a steady start as openers Tim Seifert and Finn Allen looked positive from the outset, finding boundaries early in their 30-run partnership.

However, Maheesh Theekshana provided the breakthrough by dismissing Allen, who scored 23 off 13 deliveries, including three fours and a six. The wicket ended the opening stand and shifted momentum towards the hosts.

New Zealand suffered another blow in the following over when Dushmantha Chameera removed Seifert for eight off nine balls, which featured a single boundary. The visitors were reduced to 34-2 in 4.2 overs.

Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra then attempted to rebuild the innings, rotating the strike effectively and accelerating the scoring to take the total past 50.

Chameera struck again to claim his second wicket, dismissing Phillips for 18 off 18 balls, an innings that included one four. At 75-3 in 9.3 overs, New Zealand were once again under pressure.

The situation worsened when Ravindra, who had looked well set, fell to Theekshana for a brisk 32 off 21 deliveries, laced with three fours and a six.

Theekshana struck again in the same over to remove Mark Chapman for a second-ball duck, leaving New Zealand struggling at 84-5 after 11.4 overs.

Sri Lanka’s spinners continued to tighten their grip as Dunith Wellalage dismissed Daryl Mitchell for a modest three off seven balls, deepening the visitors’ troubles.

Cole McConchie and captain Mitchell Santner then attempted to stabilise the innings.

The pair guided the total beyond the 100-run mark in the 17th over and brought up a valuable half-century partnership in the closing stages, providing some late impetus after a middle-order collapse.

Santner and McConchie eased the pressure and accelerated in the closing overs, attacking the bowlers to pile on runs and guide New Zealand past the 150-run mark in the 19th over.

The Blackcaps concluded their innings with Santner dismissed on the final delivery for 47 off 26 balls, comprising two fours and four sixes, while McConchie notched up 31 off 23 deliveries, hitting three boundaries and two sixes.