Nick Kurtz

Few had Kurtz on their redraft radar entering 2025, and even fewer had him as a potential Rookie of the Year. His odds were as long as +8000 for ROY, but Kurtz ended up winning the award as a unanimous selection in the American League after crushing 36 homers in just 117 games for the Athletics. Not only that, but he hit .290 despite a 30.9 K%, which speaks to just how hard he blistered the ball as a rookie. Largely because of the swing-and-miss, there was a 42-point gulf between his actual batting average and his Statcast xBA (.248). Indeed regression to his average seems inevitable, but Kurtz takes his walks and lights up the radar guns with elite batted-ball numbers. Twenty-two of his 36 homers came at home in the team's temporary residence at Sutter Health Park, which was a top-five park for lefty power last season. The incredible season has pushed Kurtz to the very top of the first-base rankings for many entering 2026, although Vladimir Guerrero also has a case to be first off the board at the position. Read Past Outlooks