The Best Shortstops of the First Third of the 2026 MLB Season.

American League	National League
Bobby Witt, Jr.	Elly De La Cruz
HM – Brayan Rocchio	HM – CJ Abrams

For these shortstop rankings, I focused on overall value by combining offensive production, defensive performance, and total impact on the game. Metrics such as WAR, wRC+, batting average, OPS, and on-base percentage were used alongside advanced defensive statistics to evaluate players at one of baseball’s most demanding positions. Because elite shortstops contribute with both their bats and gloves, defensive value played a significant role in separating closely ranked candidates. All statistics are from FanGraphs and Baseball Savant and are current through May 26.

If we were going based on batting average alone and nothing else, Otto Lopez would be on my list. Unfortunately for him, that’s not all my rankings revolve around. Elly de la Cruz and CJ Abrams are both in top 5 for batting average amongst shortstops, but they’re 1 and 2 in wRC+, with Abrams being higher than Cruz on that list.

Why is Abrams below De La Cruz on my list? Defense. Elly has played ELITE level defense and offense this season, leading to the second best WAR for shortstops at 2.8. While Abrams is not too far below at 2.0 and ranking third in WAR, he’s been a negative defender. While Otto Lopez also has a 2.0 WAR, his wRC+ is almost 30 points lower than Abrams. That’s how I got to my rankings of De La Cruz being the All Star in the first third, and Abrams getting the honorable mention. 

The American League shortstop position has given me the hardest time choosing which guys to put on my list. Bobby Witt, Jr. is a lock, he has the highest WAR in the league for shortstops at 3.3, over a full additional WAR compared to the next AL shortstop. He does it all. His defense is going to land him a gold glove this year, (his defensive WAR is higher than his offensive WAR), he’s behind Brayan Rocchio and Colson Montgomery in wRC+… so how did I come up with having Rocchio take the honorable mention spot? Simple. Lower strikeout rated and higher OBP. Montgomery might be better with the glove slightly on defense, but Rocchio currently has the second best batting average amongst AL shortstops.

Again, both Rocchio and Montgomery are split by .1 in WAR, but the way that Rocchio can change the game with his bat and still play solid defense, against Montgomery’s 30% strikeout rate, that’s what sold the deal for me. Bobby Witt Jr. stands alone at the top of the American League, but the race for second place remains one of the most competitive battles at any position in baseball.

Do you agree with these shortstop rankings? Let me know which player you would put at the top of each league, and come back tomorrow as I break down the best left fielders in baseball through the first third of the season.