Buster OlneyFeb 19, 2026, 07:00 AM ETCloseSenior writer ESPN Magazine/ESPN.com Analyst/reporter ESPN television Author of “The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty”Follow on XMultiple Authors
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.
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 (Monday), relief pitchers (Tuesday), catchers (Wednesday), second basemen (Friday), third basemen (Feb. 23), shortstops (Feb. 24), corner outfielders (Feb. 25), center fielders (Feb. 26), designated hitters (Feb. 27).
Typically, there is a distinct learning curve for even the best college hitters as they adapt to the challenge of facing professional pitchers, sometimes requiring significant adjustments, swing concessions and years of repetitions. That’s why the rookie season of A’s first baseman Nick Kurtz was so shocking.
“He hasn’t had the time [in pro ball] to make adjustments yet,” Forst said. “He’s done the exact same thing in the major leagues as he did in college.”
Kurtz turns 23 next month. Given the damage he did last year, and the promise for more of the same to come, where should he land among the accomplished list of first basemen that includes future Hall of Famers in Freddie Freeman and Bryce Harper, star hitters such as Rafael Devers and Josh Naylor, and sluggers such as Pete Alonso and Olson?
Naylor thrived after his trade to Seattle, posting an .831 OPS and going 19-for-19 in stolen bases over the last 54 games of the regular season — and carrying that over into the postseason, when he hit .417/.481/.792 in the AL Championship Series. Early in free agency, the Mariners retained him on a five-year, $92.5 million deal.
Willson Contreras, Boston Red Sox: A tough hitter who has adapted well in his position shift to first base. His strikeouts spiked last year to a career-high 142, and his walk rate of 7.8 in ’25 was a career low.
Jorge Polanco, New York Mets: In the end, manager Carlos Mendoza could deploy Brett Baty — or Mark Vientos — at first, and Polanco could get a lot of run at DH. No matter where he plays, he should help the Mets’ offense, coming off a season in which he had an .821 OPS.
Andrew Vaughn, Milwaukee Brewers: Vaughn had a .308/.375/.493 slash line in 64 games for Milwaukee, and his walk-strikeout ratio shifted dramatically — from seven walks and 43 strikeouts in his last 48 games with Chicago to 24 walks and 37 strikeouts with the Brewers.
Kurtz’s greatest adjustment might need to be made against left-handed pitchers because he is going to see a ton of them this year when opposing managers are trying to figure out a way to mitigate his power. Last season, his OPS versus right-handed pitchers was 468 points higher than versus lefties — 1.153 to .685. But given his immediate impact and steady improvement over last season, he figures to get better over time against lefties. His impressive history also suggests he’ll turn around last year’s walk/strikeout numbers of 63/151 — through his college years and first season of pro ball, he had 201 walks and 120 strikeouts. Kurtz has a special set of skills.
Buster OlneyFeb 19, 2026, 07:00 AM ETCloseSenior writer ESPN Magazine/ESPN.com Analyst/reporter ESPN television Author of “The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty”Follow on XMultiple Authors
CloseSenior writer ESPN Magazine/ESPN.com Analyst/reporter ESPN television Author of “The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty”Follow on X
This is not an exaggeration. In Kurtz’s last season at Wake Forest in 2024, he posted a slash line of .306/.531/.763. His first season in the big leagues: .290/.383/.619.