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Eric's top 10 second base prospects for fantasy baseball and how they project long-term along with some names to buy or sell at this position in dynasty leagues. His top prospects include JJ Wetherholt, Luis Pena, Travis Bazzana and more.
The second base position is always a tricky one for fantasy baseball, and that extends into the prospect rankings as well. Oftentimes, we see shortstop prospects move over to second base late in their development, mainly due to either not having a great arm or their major league team already having a player locked into the shortstop position. You'll see a couple of examples of this below.
With that said, this current crop of second base prospects is actually fairly solid, especially if you factor in a few examples of what I mentioned above. While the second base position is weak right now in the majors, there are some reinforcements on the way.
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Second Base Prospect Rankings for Fantasy Baseball
Age and highest level in parentheses
1. J.J. Wetherholt, STL (23/AAA)
While JJ Wetherholt played the most at shortstop in 2025, the most likely scenario is that he plays second or third base long-term for the St. Louis Cardinals, as they're unlikely to move Masyn Winn off the position. Regardless of what positional eligibility Wetherholt winds up having, his all-around offensive profile will fit just fine.
In 109 games between Double-A and Triple-A this past season, Wetherholt slashed .306/.421/.510 with 28 doubles, 17 home runs, and 23 steals while only getting caught three times. He also recorded a phenomenal 14.5% walk rate and 14.7% strikeout rate across 496 plate appearances.
Wetherholt blends above-average speed with above-average contact skills, plus or better swing decisions, and above-average power as well. He put up a 49% hard-hit rate, 12.6% barrel rate, and a 91.4 mph AVG EV in Triple-A while having a contact rate around 80% for the entire 2025 season. Wetherholt should debut early in 2026 for St. Louis and could make a strong run at National League Rookie of the Year.
2. Luis Pena, MIL (19/A+)
Luis Peña played all over the infield in 2025, starting 27 games at second base, 45 games at shortstop, and 10 at third base. He has the arm for the left side of the infield, but given all of Milwaukee's other options on that side, I guess that Peña winds up at second base long-term.
Peña racked up 44 steals in 96 games this season with a .270/.335/.422 slash line, 33 extra base hits, and nine home runs. He's easily a plus runner, possibly even double-plus, and has shown above-average contact abilities, finishing 2025 with a contact rate of 76% while only striking out 16.3% of the time. Those two rates weren't as good in High-A down the stretch, but it was only a 25-game sample size for an 18-year-old who was young for the level.
The real X-Factor for Peña in the long term is how much power he ultimately provides. As of now, Peña is more of a fringe-average power bat who projects as a 12-15 home run guy. If he can add more power in the upcoming seasons and wind up as even a 20-homer threat, Peña could develop into one of the top second basemen in the game for fantasy purposes.
3. Travis Bazzana, CLE (23/AAA)
The 2024 first overall pick was limited to just 84 games in 2025 due to two separate oblique strains, the first of which cost him around two months earlier in the season. In those 84 games, Bazzana slashed .245/.389/.424 with 31 extra-base hits, nine home runs, and 14 steals. He was able to keep that OBP high thanks to a 17.6% walk rate, including a 24.2% walk rate in 26 Triple-A games. Overall, Bazzana's 136 wRC+ was nothing to scoff at.
Bazzana's combination of contact and approach is top-notch. He finished 2025 with an 80% contact rate, 7.5% SwStr rate, and that elite 17.6% walk rate I mentioned above. He's also an above-average or better runner who posted a solid 89.3 mph AVG EV, 1.1% hard-hit rate, and 12.5% barrel rate in Triple-A late in the season.
Don't be put off by the lower average this season. Bazzana has the skills to be a five-category fantasy contributor who should debut for Cleveland early in the 2026 season.
4. Michael Arroyo, SEA (21/AA)
While it was a step back from his 2024 performance, Michael Arroyo had another solid season in 2025. In 121 games between High-A and Double-A, Arroyo slashed .262/.401/.433 with 24 doubles, 17 home runs, 12 steals, and a 139 wRC+. That wRC+ was the 15th highest mark among the 209 minor leagues with at least 500 plate appearances in 2025.
Arroyo's slash line would have looked even better, but he struggled to the tune of a .341 SLG and only two home runs in 56 Double-A games. However, Arroyo still had a .376 OBP in Double-A and has posted an OBP above .400 in every season so far.
Michael Arroyo (MLB No. 78) just keeps on belting homers 📈
The @Mariners' No. 7 prospect tags his seventh long ball in June, 15th on the season for the High-A @EverettAquaSox. pic.twitter.com/TpoRYPVmw1
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 20, 2025
Even with Arroyo's struggles in Double-A, he still managed a 79% contact rate, which was 4.0% higher than his High-A contact rate. Given his above-average contact rates and elite walk rate, Arroyo projects as an elite OBP second baseman who can hit for a solid average as well. While he's not a masher at the plate or a burner on the bases, Arroyo has the power and speed to be a 20-homer/10-steal type long-term.
He's still fairly underrated in prospect rankings as far as I'm concerned.
5. Jett Williams, NYM (22/AAA)
After being limited to just 33 games in 2024, Jett Williams played in 130 games in 2025, slashing .261/.363/.465 with 34 doubles, 17 home runs, and 34 steals. But after hitting .281 with a .390 OBP in 96 Double-A games, Williams hit just .209 with a .285 OBP in 34 Triple-A games. His walk rate also dropped from 14.7% in Double-A to 9.3% in Triple-A.
Overall, Williams' speed and on-base abilities have always led the way, and he currently sports a career .388 OBP in 294 professional games. Williams also has shown above-average contact skills with plus speed. If everything clicks, Williams could be a god top of the order hitter. While he's far from a zero in the power department, Williams is a below-average power bat who projects more as a 10-12 homer type.
His ideal batted ball angles (68.2% air, 45% pull) could push that up a bit, though.
Williams played the most at shortstop in 2025, but he nearly played as much second base as shortstop once he got up to Triple-A. With Francisco Lindor locked in at shortstop for the foreseeable future, Williams is more likely to wind up at second base or in center field.
Rankings Note: This is where Marcelo Mayer would be if I included him. He will be discussed in my third base prospect rankings article.
6. Aroon Escobar, PHI (20/AA)
Aroon Escobar is one of the hardest prospects for me to rank at the second base position. After starting the season hot in Low-A, slashing .285/.377/.452 with 11 home runs and 10 steals in 69 games, he then proceeded to slash .256/.348/.369 in High-A before a five-game cup of coffee in Double-A to end the season.
Escobar's contact rates dropped a bit after Low-A, but he was still around 75% in High-A after being at 78% in Low-A. Overall, Escobar's 10.4% walk rate and 18.2% strikeout rate are both positive marks. While Escobar can make solid contact and get on base at a good clip, he has sneaky power too, as evidenced by his 43.9% hard-hit rate and 89.2 mph AVG EV in Low-A, both impressive marks for his age.
There's a chance Escobar could wind up as a 55-hit/55-power type down the road, but he's probably not more than an average runner long-term.
7. JD Dix, ARI (20/A)
The 2024 35th overall pick made his professional debut in 2025, playing in 89 games between the Complex Level and Low-A. In those 89 games, Dix had 27 extra-base hits and 38 steals with a .297/.404/.406 slash line. However, only two of those 27 extra-base hits sailed over the outfield fence.
There's more power upside in the tank for Dix, who has flashed average or even above-average raw power at times, but he's been more of a line-drive hitter so far in the minors, leading to more shots in the gap than anything else. But on the plus side, he made contact at a 77% clip in 2025 with a 14.2% walk rate and a 20.8% strikeout rate. He's also an above-average runner.
If Dix can elevate a bit more in 2026, he could jump up rankings, maybe even inside my Top-100 overall. The all-around offensive skill set is solid.
8. Tommy Troy, ARI (23/AAA)
After struggling for most of 2024, Tommy Troy bounced back in a big way in 2025. In 125 games between Double-A and Triple-A, Troy had 28 doubles, 15 home runs, 24 steals, and a .289/.382/.451 slash line. This comes after a .234/.318/.363 slash line in 2024, which really depleted most of his prospect value.
But now, he's back inside my Top-150 overall and could be inside my Top-100 early in the 2026 season if this production continues.
TOMMY TROY PUTS US UP 5 WITH HIS FIRST TRIPLE-A HOME RUN pic.twitter.com/Q9bGTRMAcY
— Reno Aces (@Aces) August 7, 2025
Even when struggling on the surface, Troy has always posted above-average contact skills, and 2025 was no different, with a 77% overall contact rate. In Triple-A, Troy had an 81.2% contact rate overall and 89.6% in zone. But that only came with a 31.7% hard-hit rate, 1.6% barrel rate, and an 86.8 mph AVG EV.
Troy is an above-average contact hitter with above-average speed and a rock-solid approach at the plate. While he certainly has more power than he showed in Triple-A, I'm also not expecting more than 15 home runs or so annually.
9. Brice Matthews, HOU (23/MLB)
For some reason, Brice Matthews has lost a ton of prospect helium over the last few months, as I was able to snag him with the 237th overall pick in the recently completed Toolshed Industry Prospect Mock Draft.
Sure, he had a 42.6% strikeout rate in his time with Houston, but that was only in 47 plate appearances, where he also smacked four home runs. While there are some swing and miss concerns here, it feels like Matthews' perceived value took too large a hit for that small sample size.
In Triple-A this past season, Matthews had 42 extra-base hits, 17 home runs, and 41 steals in 112 games while slashing .260/.371/.458. He was one of just eight prospects (under Age 26) to have at least 40 extra-base hits, 40 steals, and an OBP north of .370 this past season.
Yes, the contact skills are below-average, and Matthews will need to get his strikeout rate in check. But he's also a plus runner with above-average contact skills who posted an 89.8 mph AVG EV, 42.2% hard-hit rate, and a 12.2% barrel rate in Triple-A in 2025.
10. Aron Estrada, BAL (20/AA)
Aron Estrada quietly put together a sneaky-good season in High-A and Double-A, and is now on the verge of pushing for Top-100 overall status in my prospect rankings. In 108 games between the two levels, Estrada slashed .288/.366/.447 with 34 extra-base hits, 10 home runs, and 34 steals in 40 attempts.
He was especially potent at the plate once getting the call to Double-A, racking up five home runs and four steals in 27 games at the level, along with a .300/.355/.500 slash line.
While Estrada doesn't possess any standout tools, he's an above-average runner who has shown the willingness to run and a higher efficiency in stealing bases. He's also demonstrated an above-average approach with a 9.9% walk rate and 16.9% strikeout rate in 2025, while being around a 77% contact rate in both 2024 and 2025.
As for power, Estrada is more fringe-average, so I wouldn't expect more than 12-15 home runs annually.
If you enjoyed these rankings and want to see additional rankings, analysis, and more, check out Eric's Toolshed Fantasy Patreon.
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