7. Who is the next great shortstop?
Until last season, there had never been a season in which more than two shortstops no older than 23 hit 15 home runs. Suddenly there were six of them: the Red Sox' Xander Bogaerts, the Astros' Carlos Correa, the Indians' Francisco Lindor, the Cubs' Addison Russell, the Dodgers' Corey Seager and the Rockies' Trevor Story.
Shortstops last year hit 493 home runs, a whopping 17% more than the previous record, set back in 2002 with 423. Their slugging percentage of .407 was one tick off the record of .408 set in 2006. (They also, ahem, blew away the record for most strikeouts at the position.)
The next wave is right behind this one. Dansby Swanson of the Braves, J.P. Crawford of the Phillies, Amed Rosario of the Mets and Franklin Barreto of the Athletics could make an impact this year, with Yankees prospect Gleyber Torres not far behind them. But the best answer to the question is Trea Turner, who moves back to his natural position at short after hitting 13 homers and stealing 33 bases in half a season playing centerfield for the Nationals.
