Xavier Edwards

A supplemental first-round pick in 2018, Edwards was considered the fastest player in his draft class at the time. There were questions about his bat, however, in particular about the pop. Those concerns have been validated as Edwards has struggled to hit for even gap power in the professional ranks. This past season saw an improvement in that area -- Edwards cracked a .100 ISO for the first time at any pro stop -- but he had to add a lot of swing and miss (18.8 K%) to get the modest bump. Edwards has been traded twice already, which is not a good sign. The Marlins figure to give Edwards his first look in the majors in 2023 since he's on the 40-man roster, but he will likely begin the season back at Triple-A barring multiple injuries in front of him. Ideally, the infielder will trim his strikeout rate back down while tapping into even more extra-base power. Until Edwards shows he can hold his own upper-level pitching, he should be considered a speed-only play.

Edwards could become a true fantasy unicorn in the current era, a three-category leadoff hitter. The 21-year-old swiped 34 bases across two levels in 2019, and he's posted consistently impressive batting averages since being drafted. As with all such players, the question is whether his lack of power will keep him from winning a starting role in the majors: for every Dee Gordon who carved out a solid career, there's a dozen similar players who topped out as reserves. Edwards also has the extra hurdle of being in a Tampa Bay organization that prioritizes versatility and platoon advantages over having true starters around the diamond, although he's athletic enough to make himself useful as a defender in multiple spots. Edwards has yet to see any game action above High-A, so he'll get another couple years of development to try and prove to the Rays he brings more to the table than his wheels.

Dee Gordon with better on-base skills is the high-end comp on Edwards, who the Rays acquired in the Tommy Pham/Hunter Renfroe trade. He has not hit for power and should not be expected to, but if he hits .300 with a .360 OBP and 40 steals, nobody will complain in fantasy. Edwards, who at 5-foot-10 benefits from a small strike zone, had a 54:44 K:BB and hit .322 in 561 PA across stops at Low-A and High-A in his age-19/20 season. He was 22-for-23 on SB attempts in short-season and rookie ball, but was 34-for-45 (75.6%) in his full-season debut. Edwards played more games at second base than shortstop, and his 70-grade speed would also profile in center field. He is excellent at using the whole field, but upping his LD% and decreasing his GB% would give him a better chance of maintaining very high batting averages against better defenders. Edwards will need to get on base at a high clip to avoid a bench role.

The Padres landed Edwards, the fastest player in last year's draft, with the No. 38 overall pick, where he received $2.6 million -- almost $1 million over slot value. He proceeded to hit .346 with more walks (31) than strikeouts (25) and was successful on 22 of 23 stolen-base attempts. Over 50% of his hits went to the opposite field and over 60% were groundballs. If he doesn't adjust that approach, he isn't going to hit for power. Of course, if he tries to pull the ball more and hit more flyballs, his batting average could take a hit. A swing and/or approach change may be needed down the road, but he was still 35 percent better than the average Northwest League hitter while posting a .047 ISO -- the third-worst mark in the league among hitters with at least 100 PA. Edwards could hit .300, get on base at a .400 clip and steal over 50 bases in his peak seasons, which makes him one of the top dynasty-league targets from last year's draft class.