Way Too Early Rankings – Outfield: American League

Welcome to the Way Too Early Rankings – Outfield: American League Edition for December 2025. Here, I will go over my Top 10 at the outfield position from the American League, reviewing what we’ve seen this past season, what we’re looking for this offseason, and what we can expect in 2026. I will be doing this for every position, so get ready for the ride.

Past rankings:

Catcher  |  First Base  |  Second Base  |  Third Base  |  Shortstop  |  Outfield Part 1  |  Outfield Part 2  |  Starting Pitcher Part 1  |  Starting Pitcher Part 2  |  Closers  |

Way Too Early Outfield: American League Rankings

1. Aaron Judge – New York Yankees

Was there ever any doubt as to who would come first? He’s not just the best outfielder in the American League, but also the best in baseball, producing absurd numbers at the plate. His 249 home runs hit and 562 runs batted in since the 2021 season lead all of baseball, as do his .426 OBP and .649 SLG. There is so much red on his statcast page; people should visit it over Christmas to get into the holiday mood. Don’t overthink things here.

With his next 50-homer season, Aaron Judge will be the only hitter in MLB history to have five 50-homer seasons.

Four hitters have hit 50+ home runs in a season four times.

11 Hitters have multiple 50 home run seasons. pic.twitter.com/JUi52wuYXp

— Eric Cross (@EricCrossMLB) October 20, 2025

2. Julio Rodriguez – Seattle Mariners

Disclaimer: Julio Rodriguez will likely be terrible to begin the season. He is a career .207 batter in March and April, as Rodriguez usually takes a while to get things going for whatever reason. However, when he does get it going, he offers league-winning production at various points of the fantasy season, which is very useful in weekly leagues. He will be 25 years old next season, and he will have had four seasons of at least 20/20 production, with two of those resulting in a 30/30 output. In 2025, he lowered his strikeout rate to a cool 21.4%, all while hitting at least .252 against all types of pitches. He is entering his prime as one of the game’s best and has a chance to reach 40/40 status if he can start the season off better than we’re used to seeing.

I don’t think most people realize that Julio Rodriguez is on a surefire HOF trajectory

21.1 fWAR, 22.9 bWAR, 112 HR, 116 SB, .800 OPS and he’s only 24. In literally the worst park to hit in, I might add https://t.co/LhHeMFeHUP

— Joe Orrico 🇨🇦 (@JoeOrrico99) October 11, 2025

3. Wyatt Langford – Texas Rangers

If the first two on this list were each on a tier of their own, this pick would be a third tier as a significant downgrade. Wyatt Langford comes with a hunch and a belief that 2026 will be an improvement. The 24-year-old hits the ball hard, walks a lot, runs the bases, and keeps the ball in the air. This is literally all that you would ever want out of your fantasy players. Still, he has limited success against fastballs, he strikes out more than you’d like, and his batting average is a bit of a liability, so his ceiling is somewhat capped. He does come with a lot of prospect pedigree, so the hope is that he can take a big step forward in year three.

#Rangers Wyatt Langford still intrigues me. Things that stood out to me in 2025:

– .353 xwOBA vs a .337 wOBA
– 12.9% BB%
– Good contact rates while sustaining a patient approach and limiting swing-and-miss
– 14% barrel% and 48.4% hard hit%
– 113 mph max EV

Will only be 24 years… pic.twitter.com/11DoBn5SLX

— Mike Kurland (@Mike_Kurland) November 7, 2025

4. Byron Buxton – Minnesota Twins

Next on the list is a player who finally stayed healthy in 2025, delivering on his immense upside and showing his true capabilities. He did everything that fantasy players had been dreaming he would do since he first stepped on the field, only to suffer countless injuries to a multitude of parts of the body in his career. Will he be able to do it again? It’s hard to feel comfortable with any reassurances, given how many times he has been injured over his career. However, he is worth rostering, especially in leagues with players on the Injured List, because when he is on the field, he can help you win your league.

Taking a moment to highlight Byron Buxton’s season before the Twins are done.

35 HR, 83 RBI, 24 SB, .879 OPS, 3 OAA, 53.6 Hard-Hit%, 4.9 fWAR, 137 wRC+.

And most importantly: 126 games. pic.twitter.com/EMJBxo69RD

— Sam Fosberg (@discussbaseball) September 28, 2025

5. Cody Bellinger – New York Yankees

Cody Bellinger’s 2025 resurgence was fuelled by his home ballpark, which aided his patented left-handed swing and pull-heavy approach to power. With 18 home runs hit at Yankee Stadium and a .302 batting average, it’s easy to see why the 30-year-old wants to return to the Bronx next year. His next destination through free agency will be a key factor in determining his value, so that’s something to monitor.

The more I look into it, the more it makes sense why Cody Bellinger is the Yankees’ Plan A to address their outfield need. In ’25 he set career highs in Contact%, O-Contact%, and Z-Contact%.

Also posted career lows in SwStr% and CSW%. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! pic.twitter.com/HbGZX4vHgV

— Tobey Schulman (@tschulmanreport) December 1, 2025

6. Randy Arozarena – Seattle Mariners

Perhaps Randy Aronzarena is one of the few hitters who actually likes hitting in Seattle. Sure, he struggled to finish the season, batting .216 over the final two months, but he did also hit for power and speed from start to finish. And while the batting average might be a detriment in fantasy, it can be countered with high-volume hitters earlier in drafts, making the soon-to-be-31-year-old outfielder quite valuable. He’s been a 20-20 hitter for the better part of this decade, and a very under-appreciated hitter.

Randy Arozarena 2025 season:

.238//.334//.426
27 HR (career high)
120 wRC+
3 fWAR

Ban sleeper…pic.twitter.com/KgMpgLHqaI https://t.co/IE10plLEe1

— Steve (@MarinersSteve) December 3, 2025

7. Brent Rooker – Sacramento Athletics

It feels weird to have Brent Rooker ranked this low, as he did finish with at least 30 home runs for a third straight season. Where it gets weird is that he actually lowered his strikeout rate for a third consecutive season, bringing the one-time liability down to a paltry 22.2% in 2025. That’s a sign of significant growth, and yet he finished 30 points lower than his 2024 season in batting average. It would appear that he got lucky a year ago, as his .362 BABIP was an unusually high variant for him. Still, his park upgrade to Sacramento feels like it should pay off this season, making him someone absolutely worth drafting early on in drafts. Don’t let his 2025 step-back discourage you from 2026 profits.

Happy Birthday to Brent Rooker

– 162 GP, 1st in career, 1st A’s since 2019
– Third consecutive 30-HR season
– Second career All-Star selection
– 2025 Silver Slugger Award finalists

LET ROOK COOK 🔥 #Athletics pic.twitter.com/4ltLN7Na64

— SleeperAthletics (@SleeperAth) November 1, 2025

8. Roman Anthony – Boston Red Sox

This might be too bold a call here, but everything about Roman Anthony oozes superstar. From the way he hits a baseball (hard) to the way he impacts his team, he has the ability to singlehandedly change the outcome of a game by just being there. Sure, he has his warts, like a high strikeout rate, a concerning groundball rate, and a low success rate against breaking pitches. But all of those are fixable over the offseason. Whether or not it happens this year remains to be seen, but he is a superstar in the making. Depending on draft cost, it’s worth taking a chance on him leaping into superstardom this season.

A full season of Roman Anthony is not going to be fun for MLB pitchers. The 21-year-old pairs elite bat speed with fantastic plate discipline that could get even better with more ABs under his belt. His 60.3% Hard-Hit% was #1 in Major League Baseball (min.200 PA). He's insane! pic.twitter.com/xviG21mp9k

— Running From The OPS (@OPS_BASEBALL) November 22, 2025

9. Riley Greene – Detroit Tigers

Riley Greene has seemingly made power a more prominent part of his game, as evidenced by his increase in home runs and strikeout rate over the years. As he continues to aim for the fences, he has transformed himself into one of the more powerful outfielders in baseball, succeeding where many have failed: Comerica Park. The hope is that his somewhat concerning strikeout rate doesn’t get him into trouble and that he can stay healthy enough to hit 40 home runs, which is definitely in the range of possibilities here.

Riley Greene finishes his career best season as a top 15 outfielder. pic.twitter.com/qbziuvDw0k

— DataBase Hit (@DatabaseHit) September 29, 2025

10. Jarren Duran – Boston Red Sox

The final entrant within the Top 10 is Jarren Duran, barely winning out, simply because he has speed on his side. He’s a hard worker in the offseason, returning from a broken toe in 2023 to become this five-category player who hits the ball with authority and consistency. While his batting average drop last season was a bit of a disappointment given where he was drafted, perhaps a simple tweak of swinging less often at bad pitches and trying less often to do more will revitalize the 2024 version we saw. A return to that former self is on the table, as the lineup around him should be much better.

Where will Jarren Duran be playing in 2026? pic.twitter.com/cddu7XejPZ

— Past The Eye Test (@PastTheEyeTest) November 25, 2025

Quick Hits

Jo Adell was about this close to being placed in the top 10 of all American League outfielders, but his batting average woes and lack of speed bumped him down slightly. He can remain a successful fantasy contributor, despite his high strikeout rate, but it shouldn’t be surprising to see him revert back to his unproductive ways… George Springer proved all of the doubters wrong last season, including me, and rejuvenated his career. He will be 36 years old next season and has previously had three seasons where his production and effectiveness offensively were on a downswing. There are still some doubts that he can revert to his 2025 ways, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him have one more good year left in him… Brandon Nimmo heads to his new team in Texas, despite some injury woes these past few seasons. It is an offensive ballpark downgrade for him, and at the wrong side of 30, it’s unclear how his bat will respond… Taylor Ward was traded to the Orioles this offseason, and he should enjoy the new dimensions of Camden Yard… Luis Robert has gone from a fantasy darling to a possible afterthought, yet here he is, a season removed from stealing 33 bases. He is a buy if he gets traded, as his profile and demeanor scream that he is a “change of scenery” guy… With Trent Grisham re-signing in New York with the Yankees, there’s a chance that he can replicate last year’s power surge, making him someone to buy later in drafts.