Ranking the top 10 hitters in the World Series
The World Series of power hitting begins on Friday night at Dodger Stadium, featuring two teams stacked with MVPs, home run champions, Statcast sensations and likely Hall of Famers.
That sets us up perfectly for the World Series edition of our Hitter Power Rankings. Every two weeks throughout the 2024 season, a panel of MLB.com voters picked the top 10 bats of the moment, factoring in career track record, 2024 performance and recent success. The Dodgers and Yankees were all over those lists, especially at the top, with a batter from one team or the other ranking No. 1 in every single one. Now they will make up the entire list.
Here are the 10 Dodgers and Yankees hitters that our panel felt are most likely to make an impact in the World Series.
(One related note before we begin: Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman narrowly missed out on cracking the top 10 here, despite the sprained ankle that has hobbled him all postseason long, sometimes keeping him out of the lineup and other times simply hindering his production. Freeman has a .461 OPS in eight 2024 playoff games, but needless to say, he would be comfortably inside the top 10 if healthy.)
1. Juan Soto, Yankees
We could write a bunch of words here to tell you why our voters felt Soto belonged at the top of this star-studded list. Or we could simply point you to his 10th-inning at-bat in the Yankees’ ALCS Game 5 clincher, when he masterfully worked Guardians reliever Hunter Gaddis until he got a pitch he could turn into a game-winning three-run homer. It was a stark reminder as to why someone will be handing Soto a massive check this offseason.
