since 2002

Gunnar Henderson or Bobby Witt Jr.

SS Age: 23 Bats: L Throws: R

Next Season

2025 Projection
BARHRRBISBOPS
.268109338815.850

Rank (preseason)

8 ADP
3 SS

Career Stats

Gunnar Henderson
ABBAOBPOPS
1306 .268 .346 .850
Last 3 Years
YrABRHRRBISBBAOBPOPS
2022 116 11 4 18 1 .259 .348 .788
2023 560 98 28 82 10 .255 .325 .814
2024 630 117 37 92 21 .281 .364 .893

Key Splits

 ABBAOBPOPS
home 661 .266 .333 .838
road 645 .270 .359 .861
day 481 .262 .351 .833
night 825 .272 .343 .859
vs RHP 952 .283 .355 .900
vs LHP 354 .229 .324 .717
none on 820 .274 .346 .858
risp 119 .227 .356 .835
loaded 26 .308 .344 1.036
April 178 .247 .340 .829
May 175 .217 .341 .821
June 189 .333 .403 1.049
July 196 .260 .333 .787
Aug 225 .262 .314 .781
Sept 312 .285 .346 .859
SS Age: 24Bats: R Throws: R

Next Season

2025 Projection
BARHRRBISBOPS
.288101279537.842

Rank (preseason)

2 ADP
1 SS

Career Stats

Bobby Witt Jr.
ABBAOBPOPS
1867 .288 .336 .842
Last 3 Years
YrABRHRRBISBBAOBPOPS
2022 590 82 20 80 30 .254 .295 .724
2023 641 97 30 96 49 .276 .319 .814
2024 636 125 32 109 31 .332 .389 .977

Key Splits

 ABBAOBPOPS
home 912 .323 .371 .938
road 955 .254 .302 .749
day 746 .290 .339 .836
night 1121 .287 .334 .845
vs RHP 1455 .290 .342 .851
vs LHP 412 .282 .315 .808
none on 1139 .274 .320 .815
risp 212 .354 .423 .998
loaded 24 .208 .207 .832
April 302 .248 .285 .692
May 325 .265 .313 .830
June 307 .283 .336 .792
July 272 .371 .401 1.041
Aug 329 .292 .343 .927
Sept 294 .276 .335 .760

Who's Better?

DFS Leagues

Two of the most exciting players in the league, Henderson and Witt Jr. have a ridiculous amount of potential. Both are legit five-tool studs that are somehow still getting better. For an average daily contest on FanDuel or DraftKings, their salaries will be fairly close. Gunnar has more power overall while Witt Jr. swipes more bags. Those contrasting tools add to their respective daily values.

With regard to pitcher matchups, the one big factor here is that that Henderson is a lefty and struggles a bit against LHP (career BA/OBP/OPS of .220/.320/.700 compared to .280/.350/.920 vs righties). That's an actionable split... so, if a lefty is on the bump that particular day, think twice about going with Henderson. Witt Jr.'s splits against lefties and righties are almost identical.

Traditional Roto Leagues

Over the course of a full season, both these guys are solid first-rounders. Witt Jr. was already a top-5 pick in 2024 drafts, Henderson more often taken in second rounds. With Henderson's torrid start in 2024, he's likely to creep into the first round of most 5x5 re-drafts. With dynasty leagues, fuggedaboudit, both are top 3. We all know shortstop is a stacked position now (Trea Turner, Mookie Betts Elly, etc) but these two will be the cream of the crop for years to come.

Of course, baseball isn't completely an individual sport. A lot of the numbers put up depend on the strength of your lineup and the kind of protection you get. They both hit near the top of VERY stacked lineups. With Henderson, he typically leads off and Rutschman or Santander give him plenty of protection. Witt Jr. usually hits in the two-hole with Salvador Perez forcing pitchers to think twice about pitching around him. Top to bottom, both lineups have a ton of talent so their runs and RBI totals will always be above-average.

Bottom line, you can't go wrong with either guy. They're perennial All-Star shortstops with crazy high ceilings... and still filling holes in their game. If your team needs more steals, give the slight edge to Witt Jr.. Otherwise, expect these two to battle it out for MVPs throughout their careers, potentially as early as this year.

Related

Bobby Witt
or
Corey Seager
Gunnar Henderson
or
Francisco Lindor
Trea Turner
or
Gunnar Henderson

What's your take?