The results of the Rookie of the Year ballot were announced this week and in the American League, it was a predictably tight race between a pair of precocious shortstops. The Astros’ Carlos Correa took home the hardware by a narrow margin over the Indians’ Francisco Lindor. Apart from their position and tender ages, Correa and Lindor have one other major thing in common: Neither was supposed to be this good in 2015.

In Correa’s case, even reaching the majors seemed unlikely. His upside was always undeniable – you don’t go first overall in the draft without elite talent unless Dave Littlefield is involved – but considering that he entered the year with no experience above High-A, 2016 (or maybe even 2017) was seen as a more realistic timetable. After he dominated Double-A and held his own at Triple-A to open the season, however, Houston opted for a more aggressive approach when Jed Lowrie landed on the disabled list. It paid off handsomely, as Correa hit .279/.345/.512 with 22 homers and 14 stolen bases in just 432 plate appearances. In turn, that performance helped the Astros exceed expectations as well and capture a wild-card berth. They were six outs away from advancing to the ALCS when Correa booted a potential double-play ball, allowing the Royals the first of several improbable comebacks on their way to a championship. That bitter end shouldn’t take away from what by any measure was a sublime debut for Correa, and it certainly won’t keep him from being a highly sought after player in fantasy drafts next season.

Based on his track record and scouting reports, Correa’s power may be due for some regression. Steamer projects another 22 homers, albeit in nearly 250 more plate appearances this time. However, his speed is legitimate and the combination of his batted ball data, plate discipline metrics and minor league BABIPs suggests that he could offset any dropoff in power with a higher batting average. And we’re still talking about a 21 year old shortstop projected for a 20/20 season, so even if the average holds steady, Correa will still be a top-tier fantasy asset. While we can’t simply assume linear progression for a young player, it’s difficult not to dream on a kid with his pedigree after such a great showing. In keeper and dynasty leagues, there are few players I’d rather have on my roster.

Lindor is a bit of a trickier case. Like Correa, he’s always been considered a top prospect. But for him, that status was driven by his stellar work in the field. His offensive numbers in the minors weren’t especially impressive; he produced at roughly league-average rates mainly on the back of a high contact rate and good speed. A lack of power figured to hold him back from becoming a true superstar.

Lindor had other ideas, as he hit a dozen homers in his 438 trips to the plate. It’s not exactly common to see a player post the best slash line of his professional career (.313/.353/.482) in his first taste of major league action. Lindor’s best OPS in the minors was a .787 mark in 2013, which he split between High-A and Double-A. Unfortunately, this surge isn’t really supported by any change in approach. Lindor’s batted ball profile is pretty similar to what he flashed in the minors, and his flyball distance barely ranked inside the top 250 hitters.

Long-term, Lindor certainly has room to grow. He just turned 22 a few days ago, after all. Adjustments can and sometimes do happen quickly at this stage in the career curve, and he has the physical frame to add a little more power as he gets older anyway. As with Correa, though, it might be wise to temper expectations a bit for 2016. This is not to say that Lindor won’t provide value – far from it. He’s still got the tools to hit for average and steal enough bases to be worth rostering in all but the shallowest formats. His future, and the future of the shortstop position, remains bright.

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