As fantasy baseball draft day approaches, savvy managers know that the later rounds can be just as crucial as the early picks. While the top-tier players often get snatched up quickly, there are hidden gems available in the later stages of drafts that can be helpful across several categories. These players may not have the star power of the big names, but they offer tremendous value and upside.
Scoring runs is one of the few traditional rotisserie-style categories that isn’t solely reliant on the quality of the hitter. Of course, on-base skills and volume are helpful, but variables like lineup construction and the efficiency of the batters behind them in the order heavily affect the amount of runs a player finishes the season with. Even Marcus Semien – who had one of the worst seasons of his career in 2024, batting just .237 – still managed to score 101 runs.
So what’s the key to filling up the runs category, especially late in the draft? Well, looking at last season’s top run scorers, exactly 50 players finished with at least 80 runs scored, and among them, each had at least 500 plate appearances, and all but three had at least a .300 on-base percentage. We’ll be identifying players who have the potential to plate a ton of runs who you can grab late in your drafts.
Here are a few names to keep an eye on in 2025.
Victor Robles — Seattle Mariners (OF)
2025 ADP: NFBC OF 48, 196 Overall | Yahoo! 223 Overall
Remember back in 2019 when 22-year-old Victor Robles burst onto the scene with the Washington Nationals, smacking 17 home runs and stealing 28 bases to accumulate a 4.4 WAR as the team’s everyday center fielder? Yeah, me too. Then he came back with three-straight stinkers, flirting with the Mendoza Line across just shy of 1,000 at-bats from 2020 to 2022.
After struggling in the early parts of 2024, Robles was DFA’d by the Nationals and scooped up by the Seattle Mariners for the second half of last season. Robles flourished in Seattle, posting a .323/.385/.449 slash line in the second half. He enters 2025 projected as the Mariners’ leadoff hitter and everyday right fielder and could reach 500 plate appearances for the first time since his rookie campaign. Of course, Robles has had issues with health (and performance), but his production in last year’s second half is just too good to ignore.
Being selected behind boring accumulators like Kerry Carpenter and Alec Burleson, Robles has the potential to reach incredible heights in 2025 – think Jarren Duran-lite. Even if he doesn’t reach his ceiling, Robles should have a relatively safe floor for runs scored batting in front of Julio Rodriguez, Cal Raleigh, and Randy Arozarena. He’s also sure to boost stolen bases (he swiped 29 bags in 61 games with the Mariners) and batting average while chipping in with a handful of home runs.
Jonathan India – Kansas City Royals (2B, MI)
2025 ADP: NFBC 2B 23, 248 Overall | Yahoo! 301 Overall
The Cincinnati Reds once viewed Jonathan India as a cornerstone to their franchise, with the second baseman earning NL Rookie of the Year honors in 2021, but the narrative surrounding India shifted swiftly and just a few years later he was jettisoned away for starting pitching depth as the Reds dealt him to the Kansas City Royals. In a new city, India is hoping to improve his middling numbers from a season ago as he projects to lead off for the Royals in 2025.
India wasn’t bad in 2024 – finishing the season with 15 home runs, 13 stolen bases, 84 runs scored, and 58 RBI – but he batted just .248, finishing shy of a .250 batting average for the third-consecutive season. Though he hasn’t proven to be a stellar hitter, he has done a fantastic job of getting on base throughout his career, posting a career .352 OBP.
Scott Chu may have stated it best in his Top 200 Hitters column earlier this offseason when he said, “Thanks to his new role as the everyday leadoff man in Kansas City in front of Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino, and Salvador Perez, India should get the most out of his double-digit walk rate. Assuming he stays healthy (which has been an issue at times), India can get to 90 runs scored and swipe 13-15 bases with a .260 batting average and .360 OBP.”
India may give managers some positional flexibility this season after the Royals started him in left field in their first Cactus League game of spring training. Currently being drafted in the 20th round of 12-team leagues, India should provide a solid return on investment for managers that don’t mind his lack of power.
Nathaniel Lowe – Washington Nationals (1B, CI)
2025 ADP: NFBC 1B 21, 254 Overall | Yahoo! 240 Overall
It seems the entire industry has bought into the Washington Nationals being a National League dark horse, and if the team is going to succeed, it’s going to need Nathaniel Lowe to be a large part of a resurgent offense. Signed by the Nationals this offseason, Lowe projects to be the strong side of a first-base platoon in Washington and should garner at least 500 plate appearances with ease.
Lowe had a bit of a down year in 2024, but then again, so did the entire Texas Rangers offense. Even in what was nearly a floor performance from him, Lowe maintained a .265 batting average and .361 OBP, staying largely in line with his career numbers (.272 AVG, .356 OBP). Batting in the middle of what should be a deeper and more dynamic Nationals lineup this season, Lowe has the potential for another very solid year.
What makes Lowe so appealing for managers who need to generate runs scored is that he’s been a major producer in the category before, scoring 89 runs in 2023. His draft price presents a bargain for managers, who can wait to load up on other position players and pitchers before grabbing Lowe in the 20th round of 12-team drafts. He might not be the most exciting pick out there, but his high floor makes him a value for savvy drafters.
Jung Hoo Lee – San Francisco Giants (OF)
2025 ADP: NFBC OF 59, 238 Overall | Yahoo! 300 Overall
Fans didn’t get to see much of Jung Hoo Lee in his debut season, as his 2024 campaign was cut short in early May by a torn labrum. That’s probably why we’re seeing the Giants’ outfielder fall so far in drafts in 2025. His 2024 production was middling at best as he struggled to get his feet beneath him in the MLB, but that shouldn’t be seen as his outlook heading into a new year. The Giants gave Lee a massive six-year contract for a reason.
Through the first month of last season, Lee batted leadoff for the Giants in 31 out of 42 games, including every game against a right-handed starter, showing that San Francisco intends on using him as a table-setter for the meat of their order in most cases. Lee should still bat in the top third of the order heading into 2025, with Willie Adames and Matt Chapman flanking him.
Though the KBO isn’t close to the same caliber as the MLB, Lee’s numbers from his seven seasons in Korea show the kind of promise that he possesses. Lee batted at least .318 or better with a .386 or better OBP across all seven seasons, scoring 80 or more runs in five of those years. If the international superstar can live up to his billing in 2025, fantasy managers could reap the benefits late in drafts.
Thairo Estrada – Colorado Rockies (2B, MI)
2025 ADP: NFBC 2B 30, 403 Overall | Yahoo! 233 Overall
In one of the more underrated offseason moves, Thairo Estrada moved on from the San Francisco Giants and signed with the NL West rival Colorado Rockies on a one-year deal. After back-to-back solid years in 2022 and 2023, Estrada struggled mightily a season ago, batting just .217 with a .247 on-base percentage and meager counting stats. But there’s no better ballpark for a hitter to bounce back than Coors Field.
Projected as the Rockies’ Opening Day second baseman, Estrada figures to bat in the top third of the Colorado lineup in front of productive bats like Ryan McMahon and Michael Toglia. From 2021 to 2023, Estrada maintained an OBP of .315 or better and a BABIP of .280 or higher in all three campaigns. It stands to reason that the 29-year-old second baseman could see a rebound in a park that historically boosts BABIP, especially for guys like Estrada who aren’t going to slug the ball and are more gap-to-gap hitters.
If Estrada can fulfill the classic change-of-scenery trope that we’ve seen several times before, he could prove extremely valuable as a middle infielder late in drafts. Currently going outside the top 300 (on most platforms) behind players like Spencer Horwitz and Otto Lopez, the risk is extremely low while the reward could be plentiful if he returns to his 2022 form when he scored 71 runs, along with 14 home runs and 21 stolen bases.
Jesse Winker – New York Mets (OF)
2025 ADP: NFBC OF 96, 505 Overall | Yahoo! Undrafted
Remember, at the beginning of the column, we said that in order to generate 80 runs, we were looking for players who record 500 plate appearances and maintain a .300 OBP or better? Well, Winker meets both of those qualifications and has nearly done so in three of his last four seasons (finishing with 485 plate appearances in 2021), and yet still hasn’t reached 80 runs scored. This is a low-risk bet on positive regression.
Winker ranked 20th in all of MLB with a .360 on-base percentage last season, due in large part to his outstanding eye at the plate, where he ranked in the 96th percentile for walk rate (12.6%) in 2024. The premise here is that Winker continues to get on base at an outstanding clip, but this year, as part of a much-improved New York Mets lineup, he’s driven home on a more frequent basis. Winker is also a non-zero in home runs, belting 14 a season ago, and has shown that he can also swipe bags if so inclined (though he didn’t run at all in 44 games with the Mets in 2024).
Currently undrafted in most formats, Winker has gone off the board after pick 500 in most deep drafts, making him a perfect late-round flyer or waiver-wire watchlist guy for teams in need of runs scored in 2025. For managers that take Ronald Acuña Jr. and need a fill-in outfielder for the first part of the season, Winker could be the perfect fit.
Feature image by Michael Packard (@CollectingPack on Twitter) | Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire