Let’s get right to it!
- As a reminder, these rankings are geared toward a standard, daily, 12-team H2H redraft league, as that is typically the most popular fantasy baseball format. They will only factor in the five standard categories: Runs, RBI, Home Runs, Batting Average, and Stolen Bases.
- I would recommend not paying super close attention to the specific ranks of each player, and honing in more on the respective tiers that they’re in. Each tier represents a grouping of players that I think could arguably perform at a similar level, and/or carry similar levels of risk in terms of injury concerns or playing time obstacles. If Player X is ranked at No. 55 and Player Y is ranked at No. 65, but they’re in the same tier, it means that I personally like Player X a lot better, but think there’s a valid argument to be made for Player Y performing just as well.
- I take rankings like this as more of an art than a science. Every person’s rankings are influenced by their own biases, strategic philosophies, determinations of risk, and projections. It’s why no two rankings are ever exactly alike. My way of evaluating and ranking players has worked out well for me over the years, but it might not be a great fit for you. I can’t possibly predict your team’s specific needs, your league mates’ player evaluations, or your current waiver wire, and if I could it’d be weird. In a bad way.
- This is a safe space for me where I answer to no one but myself…and you if you leave a comment.
- I’m doing my best to use five starts or 10 appearances as the threshold for positional eligibility. I have not included presumed eligibilities based on likely new positions, but once those eligibilities are earned I’ll add them in. This is just a maintenance thing and we will update eligibility throughout the season. Feel free to let me know if I’m missing any!
Ranking Philosophy
To keep things in the same ilk, here are a couple of notes on how I generally evaluate hitters before we dive in:
- In 12-team formats, I just don’t see much value in guys who only provide stolen bases. It’s an important category, especially in Roto, but in shallower formats, there are too many other (and better) ways to get the steals you need without sacrificing production in the other categories.
- If I want to get some insight on whether what I’m seeing is new or if it’s just normal fluctuation, I’d use my favorite tool—the rolling chart, which I’ll also reference as appropriate. You can also get rolling charts from sources like FanGraphs or Baseball Savant. If you have any questions about how to do that or how to read these charts, reach out to me!
- No stat is an island and they should all be taken in proper context. For ranking purposes, the primary starting points I use are plate discipline, wRC+, quality of contact metrics (also known as Statcast batted ball data), lineup context, and the skills we can measure using tools such as our PLV Hitter Attributes (available for PL Pro members). I also use various projections (some free, some I buy) and dollar value generators.
- Positional eligibility, and specifically multi-eligibility, is neat but also isn’t a huge factor in many 10- and 12-team leagues anymore due to the prevalence of multi-eligible players. It’s of more value in deeper contests like the NFBC, or in leagues with limited roster moves (draft and hold leagues, transaction limits/costs, extremely short benches, etc.), but even then the value is fairly situational and context-dependent.
- On a similar note, I don’t penalize players for only qualifying in the utility slot. At most, it is a mild inconvenience if a DH-only player is available at a great value and you already have filled your utility spots.
- Anyone talented enough to make it to the big leagues can be brilliant or putrid for 50 to 100 at-bats—regardless of true talent. Heck, it could even last a month with no change in potential or skill. It also could be wildly meaningful. We can’t and don’t know which of these will be true until it’s over, though track record, scouting, and trends give us hints.
- If you’d like input on a player or have any feedback, your best bet is to reach out to me on the website formerly known as Twitter (@ifthechufits) or in the comments!
Read The Notes
- These rankings talk about what I generally project for a player, but these rankings are not projections. They include projections but also take into account performance risk, injury risk, team context, ceiling, and floor.
Check out the Hacks & Jacks podcast featuring Scott Chu and Joe Gallina, which also happened to be a finalist for Best Baseball Podcast of 2021 by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA)!
I also host an AMA in the r/fantasybaseball subreddit every Friday (starting sometime in late March) starting around noon ET that lasts through the rest of the day and into the weekend, so feel free to join the fun and ask questions or make comments.
Tier 1
- No changes at the top. These three guys are my first three off the board in standard formats.
Tier 2
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. keeps showing off the power that had been absent for far too long.
- Ketel Marte’s Process+ chart really says it all, with positive contributions coming from Contact, Power, and Decision Value all summer.
Tier 3
- Since June 1, Anthony Santander has had a league-leading 25 home runs. That’s a home run every 2.36 games. His longest home run drought in that time is six games. It’s unbelievable.
Tier 4
- Neither Adley Rutschman or William Contreras are performing well of late, but they are still my top-two catchers for the rest of the season and I don’t see that changing while they are healthy.
- Jazz Chisholm Jr. hasn’t done much since his back-to-back double-dinger games in July, but it is worth noting that he will pick up an extremely valuable eligibility at third base by the end of the week (he already has it on some sites).
- Royce Lewis is fantasy baseball’s glassiest glass cannon. Enjoy it while it’s here.
Tier 5
- Will Smith has been one of the worst hitters in the league so far in the second half, but with the Dodgers finally getting back to full strength, he should be able to turn it back on and pile up the counting stats in bunches again.
- Matt Olson continues to strike out too much, but it is getting slightly better. He’s also stringing a few hits together here and there, so I suppose there remains some reason for optimism.
Tier 6
- It has been a strong second half for Seiya Suzuki, and while injuries are always a concern, it’s nice to see him string together multiple healthy months in a row.
- Nothing is wrong with Lane Thomas, but it’s clear that the Guardians do not intend to send Thomas as much as his previous team. Of course, that’s mostly because the Nationals are blindly aggressive. The schedule doesn’t line up super well for Thomas in terms of steals, though, and his new division is markedly better at controlling the run game.
- Yes, I am glad I kept my faith in Anthony Volpe, who now has five home runs and five steals in his last 17 games. Thanks for asking. I’d love to see him move back into the leadoff spot, but even if he stays towards the bottom, the power and speed will pay dividends.
- Jackson Chourio has been climbing this list for weeks now. After a rough two months to begin the year, Chourio has hit .328/.371/.506 with strong plate discipline — and those numbers are from BEFORE Thursday’s action. Including Thursday’s game, he has multiple hits in 12 of his last 16 games and has forced his way to the top of Milwaukee’s lineup. Even with the slow start, he’s well on his way to a 20-20 season, and Chourio is just getting started. He could be a 25 home run, 30 stolen base asset as soon as 2025 with a solid batting average.
Tier 7
- Matt Chapman has always been streaky, and right now, he’s hot as heck. Coming into Thursday, Chapman has six home runs, 26 combined runs and RBI over his last 14 games, and an average exit velocity over that stretch of an amazing 98.9 miles per hour. He’s already surpassed the 17 home runs he hit in his disappointing 2023 campaign and while Chapman is likely to go through another cold spell or two before the season is over, he should also clear 25 total home runs. Also, as an aside, it’s really weird to see a guy who hits fourth or fifth every day to have 80 runs scored to just 56 RBI, and it’s even weirder to see a 31-year-old slugger steal 12 bases in 113 games after stealing just 11 in 868 games before then, but here we are.
- Sure, the bottom could end up falling out for Ezequiel Tovar because he’s insanely aggressive, but it might just work out considering that he has fairly good bat control and plays in Coors half the time.
- Xander Bogaerts should be able to keep up the consistent contact and ratios, though I remain highly skeptical that he provides much power.
Tier 8
- James Wood is finding his groove in the big leagues and it’s fun to see. Coming into Thursday, he has a .500 OBP over his last 11 games with 20 combined runs and RBI. Thanks to the Nationals being so aggressive, he’s even running more than you might expect. The strikeout rate will likely keep hovering around 30%, but as long as the walk rate is in the double digits it should be just fine.
- Brenton Doyle has struggled so far in the second half, but he still gets his home games in Coors and still has plenty of power and speed so don’t get too discouraged.
- Ian Happ is super streaky despite his profile and season-long lines making it seem like he’s consistent.
Tier 9
- After showing some promise at the end of July, Paul Goldschmidt has zero hits in his last 20 plate appearances and seems very unlikely to suddenly start walking more or striking out less. 25 home runs, decent counting stats, and ugly ratios might be all that he’s got left.
- Jackson Holliday had zero extra-base hits in his 10-game debut in April, but he already has six of them in his seven games since getting his second call. He’s also striking out less, and while it’s a small sample, it’s a very validating one from baseball’s top overall prospect. Holliday doesn’t have Wood’s raw power or Chourio’s speed, but his blend of both combined with his plus hit tool should be more than enough to make you very excited about his bright future.
- Jorge Soler has fully taken over as the leadoff guy in Atlanta and should keep the job all season long. Assuming Olson can keep improving, Soler should be one of the most reliable sources of runs for the remainder of the season.
Tier 10
- Colton Cowser keeps hitting the ball hard and leading off. What else could you want?
- Jonathan India should stay in the leadoff spot despite the slump, but it might be a bit of an uphill battle to get to 15 home runs or 15 steals by the end of the year. The latter is more likely than the former, mostly because India walks a lot and the Reds love to run.
- The Jeremy Peña pendulum swings back to the cold side. This up-and-down journey may just be par for the course as his contact-reliant profile means a ton of spins of the BABIP wheel, and you never know how those will turn out.
- Zach Neto is finally getting looks at the top of the order and it’s exactly what a player with his profile needs to take the next step (from a fantasy production perspective).
- C’mon, Jake Burger, you can keep doing this. And by “this”, I mean hitting for power with any kind of regularity. I don’t even care about the ratios anymore.
Tier 11
- I’m still skeptical of Tyler Fitzgerald but I can’t deny the power-driven profile. This profile tends to be extremely streaky, but you might as well keep striking while the iron is hot.
- Everything I just said also applies to Eugenio Suárez and Josh Bell.
Tier 12
- Christopher Morel, Ryan McMahon, and Brice Turang all have value in 12-teamers, but if you’re chasing a playoff spot, you may not need their specific contributions (power, counting stats, and speed, respectively) bad enough to wait out these slumps and that’s OK.
- Matt Wallner makes good decisions and has power, but his struggles with lefties haven’t really gone away. He’s just hot right now.
- Luis García Jr. is another guy who runs hot and cold at the whims of the BABIP gods, and right now he’s in their good graces.
- Jeimer Candelario is mostly reliant on his supporting cast for production, and he doesn’t have enough upside to be worth suffering for in 10- and 12-teamers if there are more exciting third basemen out there. The thing is, there often aren’t any.
- Maikel Garcia should still steal bases, but losing the everyday leadoff role is painful.
Tier 13
- Wilyer Abreu is a streaky lefty, which isn’t inherently a bad thing. It just caps his overall upside in the long run.
- Josh Lowe has injury concerns and performance concerns (against lefties) but has power and speed worth chasing if you need a hot hand to lift you up for now.
- Andrew Vaughn has basically no support with Luis Robert Jr. slumping.
- Patrick Bailey should turn it around eventually, but those in 10- and 12-team single-catcher leagues are OK to stream someone else if they can’t afford to wait.
- Orlando Arcia and Isiah Kiner-Falefa won’t wow you with their physical ability, but they’re both savvy veterans who are getting regular playing time and who can be a solid fill-in for your infield.
- Wyatt Langford is about a week away from falling off the list, which is a bummer. He’s got the same level of ability as Holliday, Wood, and Chourio, but hasn’t been able to unlock it in the big leagues yet.
- Spencer Horwitz, Ben Rice, and Ryan O’Hearn are plenty streamable against righties, but those in 12-teamers can probably find something better once the schedules for these guys turn against them.
Taxi Squad
This year, the Taxi Squad will be a handful of players at each position who either are on the cusp of the list or who have been hot topics of late.
Players are listed in no particular order.
Another update: Relevant hitters who hit the IL will end up in the IL Stashes section until they return to the active roster.
Catcher
- Elias Díaz (C, COL) — Streamable at home.
- Connor Wong (C, BOS) — Fine streaming catcher.
- Jonah Heim (C, TEX) — His history of being mediocre is a lot longer than his history of being good.
- Keibert Ruiz (C, WAS) — Points league streamer.
- Bo Naylor (C, CLE) — Has plenty of pop and hitting a bit better of late.
- David Fry (C/1B, CLE) — Might be turning it around slightly?
- Danny Jansen (C, TOR) — Has upside, but I’d rather stream than wait out the slumps in a single-catcher format.
- Kyle Higashioka (C, SDP) — Decent streaming catcher.
- Sean Murphy (C, ATL) — Playing about half the time now.
- Ryan Jeffers (C, MIN) — Can’t find a groove.
- Joey Bart (C, PIT) — The strikeout rate gets ugly from time to time but has some power and is hitting near the middle of the lineup.
- Alejandro Kirk (C, TOR) — Points league streamer.
- Freddy Fermin (C, KCR) — Getting some time at DH gets him on my radar. Can provide batting average, but the rest is hit or miss.
First Base
- Rowdy Tellez (1B, PIT) — Streamer when the matchups are good.
- Luke Raley (1B/OF, SEA) — Power and speed that comes with streakiness and contact issues.
- Carlos Santana (1B, MIN) — Streamable in spurts, especially in OBP.
- Spencer Torkelson (1B, DET) —Striking out too much, but also hitting for power in triple-A. I think he comes up before September.
- Ty France (1B, CIN) — Playing every day so far and hits fourth against lefties.
- Justin Turner (1B/2B/3B, SEA) — Playing regularly with Seattle, but without power he’s just an OBP or points streamer.
- Zach Dezenzo (1B, HOU) — Looked great in a small sample in triple-A and should play most days between first and DH, at least until Tucker comes back and/or Singleton gets hot.
- Deyvison De Los Santos (1B, MIA) — Masher who doesn’t walk much. Not on the 40-man roster but likely sees time in September. Deep league watchlist.
- Luken Baker (1B, STL) — Quad-A guy, mostly, but does have 30 home runs in 98 games in triple-A who could get some time in September or if any DH plate appearances open up. Deep OBP league watchlist.
Second Base
- David Hamilton (2B/SS, BOS) — Pure speed streamer in standard leagues right now.
- Connor Norby (2B, MIA) — Call up does not feel imminent.
- Miguel Vargas (2B/OF, CWS) — Too passive.
- Brooks Lee (2B/3B/SS, MIN) — Just needs more time to figure out major league pitching.
- Zack Gelof (2B, OAK) — Hasn’t been able to recreate any of the 2023 magic.
- Nolan Gorman (2B, STL) — The juice (aka home runs) ain’t worth the squeeze in most formats.
- Dylan Moore (2B/3B/SS/OF, SEA) — Incredibly streaky and the ratios will be terrible even when he’s hot, but has plenty of speed and a little pop.
Third Base
- Noelvi Marte (3B, CIN) — McLain’s return by the end of the month could be bad news for Marte as EDLC will likely move to third.
- Matt Vierling (3B/OF, DET) — Hitting third, but this offense is not very good.
- Junior Caminero (3B, TBR) — Should be up in late August.
- Coby Mayo (3B, BAL) — He will turn it around, but will it be in 2024?
- Kiké Hernández (2B/3B/SS/OF, LAD) — Playing every day at third base at the moment, but the upcoming returns of Betts, Muncy, and Edman will push him to the bench.
Shortstop
- Willi Castro (2B/3B/SS/OF, MIN) — Versatile, speedy, and consistently inconsistent.
- Paul DeJong (SS, KCR) — Power streamer.
- Max Schuemann (SS, OAK) — Cooled off considerably.
- Ernie Clement (3B/SS, TOR) — Seems to be the guy who will get time with Bichette out.
Outfield/DH
- Victor Scott III (OF, STL) — Desperate speed play at best. Was hitting poorly in triple-A (63 wRC+).
- Jarred Kelenic (OF, ATL) — Everything that we liked a few weeks ago is gone.
- Lars Nootbaar (OF, STL) — Definitely in a platoon at this point.
- Jasson Domínguez (OF, NYY) — Might see him in September, but it’s a crowded outfield situation.
- Cedric Mullins (OF, BAL) — Is unlikely to play every day even when he is playing well.
- Jesse Winker (OF, NYM) — Clearly going to sit at least half the time.
- Parker Meadows (OF, DET) — Has some power and speed, but will sit regularly and lacks anything resembling consistency.
- Hunter Renfroe (OF, KCR) — The offense is humming and he hits near the middle of it regularly.
- Kyle Stowers (OF, MIA) — Looks like he’ll sit against most southpaws for now.
- Joey Loperfido (OF, TOR) — Batting second in his first game with the Blue Jays but the strikeouts are the primary concern.
- Andy Pages (OF, LAD) — Droppable in 12-team leagues.
- Wilyer Abreu (OF, BOS) — Hot, but in a platoon and prone to extended slumps.
- Wenceel Pérez (OF, DET) — Making a little magic again, if you need a streamer.
- Eloy Jiménez (DH, BAL) — Regular playing time remains unlikely.
- Max Kepler (OF, MIN) — A fine replacement-level guy when you need some pop.
- Jordan Walker (OF, STL) — If you want a silver lining, he rebounded nicely after his last trip to the minors.
- JJ Bleday (OF, OAK) — He’s more valuable in OBP because of the walks but the rest of the package isn’t that exciting.
- Jake McCarthy (OF, ARI) — Pure speed streamer.
- Jesus Sanchez (OF, MIA) — Hits the ball hard but doesn’t pull it much which kills his home run upside.
- Jo Adell (OF, LAA) — If you’re looking to chase upside, this is a good place to start.
- Jordan Beck (OF, COL) — Plate discipline in triple-A is rough, but results are there.
- Daulton Varsho (OF, TOR) — There are too many outfield options to suffer these slumps in 12-team leagues.
- Tommy Pham (OF, STL) — Hitting well for the Cardinals but the role is still a little shaky, and the upside is somewhat low.
- Angel Martínez (OF, CLE) — Singles and walks.
- Joshua Palacios (OF, PIT) — Has a little bit of pop and speed, but he’s a deep league flyer at best.
- Andrew Benintendi (OF, CWS) — Slappy leadoff hitter on one of the worst offenses of the modern era.
- Jacob Young (OF, WAS) — Speedsters in Washington have the greenest of green lights.
- Harrison Bader (OF, NYM) — Has speed and some pop with terrible contact and extreme injury risk.
- Alex Call (OF, WAS) — Speedy slap hitter who is streamable in points leagues or for steals.
- Pete Crow-Armstrong (OF, CHC) — Has speed and is playing, but I have little faith in the bat at this point.
IL Stashes
- Christian Walker (1B, ARI) — Core injuries are tough to gauge. Hoping he’s back for September.
- Triston Casas (1B, BOS) — Almost ready to swing a bat. Will likely be a top 50-75 player when he’s ready.
- Mookie Betts (2B/SS/OF, LAD) — Should be back before the end of August.
- Ozzie Albies (2B, ATL) — For fantasy purposes, Albies is out for the season. He’ll be a bounce-back/buy-low candidate for 2025.
- Jordan Westburg (2B/3B, BAL) — A broken hand likely keeps him out of your playoff push, though he may be back in late September.
- Luis Rengifo (2B/3B/SS/OF) — Hopefully he can recover fully by next season.
- Matt McLain (2B, CIN) — Mild setback, but could still be back by the end of the month.
- Tommy Edman (2B/SS/OF, LAD) — OK, now you have my attention. If he can be the mostly-regular utility guy, that matters.
- Nick Gonzales (2B, PIT) — Expected weeks-long absence means he’s droppable in 10- and 12-teamers.
- Max Muncy (3B, LAD) — Will likely be a top 75-100 player when he’s ready.
- Bo Bichette (SS, TOR) — He’ll be out multiple weeks and if I only had two IL spots in a 12-teamer that were already full, I’d probably cut him.
- Carlos Correa (SS, MIN) — Good signs so far. Could be back by the end of the month.
- Kyle Tucker (OF, HOU) — This thing keeps dragging on. He could be back for September. Top-five player on return.
- Julio Rodríguez (OF, SEA) — Should be a fairly short stay but the timing is a huge bummer as he was really righting the ship in July (220 wRC+)
- Fernando Tatis Jr. (OF, SDP) — Top-20 on his return, but still has no timeline.
- Christian Yelich (OF, MIL) — Not sure why everyone thinks he’s out for the year. He’ll be back at some point, maybe even in August.
- Mike Trout (OF, LAA) — He should be back this season and should be stashed on ILs. Should be in the top 25-35 on his return.
- Riley Greene (OF, DET) — Hoping we see him by the end of August. Top 30 on return.
- Michael Harris II (OF, ATL) — No timetable for a return. Top-75 hitter when he comes back, assuming he can reclaim a spot near the top of the lineup.
- Tyler O’Neill (OF, BOS) — Hopefully the infection clears up smoothly and he’s back by the end of the month.
- Starling Marte (OF, NYM) — Starting a rehab soon. Top 120-140 on return as he may sit even more than before if Bader remains healthy.
- Kerry Carpenter (OF, DET) — Should see a few weeks of action in September but that’s it.
- Evan Carter (OF, TEX) — Likely out for the season.
- Ronald Acuña Jr. (OF, ATL) — Obviously, he’s a drop in redraft leagues. Still top-5 in dynasty.
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