Apologies for last week – a number of personal and professional obligations took over.
- As a reminder, these rankings are geared toward a standard, daily, 12-team H2H redraft league, which 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.
- These are not best ball or draft and hold rankings. The 12-team redraft format with daily moves is the fundamental opposite of that. Pure volume plays are not valued as much here as in those no-move formats.
- I take rankings like this more as art than science. Every person’s rankings are influenced by their biases, strategic philosophies, risk assessments, and projections. It’s why no two rankings are ever exactly alike. My way of evaluating and ranking players has worked well for me, but it might not be an excellent fit for you. I can’t possibly predict your team’s specific needs, your leaguemates’ 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 I’ll add them once those eligibilities are earned. 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 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.
- 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 with tools such as our PLV Hitter Attributes (available to PL Pro members). I also use various projections (some free, some I buy) and dollar value generators.
- Positional eligibility, specifically multi-eligibility, is neat but isn’t a huge factor in many 10- and 12-team leagues anymore due to the prevalence of multi-eligible players. It’s more valuable in deeper contests like the NFBC or in leagues with limited roster moves (draft-and-hold leagues, transaction limits/costs, extremely short benches, etc.). Still, the value is fairly situational and context-dependent.
- Similarly, 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.
- Regardless of true talent, anyone talented enough to make it to the big leagues can be brilliant or putrid for 50 to 100 at-bats. It could even last over a month with no change in potential or skill. It also could be wildly meaningful. We can’t and don’t know which will be valid until it’s over, though track record, scouting, and trends can give us hints.
- One of the most difficult things to account for in these rankings is the dynamic between low-ceiling players with clear roles and players with higher ceilings who lack a clear path to playing time. I try to note this in the blurbs as much as I can.
- THIS IS NOT A TRADE CHART. Trade charts need to account for “market” value, which is largely perception-based.
Read The Notes
If you’d like input on a player or have any feedback, your best bet is to contact me on Bluesky (@scottchu.pitcherlist.com), X (@ifthechufits), or Reddit (u/ChusephEsquire)
I also host an AMA in the r/fantasybaseball subreddit every Friday (starting sometime in late March) with Nate Schwartz, 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.
For additional insight, also check out the Hacks & Jacks podcast! This is a hitter-focused pod with me, Brett Ford, and occasional special guests.
Tier 1
- OK fine, Pete Crow-Armstrong can be in Tier 1.
Tier 2
- Yes, I am still a firm believer in José Ramírez. Fore the last five years, he’s been fantasy’s most dependable contributor. That said, his last home run was on June 6, so he gets dinged a bit.
Tier 3
- I’m struggling with how to properly rank the top catchers, as there are just so many good ones that the value of these top three is almost certainly less than what the auction calculators and player raters are saying.
- All of my concerns with Fernando Tatis Jr. didn’t come true which makes me happy. It’s also a testament to the fact that there aren’t always signs a guy is going to totally break through. It’s also why boring ol’ rankers like me will hold a guy like Tatis in the upper parts of their rankings for so long, because a limited number of living humans have the ability to do what he has done in the last 100 plate appearances or so.
Tier 4
- I continue to leave Ronald Acuña Jr. in my top-20 because of all that stuff I said about Tatis in the last tier. Acuña is capable of similar feats, though the injury risk is signifcantly worse with him.
- Sal Stewart isn’t stealing basesd anymore, but who cares. He’s been a remarkably consistent producer since mid-June and is the first player to reach 100 RBI in 2026. If he can get hot at home for a series or two, Stewart can probably reach 35 homers and 120 RBI with a solid .260/.330/.460 line. He’s been everything we dreamed of and more.
- Corbin Carroll has been just fine ther last few weeks, but it feels like last season’s 31 home runs might be a high water mark and something like 20-23 is more reasonable from eyar to year. I also don’t love the reduced stolen bases, which is a bit harder to explain as he gets on base just as much as years past.
- Miguel Vargas has returned to the levels we saw early this summer and that really revs my engine. He’s one of those players who has shown all three major skills (contact, power, and decision-making) at the same time, and the more he does that, the more I feel comfortable with an early-round pick on him next season.
Tier 5
- I don’t love that Buxton is nursing an injury so soon after coming off the IL and I really hope that this doesn’t become a constant annoyance for the remainder of the season. These injury issues make Buxton such a pain to rank, though we’ve seen multiple times this season why we are willing to push through the aggravation.
- It continues to be an August to forget for Dillon Dingler, as his OPS this month is just .566. Looking deeper, it seems the decline really started back in July, but a hot Tiger offense combined with some good luck helped masked the issue. His average exit velocity dropped by close to five ticks and his barrel rate has been cut by half thanks to the slump. I don’t think this late-summer version of Dingler is the “real” one, but it’d be nice to see Dingler show us the version we saw earlier this season before the year is out so that we can feel better about his ability to return to that form.
- Why do I keep Julio Rodríguez ranked above his performance? Because he is one of those humans I mentioned in Tatis’s blurb.
- Welcome back, Oneil Cruz! While he did not return to the leadoff spot he had prior to the injury, he’s already hit balls at 114, 112.8, and 111.8 mph, so I think he’s feeling pretty good. The strikeouts are high, obviously, but so are the walks, and as long as he’s managing both of those things in the right way, there’s a safer player here than we’ve come to expect (not safe, of course, but safer).
Tier 6
- Welcome back, Cody Bellinger! Bellinger has always been a difficult player to project from week to week as he tends to defy his batted ball metrics. Since his return, though, he’s been smking the ball and piling up counting stats, so for now we will keep a rosy outlook.
- Zach Neto has been a monster over the last nine games, with 17 hits, 18 combined runs and RBI (a seven RBI night helps), and seven extra-base hits. He’s also returned to the leadoff spot consistently, which helps him maximize his plate appearances (and it’s not like there are a lot of other Angels he’d be driving in from somewhere else in the order, ignoring that one magical night on the 20th).
- Jazz Chisholm Jr. isn’t bad at baseball, even if there are times you think he might be. He’s someone whos value in 2027 will depend heavily on landing spot. I do love seeing the Yankees ramp up the aggression on the basepaths, though, as Jazz now has seven steals in his last 10 games and even more surprisingly, just five strikeouts in that stretch.
Tier 7
- Alex Bregman has shown us that the power hasn’t dried up, as he’s almost doubled his season home run total this month with eigh home runs plus 40 combined runs and RBI. He’s been producing in bunches of late, almost series-by-series, as he tends to either put up a boatload of hits in a series (he recently demolished the Mariners with three homers in three games) or none (just a single and nothing more against the D-Backs). Regardless, I think you just plug him in and hope it’s one of the good series through the rest of the season.
- Luis García Jr. is once again on fire, with four home runs in his last seven games, and while I don’t think we’ll see another stretch like he gave us in June and early July when he slugged .837 over 30 games with a whopping 15 home runs, there’s no reason García Jr. can’t be a top-50-60 hitter the rest of the way batting in the heart of the order for the Bronx Bombers.
- Gunnar Henderson’s production hasn’t quite been what we hoped in 2026, and for the most part, the underlying metrics have been disappointing. That is, until recently. I don’t have a long monologue for you regarding Gunnar for this season, all I’ve got is this chart. Still, I think you’ll like it.
- Jac Caglianone still hits a lot of grounders, but not quite as many as before (the rolling 15-game rate is a hair below 50%) and the strikeouts are down, so he can move up a bit.
- Caleb Durbin’s production is mostly tied to his lineup position and the heat of the Red Sox offense, so if either of those start to fade, he will drop in these ranks in a hurry. His average exit velocity so far in the second half is 80.6 mph, which is by FAR the slowest among qualified hitters (the next closest is Ernie Clement at 82.0 mph).
- Carson Benge is hitting the ball well, and while Ewing gets the leadoff role, Benge has moved up enough in the order to be the guy I prefer going forward.
- Good to see Chase DeLauter pinch hit in a game recently. DeLauter has FAR exceeded any reasonable expectations on games played in a season (his previous professional record was 57 back in 2023). I imagine Cleveland is going to play it very safe with DeLauter to try to make sure he’s available for the playoffs, but he’s hitting too well for me to drop in the rankings.
Tier 8
- Ezequiel Duran is a tough player to rank, mostly because he’s not really hitting the ball all that well. I mean, yes, it’s BETTER than the last two seasons when he was abysmal, but it’s roughly ther same as his 2023 performance. The main difference this season is just the number of RBI (70), which went up again as he has six over his last four games, which is wild considering Texas has consistently been one of the worst run-scoring offenses in baseball and Duran has spent the majority of the season batting in the bottom half of the batting order. He’s obviously someone you’re going to keep locked into your lineup at basically any position, but he’s someone who feels like an obvious regression candidate in 2027.
- Bryan Reynolds is showing some positive trends in the batted ball quality, even if it hasn’t turned into results yet. I get why people have dropped him in 10-12 teamers with three outfield spots, but keep an eye on him. He’s capable of significant production over extended periods (for example, what he did in the first half this year).
- Ian Happ is streaking and it’s long overdue. The only downside is that he’s sitting against lefties fairly often. That should change as he continues to produce
- Royce Lewis is streaky. We just gotta deal with that.
Tier 9
- The production has dipped again for Nico Hoerner, and while his batted ball metrics aren’t good, they suggest he should be a lot better than the .482 OPS he’s posted in the last 45 plate appearances.
- The strikeouts have creeped up on Cole Carrigg, up to 32% over his last 11 games (which is, conveniently, exactly 50 plate appearances). He’s still swinging the bat extremely hard, but he’s struggled to find the good part of the stick to hit with. He does have a barrell in each of his last two games, though, and Colorado will be at home all of next week.
- Jo Adell has finally heated up a bit, though his current home ballpark is not ideal for his skill set. Still, he already has 18 RBI for the Guardians in 20 games, and while he’s striking out more for Cleveland than he did for the Angels, he’s also walking nearly three times as often, which is likely to lead to better outcomes as he becomes a bit more choosy with his swings.
- Welcome back, Samuel Basallo! He’s seen time at first, DH, and catcher since his return so playing time should be very strong the rest of the way. The performance may be up and down, but make no mistake, this remains one of the premier hitting prospects in baseball.
- Love seeing Carter Jensen rebound. A return to the top-50 isn’t terribly likely, but he feels firmly in the top-100 the rest of the way.
- Nick Gonzales is a fine plug-in for a second baseman, but keep in mind that he’s not really going to produce anything but batting average on his own. With luck, the return of Oneil Cruz (and eventually, Konnor Griffin) will help makes his hits more likely to turn into a run or RBI, and I do have confidence that this August slump will soon be behind us. Still, when a batting average guy isn’t hitting for average, he’s hard to keep around in shallow leagues (such as a 10-teamer with no middle infield spot).
- Michael Busch and Jose Altuve get bumps largely because they’re survivors who bat third for competetive teams. While many players in their former range got dropped a long ways, they’ve performed well enough to move up inside the top-100. I’d say they’re more likely to stay in the 80-120 range (which is a VERY volatile space) than move up, but it wouldn’t be that surprising if one of them went on a heater.
Tier 10
At this point in the ranks, you can start considering aggressive adds/drops based on need and situation in shallow/standard-size 10-12 team leagues, especially in the outfield.
- Kyle Tucker and Mookie Betts will have brighter days, but I am not certain those days will be in 2026. Tucker’s batted ball metrics are even worse than his lower moments from earlier this summer, and Mookie will almost certainly fall short of 75 runs and 75 RBI. We’ve seen both of them turn into beasts for a month, even in recent years, but if you’re fighting for your playoff life in a 10-12 team league and someone else on the wire is facing a better situation, it’s OK to make the move.
- OK Cal Raleigh, I see ya. Six of his eight hits these last 10 games have been home runs, which is incredible. Still, we actually saw Cal be arguably than this back in April when he hit five homers over seven games only for it to turn back into nothing, so we can’t get too excited yet. He’s worth starting in all formats right now (especially OBP as he’s walking over 20% of the time), and with any luck, we’ll see enough to have some idea of how to feel about Cal for 2027 and beyond.
- And here come the new additions! I am being more aggressive with these folks than normal considering it’s playoff time for many head-to-head players, but I’ll try to leave a quick note on each one:
- Vinnie Pasquantino — The plate discipline has been fantastic (he’s struck out just once in his last 44 plate appearances with six walks) and he’s hitting the ball harder than he has all season. Lock it in.
- Mickey Gasper — Fantastic mustache, first of all. Second of all, the batted ball data suggests what’s happening of late is very real, though I have severe doubts the power is sustainable. That said, Gasper should put a ton of balls in play on a daily basis and is the primary DH for the BoSox at the moment.
- Alec Bohm — He’s the most boring name on this list, but the bat is hot and he’s always been able to produce RBI thanks to his solid lineup spot as part of a competitive team.
- Spencer Jones — Jones has a solid lineup spot and role, and the raw power is extreme (97.0 mph average exit velocity over his last 14 games!), though so are the plate discipline concerns as he’s struck out ten times more than he’s walked since August 12. Still, he plays every day and the Yankees are willing to move him up in the lineup if he continues to perform.
- Joshua Báez — The 40% strikeout rate is as believable as the power, though I do expect another homer outburst or two before the season is done. If you’re seeking homers, this is where to look. If you’re seeking ratios or stability, look elsewhere.
- Kaelen Culpepper — Culpepper puts a lot of balls in play and it’s working out so far. The BABIP Gods can be cruel, though. The 55 point gap between his wOBA and xwOBA suggests that they’re blessing him right now, but that can change out on their whims. He doesn’t have the upside of Jones or Baez, but if you want points production or a higher floor, Culpepper has the edge.
- Tristan Peters — Five straight games with a homer is nuts, and it comes out of basically nowhere. His scouting reports and track record are pretty lackluster compared to some of the other sluggers listed here, but there’s no hotter bat the last five days.
Tier 11
- Zack Gelof has struggled mightily since his return from the IL, slashing just .183/.290/.367 over 16 games. He massively overperformed his statcast metrics before the injury, but he’s now underperforming them by nearly 50 points. Why? Because the BABIP Gods are cruel. The A’s are home this weekend so you might as well ride it out, and if you’re looking for volume, the A’s don’t have a day off until Sept 7. Still, I don’t think what we saw in July is coming back.
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is down here and what else can I tell you? There’s a bunch of talent here, but it’s trapped behind grounders and just overall bladness. If you’re in a win-or-die situation, he could be cut for something you need, but in roto I imagine most folks woudl tell you to just hold and see if he goes nuts in September.
- Connor Norby still has huge contact issues but the guy can hit the ball hard in the air and plays for Colorado so stream away.
- Henry Bolte is leading off again and should get some games in Sacramento soon, if you need a streamer.
- Every time I look at the Giants lineup, I get sad. Outside of Devers, Eldridge, and Lee, I don’t rely know any of these guys. Jung Hoo Lee is just a contact hitter who needs hitters around him to do things to produce for fantasy, and outside of Rafael Devers, I just don’t see it happening.
- The Reds hoped to get a bite on waivers for Eugenio Suárez, but they didn’t. He’s a power streamer who does have a full week at home next week, but if he wasn’t a third baseman, he wouldn’t be ranked at all.
- You can swap those last six names in red for anyone you want on the Taxi Squad.
UPDATE: I’ve separated the Taxi Squad and Injured List for my own organization. The Injured List will only focus on players who might actually get ranked on return.
Injured List
Listed by position in no particular order.
Catcher
- Will Smith (C, LAD) — On a rehab.
- Shea Langeliers (C, ATH) — Unlikely to play again in 2026, which is a bummer because I really would have liked to see him address the crazy strikeout spike we saw before the injury.
- Dalton Rushing (C, LAD) — No need to hold as he’s likely out for most of the year.
- Endy Rodríguez (C, PIT) — He’s played well of late but I’d probably let him hit the wire in single-catcher formats and stream while he’s on the IL.
First Base
- Nick Kurtz (1B, ATH) — Bad news got worse and he’s likely out for the year.
- Ryan O’Hearn (1B/OF, PIT) — He probably won’t be back in time to give you any real help.
Second Base
- Ketel Marte (2B, ARI) — They’re saying he’ll be back on August 31.
Third Base
- Maikel Garcia (2B/3B/SS/OF, KCR) — Back on the IL again.
- Josh Jung (3B, TEX) — Still no baseball activities. Might be back by early next month.
- Kyle Karros (3B, COL) — Concussion IL stints are hard to gauge, and Karros is right on the fringe of a guy I’d be trying to hold in standard leagues. If you have the space, go ahead, but it’s not a priority.
- Brendan Donovan (3B, SEA) — He might get ranked upon his return at the bottom of the list, but it’s fringey due to the limited upside and constant injury issues.
Shortstop
- Trevor Story (SS, BOS) — The rehab has gone very poorly, which normally doesn’t bother me but Story looked bad in the majors, too.
- Konnor Griffin (SS, PIT) — He should return by early-mid September: the only question is whether you can wait that long. If you can, you really should (especially in keeper leagues).
- Dansby Swanson (SS, CHC) — The oblique issue will likely keep Swanson out until late in September, so he’s droppable in all redraft formats.
Outfield/DH
- Aaron Judge (OF, NYY) — It’s likely only going to be 1-2 weeks in the regular season, so he’s droppable if you need the spot in redraft.
- Giancarlo Stanton (OF, NYY) — No timeline to start a rehab. He’s a drop if your IL is full.
- Juan Soto (OF, NYM) — He’s taking live BP so I’m guessing it won’t be too much longer.
- James Wood (OF, WSN) — Will miss a few weeks, but just stash him on the IL and wait it out.
- Riley Greene (OF, DET) — Tweaked his hammy rounding the bases. Shouldn’t be a long stay.
- Tyler Soderstrom (OF, ATH) — Out for the year.
Taxi Squad
Players are listed by position in no particular order.
Catcher
- Francisco Alvarez (C, NYM) — Striking out and walking a ton, which limits his value to an OBP streamer at the moment.
- Jonah Heim (C, ATH) — Volume-based streamer, but he’s not hitting much and just moved down to sixth in the order.
- Keibert Ruiz (C, WSN) — Hits when he plays, but sometimes that’s only three times a week.
- Joe Mack (C, MIA) — The batted ball quality has eroded over the last few weeks.
First Base
- Coby Mayo (1B/3B, BAL) — The power is legit but the strikeouts and inability to deal with sliders are just too much to overcome. Everything else has promise, so if he overcomes even one of these weakness, he could be a breakout candidate.
- Andrew Vaughn (1B, MIL) — Playing more, but you never know when the time will disappear, even when he’s hitting (I mean, he has a 138 wRC+ on the season with amazing discipline and still can’t get a safe role).
- Kyle Manzardo (1B, CLE) — I’m out in all formats, even dynasty, until he leaves Cleveland.
- Nolan Schanuel (1B, LAA) — Points league streamer.
- Spencer Steer (1B/2B/OF) — I wouldn’t expect him back until September. If you’ve got a full IL, he might be a drop.
- Nathaniel Lowe (1B, CLE) — He’ll produce against righties and sit against lefties.
- Spencer Torkelson (1B, DET) — Darn.
- Bryce Eldridge (1B, SFG) — Power prospects can often take a while to really shine.
- Abimelec Ortiz (1B, WSN) — It was a fun ride while it lasted.
Second Base
- Matt McLain (2B/SS, CIN) — Kinda hot but just a fringey fill-in.
- Tyler Tolbert (2B/SS/OF, KCR) — Deep league speed streamer who randomly has a big game now and then.
- David Hamilton (2B/3B/SS, MIL) — Speed streamer.
- Pedro Ramirez (2B/3B, CHC) — Hitting well when he plays, which is not very often.
- Blaze Alexander (2B/3B/SS/OF, BAL) — Finally playing catch but he won’t be back until mid-September.
- Mauricio Dubón (2B/3B/SS/OF, ATL) — Playing time is back up a bit, but he doesn’t do enough to justify in standard-size leagues.
- Cooper Pratt (SS, MIL) — The heat has faded, though the OBP remains solid if you’re in a deep OBP format.
- Ernie Clement (1B/2B/3B/SS, TOR) — Empty ratios if you need them.
- Cole Young (2B, SEA) — Bottom-third of the order and not hitting well.
- Nasim Nuñez (2B/SS, WSN) — Just three steals in August with two runs scored and one RBI. Yeesh.
Third Base
- Jordan Lawlar (3B/OF, ARI) — I do not love that he’s sat against two of the three righties the D-Backs have faced, nor the strikeouts. He’s a fine upside play but there is also plenty to be concerned about.
- Angel Genao (3B, CLE) — Almost every batted ball is on the ground.
Shortstop
- Anthony Volpe (SS, NYY) — Learning second base, which maybe adds a bit of appeal in deep dynasty leagues.
- Colt Emerson (3B/SS, SEA) — Demoted.
- Jesús Made (SS, MIL) — Just pointing out that I don’t see Made breaking through in 2026. He hasn’t exactly been a world-beater in triple-A, though his above-average results are an awesome sign for a 19-year-old kid in the high minors.
- Brayan Rocchio (SS, CLE) — As ice cold as it gets.
- Willy Adames (SS, SFG) — On the IL.
- José Caballero (2B/3B/SS/OF, NYY) — Playing time eroded when Lombard came up.
- George Lombard Jr. Jr (SS, NYY) — No long-term concerns but not hitting the ball hard at all.
Outfield/DH
- Joc Pederson (OF, TEX) — The king of the streaky lefty platoon guys in 2026. Plenty of hard-hit balls lately but not a lot to show for it.
- Dylan Beavers (OF, BAL) — Might be worth a look in deeper OBP formats.
- Ryan Waldschmidt (OF, ARI) — Playing more, but Lawlar’s return may create a log jam as he’s been playing centerfield in the minors.
- Taylor Ward (OF, SEA) — You shouldn’t be rostering him outside of deep OBP leagues, and that’s really only for the plate appearances.
- Walker Jenkins (OF, MIN) — Jenkins will get the call today after a white-hot month in the triple-A. He’s worth a scoop in most leagues, ESPECIALLY in OBP, though it remains to be seen how much he will play as this lineupo is already loaded with lefties and there aren’t any obvious openings (even if he takes Larnach’s spot, they haven’t been playing him a ton). He’d be ranked in Tier 11 if he was activated at time of writing.
- Jacob Young (OF, WSN) — Awesome plate discipline of late, but the Nats are a below-average offense so far this month after losing Garcia Jr. to trade and Wood to injury. More of a points league or speed streamer for now.
- Zac Veen (OF, COL) — The strikeouts are ugly but he can hit the ball hard.
- JJ Bleday (OF, CIN) — Still hits third, still swings really hard, still has great plate discipline, but the results just aren’t there and outfield is too deep to keep holding on outside of 15-team formats.
- Griffin Conine (OF, MIA) — Rough go of it the last 13 games (.592 OPS, 36.2 K%), which is typical of a player with huge contact issues in the zone like Conine.
- Heliot Ramos (OF, NYY) — Blah.
- Esmerlyn Valdez (OF, PIT) — Just a power streamer who strikes out in bunches.
- Max Clark (OF, DET) — Still love the tools for the long term, but batting at the bottom of the Tiger offense is not a good place to be right now.
- Cam Smith (OF, HOU) — The roller coaster continues.
- Mickey Moniak (OF, COL) — Streaky lefty platoon guy.
- Jake Mangum (OF, PIT) — Speed streamer who also can hit for average against righties.
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