The closer we get to the end of the season, the more volatile the second half of the list will get, as time is of the essence for many and there’s precious little of it left.
As you may have noticed, we no longer allow comments on the site. I’m grateful to have been able to engage with you all here, and if you have questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me on Twitter (@ifthechufits), BlueSky (scottchu.pitcherlist.com), or Reddit (u/ChusephEsquire).
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 prefer Player X, 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 hit me up on Twitter (@ifthechufits), BlueSky (scottchu.pitcherlist.com), or Reddit (u/ChusephEsquire).
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 over 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 can 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 BlueSky (scottchu.pitcherlist.com), or Reddit (u/ChusephEsquire).
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 Brett Ford, 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 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
Tier 2
It has been a terrible month for Elly De La Cruz as he sports just a 29 wRC+ with a strikeout rate just north of 30%. That said, the past week and a half have been a bit better in basically all respects, and he’s stringing together some hits and scoring some runs. Every player slumps, and Elly’s can feel worse than other players, but he remains an elite contributor with the ability to dominate over extended periods of time. Even with the slump, 25 home runs and 40 steals are still in play with a batting average north of .270.
Julio Rodríguez continues his second-half surge, with 14 home runs, eight steals, and 54 combined runs and RBI in his last 35 games. He’s now the 11th-best hitter on the season per the FanGraphs player rater despite his slow start, and I wouldn’t be shocked if he finishes even higher. As we’ve said throughout the season, there are very few players with the ability to be this good for this long, and Julio Rodríguez has shown that despite his slumps and slow starts, he is one of those guys.
Tier 3
In his last 10 games, Trea Turner is hitting .500/.521/.674 with five extra-base hits, five steals, 12 runs, and 8 RBI. He’s now sitting at 31 steals on the season, which is the most we’ve seen from him since 2021, and at this rate he’ll get more than 35 steals easily, a thing he hasn’t done since 2018.
James Wood has rebounded from his terrible three-week stretch, though the strikeouts are still higher than they were for most of the season and the walks are a bit lower. There’s still time for him to fully cure these defects and get back into the top-10 conversation, but as of today he’s not there.
It has been an up and down season for Francisco Lindor, at least compared to the last few seasons, though he’s been on fire the last week and a half or so, with three home runs, two steals, and a .485/.541/.879 line in his last eight games.
Welcome back, Ronald Acuña Jr.! As always, he’d be ranked higher if not for the constant health issues, as he will once again play in less than 90 games. Still, when active, he’s hit the ball as well as he ever has, albeit with fewer steals than ever. I imagine he will be a top-30 pick next season as he’ll be a year removed from the knee issues that limited his activity on the basepaths and proof that 2024 was more of a fluke than anything else, but exactly where he falls on draft day is somewhat dependent on whether he finishes the season healthy.
Tier 4
Pete Crow-Armstrong is fine.
I’m still waiting for a home run surge from Gunnar Henderson. Without it, he’ll likely project as a guy who can hit 25 home runs and steal 20 bases with a strong batting average. That’s obviously a very good player, but it’s not one who can force his way into the top two tiers.
Kyle Tucker’s hairline fracture is healed, apparently, but several other things obviously remain broken. It’s hard to say whether it’s injury or just normal “guy’s mechanics or approach are off” stuff, but either way, I think you need to hold him in all formats because if it does get fixed, he has top-10 upside.
Welcome back, George Springer! He already has three home runs in five games since being activated along with a stolen base
CJ Abrams hasn’t stolen a base since July 29 and I, for one, am getting tired of the mercurial nature of his stolen base output over the last two seasons. I guess it’s fine for roto players, but for head-to-head leagues it can leave a gaping hole in your categories from week-to-week and even month-to-month. Steals are already erratic in head-to-head, and if you expected to get a good chunk of them from CJ Abrams, I’m afraid you’ve been disappointed a lot more than you’ve been happy. He should still get over 30 steals on the season along with 20 home runs, but the way he gets there can be maddening.
Tier 5
Jazz Chisholm Jr. has been a man possessed of late, with three homers and seven steals in his last eight games. The batting average has bad (.222) and the strikeouts remain too high, but despite missing a month of action Jazz has an outside chance at a 30-30 season and is just two home runs short of his career high (24).
It’s hard to call it a “lost season” for a guy who is on pace to clear 90 RBI for just the third time in his career, but between the lower-than-expected batting average (just .221 as a Giant) and the elevated strikeout rate, it’s looking like we need to re-evaluate Rafael Devers‘ long-term outlook.
It’s truly amazing how much Shea Langeliers has turned his season around. He was hitting a pedestrian .243/.310/.429 through his first 48 games (which is both the halfway point on his current season and coincidentally also when he hit the IL), and in his second set of 48 games, he’s been absolutely raking, with a .309/.333/.710 line and twice as many home runs as his first half. Nine of his home runs have come in the last 14 games, and he’s just one home run shy of the 29 he hit last season. Assuming this new and improved strikeout rate holds (which it has all season) and that he doesn’t have a brutal cold streak to end the year (which I doubt), he could climb into the top-25 by season’s end and be the clear #2 catcher on 2026 draft boards (a conversation he’s already a part of with Hunter Goodman).
Tier 6
Vinnie Pasquantino is swinging a hot bat and despite his slow start seems to be on his way to doing something I thought was nearly impossible at the start of the season: hitting 30 home runs. Interestingly, his Statcast numbers aren’t really that different from what they’ve been in years past, and it’s not as though he’s pulling the ball in the air more or hitting the ball harder or any of the other usual explanations. He’s just clearing the fence more. I don’t need to be able to explain it to accept it as true, though it’d make me feel better about his chances to repeat in 2026 if I could.
Tier 7
It’s a HUGE jump for Ben Rice, though really his batted ball quality suggests he should have been this good the whole time. Alas, the results just weren’t there and the Yankees were messing around with his playing time. Nowadays, Rice has a clear path to everyday at-bats and that combined with his ability to hit the ball hard consistently in a ballpark that rewards left-handed power more than the vast majority of other parks means he’s instantly deserving of a higher rank. Oh, and being catcher-eligible helps too. I do want to highlight that this wasn’t really about Ben Rice needing to do something different – it was that he needed to keep doing what he was doing when more opportunities for playing time revealed themselves. Rice has done exactly that.
Jarren Duran is having a good season, though he’s going to fall well short of his 202 accomplishments in four of the five standard categories (his RBI numbers will be better, though). I think 2025 is a better reflection of his go-forward projections than 2024, but again, that’s still a pretty darn good player.
Tier 8
Michael Harris II is surging just in time to drive his 2026 draft price up to where it was in 2024 and 2025. He was actually droppable or dropped in many 12-teamers for chunks of both of those seasons, so here’s to hoping that trend ends in 2026.
I love seeing Jo Adell succeed. Sure, the speed is all but gone and it has taken more than five seasons since his original debut to become a 1 WAR player, but it’s finally happening. Adell will be erratic throughout his career, most likely, as his plate discipline is a roller coaster ride, but the power should shine through for years to come.
Wyatt Langford has started walking a ton (17.8% walk rate in August) and has three home runs in his last eight games. It’s not hard to imagine Langford having another great September like he did in 2024 and reminding us that he was a top-three prospect coming into last season. He’s also spent two straight games in the leadoff spot after being in the two-spot for about a week, and more plate appearances is far from a bad thing.
Tier 9
If you’re fighting for your life, you can start your replacement level right here in 10- and 12-teamers.
Welcome back, Alec Bohm. Bohm has never been an exciting hitter, but he’s hitting near the middle of the order again and should be a consistent source of ratios and RBI as long as he’s in that role.
If you want to drop Mike Trout because you’re in desperate need of help TODAY, go for it. I’m holding if at all possible as the decision-making and power are still both well above average and the contact ability can’t stay in the basement forever.
Ceddanne Rafaela is an extremely streaky hitter by nature and he could well go off before the end of season, though
Tier 10
Believe it or not, for those in 10-12 team leagues, this is likely where you’ll start seeing the replacement level, especially in the outfield. From here on, in 10-12 team formats, I expect you to care more about your specific team needs and whether you are shooting for upside versus floor.
Feel free to be aggressive on your wire if there’s a slumping player in Tier 10 and a hot one in Tier 12 who better suits your team’s current needs.
Addison Barger should turn things around, but you don’t necessarily need to wait depending on the options. If you’re using him in your outfield, that replacement should be easy. If it was at third, it might not be.
I wanted to move Jordan Westburg up after a strong week, but this injury issue reminded me that it’s not just performance risk that Westburg brings to the table.
Luke Keaschall keeps hitting.
Daulton Varsho is hot again, and you might as well look at riding the wave. Sure, it’s likely just a wave, but with just over a month left, there’s a chance this wave lasts for much of the time we have left.
Alejandro Kirk won’t ever be a power bat, but this improved quality of contact combined with his persistent playing time means I’ve been underrating him of late.
Jakob Marsee is still hitting, which is cool. Of course half of his hits won’t always be for extra bases and getting 19 RBI on 23 hits for the Marlins takes a borderline miracle, but even with Marsee sitting against two of the last four lefties you’re nowhere close to benching him.
Jackson Merrill hasn’t found the power all season and I am getting more and more worried that 2024 might be the best power display we get. He can still be a solid hitter without hitting 25 home runs, but it would cap his ceiling significantly.
Tier 11
Marcell Ozuna falls a bit as the power dropped off and the RBI stopped coming despite the offense as a whole performing better, but the outlooks remains a whole lot better than it did a month ago.
Speaking of that offense, Jurickson Profar is crazy hot right now and walking about twice as often as he strikes out in the last two or three weeks. He’s not hitting the ball terribly hard and his barrel rate is rather average this month, meaning a lot of this success is being driven by a very fortunate home run to fly ball rate and a spiked pull rate which I doubt lasts terribly long, but still, when you’re hot you’re hot.
Trent Grisham is once again the everyday leadoff man (more or less) and can keep the job if he continues to walk and keep the strikeouts down as he has for the last two weeks or so.
Noelvi Marte is streaky as heck, but he’s hitting well at the moment and brings third base eligiblity.
Tier 12
Nick Castellanos is notorious for his highs and lows, which stems from his aggressive, contact-oriented approach. These slumps can last a long time, and if you’re in a 10- or 12-teamer, you might need to turn his spot into a streaming spot if you hadn’t already.
Dylan Crews looks solid in his return so I’d keep rolling with him if you need speed.
Jung Hoo Lee has led off against two straight righties and is hitting .338 with a .544 slugging percentage this month. He’d be a tier or two higher in points leagues.
Marcus Semien had a nice week and can fill in at second base, but I don’t trust him long-term, and even with the nice week his OPS for August remains under .650 and he was pushed down to sixth in the order against recent righties.
Kyle Teel is getting some starts at DH and has been moved up to third in the order, making him a perfectly cromulent streamer at catcher.
Brett Baty is hitting a few more fly balls of late, which I care more about than any hot streak that doesn’t have fly balls.
Colt Keith recently added third base eligibility and leads off against righties and boasts a powerful 194 wRC+ in his last 17 games. We’ve seen Keith go streaking before and it hasn’t lasted long, but he’s eligible everywhere and could be useful for those trying to secure a spot in the post season or inch closer to a roto championship.
Lars Nootbaar is leading off with Donovan on the IL and Winn pushed down to the bottom half. Let’s see what he does with it.
Rank
Hitter
Position
Change
1Shohei OhtaniT1DH-2Aaron JudgeOF-3José RamírezT23B-4Juan SotoOF-5Kyle SchwarberOF, DH-6Elly De La CruzSS-7Bobby Witt Jr.SS-8Corbin CarrollOF-9Cal RaleighC-10Julio RodríguezOF+211Vladimir Guerrero Jr.1B, 3B-112Manny MachadoT33B+113Junior Caminero3B+114Trea TurnerSS+515Bryce Harper1B+116Pete Alonso1B-117James WoodOF-618Fernando Tatis Jr.OF+219Francisco LindorSS+720Ronald Acuña Jr.OF+UR21Ketel Marte2B-22Nick KurtzT41B+623Pete Crow-ArmstrongOF-624Gunnar HendersonSS-225Christian YelichOF-126Cody Bellinger1B, OF-127Brent RookerOF, DH+228Corey SeagerSS+229Kyle TuckerOF-1130Alex Bregman3B+131Eugenio Suárez3B+232Geraldo PerdomoSS+333George SpringerOF+UR34CJ AbramsSS-735Jazz Chisholm Jr.T52B, 3B, OF+636Byron BuxtonOF-237Will SmithC-538Rafael Devers3B-1539Randy ArozarenaOF-140Riley GreeneOF-441Hunter GoodmanC, OF-142Shea LangeliersC+1243Freddie Freeman1B-144Zach NetoT6SS-145Matt Olson1B-146Vinnie Pasquantino1B+947Willson ContrerasC-48Taylor WardOF-49Jose Altuve2B-50Bo BichetteSS+251Brice Turang2B-152Josh NaylorT71B-1353William ContrerasC-54Ben RiceC, 1B+6255Jarren DuranOF-1856Seiya SuzukiOF-1057Salvador PerezC, 1B-1258Michael Busch1B+559Teoscar HernándezOF-60Brandon NimmoOF-361Maikel Garcia2B, 3B+1062Yandy Díaz1B-663Nico Hoerner2B, SS+364Andy PagesOF+165Spencer Torkelson1B-366Xavier EdwardsT82B, SS+267Trevor Story2B+668Michael Harris II2B, OF+3669Agustín RamírezC-270Jo AdellOF+1371Wyatt LangfordOF+772Willy AdamesSS+273Jeremy PeñaSS-2274Brandon Lowe2B-1375Tyler Soderstrom1B+176Alec BohmT93B+UR77Yainer DiazC-878Dansby SwansonSS+379Mike TroutOF-1580Giancarlo StantonDH+981Steven KwanOF+982Mookie Betts2B, SS, OF+283Roman AnthonyOF+284Sal FrelickOF+385Iván HerreraC+386Ezequiel TovarSS-987Ceddanne RafaelaSS, OF-2988Kerry CarpenterT10OF+489Addison Barger3B, OF-1790Luis Robert Jr.OF+391Jordan Westburg2B, 3B+392Luke Keaschall2B+993Ramón LaureanoOF+494Wilyer AbreuOF+495Chandler SimpsonOF+496Daulton VarshoOF+2497Alejandro KirkC+2898Gleyber Torres2B-1999Luis Arraez1B, 2B+1100Jakob MarseeOF+17101Jackson MerrillOF-19102Ian HappOF-7103Lourdes Gurriel Jr.T11OF+2104Lawrence ButlerOF+2105Marcell OzunaDH-19106Heliot RamosOF-4107J.T. RealmutoC-108Alec Burleson1B, OF+3109Jurickson ProfarOF+26110Andrew Vaughn1B, OF+2111Drake BaldwinC+11112Christian Walker1B-16113Xander Bogaerts2B, SS-22114Matt Shaw3B+4115Trent GrishamOF+UR116Bryan ReynoldsOF-3117Noelvi Marte3B, OF+27118Bryson Stott2B+6119Jackson Holliday2B+11120Nick CastellanosT12OF-40121Dylan CrewsOF+17122Lenyn Sosa2B, 3B+6123Miguel Andujar3B, OF+16124Anthony VolpeSS-15125Nolan Schanuel1B-22126Ryan Mountcastle1B+UR127Josh LoweOF-13128Cedric MullinsOF+1129Luis García Jr.2B+2130Jung Hoo LeeOF+UR131TJ FriedlOF-10132Joey Ortiz3B, SS+10133Brenton Doyle+10134Samuel BasalloC+UR135Kyle TeelC+UR136Brooks Lee2B, 3B, SS+UR137Matt WallnerOF+4138Isaac CollinsOF-19139Marcus Semien2B+UR140Carlos CorreaSS+UR141Brett Baty2B, 3B+UR142Colt Keith1B, 2B, 3B+UR143Lars NootbaarOF+UR144Jorge Polanco2B, 3B-21145Austin WellsC-18146Adley RutschmanC-36147Jordan BeckOF-39148Ernie Clement2B, 3B, SS-12149Otto Lopez2B-23150Dillon DinglerC+UR
Taxi Squad
Players are listed in no particular order. This list is not every interesting guy out there, but a running list of players who either almost made the list or have been topics of interesting conversation.
NEW FEATURE: I will put blurbs in bold if they are new to the Taxi Squad or if there’s a significant update to their note.
Catcher
Carlos Narváez (C, BOS) — Streaming catcher with a little bit of upside.
Ryan Jeffers (C, MIN) — Cleaning up in a lineup that may struggle mightily at times.
Carson Kelly (C, CHC) — Hitting well and hits in the heart of the order, but Amay’s return muddies the playing time waters.
Tyler Stephenson (C, CIN) — The strikeouts make him feel more like a streamer than a fantasy lineup regular in single-catcher leagues.
Adrian Del Castillo (C, ARI) — Lots of pop for a backstop, though it seems he won’t play against lefties at all.
Logan O’Hoppe (C, LAA) — Lost a lot of playing time as his slumps have lasted longer and longer.
Pedro Pagés (C, STL) — Plays about 65-75% of the time and hitting well of late, albeit with a few too many strikeouts.
First Base
Kyle Manzardo (1B, CLE) — Cooling off hard.
Ryan O’Hearn (1B/OF, SDP) — Streamer against bad right-handed pitching.
Jake Cronenworth (1B/2B, SDP) — Replacement-level fill-in.
Paul Goldschmidt (1B, NYY) — A knee injury opened up some extra time for Rice, who has run away with it. Seems like Goldy is the odd man out for now.
Spencer Steer (1B/OF, CIN) — Should be a lot better with the opportunity he’s been given.
Josh Bell (1B, WSN) — Replacement-level first baseman, slightly better in points and OBP.
Warming Bernabel (1B, COL) — Streamer at home.
Tyler Locklear (1B, ARI) — The power/speed combo will be interesting if he ever cleans up the strikeouts and
Gavin Sheets (1B/OF, SDP) — The arrival of O’Hearn makes Sheets extremely redundant, as reflected by the gutting of his playing time.
Coby Mayo (1B/3B, BAL) — Plays plenty but isn’t performing as the strikeouts have taken over.
Dominic Smith (1B, SFG) — OBP streamer.
Miguel Vargas (1B/3B, CWS) — Looked decent again before his most recent IL stint, let’s see how he looks now. Not getting my hopes up.
Owen Caissie (1B, CHC) — Like many corner prospects, the hit tool and strikeout rate worry me. I’d wager his adjustment period to the majors may take some time, and I’m not certain the playing time will be steady enough to make the gamble worth the risk in 12-teamers.
Pavin Smith (1B/OF, ARI) — Platoon streamer when hot.
Nathaniel Lowe (1B, WAS) — He should find a job again in 2026 and might be a last-round flyer with the right team and role.
Spencer Horwitz (1B/2B, PIT) — Not enough upside to hold through this slump in standard leagues, but he’s still tolerable in points.
Second Base
Hyeseong Kim (2B, LAD) — It will be very exciting when he has anything close to a regular role.
Jonathan India (2B/3B/OF, KCR) — Deep points league only.
Kristian Campbell (2B, BOS) — Raking over the last month in triple-A, but blocked. Should be a September call-up.
Ozzie Albies (2B, ATL) — Showing a few signs of life, I guess.
Davis Schneider (2B/OF, TOR) — Only playing against lefties.
Jeff McNeil (2B/OF, NYM) — Just a reminder that if he smacks a few home runs out of nowhere, it’s just a flash in the pan.
Angel Martínez (2B/OF, CLE) — The line drives slowed down and the production abruptly halted.
Jordan Lawlar (2B/SS, ARI) — He’s been out for about a month with a hamstring issue but should get another shot at the majors once healthy.
Willi Castro (2B/3B/SS/OF, CHC) — Not playing enough to consider.
Ha-Seong Kim (2B/SS, TBR) — Not showing enough as a hitter for me to care about the steals.
Matt McLain (2B/SS, CIN) — Strikeouts are back and he’s been pushed down the order or benched of late.
Chase Meidroth (2B/SS, CWS) — Points streamer.
Andrés Giménez (2B, TOR) — Desperation streamer.
Blaze Alexander (2B/3B/SS, ARI) — Big strikeout spike, even when he was in Colorado for four games.
Third Base
Ke’Bryan Hayes (3B, CIN) — Going to Great American Ball Park does help his HR totals but not enough for them to be meaningful. Remains a deep-league streamer. Perhaps steals a few more bases, but again, only enough for deep leagues to even consider watching.
Yoán Moncada (3B, LAA) — Looked fine before the injury, but no thanks.
Brady House (3B, WAS) — An aggressive power hitter who is keeping the strikeout rate down more than I expected. Still, he’s rarely barreling the ball and struggles to get it in the air so he’s just a desperate replacement streamer in 12-teamers right now.
Ryan McMahon (3B, NYY) — Should keep playing every day as a Yankee, but doesn’t improve his overall outlook much.
Caleb Durbin (3B, MIL) — Sits too often.
Nolan Gorman (3B, STL) — Power streamer for the desperate.
Kyle Karros (3B, COL) — If you’re in a 15-teamer and desperate, you can stream him at home. Having a nice year in triple-A but as a prospect appears to be fairly low-ceiling.
Josh Smith (1B/3B/SS/OF, TEX) — Eligible everywhere, but merely a replacement-level contributor.
Royce Lewis (3B, MIN) — Droppable in most formats.
Josh Jung (3B, TEX) — Droppable in most formats with the strikeouts spiking again.
Cam Smith (3B/OF, HOU) — Droppable in all formats.
Colson Montgomery (3B/SS, CHW) — Strikeouts have climbed and the hot streak has cooled down.
Shortstop
Javier Báez (2B/3B/SS/OF, DET) — He’s as streaky as ever.
Paul DeJong (3B/SS, WAS) — Power streamer for the desperate.
J.P. Crawford (SS, SEA) — Might still be ranked in points, but not enough upside to hold through prolonged slumps.
Masyn Winn (SS, STL) — No longer in the top half of the lineup, and I don’t see how he can be a top-100 hitter without hitting at or near the top of the lineup due to his limited power and speed.
Outfield/DH
Emmanuel Rodriguez (OF, MIN) — Strikes out way too much because he’s far too passive, but if he cleans that up, watch out.
Mike Yastrzemski (OF, SFG) — Platooned.
Denzel Clarke (OF, ATH) — Speed streamer.
Parker Meadows (OF, DET) — Lost playing time and hits at the bottom of the order. Droppable.
Wenceel Pérez (OF, DET) — Replacement-level outfielder who runs hot and cold.
Trevor Larnach (OF, MIN) — Strikeout rate is climbing, walk rate is falling, and outside of Buxton, no one in this offense has shown any consistency.
Chase DeLauter (OF, CLE) — The hamate injury from late July means we probably won’t see him in 2025.
Jordan Walker (OF, STL) — If he drops the strikeouts and grounders, I might get excited, but probably not.
Tyler Freeman (OF, COL) — Leading off at home is cool, but on the road, the ceiling is too low as the offense around him can’t support him.
Jacob Young (OF, WAS) — Speed streamer with some extra viability in points leagues if he keeps the strikeout rate under 15% as he has so far. His strong defense will keep him in the lineup most days, even when he’s not hitting.
Tommy Pham (OF, PIT) — Fading fast.
Evan Carter (OF, TEX) — Has a bit of speed and puts the ball in play.
Austin Hays — Playing again with Fraley DFA’d but merely a streamer for me when at home.
Colton Cowser (OF, BAL) — Hit fifth in his first three games back but this roster is crowded and he’s not been good when healthy in 2025.
Dylan Beavers (OF, BAL) — Should have solid plate discipline but may sit against lefties, but they won’t see a lefty starter until Crochet in about a week from now. Also not sure how much power we see out of the gate.
Jesus Sanchez (OF, HOU) — Had a great opportunity, but could not take advantage.
Colby Thomas (OF, ATH) — Doing good things when active, but playing time is very sporadic and the strikeout rate is terrifying.
Jasson Domínguez (OF, NYY) — Too many hot outfielders to stream to keep hoping that he’ll be an everyday player.
Mickey Moniak (OF, COL) — Streamer at home, but platooned against lefties.
On the IL
Players are listed by position and not by projected value.
Keibert Ruiz (C, WSN) — Not a hold unless your IL is wide open.
Gabriel Moreno (C, ARZ) — Borderline hold in 12-teamers if your IL is full. Catcher is deep enough that you can probably stream.
Francisco Alvarez (C, NYM) — Hurt just as he was getting exciting again. Bummer.
Tyler Stephenson (C, CIN) — No need to hold in single-catcher leagues as catcher is plenty deep.
Rhys Hoskins (1B, MIL) — On a rehab, and his return will shake up playing time in Milwaukee. I’m not interested in Hoskins himself, but I am curious how everything else plays out for guys like Vaughn and Collins.
Jonathan Aranda (1B/2B, TBR) — Droppable, as it’s hard to imagine he’s back in time to make an impact.
Isaac Paredes (1B/3B, HOU) — Out for the year.
Jake Burger (1B/3B, TEX) — Here we go again. Not holding him in any format.
Jac Caglianone (1B, KCR) — On a rehab, but not a guy I’d be scooping in redraft.
Tommy Edman (2B/OF, LAD) — Droppable. Expected back in early September.
Brendan Donovan (2B/OF, STL) — Should be back in early September, so I’d be holding in points leagues.
Marcelo Mayer (3B/SS, BOS) — Still has plenty of dynasty upside.
Austin Riley (3B, ATL) — I wouldn’t expect more than two weeks out of him at this point. Droppable if you need the extra IL spot or if your playoffs end in the first half of September.
Connor Norby (2B/3B, MIA) — Starting a rehab, only worth adding in deep leagues where you’re desperate for power.
Nolan Arenado (3B, STL) — Not a player I’d be stashing.
Max Muncy (3B, LAD) — Oblique injuries are tough, but so is 3B. I’d expect him to appear in maybe 10-15 games.
Matt Chapman (3B, SFG) — May be back soon. I’d hold in OBP leagues, but in standard and leagues with a strikeout penalty, it depends on the quality of the options on the wire.
Jacob Wilson (SS, ATH) — On a rehab, should be back by September.
Oneil Cruz (SS/OF, PIT) — Concussion IL. I expect him to be back by the end of the month.
Victor Robles (OF, SEA) — If Robles heads back to the top of the order, he would immediately be in the top 100.
Yordan Alvarez (OF, HOU) — Expected back before I do this list again and will immediately land in Tier 2. He stole a base on rehab!
Anthony Santander (OF, TOR) — Not going to make an impact in the regular season.
Lane Thomas (OF, CLE) — Not a guy I’m holding.
Jorge Soler (OF, LAA) — No need to hold.
Jerar Encarnación (OF, SFG) — A lost season for Jerar.
Tyler O’Neill (OF, BAL) — Hard to hold on the IL if it’s already full as we don’t know if we’ll get the extremely hot or the extremely cold version on his return.
Adolis García (OF, TEX) — Not the year we hoped for from him. No need to hold.
Victor Scott II (OF, STL) — No need to hold.
Kyle Stowers (OF, MIA) — Tough to hold as we only get him for two weeks at this point.
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