{"id":760535,"date":"2026-07-24T21:36:23","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T21:36:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/760535\/"},"modified":"2026-07-24T21:36:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T21:36:23","slug":"top-150-hitters-for-fantasy-baseball-2026-week-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/760535\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 150 Hitters for Fantasy Baseball 2026 – Week 17"},"content":{"rendered":"

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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.
\nThese 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.
\nI take rankings like this more as art than science. Every person\u2019s rankings are influenced by their biases, strategic philosophies, risk assessments, and projections. It\u2019s 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\u2019t possibly predict your team\u2019s specific needs, your leaguemates\u2019 player evaluations, or your current waiver wire, and if I could, it\u2019d be weird in\u00a0a bad way.
\nThis is a safe space for me where I answer to no one but myself\u2026and you if you leave a comment.
\nI\u2019m 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\u2019ll 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\u2019m missing any!<\/p>\n

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Ranking Philosophy<\/p>\n

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To keep things in the same ilk, here are a couple of notes on how I generally evaluate hitters before we dive in:<\/p>\n

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In 12-team formats, I don\u2019t see much value in guys who only provide stolen bases. It\u2019s 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.
\nNo 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.
\nPositional eligibility, specifically multi-eligibility, is neat but isn\u2019t a huge factor in many 10- and 12-team leagues anymore due to the prevalence of multi-eligible players. It\u2019s 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.
\nSimilarly, I don\u2019t 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.
\nRegardless 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\u2019t and don\u2019t know which will be valid until it\u2019s over, though track record, scouting, and trends can give us hints.
\nOne 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.
\nTHIS IS NOT A TRADE CHART. Trade charts need to account for \u201cmarket\u201d value, which is largely perception-based.<\/p>\n

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Read The Notes<\/p>\n

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If you\u2019d like input on a player or have any feedback, your best bet is to contact me on Bluesky (@scottchu.pitcherlist.com<\/a>), X (@ifthechufits<\/a>), or Reddit (u\/ChusephEsquire<\/a>)<\/p>\n

I also host an AMA in the r\/fantasybaseball subreddit<\/a> every Friday (starting sometime in late March) with Nate Schwartz<\/a>, 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.<\/p>\n

For additional insight, also check out the Hacks & Jacks podcast<\/a>! This is a hitter-focused pod with me, Brett Ford, and occasional special guests.<\/p>\n

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Tier 1\u00a0<\/p>\n

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To be clear, Juan Soto<\/a> is still an incredible hitter and you should not be taking any action based on this tiny reshuffling of this tier. The first reason for the drop is that the steals just haven\u2019t showed up. While he did swipe five back in May (four of which came in a six-day stretch), he\u2019s been mostly still on the basepaths. The second is just how bad the Mets are at scoring runs. They have the fifth-lowest run total so far this season, as well as the fifth-worst team wRC+ (which is not easy to do when you have Juan Soto<\/a>). No matter how hard you hit the ball, you can\u2019t get runs or RBI without help from your teammates, and Soto just ain\u2019t getting it. That should improve slightly as Lindor finds his groove, but the three straight seasons of 100+ RBI and four straight seasons of 90+ runs scored are in very serious jeopardy of ending.<\/p>\n

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Tier 2<\/p>\n

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Welcome back, Jos\u00e9 Ram\u00edrez<\/a>! It\u2019ll be tough for J-Ram to clear 20 home runs by the end of the season, but that\u2019s more of a function of the number of games remaining than any concern I have over his hamate injury (legitimate research has shown most players return to prior performance quickly<\/a>).
\nPete Crow-Armstrong<\/a> has slowed down considerably over his last 10 games. While he\u2019s taking a boatload of walks, he\u2019s also striking out in bunches and the batted ball quality has tanked (83.1 mph in this stretch). I\u2019m a long way from jumping ship, but the main criticism of PCA\u2019s elite 2025 was that once he dropped off, he dropped off hard and never recovered. The huge spike in walks is a very new development, as his 15-game rolling walk rate is twice as high as we have ever seen it, so perhaps PCA will find a new way to work his way through the slump and find strong performance again before we all start getting heartburn.
\nDrake Baldwin<\/a> has erased all of my concerns that surfaced when he first came off the IL. In his last 15 games, he has five home runs, 27 combined runs and RBI, and 11 walks to just five strikeouts.<\/p>\n

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Tier 3\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Hunter Goodman<\/a> has already matched his home run total from last season (31), in large part because he\u2019s swinging the bat harder than ever and pulling balls in the air more than ever. That\u2019s an incredibly potent combination, though it\u2019s not the only thing going on under the hood for Goodman during this second breakout. The part that encourages me the most is actually his decision making. Now, no one is going to confuse Hunter Goodman<\/a> with Juan Soto<\/a>, but we\u2019re seeing some meaningful improvements in areas that were huge weaknesses: two-strike counts and breaking balls. While Goodman remains a highly-aggressive hitter (which isn\u2019t a bad thing for a guy who plays half his games in Coors), key improvements to these two areas can help him become a more consistent hitter even when some of this heat cools off.<\/p>\n

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Welcome back, Julio Rodr\u00edguez<\/a>! At some point, he\u2019s going to explode and earn this ranking, like he did in 2023 and 2025.
\nLast week, I said CJ Abrams<\/a> was a good guy to try and trade away. He then hit four home runs in three games and is smashing the ball everywhere. Now I think he\u2019s still a good trade candidate, but my asking price is higher.<\/p>\n

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Tier 4<\/p>\n

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Welcome back, Byron Buxton<\/a>! If health wasn\u2019t a factor, he\u2019d be somewhere in Tier 3. He\u2019s still a streaky hitter even when fully healthy, but the hot streaks are so good that it shouldn\u2019t really bother you.
\nWillson Contreras<\/a> is pulling balls in the air more than ever by a wide margin. It\u2019s not weird that a player of his skill and experience can figure out how to do this, but the extent to which he has continued to improve is surprising. The one caveat at the moment is that Contreras has never played in 140 games in a season. While some of that is from catching, he has been on the IL in seven of the last nine seasons. He\u2019s not a huge injury risk, but it\u2019s still there.
\nFernando Tatis Jr.<\/a> finally hit some home runs in consecutive games, though he\u2019s still hitting far too many grounders for my liking (52.6% in July). If someone in your league is hyped on it, I\u2019d be throwing offers their way to look for an upgrade. Projection systems still believe in him as a top-10 hitter (and they are also what powers most trade evaluators and calculators), and if you can get close to that kind of value, you\u2019d be in great shape.
\nShea Langeliers<\/a> has a 41.1% strikeout rate in July, and while he\u2019s been able to carry a .908 OPS in spite of it, that rate needs to come down or bad days will be ahead.<\/p>\n

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Tier 5\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Most players in this tier fell small amounts due to J-Ram, J-Rod, and Buxton coming back from the IL plus jumps by Goodman and Baldwin, so don\u2019t read much into it.
\nWyatt Langford<\/a> is picking up where he left off, and now has eight homers and 35 combined runs and RBI in his last 20 games with a .354\/.404\/.695 line. It\u2019s absolutely ridiculous and why folks are so hesitant to drop him when he has two months of poor performance. The risk is high, both in performance and health, but this is why you chase it.<\/p>\n

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Tier 6<\/p>\n

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Jeremy Pe\u00f1a<\/a> is surging, hitting a home run in three straight games, giving him six in his last 19 (dating back to June 19). Luck is driving some of the recent success, though even without the luck the numbers would be pretty strong. Injury risk will keep him a little lower on this list than he might deserve, but you should get awesome ratios, decent power, plenty of runs, and a smattering of steals whenever he\u2019s active.
\nSeiya Suzuki<\/a> has moved up to second in the order and has scored at least one run in all eight games he\u2019s been there. He\u2019s walked 23.7% of the time in those eight games, for what it\u2019s worth, and while the Cubs offense is extremely inconsistent, getting on base 15 times in eight games will certainly help you score runs.
\nTrea Turner<\/a> is turning things around. I\u2019ve pondered before about how often you can expect a 33-year-old everyday player to dig deep and find these crazy hot streaks, but here we are. One small note \u2013 the stolen bases are way down in July, but that may be more of a product of nearly half of his hits this month going for extra bases (when he stole eight bags in May, just a third of his hits were for extras).
\nMookie Betts<\/a> remains excellent at making good decisions and good contact, but he\u2019s lost the power he flashed a few weeks ago (note the green lines dropping below the line).<\/p>\n

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Tier 7\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Jackson Merrill<\/a> has found his power stroke in July, hitting six home runs this month and posting a .380 xwOBA, which puts him in the top 20 on the month. I loved seeing Merrill move up to second in the order for a little while, though he hit sixth again on Wednesday and was absent Thursday, so it\u2019s possible they\u2019re pushing him back down again. This lineup is extremely top-heavy, so getting back to hitting second would be a major boon to his counting stats.
\nMunetaka Murakami<\/a> is hitting .157 with a 38.5% strikeout rate since his return (though he does also have a .359 OBP), and that\u2019s the dark side of three true outcome hitters. We haven\u2019t really seen Murakami struggle yet, so it\u2019s hard to say how long it might take for him to snap out of it. How long it takes, and then how long he can stay hot a second time, will tell us a lot about his long-term upside.
\nIt\u2019s been an ugly 16-game stretch for Brandon Marsh<\/a>, as his wRC+ of 8 is the fifth worst mark in baseball since July 2. We\u2019ve seen Marsh struggle before and rebound fairly quickly (look at August and September of last season), so hopefully this is just a blip on the radar.<\/p>\n

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Tier 8<\/p>\n

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Jake McCarthy<\/a> is the locked-in everyday leadoff man for the Rockies in the midst of an 11-game on-base streak. I am stunned to see him hitting well against both righties and lefties, especially after he looked awful throughout April. Since then, though, he\u2019s hit at least .291 and slugged at least .477 in each month since with July being his best month yet overall (.976 OPS). If he didn\u2019t have such a reputation for injury and for inexplicable performance drop-offs, McCarthy would be at least a tier higher.
\nCarson Benge<\/a> has dropped off a bit of late and I\u2019m closing to dropping him even further due to the severe disappointment in his supporting staff outside of Juan Soto<\/a>. I was hoping he\u2019d build on his very strong June, and while he\u2019s continued to hit for a decent average and steal bases, the home runs have dipped and the counting stats leave a ton to be desired. His batted ball quality hasn\u2019t decreased much at all, though, so I\u2019m holding out one more week.<\/p>\n

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Tier 9\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Isaac Paredes<\/a> is raking this month and has started to find his home runs stroke in his home ballpark (which is designed perfectly for his pull-heavy approach). Paredes is also locked into the third spot in the lineup behind Pe\u00f1a and Alvarez, so RBI should steadily flow in.
\nYes, I still love Curtis Mead<\/a>. Yes, I noticed he was out against three of the last four righties. No, I don\u2019t understand why they are doing that.
\nJosh Naylor<\/a> is putting a ton of balls in play and stealing bases, but he has just two extra-base hits this month. If you don\u2019t need speed and you\u2019re in a 10-teamer, Naylor is a tough guy to keep waiting for, but in points leagues or leagues where you do need the speed, you can keep holding.
\nKazuma Okamoto<\/a> has a 65 wRC+ in July, and things have only gotten worse since the Break as he is still waiting for his first hit in the second half. He\u2019s been pushed down to sixth in the order for a team that isn\u2019t scoring a bunch of runs, though he\u2019s slumped before and rebounded. I\u2019m trying to have a little patience, especially since he\u2019s a third baseman and options at the position are often thin, but hand-wringing is justified, particularly in light of the strikeout spike of late.
\nBrandon Nimmo<\/a>\u2019s luck is finally turning around, it seems, as his expected stats have turned down but his performance has turned up. Hopefully he improves under the hood a bit and things even out.
\nIt\u2019s a long fall for Kyle Tucker<\/a>, but what else can I do? July is his worst month yet, as he has a .554 OPS with zero homers or steals and just four RBI. The stuff under the hood is just as bad. There are no signs of a turnaround yet. I wish I could point to something to explain it, but he\u2019s just not very good right now. In 8-10 team leagues, you\u2019re in an extremely tough spot, especially if you\u2019re on the outside looking in.<\/p>\n

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Tier 10<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s hard not to fall in love with Esmerlyn Valdez<\/a>, as he\u2019s hitting the ball ridiculously hard, but the wet blanket in me needs to remind folks that this kind of success is extremely difficult to maintain when you\u2019re striking out nearly 40% of the time. The ratios are going to take a dive at some point, but hopefully the power is present enough to offset that pain.
\nJac Caglianone<\/a> has real power and a real problem with hitting the ball into the ground. Until he fixes that (which can take years, just ask Jordan Walker<\/a>), he will be extremely frustrating.
\nI wish I could give you some kind of meaningful news on Ivan Herrera<\/a>, but the reality is that he continues to show a lack of power and the arrows are currently pointing down, not up to steady. It\u2019s bad on the stat sheet and it\u2019s bad under the hood.
\nJacob Wilson<\/a> has struggled to stay healthy, but he currently looks as strong as ever leading off for the As. Don\u2019t expect more home run binges like he had this week, but he\u2019ll slap liners all over the place and score runs (especially at home) with a fantastic batting average and maybe a few steals, too. He\u2019s also solid as a rock in points leagues.
\nWelcome back, Gleyber Torres<\/a>! I don\u2019t love the strikeouts in his first three games back, but he was hitting the ball quite well earlier in the season, and with the offense firing much better than it did at the start of the year, there\u2019s upside for ratios and runs.
\nLet\u2019s see how much Luis Robert Jr.<\/a>\u2019s return messes with the outfield for the Mets, as I\u2019m concerned that they are going to start mixing things up and pull AJ Ewing out of the leadoff spot (though LuBob won\u2019t be the guy who takes it from him).<\/p>\n

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Tier 11<\/p>\n

At this point in the ranks, you can start considering players as streamers in standard-size 10-12-team leagues. That doesn\u2019t mean they are bad; it just means we are at\/near the replacement level, as several of these guys are likely on your wire.<\/p>\n

Nice rebound from Travis Bazzana<\/a>, even though he\u2019s dropped to fifth in the order with J-Ram\u2019s return. He\u2019s not hitting the ball particularly hard, but he does just enough to pop a few home runs, and he\u2019s already stolen two bases since the break. Combine that with the consistently strong walk rate, and I can forgive the increase in strikeouts.
\nThe plate discipline has been atrocious, but Eugenio Su\u00e1rez<\/a> has four home runs in his last seven games (and only one of those was in Coors), and the few times he has connected, he\u2019s blistered the baseball. This might be the start of something good.
\nJosh Jung<\/a> was looking like he was bouncing back, but he still sits at just one home run since June 9 and just six RBI in 32 games. That\u2019s tough to stomach, even at third. The ratios have been OK, I suppose, but in shallower leagues you may need to look elsewhere if homers and RBI are on your wish list.
\nAnother drop for Cal Raleigh<\/a>. I\u2019ll likely hold him around this range for a while in hopes something clicks, but as of now, he just isn\u2019t putting the same power on his fly balls.<\/p>\n

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Tier 12<\/p>\n

Most players in the top half of this tier moved up 13+ spots due to all the guys I shoved at the bottom.<\/p>\n

A few signs of life from Salvador Perez<\/a> are all I need to hold out some hope that some heat is coming.
\nTy France<\/a> has set the world on fire for the last few weeks, and you\u2019d think I\u2019d be more excited about it, but I\u2019m not. Obviously, he\u2019s a fine stream if you need some short-term production, but we\u2019ve seen thousands of plate appearances from France, and these peaks just don\u2019t last very long (nor is this one particularly unique). Is it possible that he really has made a change, and that the increase in pulled fly balls and locked-in batting is more than just normal heat? Yes, that\u2019s always a possibility. That said, I remain skeptical that Ty France<\/a> will still be on fantasy rosters through August and September, as his slumps are generally long and brutal. Still, he is smacking the heck out of the ball right now and is well worth a scoop for that short-term burst.<\/p>\n

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Welcome back, Luis Robert Jr.<\/a>! He started in two of the first three games since being activated and pinched hit in the other. He also popped a home run in one of the games, though he also had more than his fair share of strikeouts. The upside is fantastic, as always, but he remains extremely volatile for a variety of valid reasons.
\nAlex Bregman<\/a> tallied a couple of hits lately and three home runs, but I\u2019m still fairly lukewarm on his rest-of-season outlook, as the ranking suggests. The batted ball quality is not very good, and this offense is exceedingly inconsistent, making projecting counting stats very difficult.
\nKeibert Ruiz<\/a> is sitting a lot more than I\u2019d like, but he performs well when on the field. If you need more volume, go ahead and stream elsewhere, but the floor here is quite strong, even if the playing time is frustrating at times.
\nHeliot Ramos<\/a> is a streaky power hitter, and those types bounce between the Taxi Squad and the last two tiers of this list. It\u2019s just the nature of the beast.
\nThe bottom has fallen out a bit for Josh Bell<\/a>, with just eight combined runs and RBI in his last 14 games with zero homers. Believe it or not, the expected stats are even worse than the actual ones, and I expect him to drop in the order sooner rather than later.
\nI kept waiting for Christian Walker<\/a> to bounce back due to his strong start, but he\u2019s been awful since the start of June and it\u2019s time to move on.
\nKyle Stowers<\/a> is a streaky lefty power guy through and through. I just don\u2019t think there\u2019s more to him than that at this point.<\/p>\n

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\n
\n
\n 1Shohei Ohtani<\/a>T1LADDH-2Yordan Alvarez<\/a>HOUOF+13James Wood<\/a>WSHOF+14Juan Soto<\/a>NYMOF-25Jos\u00e9 Ram\u00edrez<\/a>T2CLE3B+UR6Ben Rice<\/a>NYYC, 1B-7Elly De La Cruz<\/a>CINSS+18Junior Caminero<\/a>TB3B+29Jordan Walker<\/a>STLOF+210Pete Crow-Armstrong<\/a>CHCOF-311Kyle Schwarber<\/a>PHIOF-212Drake Baldwin<\/a>ATLC+1013Hunter Goodman<\/a>T3COLC+1014Jackson Chourio<\/a>MILOF-115Miguel Vargas<\/a>CHW1B, 3B-116Brice Turang<\/a>MIL2B-417Matt Olson<\/a>ATL1B-218Corbin Carroll<\/a>ARIOF-219Julio Rodr\u00edguez<\/a>SEAOF+UR20CJ Abrams<\/a>WSHSS+521Byron Buxton<\/a>T4MINOF+UR22Francisco Lindor<\/a>NYMSS-323Pete Alonso<\/a>BAL1B-224Bryce Harper<\/a>PHI1B-425Willson Contreras<\/a>BOS1B+426Fernando Tatis Jr.<\/a>SDOF+1027Shea Langeliers<\/a>ATHC-1028Randy Arozarena<\/a>SEAOF-229Otto Lopez<\/a>MIA2B, SS-1130Michael Harris II<\/a>T5ATLOF-231Ketel Marte<\/a>ARI2B-32William Contreras<\/a>MILC-833Dillon Dingler<\/a>DETC-134Bryan Reynolds<\/a>PITOF-735Zach Neto<\/a>LAASS-136Freddie Freeman<\/a>LAD1B-637Yandy D\u00edaz<\/a>TB1B-238Wyatt Langford<\/a>TEXOF+439Luis Garc\u00eda Jr.<\/a>T6WSH2B-640Alec Burleson<\/a>STL1B, OF-241Riley Greene<\/a>DETOF-142Andy Pages<\/a>LADOF+243Jeremy Pe\u00f1a<\/a>HOUSS+844Seiya Suzuki<\/a>CHCOF+945Kevin McGonigle<\/a>DETSS-646Brandon Lowe<\/a>PIT2B-547Rafael Devers<\/a>SF1B-448Gunnar Henderson<\/a>BALSS-149Sal Stewart<\/a>CIN1B, 3B-350Trea Turner<\/a>PHISS+1151Mookie Betts<\/a>LADSS-1452Jazz Chisholm Jr.<\/a>NYY2B, 3B-453Manny Machado<\/a>T7SD3B-454Xavier Edwards<\/a>MIA2B, SS+155JJ Wetherholt<\/a>STL2B, SS+456Jackson Merrill<\/a>SDOF+1457Jonathan Aranda<\/a>TB1B+358Munetaka Murakami<\/a>CHW1B, 3B-1359Gabriel Moreno<\/a>ARIC+1060Cody Bellinger<\/a>NYY1B-861Brandon Marsh<\/a>PHIOF-1162Sam Antonacci<\/a>CHW2B, OF-463Carter Jensen<\/a>KCC+264Ozzie Albies<\/a>T8ATL2B-1065Liam Hicks<\/a>MIAC, 1B+1166Ceddanne Rafaela<\/a>BOS2B, OF+767Jake McCarthy<\/a>COLOF+1168Carson Benge<\/a>NYMOF-669Teoscar Hern\u00e1ndez<\/a>LADOF-270Casey Schmitt<\/a>SF1B, 2B, 3B+271Max Muncy<\/a>LAD3B+1072Ryan O\u2019Hearn<\/a>PIT1B-973Luis Arraez<\/a>SF1B, 2B-574Jake Bauers<\/a>MIL1B, OF-1075Kazuma Okamoto<\/a>TOR3B-1976Isaac Paredes<\/a>T9HOU3B+877Curtis Mead<\/a>WSH1B, 2B, 3B+678Josh Naylor<\/a>SEA1B-179Vladimir Guerrero Jr.<\/a>TOR1B-880Caleb Durbin<\/a>BOS2B, 3B+781Wilyer Abreu<\/a>BOSOF+1382Kyle Tucker<\/a>LADOF-2583Mike Trout<\/a>LAAOF-484Ian Happ<\/a>CHCOF-485Bo Bichette<\/a>NYM3B, SS-1186Nick Gonzales<\/a>PIT2B, 3B-187Brandon Nimmo<\/a>TEXOF+1188Colson Montgomery<\/a>CHWSS-289Cole Carrigg<\/a>COLOF-90Esmerlyn Valdez<\/a>T10PITOF+1991Nasim Nu\u00f1ez<\/a>WSH2B, SS+3292Jac Caglianone<\/a>KCOF-1093Ivan Herrera<\/a>STLC, DH-1894Jake Burger<\/a>TEX1B-195Royce Lewis<\/a>MIN3B-96Chase DeLauter<\/a>CLEOF-97Tyler Soderstrom<\/a>ATH1B+998Jacob Wilson<\/a>ATHSS+2899Tommy Edman<\/a>LAD2B, OF+20100TJ Rumfield<\/a>COL1B, 3B+2101Chandler Simpson<\/a>TBOF+16102Gleyber Torres<\/a>DET2B+UR103Dansby Swanson<\/a>CHCSS+1104A.J. Ewing<\/a>NYMOF-13105Trent Grisham<\/a>T11NYYOF-13106Geraldo Perdomo<\/a>ARISS+1107Jo Adell<\/a>LAAOF+1108Daylen Lile<\/a>WSHOF+2109Garrett Mitchell<\/a>MILOF-12110Heriberto Hern\u00e1ndez<\/a>MIAOF+11111Brooks Lee<\/a>MIN2B, 3B, SS-8112Joe Mack<\/a>MIAC+19113Eugenio Su\u00e1rez<\/a>CIN3B+19114JJ Bleday<\/a>CINOF+2115Bryce Eldridge<\/a>SF1B, DH+18116Travis Bazzana<\/a>CLE2B+23117Bryson Stott<\/a>PHI2B, SS-17118Michael Busch<\/a>CHC1B+9119Ezequiel Duran<\/a>TEX1B, 2B, 3B, SS, OF+15120Josh Jung<\/a>TEX3B-32121Brayan Rocchio<\/a>CLE2B, SS+17122Cal Raleigh<\/a>SEAC-23123Salvador Perez<\/a>T12KCC, 1B+22124Ryan Jeffers<\/a>MINC+16125Christian Yelich<\/a>MILOF+17126Yainer Diaz<\/a>HOUC+17127Alex Bregman<\/a>CHC3B-13128Willy Adames<\/a>SFSS+16129Jose Altuve<\/a>HOU2B, OF-17130Mauricio Dub\u00f3n<\/a>ATL2B, 3B, SS, OF-5131Jung Hoo Lee<\/a>SFOF+16132Ty France<\/a>SD1B+UR133Luis Robert Jr.<\/a>NYMOF+UR134Dylan Crews<\/a>WSHOF+12135Chase Meidroth<\/a>CHW2B, SS+13136George Springer<\/a>TOROF+13137Nico Hoerner<\/a>CHC2B, SS+13138Luke Keaschall<\/a>MIN2B-10139Ernie Clement<\/a>TOR1B, 2B, 3B, SS-9140Keibert Ruiz<\/a>WSHC-27141Kody Clemens<\/a>MIN1B, 2B, OF-17142Trevor Larnach<\/a>MINOF-1143Heliot Ramos<\/a>SFOF-23144Jos\u00e9 Caballero<\/a>NYY2B, 3B, SS, OF-29145Jasson Dom\u00ednguez<\/a>NYYOF-23146Josh Bell<\/a>MIN1B-56147Kyle Stowers<\/a>MIA1B, OF-42148Christian Walker<\/a>HOU1B-47149Dominic Canzone<\/a>SEAOF-31150Jake Mangum<\/a>PITOF-14
\n <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

UPDATE: I\u2019ve 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.<\/p>\n

Injured List<\/p>\n

Listed by position in no particular order.<\/p>\n

Catcher<\/p>\n

Will Smith<\/a> (C, LAD) \u2014 Hopefully, some time on the IL helps him recover and find his old form.
\nSamuel Basallo<\/a> (C, BAL) \u2014 Right shoulder inflammation likely keeps him out for a few weeks, but I\u2019d still hold in 12-teamers if I have the space.
\nAdley Rutschman<\/a> (C, BAL) \u2014 No long term concerns, but I\u2019d much rather hold Basallo.<\/p>\n

First Base<\/p>\n

Spencer Horwitz<\/a> (1B, PIT) \u2014 On a rehab.
\nNick Kurtz<\/a> (1B, ATH) \u2014 He\u2019s apparently been playing through this thumb injury, but that doesn\u2019t mean this will be a minimum stay. No timeline yet but I expect it to last a few weeks.<\/p>\n

Second Base<\/p>\n

Brendan Donovan<\/a> (2B\/3B\/OF) \u2014 On a rehab in triple-A. Could be ready around the end of the month.
\nDavid Hamilton<\/a> (2B\/3B\/SS, MIL) \u2014 Could be back shortly, but still just a desperate play for steals in 12-teamers.
\nBlaze Alexander<\/a> (2B\/3B\/SS\/OF, BAL) \u2014 I\u2019m holding in deep leagues if I can for the versatility but in a standard league he can be let go.
\nZack Gelof<\/a> (2B\/3B\/OF, ATH) \u2014 Stitches are out and is ramping up his activities.<\/p>\n

Third Base<\/p>\n

Maikel Garcia<\/a> (2B\/3B\/SS\/OF, KCR) \u2014 The Royals return home on August 4, so perhaps he can be activated then?
\nMatt Chapman<\/a> (3B, SFG) \u2014 Could be back this Friday.
\nJoshua Kuroda-Grauer<\/a> (3B, ATH) \u2014 He\u2019s been on a luck-driven heater, but even without the luck he should remain valuable in points leagues.<\/p>\n

Shortstop<\/p>\n

Trevor Story<\/a> (SS, BOS) \u2014 Looking to start a rehab in August.
\nCorey Seager<\/a> (SS, TEX) \u2014 Still likely a week or two away, if not longer.
\nKonnor Griffin<\/a> (SS, PIT) \u2014 He should return by early September: the only question is whether you can wait that long. If you can, you really should (especially in keeper leagues).
\nBobby Witt Jr.<\/a> (SS, KCR) \u2014 Hoping for a minimum stay here.<\/p>\n

Outfield\/DH<\/p>\n

Aaron Judge<\/a> (OF, NYY) \u2014 I\u2019m not dropping him yet in 10+ team leagues (or anywhere if I can help it) because even three or four weeks of Judge could have a huge impact. If you do drop him, it\u2019s because you firmly believe he is out too long to contribute to your goals (for example, if your league wraps up when football starts and skips September, then it\u2019s fine to let him go).
\nGiancarlo Stanton<\/a> (OF, NYY) \u2014 If you only have two IL spots, he\u2019s not a must-keep.
\nBrent Rooker<\/a> (OF, ATH) \u2014 Out for the season.
\nRonald Acu\u00f1a Jr.<\/a> (OF, ATL) \u2014 Could be back this weekend.
\nOneil Cruz<\/a> (OF, PIT) \u2014 Should be back by early August.<\/p>\n

Players are listed by position in no particular order.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Catcher<\/p>\n

Tyler Stephenson<\/a> (C, CIN) \u2014 Boring-but-safe streamer when he\u2019s at home.
\nJ.T. Realmuto<\/a> (C, PHI) \u2014 Not the hitter he once was, but plays often and doesn\u2019t strike out a ton.
\nEndy Rodr\u00edguez<\/a> (C, PIT) \u2014 Hitting the ball hard and often lately. A solid streamer who has more upside than I initially thought.
\nAlejandro Kirk<\/a> (C, TOR) \u2014 Strong plate skills but no longer plays every day so he\u2019s more of a safe streamer than locked-in regular.
\nFrancisco Alvarez<\/a> (C, NYM) \u2014 Plenty of power but injuries and inconsistency continue to hold him back.
\nAnthony Seigler<\/a> (C\/2B, BOS) \u2014 Leading off and rank-worthy for points leagues, but the lack of power is quite real. Would be the next catcher to be ranked.
\nCarson Kelly<\/a> (C, LAD) \u2014 Streaky part-timer.
\nJonah Heim<\/a> (C, ATH) \u2014 Got extra time against a slew of lefties, but no need to keep holding.
\nDalton Rushing<\/a> (C, LAD) \u2014 Too many streaming options to keep holding out hope in standard leagues.
\nHenry Davis<\/a> (C, PIT) \u2014 The Pirate offense being good is cool but I have no faith in Davis.<\/p>\n

First Base<\/p>\n

Spencer Torkelson<\/a> (1B, DET) \u2014Just let me have this one. If he could make contact at even a below-average (as opposed to abysmal) clip, he\u2019d be quite relevant.
\nCoby Mayo<\/a> (1B\/3B, BAL) \u2014 Will get more playing time with Alexander out, but nothing more than a desperate power option in deep leagues.
\nAndrew Vaughn<\/a> (1B, MIL) \u2014 Barely playing at all.
\nKyle Manzardo<\/a> (1B, CLE) \u2014 Streaky and prone to platooning.
\nNolan Schanuel<\/a> (1B, LAA) \u2014 Points league streamer.
\nChristian Encarnacion-Strand<\/a> (1B\/3B, BAL) \u2014 Lit up some lefties but need to see more to be interested.
\nPaul Goldschmidt<\/a> (1B, NYY) \u2014 The bottom has completely fallen out.
\nVinnie Pasquantino<\/a> (1B, KCR) \u2014 Go ahead and scoop him if you\u2019re looking for a lotto ticket, but he\u2019s got to start hitting fly balls with more authority for me to get excited.
\nSpencer Steer<\/a> (1B\/2B\/OF) \u2014 He\u2019s been quite average for a while now, but has value in the deeper formats due to his eligibility and the fact he hits fourth.<\/p>\n

Second Base<\/p>\n

Cole Young<\/a> (2B, SEA) \u2014 Love the low strikeout rate of late, but he\u2019s hard to rank when hitting at the bottom of the order.
\nMarcus Semien<\/a> (2B, NYM) \u2014 He\u2019s back and should only be considered in very deep leagues where you just need volume.
\nAngel Mart\u00ednez<\/a> (2B\/OF, CLE) \u2014 Not worth holding on your IL unless it\u2019s unlimited.
\nMatt McLain<\/a> (2B\/SS, CIN) \u2014 Hit the IL and wasn\u2019t playing against all righties.
\nJavier Sanoja<\/a> (2B\/3B\/OF, MIA) \u2014 Points league streamer.
\nTyler Tolbert<\/a> (2B\/SS\/OF, KCR) \u2014 He still lands on leaderboards because of those two monster games, but there\u2019s nothing to see here.
\nJorge Polanco<\/a> (2B\/3B, NYM) \u2014 My hopes aren\u2019t terribly high that he\u2019ll find success, but he\u2019ll likely have a fantasy-relevant stretch or two between now and the end of the season.
\nWilli Castro<\/a> (2B\/3B\/SS\/OF, COL) \u2014 Sat against the last three lefties.
\nBrett Baty<\/a> (2B\/3B, NYM) \u2014 The return of Semien clouds his playing time.
\nMax Muncy<\/a> (2B\/3B, ATH) \u2014 He\u2019ll get some playing time in the short term, but his extreme struggles with making contact make him an unreliable option.<\/p>\n

Third Base<\/p>\n

Nolan Arenado<\/a> (3B, ARI) \u2014 The power isn\u2019t there anymore, but he can still provide ratios and RBI at a slightly above-average clip.
\nAustin Riley<\/a> (3B, ATL) \u2014 And just like that, Austin Riley<\/a> had a week where he just crushed the ball. Still more of a flyer for me, though, considering the injury history and how bad he was heading into the Break.\u00a0Almost ranked him.
\nJordan Lawlar<\/a> (3B\/OF, ARI) \u2014 This dude cannot catch a break.
\nNoelvi Marte<\/a> (3B\/OF, CIN) \u2014 Short side of a platoon.
\nKyle Karros<\/a> (3B, COL) \u2014 Been a slow homestand, so go ahead and move on.<\/p>\n

Shortstop<\/p>\n

Anthony Volpe<\/a> (SS, NYY) \u2014 He\u2019ll be a post-hype sleeper at some point, probably.
\nMasyn Winn<\/a> (SS, STL) \u2014 Had two fun weeks but has quieted down to a below-replacement option.
\nXander Bogaerts<\/a> (SS, SDP) \u2014 Hitting third makes him semi-interesting if you\u2019re desperate.
\nColt Emerson<\/a> (3B\/SS, SEA) \u2014 There\u2019s long-term upside here, but I\u2019m not waiting for it in 2026. He needs to figure out those holes in his swing and make more contact in the zone.
\nJ.P. Crawford<\/a> (3B\/SS, SEA) \u2014 If the Mariners find their groove on offense and Crawford is still leading off, then maybe he\u2019d be valuable.
\nCooper Pratt<\/a> (SS, MIL) \u2014 Points league streamer who lacks power but should put a lot of balls in play as line drives and grounders.<\/p>\n

Outfield\/DH<\/p>\n

Kerry Carpenter<\/a> (OF, DET) \u2014 The premier streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nMike Yastrzemski<\/a> (OF, ATL) \u2014 Streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nGavin Sheets<\/a> (1B\/OF, SDP) \u2014 Streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nLuke Raley<\/a> (OF, SEA) \u2014 Streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nMickey Moniak<\/a> (OF, COL) \u2014 Sat against both lefties in his return, though he did pinch hit in both games. Streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nJes\u00fas S\u00e1nchez<\/a> (OF, TOR) \u2014 Streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nTristan Peters<\/a> (OF, CWS) \u2014 Lefty platoon guy who is overperforming considerably.
\nJorge Soler<\/a> (OF, LAA) \u2014 Streaky power streamer.
\nSteven Kwan<\/a> (OF, CLE) \u2014 Batting ninth is a worst-case scenario for his value. How did everything go so terribly wrong?
\nJustin Crawford<\/a> (OF, PHI) \u2014 Lost interest until the walk rate is closer to 10%.
\nJoc Pederson<\/a> (DH, TEX) \u2014 Streaky lefty platoon guy.
\nJoshua Baez<\/a> (OF, STL) \u2014 The home runs are there, but nothing else.
\nLourdes Gurriel Jr.<\/a> (OF, ARI) \u2014 I never know what to expect from him, and in a shallow league, I would just avoid the headache entirely.
\nJacob Young<\/a> (OF, WAS) \u2014 Has shown signs here and there, but the wheels keep falling off soon after.
\nDylan Beavers<\/a> (OF, BAL) \u2014 Might be worth a look in deeper OBP formats.
\nJarren Duran<\/a> (OF, BOS) \u2014 He might finish with 20 homers and 20 steals but the ratios are going to be awful and the counting stats won\u2019t help either. If the strikeouts come down and he hits in the top half of the order, he could get ranked again.
\nBraden Montgomery<\/a> (OF, CWS) \u2014 Not showing enough to justify holding over other outfield streamers.
\nColton Cowser<\/a> (OF, BAL) \u2014 The strikeouts are back and so is the platoon.
\nLars Nootbaar<\/a> (OF, STL) \u2014 No need to hold here as he has dropped in the lineup and is sitting against most lefties.
\nCam Smith<\/a> (OF, HOU) \u2014 One of these days, he\u2019ll stay on the list.
\nRyan Waldschmidt<\/a> (OF, ARI) \u2014 They\u2019ve recalled him after he slashed .286\/.416\/.524 following his demotion, but playing time and opportunity remain to be determined.
\nLane Thomas<\/a> (OF, KCR) \u2014 I suspect a lot of his recent production is merely because the Royals have seen a lot of lefties, as Thomas continues to perform badly against right-handed pitching.
\nDaulton Varsho<\/a> (OF, TOR) \u2014 Varsho is notoriously streaky as well as injury-prone, so I\u2019ve always viewed him as more of a disposable streamer in 12-teamers.
\nTaylor Ward<\/a> (OF, BAL) \u2014 In deeper formats or OBP, you can justify holding him if you don\u2019t like the waiver options, but I just don\u2019t see any signs that he\u2019s going to go back to being the 2025 Ward, who I was a big fan of.
\nCedric Mullins<\/a> (OF, TBR) \u2014 The steals have dried up, and he doesn\u2019t hit enough to justify holding through it.
\nVictor Mesa Jr.<\/a> (OF, TBR) \u2014 The plate discipline is solid, and he\u2019s shown high exit velocities in the minors this season, but he seems to get jammed a lot in the majors. If Mesa Jr. played more, he\u2019d be a streamer candidate in OBP leagues.
\nHenry Bolte<\/a> (OF, ATH) \u2014 The batted ball quality has fallen off and now he\u2019s sat against two straight righties.<\/p>\n

Photo by Icon Sportswire | Design by J.R. Caines (@JRCainesDesign on Twitter and @caines_design on Instagram)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u00a0 As a reminder, these rankings are geared toward a standard, daily, 12-team H2H redraft league, which is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":760536,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2290],"tags":[5,6474,253,3385,31,6475,201,1138,6476,3775,32],"class_list":["post-760535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-baseball","tag-baseball","tag-hitter-list","tag-hitters","tag-home-runs","tag-offense","tag-pitcher-list","tag-power","tag-rankings","tag-rbi","tag-runs","tag-stolen-bases"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116977116955966658","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/760535","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=760535"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/760535\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/760536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=760535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=760535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=760535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}