The fantasy baseball season is among us, and it’s a glorious time. This is the truest fantasy sport in a lot of ways. It demands the most decisions and knowledge of the most players, and it’s tied to the longest season. For those reasons, the winner of a fantasy baseball league is mostly determined by skill. Six months is an awfully long time for flukes and bad bounces to even out and iron out.
That said, the preparation for a fantasy baseball season can be intimidating. So many decisions, so many options. : C | 1B | 2B | 3B | SS | OF | SP | RP]
My early picks will focus on power-speed combos, while still keeping an eye towards batting average. And obviously, you want dynamic players on top-tier offenses. There are very few players who check most of all of these boxes, so the supply will deplete quickly. That’s all the more reason why I’m not taking a pitcher in the first couple of rounds — the dramatic offensive dropoff is something to be mindful of. Hopefully, I draft in a slot where I can get at least three major impact bats.
And a word about draft slot — if you get your choice on your draft position, take one as early as possible. The talent drop-off is most significant early, and then becomes unrecognizable as the draft goes along. Consider: the fifth-round results of almost any draft would still look plausible if you flipped them upside down. You would never say that about the first round. Although, there’s also something to be said for being in the middle of a draft order, where you never are that far removed from your next pick, but regardless I want you to land an above-fold draft slot if at all possible.
Here’s how I consider every position with respect to depth.
— Catcher is deep, especially if you only need one starter. Even if your league requires two, you don’t need to panic. I will not break the seal here, there’s no need to. Try to pay attention to catcher-eligibles who pick up at-bats at other positions; this makes their volume more appealing and also saves them some physical wear and tear from the demanding catcher position.
— First base and third base are top-heavy. You probably want a starter at both slots in single-digit rounds.
— Shortstop is the fun zone, absurdly deep, but because so many of the best players have shortstop eligibility, you’ll likely consider one early, too.
— Second base is average depth. Not a panic position, not a blowoff position.
— With outfield, it comes down to how many you need. If it’s just three, the living is easy. Four, you shouldn’t feel taxed. Five, you’ll want to try to get a collective group that avoids platoons and bad batting slots, though a heavy-side platoon hitter can be acceptable if your league has daily or at least bi-weekly transactions. I view platoon bats as problematic in leagues that only allow once-a-week roster moves.
Strategy is nice, but sometimes it’s easier to have the names, the Glengarry Leads. Here are some of my favorite targets, round by round, both hitters and pitchers.
Round 1: Bobby Witt Jr. early, Gunnar Henderson middle, Francisco Lindor second half. Kyle Tucker, assuming the Astros didn’t know something when they traded him away (he got his first hit as a Cub in Tokyo).
Round 2: Lindor if he ever slips. Yordan Álvarez. Jackson Chourio.
Round 3: Austin Riley is a snap-call here. I’ll maybe consider Logan Gilbert, though I’d prefer to wait for something similar, later. Matt Olson, if he slips. In some deeper leagues, I might take Olson or Riley in Round 2.
Round 4: A good time to lock in that SP1. George Kirby would have landed here if not for his shutdown. But the pitching names around him all make sense, too (King and Valdez will be staples in my portfolio this year). And as always, you have to consider any Round 3 name brand who slipped for some reason; that’s the understood rule of value drafting, no matter where in the proceedings you are.
Round 5: I need to have a pitcher if I start with four bats. Otherwise, one of those Util/OF cheat codes would make a lot of sense here. I’m also not opposed to considering them in the fourth round.
Middle-Round Targets: Hunter Brown, any Seattle rotation guy, Bryan Reynolds, Mark Vientos (dynamite lineup), Riley Greene, Vinnie Pasquantino, Jake Burger, Alex Bregman, Seiya Suzuki.
Later-Round Targets: Xavier Edwards (will run as much as he wants), Isaac Paredes, Yusei Kikuchi, Seth Lugo, Bryson Stott.
After pick 200: Spencer Arighetti, Gleyber Torres, Michael Toglia, Kyle Finnegan, Josh Jung, A.J. Puk, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (ultimate boring vet), Mackenzie Gore, Willi Castro (get one of these versatile guys for your bench every year), Tyler Soderstrom, Victor Robles.
Some players I’m fading at ADP
Jacob deGrom (it’s head over heart; I have one keeper share and I’ll limit it to that), Mike Trout (Byron Buxton has a similar upside — and downside — and is over 100 picks cheaper), Ronald Acuña Jr. (he’s already told you he doesn’t want to run that much; believe him!), Willy Adames (bad park change and pressure of new contract; San Francisco also doesn’t want to run); Xander Bogaerts (career arc headed in wrong direction, and park takes a tax), Randy Arozarena (in a dangerous age pocket and park will drive him crazy).
Speed Round: Leftover Tips & Tidbits
— If you can find a friend who shares a similar baseball view to you, co-managing is forever a cheat code. You have a buddy to share the fun and the work, and someone else who always cares about your team. It needs to be the right fit, but if you can find it, I promise you the winning odds just improved.
— I’ve never seen a team as playoff-guaranteed as the 2025 Dodgers, barring a catastrophic run of bad luck. With that in mind, I’m especially concerned about how load management might affect their in-season usage. Only Gavin Stone (140.1) and Tyler Glasnow (134) made it past 90 innings for L.A. last year. With every hiccup of elbow and shoulder, the team is going to play it safe. I also think this will affect the position guys, too; it’s one reason why I (mildly) faded Shohei Ohtani this year, as amazing as he is.
— Never forget that by staying the course in August and September — when football comes into play and life often gets in the way — you can count on passing some disengaged fantasy managers. Working hard usually pays off in this pursuit. (All the more reason to get a partner, right?). Don’t be discouraged by a slow start. And make sure you’re still hitting your routines in September, even with football dominating the sporting landscape. You’ll be rewarded.
— When I need observational help with my teams, I lean on certain industry and offline friends, mindful that they specialize in different things. Of course, I listen to everyone I respect but I make my own decisions. I encourage you to do the same thing.
— Right before my key drafts, I’ll take one more look at the projected lineups. Although those preseason lists are often speculative and always subject to in-season change, I want to avoid platoons and 7-8-9 guys whenever possible.
— Yahoo has more position flexibility than any other provider in the industry, but I still want a few Swiss-army knives on the roster. If you’re trying to break a tie, an extra position is often a good way to do that.
— Take immediate note of the waiver calendar and cadence when your league assembles. It’s very easy to miss the critical first waiver or FAB period because you weren’t ready for it. Life is complicated and dynamic for everyone. Don’t count on remembering anything. Make sure it’s all in your online calendar.
— When ERA and WHIP don’t tell the same story, trust the WHIP.
— Unless your closer is a fire-breathing dragon, try not to watch him pitch. It’s just going to stress you out.
— New metrics enter baseball every day and some of them are wonderful. We’re adding a bunch of flashy bells and whistles to the Yahoo interface this year, too. But never forget walks and strikeouts are the first thing to look at for any pitcher, and for most of the hitters, too. The K/BB ratio is the water of baseball stats.
— Every year a bunch of unknown relievers become useful in our game, in part because more wins are being filtered back into the bullpens. A few weeks into the season, look for these guys. Don’t worry if you don’t know the name or if they were bad in the past. Several of these emergences will be real, and it’s a potential way to help your ratios at the cheapest acquisition cost.
— Never forget we’re playing a game about a game. It’s supposed to be fun. I know for most of us it’s more fun when we win, but I’m not opposed to making sure I have a local player or two, just for kicks. These players might be in your life for the next 6-8 months. You want to be smart about it, but it’s totally okay to play favorites.
I’m here to share the ride with you. Catch me on at X/Twitter (@scott_pianowski) or on Blue Sky (@pianow.bsky.social) and let’s talk some ball.