Last week we asked our writers for early and middle-round fantasy baseball draft picks that they are avoiding. This week, we’ll take a look at players outside the top 100 in our Expert Consensus Rankings that our writers are targeting.
Prep for your draft with our award-winning fantasy baseball tools 
Q: Which player outside the top 100 Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) are you targeting the most?
Mike Foltynewicz (SP – ATL): Overall 188
I am currently at 100% ownership of Foltynewicz this draft season, and I’m pretty convinced I’ll keep it that way. He completely turned things around in the second half of the year, pitching to a 2.65 ERA and 1.08 WHIP. Much of his success was due to finding his dominant slider again after his injury, and the pitch was particularly outstanding during Foltynewicz’s excellent September last year (batters hit just .125 with a .171 wOBA against his slider during the month). With a healthy offseason, there’s every reason to expect Foltynewicz to pick up where he left off, making him a steal for me at pick 194.
– Dan Harris (@danharris80)
Hunter Renfroe (OF – TB): Overall 264
Hunter Renfroe is a very cheap source of power at an ECR of 264. His 33 home runs last season do not tell the full story – a whopping 27 of them came in 80 games before the All-Star break, a torrid 54-HR pace where he also hit for a respectable .252 average. Unfortunately, Renfroe cratered after the break and was barely a functional player the rest of the season. Still, the Tampa Bay Rays went out and traded for Renfroe with the hopes that he would be their starting right fielder. The Rays are an incredibly smart organization and when they make a move, I pay attention (see the emergence of Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow as examples). Perhaps the Rays saw something in Renfroe and think they can coach him back to the player he was in the first half of 2019. I’m willing to spend a late-round pick to find out, considering Renfroe’s extreme power potential.
– Jarad Evans (@Jarad_Evans)
Danny Santana (1B/2B/3B/SS/OF – TEX): Overall 155
Santana’s breakout season was absolutely ridiculous on paper. He finished with 28 homers, 21 steals, a .283 BA and 80+ RBIs and runs in just 474 at-bats. He may not be as efficient this season but even if he takes a step back, he would be a steal in the 13th round.
– Bobby Sylvester (@bobbyfantasypro)
Luke Voit (1B – NYY): Overall 217
Even when I’m not seeking him out, Voit always seems to fall in my lap. The experts (217 ECR) are even lower on him than his 198 ADP. The Yankees’ injury curse is probably fueling their skepticism of him bouncing back from a sports hernia. If he does, this is a steal. Since joining the Yankees during the 2018 campaign, Voit has batted .280/.384/.517 with 35 homers, 100 runs, and 95 RBIs in 158 games. Last year, he was hitting a similar .280/.393/.509 through June before his first of two trips to the IL. This is the type of injury chance I’ll take, as you can move on without too much consequence if he goes downhill.
– Andrew Gould (@AndrewGould4)
Shohei Ohtani (SP/DH – LAA): Overall 131
If I’m playing in a daily changes league on any kind on a site where you get both the hitter and pitcher versions of Ohtani with one roster spot, Ohtani is by far my highest priority player to get. It is true that he won’t pitch in a Major League game until at least the middle of May, but he should be in the lineup nearly every day in April. He is more than good enough as a hitter to justify the wait with his career .883 OPS and 22 steals in 792 plate appearances. When he is finally pitching, he offers you more upside than any player in the league just due to the fact that he is two players in one. There will be weeks this year when Ohtani hits .300+, hits a couple of home runs, and gets you a win and strong ratios on the pitching side. No other player in the history of fantasy baseball has been able to give you that, and for some reason, people don’t really seem to be realizing it. There is a really strong chance that Ohtani is a first-round pick in daily-changes leagues next year, but you can get him pretty late in 2020, and I do not want to miss that opportunity.
– Jon Anderson (@JonPGH)
Zac Gallen (SP – ARI): Overall 128
I’m grabbing Zac Gallen in just about every league after pick 100. His ECR is currently at 132. The fact that he’s “competing” for a rotation spot is frankly comical as I believe he’s either the best or at the very least a top-two arm in the Diamondbacks’ rotation. It’s helped keep his price a little low, which has provided a great buying opportunity. He’s already got a refined four-pitch arsenal that features a fantastic changeup and curveball. Based on his minor league track record, I think his walks come way down while he maintains a 25%+ strikeout rate making him viable as a low-end SP2 in most formats.
– Max Freeze (@FreezeStats)
Mark Canha (1B/OF – OAK): Overall 236
Canha is typically being ranked outside of the top 230 picks, and he’s not even viewed by experts as a top-60 outfielder. This means he’s not viewed as even a fourth outfielder in 15-team leagues, nor a fifth outfielder in 12-team leagues. Canha only played 126 games last year, but he still produced a .913 OPS with 26 home runs and 80 RBIs. Late-blooming players are often met with skepticism, but Canha is currently projected to hit in the middle of a lineup that ranks as a top-10 offense in baseball. His wOBA (.386) last year was in the top 8% of baseball, and while the .248 XBA suggests he might have been lucky with balls in play, consider that his 13.5 BB% was also in the top 8% of the league. When he does make contact, it’s plenty loud. His 89.1 average exit velocity places him inside of the top 120 in all of baseball, ahead of other power-hitting outfielders like Eddie Rosario, Nicholas Castellanos, and Michael Conforto. Some worry his .221 average against lefties will lead to a platoon, but his career mark (.234) and low BABIP (.219) in 2019 against southpaws should mean he gets an extended look at everyday playing time in the outfield this season. Underlying metrics paint Canha as a quality third or fourth outfielder that you can get for a sixth-outfielder price.
– Paul Ghiglieri (@FantasyGhigs)
Franmil Reyes (OF – CLE): Overall 113
I think we’re going to see Reyes really bust out playing every day in Cleveland. He has a solid lineup around him and is now more familiar with the American League, his own teammates, and his home park. Reyes has tremendous power in that huge frame. Yes, lots of strikeouts –but there is no shame in that in today’s game. Reyes could put up huge power numbers in a good draft spot.
– Bernie Pleskoff (@BerniePleskoff)
Kyle Hendricks (SP – CHC): Overall 126
Kyle Hendricks makes for the perfect SP3 in almost any format. You can bank on 180-185 innings with a sub-3.50 ERA and sub-1.20 WHIP. He is excellent in contact management, ranking in the top three percentile in average exit velocity and in the top 12 percentile in hard-hit rate. The only hang-up with Hendricks is the strikeouts, and a 20-21% K-rate isn’t the end of the world. Rather than draft Mike Soroka inside the top 100, I’m drafting two higher-end starting pitchers, grabbing Hendricks later than I should be able to, and then identifying higher-upside pitchers with above-average strikeout rates to offset the one category that Hendricks lacks in.
– Carmen Maiorano (@carmsclubhouse)
Justin Turner (3B – LAD): Overall 137
At ECR 138, I’m drafting Turner in as many leagues as I can get him. A pure hitter who’s found power in LA, Turner has quietly put together a 137 OPS+ over the past five seasons and last year finished with the fourth-highest xWOBA among all qualified third basemen. He’s one of the safest bets among mid-round selections to carry a .300/25/80 line, and he could see spikes in RBIs and runs depending on how much firepower Mookie Betts adds to an already explosive Dodgers’ offense. The key for Turner will be staying on the field, as he’s only averaged 123 games over the course of the past three seasons. Even in a truncated campaign, I like Turner’s hit tool to bring significant value to fantasy lineups in 2020.
– Daniel Comer (@DanComer404)
Miguel Sano (3B/1B – MIN): Overall 141
Not only have I been targeting Miguel Sano after pick 100, but I’ve built a large portion of my strategy around him. Third base is arguably the deepest position in fantasy baseball for 2020, but first base — which had been deep in the past — is actually a struggle to fill. Knowing that Sano could slide into either and produce is a major help. All he needs is to stay healthy — I know, it’s asking a lot — in order to be one of the premier power bats in the league. He was even a monster, last year, despite missing more than 50 games for the second consecutive season. Had he qualified, Sano would have ranked first among all batters in hard-hit percentage.
– Mario Mergola (@MarioMergola)
Try the only fantasy baseball draft software that syncs with your draft
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | SoundCloud | Stitcher | TuneIn
