Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft: Roto Categories, Early Pick (2025)

It’s time to start prepping for fantasy baseball drafts as the long offseason comes to an end. Participating in a fantasy baseball Mock draft is a great way to get familiar with the upcoming player pool and find trends for the real drafts.

Using FanasyPros’ fantasy baseball mock draft simulator Draft Wizard tool lets you run realistic mock drafts with your league-specific settings. Let’s run an early, points league fantasy baseball mock draft using the Draft Wizard.

Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft (Early Pick)

This 10-team roto categories league will use a roster of 1-C, 1-1B, 1-2B, 1-3B, 1-SS, 5-OF, 1-CI, 1 -MI, 1 -UTIL, 9-P and three bench spots. You can check out the draft board and full results.

1.05: Gunnar Henderson (SS BAL)

Gunnar Henderson just keeps getting better and better. He added power and speed in his sophomore season while making improvements in his batting average and his overall contact skills. The Orioles are getting better around him as well, so there is no reason Henderson shouldn’t go in the top of the first round.

2.06: Julio Rodriguez (OF – SEA)

I was a little surprised Julio Rodriguez was even here for me. It was a down season for him in 2024, but he still managed to have a 20/20 year with a good average. A rebound in power should be there and he can return to being a first-round player.

3.05: Trea Turner (SS – PHI)

I wasn’t expecting to get Trea Turner here in the third round and I almost passed on him since I already had a shortstop, but this is a former first-round pick that was a steal away from a 20/20 season in just 121 games.

As long as he is healthy, Turner should go back to being a first-round value again.

4.06: Garrett Crochet (SP – BOS)

After not taking a pitcher in the first three rounds, I needed upside. There are very few pitchers in baseball with Garrett Crochet’s upside. He has a complete arsenal and is moving to a much better team in the Red Sox, who have the best pitching coach in baseball.

Innings could be a question for Crochet, but on a per-inning basis, he is one of the top five pitchers in baseball.

5.05: Emmanuel Clase (RP – CLE)

Adding to my pitching staff, I snagged the best closer in the game. Emmanuel Clase has been the most reliable closer in the game over the last three seasons and has elite skills. Locking up 40+ saves is massive and well worth the price.

6.06: Marcus Semien (2B – TEX)

I know a lot of people don’t like Marcus Semien because he is boring, but one of the most underrated skills in fantasy, especially head-to-head (H2H) leagues, is volume.

Semien has missed four games total over the last four years and only 14 total games out of the last seven seasons. All he does is rack up stats. He gives a great foundation you can bank on to take risks later.

7.05: Michael King (SP – SD)

I was skeptical about Michael King transitioning from a reliever to a starter last season, but I no longer doubt him. His skills were immaculate and he has a great park and team around him. There is a ton of upside in him as an SP2.

8.06: Spencer Schwellenbach (SP – ATL)

Spencer Schwellenbach struggled when he first got to the Majors, but he was pretty unlucky. After the calendar turned to July, he was fantastic. He threw 92 innings with a 2.54 ERA and a 26% strikeout rate and a 4% walk rate.

Schwellenbach has a complete arsenal with amazing command and control. He is a stud.

9.05: Brenton Doyle (OF – COL)

Power and speed have never been in question, but Brenton Doyle struggled with contact before 2024. That changed last season.

Doyle improved his zone contact from 79% to 86.4%, which is massive, and led to a 10% drop in his strikeout rate. This gain makes his 2024 very believable and the upside immense.

10.06: Bailey Ober (SP – MIN)

Bailey Ober was up and down in 2024, but if you look closely at the game log, he just got beat up in two of his 31 starts. If you take out those two starts, he would have had a 3.13 ERA.

Even if you just take out the first bad start on Opening Day, he would have a 3.60 ERA. The skills are great. As long as he can prevent blow-ups, the upside is high.

11.05: Jhoan Duran (RP – MIN)

Jhoan Duran has amazing skills. He had a 29% strikeout rate and a 6.6% walk rate and registered 23 saves last season.

Duran doesn’t produce volume saves in the same way as other closers, but he makes up for it in strikeouts when you can pair him with a horse like Clase.

12.06: Junior Caminero (3B – TB)

I don’t know if I would take Junior Caminero in a deeper format, but the upside is fantastic. He has a ton of power in the bat if he can learn to elevate it. He is going to play every day in Tampa.

At some point, he is going to hit 30+ home runs with a good average. At 21, he is a fun gamble to bet on this year.

13.05: Justin Steele (SP – CHC)

Health is the only question mark for Justin Steele. When healthy, he gets strikeouts and doesn’t walk guys. In a shallow league like this, he is a perfect guy to gamble on because there is replacement value on the waiver wire.

14.06: Jake Burger (1B, 3B, DH – TEX)

At this point in the draft, I needed power, which is what Jake Burger brings. He is moving from one of the worst parks to hit for power to a much better park and team. The potential for 30+ bombs and 90+ RBI with dual eligibility? Sign me up.

15.05: Shea Langeliers (C – ATH)

Speaking of power… Shea Langeliers has that. Bangeliers hit 29 home runs in 534 plate appearances in Oakland Coliseum and is now moving to a minor league park in Sacramento.

The average won’t be great but he could challenge Cal Raleigh for the most home runs hit by a catcher-eligible player in 2025.

16.06: Colton Cowser (OF – BAL)

Colton Cowser was one of my best calls last season, and I am going back to the well. He has power and speed. While he can struggle with contact at times, he is an elite defender, which keeps him in the lineup.

17.05: Nick Castellanos (OF – PHI)

Nick Castellanos is old and reliable. While that can be boring in a shallow league, he helps you balance out riskier picks.

18.06: Isaac Paredes (1B, 3B – HOU)

After being traded to the Cubs mid-season, Isaac Paredes struggled, hitting just .223/.325/.307 with three home runs and a stolen base.

However, the trade to Houston is exactly what the doctor ordered. The short porch in left field is perfect for Paredes’ pull-happy approach. His expected home runs (xHR) in Houston would have been 26. He is an underrated asset going this late.

19.05: Luis Arraez (1B, 2B, DH – SD)

I don’t love Luis Arraez in most formats, but he does hit for average. At this point, that is what my team needed. He can be a sensible pick, especially in daily lineup leagues, depending on your roster build.

20.06: Josh Lowe (OF – TB)

Josh Lowe is a year removed from a 20/30 season. While he struggled last season, he did go 10/25 in just 387 plate appearances. He is a nice upside play if he can stay on the field.

21.05: Carlos Estevez (RP – KC)

Carlos Estevez signed a two-year deal with the Royals and seems to have a leg up to be the closer over Lucas Erceg.

I prefer Erceg from a skills perspective, but the Royals may use him as a high-leverage guy and let Estevez get the bulk saves.

22.06: Kerry Carpenter (OF, DH – DET)

Kerry Carpenter hit 18 home runs in just 296 plate appearances in 2024. If he can stay healthy, he may be the bargain of every draft in an improving Tigers lineup.

23.05: Bowden Francis (SP, RP – TOR)

After struggling in his first go-around, Bowden Francis finally got back into the rotation in the second half and was elite, throwing 65 innings with a 1.80 ERA and a 21% K-BB ratio.

Francis did a great job at limiting hard contact and the Blue Jays improved the infield defense with the addition of Andres Gimenez. He is a fun end-of-the-draft gamble.

24.06: Maikel Garcia (2B, 3B – KC)

Maikel Garcia doesn’t have a ton of power, but he does have a lot of speed and is eligible at two of the weakest positions in fantasy. He makes a ton of contact and has a good eye at the plate. I love him as a bench bat.

25.05: Colt Keith (2B – DET)

Whether you call him Colt Keith or Keith Colt, this guy is a stud in the making. He makes a lot of contact for a guy with a ton of power with the bat. The Tigers are getting better and his move to first base will give him added eligibility in-season.

Draft Wizard Insights

The Draft Wizard gave this draft a B-, 81/100 grade, and projected it as the seventh-best team in the league. I probably didn’t draft enough upside early in the draft, which is why the grade is low. However, I love consistent players in H2H formats. There is nothing worse than losing weeks because multiple players go into slumps at the same time.

If I could change anything, I would have taken more hitters early. While I love pitchers like Emmanuel Clase, Justin Steele and Bailey Ober, I could have loaded up on more hitters in those spots and solidified those categories.

Articles MLB MLB Draft Advice Mock Drafts Strategy Gunnar Henderson Trea Turner Garrett Crochet Emmanuel Clase Marcus Semien Michael King Spencer Schwellenbach Brenton Doyle Bailey Ober Jhoan Duran Junior Caminero Justin Steele Jake Burger Shea Langeliers Cal Raleigh Colton Cowser Nick Castellanos Isaac Paredes Luis Arraez Josh Lowe Carlos Estevez Lucas Erceg Kerry Carpenter Bowden Francis Andres Gimenez Maikel Garcia Colt Keith

About Author

Justin Mason

@JustinMasonFWFB

Justin Mason is the lead fantasy writer and analyst for Friendswithfantasybenefits.com. He is a writer at Fangraphs and Fantasy Pros. You can hear him on the Radio on the FWFB, TGFBI and the Sleeper and the Bust Podcasts. He also runs The Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational and the Bay Area Roto Fantasy (BARF) league.