2026 Fantasy Baseball Draft Rankings: Expert Picks & Predictions

It can be helpful to get an early sense of where the experts stand in terms of initial fantasy baseball draft rankings. We’ll have you covered as we approach the spring and new season, but for now let’s take a look at 2026 fantasy baseball rankings.

2026 Fantasy Baseball Rankings

RK	PLAYER NAME	TEAM	POS	BEST	WORST	AVG.	STD.DEV	ECR VS. ADP
1	Shohei Ohtani	LAD	DH1	1	2	1.1	0.3	0
2	Aaron Judge	NYY	OF1	1	2	1.8	0.4	0
3	Bobby Witt Jr.	KC	SS1	3	5	3.1	0.3	1
4	Juan Soto	NYM	OF2	3	6	3.9	0.5	1
5	Jose Ramirez	CLE	3B1	4	10	5.7	1.3	1
6	Ronald Acuna Jr.	ATL	OF3	5	12	6.4	1.5	2
7	Elly De La Cruz	CIN	SS2	5	14	8.9	2.1	2
8	Julio Rodriguez	SEA	OF4	5	22	9	2	3
9	Tarik Skubal	DET	SP1	5	22	9.3	2.5	-2
10	Kyle Tucker	LAD	OF5	6	20	10	2.5	4
11	Fernando Tatis Jr.	SD	OF6	7	17	11.6	2	4
12	Paul Skenes	PIT	SP2	8	20	11.6	1.9	-2
13	Gunnar Henderson	BAL	SS3	8	18	12.7	2.3	4
14	Garrett Crochet	BOS	SP3	7	24	14.1	4	-2
15	Junior Caminero	TB	3B2	10	42	16.4	4.8	3
16	Vladimir Guerrero Jr.	TOR	1B1	12	24	17.3	2.5	4
17	Nick Kurtz	ATH	1B2	15	34	18.3	2.8	2
18	Cal Raleigh	SEA	C1	11	33	18.8	3	-2
19	Corbin Carroll	ARI	OF7	8	37	19.6	5.6	-6
20	Jackson Chourio	MIL	OF8	10	47	19.8	4.6	3
21	Kyle Schwarber	PHI	DH2	14	38	20.6	3.3	1
22	Jazz Chisholm Jr.	NYY	2B1	15	51	21.9	4	2
23	Pete Alonso	BAL	1B3	16	33	23.6	1.7	3
24	Trea Turner	PHI	SS4	19	79	26.4	7.2	5
25	Yordan Alvarez	HOU	OF9	12	49	27.2	7.5	6
26	Ketel Marte	ARI	2B2	19	40	27.3	4.4	1
27	Francisco Lindor	NYM	SS5	17	41	29.5	6.1	-6
28	Cristopher Sanchez	PHI	SP4	23	41	31.1	4.3	0
29	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	LAD	SP5	21	42	31.3	5.7	-4
30	Manny Machado	SD	3B3	21	41	32.9	4	2
31	James Wood	WSH	OF10	22	67	33.9	6.5	2
32	Bryce Harper	PHI	1B4	23	49	33.9	7.6	6
33	Matt Olson	ATL	1B5	18	53	34	5.2	3
34	Zach Neto	LAA	SS6	16	66	34.7	10.3	0
35	Hunter Brown	HOU	SP6	25	52	35.1	5	0
36	Pete Crow-Armstrong	CHC	OF11	23	111	36	11.3	-6
37	Rafael Devers	SF	1B6	27	65	37.4	7.5	3
38	Chris Sale	ATL	SP7	30	53	38.1	4.2	3
39	Mookie Betts	LAD	SS7	26	64	39.9	8.7	8
40	Brent Rooker	ATH	OF12	28	136	41	9.9	3
41	Logan Gilbert	SEA	SP8	33	71	41	8.6	-2
42	Bryan Woo	SEA	SP9	32	70	43.4	4.8	-5
43	Jacob deGrom	TEX	SP10	34	57	44.9	5.2	8
44	Hunter Greene	CIN	SP11	38	57	45.5	3.5	1
45	Cole Ragans	KC	SP12	31	60	47.1	6.4	9
46	Logan Webb	SF	SP13	36	73	49.5	9.9	4
47	Roman Anthony	BOS	OF13	27	71	50.5	10.8	8
48	Max Fried	NYY	SP14	40	73	50.6	6.3	-2
49	Wyatt Langford	TEX	OF14	31	89	51.6	9.6	0
50	Freddie Freeman	LAD	1B7	17	94	53.7	12.1	2
51	Austin Riley	ATL	3B4	35	90	57.4	10.1	13
52	Freddy Peralta	NYM	SP15	41	84	57.4	9	7
53	Riley Greene	DET	OF15	33	162	57.6	10.1	9
54	George Kirby	SEA	SP16	41	81	59.4	6.9	16
55	Edwin Diaz	LAD	RP1	28	213	60	16	-11
56	Brice Turang	MIL	2B3	26	160	60.2	19.4	-8
57	Cody Bellinger	NYY	OF16	46	158	60.5	10.8	-1
58	Jackson Merrill	SD	CF1	36	92	61.1	12.4	8
59	Mason Miller	SD	RP2	29	251	61.7	17.8	-17
60	Josh Naylor	SEA	1B8	40	167	61.7	12.6	-3
61	Jarren Duran	BOS	OF17	33	90	62.7	10.1	4
62	CJ Abrams	WSH	SS8	41	104	62.9	9.9	6
63	William Contreras	MIL	C2	35	81	63.4	8.7	-5
64	Joe Ryan	MIN	SP17	54	95	64.5	9	3
65	Dylan Cease	TOR	SP18	54	92	66.6	8.7	8
66	Jesus Luzardo	PHI	SP19	60	102	71.1	7	11
67	Kyle Bradish	BAL	SP20	50	99	71.7	5.2	11
68	Vinnie Pasquantino	KC	1B9	43	163	71.8	10.4	14
69	Andres Munoz	SEA	RP3	34	206	72.2	17.9	-16
70	Jhoan Duran	PHI	RP4	36	248	72.2	18.4	-10
71	Corey Seager	TEX	SS9	41	171	73.4	14.9	18
72	Shea Langeliers	ATH	C3	51	147	74.1	13.6	0
73	Framber Valdez	DET	SP21	54	92	74.7	7.8	6
74	Geraldo Perdomo	ARI	SS10	36	159	77	14.8	-13
75	George Springer	TOR	OF18	44	169	78.6	16.8	0
76	Bo Bichette	NYM	SS11	51	189	79.1	15.7	4
77	Maikel Garcia	KC	2B4	60	165	80.2	17.9	-6
78	Seiya Suzuki	CHC	OF19	51	177	82.6	12.8	10
79	Byron Buxton	MIN	CF2	53	164	82.8	19.5	-5
80	Ben Rice	NYY	1B10	47	166	83.1	23.9	-11
81	Jeremy Pena	HOU	SS12	67	170	84.2	10.4	15
82	Nick Pivetta	SD	SP22	70	114	85.6	9.9	5
83	Randy Arozarena	SEA	OF20	60	175	87.8	10	3
84	Cade Smith	CLE	RP5	37	180	87.9	35.3	-21
85	Eury Perez	MIA	SP23	67	142	87.9	13.9	14
86	Blake Snell	LAD	SP24	32	175	89.6	25.6	-3
87	Nolan McLean	NYM	SP25	66	130	89.9	13.6	20
88	Hunter Goodman	COL	C4	49	173	90.4	27.6	-12
89	Tyler Soderstrom	ATH	1B11	46	161	91.8	21	-4
90	Eugenio Suarez	CIN	3B5	58	178	94.7	15.1	4
91	Alex Bregman	CHC	3B6	29	182	95.1	22.9	6
92	Michael Harris II	ATL	OF21	69	172	96.6	17.6	12
93	Kevin Gausman	TOR	SP26	64	116	99.1	11.5	15
94	Tyler Glasnow	LAD	SP27	73	134	100.7	15.9	18
95	Oneil Cruz	PIT	CF3	75	176	100.9	15.5	-3
96	Michael Busch	CHC	1B12	93	187	102.4	6.5	13
97	Spencer Strider	ATL	SP28	59	176	102.5	33.4	1
98	Nico Hoerner	CHC	2B5	77	180	103.3	9.2	-3
99	Jose Altuve	HOU	2B6	66	191	104.5	21.3	1
100	Yandy Diaz	TB	1B13	50	206	108.1	17.5	24

Fantasy Baseball Draft Rankings: Player Spotlight

Ronald Acuna Jr.’s 2025 was uneven as he worked his way back from knee surgery, flashing his MVP-level ceiling early before fading in the second half. Looking ahead to 2026, fantasy projections still view him as a first-round caliber talent, forecasting roughly 135-145 games with elite across-the-board production in the neighborhood of 30 homers, 90 runs, 90 RBI, and 20-plus steals. Durability remains the clear risk. He has topped 150 games only twice outside of the shortened 2020 season, but the per-game impact is still unmatched when he’s on the field. If Acuna slips even slightly in drafts due to health concerns, he’s a strong pick under the “anyone can get hurt” philosophy. However, managers who prefer safer volume can justify pivoting to another elite bat.
– Kelly Kirby

What is Fantasy Baseball?

Fantasy baseball is an online game where participants act as managers of virtual baseball teams based on real-life Major League Baseball (MLB) players. The performance of these players in actual games determines the results in the fantasy league. It’s a blend of skill, strategy, and a little bit of luck, akin to the real-world decisions team managers must make.

Basic Strategy for Fantasy Baseball Success

1. Understand Your League’s Format and Scoring

Before drafting your team, it’s essential to understand the scoring system and rules of your specific league, as this will influence your drafting and management strategy. Knowing whether you’re in a points-based, category-based, or head-to-head league will guide you in selecting players whose strengths align with the scoring system.

2. Drafting Your Team Wisely

A solid draft is the foundation of a successful season. Here are a few tips for the drafting phase:

Balanced Team: Ensure you have a balanced team with a mix of power hitters, average hitters, speedsters, starting pitchers, and relievers.
Position Scarcity: Be aware of the depth of talent at each position. Some positions, like shortstop, may have fewer high-quality players, making it beneficial to draft a top player at that position early.
High-Floor Players: Early in the draft, focus on players with a proven track record of consistency.
Upside Picks: In the later rounds, look for “upside” players. These are athletes who have the potential to outperform their draft position.

3. In-Season Management

Stay Active: Constantly look for ways to improve your team through waivers, trades, and free-agent pickups.
Mind the Matchups: Pay attention to player matchups, platoon splits, and ballparks. Starting a pitcher in a hitter-friendly park, for example, can be risky.
Injury Management: Stay on top of player injuries and have backups ready for your key players.