15 Late-Round Picks Experts Love: Hitters (Fantasy Baseball)

When preparing for your fantasy baseball drafts, knowing which players to target and others to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy baseball rankings compared to average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average. Let’s dive into a few notable players below.

Fantasy Baseball: Late-Round Picks Experts Love: Hitters

RK	PLAYER NAME	TEAM	POS	BEST	WORST	AVG.	STD.DEV	ECR VS. ADP
212	Luis Garcia	WSH	2B15	141	269	218.2	25.4	56
216	Kyle Manzardo	CLE	1B21	163	262	224.8	24.9	27
219	Francisco Alvarez	NYM	C13	159	287	221.9	34.5	26
223	Andrew Vaughn	MIL	1B22	170	286	239.6	25.2	49
227	Jordan Beck	COL	OF49	154	263	230.2	19.6	31
231	Xander Bogaerts	SD	SS21	130	291	224.9	32.9	20
242	Masyn Winn	STL	SS24	135	319	244.7	39.6	51
243	Marcell Ozuna	PIT	DH3	161	324	259.2	31.1	38
250	Mickey Moniak	COL	OF53	170	297	243.1	31.1	39
259	Nolan Schanuel	LAA	1B24	122	362	273.9	41.9	60
263	Josh Lowe	LAA	OF54	139	332	269	25.3	76
281	Brett Baty	NYM	3B16	177	341	268.8	32.8	29
285	Andres Gimenez	TOR	2B23	175	316	275.6	25.3	57
297	Cedric Mullins II	TB	OF59	166	380	288.7	34.9	36
298	Matt Wallner	MIN	OF60	156	323	276.7	27.7	45

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.