5 Fantasy Baseball Risers (2026)

It’s time to take another look at risers and fallers in the early rounds of fantasy baseball drafts. The following five risers each have an average draft position (ADP) in the top 90 picks.

Fantasy Baseball Risers

Yordan Alvarez (OF, DH – HOU)

ADP on 2/13: 33.2 | ADP on 2/25: 30.0

I wrote about Yordan Alvarez as a must-have fantasy baseball draft pick to target earlier this month. I agree with his 3.2-pick rise since February 13th. Alvarez’s 2025 was limited to only 199 plate appearances with a fracture in his right hand and an ankle sprain.

The left-handed hitter also had an underwhelming .273 batting average, .430 slugging rate and six homers last season. Still, Alvarez cleared 550 plate appearances in three of the previous four years before his injury-shortened 2025 showing, and he had 496 plate appearances in the outlier campaign.

Alvarez was one of the best hitters during that stretch, and his mediocre batting average and uninspiring slugging rate last year weren’t supported by his expected stats. According to FanGraphs, Alvarez had a .284 expected batting average (xBA) and .549 expected slugging rate (xSLG). Alvarez can lay the groundwork for fantasy teams in runs, RBI, home runs and batting average. He’s an excellent pick at or around his ADP.

Matt Olson (1B – ATL)

ADP on 2/13: 41.4 | ADP on 2/25: 36.6

Matt Olson is a repeat visitor to the risers and fallers piece. However, he’s flipped from a faller to a riser. Back then, Olson was a faller, with an ADP of 36.2 on January 28th that dipped to 41.4. He’s back to where he was at the end of January.

Olson’s previous ADP was a tick steep for my taste, and it’s earlier now. From 2022 through 2024, Olson’s first three seasons with the Braves, he hit 117 homers with 291 runs, 340 RBI, one stolen base, an 11.9% walk rate, a 24.1% strikeout rate, a .289 batting average on balls in play (BABIP), a.257 batting average, a 249 xBA, a .349 on-base percentage (OBP), a .513 slugging rate and a .503 xSLG.

Olson recorded the following stats in a career-high 724 plate appearances last season:

98 runs
29 home runs
95 RBI
1 stolen base
12.6% walk rate
24.3% strikeout rate
.333 BABIP (career high)
.272 batting average
.249 xBA
.366 OBP
.484 SLG
.492 xSLG

Olson needed career highs in plate appearances and BABIP to finish as the 34th-ranked hitter in our value-based-ranking metric (VBR) in 2025. Yet, Olson is the 30th-ranked hitter in ADP this year. Olson’s batting average will likely dip 20 to 25 points this year, and getting on base less frequently should also cut into his runs. He’s overpriced.

Austin Riley (3B – ATL)

ADP on 2/13: 66.6 | ADP on 2/25: 63.2

Austin Riley was a fantasy force from 2021 through 2023. Unfortunately, his production has dipped in back-to-back seasons, with fewer than 500 plate appearances and 20 homers in both campaigns. The following table shows Riley’s numbers from 2021 through 2023 and from 2024 through 2025:

Riley’s strikeout rate has risen as his walk rate has fallen in the past two seasons. The third baseman’s .258 batting average was mostly legitimate, and he should clear 20 homers this year with better health.

Nevertheless, after hitting one home run per 19.2 plate appearances from 2021 through 2023, Riley hit just one home run per 26.2 plate appearances from 2024 through 2025. Riley’s home run pace in the previous two seasons would produce 24.8 homers in 650 plate appearances this year.

Riley won’t turn 29 until April 2nd. Maybe he can recapture his magic from before 2024. Gamers should recalibrate expectations for Atlanta’s third baseman, though.

Framber Valdez (SP – DET)

ADP on 2/13: 84.6 | ADP on 2/25: 79.6

Framber Valdez was a workhorse for the Astros, and he’ll be a critical piece of Detroit’s rotation. Since 2022, Valdez has ripped off 201.1, 198, 176.1 and 192 innings.

The veteran lefty’s 3.66 ERA in 2025 was his highest since 2019. It was still a rock-solid mark, supported by his 3.77 xERA, 3.34 xFIP and 3.66 SIERA. Valdez’s 1.24 WHIP in 2025 was also his worst mark since logging a 1.25 WHIP in 2021. Even with some chinks in the armor for Valdez last year, he had a 58.6% groundball rate, 23.3% strikeout rate, 28.5 CSW%, 108 stuff+, 99 location+ and 109 pitching+.

Valdez was the 27th-ranked pitcher in VBR last season, and he’s the 27th-ranked pitcher in ADP. Valdez is a superb SP3 for gamers who pluck multiple starting pitchers in the first seven rounds of 12-team mixed leagues and a stellar SP2 for others who lean into hitting or mix in an elite reliever early in drafts.

Kyle Bradish (SP – BAL)

ADP on 2/13: 86.6 | ADP on 2/25: 78.8

Kyle Bradish has pitched like an ace when he’s been healthy. The 29-year-old righty’s 2024 season was cut short by a UCL injury that required Tommy John surgery. His Tommy John surgery included an internal brace.

Bradish made his 2025 season debut on August 26th. He was lights out in six starts spanning 32 innings last season, ripping off the following stats:

1 win
3 quality starts
2.53 ERA
3.08 xERA
2.67 xFIP
2.63 SIERA
1.03 WHIP
7.9% walk rate
37.3% strikeout rate
14.6 SwStr%
33.2 CSW%
95 stuff+
111 location+
105 pitching+

Bradish doesn’t have a specific innings limit in 2026. The 29-year-old righty pitched only 54 innings, including the minors, in 2025, though. He expects to have some innings limit this year.

Bradish is a supremely talented pitcher and will help fantasy squads when he toes the slab. The Zeile consensus projections peg Bradish for 138.2 innings this season. There were 82 pitchers who amassed more than 138.2 innings in 2025.

Gamers will need to keep Bradish’s likely innings limit in mind when drafting him, but the quality of his work makes him a defensible pick at his ADP. Those who are comfortable and adept streamers can feel even more comfortable picking Bradish.