Fantasy Baseball Player Notes

Kyle Stowers finally translated his loud tools into production in 2025, slashing .288/.368/.544 with 25 home runs across 457 plate appearances for Miami. His underlying metrics support the breakout: a .391 rOBA and 148 Rbat+ were fueled by a career-best 10.5% walk rate, reduced 27.4% strikeout rate, and a .256 ISO with a 5.5% HR rate. The quality of contact remained strong (52.2% hard-hit rate), but the key shift was a more balanced batted-ball profile and improved swing decisions that allowed his power to play in games. Heading into 2026, projections expect some regression from the near-.900 OPS peak, but still forecast Stowers as a middle-of-the-order bat with 25-homer upside and above-average on-base skills. The elevated BABIP (.356) suggests the batting average could settle closer to the .260-.270 range, yet the gains in plate discipline and contact authority appear legitimate. He's best viewed as a solid OF3 with upside in five-outfielder formats, offering bankable power and run production as long as the improved approach holds.

Agustín Ramírez took his lumps as a 23-year-old rookie in 2025, slashing .231/.287/.413 with 21 home runs and 16 steals across 136 games, good for a below-average 92 OPS+ and 89 Rbat+. The underlying data paints a more intriguing picture: a 90.8 mph average exit velocity and 47.2% hard-hit rate both comfortably exceeded league norms, while his .182 ISO suggests legitimate 25-homer upside if the batted-ball luck (.253 BABIP in 2025) normalizes. His aggressive approach (6.2% walk rate) caps his OBP floor, but a manageable 19.3% strikeout rate and strong 84.2% stolen-base success rate support continued category juice. With modest plate-discipline growth, the 2026 projections point toward improved run production and a step forward in overall efficiency, making Ramírez a clear fantasy sleeper entering his age-24 season. The power-speed blend is already bankable in standard formats, and any OBP rebound would push him into the top tier at his position.

Xavier Edwards followed up a breakout 2024 (.328/.397/.423, 129 OPS+) with a heavier workload in 2025, logging 619 PA but seeing his efficiency normalize (.283/.343/.353, 94 OPS+). The batted-ball profile supports the pullback: his .330 BABIP was far less inflated than 2024's .398 mark, while his 84.5 mph average exit velocity and 7.0% ISO continue to cap his power ceiling. Encouragingly, he trimmed his strikeout rate to 14.2% and maintained strong contact skills, giving him a stable batting-average floor even if the run production remains modest. The 2026 projections lean into that profile — high-contact table-setter with limited pop but double-digit steal potential thanks to his above-average success rate and baserunning value. Edwards' fantasy value hinges on lineup spot and volume; if he sticks near the top of Miami's order, he's a useful MI target for managers chasing average and speed without sacrificing plate discipline. Just don't draft him expecting meaningful power growth — he's a category specialist, not a five-category contributor.