Fantasy Baseball Player Notes
2026 Fantasy Baseball Draft Notes
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7.
Julio Rodriguez
CF,DH
Julio Rodriguez posted a strong but slightly underwhelming 2025 relative to his sky-high expectations, as his power output plateaued despite excellent durability and counting stats. The 2026 projections forecast a modest power rebound into the low-30s with continued double-digit steals. His underlying contact metrics remain strong, but launch-angle inconsistency has capped his home-run ceiling year over year. Rodríguez remains a foundational fantasy outfielder, though he now projects closer to the back half of the first round than the very top.
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16.
Cal Raleigh
C,DH
Cal Raleigh had the year of his life in 2025, smacking 60 home runs while batting .247, far and away his best batting average ever. He drove in 125 and scored 110 times for a Seattle Mariners team that came very close to the World Series. Catcher is such a thin position that it is tempting to spend an early-round pick on Raleigh to be able to set-and-forget the position. His 2026 projections again place him among the position's home run leaders, with playing time security supporting strong counting stats, but we aren't going to see a repeat of his career year, and that is the current draft cost for the Big Dumper. Do you still want to spend a second-round pick on him if he's "only" getting you 40 homers with a .230 batting average? If so, he's easily the best catcher on the board. If not, wait three or four rounds to pick from the second tier.
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40.
Josh Naylor
1B,DH
Let's start with the important part: Josh Naylor will not steal 30 bases again in 2026. With a previous high of 10, the 30 was a gift to managers who drafted him and will most likely be the outlier of his career. Naylor did sacrifice power in his time between Arizona and Seattle, hitting only 20 home runs after smacking 31 the year before. The .295 average helped offset this to some degree, but as a career .269 hitter, this is also suspect to continue. Even though he will only be 29 this season, the return to Seattle limits the upside we can expect. He's more of an avoid, unless he falls in drafts.
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142.
Brendan Donovan
2B,3B,SS,LF
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193.
Dominic Canzone
LF,RF,DH
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244.
Cole Young
2B
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260.
Colt Emerson
3B,SS
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290.
Luke Raley
1B,LF,CF,RF,DH
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433.
Michael Toglia
1B
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447.
Leo Rivas
2B,3B,SS
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449.
Andy Ibanez
2B,3B
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508.
Ryan Bliss
2B
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513.
Willie MacIver
C
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521.
Jhonny Pereda
C
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615.
Grant McCray
LF,CF,RF
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618.
Stuart Fairchild
LF,CF,RF
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651.
Miles Mastrobuoni
2B,3B,LF,RF
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662.
Weston Wilson
2B,3B,LF,RF
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675.
Connor Joe
LF,RF
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681.
Michael Arroyo
2B
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696.
Brennen Davis
LF
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724.
Patrick Wisdom
1B,3B
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732.
Nick Raposo
C
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