Fantasy Baseball Player Notes

Dylan Cease signed a seven-year, $210 million contract with the Blue Jays in November, parlaying his steady strikeout rate numbers and artificially inflated ERA in 2025 into security with the 2025 runners-up. In his age-29 season, Cease was snakebit by a .320 BABIP, ballooning his ERA to 4.55 with an xERA of 3.46. The important stat to know is his 29.8% K-rate and five consecutive years of 200+ strikeouts. If you can absorb a bit of a WHIP hit (career 1.26), the counting stats are there for the taking.

Kevin Gausman followed up his 2024 dip with a strong rebound in 2025, logging 193 innings with a 3.59 ERA and an excellent 1.06 WHIP, supported by a .216 opponent average and improved run prevention metrics. While his strikeout rate (24.4% K%) remained solid, it was well below his 2022-23 peak, reinforcing the trend that his fantasy ceiling is no longer ace-level. The 2026 projections reflect this reality, forecasting dependable innings, solid ratios, and above-average command, but fewer strikeouts than elite fantasy starters. At age 35, Gausman profiles as a fantasy faller relative to his name value—best suited as a high-floor SP3/4 rather than a staff anchor, with value tied heavily to workload stability and ratio support rather than upside.

Yesavage's 2025 debut was brief but intriguing, posting a 3.21 ERA and 2.35 FIP across three starts with a 25.8% strikeout rate. The underlying profile jumps off the page: a massive 61.5% hard-hit rate allowed and 94.0 mph average exit velocity suggest his 0.0% HR rate and .273 opponent SLG were unlikely to hold over a larger sample. He did generate ground balls at a strong 56.4% clip, which could help him manage damage in Rogers Centre, but an 11.3% walk rate points to command volatility. The 2026 projections appear to price in regression toward league-average ratios with solid strikeout totals over a larger workload. Fantasy managers should view Yesavage as a high-variance upside arm — the swing-and-miss ability is real, but unless the contact quality improves, he's more of a late-round flier or watch-list candidate in standard formats rather than a draft-day priority.