Fantasy Baseball Player Notes

2025 Fantasy Baseball Draft Notes

Position

Team

Dylan Cease Note
	9. Dylan Cease Dylan Cease escaped from the White Sox in time to deliver a steady season as the Padres' ace. The 28-year-old struck out 224 batters in 189 1/3 innings on his way to a 3.47 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. He is in the 92nd percentile in Whiff% (32.4) and maintained a 29.4 K%. He set a new career-low walk rate at 8.5%, impressive for a pitcher who has struggled with free passes for much of his career. Cease will provide fantasy managers with a steady stream of strikeouts and 30+ starts. Just don't expect a return of his 2022 numbers anytime soon. 35 weeks ago

Michael King Note
	12. Michael King Astute managers grabbed Michael King late in 2024 drafts, and he rewarded them handsomely. After five years with the Yankees, pitching in every imaginable scenario, the Padres nabbed him in the Juan Soto deal and made him a starter. He started 30 games, pitched 173 2/3 innings, struck out 201 batters, and held down a 2.95 ERA and 1.19 WHIP. King is masterful at inducing weak contact, sitting in the 99th percentile in average exit velocity and 97th percentile in hard-hit percentage. The only thing of note is that his xERA was 3.54, suggesting he had some luck in 2024 that kept his sub-3 ERA intact. Other than that, though, King is primed to reach SP1 status in 2025 and should be targeted in most leagues. 35 weeks ago

Framber Valdez Note
	13. Framber Valdez Framber Valdez continued his steady ways in 2024, starting 28 games and pitching 176 1/3 innings. He finished the year with a 2.91 ERA and 1.11 WHIP and struck out 169 batters. Valdez lives and dies by the ground ball, sitting in the 99th percentile in the ground ball rate at 61.7%. There is nothing particularly wrong with Valdez, though when he gets hit, he gets hit hard, and his xERA was a half-run higher at 3.41. The trick with him in fantasy is simply that he doesn't strike out as many batters as other pitchers drafted in the same vicinity. He does offer the safest floor, so depending on where else you want to take your risks, Valdez may be a worthwhile SP2 anchor to your staff. 35 weeks ago

Shota Imanaga Note
	17. Shota Imanaga Shota Imanaga arrived at MLB and upstaged his fellow countryman, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, mostly by staying healthy. Imanaga started 29 games for the Cubs, pitching 173 1/3 innings and racking up 174 strikeouts while maintaining a 2.91 ERA and 1.02 WHIP. He also kicked in a 15-3 record to boost his fantasy impact. His 25.1% strikeout rate and microscopic 4.0% walk rate furthered his case as Chicago's ace. The biggest red flag for Imanaga this season is that his 2.91 ERA was a mirage, thanks to an unsustainable 80.2% LOB percentage. His xERA was 3.46, and that should be closer to the expectation going forward. Imanaga is a high-end SP2 on draft day. 35 weeks ago

Zac Gallen Note
	33. Zac Gallen Zac Gallen had a respectable but not fantastic 2024 season. The 29-year-old started 28 games and pitched 148 innings, racking up 156 strikeouts and ending with a 3.65 ERA and 1.26 WHIP. Nothing in his profile stands out as "outstanding." He had a 25.1% strikeout rate, the lowest of his major league career but not terrible. The most concerning stat of 2024 is the jump in his walk rate from 5.6% to 8.7%. If he doesn't correct that area, his ratios will continue trending in the wrong direction. As it stands, Gallen is a decent addition at SP3 or SP4. 35 weeks ago

Zach Eflin Note
	49. Zach Eflin

Brandon Woodruff Note
	66. Brandon Woodruff

Walker Buehler Note
	70. Walker Buehler

Max Scherzer Note
	74. Max Scherzer

Nestor Cortes Jr. Note
	75. Nestor Cortes Jr.

Ranger Suarez Note
	76. Ranger Suarez

Merrill Kelly Note
	77. Merrill Kelly

Chris Bassitt Note
	84. Chris Bassitt Chris Bassitt started 30+ games for the third year in a row in 2024, but he also suffered his second-worst career ERA at 4.16 to go along with an uncharacteristic WHIP of 1.46. The 35-year-old's strikeout rate stayed consistent at 22.2%, but his walk rate jumped over two percentage points to 9.2%. While he did manage 10 wins on a terrible team, he had trouble fooling hitters with his sinker and change-up, which is a harbinger for bad things to come. Bassitt is much more of a streamer/waiver wire pickup in 2025 than the durable innings eater fantasy managers have enjoyed in recent years. 35 weeks ago

Justin Verlander Note
	85. Justin Verlander

Erick Fedde Note
	87. Erick Fedde

Nick Martinez Note
	91. Nick Martinez

Dustin May Note
	94. Dustin May

Tomoyuki Sugano Note
	103. Tomoyuki Sugano

Aaron Civale Note
	104. Aaron Civale

Charlie Morton Note
	106. Charlie Morton

Zack Littell Note
	126. Zack Littell

Griffin Canning Note
	127. Griffin Canning

Lucas Giolito Note
	131. Lucas Giolito

Marcus Stroman Note
	132. Marcus Stroman

Tyler Mahle Note
	134. Tyler Mahle

Michael Soroka Note
	135. Michael Soroka

Andrew Heaney Note
	144. Andrew Heaney

Jose Quintana Note
	147. Jose Quintana

Chris Paddack Note
	148. Chris Paddack

Clayton Kershaw Note
	150. Clayton Kershaw

Jordan Montgomery Note
	151. Jordan Montgomery

Mike Clevinger Note
	157. Mike Clevinger

Kenta Maeda Note
	159. Kenta Maeda

Jon Gray Note
	160. Jon Gray

Miles Mikolas Note
	163. Miles Mikolas

Ben Lively Note
	164. Ben Lively

Alex Cobb Note
	170. Alex Cobb

Kyle Hart Note
	174. Kyle Hart

Kyle Gibson Note
	175. Kyle Gibson

A.J. Griffin Note
	176. A.J. Griffin

Steven Matz Note
	177. Steven Matz

Tyler Anderson Note
	178. Tyler Anderson

Lance Lynn Note
	179. Lance Lynn

Michael Lorenzen Note
	188. Michael Lorenzen

Jakob Junis Note
	189. Jakob Junis

Ryan Brasier Note
	192. Ryan Brasier

Luis Garcia Note
	194. Luis Garcia

German Marquez Note
	213. German Marquez

Cal Quantrill Note
	214. Cal Quantrill

Ian Anderson Note
	215. Ian Anderson

Brent Suter Note
	216. Brent Suter

Cody Poteet Note
	217. Cody Poteet

Ryan Burr Note
	218. Ryan Burr

John Means Note
	224. John Means

Paul Blackburn Note
	230. Paul Blackburn

Dane Dunning Note
	233. Dane Dunning

Valente Bellozo Note
	236. Valente Bellozo

Patrick Corbin Note
	237. Patrick Corbin

Connor Gillispie Note
	238. Connor Gillispie

Jack Perkins Note
	242. Jack Perkins

Kyle Hendricks Note
	245. Kyle Hendricks

Adrian Houser Note
	248. Adrian Houser

Martin Perez Note
	250. Martin Perez

Chase Johnson Note
	255. Chase Johnson

Joe Ross Note
	258. Joe Ross

Tyler Alexander Note
	263. Tyler Alexander

Donn Roach Note
	270. Donn Roach

Domingo German Note
	272. Domingo German

Phil Irwin Note
	273. Phil Irwin

Penn Murfee Note
	279. Penn Murfee

Anthony DeSclafani Note
	284. Anthony DeSclafani

Jose Urena Note
	289. Jose Urena

Chris Flexen Note
	302. Chris Flexen

Trevor Bauer Note
	309. Trevor Bauer

Spencer Jones Note
	313. Spencer Jones

Dakota Hudson Note
	314. Dakota Hudson

Bryse Wilson Note
	325. Bryse Wilson

Spencer Turnbull Note
	327. Spencer Turnbull

Shawn Armstrong Note
	329. Shawn Armstrong

Caleb Kilian Note
	333. Caleb Kilian

Kyle Wright Note
	336. Kyle Wright

Matt Manning Note
	341. Matt Manning

Eiberson Castellano Note
	344. Eiberson Castellano

Drew Smyly Note
	347. Drew Smyly

Austin Gomber Note
	348. Austin Gomber

Alex Faedo Note
	351. Alex Faedo

Jacob Waguespack Note
	366. Jacob Waguespack

Julio Urias Note
	370. Julio Urias

Davis Daniel Note
	377. Davis Daniel

Connor Seabold Note
	389. Connor Seabold

Zack Thompson Note
	392. Zack Thompson

Bruce Zimmermann Note
	398. Bruce Zimmermann

Jose Urquidy Note
	399. Jose Urquidy

James Paxton Note
	403. James Paxton

Caleb Boushley Note
	404. Caleb Boushley

Sixto Sanchez Note
	406. Sixto Sanchez

Elvin Rodriguez Note
	407. Elvin Rodriguez

Josh Fleming Note
	408. Josh Fleming

Shintaro Fujinami Note
	412. Shintaro Fujinami

Nabil Crismatt Note
	415. Nabil Crismatt

Brandon Leibrandt Note
	420. Brandon Leibrandt

Randy Dobnak Note
	423. Randy Dobnak

Bryan Mata Note
	424. Bryan Mata

Wade Miley Note
	425. Wade Miley

Jose Lopez Note
	426. Jose Lopez

Austin Krob Note
	428. Austin Krob

James Shields Note
	429. James Shields

Casey Lawrence Note
	431. Casey Lawrence

Tejay Antone Note
	432. Tejay Antone

Drew Rom Note
	436. Drew Rom

John Rooney Note
	437. John Rooney

Kolby Allard Note
	440. Kolby Allard

Royber Salinas Note
	442. Royber Salinas

Marco Gonzales Note
	443. Marco Gonzales

Carson Fulmer Note
	444. Carson Fulmer

Christian Roa Note
	447. Christian Roa

Shaun Anderson Note
	448. Shaun Anderson

Cole Irvin Note
	449. Cole Irvin

Jimmy Lambert Note
	451. Jimmy Lambert

Thaddeus Ward Note
	455. Thaddeus Ward

Brandon Bielak Note
	456. Brandon Bielak

Xzavion Curry Note
	457. Xzavion Curry

Kyle Tyler Note
	458. Kyle Tyler

Adrian Sampson Note
	459. Adrian Sampson

Noah Syndergaard Note
	461. Noah Syndergaard

Jack O'Loughlin Note
	462. Jack O'Loughlin

Zach Penrod Note
	465. Zach Penrod

Joan Adon Note
	466. Joan Adon

David Buchanan Note
	467. David Buchanan

Alex Wood Note
	468. Alex Wood

Kenny Rosenberg Note
	470. Kenny Rosenberg

James Kaprielian Note
	471. James Kaprielian

Justin Dunn Note
	472. Justin Dunn

Paolo Espino Note
	473. Paolo Espino

Ross Stripling Note
	476. Ross Stripling

Owen White Note
	477. Owen White

Noah Murdock Note
	479. Noah Murdock

Jake Woodford Note
	485. Jake Woodford

Adam Oller Note
	487. Adam Oller

Kyle Muller Note
	488. Kyle Muller

Harold Ramirez Note
	490. Harold Ramirez

Adam Kloffenstein Note
	494. Adam Kloffenstein

Carlos Perez Note
	496. Carlos Perez

Kyle Brnovich Note
	501. Kyle Brnovich