2019 Fantasy Baseball ROS Rankings

As incredible as Trout has been once again, both Yelich and Bellinger have been more useful from a fantasy perspective. It may not last much longer, but with the rate Yelich has been going for the past 120 games, it seems unlikely that Trout will catch him by season's end as the top fantasy hitter.

If you are hoping to make some noise in the trade market, you may want to put in a feeler for J.D. who has been among the most unlucky hitters in terms of batted balls this season. While his production looks down, he is actually hitting the ball just as well as he has the past few seasons.

It was a rough year for Springer Dingers, as the Astros outfielder deposited just 22 homers with a pedestrian .265/.346/.434 slash line in 2018. Thumb and quad injuries sapped his power late in the season and limited him to 140 games for the second straight year, and yet he managed over 100 runs for the third consecutive campaign. This year, he needed just 65 games to deposit 21 long balls with a .302/.389/.600 slash line. Back from a hamstring injury that sent him to the IL, a healthy Springer looks poised to reclaim top-shelf value.

Now that Judge is finally back, everyone will soon remember why he was recently considered to be in the top-tier of outfielders. Don't be shocked if he leads the AL in homers and runs over the rest of the season.

Whit has done exactly what fantasy owners have hoped for up until the break. He is on pace for both 20 homers and 30 steals to go with a batting average north of .300. While he doesn't possess top-tier upside, fantasy owners can continue to rely on him as a 3rd or even 2nd round value.

Davis has dropped off in power this season, but we all know that at the drop of a hat, he can rattle off a dozen homers in a month and quickly climb that leaderboard. He is still be all means a top 25 fantasy outfielder even with is frustrating first half.

Alonso forced the Mets' hand and won an Opening Day job by displaying his Herculean power throughout spring training. He has now hit his way into a permanent role with 31 homers (already breaking Darryl Strawberry's franchise record for a rookie) and .978. A third-deck HR shortly after the break helps to debunk the supposed Home Run Derby curse. He's still hitting .270 despite a 25.5% strikeout rate. Another slump could drag that down, but his Statcast exploits feel reminiscent of Aaron Judge's debut. We may be looking at a league-altering star who could belt 50 homers.

Cruz may not be producing quite at the same rate as we've seen in years prior, but his batted ball data is virtually identical so it is difficult to even say he has slowed down. Rather, we are still talking about a top 100 overall player in fantasy baseball.

Sanchez is in the clear-cut top tier of catchers with Realmuto, Contreras and Grandal. Although he won't help in batting average much, his power and the RBIs that will follow are what sets him apart as potentially the best fantasy catcher in baseball.

Brantley keeps on hitting, and as long as he stays healthy, fantasy owners can expect a .320 average from him to go with all the runs and RBIs that come from batting in the middle of the order for Houston. There won't be much in the way of power or speed, however.

Abreu just keeps getting it done for fantasy owners year after year and this time around is no different. He has a .280 batting average with 21 homers going into the break and that's the type of reliable production we should expect in the second half too.

With the AL East likely in the bag, the Yankees have been wise to hold off on rushing Stanton back. When he will finally return is anyone's guess, but when he does, you can expect a top 15 fantasy outfielder as always.

Following a down year in which he "only" hit 32 home runs, Encarnacion has bounced back to elite form with 27 long balls in 84 games. He's hitting more fly balls, and last year's career-high strikeout rate has dropped closer to normal. In hindsight, it's laughable that a bankable slugger was available well beyond the top-100 picks. As long as he stays healthy, the 36-year-old is on his way to another 35-40 home runs. That remains the case after getting traded to the Yankees, where he could put up absurd HR and RBI tallies as the regular designated hitter.

Although he wasn't a popular free agent this off-season, fantasy owners knew they could rely on his power, especially with him being in Milwaukee, and Moose has delivered. He is on track for 45 bombs to go with 100 RBIs and runs.

Donaldson has managed to stay healthy so far this season, but the risk remains a factor. With that said, when he is on the field, you can still bank on 30-homer power with plenty of RBIs and runs.

The routinely ignored Choo keeps hitting at age 37. He has 15 homers and eight steals with a 130 wRC+ as of July 17. It's not necessarily a fluke, and he has benefited from a rise in exit velocity and hard-hit rate. He especially remains an unheralded OBP and runs asset in five-outfielder formats.

Upton, who opened the season on the IL with what sounded like a minor toe injury, instead missed more than two months. There goes his streak of three straight 30-homer seasons and eight seasons with at least 145 games played. He's hit a solid .257/.342/.457 with four homers in 19 games since returning. Although durability was a major selling point, he can still offer plenty of power down the stretch.

While the batting average won't be ideal, you can avoid that penalty by just sitting him when the Mariners take on a lefty. Outside of that, Vogelbach has been one of the best hitters in all of baseball and that isn't any kind of fluke considering the dominant underlying metrics.

Cron is quietly batting .269/.328/.502 with 17 homers and 54 RBIs. He has slashed his strikeout rate by chasing fewer pitches off the plate, and he gets to bat in a red-hot Twins lineup. He's on his way to another sneaky 30-HR season, likely with a batting average higher than last year's .253. That makes him an underrated CI who has proved 2018 wasn't a fluke. He returned from the IL on July 16 after missing the minimum time.

According to Baseball Savant's Statcast metrics, no one in baseball has been more unlucky than Justin Smoak. He is actually hitting the ball harder and at a better angle than he did in his 2017 breakout season so it is time to buy the second-half bounceback.

Soler entered the All-Star Break on track for 40 homers and well over 100 RBIs. While the batting average won't help you at all, he seems to be on the route to a Khris Davis type of season, which as you know, would make him a top 100 fantasy asset easily.

Gurriel isn't a big source of power, but playing in this Astros offense guarantees him plenty of runs and RBI opportunities. Add in a worthwhile batting average and you've got a solid starter for your fantasy squad.

The Mets haven't gotten as much out of Ramos in the first half as they may have expected but he is an extremely streaky hitter so it would be no surprise if his BA jumps from 270 to 300 in the second half to go with a dozen more homers. He is still a C1 without question.

Odor did his thing for a while where he was a total trainwreck, and while the batting average is still below .200, he has started to play much better of late and is, as always, producing in both the homer and stolen base departments.

Jones isn't back to his glory days, but he has certainly been a nice surprise this season for fantasy owners, contributing in three categories and not hurting anyone in batting average. You can continue to use him as a mediocre asset.

Cabrera has been healthy and is batting .304 as a result, but his power is completely zapped and there is, of course, no hope for speed. You can roll him out in your fantasy lineup, however, and expect similar results to Votto at this point.

Sano is back off the IL and doing Sano things with a .230 batting average but with loads of power. He could hit 25 bombs in the second-half with the RBIs and runs to go with it so don't give up on him quite yet.

The Pirates placed Dickerson on the IL with a right posterior shoulder strain on April 4. Since returning two months later, he has managed just two home runs in 30 games. Deeper competitors can still benefit from his batting-average floor, but Bryan Reynolds' emergence could put his playing time in peril when Gregory Polanco returns from the IL. That problem at least isn't imminent, as Polanco suffered a setback in his rehab.

We've now seen 162 games played so far in Ohtani's career and he has produced loads of power to go with speed, and plenty of runs and RBIs along with a terrific batting average. To put it plainly, this type of production is only reserved for top 20 fantasy hitters.

 

The A's, who acquired Morales from the Blue Jays early in the season, shipped him off to the injury-bitten Yankees. Despite his listless .211/.321/.289 slash line, the Statcast expected numbers (.279/.380/.469) likes his far more. He could see some reps at DH with Giancarlo Stanton sidelined and Miguel Andujar out for the season, so give him a look in AL-only and 15-team mixed leagues.

 

 

Mejia struggled mightily to begin the season, earning himself a demotion to the minor leagues. But he's back now and playing fairly regularly. There are very few catchers with his level of upside, so he's worth taking a chance on if you're hurting at the position -- and maybe even if you aren't.

At this point in his career, Kipnis is only a worthwhile fantasy asset in deeper leagues. He should end up with double-digit homers and steals, but not by much, and drug down by a rough batting average.