2026 Fantasy Baseball: Drafting at the Turn

It’s not ideal. No one, or at least most people, wakes up and says, “I want to pick last in the first round.” However, that does mean you get another pick right after. It’s what comes next, though that’s the problem.

Then it’s time to get up, stretch your feet, and maybe take a nap. It’s going to be a long wait until your next pick, as every other team drafts twice before it gets back to you. How you deal with that will ultimately determine the success of your draft.

Before we get into digging into the strategy of drafting at the turn, it’s important to note that there’s a big difference between drafting first and drafting 15th. The mechanics having the longest possible wait to pick are the same, but at least if you are first, you get the presumed best player on the board.

Drafting at the Turn

Ignore the ADP

I’m sorry, you don’t get to play the market here. You get what you get, and you have to like it. The luxury of waiting another few picks for your favorite sleeper target doesn’t exist.

If it’s on you at pick 60 and your must-have player has an ADP of 72, go draft them. Draft the best player that’s on your board, and if you set a minimum pick, so be it. It’s your draft and your team, so it’s on you to make sure you draft the players you want.

The problem, though, is that with such a long gap between selections, the ADP really doesn’t apply here. You can use it as a guide, but a lot can happen in 23 picks (12-team league).

Follow the Tiers

When you are drafting at the turn, runs can start, end, and run their course before it even gets back to you. Determining who to draft is never easy, but not having the ability to quickly recover and jump into a run makes it that much worse.

We’ve already established that, to a point, we have to ignore ADP. To help determine who to draft, you need to have clear tiers established. Forecasting the drop-offs at each position is very important to make sure you don’t miss the falloff. Tiers are very important to help plan your strategy and to guide your selections.

Have Clear Statistical Targets

Having an idea of when to attack each position is very important, but a lot can happen between your picks when drafting at the turn. Not only do you have to pay attention to positions, but at the end of the day, you are building a complete roster. In a sense, it’s a portfolio of production and statistics.

Positions are important because you need to fill every spot, but statistics are more important. When building your team, it’s important to understand how your team is tracking statistically. That’s going to influence the direction of your draft picks more than anything else.

Take What the Board Gives You

Yes, I know I’ve just droned on about having tiers and targets, but at the end of the day, you are just a consumer. A consumer of the draft board, that is. You can only draft what the board allows you to. Don’t try to force things. If a run is over or a tier is depleted, don’t dip down in your ranks; just acknowledge it and move on. That just means the board is sending you in a different direction. Go along with it.

Don’t Fall Asleep

I know I joked about it earlier, but you can’t fall asleep. The worst thing you can do with such a long gap is to lose focus. Yes, there’s going to be a lot of time between picks, but that doesn’t mean you can check out.

It’s understood that you can’t fall into a line of thinking too soon before you pick, because the options are likely to change, but you also need to understand all of your options. Formulate your plan and be ready to pivot in multiple directions.

For more of the great fantasy baseball rankings and analysis you’ve come to expect from FantraxHQ, check out our full 2026 Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit! We’re here for you all the way up until Opening Day and then on into your championship run.