2025 Fantasy Baseball: Breakout Bats – Hitters Heating Up

With the calendar turning to September, we are officially in the fantasy baseball stretch run. But there’s still a month to work with – plenty of time to make up ground or pad a lead in the standings.

This is also the time when many turn their focus to football. If you’re all-in on baseball (which you should be because it’s the best of the fantasy sports, in my humble opinion), it’s a great time to out-manage other teams who may not be as tuned in as they were earlier in the year.

But you’re still looking for any advantage late in the season, and that includes hitters who have woken up or who are surging heading into the final month. Here are some such players…

Picking it up: Recent Breakout Bats

Tier I

Riley Greene, OF, Detroit Tigers

It’s been a career year for Greene, who has already set new highs in home runs (32) and RBIs (101). Still, it’s been a streaky season, as usual, for the 24-year-old, whose production is often dictated by just how much he’s striking out. Lately, that’s been much improved.

He’s going to approach 200 strikeouts for the year, something he’ll have to improve on if he wants to become truly elite, but check this out: after posting a woeful 4:40 BB:K ratio in July, he went 12:26 in August. And in his last 18 games, prior to action Monday, he’s barely struck out (13) more times than he’s walked (12). That’s a mighty improvement.

Meanwhile, he’s recorded a hit in eight of his last nine games, batting .353/.421/.676 during that span with three homers and nine RBIs. If he’s truly made a change in his plate discipline, the sky’s the limit for the Tigers’ outfielder.

Ozzie Albies, 2B, Atlanta Braves

Is he even a Tier I bat anymore? That was certainly up for debate at the all-star break, when Albies sported a meagre .220 batting average and .606 OPS (with seven homers in 95 games). This is a player two years removed from a 33-homer season. Reports have surfaced that suggest his left wrist, which he fractured in mid-July of last year, has hindered his play.

If that’s the case, it seems to be bothering him less lately. While not earth-shattering, he’s raised his batting average 16 points over his last 33 games. And he’s been particularly hot over the last two weeks, batting .316 with an .894 OPS and 13 RBIs in 14 games. A healthier Albies is an Albies who could do some damage in the final month of the season.

Tier II

Brandon Nimmo, OF, New York Mets

We’re on the fence as to whether Nimmo is a Tier I or Tier II bat. We’re going with Tier II here, but he’s showing us what Tier I looks like right now. Since slumping in late July and early August, the 32-year-old has turned it on. Over his last 16 games, which included a span where he missed a few contests due to a neck issue, he’s produced an impressive .373 batting average and 1.045 OPS (while compiling 14 runs and 14 RBIs).

Now, he’s on a seven-game hitting streak (.429/.469/.786) with a pair of homers and nine RBIs. Nimmo always draws his walks, which fantasy managers appreciate. And he’s shown he can maintain a good average in the past, batting .274 in back-to-back seasons in 2022 and 2023. He’s already reached 22 homers for the year, and he’s on pace to set a new career high in that category.

Adolis Garcia, OF, Texas Rangers

Since returning from an ankle injury, Garcia has looked like a new man – at least different from the one he was for most of this season. Coming off a down year (save for 25 homers), the Rangers’ outfielder was having an even worse one in 2025 (he had a .623 OPS in early June). But he’s come to life lately.

In eight games since coming off the injured list, the 32-year-old has recorded a hit in seven of those contests, batting .412 with a 1.150 OPS during that span. He’s popped two homers and driven in nine while also scoring nine times. His OPS has gone up 30 points in fast fashion, and he could get it to a more respectable mark if he continues this surge into September.

Tier III

Josh Jung, 3B, Texas Rangers

Jung has left us wanting since his 23-homer, 70-RBI season in 2023 (122 games). The former eighth overall pick has yet to realize his full potential, and he’s frustrated plenty of fantasy GMs along the way. But he’s making us forget about that right now, as he’s enjoying perhaps his best stretch of an otherwise mediocre season.

The 27-year-old was riding an eight-game hit streak through action Sunday, where he batted an even .500 (17-for-34) with a pair of homers and eight RBIs. He’s at just 13 long balls for the year, in 107 games, and sports a .709 OPS. But both those numbers should go up this month while he rides this current momentum, tapping into his true potential.

Jorge Polanco, 2B/DH, Seattle Mariners

Don’t look now, but Polanco is turning in a bounce-back season in Seattle after a disappointing first year with the M’s. He’s reached 22 homers, tied for the second most in his career (33 in 2021), and he’s got his batting average up in the .250s with a .780 OPS. Those are meaningful fantasy numbers, and he’s been particularly hot lately.

In his last 11 games, Polanco is batting .342 with a 1.112 OPS, thanks to seven extra-base hits (including four homers). Could the 32-year-old reach an .800 OPS for the first time in four years? With a strong September, we don’t see why not. He’s showing the best plate discipline of his career. And while hitting at T-Mobile Park isn’t ideal, he’s actually swatted 13 of his 22 homers there and posted an impressive .850 OPS at his home ballpark this year.

Honourable mention:

Kyle Teel, C, White Sox … It might actually surprise you to hear that Teel had a .377 on-base percentage entering action holiday Monday. And, despite being primarily a catcher, he’s playing a lot, moonlighting as a DH. In his previous 11 games prior to Monday, he batted .415/.478/.585, posting six multi-hit games during that span …Luis Matos, OF, Giants… He’s returned to The Show, and he’s doing some damage. Small samples can make a big difference in a youngster’s stat line, as witnessed by Matos’ last 10 games. With 16 hits in 37 at-bats, the 23-year-old has raised his batting average from .167 to .232, and his OPS from .559 to .732. Can he ride that confidence to more success in September?