It was a rather productive extended week for MLB rookies, as they used the All-Star break to reset. The “hot” section of my fantasy baseball rookie report saw the most players who have been there all season. A couple of players were struggling before the break, so they used the rest period wisely to get back to being productive for fantasy managers. There are also a few rookies who saw an increase in their playing time, and they took advantage of the opportunity.
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Fantasy Baseball Rookie Report
Rookie Batters Who Had a Hot Week
Cooper Pratt – SS, Milwaukee Brewers
2026 Stats – 116 PA, .290/.362/.410, 2 HR, 15 R, 13 RBI, 8 SB
It was a slow start for Cooper Pratt, whose MLB debut was on June 16. His struggles continued through July 7, with his stat line sitting at .196/.324/.214 after the first game of a doubleheader. In the second game, he flipped a switch as he finished the last five games of the first half of the season going 8-for-18 (.444). The success continued after the All-Star break, getting a hit in five of eight games, with multiple hits in three of the games.
Pratt ended up going 10-for-26 (.384) with five runs, two home runs, six RBIs, and two stolen bases last week. The homers were the first of his MLB career, which aren’t expected as he hit only eight over 406 combined plate appearances in Single- and High-A. However, batting towards the bottom of a strong Brewers’ lineup will provide ample opportunities to produce for fantasy baseball managers. Pratt has a great chance to be a key second-half waiver addition at a weak position for fantasy baseball managers.
Luis Lara – OF, Milwaukee Brewers
2026 Stats – 40 PA, .303/.400/.424, 0 HR, 5 R, 7 RBI, 1 SB
Luis Lara has only been in the big leagues for a couple of weeks after his call-up on July 7, which has been rather lackluster with only five hits in his first 11 games, but he changed that last weekend with back-to-back two-hit games in the last two games of the week. He also added three runs and five RBIs in these two games, which were his first RBIs since his debut.
Lara signed a seven-year $31 million contract in early June, so the Brewers have plans for him to stay put. He was working in a rotation with Jackson Chourio, Sal Frelick, and Garrett Mitchell, but Frelick went on the 10-day IL on July 18 with a shoulder injury. So Lara will have some time to get comfortable in the majors as a near-everyday starter.
Esmerlyn Valdez – 1B/OF, Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 143 PA, .293/.385/.707, 14 HR, 26 R, 36 RBI, 0 SB
Esmerlyn Valdez was one of the hottest rookies before the All-Star break. The contact dropped off slightly since the season kicked back off after the All-Star break, going 7-for-29 (.241), but he hit four home runs and had nine RBIs. He’s had issues with striking out in the minor leagues, and that’s gotten worse in the majors, with him striking out at a rate of 38.1%. However, he’s sporting a 179 wRC+ and an astronomical .400 ISO, so there will be regression at some point, but enjoy the hot start.
Sal Stewart – 1B/2B/3B, Cincinnati Reds
2026 Stats – 450 PA, .253/.329/.470, 21 HR, 55 R, 76 RBI, 11 SB
Sal Stewart only went 7-for-33 (.212), but he hit two home runs, scored five runs, and knocked in 11. It helped that both his homers were three-run shots. Like Valdez, the contact is lacking since returning from the All-Star break, but it was nice to see Stewart’s power return.
He had 10 stolen bases through May, but for some reason he only has one since then, coming on June 15. He was on pace to become the first rookie to hit 25 or more home runs, record 100 or more RBIs, and steal more than 25 bases. However, he needs to get really aggressive on the base paths to reach that stolen base mark now.
Travis Bazzana – 2B, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 325 PA, .239/.335/.400, 9 HR, 34 R, 33 RBI, 15 SB
Travis Bazzana got off to a hot start to his rookie debut, slashing .311/.398/.476 through May, but that came to a halt with a slow remainder of the first half of the season, going 26-135 (.137). However, the rest over the break may have helped him regain a glimpse of his early-season form. Bazzana went 9-for-36 (.250) with two homers, scored four times, and had five RBIs to start the second half of the season. He also stole two bases, but he finished the week hitless over four of his last five games.
Munetaka Murakami – 1B, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 299 PA, .239/.378/.543, 22 HR, 53 R, 48 RBI, 1 SB
Sunday, July 26, saved Murakami’s week, fantasy-wise, as he hit two home runs, scored three runs, and drove in six. He also collected three of his nine hits on the day, contributing to him going 9-for-32 (.281) and scoring five additional runs throughout the week.
Sunday’s home runs and RBIs were his first since returning from the IL on July 10, so it’s nice to see the power return for the Japanese slugger. Murakami has a lot of ground to make up if he wants to catch Kevin McGonigle to claim the AL Rookie of the Year Award.
Braden Montgomery – OF, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 154 PA, .246/.318/.399, 3 HR, 21 R, 19 RBI, 0 SB
Braden Montgomery added a couple of firsts to his MLB career after the break. He hit his first triple and stole his first base in the first game back on July 17. In the extended week, he got a hit in seven of the nine games, going 10-for-34 (.294), while adding six runs and driving in seven.
Montgomery has had drastic ups and downs since his call-up on June 9, but he has the skill set to provide more weeks like this. Until he can start producing results consistently each week, there are more preferable outfield options in every fantasy format.
TJ Rumfield – 1B, Colorado Rockies
2026 Stats – 419 PA, .298/.382/.475, 13 HR, 46 R, 53 RBI, 0 SB
TJ Rumsfield hadn’t homered since June 25, but he changed that in the second game after the All-Star break, hitting a two-run homer against the Cincinnati Reds. Last week, he went 10-for-29, while adding four runs and six RBIs to his stats. Rumsfield has been a consistent contributor all season long, and you can’t say it’s the Coors Field effect, as his 134 wRC+ away from Denver is greater than the 117 stat at home.
Cole Carrigg – OF, Colorado Rockies
2026 Stats – 151 PA, .287/.360/.519, 5 HR, 30 R, 26 RBI, 3 SB
Cole Carrigg was another Rockies rookie who had a hot week, getting a hit in seven of eight games. Overall, he went 10-for-30 (.333), with seven runs, four RBIs, a home run, and a stolen base. Even playing at Coors Field, fantasy managers can’t expect many homers from Carrigg, as the most he had in a season was in 2024, when he hit 17 in 528 combined plate appearances in Rookie ball and High-A. However, Carrigg can still be useful in NL-only leagues, points leagues, or ones where OBP is a heavy factor.
Chase DeLauter – OF, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 333 PA, .278/.345/.448, 11 HR, 33 R, 46 RBI, 3 SB
Chase DeLauter got a hit in seven of the nine games after the Midsummer Classic break, including a 4-for-5 day on July 20 where he drove in three of his week’s four RBIs. He scored just twice last week, but he stole two bases, which is a surprise, as DeLauter has only five all season. It’s nice to see the lefty back to driving runs in after only five RBIs in June, but the Guardians’ struggling offense around DeLauter isn’t helping the rookie produce consistently.
JJ Wetherholt – 2B/3B/SS, St. Louis Cardinals
2026 Stats – 453 PA, .253/.349/.393, 13 HR, 58 R, 36 RBI, 9 SB
The Cardinals have a consistent contributor in their everyday leadoff hitter, JJ Wetherholt. Though his contact was down, he still found a way to fill up the stat sheet last week, going 8-for-41 (.195) with nine runs, two homers, four RBIs, and a stolen base. He also continues to display his plate vision, with only a 15.8% strikeout rate. Wetherholt is the slight favorite for the NL Rookie of the Year Award, but Stewart isn’t far behind, and Valdez is quickly picking up steam.
Jacob Gonzalez – 1B/2B/SS, Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 121 PA, .236/.300/.391, 4 HR, 14 R, 22 RBI, 0 SB
The Pirates sent their Competitive Balance-A Draft pick to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for Jacob Gonzalez and a reliever. Gonzalez was acquired to fill a hole with Konnor Griffin on the IL. The newly acquired Pirate took advantage of his opportunies last week by hitting 5-for-23 (.217) with three runs, two homers, and five RBIs. However, he’s splitting time with Jared Triolo at shortstop, so without getting everyday starts, Gonzalez can be left on all waiver wires.
Blaze Jordan – 1B/3B, St. Louis Cardinals
2026 Stats – 113 PA, .238/.257/.352, 1 HR, 10 R, 22 RBI, 0 SB
Blaze Jordan had his most productive stretch of games last week, going 7-for-29 (.241), while adding two runs and eight RBIs. There hasn’t been much to talk about with Jordan since his call-up on June 12, but he is eligible at both corner infield positions. However, batting eighth in a Cardinals’ offense that has been struggling, losing 13 of their last 19 games, means Jordan needs to remain on waiver wires.
Rookies Who Had a Mild Week
Kevin McGonigle – SS/3B, Detroit Tigers
2026 Stats – 452 PA, .281/.387/.418, 9 HR, 62 R, 35 RBI, 11 SB
McGonigle was hot at the plate last week, getting a hit in seven of the nine games. Overall, he went 9-for-35 (.257), but he didn’t do much with it. He had only one RBI all week, a solo home run, and added four runs. The rookie has been a consistent bat in either of the top two spots of the batting order, which is why he has such a commanding lead as the favorite for the AL Rookie of the Year Award.
Sam Antonacci – 2B/3B/OF, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 341 PA, .283/.376/.416, 7 HR, 55 R, 30 RBI, 14 SB
Carter Jensen – C, Kansas City Royals
2026 Stats – 388 PA, .240/.309/.428, 14 HR, 44 R, 52 RBI, 1 SB
Dylan Beavers – OF, Baltimore Orioles
2026 Stats – 180 PA, .248/.335/.357, 2 HR, 20 R, 17 RBI, 4 SB
Cam Cauley – 2B/SS, Texas Rangers
2026 Stats – 41 PA, .250/.341/.444, 1 HR, 8 R, 1 RBI, 0 SB
Jim Jarvis – SS, Atlanta Braves
2026 Stats – 68 PA, .262/.308/.410, 1 HR, 8 R, 8 RBI, 0 SB
Jase Bowen – OF, San Diego Padres
2026 Stats – 57 PA, .148/.193/.185, 0 HR, 8 R, 5 RBI, 4 SB
Rookie Batters Who Had a Cold Week
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B/1B, Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 421 PA, .224/.304/.443, 23 HR, 52 R, 65 RBI, 0 SB
It was a slow week for Kazuma Okamoto, which is to be expected from time to time as he’s not known for his contact skills. During the week, he only went 3-for-36 (.083), while scoring twice and hitting a three-run home run. The home run was significant because it broke Shohei Ohtani’s rookie record by a Japanese-born player.
Carson Benge – OF, New York Mets
2026 Stats – 421 PA, .258/.323/.389, 11 HR, 54 R, 40 RBI, 16 SB
A.J. Ewing – 2B/OF, New York Mets
2026 Stats – 265 PA, .264/.338/.413, 7 HR, 29 R, 25 RBI, 11 SB
Yohendrick Pinango – OF, Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 172 PA, .259/.302/.401, 5 HR, 12 R, 20 RBI, 0 SB
Justin Crawford – OF, Philadelphia Phillies
2026 Stats – 302 PA, .254/.300/.339, 2 HR, 28 R, 22 RBI, 13 SB
Gabriel Rincones Jr. – OF, Philadelphia Phillies
2026 Stats – 83PA, .167/.205/.295, 2 HR, 7 R, 7 RBI, 0 SB
Nathan Church – OF, St. Louis Cardinals
2026 Stats – 281 PA, .225/.268/.359, 8 HR, 32 R, 30 RBI, 5 SB
Henry Bolte – OF, Athletics
2026 Stats – 226 PA, .247/.326/.328, 3 HR, 19 R, 17 RBI, 11 SB
Alex Freeland – 2B/3B/SS – Los Angeles Dodgers
2026 Stats – 223 PA, .231/.309/.313, 3 HR, 24 R, 19 RBI, 2 SB
Colt Emerson – SS, Seattle Mariners
2026 Stats – 193 PA, .201/.266/.368, 7 HR, 21 R, 21 RBI, 3 SB
Sung-Mun Song – 2B/3B, San Diego Padres
2026 Stats – 115 PA, .212/.310/.283, 1 HR, 16 R, 15 RBI, 11 SB
Edwin Arroyo – 2B, Cincinnati Reds
2026 Stats – 134 PA, .244/.288/.285, 0 HR, 12 R, 4 RBI, 0 SB
Drew Cavanaugh – C, San Francisco Giants
2026 Stats – 53 PA, .262/.392/.262, 0 HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, 0 SB
Jesus Rodriguez – C, San Francisco Giants
2026 Stats – 53 PA, .234/.308/.404, 2 HR, 5 R, 8 RBI, 1 SB
Ben Malgeri – OF, Detroit Tigers
2026 Stats – 39 PA, .242/.333/.303, 0 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, 0 SB
Rookie Pitchers
Nolan McLean – New York Mets
2026 Stats – 21 GS, 7-7, 3.32 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 125 SO, 39 BB
Parker Messick – Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 21 GS, 8-6, 2.59 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 122 SO, 36 BB
Bubba Chandler – Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 19 GS (1 relief), 3-8, 4.47 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 90 SO, 56 BB
Payton Tolle – Boston Red Sox
2026 Stats – 16 GS, 5-6, 3.31 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 96 SO, 26 BB
Brandon Sproat – Milwaukee Brewers
2026 Stats – 17 GS (2 relief), 3-5, 5.09 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 91 SO, 43 BB
Foster Griffin – Washington Nationals
2026 Stats – 21 GS, 12-2, 2.76 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 113 SO, 28 BB
Trey Yesavage – Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 16 GS, 4-5, 3.92 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 87 SO, 42 BB
Tatsuya Imai – Houston Astros
2026 Stats – 14 GS, 6-4, 5.59 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 71 SO, 36 BB
Gage Jump – Athletics
2026 Stats – 11 GS, 3-6, 4.42 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 61 SO, 21 BB
Rhett Lowder – Cincinnati Reds
2026 Stats – 15 GS (3 relief), 3-7, 5.61 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 65 SO, 37 BB
Noah Schultz – Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 12 GS, 3-7, 6.04 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 49 SO, 29 BB
Jake Bennett – Boston Red Sox
2026 Stats – 10 GS, 6-3, 2.58 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 42 SO, 9 BB
Mitch Bratt – Arizona Diamondbacks
2026 Stats – 4 GS, 0-1, 6.32 ERA, 1.98 WHIP, 10 SO, 11 BB
Ryan Johnson – Los Angeles Angels
2026 Stats – 11 GS (3 relief), 2-5, 7.34 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, 34 SO, 17 BB
Connor Prielipp – SP, Minnesota Twins
2026 Stats – 14 GS, 3-5, 4.73 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 76 SO, 26 BB
Carson Whisenhunt – San Francisco Giants
2026 Stats – 3 GS, 2-1, 4.60 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 13 SO, 8 BB
New Additions to the Rookie Report
Tommy White – 3B, Athletics
2026 Stats – 33 PA, .323/.364/.387, 0 HR, 4 R, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Lucas Spence – OF, Houston Astros
2026 Stats – 31 PA, .179/.258/.214, 0 HR, 2 R, 1 RBI, 0 SB
Zac Thornton – New York Mets
2026 Stats – 4 GS, 1-1, 1.93 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 17 SO, 6 BB
Newest Rookie Injuries/Demotions
Konnor Griffin – SS, Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 247 PA, .276/.332/.404, 5 HR, 35 R, 25 RBI, 20 SB
Placed on the 60-day IL with a left ring finger sagittal band injury
Sean Keys – 3B, Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 37 PA, .167/.189/.278, 1 HR, 5 R, 5 RBI, 0 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Samuel Basallo – C, Baltimore Orioles
2026 Stats – 301 PA, .248/.309/.464, 16 HR, 34 R, 46 RBI, 0 SB
Placed on the 10-day IL with right shoulder inflammation
Brice Matthews- 2B/OF, Houston Astros
2026 Stats – 226 PA, .197/.250/.332, 7 HR, 23 R, 22 RBI, 4 SB
Placed on the 10-day IL with a right knee sprain
Kahlil Watson – OF, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 91 PA, .239/.264/.341, 1 HR, 6 R, 11 RBI, 9 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer – SS, Athletics
2026 Stats – 62 PA, .417/.435/.583, 1 HR, 8 R,4 RBI, 0 SB
Placed on the 10-day IL with a ruptured testicle
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