The rookies came out to play last week, with one of their strongest showings of the year. We saw some early top performers who have been struggling return to their productive ways. We also saw some slow starters find their way to being fantasy relevant for a week.
My fantasy baseball rookie report will highlight all the MLB rookies and show how their week went. In my report, you’ll find that I’ve broken down which rookies had a hot, mild, or cold week. Find where your favorites fell in the list.
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Updated Fantasy Baseball Rookie Report
Rookie Batters Who Had a Hot Week
Travis Bazzana – 2B, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 199 PA, .273/.367/.471, 7 HR, 22 R, 24 RBI, 11 SB
Travis Bazzana had a rough week two weeks ago, facing the first real adversity of his rookie season. However, he recovered quickly, going 9-for-21 (.428) with six runs, three home runs, and six RBIs. Bazzana only had four games where he got a hit before June 15, so fantasy managers are hoping the hot week is a sign of what’s to come.
Sal Stewart – 1B, Cincinnati Reds
2026 Stats – 331 PA, .252/.344/.455, 14 HR, 40 RBIs, 53 RBI, 11 SB
June has been hit-or-miss for one of the hottest hitters through the early part of the season. However, Sal Stewart hit his second home run of the month, as well as four runs and 11 RBIs this week. He also stole his first base of the month on June 15. The power swing hasn’t been there lately for the first baseman, but he went 7-for-23 (.304) and is back to filling up the stat sheet. Let’s see if he can keep that momentum going.
Carson Benge – OF, New York Mets
2026 Stats – 296 PA, .257/.318/. 404, 9 HR, 42 R, 29 RBI, 11 SB
Like Stewart, Carson Benge has had an up-and-down month. He put together a consistent week last week, going 7-for-27 (.259) with five runs, two home runs, and three RBIs. He also added his second stolen base in June. The Mets desperately need their leadoff guy to be back, as the team has struggled all season and has a -31 run differential as of June 21.
TJ Rumfield – 1B, Colorado Rockies
2026 Stats – 301 PA, .279/.359/.483, 12 HR, 34 R, 42 RBI, 0 SB
TJ Rumfield continues to stay hot with a 6-for-22 (.272) week, while adding three runs, three home runs, and eight RBIs. He had a hit and an RBI in five of his six games throughout the week. He didn’t record a stat in the June 15th game, where he also ended a five-game hit streak, but he started another five-game hit streak the next day.
Two of those homers came at the Pittsburgh Pirates’ PNC Park, which is his fifth home run on the road, so Rumfield isn’t just displaying his power at Coors Field. That’s due to his ranking in the 86th percentile for launch-angle sweet spot percentage (38.6%). Rumsfield is only rostered in about 35% of leagues, but he can safely be added regardless of league size, as he can produce outside of Denver.
Carter Jensen – C, Kansas City Royals
2026 Stats – 269 PA, .244/.312/.437, 10 HR, 36 R, 39 RBI, 1 SB
Carter Jensen has been a massive fantasy baseball contributor over his current 12-game hit streak. Last week, he also added six runs, two home runs, four RBIs, and his first career stolen base. Before his hit streak, Jensen was hitting .211, so it’s evident that he’s going through a transformation at the plate.
Sam Antonacci – 2B/3B/OF, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 230 PA, .287/.386/.421, 4 HR, 36 R, 19 RBI, 9 SB
Sam Antonacci has had a hit in nine of his last 11 games. Including hitting three home runs in this span. The power was a massive surprise since he only had one other homer the rest of the season. However, if he can continue hitting the long ball, then Antonacci would be an even more ideal fantasy baseball asset.
Stealing bases was his biggest bright spot, but for some reason, he isn’t being aggressive on the base paths. Having only one steal this month is not a selling point. Antonacci has shown enough to be added to deeper leagues, but shallower leagues need to see whether the power can continue or whether the aggression on the bases intensifies before picking up the White Sox rookie.
JJ Wetherholt – 2B/3B/SS, St. Louis Cardinals
2026 Stats – 324 PA, .268/.370/.428, 12 HR, 49R, 34 RBI, 8 SB
The Cardinals’ second baseman has been on a multi-hit tear the last two weeks. JJ Wetherholt has achieved this feat in six of his last 12 games. Last week, three of his games featured three hits each, helping him go 10-for-25 (.400) with four runs scored, two homers, three RBIs, and a stolen base.
Although Sunday’s game consisted of a bulk of his production (three runs, both homers, and all three RBIs). Still a productive week hitting for the rookie, who is the heavy favorite to win the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
Kevin McGonigle – SS/3B, Detroit Tigers
2026 Stats – 326 PA, .283/.393/.428, 6 HR, 47 R, 26 RBI, 9 SB
Kevin McGonigle has a seven-game hit streak, but he’s been productive elsewhere as well. He went 7-for-20 (.350) at the plate, scored three times, hit two home runs, and knocked in two. He also drew six walks while only striking out twice.
His plate discipline was excellent, and he’s been a bright spot at the top of the Tigers’ lineup. He continues to be the heavy favorite for the AL Rookie of the Year Award, and rightfully so, with Murakami still on the IL.
Owen Caissie – OF, Miami Marlins
2026 Stats – 209 PA, .222/.282/.411, 8 HR, 21 R, 40 RBI, 4 SB
Owen Caissie hasn’t given fantasy managers much to talk about this season, but he had a standout week last week. He went 5-for-15 (.300) with two runs, two home runs, and five RBIs, while also stealing a base.
He’s not getting as many at-bats as the other rookies on the rookie report because he normally sits or is pinch-hit for when a left-handed pitcher is on the mound. The limited playing time and inconsistent production mean he needs to stay on the waiver wire or can safely be dropped if you have him on your roster.
Rookies Who Had a Mild Week
Justin Crawford – OF, Philadelphia Phillies
2026 Stats – 230 PA, .244/.300/.338, 2 HR, 21 R, 16 RBI, 8 SB
A.J. Ewing – OF, New York Mets
2026 Stats – 142 PA, .266/.343/.379, 2 HR, 14 R, 13 RBI, 7 SB
Henry Bolte – OF, Athletics
2026 Stats – 130 PA, .315/.400/.414, 2 HR, 11 R, 10 RBI, 8 SB
Sterlin Thompson – OF, Colorado Rockies
2026 Stats – 77 PA, .232/.312/.377, 2 HR, 7 R, 10 RBI, 0 SB
Cole Carrig – OF, Colorado Rockies
2026 Stats – 49 PA, .250/.388/.550, 3 HR, 7 R, 8 RBI, 1 SB
Nathan Church – OF, St. Louis Cardinals
2026 Stats – 194 PA, .263/.309/.408, 5 HR, 24 R, 19 RBI, 4 SB
Rookie Batters Who Had a Cold Week
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B/1B, Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 306 PA, .229/.310/.443, 16 HR, 38 R, 45 RBI, 0 SB
Kazuma Okamoto followed his hot week with a dud. We can expect these hot-and-cold weeks due to his inconsistent contact. During last week, he went 2-for-16 (.125) with four runs and a three-run homer. Despite the lackluster week, Okamoto continues to be the only power source the Blue Jays can utilize.
Colt Emerson – SS, Seattle Mariners
2026 Stats – 84 PA, .237/.310/.566, 6 HR, 12 R, 14 RBI, 0 SB
Spencer Jones – OF, New York Yankees
2026 Stats – 64 PA, .218/.328/.364, 2 HR, 5 R, 7 RBI, 1 SB
Brice Matthews- 2B/OF, Houston Astros
2026 Stats – 189 PA, .206/.255/.349, 6 HR, 18 R, 18 RBI, 2 SB
Samuel Basallo – C, Baltimore Orioles
2026 Stats – 240 PA, .258/.321/.469, 10 HR, 27 R, 29 RBI, 0 SB
Alex Freeland – 2B/3B/SS – Los Angeles Dodgers
2026 Stats – 178 PA, .229/.314/.327, 3 HR, 18 R, 17 RBI, 0 SB
Sung-Mun Song – 2B/3B, San Diego Padres
2026 Stats – 56 PA, .200/.286/.240, 0 HR, 6 R, RBI, 4 SB
Braden Montgomery – OF, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 41 PA, .231/.268/.385, 1 HR, 5 R, 4 RBI, 0 SB
LuJames Groover – Arizona Diamondbacks
2026 Stats – 40 PA, .162/.225/.189, 0 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, 0 SB
Rookie Pitchers
Nolan McLean – SP, New York Mets
2026 Stats – 15 GS, 4-4, 3.67 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 97 SO, 32 BB
Parker Messick – SP, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 15 GS, 7-3, 2.70 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 91 SO, 28 BB
Bubba Chandler – SP, Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 14 GS (1 relief), 2-7, 4.62 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 69 SO, 43 BB
Connelly Early – SP, Boston Red Sox
2026 Stats – 15 GS, 6-5, 3.64 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 79 SO, 31 BB
Payton Tolle – SP, Boston Red Sox
2026 Stats – 11 GS, 3-5, 3.08 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 62 SO, 18 BB
Brandon Sproat – SP, Milwaukee Brewers
2026 Stats – 14 GS (2 relief), 1-4, 5.94 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 63 SO, 32 BB
Foster Griffin – SP, Washington Nationals
2026 Stats – 15 GS, 7-2, 3.32 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 80 SO, 23 BB
Trey Yesavage – SP, Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 10 GS, 3-3, 3.76 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 53 SO, 25 BB
Connor Prielipp – SP, Minnesota Twins
2026 Stats – 11 GS, 2-5, 5.17 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 55 SO, 23 BB
Tatsuya Imai – SP, Houston Astros
2026 Stats – 10 GS, 4-3, 6.15 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 48 SO, 24 BB
Gage Jump – SP, Athletics
2026 Stats – 5 GS, 3-1, 2.37 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 26 SO, 9 BB
Trey Gibson – SP, Baltimore Orioles
2026 Stats – 5 GS (1 relief), 1-2, 5.81 ERA, 1.71 WHIP, 20 SO, 17 BB
New Additions to the Rookie Report
Cooper Pratt – SS, Milwaukee Brewers
2026 Stats – 22 PA, .368/.409/.368, 0 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, 3 SB
Esmerlyn Valdez – Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 29 PA, .111/.172/.370, 2 HR, 3 R, 5 RBI, 0 SB
Blaze Jordan – St. Louis Cardinals
2026 Stats – 36 PA, .286/.306/.486, 1 HR, 5 R, 7 RBI, 0 SB
Rookie Injuries/Demotions
Munetaka Murakami – 1B, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 246 PA, .240/.378/.560, 20 HR, 43 R, 41 RBI, 1 SB
Placed on the 10-day IL with a hamstring injury on May 29
Konnor Griffin – SS, Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 208 PA, .270/.327/.402, 4 HR, 30 R, 22 RBI, 14 SB
Placed on the 10-day IL with a forearm injury on May 29
Noah Schultz – SP, Chicago White Sox
2026 Stats – 8 GS, 2-3, 5.35 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 33 SO, 22 BB
Placed on the 15-day IL with a knee injury on May 26
Nick Yorke – 2B/3B, Pittsburgh Pirates
2026 Stats – 78 PA, .221/.308/.309, 1 HR, 6 R, 6 RBI, 0 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Juan Brito – 2B, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 56 PA, .176/.250/.255, 0 HR, 7 R, 3 RBI, 0 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Dylan Beavers – OF, Baltimore Orioles
2026 Stats – 119 PA, .243/.331/.369, 2 HR, 16 R, 12 RBI, 3 SB
On 10-Day IL with an oblique injury on May 11
Rhett Lowder – Cincinnati Reds
2026 Stats – 8 GS, 3-3, 5.40 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 27 SO, 18 BB
Placed on the 15-day IL on May 10
Elmer Rodriguez – SP, New York Yankees
2026 Stats – 3 GS, 0-1, 4.15 ERA, 1.85 WHIP, 6 SO, 9 BB
Optioned to Triple-A
Jose Fernandez – SS, Arizona Diamondbacks
2026 Stats – 166 PA, .258/.290/.361, 3 HR, 23 R, 15 RBI, 6 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Chase DeLauter – OF, Cleveland Guardians
2026 Stats – 270 PA, .263/.337/.408, 7 HR, 24 R, 34 RBI, 2 SB
Placed on the 10-day IL with a hairline fracture in his right rib cage on June 17
Yohendrick Pinango – OF, Toronto Blue Jays
2026 Stats – 136 PA, .292/.33/.442, 4 HR, 9 R, 18 RBI, 0 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Ryan Waldschmidt – OF, Arizona Diamondbacks
2026 Stats – 122 PA, .259/.314/.357, 0 HR, 11 R, 8 RBI, 5 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
Andrew Painter – SP, Philadelphia Phillies
2026 Stats – 12 GS (2 relief), 1-8, 7.06 ERA, 1.66 WHIP, 53 SO, 24 BB
Optioned to Triple-A
Moises Ballesteros – C, Chicago Cubs
2026 Stats – 171 PA, .235/.304/.392, 6 HR, 15 R, 23 RBI, 1 SB
Optioned to Triple-A
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