Late-season Breakouts Bats – Hot Hitters

As lengthy as a baseball season is, it’s amazing how close categories can remain at the end of the year. That’s why we can’t take any week for granted – including the final two weeks of the year. No complacency – whether you’re leading or trailing.

Late-season breakout bats can help make the difference in some key categories, so we always want to be on the lookout for who’s hot. Underachievers coming to life? Average bats hitting above their stature? Newcomers on the scene with hot sticks? We’ve got some for you to know …

Picking it up: Recent Breakout Bats

Tier I

Nico Hoerner, 2B/SS, Chicago Cubs

We featured a Cub in this column last week (Ian Happ) who continues to rake, and it’s time for another. He’s not going to give you home runs, but Nico Hoerner will get you hits in bunches, and that’s exactly what he’s been up to lately. A steady source of batting average and steals, the 28-year-old has turned it up a notch down the stretch.

Riding a nine-game hitting streak, Hoerner has rapped off four straight multi-hit games. During the streak, he’s batting .457 (16-for-35) with seven extra-base hits and four steals. And, as always, his plate discipline is a nice bonus, as he’s struck out just 42 times in 589 plate appearances. That K rate (7.1%) is second only to Luis Arraez across the majors.

Tier II

Jackson Holliday, 2B/SS, Baltimore Orioles

It’s only a matter of time before Holliday becomes a star. Boyish looks aside, it can be easy to forget that he’s only 21 years old. No, he hasn’t blown us away yet with his play (as witnessed by a ho-hum .253 batting average and .717 OPS). But it’s coming. And he’s been tapping into that future potential in September.

For the month, the Orioles’ infielder is batting .341/.438/.512 with a pair of homers and three stolen bases. Going back to late August, Holliday has reached base in 15 straight games, raising his batting average 11 points during that span. He has a chance at 20 homers. A preview of things to come.

Lawrence Butler, OF, Athletics

He hasn’t had the breakout season so many in the fantasy community predicted last offseason. But with three stolen bases Saturday, Butler has reached 20/20 for the first time in his career. And he’s been picking it up lately, raising his OPS 26 points since late August.

In fact, since Aug. 27, the 25-year-old is batting .352 in 60 plate appearances with three homers and eight RBIs. There’s a caveat here, as he’s been sitting against some lefties. But if he continues this hot hitting, it’ll be tougher for the A’s to sit him down at all. He has a .919 OPS in September.

Bryson Stott, 2B/SS, Philadelphia Phillies

He hits at the bottom of the lineup, which isn’t ideal, but Scott has been his steady self for much of the year. He’ll never wow us, as the pop is minimal and his on-base percentage leaves a lot to be desired, but his plate discipline is solid, and he contributes good counting numbers – including steals.

The infielder is hot lately, as he’s reached safely in every game in September. For the month, he’s batting an impressive .385 (15-for-39) with an uncharacteristically great 1.124 OPS (thanks, in part, to three homers in those 11 games). Can he keep up the heat the rest of the way? It’s worth finding out.

Tier III

Gabriel Moreno, C, Arizona Diamondbacks

Another bat with minimal pop, Moreno is actually on a decent home run pace with nine long balls in just 258 plate appearances. That rates out to a 20-plus homer season, something fantasy managers wouldn’t expect from the young catcher. He’s also got his OPS over .800 (.811) in 71 games.

Since returning from an injury that sidelined him for over two months, Moreno has hit a robust .355/.414/.597 with four homers and 17 RBIs in 18 games. The OPS during that span is 1.011. He already had the ability to hit for average. Could Moreno, 25, be tapping into more pop?

Daylen Lile, OF, Washington Nationals

The man continues to hit. After batting a cool .304 in August (22 games), Lile has been scorching hot in September, hitting .408/.473/.776 with 13 runs scored in 13 games. That has come with improved discipline, too, with six walks to nine strikeouts during the month.

He’s playing every day for the Nats, and there’s absolutely no reason to keep the rookie’s hot bat out of the lineup. Eight multi-hit games in September alone has seen Lile’s batting average rise 26 points to .288 entering action this week. Is it real? Well, he hit .328 in 47 games split between Double-A and Triple-A this year, too.

Jake Burger, 1B/DH, Texas Rangers

It’s been a pretty miserable first season in Texas for Burger, as injuries have kept him off the field – and he’s performed poorly when on it. This is a player who hit 34 homers two seasons ago and 29 last year. He’s at just 16 in 2025 (and a paltry .727 OPS for a power hitter). But he’s tapping into something lately.

Burger has hit .345 over his last 19 games, dating back to the second week of August (with an injury sandwiched in between). Upon returning Sept. 1, he’s hit four home runs and driven in eight in 11 contests this month (with a 1.009 OPS). That included a two-homer game last Wednesday. Burger can go on power binges, and we want to be there for it.