I enjoy putting out rankings for fantasy baseball, and I have become pretty good at it. Having said that, simply listing Player A above Player B can be an overly simplistic approach. Your needs may change at various points in your draft, depending on who you have drafted and who is still available. With that in mind, below is a list of the players I have drafted the most from my five primary drafts, all completed since the beginning of March. A mock draft I participated in with the F6P crew on March 6 is not included. We only went 12 rounds deep, but you can check that out here if you would like.
Even with a list like this one, there are certain things you should keep in mind. Every fantasy baseball draft is different. That is true even of drafts that implement the same format. In this case, all five drafts I completed had different settings. Many of the differences were negligible. But in some cases, the league specifications greatly altered the way I valued certain players. To that point, I first want to highlight each league and its specs:
| League | Date | Type | Teams | Rounds | Format | Categories (if Roto) | Roster Configuration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational | 3-Mar | Slow | 15 | 30 | Roto | R, HR, RBI, SB, AVG, K, W, SV, ERA, WHIP | C (2), 1B (1), 2B (1), SS (1), 3B (1), OF (5), CI (1), MI (1), UT (1), P (9), BE (7) |
| RazzSlam | 5-Mar | Slow | 12 | 42 | Best Ball | C (2), 1B (1), 2B (1), SS (1), 3B (1), OF (5), CI (1), MI (1), UT (1), P (9), BE (19) | |
| The Fantasy Six Pack Series | 5-Mar | Slow | 12 | 28 | Roto | R, HR, RBI, SB, OBP, K, QA3, SV+H, ERA, WHIP | C (1), 1B (1), 2B (1), SS (1), 3B (1), OF (4), UT (3), P (9), BE (7) |
| High Stakes Home League | 9-Mar | Fast | 11 | 24 | Roto | R, HR, RBI, SB, AVG, H, K, W, SV, ERA | C (1), CI (2), MI (2), OF (3), UT (1), P (6), BE (9) |
| FSGA Best Ball | 11-Mar | Fast | 15 | 26 | Best Ball | C (1), 1B (1), 2B (1), SS (1), 3B (1), OF (3), UT (1), P (7), BE (10) |
As you can see, each league presents its own unique set of challenges. The dynamics of a slow draft are much different than those of a “normal” draft. Catchers get pushed up more in a two-catcher league than in a single-catcher format. The F6PS league uses Saves Plus Holds (SV+H) instead of Saves. I drafted my first reliever in Round 14 and my second closer in Round 26 in that league. They also use On-Base Percentage (OBP) as opposed to traditional batting average. My high-stakes home league goes 6 x 4 rather than 5 x 5, substituting Hits for WHIP. Since hitters are more valued in that league, I did not take a starting pitcher until Round 7. My Best Ball strategy generally includes going heavy on hitters early, drafting starting pitchers late, and ignoring closers and prospects. Each of these factors impacted multiple selections.
In total, I made 150* draft picks among these five drafts. That is a solid sample size for players that I like to various degrees. Still, please do not take this as a list of players I would unilaterally draft in all formats or even players I am higher on than consensus. Certainly, that is true in some cases, but not all. There is not a single player I took in even four of the five drafts, let alone all five. Two of the five drafts were of the Best Ball variety. Therefore, there are no relief pitchers on this list.
*The asterisk above pertains to me timing out once during the F6PS draft. I was automatically given Luis Gil. The first set of FAAB claims ran last weekend. So, I decided to drop Gil in lieu of another player. The player I picked up is on the list below and is one of my favorite targets this season.
Similarly, if a player is not on this list, it does not mean I do not like him. There are plenty of great players and players I like this season that I was unable to snag in these drafts. That would be a longer list than the one below. In many cases, I went against my rankings for various reasons, including positional scarcity and categorical impact.
My Most Drafted Fantasy Baseball Players
Chris Sale (SP – ATL)
March ADP: 41.03; drafted on two teams
Blake Snell (SP – LAD)
March ADP: 52.11; drafted on two teams
I am listing Chris Sale and Blake Snell together to begin the proceedings because, well, it just kind of feels right. Both have won the last two National League Cy Young Awards. They each pitch on great teams, and there is a decent chance they end up on the Injured List at some point. Admittedly, these are not the safest picks on the list. I drafted each of them twice among the five drafts. And yes, I drafted them together in one league because I am a crazy person. I would be less bullish if this were 20 years ago when most starting pitchers were approaching 200 innings. But nowadays, I will take 130 elite innings compared to 160 good innings. So, give me the upside of the better pitchers, and I’ll figure out a way to get another inning per week out of someone else if I need to.
Jose Altuve (2B – HOU)
March ADP: 55.23; drafted on two teams
I do not consider myself particularly high on Jose Altuve this year. But I did draft him twice and was happy to do so. You know what you are getting with Altuve; I do not think that is bad. The veteran finished as a top-30 fantasy hitter in 2024. If he is healthy, he is going to flirt with a 20/20 season and 100 runs scored. That carries plenty of value, especially at second base, which is a gross position from a fantasy perspective. By the way, Altuve is also playing the outfield this season. In most leagues, he will carry dual eligibility in just a few weeks. Altuve may not be a sexy pick anymore, but he should still be a valuable fantasy asset in 2025.
Mike Trout (OF – LAA)
March ADP: 94.40; drafted on two teams
YOLO. #Analysis
If you need a little more than that, here’s something. Razzball has a feature in their Player Rater where they calculate dollars per game played ($/G). Last year, Trout was just above players like Yordan Alvarez and Mookie Betts in that metric. Do I think Trout is playing 150 games this year? No, I do not. But, as with players like Chris Sale and Blake Snell, I’d instead try to bank 400 plate appearances of Trout rather than 500 plate appearances of Bryan Reynolds, for example. And, unlike Sale and Snell, you can often get Trout in the eighth or ninth round of a 12-team league. I believe the juice is worth the squeeze at that price.
Hunter Greene (SP – CIN)
March ADP: 101.75; drafted on three teams
Hunter Greene’s fastball shape has dramatically improved in recent years, and it resulted in an elite stretch last year for the former number two overall MLB Draft pick. Among 71 pitchers who threw 150 innings last season, Greene finished fourth in xERA and in the top 10 in both strikeout and home run rates. Yet most fantasy managers are drafting him as if he is a borderline SP2 in 12-team leagues. If he continues his progression and can cut his walk rate while keeping the ball in the yard, Hunter Greene can be a top ten fantasy starting pitcher as soon as this season.
Jack Flaherty (SP – DET)
March ADP: 145.18; drafted on two teams
Last year, Jack Flaherty ranked third among 58 qualified pitchers in K/9 and fourth in K rate. He also finished fourth in xFIP and SIERA, which suggests his results from last year are somewhat sustainable. Now we are drafting him outside the top 40 starting pitchers. I will happily take him at that price, and I have done so on multiple occasions. Flaherty has looked great in Spring Training and could be a considerable bargain in fantasy baseball this season.
Eugenio Suarez (3B – ARZ)
March ADP: 155.81; drafted on two teams
I have had a love/hate relationship with Eugenio Suarez in recent years. I have mostly avoided the slugging third baseman because I try to protect my batting average. However, Suarez hit .256 with a .247 expected batting average last year. With a drop in batting average across the league, Suarez was neutral in that category while producing at a very high level in the power categories. He was fourth in fantasy value at the hot corner in 2024. He is usually available this year after the top ten third basemen have come off the board. Suarez is worth a middle-round pick if you have adequately addressed batting average earlier in the proceedings.
Taylor Ward (OF – LAA)
March ADP: 172.16; drafted on two teams
Taylor Ward is a tricky player for me to properly evaluate. I have him ranked ahead of Jurickson Profar and Brandon Nimmo, and ADP also aligns with that. However, I have drafted both Profar and Nimmo ahead of Ward on multiple occasions. In fact, I drafted all three on my RazzSlam team. I think Profar and Nimmo have a higher floor since they are in more potent lineups. Ward’s floor feels tied to the health of Mike Trout to a certain degree. With all things being equal, I would rather just draft Trout. All of this could mean I just need to adjust my rankings on these players. But it is not as if I dislike Ward. I have him on multiple teams, including my high-stakes squad, so hopefully, he can live up to the ranking.
Jurickson Profar (OF – ATL)
March ADP: 177.57; drafted on three teams
Jurickson Profar finally had the type of season in 2024 that many had been waiting on for a decade. He was a top-30 fantasy hitter overall last season. Profar should lead off for Atlanta until Ronald Acuna returns. It will be interesting to see how the Braves use Profar afterward. He should score a boatload of runs if he continues to lead off. If Atlanta drops him down in the order, he should see a significant boost in RBI opportunities. Either way, Profar looks like a solid value in the middle rounds.
Nick Pivetta (SP – SD)
March ADP: 179.37; drafted on two teams
Nick Pivetta was an enigma last season. He won just six games in 26 starts and finished the year with a 4.14 ERA (54th among 81 pitchers with 140+ innings) and a 4.07 FIP (48th). However, he also finished sixth in K-BB% and eighth in SIERA. It feels like Pivetta has always been on the cusp of a breakout before falling short. Even if this isn’t “the year”, the veteran right-hander should benefit from pitching half his games in Petco Park (second-lowest park factor since 2022), especially compared to Fenway Park (second highest). Pivetta should also get some help from one of the best bullpens in baseball. His draft price is suppressed compared to recent years, which could wind up paying dividends for fantasy baseball managers in 2025.
Reynaldo Lopez (SP – ATL)
March ADP: 180.72; drafted on three teams
We can all agree that Reynaldo Lopez is likely due for some negative regression after posting a 1.99 ERA in 2024. That said, he is still valuable in the middle rounds of drafts. His 2.92 FIP was sixth best among 96 pitchers with at least 130 innings last year. He also pitches for an Atlanta Braves team that is projected to finish with the second-most wins in the sport. All three times I drafted him occurred after the top 175 overall picks. At that price, I would gladly do so again.
Brandon Nimmo (OF – NYM)
March ADP: 185.02; drafted on two teams
Brandon Nimmo was a borderline top 50 fantasy hitter last year despite hitting a career-low .224. Even with last year’s low number, Nimmo still enters 2025 as a career .261 hitter with a .371 on-base percentage. This season, Nimmo could hit fourth or fifth in a lineup that now features Juan Soto in addition to Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso. Nimmo could sleepwalk his way to 90 RBI provided an entire season of plate appearances. Last year’s 15 stolen bases are not likely to repeat. However, Nimmo has above-average speed and displays good instincts on the basepaths. Brandon Nimmo is a solid mid-round target who could provide production in all five Roto categories.
MacKenzie Gore (SP – WAS)
March ADP: 205.32; drafted on two teams
There was a point early last summer when I was fading MacKenzie Gore every chance I got. But he finished the year strong, allowing two or fewer earned runs in his last seven starts while throwing at least six innings in six of those. That is an encouraging sign for a pitcher who logged a career-high 166.1 innings. Gore has an excellent pedigree as a former third-overall pick in the MLB Draft. Even if he cannot fulfill that promise, he can still contribute solidly to a fantasy baseball pitching staff. Washington has named the left-hander as the team’s Opening Day starter. His early schedule may include outings against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Colorado in Coors Field. We may have something here if he can make it through that stretch in good form.
Patrick Bailey (C – SF)
March ADP: 347.93; drafted on two teams
Patrick Bailey is another player I do not believe I am exceptionally high on. But if you play in a two-catcher league, you can do worse in your C2 spot. Steamer has him projected for 459 plate appearances, the ninth-most among catchers. That volume may be enough to bump him up ahead of some other candidates in his ADP range. Bailey is a former first-round draft pick who posted a solid .258 xBA last year. He may never approach 20 home runs or a .300 batting average, but he is unlikely to hurt you, which is sometimes all you need from a second catcher.
Joc Pederson (UT – TEX)
March ADP: 350.95; drafted on two teams (now on three)
Say hello to arguably my favorite 2025 fantasy baseball value pick. Joc Pederson is the player I picked up for Luis Gil in FAAB last weekend. If you are skeptical about Pederson, I get it. Drafting him can be tricky. He’s only eligible at UT in most leagues and doesn’t play every day. However, the same was true last year, and he finished as a top 100 hitter in 5 x 5 leagues. He did this while playing in the fourth-worst park for left-handed home runs. Now he gets to hit in a much friendlier park and in a loaded lineup, and he is being drafted outside the top-300 overall? Sign me up. The only leagues I do not have him in are the ones where I drafted Shohei Ohtani and Brent Rooker.
Josh Bell (1B – WAS)
March ADP: 456.24; drafted on two teams
Josh Bell is the ultimate boring compiler. He has at least 17 home runs and 71 RBI in each of the last four seasons. Bell has also maintained a solid .256 batting average and double-digit walk rate during that stretch. He should hit in the middle of a Nationals lineup that has some intriguing pieces, including James Wood and Dylan Crews. To be clear, I have Josh Bell outside my top 300 overall players. His inclusion here is by no means a suggestion that he should be a starting fantasy first baseman. However, he may be a candidate to start in your Corner Infield (CI) or Utility (UT) spot under the right circumstances.
Osvaldo Bido (SP – ATH)
March ADP: 567.97; drafted on two teams
For the record, “ATH” is a stupid abbreviation. Now that I have gotten that critical business let us discuss Osvaldo Bido. Bido made nine starts for Oak-the Athletics last season. He struck out five or more in seven of the nine, fanning six hitters five times. Bido allowed two or fewer earned runs in six of those nine outings. He ranked in the top two percentile in MLB in hard-hit rate, average exit velocity, and expected batting average allowed. These feel like pretty good metrics for a player you can usually get with your last pick. Call me crazy, but it feels like there is something there. Even if that ends up not being the case, I promise he will not be the only draft pick you end up dropping before it is all said and done.
For more of the great fantasy baseball rankings and analysis you’ve come to expect from FantraxHQ, check out our full 2025 Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit! We’re here for you all the way up until Opening Day and then on into your championship run.
