Best Breakout Infielders in 2026 Fantasy Baseball: Undervalued Draft Targets

Breakout hitters can swing fantasy baseball leagues, and identifying them before the market fully adjusts is how championships are won. These 2026 targets combine elite underlying metrics, lineup opportunity, and growth curves that point to significant value relative to their NFBC ADP.

C6 – Agustin Ramirez, Miami Marlins (NFBC ADP – 83)

Over six seasons in the minors, Ramirez hit .266 over 1,393 at-bats with 240 runs, 60 home runs, 266 RBI, and 53 steals. He walked 11.1% of the time with a favorable strikeout rate (18.9%). Before arriving in the majors, Ramirez had 319 at-bats of experience at AAA (.248/47/12/56/14 with 40 walks and 78 strikeouts).

Miami called him up on April 21st, creating some high fantasy bids from teams looking to upgrade the catcher position. Five games into his major league career, Ramirez went 9-for-19 with four runs, three home runs, five RBI, and one stolen base, showing his balanced five-category skill set for a catcher. He gave his supporters helpful stats over the following four months (.229/55/16/55/10 over 411 at-bats). Thirteen of his 16 steals over the final two months of the season.

Ramirez struggled more against left-handed pitching (.213/18/6/14/4 over 150 at-bats with 43 strikeouts) and at home (.218/24/7/30/11 over 238 at-bats with 53 strikeouts). His exit velocity (90.8) and hard-hit rate (47.0%) graded well while having a groundball-favoring swing path (46.0%) and launch angle (8.3). He barreled 11.0% of balls in play.

Last season, the Marlins gave Ramirez 63 games at DH, which gives him a higher floor in playing time. Miami hit him between second and fourth in their lineup for 93.7% of his at-bats in his rookie season, highlighting his value in counting stats.

Agustin Ramirez 2026 Fantasy Baseball Outlook

Fantasy Outlook: Ramirez ranked 89th for hitters in FPGscore (-0.67). His approach (strikeout rate – 19.3% and walk rate – 6.2%) wasn’t that far off from his minor league career. I expect him to take more walks this year, suggesting a push to the league average in batting average. Ramirez projects as a four-category asset, giving him potentially more fantasy value than Ben Rice, William Contreras, Shea Langeliers, and Hunter Goodman.

In the end, his value comes down to team structure. Next step: .260/80/25/80/20, and that could be the low end of his range in multiple categories.

C16 – Kyle Teel, Chicago White Sox (NFBC ADP – 186)

Chicago White Sox catcher Kyle Teel (8) rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning at Rate Field. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

After a progression year in his final season at Virginia (.407/67/13/69/5 over 258 at-bats), the Red Sox drafted Teel 14th overall in the 2023 MLB June Amateur Draft. He handled himself well over his first two seasons in the minors (.299 with 101 runs, 14 home runs, 98 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases over 511 at-bats), leading to Boston using Teel as a key player in a deal to acquire Garrett Crochet.

In his first year with the White Sox system, Teel spent 78 games at AAA, leading to a .295 batting average with 34 runs, eight home runs, 30 RBIs, and seven stolen bases over 183 at-bats. His contact batting average (.419) remained in a plus area and was supported by his previous success in college and the minors. He finished with an edge in his walk rate (14.1%) while posting a below-par strikeout rate (25.3%).

Chicago called Teel up in early June. His bat was unproductive over his first 78 at-bats (.244/12/0/6/1), but he did take walks (14) with a few too many whiffs (28). For the remainder of the year, he hit .286 over 176 at-bats with 26 runs, eight home runs, 29 RBIs, and two stolen bases over 175 at-bats. His walk rate (11.4%) remains favorable while lowering his strikeout rate (24.4%).

His exit velocity (88.3) and hard-hit rate (37.6%) didn’t jump off the page, but Teel had a reasonable starting point for his launch angle (14.4) and barrel rate (9.6%). His average hit rate (1.507) with the White Sox doesn’t paint him as a 20-home-run hitter at this point in his career.

Kyle Teel 2026 Fantasy Baseball Outlook

Fantasy Outlook: Entering 2026, Chicago has two viable young catchers that they want to get in their lineup. Teel picked up 14 games at DH last season with the White Sox, and 54 in his previous two years in the minors. Chicago gave him most of his playing time between second and seventh in their batting order.

Teel was a liability at the plate against left-handed pitching (8-for-43 with five runs, no home runs, one RBI, and 20 strikeouts), painting him as more of a platoon player early in his career. He hit .257 last season at AAA against lefties over 70 at-bats with one home run, eight RBIs, and 25 strikeouts.

Based on his playing time last year (71 starts and 78 games over 99 possible chances), I see Teel getting between 450 and 480 at-bats in 2026. His batting average should beat the league average with a 60/15/60/5 floor to his outlook. He projects better as a second catcher in fantasy leagues. The White Sox scored only 647 runs (27th) last year.

1B2 – Nick Kurtz, Athletics (NFBC ADP – 19)

Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) singles during the fourth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Sutter Health Park. | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Over 117 games in his rookie season, Kurtz kicked in the fantasy door over his final 343 at-bats (.309/84/35/80/2). His success over his hot streak, projected over 550 at-bats, comes to 135 runs, 56 home runs, and 128 RBIs. On the downside, his strikeout rate (29.7%) hints that repeatability may not be as high in his sophomore year. He had an elite walk rate (14.1).

Kurtz opened 2025 at AAA (.321 with 18 runs, seven home runs, and 24 RBIs over 84 at-bats) before getting called up in the fourth week of April. Major league arms dominated him over his first 25 games (.233/9/4/10), highlighted by his high strikeout rate (35.1%). An oblique issue pushed him to the sidelines for 15 days in late May.

The A’s drafted Kurtz fourth overall in the 2024 MLB June Amateur Draft. Over three seasons at Wake Forest, he hit .333 with 206 runs, 61 home runs, 182 RBIs, and 11 steals over 567 at-bats. He posted an elite walk rate (24.1) while also being challenging to strikeout (16.5%). Kurtz had more walks (189) and Ks (130). In his limited time in the minors (33 games), his bat (.344/34/12/40/1 over 125 at-bats) supported his breakout in power.

Kurtz checked the winning boxes in exit velocity (92.7), launch angle (15.3), hard-hit rate (50.9%), barrels (18.3), flyball rate (43.0), and HR/FB rate (30.8%). The next step in his development will come against lefties (.197/21/9/22 over 137 at-bats) and his approach. His average hit rate (2.131) has been elite at each level, while also posting an exceptional contact batting average (.454 – .432 in college).

Nick Kurtz 2026 Fantasy Baseball Outlook

Fantasy Outlook: There are a lot of moving parts in Kurtz's short trip to stardom. His minor league resume paints an elite batting average bat and some underlying speed. He will get better at the plate in the majors with more experience. Kurtz is a player to fight for in drafts. He brings foundation power while on a path to be a perennial 100/40/120/10 player with plenty of help in batting average. Let’s go with the new Todd Helton with much more power.

2B7 – Luke Keaschall, Minnesota Twins (NFBC ADP – 149)

The Twins drafted Keaschall in the second round of the 2023 MLB June Amateur Draft. Over three seasons in college, he hit .326 over 631 at-bats with 142 runs, 30 home runs, 122 RBIs, and 59 stolen bases. His highlight year came in 2023 (.353/55/18/58/18 over 218 at-bats). Keaschall walked 10.1% of the time while being challenging to strike out (10.9%).

Over three seasons in the minors, he hit .294 with 125 runs, 19 home runs, 72 RBI, and 49 steals over 585 at-bats. He took more walks (13.6%) with some pullback in his strikeout rate (16.9%). The Twins called him up last season after only having 28 games of experience at AAA (.263/16/1/9/11 over 95 at-bats). TJ surgery cost him development time in 2024.

Keaschall made his major league debut in mid-April last year. He started his MLB career with a six-game hitting streak (7-for-19 with four runs, two RBIs, and five steals while taking five walks with two strikeouts). Unfortunately, a pitch to his right foreman (fracture) led to three months on the injured list. Over his final 163 at-bats, Keaschall hit .294 with 21 runs, four home runs, 26 RBIs, and nine stolen bases. A sprained left thumb ended his season with five games left in the schedule.

His walk rate (9.2%) and strikeout rate (14.0%) remained assets. Keaschall ranked poorly in hard-hit rate (31.2%), barrel rate (5.2%), and exit velocity (86.2). He had a groundball swing path (45.8%), with a reasonable start to his launch angle (10.5). His bat was a liability against left-handed pitching (.169/7/1/7/6 over 59 at-bats – .281 with two home runs and 10 RBIs over 89 at-bats in the minors in 2024).

Luke Keaschall 2026 Fantasy Baseball Outlook

Fantasy Outlook: Keaschall is being treated by a proven asset this draft season. The Twins gave him 148 of his 182 at-bats between third and fourth in the batting order. His metrics suggest he’ll underachieve expectations in power while bringing a leadoff profile. I’ll put him in the range of a 10/35 player, whose instincts on base paths are better than his speed. Nice player, but Keaschall must prove that he can stay healthy for a full season.

1B23 – Miguel Vargas, Chicago White Sox (NFBC ADP – 280)

Chicago White Sox infielder Miguel Vargas — Chicago White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas (20) hits a single against the San Diego Padres during the sixth inning at Rate Field. | Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

Since arriving in the majors, Vargas posted a below-expectations contact batting average (.265 – .372 at AAA and .379 in the minors). His average hit rate (1.744) over the past three seasons supports 25+ home runs with over 550 at-bats. His strikeout rate (17.6%) moved to a more favorable area while continuing to have a favorable walk rate (9.8%).

Vargas landed on the injured list twice over the second half of the year with oblique and left-hand issues. After a dull April (.219/11/1/9/1 over 105 at-bats), his bat flashed his future potential in May (.263/15/7/17 over 99 at-bats). He failed to make an impact over his final 300 at-bats (.230/54/8/34/5). Vargas only had two home runs over 138 at-bats against left-handed pitching (.261/26/2/11/3) while showing more weakness in batting average (.224) vs. righties (.224/54/14/49/5 over 366 at-bats).

His exit velocity (89.7) and hard-hit rate (40.5%) reached new major league tops. He had 38 barrels (9.3%), with a rising launch angle (22.6) and flyball rate (51.8%). Vargas also started to pull more balls (43.0%). Unfortunately, his HR/FB rate (7.6%) has underachieved so far in the majors.

Miguel Vargas 2026 Fantasy Baseball Outlook

Fantasy Outlook: Last season, Vargas finished 133rd in FPGscore (-2.24) for hitters while missing 14.8% of the season. Based on his home run/barrel ratio (42.1%), he ranked (12th) near the bottom of the league in this area (minimum of 30 barrels). The league average is about 48.0%. He is the 179th batter drafted this year in mid-February.

Vargas brings a flyball swing path with a winning contact rate (83.4%). I expect a massive uptick in his contact batting average, making him one of the better deep-sleeper breakout hitters in 2026. Last year, the White Sox gave Vargas 82.3% of his at-bats in the top four slots in the batting order, showcasing his favorable opportunity. With a healthy season and 550+ at-bats, I expect a push over a .270 in batting average with 90 runs, 25 home runs, 85 RBIs, and 10+ steals.

Each of these hitters offers a different path to profit, whether through volume, approach growth, or untapped power that hasn’t yet shown up in the surface stats. Drafting even one or two of these breakout bats at cost can give your roster the category juice needed to separate from the pack in 2026.