2025 Fantasy Baseball: Jake Burger Profile, Preview, Predictions
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The escape from Miami should be a win for Jake Burger in runs and RBIs in 2025. His power floor is high, but the Rangers will hit him down in their lineup.
Jake Burger puts the @Marlins ahead with home run No. 28 🍔 pic.twitter.com/oaRFhQUqj0
— MLB (@MLB) September 22, 2024
1B – Jake Burger, TEX (ADP – 120.5)
Over the past two years, Burger has produced similar stats against the board. He has hit precisely .250 for three consecutive seasons in the majors while seeing his contact batting average (.348) slide in back-to-back years. His strikeout rate (25.9) has improved each season, but Burger ranks below the league average in walk rate (5.4).
In 2024, he hit a few more fly balls (40.6% - 38.6% in 2023), with a pullback in his HR/FB rate (18.4 – 25.4 in 2023). His exit velocity (91.3 mph) and hard-hit rate (46.8) ranked in the top 25% of 207 batters with 400 plate appearances.
Burger had a dull start to last year over the first three months (.217/24/7/27 over 240 at-bats). He made up for his shortfalls in July and August (.284 with 34 runs, 18 home runs, and 32 RBIs over 197 at-bats), giving him 44 runs, 22 home runs, and 49 RBIs over his final 295 at-bats. Last year, Miami ranked 27th in runs (637), 40 runs behind the Rangers (881 runs in 2023). Burger should have much more RBI chances (330 in 2023 and 335 in 2024) playing for Texas. His RBI rate has never been higher than 15%.
Fantasy Outlook: Based on the early lineup for the Rangers, Burger may hit in the bottom third of their batting order on many nights, hurting his ceiling in runs and RBIs. Last year, he ranked 81st in FPGscore (-0.27) for hitters. His ADP (120.5) in early January ranks him as the 71st batter off the table. More of the same in power while needing an uptick in at-bats to grade higher in runs and RBIs. In the past, the Rangers have played their best players on most nights, giving Burger supporters hope for more growth this season.
RANKINGS
Top 5 Catchers | Catchers 6-10 | Catchers 11-15
Top 5 First Basemen | First Basemen 6-10 | First Basemen 11-15
Top 5 Second Basemen | Second Basemen 6-10 | Second Basemen 11-15
Top 5 Shortstops | Shortstops 6-10 | Shortstops 11-15
Top 5 Third Basemen | Third Basemen 6-10 | Third Basemen 11-15
With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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