2025 Fantasy Baseball: Joey Bart Profile, Preview, Predictions
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Joey Bart was a helpful waiver wire catcher last season after underperforming his draft expectations with the San Francisco Giants. In 2025, can his bat only off a pair of young Pirates catchers to support his higher price point on drafts?
Have a day Joey Bart! Home run in his first at bat as a pirate and of the season! Nothing but positive vibes in Pittsburgh so far🙌 #mlb #LetsGoBucs
— Matty P (@tsasmattyp) April 6, 2024
pic.twitter.com/5ZPBUq6kCa
C – Joey Bart, PIT (ADP – 270.1)
In his experience with San Francisco, Bart was overmatched at the plate (.219 with 59 runs, 11 home runs, and 38 RBIs over 457 at-bats). His approach (strikeout rate – 35.4 and walk rate – 6.4) was a liability. The Giants cut loose their former first-round draft pick at the end of spring training last season. Pittsburgh traded for him in early April before he cleared waivers.
Bart played well over his first seven games with the Pirates (7-for-23 with four runs, three home runs, and eight RBIs), leading to him jumping Henry Davis on the depth chart by the end of April. After 15 dull showings (.243/3/1/4 over 37 at-bats), he landed on the injured list for about five weeks with a left thumb issue. His bat was serviceable over his final 193 at-bats (.264/31/9/33 over 193 at-bats). He also landed on the injury list late in August with a hamstring issue.
He finished the year with a better strikeout rate (25.9) than his time with San Fran while taking a few more walks (7.8%). His bat had more value against left-handed pitching (.333 with five home runs and 11 RBIs over 66 at-bats). Bart had an uptick in his exit velocity (88.1 mph) but a weaker swing path (groundball rate – 47.5). His HR/FB rate (21.0) was an area of strength.
Fantasy Outlook: Bart’s final stats projected over 450 at-bats (68 runs, 23 home runs, and 85 RBIs) paint a favorable outlook for this season. Unfortunately, Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez have the talent to steal their lead-catching job for Pittsburgh at some point in the season. Bart brings power tied to batting average risk. His job loss risk is enough for me to fade him in 2025.
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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