2026 Fantasy Baseball Breakout Player: Dylan Crews

The needle for Dylan Crews is pointing up in his second year with Washington. Injuries cost him some development time last season, creating a buying opportunity in 2026.

OF Dylan Crews, Washington Nationals | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

The Nationals scooped up Crews with the second overall pick in the 2023 MLB June Amateur Draft. He had an excellent three-year career at LSU (.380 over 753 at-bats with 237 runs, 58 home runs, 184 RBIs, and 23 stolen bases), highlighted by his 2023 season (.426/100/18/70/6 over 258 at-bats).

Dylan Crews, Washington Nationals (NFBC ADP – 171)

2026 Dylan Crews Hitting Stats | Shawn Childs

Washington pushed him through three levels of the minors in 2023 and 2024. Crews has the equivalent of one season of experience at A, AA, and AAA (.273 over 575 at-bats with 91 runs, 20 home runs, 104 RBIs, and 30 steals). His strikeout rate (21.0) and walk rate (7.8) were about the major league average.

In his first full season in the majors, Crews failed to develop as expected due to missing 77 games with an oblique injury and a trip back to the minors. Over his first 45 games, he hit .196 with 24 runs, seven home runs, 15 RBIs, and 11 steals over 158 at-bats. His season ended with only a slight uptick in play (.222/19/3/12/6 over 135 at-bats).

His strikeout rate (23.6%) wasn’t far off the league average with a reasonable walk rate (7.5%). He hit under .226 in all four months, with no helping value in any stat. Crews had a weakness in his contact batting average (.281) that will surely improve with more experience. His average hit rate (1.689) has been in a tight range over the past three seasons.

Dylan Crews crushes another one! That's his 10th home run of the season with the Nationals! ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/7TbFt1ev4g

— MiloX Sports MLB (@MiloXSportsMLB) September 23, 2025

His exit velocity (89.7) and hard-hit rate (38.7%) showed more life in his first experience at AAA. Crews had 21 barrels (9.7%), but he has had a high groundball swing path (52.7%) in his time with Washington.

Fantasy Outlook: Despite his struggles last year, Crews was on pace to score 81 runs, with 19 home runs, 51 RBIs, and 32 stolen bases that should lay the groundwork for his potential value in 2026. The Nationals hit him below fourth in the batting order for 92.8% of his at-bats.

With better play, Crews should bump to second in the batting order. Trending toward a neutral batting average with 80+ runs, 20+ home runs, 70+ RBIs, and 30+ stolen bases, making him a value for me this draft season.