Five Fantasy Baseball Pitching and Hitting Sleepers with League-Winning Potential
The great risk versus reward opportunity in fantasy sports sits within the late rounds of your draft. Most fantasy baseball managers will focus on the first few rounds to dominate their picks, and nothing is wrong with that. However, the great profit to be gained will be with a late-round sleeper than becomes a top-10 player at his position, if not even higher. For that reason, we must find a scenario where a player has clear upside in his future, should he will it into existence. These are players to target with potential ROI that shall be worth the pick, worth it.
Adley Rutschman, C (BAL)
Current ADP: 154
Rutschman is a former 1st-overall draft pick who flashed his excellence in years past. Unfortunately, Rutschman spent 2025 plagued by injury, but he is now back fully healthy for 2026. Over 2023-24, Rutschman posted 39 home runs, and last season, when healthy, he stood in the top-12% of MLB hitters in chase and whiff rates. Rutschman will clearly get his bat on the ball. If he can increase his average to the .270+ range, he is in store for big things, once again in 2026.
Xavier Edwards, SS (MIA)
Current ADP: 163
In categorical fantasy baseball, Edwards provides a lot to be desired that many higher draft picks do not. Edwards has 58 total stolen bases over the last two seasons, plus a .298 career batting average. The Marlins are only getting better, and they are truly a playoff-contending team in 2026. Edwards shall be a key piece that only logically improves further in his fourth MLB season.
Jac Caglianone, RF (KCR)
Current ADP: 186
The former first-round pick came into 2025 hyped a whole lot, and he fell flat with a .143 batting average. It is not the time to panic on Caglianone, as his hype is well-suited. The talent is there and the Royals will definitely get it out of him, surrounded by the likes of Bobby Witt Jr. and company.
Caglianone has 20 plate appearances in spring training, batting at a .400 average and 1.283 OPS. 2026 is primed to be his breakout season, and Caglianone has top-10 positional upside rarely to be found outside the top-150 in ADP.
Brandon Woodruff, SP (MIL)
Current ADP: 124
Back from injury in 2025, Woodruff played fantastic baseball with a 3.20 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and 82 strikeouts in 64.2 innings pitched. Woodruff should get even better in 2026 with a full offseason and spring training to further ramp up to peak form. At his best, Woodruff was a borderline top-5 pitcher in the NL. He can definitely get back to top-10 form.
Emmett Sheehan, SP (LAD)
Current ADP: 137
Sheehan pitched to the following in 2025:
- Top-6% breaking ball run value
- Top-7% whiff rate
- Top-8% strikeout rate
- Top-9% chase rate
- Top-11% xBA
- Top-12% xAVG
Sheehan rips home a 96 MPH fastball, 88 MPH slider, and 86 MPH changeup. As the Statcast metrics show, Sheehan has elite stuff. Should he get even better in 2026, Sheehan may rise on the Dodgers depth chart from SP4 to the SP2-3 range, recording wins left and right for this unstoppable Dodgers team.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.