Preseason Prep – March 25, 2026
Kevin McGonigle, SS, Detroit Tigers
One of the best pure hitters in the minors has cracked the big league roster. While there are no guarantees in prospecting, McGonigle could not have built himself a better offensive resume in the minors. He’s walked more than he’s struck out at literally every level of the minor leagues, including 2026 spring training. He’s posted a swinging strike rate below 8% in every full season. He gets the ball in the air plenty, posting a .82 GB/FB ratio in spring training and .78 ratio in 206 AA PA’s last year. He stole 22 bags in the minors in 2024 and 10 in 2025. For only being 5’9, he features above average raw power, hitting 19 homers in the minors last year, which is buoyed by a solid ability to pull the ball. If there is a young lottery ticket to buy, it’s him. There’s a real scenario where McGonigle is a ratio asset that also gets you double digits in both the HR and SB department.
Michael Busch, 1B, Chicago Cubs
People talk about the Dodgers rarely losing trades, and while Zyhir Hope is no slouch of a prospect, Busch looked like a pretty darn good hitter in 2025. On the surface, it might seem like Busch is your typical power-first 1B, but he was extremely hitterish last year. His 41.1% LASS is sky high,and his 25.1% Whiff rate was not only a career-low, but is also only big league average. His 84% zone contact is wildly impressive for someone with a 17% barrel rate and 47% hard hit rate. Michael Busch is a superstar with quad-A player marketing. As the 13th 1B coming off the board, he might be the single most undervalued player in all of fantasy baseball this year. Bet on it.
Nick Lodolo, SP, Cincinnati Reds
Lodolo will begin the season on the IL due to a blister on his throwing hand. Lodolo has dealt with blister issues before, so this isn’t a huge surprise. While drafts are more or less wrapping up, if you still have some left, this could be an opportunity to snag a productive starter at a discount. Lodolo is a strike thrower who just posted a career low 4.8% walk rate, while also getting whiffs at a healthy 27.5% of the time. Across 28 starts, he posted a 3.33 ERA, and xERA (3.51) and xFIP (3.34) all agree that the ERA was mostly deserved. Lodolo brings a stable, well balanced profile to the table, so don’t be afraid to buy the dip.
Addison Barger, 3B/OF, Toronto Blue Jays
Barger left a bad taste in the mouths of some by having a down second half of the regular season. Post all star break, he slashed just .223/.284/.395 across 236 PA’s. Barger’s tremendous weakness against lefties could be a culprit, as he hit just one homer against lefties all season, and 20 against righties. Something changed in the postseason, and not only was Barger simply performing much better, he was actually dominating lefties. He slashed .367/.441/.583 in 68 postseason PA’s, and posted a 1.225 OPS against lefties in a 15 PA sample. In spring training, he’s making zone contact at 92% and is running a 93 EV. I’m in.
Maikel Garcia, 3B, Kansas City Royals
Garcia broke out in 2025 by hitting 16 homers and stealing 23 bases with an .800 OPS. What I like the most about Garcia is that he is super hitterish, displaying discipline and contact. He whiffed at miniscule 15% and posted a 90.6% zone contact rate. He also just posted a career-high and league average 16% Pull-Air rate. You’d think we would see slight power out of someone with such great contact skills, but alas, Garcia’s 45% hard hit rate is above big league average, and he just set career highs in LA (9.7), barrel rate (5.6%), and xwOBA (.335). This is a very high floor player.
Drake Baldwin, C, Atlanta Braves
The catching position is as thin as it comes, so anytime someone displays upside, I’m going to pay attention. Baldwin is currently going as the 8th catcher off the board, and that is exclusively due to playing time concerns, not talent. He slashed .274/.341/.469 across 446 Pa’s in his rookie campaign. That slash line is no fluke, Baldwin is a hitter. A 19.5% whiff rate, 15.2% K rate, and .272 xBA are crazy for a 23 year old rookie. Baldwin also features premium bat speed (75 mph), which gives him a high power floor. His offensive skillset should lend him to more PA’s in 2026.
Ryan Weathers, SP, New York Yankees
Weathers has teased us over the years with interesting stuff and signs of potential underneath the hood. As the 78th starter going off the board, I have no problem rolling the dice one more time. Weathers does not feature a deep arsenal, throwing his FB and CH 74% of the time, but his velo is up, as he’s averaged 98 across different spring training outings. His sweeper is a premium offering, as hitters posted just a .256 xwOBA against it last year. The main key here is his cheap price is due to a lack of belief that he can be healthy all year. This represents an awesome buying opportunity, because even if you only get 15 or so starts of mid-3 ERA, you’re still getting positive value in your lineup at nearly no cost.
Cody Ponce, SP, Toronto Blue Jays
Ponce last appeared in the bigs in 2021, but has spent the last several years abroad in both the NPB and KBO. In 2025, he absolutely erupted. He posted a 1.89 ERA across 180.2 innings in the KBO while striking out an absurd 252 batters. He won the MVP of the league and set multiple pitching records. Ponce is displaying four pitches this spring, two of which (splitter, curveball) are projected as above-average offerings. In 13.2 spring innings, he’s allowed barrels at only 2.9%. xFIP (3.87) suggest he’s been closer to mediocre, but I don’t believe the tremendous swing and miss stuff will completely disappear stateside. Ponce might not have SP1 or SP2 upside, but as the 81st starter coming off the board, he’s a value if you get SP3 or 4 out of him.
Mason Miller, RP, San Diego Padres
Miller’s talent is undisputed. He’s thrown 126.2 IP the last two seasons and punched out 208 batters along the way. His 44.4% K rate is pure frustration for hitters, and his career .161 xBA against means there is no hope in sight. I don’t think anyone is “out” on Miller per say, that’s kind of impossible. The main question is how early is too early. When you consider that no other closer comes close to his K rate, I think Miller is fine at his 43 overall ADP, although we are admittedly pushing it. You’re basically getting a mini elite starter out of the RP1 spot, and that certainly gives him a competitive advantage given that only 1-2 closers exist in the tier below him.
Trevor Megill, RP, Milwaukee Brewers
Megill has been a productive close the past two years for the Brew Crew, racking up 51 saves and posting a 2.72 and 2.49 ERA the last two years. Megill is a whiff machine, getting hitters to miss at 31% and chase at 33%. Megill would be a much higher ranked closer, but many are probably worried about the quality of balls in play. Megill misses over the plate a lot, and it resulted in .377 xwOBACON and 7.8% barrel rate against. Neither rate is bad, but for a closer, you’d expect slightly better. Nonetheless, Megill’s role and two years of resume actually give you a really good floor for the cost of the 18th reliever off the board.
Adrian Morejon, RP, San Diego Padres
Morejon has a lot of competition in San Diego for saves…mainly Mason Miller. Fortunately, he can still be a tremendous ratio helper, especially in leagues with more than 2 RP spots. Morejon is an elite groundball getter (54.3%) who also punches out a slightly-above league average number of batters (24.5%). Morejon is unusual in that for someone who is only a moderate swing-and-miss guy, the quality of contact against is incredible. Morejon posted a super low 30.7% hard hit rate, .315 xwOBACON, and 4% barrel rate. People don’t always punch, but they cannot make clean contact. Morejon is one of my favorite ultra-niche ratio-helping non-save relievers which can be had for cheap.
Nick Kurtz, 1B, Athletics
Kurtz lit the world on fire last year by slashing .290/.383/.619 with 36 homers as a rookie in 489 PA’s. Kurtz’s profile is entirely driven by elite-elite quality of contact. Not quite Judge or Ohtani level, but make no mistake, it’s legit. A .507 xwOBACON and 18% barrel rate are nuts for a rookie, and certainly don’t happen by accident. Kurtz is absolutely an air raider, butting the ball in the air 62% of the time. The nice part about Kurtz’s profile is that while he is a raging whiffer (35%), he rarely chases (22%). This means that pitchers cannot adjust by throwing pitches outside the zone. He ran a 43% swing rate, which is below average, and is impressive for someone who misses so much. The only thing pitchers can do is throw him strikes. This is real, and even if he punches out at 30% again, his 20 ADP is justified.
Kazuma Okamoto, 3B, Toronto Blue Jays
Okamoto hit at least 30 homers in 6 straight seasons in the NPB from 2018-2023. He walked and struck out an equal amount in his 2025 season in Japan, and that 11.3% rate represented his career best on the K side. The primary draw to Okamoto is not only that he’s coming off his best season from a contact perspective, but he is an absolute flyball machine. He’s posted a GB/FB ratio below .80 the last five years running, and below .70 4 of the last five years. The amount of contact that older international players make when they come over is ambiguous, but the ability to hit homers is real.
Elly De La Cruz, SS, Cincinnati Reds
Elly is certainly one of the more exciting players thanks to plus physical tools. He’s gone 20-30 in back to back years, so there is a pretty good fantasy floor. He’s expensive, coming off the board as the 9th best player overall. Unfortunately, that’s a bit pricey for me. He’s posted an OPS over .800 only once the past three seasons, but there is some leeway given his 24 years of age. He whiffed at 32% last year, and his 9.8 Pull Air % was a career low, and is concerningly low in general. The underlying hitter is simply not good enough to justify the ADP for me.
Wyatt Langford, OF, Texas Rangers
Langford took a very moderate step forward in 2025 from his 2024 season, but it’s encouraging nonetheless. The former fourth overall pick went 20-20 with a .421 xwOBACON and 14% barrel rate. The main draw to Langford is a 24% Pull Air rate and 65% Air rate in general, which, from a player who hits the ball as hard as he does, make 22 homers seem light. Langford does have some bat path issues which don’t allow him to get to those higher-end EV’s at his higher LA’s, but the physical ability is there, he just needs to adjust.