It obviously makes sense to use rankings and ADP as a guide when drafting for fantasy baseball, but it's okay to have favorites. Year in, year out, we all fall in love with a player's outlook in relation to their draft standing and they become one of our top targets. Our analysts are no different.
[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2024 MLB season]
Read on for the players Scott Pianowski, Dalton Del Don and Andy Behrens are most excited to draft in 2024.
An undervalued star? Yes, please!
We've seen the theme play out over and over; star signs big contract, switches cities, struggles at first. That's what happened to Trea Turner last year. But he was his usual behemoth self in the second half (.292/.348/.554, 16 homers, 11 steals over 67 games), and let's also note he wasn't thrown out on the bases all year. I don't know how long Turner's ADP will stay in the second round (as I compose this, he has a 14.3 ADP on Yahoo), but please grab that as long as you can. Just try not to laugh. — Scott Pianowski
Does the fourth round hold baseball's second-best pitcher?
Tyler Glasnow is arguably baseball's second-best pitcher right now, with filthy stuff and projections to back it. He now gets to pitch for the Dodgers in the far weaker NL West and is available in round four thanks to his injury history. All pitchers carry real injury risk, and Glasnow is finally healthy after dealing with an arm issue that took years to properly diagnose.
[2024 Fantasy Baseball Draft Rankings: C | 1B | 2B | SS | 3B | OF | SP | RP]
Given the likelihood of wins pitching for Los Angeles, Glasnow could easily return his ADP value even with a couple IL trips; and he could win the Cy Young (and your fantasy league) if he stays healthy. — Dalton Del Don
Take a trip to Coors for a do-it-all hitter
Whatever you're looking for in a hitter, Nolan Jones can deliver. He's coming off a 20/20 season in which he slashed .297/.389/.542 over 424 plate appearances. Jones reached base at a .402 career clip in the minors, displaying plenty of speed and pop, so nothing about last year's results feels unusually fluky. This man's Statcast page is blazing red and full of good news. Jones will of course do his home hitting in MLB's friendliest park, occupying a privileged spot in the batting order. He's eligible at multiple roster spots, too. For me, he's a viable top-40 pick who's generally available a round later than seems reasonable. — Andy Behrens
