Most every week, Scott White will highlight some of the more notable changes to his rest-of-season rankings. You'll find said rankings here and are urged to bookmark them if you haven't already. There's no better resource for gauging player value throughout the long season.
We've reached the point in the season where players at new positions are picking up eligibility at those positions. A quick scan of the Rotisserie rankings will reveal Jazz Chisholm at second base (first), Jose Altuve in the outfield (16th), Matt McLain at second base (seventh, even with his hamstring injury), Cam Smith in the outfield (45th), and Jonathan India at both third base (20th) and the outfield (51st), to name just a few.
That's all well and good, but if you clicked here, you're probably more interested in hearing about those moving vertically in the rankings rather than horizontally. I've organized them into a top 10 list for this week, so have at it.
The 10 biggest rankings moves for this week
- Hunter Greene is now firmly in the ace conversation after coming within an out of a shutout Monday, and I've acknowledged this by moving him up seven spots in my rankings, ahead of some of the pitchers who stand out more for their floor like Bailey Ober, Aaron Nola and Max Fried. It's not just the near shutout, of course. The control gains that contributed to his 1.09 ERA over his final 10 starts last year have carried over and then some, and he's also throwing the ball a couple miles per hour harder this year. In fact, he's throwing so hard, averaging 99.4 mph on his fastball, that I'm bearish on him exceeding or even matching his career-high 150 1/3 innings last year, which is why I don't rank him even higher.
- Spencer Schwellenbach also belongs in the ace conversation -- having lowered his WHIP from 0.33 to 0.29 in a two-hit, eight-inning, 10-strikeout gem against the Marlins last time out -- and I actually have him one spot ahead of Greene, even, at 17. The whole profile seems more durable (and perhaps the body, too) given that he's already proven to be an elite strike-thrower and boasts a deep arsenal of swing-and-miss secondaries. It looks like his fastball might have taken a leap this year, too, not that he needed it.
- I'm willing to push Tyler Soderstrom as high as 13th in my first base rankings already, which may seem a touch aggressive given that the season is less than two weeks old, but remember how things stood at first base coming into the year. Michael Toglia was my No. 13 basically by default. Of the many upside cases at the position, he was one who actually delivered something worthwhile in 2024, but he still wasn't especially proven and needed to hit the ground running to retain that spot. Clearly, he hasn't while Soderstrom, another upside case at the position, has. It doesn't mean Soderstrom is a sure thing moving forward, but it does mean you don't stand to lose much by prioritizing him 13th at the position. Meanwhile, Toglia, who has been buried in strikeouts so far, has also slipped behind Ryan Mountcastle, Paul Goldschmidt and Ben Rice for me.
- Whatever claim Jordan Romano had to the closer role in Philadelphia has been totally obliterated by his performance, I think, and as far back as opening day, manager Rob Thomson seemed to be leaning more toward Jose Alvarado anyway. I'm still inclined to rank Alvarado cautiously given how often the left-hander has been dangled as a closer option in the past, but I've slotted him 24th among relievers in Rotisserie. That's ahead of other newcomers to the role like Luke Jackson and Tommy Kahnle but behind more secure (if less talented) types like Carlos Estevez, Kyle Finnegan and Aroldis Chapman. He has room to rise from there, of course. As for Romano, he's out of the top 40 entirely, coming in behind other closer-in-waiting types like Griffin Jax and Chris Martin.
- Zac Veen is up about 20 spots with his promotion, debuting as the 67th outfielder in Rotisserie leagues. That may seem kind of low, but it slots him directly between other early-season curiosities like Alan Roden and Hunter Goodman (who you'd more likely use at catcher, of course, but he is eligible in the outfield). And frankly, those two have more of a leg to stand on. Veen had a good spring and is a toolsy player, with speed being his most immediate asset, but for all the talk of how injuries have inhibited his production in the minors, the fact remains that the track record is fairly dismal. He's worth a speculative add in five-outfielder leagues, but you wouldn't want to have to rely on him right away. And that's precisely how I rank him.
- Last week, it was Lars Nootbaar making the leap up the outfield rankings into must-roster territory. This week, it's Jung Hoo Lee, who's also more of a points league standout, climbing all the way to 35th in that format, one spot behind Nootbaar. But while making contact is his defining characteristic, he's also showing a new inclination to steal bases, which wasn't a big part of his game in Korea. He's fast enough to do it, though, and also isn't totally punchless as a hitter, which is why I'm willing to move him ahead of players like George Springer and Heliot Ramos even in Rotisserie. After losing most of his rookie season to a torn labrum in his shoulder, Lee may be poised for a Steven Kwan-like impact this year.
- I mentioned Matt McLain slots in seventh at second base now that he's eligible there, but directly behind him in both formats is Nico Hoerner -- and frankly, it might be too low. He's already up to six stolen bases, which puts him on a path to repeating his 43-steal 2023. Remember, he and the entire Cubs lineup, really, were lagging in stolen bases early on last year, which he why he finished with only 31, but a move back into the 40-50 range to go along with a solid batting average would make Hoerner a borderline stud in Fantasy. That's true even in Head-to-Head point leagues, where his 3.36 point-per-game average in 2023 was better than Jose Altuve's last year.
- Second base has seen the most changes of any position so far, but that's mostly a reflection of how flimsy the rankings were to begin with. Luis Garcia, who started out at No. 6, is now all the way down to 15th for me in Rotisserie leagues, yet nothing has changed all that dramatically for him. Sure, he's off to a slow start, but the bigger reason is that I've quickly become more confident in players like Hoerner, Kristian Campbell and Jackson Holliday, who likely have more upside anyway. It's also clear by now that the Nationals still intend to sit Garcia against left-handed pitchers, which reduces his chances of meeting his own upside.
- I've moved Anthony Volpe up one spot at shortstop, ahead of Xander Bogaerts, which is notable mostly for how minimal it is. He entered Tuesday as the top-performing shortstop in Fantasy, after all, so it's fair to say I'm skeptical. If there's one Yankee who genuinely stands to benefit from the use of a torpedo bat, it's Volpe, and an early power surge has indeed fueled his performance so far, with both his average and max exit velocities coming in higher than in years past. Still, he's beginning from a very fringy place, and at a position as deep as shortstop, I risk steering people off a cliff by elevating him too quickly.
- Chris Bassitt uncharacteristically struggled to throw strikes last season, and his ERA and WHIP blew up as a result. Still, it shouldn't have been enough to render him an afterthought in drafts this year, not after he was more or less must-start from 2021 through 2023 with an average of 14.3 wins, a 3.41 ERA, a 1.13 WHIP and 8.5 K/9. So far, last year's control problems seem like an aberration, and Bassitt again looks like someone you'll want to park in your lineup. I've moved him ahead of Blue Jays teammates Kevin Gausman and Bowden Francis, putting him on the verge of top-50 status.
A few others worth highlighting
- Sean Murphy moved up only one spot for me with his return to the lineup Tuesday, but I ranked him optimistically to begin with. I'm curious how the playing time shakes out between him and rookie Drake Baldwin, who looked good in Murphy's absence even if he doesn't have the stats to show for it.
- Jake McCarthy basically swapped places with Zac Veen in my outfield rankings, going from 66th to 91st. He seemed like a good source of stolen bases (and perhaps also batting average) coming into the year, but he just isn't playing enough.
- Gunnar Henderson is back ahead of Francisco Lindor now that he's recovered from an intercostal strain.
- Rafael Devers is back ahead of Manny Machado now that he's looking like himself again at the dish.
- Roki Sasaki has dropped outside of my top 40 at starting pitcher and will need to deliver something resembling a usable start soon to avoid a complete bottoming-out.
- Dustin May, Max Meyer and Casey Mize are among the biggest risers at starting pitcher, all climbing inside my top 70.