The 3 Players Every Fantasy Expert is Secretly Drafting in 2026: Top late-round sleepers you Won’t want to miss

Identifying the “Big Three” in the first round is only half the battle. To win a fantasy baseball league, you have to find the players that the rest of your league is overlooking.

Here are the top late-round sleepers for your 2026 fantasy draft.

The “Post-Hype” Breakouts

These are players who were top prospects, struggled initially, and have now seen their draft price drop, right before they are about to explode.

• Jordan Lawlar (SS/OF – Arizona): Lawlar is the definition of a “draft-day steal.” Currently going around pick 225, the Diamondbacks have cleared a path for him to play every day. With a rare blend of 20-homer power and 40-steal speed, he is a former top-three prospect finally getting his chance to shine.
• Francisco Alvarez (C – New York NL): Most managers are wary of catcher batting averages, but Alvarez’s power is undeniable. At just 24, he hit 24 home runs last year despite injuries. If he stays healthy, he has top-five upside at the position for the price of a late-round flyer.
• Evan Carter (OF – Texas): After helping Texas to a World Series in ’23, injuries slowed his momentum. Now 23 and fully healthy, his elite plate discipline and 20/20 potential are being ignored by the market.

The “Statcast” Darlings

These players have underlying metrics (Exit Velocity, Barrel Rate, Sprint Speed) that suggest they are much better than their 2025 surface stats showed.

• Ezequiel Tovar (SS – Colorado): Don’t let last year’s dip in games fool you. Tovar plays half his games in the thin air of Denver and is projected to hit at the top of the Rockies’ order. A 20-homer, 10-steal season is his floor, yet he’s falling past pick 200 in many drafts.
• Jonathan Aranda (1B – Tampa Bay): With everyday opportunities finally opening up in Tampa, Aranda is a prime breakout candidate. His “expected” numbers have consistently outpaced his actual results, suggesting a massive power surge is coming.
• Jose Soriano (SP – Los Angeles AL): If you need late-round pitching, Soriano is the answer. He possesses a 100th-percentile ground-ball rate and a 97 mph sinker. He added a splitter mid-season last year that transformed him into a legitimate strikeout threat.

The High-Stakes Rookies

In 2026, the “youth movement” is faster than ever. These rookies may start the season in the minors, but they will be the most added players on the waiver wire by May.

• Samuel Basallo (C/1B – Baltimore): The Orioles’ factory of talent continues. Basallo has 30-home run upside and could be the next great Baltimore power hitter. Even if he only gets 450 at-bats, he can out-produce most starting first basemen.
• Bryce Eldridge (1B – San Francisco): After a brief “cup of coffee” last September, Eldridge is tearing up Spring Training. He has a massive 6’7″ frame and elite raw power that will eventually play well even in the cavernous dimensions of San Francisco.
• Jack Leiter (SP – Texas): The “training wheels” are officially off. Leiter’s fastball is sitting at 97 mph, and his strikeout rate jumped significantly at the end of last season. He is slated as the #4 starter in a strong Rangers rotation and could easily provide 150+ strikeouts.

Image Credit Wikimedia Commons D. Benjamin Miller