Fantasy Baseball Breakouts and Resurgent Hitters - Are They For Real? (Week 18)

July 27, 2026

Joey analyzes five fantasy baseball breakouts and hitter resurgences in Week 18 of the 2026 season. These batters are off to hot starts, but are they real fantasy breakouts to stay?

Welcome back to the Week 18 edition of our Fantasy Baseball Breakouts and Resurgent Hitters. This is the column where we take a closer look at hitters who are bouncing back or breaking out. It's a good way to help stay ahead of the competition by continuing to bolster your fantasy baseball teams.

This week's edition will look at five veterans showing some resurgence at the plate. These five hitters might have struggled earlier this year or not have had a great 2025 campaign, but they are showing their offensive upside once again. The players on this list range from a contact hitter finally producing, a utility specialist contributing all-around solid numbers on his new team, and a former All-Star.

Are these five hitters for real? Let's dive in and find out.

Ty France, 1B, San Diego Padres

San Diego Padres first baseman Ty France was once an All-Star back during the 2022 season. That year, France hit .274 at the plate with a career-high 20 home runs, 27 doubles, and 83 RBI across 140 games for the Seattle Mariners. He was a solid all-around fantasy option that season, and his power was finally unlocked following a couple of disappointing seasons with the Padres.

Unfortunately, France never really put up those types of numbers again. In 2023, he hit .250 with 12 home runs, 32 doubles, and 58 RBI across 158 games for the Mariners. In 2024, he batted .234 with 13 home runs, 24 doubles, and 51 RBI across 140 games for the Mariners and Reds. In 2025, the veteran batted .257 with seven home runs, 25 doubles, and 52 RBI across 138 games for the Twins and Blue Jays.

Despite several years of posting mediocre numbers, France has finally returned to that All-Star form at the plate. He's batting .286 with 16 home runs and 46 RBI across 80 games for the Padres this year. His numbers have been even better over the last few weeks, as the 32-year-old has a .363 batting average, eight home runs, seven doubles, and 22 RBI over his last 23 games since June 24.

Ty France delivers an RBI single in the 8th, his 2nd RBI and hit of the day#Padres up 4-1 over the Marlins. He continues to be absolutely massive for the offense#forthefaithful pic.twitter.com/djlclMDzja

— Padres Highlights (@FriarHighlights) July 25, 2026

It has really been a resurgent season for France. He's showing the ability to hit for a solid average and be a nice source of home runs lately. There's also reason to believe that he can keep this up the rest of the year. The Padres first baseman currently has a 76th percentile expected slugging (.455), 91st percentile average exit velocity (92.4 mph), 79th percentile barrel rate (12.1%), and a 90th percentile launch angle sweet-spot rate (39.3%).

His recent numbers, combined with his underlying metrics, make him a nice pickup in most leagues right now.

Luis Robert Jr., OF, New York Mets

There was no stopping outfielder Luis Robert Jr. earlier in his career. Robert was at the top of his game during the 2023 season, when he slashed .264/.315/.542 with a career-high 38 home runs, 80 RBI, and 20 stolen bases across 145 games with the White Sox. The Cuban slugger broke out in a big way that season and won many fantasy managers their leagues.

However, injuries have really held back Robert from reaching those numbers again. He played in just 100 games in 2023 and another 110 games in 2024 before being traded to the Mets this past offseason. In his last two seasons in Chicago, the former All-Star batted just .223 with a combined 28 home runs, 88 RBI, and 56 stolen bases across 210 total games.

Although Robert missed more than 2 1/2 months due to another injury this year, he has some power since returning from the injured list. The 28-year-old had a home run in two of six games last week. He hit a mammoth 451-foot home run that came off the bat at 112.2 mph against the Brewers on July 21, and then hit a 386-foot home run against the Dodgers on July 24.

LUIS ROBERT JR. 💥

451 FEET 🤯 pic.twitter.com/eOc7kz86H0

— New York Mets (@Mets) July 22, 2026

With his latest injury now fully behind him, Robert is hoping to post some solid numbers down the stretch. But if you are thinking about adding Robert in fantasy leagues, it's probably best not to fully buy into him. He has had a hard time staying healthy in recent seasons, and his underlying metrics are a bit worrisome. His 3.9% barrel rate and 22.1% launch angle sweet-spot rate both rank poorly.

For that reason, Robert is not really a viable pickup in Week 18.

Steven Kwan, OF, Cleveland Guardians

Cleveland Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan was a hits machine in each of the last two seasons. He batted .292 with 14 home runs, 16 doubles, three triples, 44 RBI, and 12 stolen bases across 122 games in 2024 and had a .272 batting average with 11 home runs, 29 doubles, 56 RBI, 21 stolen bases, and a whopping 170 hits in 2025.

The start of Kwan's 2026 season, though, didn't go according to plan. He slashed .206/.321/.251 with one home run, eight doubles, 13 RBI, and three stolen bases in his first 71 games. The Guardians outfielder wasn't hitting for a solid average, his one home run was extremely disappointing, and his three stolen bases were not a good sign.

The good news is that Kwan has been a much better fantasy option as of late. He's slashing .369/.448/.464 with four doubles, three triples, five RBI, and four stolen bases over his last 26 games since June 26. While the home run and RBI numbers are still low (which is expected), the 28-year-old is finally becoming a startable fantasy outfielder again due to his increased batting average and solid stolen base numbers.

If you need some batting average boost in your roto leagues, it's a smart idea to pick up Kwan. He's in a groove at the plate right now and should help lift your batting average slowly. The two-time All-Star has a 79th percentile expected batting average (.270), 96th percentile launch angle sweet-spot rate (40.7%), and a 100th percentile squared-up rate (42.4%).

Luis Rengifo, 2B/3B/OF, San Diego Padres

San Diego Padres utility specialist Luis Rengifo was once a solid all-around fantasy contributor. He batted .264 with 17 home runs, 52 RBI, and six stolen bases across 127 games for the Angels in 2022, hit .264 with 16 home runs, 51 RBI, and six stolen bases across 126 games in 2023, and had a .300 batting average with six home runs, 30 RBI, and 24 stolen bases across 78 games in 2024.

Sadly, Rengifo had a hard time building on those solid numbers in both the 2025 season and the first half of 2026. The 29-year-old batted .238 with nine home runs, 43 RBI, and 10 stolen bases across 147 games with the Angels in 2025 and slashed .205/.280/.254 with zero home runs, nine doubles, 19 RBI, and three stolen bases in his first 57 games with the Brewers this year.

But since being released from the Brewers and signing with the Padres in late June, Rengifo has really been unstoppable at the plate. He's batting .433 (13-for-30) with two home runs, one double, seven RBI, seven runs scored, and one stolen base in his first nine games in San Diego. The utility specialist is really showing signs of his former self, when he was that solid fantasy option who contributed a little bit everywhere.

Luis Rengifo (2) DRILLS A 2-RUN HOMER 💣
99.4 mph · 361 ft · 35°
RHP Tyler Zuber · 84 mph sweeper

⚾ SD 4 - MIA 2 • Top 8th pic.twitter.com/07Ry0oYujA

— PlayPulse HRs (@PlayPulseHRs) July 25, 2026

Even though his metrics might not look promising, he's someone fantasy managers should ride with until the wheels fall off. He could be a nice pickup in deeper leagues because he does have the ability to contribute a little bit in all five categories. Having a league-average expected batting average (.251), a solid squared-up rate (30.1%), and a low strikeout rate (12.6%) could help him down the stretch.

Nolan Arenado, 3B, Arizona Diamondbacks

There's no question that Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Nolan Arenado had an abysmal 2025 season. He slashed a career-worst .237/.289/.377 with 12 home runs, 18 doubles, one triple, 52 RBI, and three stolen bases across 107 games with the St. Louis Cardinals. Putting up those numbers at his age, many believed that it was only downhill for the potential Hall of Famers.

However, Arenado has turned back the clock quite a bit in his first season in Arizona. The eight-time All-Star has a much better .246/.325/.426 slash line with 14 home runs, 19 doubles, 48 RBI, and three stolen bases in 99 games with the Diamondbacks. His home run numbers are up from last year, his batting average is better, and he's been a more consistent fantasy option in 2026.

Given how thin the third base position is in fantasy this year, Arenado is worth grabbing in most 12+ team leagues in Week 18. The 35-year-old is also in a nice groove at the plate as of late. He has a .263 batting average with six home runs, four doubles, 16 RBI, and 11 walks over his last 22 games dating back to June 29.

His recent offensive numbers make him a nice pickup.

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