Fantasy Baseball Breakouts and Resurgent Hitters - Are They For Real? (Week 9)

May 28, 2026

Frank analyzes 5 fantasy baseball breakouts and hitter resurgences in Week 9 of the 2026 season. These batters are off to hot starts, but are they real fantasy breakouts to stay?

Finding a hitter in the middle of a resurgence is a great way to improve your chances at a fantasy baseball championship. Sometimes, it takes a while for others in your league to pick up a veteran who is bouncing back. That's where this column comes in: we're trying to determine whether or not these hitters are for real.

In addition to veteran resurgences, this article will explore potential breakouts.

With that in mind, let's dive into Casey Schmitt, Xavier Edwards, Christian Walker, Otto Lopez, and Josh Jung.

Casey Schmitt, San Francisco Giants

Casey Schmitt clubs his 5th home run in his last 8 games 💪 pic.twitter.com/PREzxGhCdH

— MLB (@MLB) May 24, 2026

Casey Schmitt came into the 2026 season more known for his defense. This is a 27-year-old who hadn't yet established himself as an everyday player. His career-high was a .252/.283/.477 slash in 113 plate appearances back in 2024. Last year, Schmitt put up an underwhelming .252/.283/.477 slash line. Needless to say, aside from super deep draft-and-hold leagues, Schmitt wasn't on the fantasy radar.

That's why what he's done this season has been so surprising. Coming into Monday's action, Schmitt had a .296/.339/.556 slash with 11 home runs in 183 plate appearances. This is good for an elite 152 wRC+. It's not a stretch to say that Schmitt has been one of the best hitters in baseball so far this season, which is crazy considering what he had done coming into the year.

So what's changed? Well, for one, Schmitt has been more aggressive at the plate, as his walk rate has decreased from 7.8% to 3.8%. But he's also made more contact, trimming his strikeout rate from 23.9% to 19.7%. He's barreling the ball at a much higher rate, increasing it from 9.0% to 14.8%. His bat speed has gone from 71.7 MPH to 72.3 MPH.

Simply put, this looks like this year's Geraldo Perdomo. Remember that Perdomo similarly hadn't shown much as a hitter before his massive breakout in 2025. Sometimes in baseball, a veteran hitter just finds their groove. That's what seems to be happening here with Schmitt. If you picked him up, enjoy the ride. You may have stumbled upon a 30-homer hitter with second base eligibility.

Xavier Edwards, Miami Marlins

Known slugger, Xavier Edwards pic.twitter.com/Mgipw8NCrC

— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) May 19, 2026

Heading into the 2026 season, Xavier Edwards was a target for stolen bases while providing a boost in batting average with virtually zero power. The Marlins' second baseman was coming off a year where he slashed .283/.343/.353 with three home runs in 619 plate appearances. However, so far this year, Edwards is having a power surge, slashing .313/.395/.478 with six home runs in 229 plate appearances. He's already doubled his season-long homer total from last year.

We've seen Edwards bump his walk rate up from 7.9% to 11.8% while trimming his strikeout rate from 14.2% to 11.4%. His 147 wRC+ is among the best in MLB. The barrel rate used to be non-existent (0.8%), but now there's life (6.3%). He's also pulling the ball more, going from 31.7% to 35.2%. This is a hitter with a .424 xSLG, so it's not like the power surge is a complete mirage.

There have been other examples of speedsters who tapped into more power in recent years. Just look at Brice Turang in 2025, when he went from seven homers to 18. There's a good chance that Edwards is getting to 12+ homers this season, which makes him quite valuable considering that he can steal 30+ bases. Edwards feels a bit more likely than Schmitt to slow down, but this should still be a strong fantasy asset for the rest of the season.

Christian Walker, Houston Astros

Christian Walker stays hot as he DESTROYS this baseball 🔥 pic.twitter.com/lrWz1bWIii

— MLB (@MLB) May 24, 2026

Christian Walker is coming off a disappointing debut season with the Astros, where he slashed .238/.297/.421 with 27 home runs in 640 plate appearances. Heading into his age-35 season after an offseason filled with trade rumors, there were reasons to be skeptical about Walker. What if this were another Jose Abreu? That is, a veteran slugger who just fell off a cliff as he got older.

In hindsight, the signs were there for a resurgence. Walker had a solid second half last season, slashing .250/.312/.488 with 15 home runs in 263 plate appearances. In other words, his full-season stat line didn't capture the fact that he started to get it going. Perhaps this was the case of a hitter taking time to get adapted to a new team.

So far this year, Walker is bouncing back in a big way, slashing .265/.338/.531 with 14 home runs in 219 plate appearances. He's trimmed his strikeout rate from 27.7% to 19.6% and increased his walk rate from 6.3% to 8.7%. The barrel rate looks solid at 13.0%. The bat speed remains in the 75th percentile, per Baseball Savant, so there are no signs of decline there.

Simply put, this is a hitter with a track record who has found his groove with the Astros. Don't be surprised if he finishes with 35+ home runs again.

Otto Lopez, Miami Marlins

Great defense from Otto Lopez in this W pic.twitter.com/ASzAVVsDIJ

— Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) May 23, 2026

Up next, we have another Marlin who has shown significant growth at the plate. Coming into 2026, Otto Lopez was viewed as a batting average asset who could perhaps put up 15 homers with 15 steals. We knew that his .246 batting average from last year was an aberration, as highlighted by an unsustainable .264 BABIP. We knew that a hitter like Lopez, who had a 13.8% strikeout rate, made too much contact to hit for such a low average.

What we didn't know was that he was capable of this kind of breakout. So far this year, Lopez is slashing .337/.367/.481 with four home runs and eight stolen bases in 221 plate appearances. He's putting up an impressive 138 wRC+. We've seen Lopez bump up his hard hit rate from 38.3% to 44.8%.

While we don't see the same kinds of gains in power like his teammate Edwards, Lopez looks like a .300 hitter with a chance to hit 15 home runs and steal 25 bases this season, making him a valuable asset who is eligible at both second base and shortstop. It's not a bad idea to try to trade for him, since your leaguemate may not be fully sold on these improvements.

Josh Jung, Texas Rangers

Josh Jung Remains Out on Monday With Shoulder Soreness https://t.co/MARcX9LagK

— RotoBaller MLB (@RotoBallerMLB) May 25, 2026

Josh Jung, who has earned an injury-prone label throughout his career, is currently dealing with a sore shoulder. Let's hope that it's not too serious, as he's had an impressive resurgence so far this season. The Rangers' third baseman is slashing .302/.357/.462 with five home runs in 199 plate appearances.

What's most intriguing is that Jung has trimmed his strikeout rate from 25.2% to 14.6% while continuing to hit the ball hard (46.1% hard-hit rate). Remember that back in 2023, Jung was the talk of the town, slashing .266/.315/.467 with 23 home runs in 515 plate appearances. It seems like he's refound that form this year.

Jung has a .309 xBA, which ranks in the 98th percentile, per Baseball Savant. He's going to continue to be an asset in batting average, as long as he stays healthy. Playing at a thin position like third base makes Jung a valuable asset in fantasy leagues. While you likely won't see more than 20 home runs or so due to an underwhelming barrel rate, he's still worth holding for the entire year.

Keep a close eye on his injury status, as we'll be anxiously awaiting updates for this oft-injured player.

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