Fantasy Baseball Buy-Lows? Unlucky Star Players (Week 17)

July 22, 2026

Joey's fantasy baseball buy-lows, breakouts, trade candidates to target for Week 17 in 2026. These unlucky players are underperforming early for fantasy baseball.

Welcome back, RotoBallers, to another edition of Buy-Low Candidates for Week 17 of the fantasy baseball season. Every week of the fantasy baseball season, we look at struggling star players who are top buy-low candidates. Last week's list included names like Fernando Tatis Jr., Jeremy Pena, and Julio Rodriguez.

For this week, we will look at five more buy-low candidates. Every player on this list is rostered in over 80% of Yahoo! leagues, and each of these five stars should be a better fantasy option moving forward. Some of the players we will discuss below include a superstar currently on the injured list, a starting pitcher who has gotten hit hard recently, and a closer who is pitching better than his numbers suggest.

Let's dive into the five best buy-low candidates right now for Week 17.

Corey Seager, SS, Texas Rangers

It has been a season to forget so far for Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager. He has had three different stints on the injured list this season and has already missed 50 games. Seager missed a few weeks due to a back injury in May, missed 10 games due to a concussion in June, and recently landed on the injured list again due to a back issue in early July.

On top of his injury-riddled campaign, Seager has also failed to post consistent numbers when he has been on the field. He is slashing .182/.292/.374 with 10 home runs, six doubles, and 25 RBI across 51 games in 2026. Those numbers put him on pace to finish with his worst-hitting season since signing with the Rangers back in December of 2021.

But despite everything that has gone wrong for Seager this season, he's actually one of the best buy-lows in Week 17. His underlying metrics suggest that he could post some strong numbers once he returns from his back injury. His expected slugging (.446) is 72 points higher than his actual slugging (.374), and he ranks in the top half of the league in barrel rate (15.4%), hard-hit rate (44.6%), and xwOBA (.336).

Seager's fantasy value is the lowest it will ever be. While there is an unclear timeline for his return, he is slowly ramping up. The lefty slugger recently took batting practice off a machine and has begun taking groundballs again. It will cost almost nothing to trade for Seager, who could turn it around in the final weeks of the season.

Corey Seager at work before Rangers/White Sox. Manager Skip Schumaker says Seager will take batting practice off the machine today. A sign that he’s drawing closer to recovery and a return to action #Rangers pic.twitter.com/74meyx1bXX

— Mike Doocy (@MikeDoocyFox4) July 21, 2026

Jose Ramirez, 3B/DH, Cleveland Guardians

Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez has been on the shelf since June 14 after fracturing his hamate bone in a game against the Detroit Tigers in mid-June. He eventually underwent surgery a few days later and was given a five-to-seven-week timeline to return. Well, Tuesday marked five weeks since Ramirez underwent surgery to remove the hook of the fractured hamate bone in his left hand.

That means the Guardians superstar is knocking on the door of being activated from the injured list very soon. Even though Ramirez still feels some discomfort in his left hand while swinging a bat, he should be activated within the next 14 days. The end of his timeline is early August, and the seven-time All-Star might not need a rehab assignment before returning.

Considering Ramirez is still currently on the injured list, fantasy managers should be seeing what it would take to acquire the fantasy star. His numbers were a bit down before his injury (.239 batting average, 10 home runs, 33 RBI, 24 stolen bases), but he's due for some positive regression once he returns.

His batting average (.282) is 43 points higher than his actual batting average (.239), and his expected slugging (.446) is 28 points higher than his actual slugging. Ramirez also ranks in the 81st percentile in xwOBA (.356), 71st percentile in average exit velocity (90.3 mph), 74th percentile in launch angle sweet-spot rate (36.6%), and owns an elite 30.4% pull air rate.

Brandon Nimmo, OF, Texas Rangers

Texas Rangers outfielder Brandon Nimmo might be the biggest buy-low in all of fantasy baseball right now. He has posted mediocre numbers this season and has not taken that massive jump in his first year in Texas. After his 4-for-4 day with one home run and two RBI against the White Sox on Tuesday night, though, this could be a sign of what's coming for Nimmo in the final two months.

Brandon Nimmo gets the @Rangers on the board with a 2-run shot! pic.twitter.com/MnViWfXQ4H

— MLB (@MLB) July 22, 2026

Nimmo's actual numbers are much different from his underlying metrics. That's a major reason why the 33-year-old veteran could really explode down the stretch. He has gotten a bit unlucky at the plate in the team's first 101 games, and that should change as we start Week 17 of the fantasy baseball season.

The lefty-swinging outfielder currently ranks in the 91st percentile in xwOBA (.372), 92nd percentile in expected batting average (.287), 91st percentile in expected slugging percentage (.508), 92nd percentile in average exit velocity (92.6 mph), 82nd percentile in barrel rate (12.7%), and 94th percentile in hard-hit rate (52.5%).

With these elite metrics, everyone would think that Nimmo is having a career year. Instead, he's slashing .268/.336/.433 with 10 home runs, 39 RBI, and four stolen bases across 95 games. Fantasy managers should expect his numbers to even out in the final weeks, making him a top buy-low target.

Kevin Gausman, SP, Toronto Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman has had a few rough weeks on the mound. He allowed seven runs across two innings against the Cubs on June 19, gave up six runs across six innings against the Rangers in his next start on June 25, allowed seven runs (four earned runs) across 5 1/3 innings against the Giants on July 6, and just gave up five runs (four earned runs) across 3 1/3 innings against the Rays on Tuesday night.

HOW GRAND IT IS.

⭐️: https://t.co/hFFdpa6mDR pic.twitter.com/9VFRf5q0sM

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) June 19, 2026

After allowing those four earned runs across 3 1/3 innings in his most recent start, Gausman now has a 6.56 ERA over his last nine starts dating back to the beginning of June. He hasn't looked quite sharp on the mound recently, and the defense behind him hasn't made things easier for him, either.

However, the Blue Jays right-hander is worth a look as a buy-low candidate this week. Things should eventually improve for him, as some positive regression is on the way. His expected ERA (3.88) is 63 points lower than his actual ERA (4.51), and his FIP (3.66) and expected FIP (3.79) are both respectable.

Additionally, the swing-and-miss stuff from Gausman is still there despite his recent struggles. He has struck out at least seven batters in three of his last four starts, and his chase rate (34.4%), whiff rate (27.9%), and strikeout rate (24.7%) all rank in the top 35% of the league. His swinging strike rate (12.8%) is right around his career average (12.3%) as well.

That all makes Gausman a nice trade target in Week 17.

Devin Williams, RP, New York Mets

New York Mets closer Devin Williams has been a bit inconsistent throughout the 2026 season. He has a 4.54 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP across 33 2/3 innings pitched and has struggled in the month of July. Williams has allowed five runs (four earned runs) across 5 1/3 innings this month while also blowing two save opportunities in the ninth inning.

Although Williams' numbers don't look great on paper, his underlying metrics suggest that he has gotten really unlucky on the mound in his first season with the Mets. His expected ERA (3.51) is 103 points lower than his actual ERA (4.54), and he ranks in the top 10% of the league in chase rate (38.3%), whiff rate (35.1%), and strikeout rate (29.6%).

There's a lot of upside here remaining with Williams. If you are in need of some saves, it might not be a bad idea to trade for a closer who has struggled recently. His metrics should point to better production moving forward. The Mets right-hander just recently threw one scoreless inning in his most recent relief appearance on Tuesday against the Brewers.

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