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Mike Carter looks at five hitter fantasy baseball breakouts, sleepers off to hot starts in 2026. Are Jake Bauers, Josh Jung, Curtis Mead, Bryce Eldridge, and Colton Cowser for real?
Through the early going of the 2026 fantasy baseball season, managers have seen hitters emerge as early season breakouts. It can be a tough calculus for us; we prepare all winter for draft season, trust our process, and then players (who are human beings above all else) fail. When they do, we are forced to reckon with our process and decide to stick with a player, or jettison them to the waiver wire and try to find a better replacement. It is hard to know when to do that each time.
That is the nexus of this article. In this piece, we will look at five hitters who have been hitting well and could emerge as must-start players right now. Included are a couple of what we may have called journeymen, and a couple of younger players we have been waiting on to deliver results.
The following hitters are rostered in some leagues, and every week, we will give you two or three guys who are rostered less than 20% of the time in Yahoo leagues who could help your teams. Let's dive in! Any feedback will be welcome on this new piece from @rotoballermlb.
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Jake Bauers, 1B/OF, Milwaukee Brewers
57% rostered
Bauers has been one of the most valuable players on the Milwaukee Brewers, one of the best teams in the major leagues this season. The veteran first baseman and outfielder is hitting .286 with 12 home runs, 43 RBI, five stolen bases, and 38 runs scored. He has done a bit of everything.
When you find a free agent who looks enticing, it is best to look under the hood and check out the metrics. The box below shows that Bauers is no fluke. Take a look at the average exit velocity, the hard-hit percentage, and the barrel rate. Bauers is producing the best season of his career.
I also encourage you to look at the bat speed chart below. His bat speed happens to coincide with actually hitting the ball hard; that does not always meet in the middle for major league hitters. Bauers is getting his at-bats in a mix of opportunities at first base and the outfield.
There had been worry that Bauers might lose time to fellow veteran Andrew Vaughn when he returned from his hamate bone injury, but manager Pat Murphy has found ways to keep both players in the lineup. Bauers should be rostered far more often.
Josh Jung, 3B, Texas Rangers
53% rostered
Jung was an afterthought on most draft days, yet he has performed exceptionally well in Texas this year. Jung is hitting .313 with eight homers, 29 RBI, a stolen base, and 31 runs scored this season while manning third base and the three hole in the lineup. He's been excellent.
Take a longer look at Jung's performance in 2026 thus far below. He was great in April and still very productive in May. Jung could be producing a breakout year now that he is healthy again. Neck, calf, shoulder, and hand injuries over the last two seasons have impacted his ability to be able to play.
He should continue to have a strong opportunity to play and perform in Texas as summer arrives and the Rangers fight to stay in the playoff hunt. Roster Jung as your third baseman or corner infielder.
Curtis Mead, 1B/2B/3B, Washington Nationals
28% rostered
Mead was a deep roster addition early in the season, most likely due to his positional eligibility flexibility and the rash of injuries to key players.
Now, he has become a key player not only for the Washington Nationals but also for fantasy teams alike. Mead, a castoff from the Tampa Bay Rays and the Chicago White Sox, has taken advantage of an opportunity to play; the Nationals sent down Brady House to give Mead the chance to play third base daily.
The Statcast age excerpt below shows us that Mead has been making strides all year in his approach. He pairs a high walk rate (13.3%) with a low strikeout rate (17.8%), and he does not chase pitches out of the strike zone.
Add in positive metrics for his hard contact, and you can see why Mead has been successful in 2026. He is hitting second or third in the order most days, and hitting .242 (but xBA is .270) with nine home runs, 28 RBI, a helpful three stolen bases, and 29 runs scored. Mead also helps at three infield positions; he's valuable.
Bryce Eldridge, 1B, San Francisco Giants
18% rostered
Eldridge is looking more and more like he can handle major league pitching, and fantasy players are going to be sure to roster him far more often moving forward in 2026.
I mistakenly thought Eldridge was about 25; turns out, he is just 21. He was called up to the Giants in early May to try and get a moribund offense back on track. Eldridge was ok, hitting .241 with two homers and four RBI, striking out 15 times in 58 at-bats. Not great.
But moving into June, Eldridge is making better contact and is hitting .379 with three multiple-hit games in his last five starts. There are no home runs here this month yet, but there are signs that he could cut his strikeout rate as the quality of contact is great, and he will also take a walk (11.1%).
Eldridge should get plenty of runway in San Francisco now, and there seems to be little competition for at-bats here. He's at a 122 wRC+, and the power potential is prodigious; get in on Eldridge now.
Colton Cowser, OF, Baltimore Orioles
12% rostered
Cowser was a player many (including me) were high on as draft season kicked off in the late winter and early spring. He was an outfielder I was taking late in drafts with hopes of 25-30 home runs dancing in my head.
Alas, an 8-for-49 April quashed those dreams for me, and I relegated Cowser to the waiver wire. Cowser quietly started picking up more time because of his stellar defense and some injury woes in Baltimore. And he is absolutely hitting the cover off the baseball these days.
Cowser was a productive hitter in May, hitting .275 with four homers, 15 RBI, a stolen base, and nine runs scored in only 58 plate appearances. He is now at the very least in a strong-side platoon and getting outfield starts against all right-handed pitching.
Cowser has homered in two of his last three starts and is quietly putting up numbers that most teams could use in their outfields at this time. Take a look at Cowser if you need offensive production. See splits below.
These and other helpful hitters may be available on your waiver wire in your league. Take a deeper dive into them and compare them to what you already have housed on your team.
My best advice is not to be afraid to churn the bottom parts of your roster for guys like these, listed here, who can help now and into the future. Message me @mdrc0508 on X if you have questions or if I can help in any way. Remember that fantasy baseball is supposed to be fun above all else, so have fun with your teams!
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