7 Breakout Hitters For Fantasy Baseball Drafts: Kipp Heisterman's Picks

March 19, 2026

Kipp Heisterman's 2026 fantasy baseball hitter breakouts to target in drafts. His favorite undervalued hitters and fantasy baseball sleepers to break out.

There are several strategies when it comes to drafting your fantasy baseball teams. One school of thought is to draft stud starting pitchers and try to find value hitters on the market in the later rounds of the draft. I am a firm believer in this strategy, and this article will focus on exactly that strategy as far as hitters are concerned.

It is my goal to help you identify some value hitters who may be diamonds in the rough to help you win your league. These will be hitters who have an ADP (per NFBC since March 1) beyond 140, and may not be the household names all of your league mates will be focused on, and are in an excellent position to greatly outperform their current cost.

So, let's dive into the seven sleeper hitters with breakout upside for 2026 fantasy drafts.

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Alejandro Kirk, C, Toronto Blue Jays

ADP - 153

Alejandro Kirk has had some ups and downs thus far in the big leagues and is coming off a solid season; however, I think there could be room for him to grow even further in 2026.

In 2025, he slashed .282/.348/.421, with 15 HRs, 76 RBI, and 45 R. While the 15 home runs were the most in his career, I think there is room for him to push into the 20s, given his advanced metrics.

Overall, he ranked in the 80th percentile or better in terms of xSLG, hard-hit rate, and squared-up rate. Additionally, he posted an average exit velocity of 91.1 mph, ranking him in the 75th percentile. The fact that he walked away with just 15 home runs seems a bit unlucky.

He is also superb at putting the ball in play, as noted by his 11.7% K rate, which ranked him in the 95th percentile. The fact that Kirk plays catcher also makes him a great addition to your roster, as the catcher position is one of the most difficult to fill in fantasy baseball, especially in deeper two-catcher formats. His current ADP going past pick 150 is a steal given his upside.

Gabriel Moreno, C, Arizona Diamondbacks

ADP - 176

Gabriel Moreno is another catcher on this list who could be in store for a very solid 2026 campaign. His 2025 season hit a bump when he went down with a hairline fracture in his index finger, but his overall metrics across the 83 games he played were pretty solid.

Overall, he posted a 90.4 mph average exit velocity, .346 xwOBA, .453 xSLG, 39.8% LA-Sweet Spot rate, and 31.1% squared-up rate. Additionally, he posted just a 17.2% K rate and 18% whiff rate, both of which were very respectable.

This all translated into a .285/.353/.433 slash line, with nine HRs, 40 RBI, and 44 R across just 309 PA. If Moreno can stay healthy in 2026, he could put up much bigger numbers in this potent Diamondbacks lineup. That is a big if for Moreno, as he has had trouble staying healthy and is currently dealing with forearm soreness in spring training, but remains on track to be cleared ahead of Opening Day.

Keep an eye on him over the next couple of weeks, and if he can return (he should) in spring training, look to fire on him in your drafts as a No. 2 catcher with high upside.

Alec Burleson, 1B/OF, St. Louis Cardinals

ADP - 160

Alec Burleson continues to incrementally improve year over year, and I think he could improve once again in 2026. In 2025, he boosted his batting average to .290 while mashing 18 home runs and driving in 69 runs. His metrics continued to look solid as well.

Overall, he ranked in the 70th percentile or better in terms of xwOBA (.345), xBA (.272), xSLG (.471), average exit velocity (91 mph), squared-up rate (32.9%), whiff rate (17.9%), and K rate (14.5%). Burleson is a high-contact, solid power hitter, as he has now hit 39 home runs over the previous two seasons.

The .290 average was also nice to see in 2025, as he was able to post a K rate that ranked him in the 85th percentile. He did all of this while playing in 139 games, and given the Cardinals' lack of depth heading into 2026, he should get a full season's worth of games. His positional versatility and ADP make him a solid selection, and I expect the 27-year-old to continue his growth.

Addison Barger, 3B/OF, Toronto Blue Jays

ADP - 180

Addison Barger is one of my favorite players on this list, and I have written about him quite a bit this spring. I also made him a must-have selection of mine in my high-stakes league draft. He had a tremendous postseason in 2025 and also finished the regular season with a .243/.301/.454 line, with 21 HRs, 74 RBI, and 61 R.

Additionally, Barger ripped 32 doubles, which ranked him 14th overall in the American League. The metrics also looked pretty good and foreshadow yet another big season in 2026, it appears.

He ranked in the 65th percentile or better in terms of xSLG, average exit velocity, barrel rate, hard-hit rate, and bat speed. The hard-hit rate of 51% is most notable, as it ranks him in the 91st percentile. When you pair this with his 91.7 mph average exit velocity, it is easy to see how his home run totals could increase in 2026.

Barger also generated an above-average 21.1% Pull AIR% last season, further suggesting his high-end power potential.

This Blue Jays' lineup will be potent once again in 2026, and they already ranked fourth-best in baseball in terms of wRC+ in 2025. His current ADP of 189 makes him a very worthwhile selection heading into 2026.

Konnor Griffin, SS, Pittsburgh Pirates

ADP - 145

Konnor Griffin is a major wildcard in this article and the 2026 season, but he could have some of the biggest upside out there. I just barely missed out on him in my draft, but hopefully you still have time to snag him in yours.

While we do not have any MLB data to go off of with Griffin, we do know that he is the Pirates' top prospect and is expected to be the starting shortstop of today and the future for the Pirates. We also know his minor league stats were off the charts.

Across three levels of minor league action in 2025, Griffin hit 21 HR, 94 RBI, 117 R, and stole 65 bases. Keep in mind, this came across just 122 games played. He was on another level in the minors, and if the Pirates bring him up after breaking camp this spring (as expected), he will have skipped Triple-A entirely.

Several prospects have come up and had ample success at the big league level in recent seasons, and Griffin could very well be the next.

Colson Montgomery, SS, Chicago White Sox

ADP - 228

If 2025 is any indication of how good Colson Montgomery can be, then he might just have himself an outstanding 2026 season, because he was uber impressive in limited action last season.

Overall, Montgomery received just 284 plate appearances, but he turned those into 21 HRs, 55 RBI, 43 R, and 25 BB. Those are full-season stats for some players, but Montgomery should get twice the amount of PA in 2026. The metrics he posted are also worth noting.

While he did not qualify via Statcast metrics, he did post a ridiculous .510 xSLG, 14.5% barrel rate, and 77 mph bat speed. Additionally, his 44.5% hard-hit rate and 8.8% walk rate were also very respectable, especially for a player seeing big league at-bats for the first time.

The 24-year old should put up big numbers for years to come in Chicago, and I expect that trend to start right away in 2026. His current ADP of 219 feels like a steal in redraft leagues, and I made sure to grab him in my high-stakes league, where I currently have him in the starting lineup for Opening Day.

Kevin McGonigle, SS, Detroit Tigers

ADP - 240

We have another soon-to-be rookie with no MLB experience at the shortstop position in Kevin McGonigle. McGonigle is in the mix to break with Detroit as Griffin is with Pittsburgh. However, Griffin has taken much of the prospect spotlight this spring, which has kept McGonigle's ADP quite affordable.

Last season in the minors, he slashed .305/.408/.563 with 19 HRs, 80 RBI, 59 BB, and 10 SBs. These stats came across three levels of ball, and he showed a solid ability to hit for power while also getting on base, as evidenced by striking out just 46 times across 397 PA.

He does not have the upside of Griffin, but he can certainly put together a breakout season in Detroit, making him well worth the investment outside of the top-200 picks.

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