8 Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers - Munetaka Murakami, Will Warren, Teoscar Hernandez, more

April 27, 2026

Kipp's fantasy baseball risers, fallers, breakouts for Week 5 of 2026. He analyzes hitters and pitchers performing well and poorly to determine future values.

Welcome, everyone, to another edition of RotoBaller’s Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers article series for Week 5 of the 2026 season! Today, I'll look at players like Munetaka Murakami, Will Warren, Teoscar Hernandez, and more.

Keeping up with the latest hitter and pitcher trends is a key component for a successful season, and RotoBaller is here to help fantasy managers! Each week, I will select a few players who have performed well recently and a few who have not, and I will analyze their performances to determine how their future outcomes may be affected.

Following along here every week will give you an edge over your league mates and keep you up to date on who is firing on all cylinders and who is struggling to make ends meet. Every game makes an impact, and there is no time to wait for regression. Let's get into some Fantasy Risers and Fallers who may force some tough decisions.

Fantasy Baseball Hitter Risers

Munetaka Murakami, 1B/3B, Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox may have found themselves a superstar in Murakami, as he has been absolutely raking since signing this offseason. Over the previous 14 days, he has been slashing .319/.448/.766 with seven HR, 13 RBI, and 11 BB, which is well above expectations.

He currently ranks as the fifth-best player in Yahoo! leagues over that 14-day span after beginning the season as the 232nd-ranked player. Overall, Murakami has crushed 11 home runs while driving in and scoring 20 runs. It is worth noting that he currently sits with a 33% K rate, but if the home runs and walks are going to come along with those strikeouts, I think we can all live with that.

He is not likely going to be available in your league, as he is 93% rostered, but if you managed to draft him, you are reaping some major rewards thus far in 2026.

Josh Jung, 3B, Texas Rangers

Josh Jung is starting to heat up in a big way and is now slashing .367/.429/.796 with four HR, 13 RBI, nine R, and five walks over the past 14 days. This is good enough to rank him 13th overall in Yahoo! leagues after beginning the season ranked 359th overall.

Jung is now hitting .299 on the season and has been a very productive player in the Rangers' lineup, having posted just a 17.7% K rate through his first 24 games. He has shown the capability of being a big-time bat in the past, as noted by his 23 HR and 70 RBI in 2023.

Injuries riddled his 2024 season, and in 2025, he just was not the same guy. We could be seeing him return to form in 2026, and he is currently rostered in just 31% oh Yahoo! leagues, so he is very likely still available in your league. He could be a nice addition at third base.

Fantasy Baseball Pitcher Risers

Will Warren, New York Yankees

Warren has looked very sharp for the Yankees this season, having posted a 2.59 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and striking out 37 batters across 31 1/3 IP. He looked even better over the past two weeks, posting a 2.16 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and striking out 23 across 16 2/3 IP.

Over that 14-day stretch, Warren has made three starts, allowing two earned runs or fewer in each of them. This has been good enough to rank him as the 25th-best player in Yahoo! leagues over that span, after beginning the season as the 341st-ranked player.

This is just Warren's second full season in the big leagues, and already, we are seeing major strides. He currently ranks in the 80th percentile or better in both K rate and BB rate, which is a very nice feat. The fact that he is still just 71% rostered is also a bit surprising. If he is still available in your league, he should be added immediately.

Chase Dollander, Colorado Rockies

I did not expect to have a Rockies pitcher on here while perusing the rankings this morning, but that is exactly the case with Chase Dollander, as he has been pitching exceptionally well lately. Over the past two weeks, he has posted a 2.88 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and struck out 18 batters across 12 1/3 IP.

This has been good enough to rank him 30th overall after beginning the season ranked 1,547th. Clearly, he has progressed quite well. A lot of his success has come via his four-seam fastball, which has generated a 30.5% whiff rate. He has actually had a ton of swing-and-miss success with a majority of his pitches, as five of his six pitches generate a 29% or better whiff rate.

This is just Dollander's second full season in the big leagues, so he could be making big strides here. The main concern going forward is that he pitches at Coors Field. He is still just rostered in 21% of leagues, so you should certainly add him if available, and possibly just start him on the road or in easier home matchups.

Fantasy Baseball Hitter Fallers

Bo Bichette, 3B/SS, New York Mets

Bo Bichette is not starting his New York Mets career as the team or fantasy managers had hoped thus far. Over the past two weeks, he has been slashing just .222/.222/.289 with no HR, three RBI, six R, and no BB. Over that stretch, he ranks as the 647th-best player in Yahoo! leagues after beginning the season ranked 66th overall.

Bichette has struggled in a number of metrics, including barrel rate, bat speed, chase rate, and walk rate. He ranks in the 18th percentile or worse in each of these categories, which has been a direct cause of his lackluster stat line to begin the 2026 campaign.

Bichette has a strong track record and has hit .290 or better in all but one season, so a rebound could certainly be expected from him as we enter the summer months ahead.

Teoscar Hernandez, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers

Hernandez is another player with a successful history who finds himself on the fallers list this week. Over the past two weeks, he has been slashing just .175/.267/.300 with one HR, four RBI, five R, and five BB. He is also posting a lackluster 31% K rate over that same span and finds himself ranked 575th in Yahoo! leagues after starting the season ranked 87th.

Hernandez currently ranks below the 50th percentile in terms of xwOBA, xBA, hard hit rate, chase rate, whiff rate, K rate, and walk rate, so a ton of improvement is needed here moving forward. He is a guy who has hit 25 or more home runs in each of the previous six seasons, so I would expect a turnaround here in the near future.

He is also hitting in the middle of a potent Dodgers lineup, so the value is still there for him; he just needs to turn it around sooner rather than later, which is entirely possible with a player of his caliber.

Fantasy Baseball Pitcher Fallers

Luis Castillo, Seattle Mariners

Luis Castillo is struggling to begin the 2026 campaign and is posting a 1.65 WHIP with just nine strikeouts across 10 1/3 IP over the past 14 days. He has racked up zero wins over this span and finds himself ranked 461st in Yahoo! leagues over the past 14 days.

His season numbers are not much better, as he currently sits with an ERA north of 5.00 and has yet to record a win on the season. I will admit, I was not that high on Castillo entering the season, but I did not think he would struggle this much early on. He ranks below the 40th percentile in xERA, xBA, barrel rate, and hard hit rate, which are all big red flags.

He struggled a bit to begin last season and managed to turn it around to the tune of posting a 3.54 ERA with 162 strikeouts across 180 2/3 IP, but I am not all that hopeful he will be able to rebound so strongly in 2026.

Mitch Keller, Pittsburgh Pirates

Mitch Keller is another well-known pitcher who is struggling early in 2026. Over the past two weeks, he has posted a 5.63 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, and allowed six BB across 16 IP. Over that span, he ranks 499th in Yahoo! leagues, which is not where fantasy managers had hoped.

The good news for Keller is that he is limiting hard contact, as noted by the fact that he ranks in the 80th percentile or better in terms of average exit velocity and barrel rate, so improvement to the stat line could be coming. His swing-and-miss stuff has been lackluster, however, as he ranks below league average in terms of chase rate, whiff rate, and K rate.

As we move into the summer months, Keller is a player you will likely want to roster only for easier matchups, as he could get roughed up by some of the better offenses in the league.

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