Hitter Fantasy Baseball Breakouts - Risers to Watch and Waiver Wire Outlooks (Week 16)

July 10, 2026

Jarod's hitter fantasy baseball breakouts, sleepers, and risers to watch for Week 16 of 2026. His list includes waiver wire outlooks and underachieving hitters.

Welcome back to my Fantasy Baseball Breakout Hitters article for Week 16 of the 2026 MLB regular season. The goal of this article is to highlight players who could be breaking out, diving into current active hitting streaks, along with recent leaders in batting average, isolated power (ISO), stolen bases, and more.

In this article, we're going to cover players like Javier Sanoja, Heriberto Hernandez, and Cooper Pratt. The good news for you is that most of the hitters discussed in this column are widely available, so you can use this article to unearth some gems to help out your fantasy teams.

Remember that any time we talk about rostered percentages or positional eligibility, we're referring to Yahoo! leagues. With that in mind, let's dive into potential hitter breakouts for Week 16 of the 2026 MLB season.

Hit Streak Leaders

Data through 7/8

Javier Sanoja (eight games)

Javier Sanoja brought himself to fantasy relevance in late June with three three-hit games in a four-game span, collecting seven RBI and stealing two bases during that time as well. The Venezuelan was outlined in this article last week because of that hot stretch, and now, here he is a week later, riding an eight-game hit streak.

Unfortunately, home runs aren't really in his profile, as he has just three on the season, but the right-handed hitter is capable of hitting for extra bases, tallying at least one in three of the last four contests and seven total during the hit streak (four doubles, two triples, one home run). Despite the hot streak, the Marlins still have him batting at the bottom of the order most days, but if that changes, his value could shoot upward.

The 23-year-old is rostered in just 22 percent of leagues, and adding to his fantasy appeal is the fact that he is eligible at 2B, 3B, SS, and OF, so managers looking for a hot bat could plug Sanoja into various lineup holes.

Connor Wong (seven games)

For those who play in two-catcher leagues, Connor Wong has been productive as of late. The former third-round draft pick is riding a seven-game hit streak, during which time he has gone 9-for-20 (.450) with a home run, five RBI, four runs scored, and a 5:5 BB:K.

He's not far removed from the 2024 season in which he hit .280 with 13 home runs in 126 games for the Sox, so we know he can produce helpful fantasy stats; the problem this season is playing time. As the backup catcher, the 5-foot-10 backstop has been playing pretty much every other day at best lately, which can be frustrating in season-long leagues with daily lineup changes.

Still, the 30-year-old has been useful when in the lineup, and this recent stretch could earn him some extra playing time. For managers looking for help at the catcher position, Wong is available pretty much everywhere.

Highest Batting Average Last Seven Days

Data through 7/8

There are lots of interesting names on this list, so make sure to give it a look. Nasim Nunez leads the league in stolen bases, and if he can stay hot at the plate, there should be plenty more to come. Richie Palacios, Vaughn Grissom, and Nick Gonzales also caught my eye and have proven useful for fantasy before.

Tyler Tolbert (.750 BA)

Tyler Tolbert was batting just .200 and playing sparingly before an incredible run of production over a three-game stretch from Saturday to Tuesday. The former 13th-rounder notched hits in 12 consecutive at-bats, tying a major league record in the process. In addition to two home runs, he also tallied four RBI, seven runs, and three steals over that span.

Tyler Tolbert ties an MLB record with hits in 12 straight at-bats! pic.twitter.com/vldHYDmkdw

— MLB (@MLB) July 8, 2026

The 28-year-old went 0-for-3 on Wednesday, but should at the very least be on fantasy managers' radar. He debuted in the majors last season and hit .280 and stole 21 bags in limited playing time, so there is some fantasy-friendly talent there. Right now, like the aforementioned Sanoja, Tolbert is batting at the bottom of the lineup, which could limit his appeal, but he could be a three-category producer with regular playing time.

The 5-foot-10 Tolbert is available in over 80 percent of leagues and is eligible at both SS and OF, providing managers a little flexibility in how they can choose to deploy him.

Joshua Kuroda-Grauer (.526 BA)

Joshua Kuroda-Grauer has hit the ground running ever since he was called up in late June. The former third-rounder collected three hits in his first big league game, and has five multi-hit games through the first eight games of his career, going 15-for-30 (.500) over that span. It has only translated to one RBI, four runs scored, and no steals, but the batting average should be useful for now.

The 23-year-old hit ninth in his first two games, but has hit no lower than seventh ever since, and if he can continue to hit, then he could end up regularly batting closer to the middle of the order, which should, in turn, boost his counting stats. The right-handed hitter is still available in most leagues, and although he's only eligible at SS right now, with multiple starts at 2B and 3B already under his belt, additional positional eligibility could soon be unlocked.

Highest ISO Last Seven Days

Data through 7/8

Heriberto Hernandez (.824 ISO)

Heriberto Hernandez has been hot and cold with the bat this season in terms of batting average, but he's been a fairly constant source of power regardless. Over the past week, though, he's had both attributes working, going 7-for-15 (.467) with two doubles and four home runs in five games, while adding six RBI and four runs scored.

The right-handed hitter is up to 12 home runs now through 63 games played, and has been hitting in the middle of the Marlins order lately, which should continue to provide plenty of RBI opportunities. With xwOBA, xSLG, average exit velocity, and hard-hit rates all coming in at 90th percentile or better, a slowdown in the power department does not appear to be imminent.

Also, while he doesn't have a history of racking up the steals, the 5-foot-11 Dominican is up to five so far this season (plus three more at Triple-A), and with 84th percentile sprint speed, it wouldn't be surprising to see more come from him.

The 26-year-old's batting average stands at .238, which is below league average, but his xBA is nearly 30 points higher, so there could be more hits on the way, too. He's rostered in just three percent of leagues, but he's worth a look in deep 12-team formats.

Most Steals Last Seven Days

Data through 7/8

Kahlil Watson (five SB)

Kahlil Watson was hot shortly after he debuted, batting .361 (13-for-36) over an 11-game stretch from June 22 through July 3. Since then, however, the former first-rounder is 1-for-15 (.067) over the last four games and walked only once compared to nine strikeouts during that time, yet the 23-year-old has managed to swipe five bases over that stretch.

A 36.4 percent strikeout rate doesn't bode well for his chances to stick around with the major league club if that persists, but managers searching for steals could give the left-handed hitter a look while he's still with the Guardians. And if he can steal that many bases while barely getting on base, then think about what's possible if he can get rolling again. He's still available in most leagues.

Jake Mangum (three SB)

I highlighted Jake Mangum in my Week 11 article as someone who could help out with stolen bases while potentially providing a batting average boost. Well, he had 10 steals back then, now he's at 17 for the year, and guess what? He's batting .300.

He was on a 30-steal pace back in Week 11 (based on getting just 430 plate appearances), and he's still tracking that pace. But if he can log more than 430 PA? Well, then he'd be on track for even more.

The switch-hitter has batted leadoff for the Rays in five of the last 11 games after not hitting atop the lineup in 38 straight games before that, which should be a boon to his fantasy stats. He's rostered in just seven percent of leagues, but that number should be higher as the Mississippi State product is putting up stats lately worthy of roster consideration in many 12-team leagues and deeper.

xwOBA Leaders July 2 - July 8

Data through 7/8

Cooper Pratt (.483 xwOBA)

Cooper Pratt held his own for about a week after his call-up, but went just 1-for-25 (.040) in nine games from June 22 through July 2. However, over the last week, he's collected a hit in five of his last six games, logging a 91.6 average exit velocity, 11.1 percent barrel rate, and a 55.6 percent hard-hit rate during that time.

Cooper Pratt's first career triple. pic.twitter.com/zjSbslZXZa

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) July 8, 2026

Not only is he hitting the ball hard lately, but it could mean more production is on the way, with expected stats like xBA, xSLG, and xwOBA all higher than the actual numbers. He's clearly locked in, as evidenced by a strong 5:2 BB:K during this six-game stretch. What's more is that the more he gets on base, the higher the likelihood of stolen bases, as the 21-year-old has totaled six already through his first 21 big league games.

The 6-foot-4 slugger, who was awarded an eight-year, $50.75 million contract before the season began, is still available in nearly all leagues, but is worth a look in very deep 12+ team leagues or should be a roster consideration for managers scouring the wire for steals.

xwOBA Laggards July 2 - July 8

Data through 7/8

Michael Conforto (.155 xwOBA)

Those managers who have rostered and deployed Michael Conforto over the past week were rewarded with a .368 average, three home runs, five RBI, and five runs scored in a five-game span. That's the good news. The bad news is that his xwOBA was far worse than his actual wOBA, likely indicating that the recent surge isn't going to last.

There aren't many leagues in which he's rostered, but managers who were considering picking him up based on the 33-year-old's recent output might want to reconsider.

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