3rd Basemen to Target for 2026 Fantasy Baseball

Excuse the exposition and this clunky intro into the aforementioned exposition, but here’s the catchers to target, 1st basemen to target, 2nd basemen to target, and shortstops to target. These 3rd basemen to target are being drafted after 200 overall. Hopefully, you drafted Jose Ramirez or Maikel Garcia or Manny Machado already, because, otherwise, you’re screwed. There are upcoming RCL drafts, if you wanna get rowdy and/or bawdy. Now, this is a (legal-in-all-countries-except-Indonesia) supplement to the top 20 3rd basemen for 2026 fantasy baseball. Click on the player’s name where applicable to read more and see their 2026 projections. Anyway, here’s some 3rd basemen to target for 2026 fantasy baseball:

PSYCHE! The first week’s Buy/Sell is already available for Patreon members. It will be released all year early for Patreons, so if people are getting a jump on you, it’s because they paid the $10. Also, Chase Burns might not make the Opening Day rotation for the Reds and was updated in the top 80 starters, the pitchers pairing tool and top 500. Anyway, the third basemen to target:

Addison Barger (ESPN 207, NFBC 201) Couple of quick notes: Sal Stewart was mentioned in the 1st basemen sleepers (and others), so he’s not repeated here, except for this one non-mention. Also, I grabbed the NFBC ADP from the week prior to me writing this, so if it’s changed dramatically, well, who cares, don’t nitpick my shizz. Also also, 3rd basemen are a mess, but there’s a lot of options in this post that I like a lot. Clearly, there’s reasons why they’re going later than guys like Maikel Garcia, but there’s some real interesting guys here. Also also also, I gave you an Addison Barger sleeper. He’s the first of many guys who I’m kinda surprised to see being drafted after 200. He will platoon, so you have to manage around that, but let’s do one of this Player A or B whosies:

Player A: 61/23/74/.243/4
Player B: 76/21/61/.231/9

Can you even tell which is better? B has more runs but less RBIs; has more steals but less average. Player A is Addison and going 40 picks after Player B who is Matt Chapman. Zoinks!

Kazuma Okamoto (ESPN 211, NFBC 280) I get the unknown factor for Okamoto and Murakami, but are they really unknown? They’re not the Missing Link from Parts Unknown. We’ve seen plenty of players come over from Japan; we can project them accurately by this point. Okamoto is a 24-homer, .255 hitter. Zero speed, but look again at Barger and Chapman’s stats. Isn’t there also upside on Okamoto? The whole “pitchers don’t know how to face him so they give him meatballs and since he’s Japanese I guess it’s tsukune” thing.

Munetaka Murakami (ESPN 213, NFBC 216) Everyone is higher on Murakami than ESPN. Why? Literally have no idea. I know why I am. I’m fifty spots higher on Murakami because he might have legit huge power (hit 56 homers one year); he’s much younger — in his prime (26); this is not AI just because it’s an emdash — and he has potentially 10+ steal speed. The strikeouts are a bit of a worry on Murakami, but back to the tsukune thing from Okamoto’s blurb. If pitchers don’t know how to get Murakami out, he could feast for a half season and by that point his fantasy value is all icing.

Isaac Paredes (ESPN 220, NFBC 200) I still very much love Paredes. In that stadium. Chef’s kiss that secretly has a rat in the chef’s hat cooking. The wild thing is the Astros’ lineup could really use Paredes more than three to four guys who are in there, but where does Paredes play? I don’t know and why I’m a little lukewarm on Paredes right now. Astros should likely trade Paredes for an outfielder, and hopefully it’s not to the Cubs. If Paredes had 450+ ABs guaranteed (and not in Wrigley), he’d be a top 150 overall pick. Right now, I have him ranked higher than even his projections warrant for the hope that he gets those ABs.

Noelvi Marte (ESPN 230) Wrote a Noelvi Marte sleeper, and I wrote it back in, like, October, and I knew when I was writing it the old guard fantasy sites would have Marte ranked way too low. Any hoo! As I said there, “Last year in 339 ABs, Noelvi Marte went 14/10/.263 with a 23.6% strikeout rate and 4.4% walk rate. So the latter of the numbers — the lattest? — is hilarious. 4.4% is not good, so sorry if you’re in an OBP league. Everything else is incredibly promising.” And that’s me quoting me! I have Marte 100+ picks earlier in my ranks. That’s an lol from me, dawg. Am I slightly concerned he’s hitting towards the bottom of the Reds’ lineup in the spring? Sure, but, not to blow your mind, lineups change daily.

Caleb Durbin (ESPN 233, NFBC 243) He was a sub-10% strikeout rate guy last year. Put that in Fenway, and he’s gonna hit .280. He also has 40-steal speed. No idea if he steals 40, but, if Juan Soto almost can, Durbin can steal 70 bags. His homers might take a hit (off the Green Monster), but 7/40/.280 barely in the top 250? How is it different than Xavier Edwards who is going in the top 150? Will Durbin go 7/40/.280? I am not a soothsayer, I’m merely soothsaying it’s possible!

Jordan Lawlar (ESPN 246, NFBC 317) “This is the year Lawlar breaks out!” He screamed into the Prospect Cave and he waited for five years for an echo that never came. Finally, he left, and just as he walked off, he heard the echo return and it said, “This is the year.” He ran back to the Prospect Cave and screamed into it again, “Really?” And he began to wait again for years.

Royce Lewis (ESPN 268) I do not like Royce Lewis, but where he’s going in ESPN’s ranks? C’mon, bro. That’s free in 12-teamers, which is what their rankings are for. Maybe for 10-teamers, even. If it were for whatever-teamers, it would be too low. “Upside of 30/20/.270” + “Zero chance of staying healthy” = a top 200 pick. It’s just straight up math.