Corners Report: Yet Another Look At 2026 Risers And Fallers

We kinda had an accidental theme here! All the cool kids are looking toward the future and stuff, like here and here. This is my meager contribution!

Getting near the end, and I realized I think I only have two weeks left after this! I’m looking to do my next year’s ranks in one of those. It’s time to look toward the future.

Well, not quite. There’s like a month and change left in the season. But the focus here will shift toward the future. It’s interesting, and there’s lots of content on this site with daily notes and whatnot. Some of this will update your thinking on some current guys (as it did for me!), and others may confirm your biases.

Freddie Freeman: 2nd round pick this year

Freeman is having a typical Freeman year minus the home runs. He’s at 18 on the season, which is fine. The batting average is great at .302, but speed has dissipated. He’s at only four. Given his age (36 next season), Freeman cannot be counted on as a cornerstone in the first two rounds. Now, give me all the Freddie after that. He should continue to be a solid producer, a solidifier of sorts. With age, his bat speed has declined incrementally and is now in the bottom 17% of the league.

Verdict: If you can get him next year, wait until the round 3 or 4 area. He’s aging, the cliff can come at any time, and there’s some physical decline already. He should be safe, but only if you have two cornerstones. Another option would be Freeman if you, for some reason, take a pitcher in the first two rounds, but you read Razzball, so you wouldn’t dare!

Rafael Devers: 2-3 round this year

Oracle Park (the Giant’s stadium, in case you haven’t kept up with weird naming trends) is notoriously tough on left-handed power hitters who aren’t on steroids. There’s a 25 foot wall in right, cold and dreary weather, and left-center is deep. It’s a bottom three park in the league for left-handed power hitters.

Dang it, Rafael Devers just happens to be a left-handed power hitter. This isn’t good.

It’s been an exceedingly weird season for Devers. He started out by striking out almost every at bat. Then he caught fire, but angered the Red Sox brass and was dealt to San Fran. Now he’s hitting .226/.336/.410 in his time on the West Coast. He’s never been an athletic type, and he’s what the scouts call an “old 28” years old. I won’t touch him until the 7-8 round, if then. That’s probably pricing myself out of him, but so be it. There’s just far too many red flags to overcome his home park.

Verdict: Round 8-10 for me, which means I won’t get him due to his name value. Someone will hope for the rebound earlier, and that’s just okay.

Junior Caminero: Round 5-6 preseason

Caminero is 21 years old. He has 39 home runs before September. 94 RBI. Batting average 14 points above league average. Yes, this is a long term asset here. Once he harnesses his league best swing speed even more, this is a fantasy monster for the next decade.

Verdict: Get him in round two, he’s actually the perfect guy to pair with Freeman. Electric talent, and will be a value in the second round.

Bryce Harper: Round 2-3 preseason

This one pains me. Harper has been my pick for a decade, and he’s not 32. He’s only ranked 15 on the Rater at first base. The profile has shifted from “Perennial MVP Candidate” to “Solid player.” I’ll always take him higher than most, but the elite nature of his game is in the rear-view mirror. Still valuable as he compiles stats for his Hall of Fame resume, but not what he once was.

Verdict: To get value back, probably in the 5th round.

Here’s the ADP data from preseason, and my take on these guys and their values for next year. I used composite values from FantasyPros from the five major sites.