1	Yordan Alvarez Houston Astros DH
It was always there in the data, but now Yordan Alvarez is actually delivering on his Aaron Judge-like potential, pacing for over 50 home runs while hitting .340 or better in three of the four months so far. Sure, he's a zero for steals, but as you'll soon find out, the stolen bases are lacking for many of the other top candidates for this spot.
2	Juan Soto New York Mets LF
Juan Soto might contribute a few more steals than Alvarez, but his current pace is a far cry from the 38 he had last year, which itself was a massive outlier. He's at least looking like a plus in batting average again and remains the ultimate prize in points leagues by having more walks than strikeouts.
3	Shohei Ohtani Los Angeles Dodgers DH
If your league offers a way to tap into Shohei Ohtani's hitting and pitching contributions simultaneously, then he obviously vaults to No. 1, but that's not the presumption of these rankings. As a hitter, he's still in the running for No. 1, but he's dealing with a wobbly knee that threatens to cost him time and greatly limits him as a base-stealer moving forward.
4	Bobby Witt Kansas City Royals SS
Finally, we get a significant source of stolen bases, which are oh so critical for 5x5 category scoring, and if you'd still prefer to take Bobby Witt No. 1 overall in that format, he indeed represents a safe choice. But he's on just a 21-homer, 65-RBI pace, and while I think both numbers have to improve some, I'm reluctant to sacrifice in the two categories for the sake of the one.
5	Junior Caminero Tampa Bay Rays 3B
How long can I put off James Wood and Pete Crow-Armstrong, you ask? Well, once more for the sake of position scarcity and perhaps more predictability. Junior Caminero has become a much more patient hitter this year and is now on pace to surpass his historic 45-homer season from a year ago.
6	James Wood Washington Nationals RF
The actual top player from the first half is certainly talented enough to do it again, but the foul taste of his poor second half last year still lingers, particularly when he's running a strikeout rate over 28 percent. There has to be some regression from his 148-run pace, too, just because it's so improbable mathematically.
7	Pete Crow-Armstrong Chicago Cubs CF
The best early-round speed threat aside from Bobby Witt was actually shaping up to be one of this year's biggest disappointments until a massive June put him on an even better pace than he had last year. It's just the latest in the continuing rollercoaster ride that is Pete Crow-Armstrong, though the hope here is that his improved plate discipline helps to smooth out his rough edges.
8	Kyle Schwarber Philadelphia Phillies DH
Some will bristle at Kyle Schwarber's DH-only status, modest batting averages, and lack of speed, but he's a monster in the other three categories, pacing out for 50-plus homers for a second straight year and 45-plus for the fourth time in five years.
9	Ben Rice New York Yankees 1B
You may think I'm elevating Ben Rice here because he's eligible at catcher, but even if we could only play him at first base, this is where I'd be ranking him. After a little bit of a dip in June, he's come storming back in July and shown himself to be one of the game's elite hitters.
10	Jacob Misiorowski Milwaukee Brewers SP
The first pitcher drafted is one who is already dealing with arm fatigue, but Jacob Misiorowski has downplayed the severity while insisting he'll make his next start. If not for that yellow light, I'd be placing him as high as fifth here on account of him having one of the all-time great pitching seasons while setting a new standard for velocity.
11	Elly De La Cruz Cincinnati Reds SS
While Elly De La Cruz has gained in some areas since the breakthrough 2024 season that positioned him as a top-five asset in Fantasy, the sum of the gains can't make up for what he's lost under Terry Francona, no longer having the freedom or inclination to steal anywhere close to 67 bases in a season. He may just have to "settle" for a 25/25 campaign.
12	Jackson Chourio Milwaukee Brewers LF
Jackson Chourio's rookie and sophomore seasons were productive enough to make him a borderline first-rounder already, and now he's added 3 mph to his average exit velocity to take him from the 39th percentile to the 90th. The reason why he ranks "only" 12th is because he's stopped running so much, but seeing as stolen bases aren't dispensed evenly over the course of the season, that could change.

1	Cristopher Sanchez Philadelphia Phillies SP
The next tranche of hitters has far more questions, making now the perfect time to disembark for some pitchers. A disaster outing two turns before the break caused Cristopher Sanchez's ERA and WHIP to swell, but he's still a pitcher who does basically everything right, whether it's strike-throwing, bat-missing, or ground ball-generating. He's also a workhorse to boot.
2	Cam Schlittler New York Yankees SP
Cam Schlittler has so thoroughly dominated since reaching the majors in 2025 (2.39 ERA in 24 total starts) that I don't see how anyone could doubt him anymore. You might presume there are workload concerns, seeing as this is only his second season, but he threw 164 innings between the minors, majors and postseason last year.
3	Ronald Acuna Jr. Atlanta Braves RF
This may be an overly cautious ranking for Ronald Acuna, who's trending toward returning soon after regular season play resumes, but he's already landed on the IL twice this season with the same hamstring injury and has had his share of knee issues as well. Though his upside remains enormous, it's fair to wonder at this point how rusty he'll be, how much running he'll continue to do, and how long he'll even remain available.
4	Corbin Carroll Arizona Diamondbacks RF
The performance of this former first-round fixture has been so remarkably unremarkable that I've had no choice but to move Corbin Carroll into Round 2. I have a feeling it'll make me look silly in the long run. His slash line was a robust .272/.360/.521 going into July, and while his 10 stolen bases are well off last year's pace, he had only 11 at the All-Star break then.
5	Julio Rodriguez Seattle Mariners CF
Speaking of players with revealing first- and second-half trends, Julio Rodriguez is a career .260 hitter with .739 OPS in the first half, which matches his current .259 and .747 marks almost exactly. We all know where his final numbers tend to wind up, so if you're disappointed in what he's given you so far this year, just give it a little more time.
6	Jordan Walker St. Louis Cardinals RF
Jordan Walker rates out similarly to James Wood, but while Wood was basically an instant success, Walker has taken a winding road to get there. Fear of a fakeout rightfully costs him a few spots here, in other words, but the data fully backs up what he's done so far (as does the pedigree).
7	Tarik Skubal Detroit Tigers SP
Tarik Skubal's outings have tended to run short since his hurried return from elbow surgery (loose bodies), but his effectiveness is still what it's always been. It should come as a surprise to no one if he turns out to be the top starting pitcher in the second half, but this ranking bakes in a little bit of the downside risk that's becoming less concerning by the outing.
8	Paul Skenes Pittsburgh Pirates SP
Paul Skenes has looked vulnerable in recent outings, which has led to endless commentary about his steadily decreasing velocity, and I'd be lying if I said it hasn't swayed me somewhat. Mostly, I'm wondering if he's ailing in some way that might hinder his ability to turn his season around, though apart from the velocity itself, most of the underlying skill indicators rate out about like they always do.
9	Zack Wheeler Philadelphia Phillies SP
Zack Wheeler's return from thoracic outlet surgery (vascular, not neurogenic, and we'd be wise to pay attention to that moving forward) has gone without a hitch. He's looked every bit like the ace he was prior to the procedure, even ending the first half with three consecutive double-digit strikeout efforts, and deserves to be drafted as such.
10	Nick Kurtz Athletics 1B
Nick Kurtz likely would have claimed the 12th or 13th spot on this list if he hadn't just succumbed to a thumb sprain -- an injury that seems like it could have a wide range of timetables, none of which has been offered yet. He was slumping just before the IL stint, too, dragging down his numbers a bit from their once mythical levels.
11	Jose Ramirez Cleveland Guardians 3B
Jose Ramirez (fractured hamate bone) isn't as close to returning as Ronald Acuna, which is why he ranks several spots below him here, but he is swinging a bat again and could return in late July. His hitting stats were down prior to the injury, but not in a way that raises actual red flags, which leaves the door open to him performing like a top-five player once he's back.
12	C.J. Abrams Washington Nationals SS
The top shortstop in Fantasy to this point shows only modest gains on his Baseball Savant page, and already, we've seen the production begin to slip a bit. I'm obviously not looking to bury C.J. Abrams with this ranking, but his career numbers in the second half show a batting average that's nearly 40 points lower and an OPS that's nearly 150 points lower.

2026 Fantasy Baseball: Redrafting the first two rounds for the second half

Many of the obvious choices for No.1 have disqualified themselves, clearing the lane for a new name

For H2H points

Redrafting the first two rounds