2027 4-Star QB Wonderful āChampā Monds makes college commitment: Live update
4-Star QB Wonderful 'Champ' Monds announces college commitment live!
Updated fantasy baseball rankings for first and third basemen are now available, reflecting player performances as of May. The rankings consider players' salaries and eligibility in Yahoo leagues.

The calendar has moved to May, which means itās time to get some positional Shuffle Ups your way. We have enough data to form some actionable opinions (in some cases), or at least educated guesses (in some other cases).
The players below are salaried and ranked as if I were entering a fresh draft tonight. Whatās happened to this point is an audition, nothing more. Donāt get hung up on the salaries in a vacuum, which are just comparison tools. Players at the same salary are considered even.
Most of the players who have 1B or 3B eligibility in Yahoo leagues are on this list. I excluded anyone currently on the IL (Eugenio SuĆ”rez, for example) and anyone with catcher eligibility (weāll rank those guys with the catchers). I also ignored anyone in the minors, with one late exception.
Have some respectful disagreement? Thatās good, thatās why we have a game. Share your thoughts anytime on social media: catch me onĀ Twitter/XĀ or onĀ Bluesky.
And away we go.
$36 JosĆ© RamĆrez
$30 Sal Stewart
$29 Matt Olson
$28 Nick Kurtz
I was concerned about the Cleveland offense to begin the year and thatās been valid, as the Guardians stand 24th in runs. But RamĆrez has more walks than strikeouts and is still swiping bases aggressively, even in his age-33 season. Heās already a walk-in Hall of Famer.
Maybe this salary looks high for Stewart, but I was tempted to go even higher. Heās a five-category contributor and heās controlling his at-bats, with a decent walk rate and an acceptable strikeout rate. All of his hard-hit sliders areĀ Kool-Aid red. I wonder if the Reds regret not fast-tracking him last year, but Stewart is here to stay now.
$27 Vladimir Guerrero
$26 Manny Machado
$25 Junior Caminero
$24 Bryce Harper
$22 Jazz Chisholm Jr.
$22 Freddie Freeman
Guerrero is paid like a superstar and thereās plenty to like on his profile. The .354 average speaks for itself and itās mostly supported through his hard-hit rate. Heās almost impossible to strike out and heās also carrying a plus walk rate. But Guerreroās bat tricks donāt include a power profile ā heās still carrying a major ground-ball bias, andĀ his pull rate is under the league average, too. Itās hard to remember a world where Kid Guerrero led the majors in home runs (five years ago, with 48); at this point, it will feel fortunate if he makes it back to last yearās 23.
Chisholm still carries a strikeout problemĀ despite acceptable walk and chase rates. Thereās two ways to slice that ā you appreciate his respectable zone judgment, but it also means heās getting beat inside the strike zone more than youād like. Normally, when you see a .202 average and a .334 slugging tied to a presumable star, you assume the bad-luck signs must be flashing, but Chisholmās hard-hit metrics support those puny stats. Alas, we canāt go too low on Chisholm, as heās on pace for about 15 homers and 50 steals.
Harper is a better real-life player than fantasy option these days, not that 2026 Harper is a treat in either column. His running game might be shut down for good and his slugging percentage has snuck below .500 the last two years. The disappointing Philly lineup (heās part of it, obviously) hasnāt helped his run production. And Harper will likely need maintenance at some point; he hasnāt made it to 150 games since 2019.
$20 JJ Wetherholt
$20 Austin Riley
$19 Kevin McGonigle
$19 Peter Alonso
$18 Christian Walker
$18 Alec Burleson
$18 Josh Naylor
$17 Yandy Diaz
$17 Maikel GarcĆa
$17 Alex Bregman
$15 Liam Hicks
$15 Ryan O'Hearn
$15 JosƩ Caballero
$15 Jonathan Aranda
$14 Max Muncy
$14 Bo Bichette
Iām over the moon for both Wetherholt and McGonigle, but Wetherholt gets a slightly better rank because heās offering immediate category juice. Both players have been tabbed as future batting champions, and McGonigle might have the chops to do it as a rookie. We also love that both kids are carrying multiple positions in Yahoo leagues.
I enjoyĀ a good Murakami novelĀ and Iāve enjoyed the first chapter of Chicagoās Murakami ā 12 homers, 25 walks. Heās losing 78 batting-average points to left-handed pitching but his power has played against all handedness. The strikeout rate is a mess, of course, but at least heās swinging at strikes and making loud contact when he does connect.Ā Adam DunnĀ was a fun player for several seasons, a man defined by theĀ Three True Outcomes. Maybe thatās in Murakamiās range.
I was hoping Alonso had a history of poor starts, but hisĀ month-by-month profile is rather balanced. Last year, he pushed off to a .343 open, with seven homers and 28 RBI. This lousy start is new territory, so perhaps itās just another case of a big-name player changing teams and struggling to immediately justify a meaty contract. TheĀ expected statsĀ wonāt comfort you much with Alonso, but heās still just 31, he deserves some patience.
$13 Rafael Devers
$12 Josh Jung
$12 Matt Chapman
$11 Miguel Vargas
$11 Brendan Donovan
$10 Jac Caglianone
$7 Jake Bauers
Devers has now played around five months of baseball with the Giants and the returns are in: .228/.323/.414, with 22 homers. Heās obviously a zero on the bases. His roomy home park doesnāt do him any favors, where the slash is .221/.316/.430. Itās fair to criticize the Red Sox for the timing of the Devers trade, and the meager return. But itās also possible Boston was shrewd to get out from a Devers contract thatās likely to become an albatross soon. Keep in mind, Devers offers no defensive value.
A lot of fantasy managers will see Chicagoās Vargas hitting .215 and automatically discount him, which is a mistake. The category juice is here ā six homers, five steals. And heās beenĀ mildly unlucky with his outcomes; his batted-ball profile suggests a .240 average and .467 slugging, roto-worthy stats. All of his plate-discipline metrics are above code, and heās still just 26. This is a hitter on the rise.
Arizonaās Vargas is a much trickier mystery to solve. Everything heās done this year has been wonderful and metric-supported; his expected batting average is .351, his expected slugging .520. But weāre talking aboutĀ a 34-year-old journeyman whoās been a below-average offensive playerĀ almost every step of the way (a mediocre 86 OPS+). Iām rooting for Vargas because I love players who swing at anything but make contact anyway, not to mention he covers multiple positions and heās become a recent pickup of mine. But this is the type of player you extend a tiny leash towards; be ready to bail at the first sign of extended trouble. Root with your heart, but make decisions with your head.
$6 Luis ArrƔez
$6 T.J. Rumfield
$5 JosƩ Fernandez
$5 Luis GarcĆa Jr.
$5 Matt Shaw
$5 Jake Burger
$5 Colt Keith
$4 Brooks Lee
$4 Josh Bell
$4 Nolan Gorman
$4 Brady House
$4 Luke Raley
$4 Royce Lewis
$3 Willi Castro
$3 Alec Bohm
$3 Noelvi Marte
$2 Gavin Sheets
$2 Amed Rosario
$2 Brett Baty
$2 Caleb Durbin
$1 Curtis Mead
$1 Kyle Karros
$1 Mark Vientos
$1 Yoan Moncada
Torkelsonās start felt worse to me than it actually is ā he has the same OPS+ as last year, with some extra walks mitigating the drop in power. Heās still on pace to flirt with 30 homers, too. But the Tigers have justly moved him down in the lineup, and itās likely Torkelson will never truly live up to being a No. 1 overall pick. Sometimes you have the top pick in the wrong year āĀ the top three offensive players from that first round so farĀ are Pete Crow-Armstrong (a legit star, largely due to his defense), Jordan Westburg (held back by injuries) and Garrett Mitchell (useful player). Timing can be cruel sometimes.
Marte is the only minor-leaguer I included here. HeāsĀ a former rated prospectĀ and perhaps the Reds were hasty in sending him to the minors after just 11 games. Marteās mashed at Triple-A, predictably (.404/.466/.615), and should eventually get another chance in the majors. KeāBryan Hayes is a defensive wizard, but heās never going to hit much.
The updated rankings include players with 1B or 3B eligibility in Yahoo leagues, reflecting their performances and salaries as of May.
Players currently on the injured list and those with catcher eligibility are excluded from the rankings.
The rankings are based on player performances up to this point in the season, with salaries used as comparison tools.
You can share your thoughts on social media platforms like Twitter/X and Bluesky.
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