It’s Week 1 of the 2025 fantasy baseball season. This part of the season is critical for finding gems, particularly prospects, who could carry teams throughout the year. The past two years were perfect examples of that, as Brent Rooker & Jackson Merrill are among the early season standouts in 2023 and 2024 who broke out fast. So, here’s a look at five names to ponder heading into Week 1.
Best Week 1 hitters to target
- 2B Kristian Campbell (Red Sox)
- 2B/3B Maikel Garcia (Yankees)
- 1B Ben Rice (Yankees)
- OF Victor Scott II (Cardinals)
- 3B Cam Smith (Astros)
The focus on this list is the first and second-year players who’ve made it on Opening Day rosters.
We’ve gone over both Campbell and Smith in greater detail here on the site. So, I’ll paraphrase for this section.
Campbell has potential to be an impact fantasy player in all categories: hits, home runs, RBI, and stolen bases. He’s a smooth hitter with bat speed and can work all fields, and he has 20/20 potential out of the gate.
For Smith, the former FSU star turned from below-average contact hitter to phenom within a year, thanks to key hitting adjustments. And with a short porch in left field, Smith could benefit greatly.
Then, there’s Ben Rice. Rice got a look last year in New York but didn’t stick. But with Giancarlo Stanton hurt, the left-handed hitter will need to step up. The former Dartmouth standout put on muscle this winter and it showed in the spring. He finished second among Yankees hitters in home runs (5), behind only Austin Wells (6).
(Quick aside: pick up Wells if he’s available. He’s been gobbled up in most leagues. However, he’s got pop, will be the Yankees’ everyday catcher, and will be the team’s leadoff hitter to start 2025).
Lastly, don’t neglect the stolen base category. Hence, the reason why I have two players on this list with serious stolen base potential.
One is Maikel Garcia, who’s more of a known commodity. Garcia finished seventh in Major League baseball last season in stolen bases (37) but doesn’t offer much beyond that. He’s not a power hitter by any means, as he only cracked seven home runs and slugged .332. And even though Garcia finished in the top 40 last season in runs scored (84), Jonathan India is around to lead off for the Royals.
Still, there’s plenty of value in mixed leagues.
As for Scott II, the speedy Cardinals outfielder made the Opening Day roster for the second-straight year. Scott II only hit .210/.294/.303 (.597 OPS) in Triple-A last year after he was sent down. However, that stolen base potential is too good to pass up for those who don’t have enough speed. Just don’t play him every day.
Check out more of our fantasy coverage, including our waiver wire pitcher list for Week 1.
Note: To be eligible for this list, a player must be available in at least 50% of Yahoo! leagues.