Before I finished this article this morning, I went outside, cleaned off my car, shoveled some snow. It's winter in the Midwest. My toes are cold, my head a little stuffy. So the opening ofYahoo Fantasy Baseballcomes at the perfect moment. I could use some spring fever. You probably could, too.
[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2026 MLB season]
With the game opening this weekandour rankings hitting the streets, I thought it was a good time to list a few themes I'm excited about for 2026. Consider this your appetizer into the new season, with more comprehensive entrees served up in the weeks to follow.
The Chicago Cubs lineup
Before I dive into the fun, let me concede that as a Red Sox fan, the Alex Bregman loss stings quite a bit. Bregman's career arc lines up remarkably with that of Hall of Famer Adrian Beltre. Both players spent their year-31 seasons in Boston, got back to the All-Star Game after a few years absent and posted a plus season to take to the market. Beltre shipped off to Texas after his Boston stop, had a lovely run in his 30s; Bregman will look to do the same with the Cubs.
Beltre's first season in Texas(2011) resulted in a World Series trip, sparked by an offense that had six regulars above league average. The 2026 Cubs have similar dreams, and they probably boast a deeper offense than that Rangers team did. Eight of Chicago's nine primary hitters holda projected wRC+ over the mean, and the one lagger — Dansby Swanson — is right around league average. Pitchers are going to hate facing this lineup.
The Cubs have a balance of lefties and righties in their lineup, a mix of power, speed and OBP skills, and plenty of players around their theoretical peaks — everyone here is in their 20s or early 30s. Last year's 92-win season feels like a starting point.
The lineup isn't just fun, it's fantasy-affordable — at least, so far. Pete Crow-Armstrong and Seiya Suzuki are the only Chicago players currentlyin the top 100 in global ADP. Nico Hoerner, Michael Busch, Bregman and Swanson all make sense in the top 150. Ian Happ and Carson Kelly are even cheaper, and thus far Moisés Ballesteros is an ADP giveaway. Give this lineup a long look all spring.
Ranking and drafting the shortstops
The first moments of baseball awareness as a kid, you quickly learn that shortstop is where the action is. The best player on your little league team is probably the shortstop (he might pitch, too). MLB's first-year player draftis commonly overloaded with shortstops, with the hope that a chunk of them can actually hold the position as professionals.
Once upon a time, the shortstop position was a fantasy wasteland. But in the internet era, we've been treated to a plethora of offensive options at this position, making this a fantasy playground. Consider that last year, we saw seven different shortstops make it to 20 homers and 20 steals, and a handful of guys just missed those cutoffs. (For contrast, consider just one second baseman made it to 20-20 in 2025.)
Shortstop is a position filled with young and ascending talent. Geraldo Perdomo was the best offensive player at this spot last year (using Baseball-Reference oWAR), a breakout season in his age-25 campaign. Bobby Witt (age 25) was just behind him, and Gunnar Henderson (24), Jeremy Peña (27), Bo Bichette (27) and Elly De La Cruz (23) made the top 10. Zach Neto only needs health to become a superstar. Jacob Wilson batted .311 as a rookie. CJ Abrams offers plenty of category juice.
The older guys aren't bad either. Francisco Lindor is remarkably consistent, Trea Turner is a multi-talent guy, Mookie Betts wasn't lost at shortstop. The price might be right on Willy Adames, Corey Seager or Swanson. Take a good look around, there's a lot to unpack here.
Targeting the top of the Seattle pitching staff
The trivia question lives on — the Mariners are still the only current MLB club that's never made the World Series. They almost got there in 2025, finally succumbing to the Blue Jays in the seventh game of a terrific ALCS.
But this Seattle team still has plenty of talent on the escalator, especially on the pitching staff. Bryan Woo is coming off a breakout season, the fourth-most valuable pitcher in fantasy last year. Andrés Muñoz was the third-most valuable closer. Logan Gilbert missed a chunk of starts but was useful when available (3.44 ERA, 1.031 WHIP). George Kirby also battled injury and didn't have the ratios we wanted, but he also struck out 137 men in 126 innings. His upside remains tantalizing.
Any of these pitchers could have career seasons on the way — they're all in attractive age pockets. Woo steps into his age-26 campaign, Muñoz will turn 27 this year, Kirby has 28 candles on his next cake and Gilbert turns 29 in May.
Anytime you roster a Seattle pitcher, there's a tailwind behind you. T-Mobile Park is by farthe hardest stadium to score in over the past three seasons, and with favorable dimensions and atmosphere at play, the Seattle pitchers can let their hair down. This park also has a strikeout boost of 17% over the past three years, easily the best float in the game. You need to audit this staff before you step into any fantasy draft.
