16 Dynasty Fantasy Baseball Sleepers To Target For 2025

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Image credit: Chandler Simpson (Photo by Brian Westerholt/Four Seam Images)

Any experienced fantasy baseball manager knows it’s better to be a step ahead of the competition than lagging behind and looking to make up ground. That’s especially so in dynasty leagues, where a savvy manager with a keen sense for identifying sleepers can find his or herself at a tremendous advantage when it comes to roster construction.

To that end, Geoff Pontes and Dylan White have given intrepid fantasy managers a bit of a head start in the endeavor by compiling a list of 16 essential sleepers to target heading into the 2025 season.

Fantasy Baseball 2025: Rankings, Sleepers & Dynasty

Be sure to bookmark Baseball America’s fantasy index for 2025, which features updated rankings, exclusive data-driven analysis & lots more.

Check out the full list below, which includes a mix of underappreciated big leaguers, standout prospects and under-the-radar names to know from across the full spectrum of positions.

Miguel Vargas, 3B, White Sox

After two disappointing seasons in 2023 and 2024, Vargas was shipped to the White Sox in the three-team trade involving Tommy Edman, Erick Fedde and Tommy Pham. He played regularly but with an anemic .104/.217/.170 slash line over 157 plate appearances. This is a post-hype pick justified by the fact that Vargas had a top 10 Triple-A RoboScout season in 2024, with a 151 wRC+, eight home runs and eight stolen bases as a 24-year old in under 200 plate appearances. He should get regular playing time in Chicago in 2025 and should regularly put up production over the next few years as a .260/.340 hitter with 15 to 20 home runs and 10 to 15 stolen bases based on his minor league pedigree. In redraft and startup dynasty leagues so far this offseason, he is not being selected inside the first 400 picks. At that risk level, he is well worth the investment. [Dylan]

Cam Smith, 3B, Astros

The depth of your dynasty league will determine just how far Smith falls into the sleeper category. Regardless, I don’t think the market has fully caught up on Smith. Yes, he had an outstanding professional debut, but perhaps he isn’t that far from the top-of-the-class corner bats like Nick Kurtz and Jac Caglianone. Smith has shown a balance of contact, approach and power equal to Kurtz, while displaying far superior swing decisions to Caglianone. Smith is arguably the best athlete of the bunch and has the benefit of more potential defensive fits. You’re buying into a polished hitter with power when it comes to Smith and not just a power hitter. [Geoff]

Tre’ Morgan, 1B, Rays

Across 373 plate appearances—not including the 92 in the Arizona Fall League—Morgan had a .324/.408/.483 triple slash with 10 home runs and 20 stolen bases, showing his athletic, hit-over-power profile. Although primarily a first baseman with power output for the position that is below the traditional levels, the 2023 third round pick from LSU still has a RoboScout peak projection of .280/.350 with 15 to 20 home runs and 10 stolen bases, which is not too dissimilar from Nolan Schanuel. He has a chance to make his debut in 2025, but with the Rays, 2026 is the better bet for him. [Dylan]

Pavin Smith, 1B, Diamondbacks

2024 was a breakout season for Smith that slid a little under the radar. A 28-year-old 2017 first round pick, Smith hit .270/.348/.547 over 60 games with the D-backs last year. With the departure of Christian Walker to the Astros in free agency, Smith could be in line for increased at bats in 2025. The rub is the split issues against lefthanders, as, in his career, Smith has hit a paltry .226/.289/.310 in 287 plate appearances against southpaws. So, you might be in for a strong-side platoon bat in the end. That said, the idea of a late-career breakout for Smith is worth the gamble at a cheap price point. [Geoff]

Luke Keaschall, 2B/3B, Twins

In 2024, the Twins second baseman put up a .303/.420/.483 line with 15 home runs and 23 stolen bases in only 464 plate appearances across High-A and Double-A. Elbow surgery on his throwing arm ultimately ended his season, but he should be ready for spring training. The fact that he had been playing through it for a while—including at the Futures Game—and was still as productive as he was suggests we need not worry this will hamper his offensive abilities. Possessing a great hit tool with power for 15 to 20 home runs and the ability to chip in double-digit stolen bases, Keaschall could conceivably see major league playing time in 2025. At the very least, he should be hitting near the top of the Twins order by 2026 and stay there for the next several years. [Dylan]

Michael Arroyo, 2B, Mariners

A bat-first prospect with a notable set of plate skills and above-average power that’s already manifesting in games, Arroyo hit .285/.400/.509 across both levels of A-ball in 2024. While he’s a known prospect, he’s severely underrated in dynasty leagues. Arroyo is rostered in just 21% of Fantrax Leagues right now, while Termarr Johnson—a prospect I’d rank behind Arroyo—is rostered in 42% of leagues. Arroyo has a nice blend of average bat-to-ball skills, elite swing decisions and projectable power. He’s a choppy defender in the field, but Arroyo can hit and likely ends up as a bat-first second baseman in the mold of Gleyber Torres. [Geoff]

Adael Amador, 2B, Rockies

Coming into 2024, Amador was a highly-sought prospect on account of him having one of the best hit tools in the minor leagues and the potential for calling Coors Field his home ballpark. Amador started off extremely slowly before heating up in the second half, upon which he was surprisingly called up to the big leagues. Unfortunately, he seemed overmatched and was returned to the minors. Because of this, his perceived value is probably at the lowest point of his career, which is exactly the type of dynasty investment that helps win leagues. Despite the poor 2024, his body of work still suggests a projection in his prime years with Coors as his home park of .270/.340 with 15 to 20 home runs and 15 to 20 stolen bases. That’s quite similar to what we’re expecting from Jordan Lawlar but at a fraction of the price. There is risk he never quite gets there, but the expected payoff far outweighs the downside. [Dylan]

Tyler Fitzgerald, SS, Giants

It was an unexpected breakout season for Fitzgerald in 2024, as he hit .280/.334/.497 with 15 home runs and 17 steals over 96 games. While his strikeout rate is high and walk rate is low, which leaves little margin for error, there’s power and speed to be had at a very reasonable price. The notoriously-conservative projection system Steamer projects him for 22 home runs and 22 stolen bases in 2024. The price tag on Fitzgerald is still cheap in dynasty leagues, so he’s worth targeting for his elusive power and speed combination. [Geoff]

Heliot Ramos, OF, Giants

Since 2022, Ramos has accrued exactly 600 plate appearances in the major leagues and has a .254/.308/.439 line with 23 home runs and six stolen bases. Heading into his age-25 season, he should take another step forward, not just because of natural age curve development, but also because he showed a 90th percentile xSLG, barrel rate, and bat speed. With the expected return of Jung-Hoo Lee, Ramos will likely move to a corner outfield spot, which is a more natural fit for him. Although Oracle Park does suppress hitting, Ramos should be a .250/.320 hitter with 25 to 28 home runs and a handful of stolen bases. [Dylan]

Braden Montgomery, OF, White Sox

One of the key pieces of the Garrett Crochet return for the White Sox, Montgomery’s ETA may have jumped a year due to his new organization. The Red Sox were stocked with talented outfielders and the White Sox are not. Montgomery is a switch-hitting power hitter with solid plate skills and the ability to play an above-average right field. He fits the right field prototype to a tee and was one of the better hitters in a strong positional college class. Already a target of mine in offseason FYPD drafts, Montgomery may have moved up my board with the trade. [Geoff]

Chandler Simpson, OF, Rays

Simpson is a player of extremes. He stole over 100 bases in the minors in 2024 but has hit just one professional home run in his career—and it was an inside-the-park job. He has one of the highest contact rates of any qualified hitter in the minors while also chasing at a below-average rate. Although his routes could be improved, his make-up speed has resulted in him being a near fringe-average defender, capable of sticking in center field. It goes without saying that a player capable of hitting .300 in the major leagues with no home runs but 75+ stolen bases is a unicorn. If he’s given the full-season reins to accomplish that, we’re looking at a potential $12 fantasy outfielder in 2025–with the potential of Juan Pierre-type seasons as he enters his peak. He’s not currently viewed as a top 100 fantasy prospect, but because he has that type of ceiling, he definitely qualifies as a potential sleeper. [Dylan]

Matt Wallner, OF, Twins

Perhaps I burn myself for a second consecutive first half with Wallner. But the intrigue of a strong second half in consecutive seasons has me coming back for more. Wallner has outlier power and good on-base skills. He is the very definition of a “three true outcome” player, and is in many ways the heir to Joey Gallo for OBP players chasing power and walks. Wallner is likely less attractive in a traditional 5×5 roto scoring setup, but his outlier power is worth a gamble as he heads into his prime. [Geoff]

Brandon Pfaadt, SP, Diamondbacks

Would you be surprised if I told you that in 2024, Pfaadt threw over 180 innings, with over a strikeout per inning, a 1.24 WHIP and a FIP, xERA, xFIP and SIERA all between 3.58 and 3.75? The reason this might surprise you is because he had an ERA of 4.71. A lot of it had to do with his LOB% of 64.5%, a much lower number than average, and one that typically regresses back to the mean on a yearly basis. Based on this alone, he had essentially the same 2024 season as Aaron Nola, while being five years younger. It seems like he’s not getting the fanfare in dynasty circles that he probably should be getting. [Dylan]

Quinn Mathews, SP, Cardinals

After a breakout 2024 season in which Mathews climbed each rung of the minor league ladder, he finds himself on the cusp of the majors. While it’s unlikely Mathews pitches himself into the rotation out of camp, it’s plausible he does. At the very least, he should debut in the first few months of the season. While his value exploded in 2024, it’s possible that the fantasy industry still has yet to fully catch up. Beyond his improved velocity, Mathews has multiple above-average-or-better secondaries in his changeup and slider. He’s had advanced pitchability and command dating back to his time at Stanford, and that should serve him well in his first taste of MLB. In the next two years, Mathews could emerge as the Cardinals’ de facto ace. [Geoff]

Drew Rasmussen, SP/RP, Rays

In 2023, Rasmussen was a popular sleeper in redraft leagues, but his season was ultimately cut short in July of that year with UCL surgery. Having missed nearly the entire 2024 season—he did return for 30ish innings of extremely effective pitching—it is proving difficult to understand how to value Rasmussen for 2025. Is he a starter? Will he remain in the pen? How many innings could he even throw in 2025? What would his future role be? Because of this uncertainty, I think fantasy managers rostering Rasmussen are unclear what his contribution will be. I think one should expect 100 innings of WHIP of around 1.10 and an ERA of low 3s. If he is in the bullpen, his floor is similar to Matt Strahm—the 89th ranked pitcher in 2024—with a ceiling of someone like Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as there’s a likelihood of him being in the rotation for 2026 and beyond, and he’s still only 30 years old. That high ceiling paired with a high floor makes him someone worth targeting. [Dylan]

Chase Dollander, SP, Rockies

I can hear your inner monologue: “A Rockies pitcher as a recommendation? Pontes is big tripping!” While Dollander calling Coors Field his home park is certainly a strike against him, he might have the high-level skills to survive. Dollander’s fastball is elite. It has an excellent combination of velocity, movement, deception and command, giving him a true weapon with the pitch. His hard cutter-like slider and curveball give him a pair of above-average breaking ball shapes. It’s simply a matter of how elevation impacts the movement of his arsenal. From a pure skills perspective, you can argue Dollander is, pound for pound, not all that different from Jackson Jobe, Bubba Chandler or Andrew Painter. It’s a risk, but if Dollander was on any team but the Rockies, his draft price would potentially double. [Geoff]

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