by Few positions have as fierce a battle for the top player as the starting position heading into the 2023 Fantasy baseball draft. You could go with last year’s breakout star in Sandy Alcantara, an established ace like Gerrit Cole, or a pair of former and current Mets in Jacob deGrom and Justin Verlander. But with high expectations also comes a high probability of one of these pitchers finishing as a 2023 Fantasy baseball bust. Pitchers like Walker Buehler and Nathan Eovaldi saw injuries derail their 2022 seasons after Cy Young-worthy years in 2021.
The risk of lost time is always a concern with pitchers, especially the older ones. An in-depth set of 2023 Fantasy baseball rankings will help crystallize when you should take a top pitcher in your drafts, compared to selecting players from other positions. Before you clock any 2023 Fantasy baseball drafts, be sure to check out the 2023 Fantasy baseball rankings and cheat sheets from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
Last season, SportsLine’s projection model identified several top Fantasy baseball sleepers, breakouts and busts, including Reds first baseman Joey Votto. The team at SportsLine was all over Votto as a Fantasy bust from the start after a resurgent 2021 season that saw him go as one of the 12 first basemen off the board in the 2022 Fantasy Baseball Draft. After slashing .266/.375 /.563 with 36 homers and 99 RBI the year before, Votto slashed .205/.319/.370 with 11 home runs and 41 RBI in 2022. He finished outside the top 45 players at his position and anyone who followed SportsLine’s advice avoided a major headache .
Their model is run by the same people who ran projections for all three major Fantasy sites. And the same group shares the 2023 Fantasy baseball rankings and cheat lists on SportsLine, helping you find Fantasy baseball sleepers, breakouts and busts long before your competition. Their cheat sheets, available for leagues on many major websites, are updated multiple times each day.
Whenever more MLB news comes out about the updated 2023 MLB schedule or Fantasy baseball injuries, the team at SportsLine updates its projections. Head over to SportsLine now to see these proven Fantasy baseball cheat sheets.
Top 2023 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
One of the 2023 Fantasy baseball sleeper models is over: Mets center fielder Brandon Nimmo. He agreed to an eight-year, $162 million deal with New York in the offseason after hitting 16 home runs with a .274 average. Nimmo was the team’s first-round draft pick when he was drafted in 2011, and his production continues to be a key part of their success.
The 29-year-old missed the first week of spring training as a precaution, but there are no real concerns heading into the start of the season. Nimmo scored a career-high 102 runs in 2022 and finished with a career-best OBP of .385. He is drafted behind Atlanta’s Harris and Luis Robert of the White Sox in most drafts, but the model is higher on him than both center fielders.
Top 2023 Fantasy baseball breakouts
One of the Fantasy baseball breakouts from the 2023 model is jumping on: Tigers outfielder Riley Greene. His rookie season got off to a rough start, as he missed the start of the season with a broken foot. He was still able to log 93 games last year and got into an offensive groove towards the end of the season. Although he didn’t show much power, he had 12 doubles, 28 RBI and a .369 batting average on balls put in play.
He has already shown promise in spring training, and after his first 12 preseason games he had an OPS of .834. Greene had a .298 batting average in 547 at-bats at the Double-A and Triple-A levels, so hitting is his calling card. Greene’s upside and opportunity gives him some of the greatest potential to deliver a huge return on investment in the later rounds of Fantasy drafts this year.
Top 2023 Fantasy Baseball Busts
As for players to avoid, the model has labeled Brewers starting pitcher Corbin Burnes as one of the biggest Fantasy baseball busts of 2023. The 2021 NL Cy Young winner didn’t have much of a dropout in 2022, posting a sub-3.00 ERA and leading Senior Circuit with 243 strikeouts. But a couple of Burnes’ underlying stats indicate he may not be able to sustain that success in 2023.
His FIP nearly doubled from 1.63 in 2021 to 3.14 in 2022. And while the latter remains solid, Milwaukee lost several quality defenders this offseason, including Kolten Wong and Jace Peterson, which could lead to more runs on the scoreboard. Burnes also declined after the All-Star break, going from a 2.14 ERA in the first half of the season to a 3.97 in the second half. Burnes is being drafted as an SP6 in 2023 Fantasy baseball drafts, but the model is much less bullish and has him outside the top 15 at the position.
How to find proven 2023 Fantasy baseball rankings
SportsLine’s model is also high on a surprising starting pitcher who ends up in the top 10 at his positional ranking. This player barely goes off the board in the top 125 picks, but is projected to surpass starters like Aaron Nola, Shane McClanahan and Brandon Woodruff. This pick could be the difference between winning your league or going home with nothing. You can just see who it is here.
So which 2023 Fantasy baseball busts, breakouts and sleepers should you target or fade in your drafts? Visit SportsLine now to get the 2023 Fantasy baseball rankings for every position, from the model that called Joey Votto’s disappointing season, and find out.
