2025 Fantasy Baseball ADP: Best Underrated Steals (Part 6)

While it may seem obvious that a lot of value can be found in the first 50 picks of your fantasy draft, some players are still more valuable than others based on the context of where they are being selected.

After ranking the top players at each position earlier in the offseason, I’ve decided to switch my focus to ADP. And when it comes to ADP, value is the single most important thing you should be looking for. 

If you are new to fantasy baseball, you may be asking yourself, “What is ADP and how does it impact my strategy when it comes to drafting my team?”

ADP stands for Average Draft Position and is a reflection of where players are typically selected in drafts. It will allow you to compare two players at the same position and find out which one is being drafted sooner in most leagues, which could spotlight hidden ADP value in later rounds.

This is about identifying which guys are lower than they should be according to the National Fantasy Baseball Championship rankings. Within the top 50 ranked players in fantasy baseball, there are some that stand out as undervalued who you should look to jump on in your upcoming drafts.

We have already published five other ADP guides, starting at the end of the top 300, and working our way up to the top 50 picks at a time. This marks the final edition of our series, looking at the players in fantast ranked from 1-50.

Oneil Cruz – #41

Pirates fans are growing restless with the current front office. Refusal to sign talent and commit to a win-now mentality leaves many fans wanting more. The good news? There’s a star in the making. Paul Skenes, well sure. But I’m talking about Oneil Cruz. 

After shattering his fibula at the very beginning of the 2023 season, Cruz got his footing back in 2024. A 21-homer and 22-steal season was the result. Many fantasy managers wanted more as we greedily do. But I want to say be thankful 2024 went as well as it did for Oneil.

Coming back from such a fracture is hard in the first place. Add on that his longest season beforehand was only 87 games and we see that 2024 was more of an experience-driven year than looking at the stats. 

Now that 2025 is here, Cruz should be able to perform from the start. He is one of the few players with real 30/30 potential.

His raw power is just as good if not better than anyone in the game. He was fifth in all of baseball with a 15.7% barrel rate falling behind only Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, and Brent Rooker. 

I’d say such company isn’t bad. 

And the exit velocity readings are similar since Cruz literally smashes the ball with elite bat speed. He took 51 walks in 2024 which wasn’t horrible at all, though his chase numbers need improvement if he wants to take that next step to stardom. 

Something to keep an eye on is his switch from shortstop to center field in 2025, a position I’m confident he can play. Well look at that! We love a dual eligibility beast. 

Michael Harris II and Jackson Merrill are two great talents, but neither has Oneil’s power potential. If he falls behind them as expected, swipe immediately.

Jacob deGrom – #40

He is the first in a list of guys who could be the overall SP1 if everything falls right. Talent-wise, nobody touches deGrom. A career 2.52 ERA along with 1666 strikeouts and two Cy Young awards even seems underwhelming for a master like this.

Although everything falling right for guys like Jacob deGrom or Mike Trout never seems to happen. But ask yourself this; if he did pitch at least 150 innings in 2025, does that give him overall SP1 status?

A part of a Texas team with the potential to get back to their 2023 status? I like taking a shot here.

An average ADP of #40 overall is risky considering he’s probably your #1 starter. This is one of the biggest risks any fantasy manager could take. Yet it’s those types of chances we need to take in order to win a title. 

Do we really trust Logan Gilbert enough to take him a whole two rounds before deGrom?

He had a great 2024 but I need to see more. Spending your first few picks on offense before turning to deGrom could be an effective path to take, especially with the state of deep pitching options to fall back on nowadays. 

Garrett Crochet – #34

It’s maybe because the White Sox were light on him at the end of last season, or concern for injury, but Crochet deserves to be going as one of the first pitchers taken off the board.

Not all the way down at #34 overall. 

I trust him even more than Paul Skenes. Everything Crochet displayed in 2024 will be emphasized in 2025 considering he’s got a much longer workload leash in Boston. The Red Sox figure to be a much-improved offense with tons of young talent on the way. 

This young stallion has a strong chance at Cy Young honors after putting the league on notice last season. His cutter and sweeper are near unhittable offerings in addition to an overpowering four-seamer. At just 25 years old with all the promise in the world, this southpaw is an easy target for my overall #1 SP. 

Coming at a discount like this? 

I’m all in.

Matt Olson – #33

Olson is not only talented, but he also comes with the always attractive consistency characteristic. Those who read my work know that players who show they can play every day get an automatic boost in value. Olson has not missed one single game in the past three years. 

How’s that for durability? 

Many of you are probably scoffing at this idea just because he’s coming off a down season. Or so they say. I wouldn’t call 29 long balls with 98 RBI such a thing but to each their own!

Let’s not forget that Olson is one of the premiere power hitters in the game, owning a 40-home-run average per 162 games played. 

Plus, that 2024 Braves offense was decimated with injuries so I would not be surprised to see Olson get back to his typically amazing counting stats. 127 runs scored with 54 homers and 139 RBI in 2023 show us what exactly he’s capable of when the bats are hot. 

So who are you taking at first base? Vladdy or Olson? A guy who plays in a weak lineup just outside the top ten or a dude going a little later who could be hitting cleanup for potentially the best offense in MLB? 

Hmmm.

Ketel Marte – #28

As we get closer to the top of drafts it gets more difficult to cash in on ADP value. But fear not, my final selection contains incredible worth. Yeah, let’s talk about this snakes’ star.

Remember a few years back when people were calling Marte’s 2019 faulty? Well, he put those critics to rest on his way to receiving third place in 2024 National League MVP honors.

It’s a shame his team was eliminated from the playoffs on the last day of the season considering they scored the most amount of runs in all of MLB. Just goes to show you need a balance of pitching with hitting, much like fantasy baseball.

All of that aside, Ketel offers fantastic potential for another solid season. I haven’t necessarily included him because there’s a second baseman going undeservedly ahead of him, he’s #1 at the position.

I have him here because of the gap between himself and the next best keystone, Ozzie Albies. Ozzie is going around 56th overall. That’s a whole three rounds later and tells us one thing; focus on the position early because it dries up quickly. 

So if you want the finest course of action at second base while not having to worry about such poor talent at later points in the draft, Marte is your man. Christian Walker or not, this Snakes’ offense will be back with a vengeance. 

The Rest of Our ADP Series

Check out the other five parts of our ADP series:

Part 1: 300-250

Part 2: 250-200

Part 3: 200-150

Part 4: 150-100

Part 5: 100-50