First Base in Fantasy Baseball is a bit like a police lineup, a lot of dudes with similar builds and similar slash lines all waiting to get picked. That makes first-base rankings a little difficult in the middle. In the top 30 for points scoring among first basemen last year, players 9 through 22 scored between 700-799 points and have similar profiles. That doesn’t mean that hitting on first base can’t help you win your league.
2024 Top First Base Outlook
Similarly to our catcher rankings for points leagues, we have seen an influx of young bats cutting their teeth trying to catch up to the elites at the position. We saw players like Nolan Jones, Spencer Torkelson, Spencer Steer, and Triston Casas establish themselves as potential fantasy studs. There is also one huge addition to the position that changes the top of the board… Bryce Harper. After taking a minute to settle in following his injury, Harper exploded in the second half with a .296/.413/.583 slash line with 18 home runs and a 168 OPS+. There are now 3 legit MVP candidates at first base Harper, Freddie Freeman, and Matt Olson.
My favorite thing about the first base position is the rise in versatility some of the players offer. There are valuable players at the position like Spencer Steer, Cody Bellinger, and DJ Lemahieu who give you the roster flexibility to play multiple positions. When many players at the position offer a similar point total, the ability to play another position only increases that player’s value.
Draft Strategy for First Base
There are four waves when it comes to drafting first basemen for points leagues. First, you have the elites, if you want to set and forget the position you will need to target the Olson, Freeman, and Harpers of the world early. Second, you have your group of established stars who lack the ceiling of the MVP caliber players but still perform well enough to make All-Star games. Think Pete Alonso, Paul Goldschmidt etc.
The next two tiers are where decisions get tougher and take a bit more nuance. The third wave is the young guys who could take a leap this year. I mentioned Jones, Torkelson, and Steer earlier but there are also players like Josh Naylor and Christian Encarnacion-Strand who could easily outplay their draft slots.
Lastly, you have the non-flashy vets who you may need to stream based on the hot hand. Players like Christin Walker, Anthony Rizzo (If healthy), and Yandy Diaz aren’t sexy picks but can easily put up enough counting stats to play every day in your lineup.
Now let’s get to the rankings.
2024 First Base Rankings for Points Leagues
- Freddie Freeman LAD
- Matt Olson ATL
- Bryce Harper PHI
- Paul Goldschmidt STL
- Pete Alonso NYM
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. TOR
- Cody Bellinger FA
- Nolan Jones COR
- Spencer Steer CIN
- Spencer Torkelson DET
- Christian Walker ARI
- Yandy Diaz TB
- Josh Naylor CLE
- Triston Casas BOS
- Anthony Rizzo NYY
- Vinnie Pasquatino KC
- Christian Encarnacion-Strand CIN
- Nate Lowe TEX
- Anthony Santander BAL
- Salvador Perez KC
- Alec Bohm PHI
- Ryan Mountcastle BAL
- Jose Abreu HOU
- Andrew Vaughn CHW
- Jeimer Candelario CIN
- Josh Bell MIA
- Joey Meneses WAS
- Brandon Drury LAA
- Isaac Paredes TB
- Ty France SEA
What players are you targeting this upcoming season? What would your first base rankings look like?
For more of the great fantasy baseball rankings and analysis you’ve come to expect from FantraxHQ, check out our full 2024 Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit! We’re here for you all the way up until Opening Day and then on into your championship run.