Fantasy baseball 2027 first base outlook: Ben Rice, Miguel Vargas lead resurgence at a suddenly deep position — SkimNews
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- First base underwent a dramatic fantasy resurgence in 2026, with 16 players posting an .800 OPS versus just four in 2024, and 10 reaching 30 homers compared to 11 combined across 2024–2025.
- Ben Rice anchored the position for the Yankees at age 27, edging out Pete Alonso and Miguel Vargas on the FanGraphs Player Rater, though he loses catcher eligibility going into 2027.
- Miguel Vargas was the biggest breakout, lifting his walk rate from 9.8% to 14.3% without a strikeout rise while adding 22 steals and improving batted-ball damage for the White Sox.
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was the position's biggest bust, going from the first 1B off draft boards to a 35th-place finish, with his average exit velocity dropping nearly 2 mph.
- Sal Stewart delivered a well-rounded rookie year for the Reds (.263/32 HR/15 SB) that put him in line for NL Rookie of the Year, though he may shift to third-base eligibility in 2027.
- Alec Burleson led the majors in RBI (116) for the Cardinals, but his .212/.248/.301 line against lefties — which still produced 40 of those RBI — flags a near-certain regression for 2027.
- Josh Naylor slumped in his first full season at Seattle's T-Mobile Park, hitting just .241/.306/.326 at home and posting a career-low .089 ISO despite repeating as a 30-steal threat.
Why it matters: For fantasy drafters, first base has gone from a landmine position to one with depth at every tier — Rice, Vargas, and Stewart give managers young, multi-category producers, while burleson regression calls and Guerrero discount picks create distinct value-vs-risk splits heading into 2027 ADP.
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