2025 Fantasy Baseball: Dansby Swanson Profile, Preview, Predictions
Based on his ADP this year, Dansby Swanson remains a value in 5 X 5 Roto formats, highlighted by his success over the past five seasons. The Cubs hit him more down in the batting order last year, something he must regain to help his fantasy value in 2025.
Dansby Swanson solo home run puts the Cubs up 5-0 as they go for a sweep in Baltimore! pic.twitter.com/2pfNpUU1Jd
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 11, 2024
SS – Dansby Swanson, CHC (ADP – 174.7)
Over the past five years, Swanson missed 30 games, leading to sneaky fantasy value. He finished 22nd in FPGscore (1.98) in 2020, 62nd in 2021 (1.13), 9th in 2022 (7.01), 80th in 2023 (-0.33), and 70th in 2024 (0.00). This season, he is the 99th batter drafted.
His contact batting average (.331) and average hit rate (1.612) were five-year lows in 2024. Swanson posted almost a career-average strikeout rate (24.3) and walk rate (9.1). He had a weaker swing path, highlighted by a new top with his groundball rate (49.9) and the lowest line drive rate (16.8) of his career. His exit velocity (89.4 mph) aligned with his previous resume.
Swanson played well vs. left-handed pitching (.318/28/4/15/4 over 110 at-bats). From May through July, his bat was a massive liability (.213 over 240 at-bats with 20 runs, six home runs, 21 RBIs, and four steals). He scored 62 runs in the other three months with 11 home runs, 45 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases.
Last December, Swanson had core surgery. He landed on the injured list last May with a right knee issue.
Fantasy Outlook: With steals added to Swanson’s equation over the past four seasons, his floor in fantasy value has been much higher. He offers a four-category skill set with an outside chance to rebound in batting average. Most of his at-bats last season came in the second (101), sixth (127), and eighth (208) slots in the batting order, decreasing his value in RBIs (66) and RBI chance (340). Ideally, any fantasy supporter wants him to hit his way to a better spot in the batting order.
RANKINGS
Top 5 Catchers | Catchers 6-10 | Catchers 11-15
Top 5 First Basemen | First Basemen 6-10 | First Basemen 11-15
Top 5 Second Basemen | Second Basemen 6-10 | Second Basemen 11-15
Top 5 Shortstops | Shortstops 6-10 | Shortstops 11-15
Top 5 Third Basemen | Third Basemen 6-10 | Third Basemen 11-15
With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.