It was a wild offseason in Major League Baseball, especially at 1B, where the carousel spun quickly with plenty of familiar faces landing in new places. With spring training underway in Arizona and Florida, it’s time to get geared up for another great fantasy baseball season. Whether you prefer season-long leagues, DFS contests or DraftKings Best Ball, DK Network will have you covered all season long. In this post, we’re going to take a look at my top three 1B breakouts to watch this spring training as the dust settles and everyone starts looking for value at this premium position.
As spring training gets underway, I’ve laid out my top breakouts for multiple positions, taking a look at AL SP Breakouts, NL SP Breakouts, AL OF Breakouts, NL OF Breakouts and catcher breakouts. Wherever you’re shopping, there are plenty of options to consider as we head into the Grapefruit and Cactus League over the next few weeks!
Tyler Soderstrom, Athletics
The Athletics’ move to a more hitter-friendly park could make many of their hitters more attractive plays in 2025, and Soderstrom has the potential to be one of the top 1B breakouts this year. At just 23, the lefty will be starting his first full season in the MLB, and by the end of last season, he was hitting in the heart of the order for the A’s.
Soderstrom was a first-round pick of the A’s in the 2020 MLB Draft and showcased good power potential with 29 minor-league homers in 2022 and 24 homers in 2023 split between Triple-A and Oakland. Last year, he played 61 games for the A’s and hit .233 with nine home runs, a .196 ISO and .322 wOBA.
After a strong few months with the A’s, Soderstrom landed on the IL with a bone bruise in his left wrist that sidelined him for almost two months. His success when he returned, though, is part of the reason he’s one of my top 1B breakouts this season. In his 12 games in September, he went 12-for-43 (.279) with a pair of home runs and a .365 wOBA.
Soderstrom didn’t face many lefties last season, hitting .300 in a limited sample size. He will need to show he’s ready to hit lefties to claim an everyday role, but if he has a strong spring, he could anchor the Athletics’ lineup as they head to Sutter Health Park in Sacramento for the season.
Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Cincinnati Reds
Last year, Encarnacion-Strand was one of everyone’s potential 1B breakouts, but the promising prospect had a brutal season, which has dropped his ADP almost 100 spots coming into 2025.
He only played 29 games in 2024 before suffering a wrist injury that required surgery and cut his season short, but even in those 29 games, his numbers were uninspiring. He hit just two homers and posted a paltry .223 wOBA while hitting only .190.
Looking back to 2023, you can see why everyone was hyped about him last season. He hit 20 homers in 67 games at Triple-A and posted an eye-popping .442 wOBA at that level. He even excelled after being called up to the MLB, hitting 13 homers with a .346 wOBA in 63 games with the Reds.
He was fully healthy in time for the Arizona Fall League, and he played eight games for the Glendale Devil Dogs. He started his climb back to the MLB by hitting .385 with a .931 OPS in 32 plate appearances.
Encarnacion-Strand’s breakout may have just been delayed a year by his injury and other issues, and if you chalk last year up as a “lost year,” he actually could be a great value if he’s able to be one of this year’s 1B breakouts. He is also expected to get some time at 3B this spring training, so he could have positional flexibility as the season goes on.
Kyle Manzardo, Cleveland Guardians
Manzardo was one of the top prospects in baseball last season, and he showed enough promise in his second stint in the majors that he could be one of this year’s top 1B breakouts if he secures a full-time role out of spring training.
The team traded away Josh Naylor to the Diamondbacks as part of that 1B carousel, which should open playing time for Manzardo even though the Guardians did bring back Carlos Santana as a veteran option as well.
Manzardo posted an impressive .932 OPS over his career in Cleveland’s minor-league system but struggled when he reached the MLB. In 30 games in May and June, he hit .207 with no home runs. After going back to Triple-A, he rejoined the team on Sept. 1 and found much more success. In fact, he swatted a pair of home runs in his first game back and carried the offense down the stretch. In his 23 September games, he hit .270 with five home runs, a .373 wOBA and .270 ISO. He had a 44.4% hard-hit rate in those 23 games after a 36.7% hard-hit rate in his earlier stint with the club.
Manzardo will look to continue his emergence this spring training, and he will need to earn his playing time either at DH or in place of Santana. If he does, though, he could be slotted second in the batting order in a prime production spot between Steven Kwan and Jose Ramirez. The 24-year-old is definitely not a lock coming into 2025, but he showed enough comfort down the stretch and has enough upside that he makes sense to target as a one of this year’s potential 1B breakouts, especially if he has a strong spring.
