September has arrived, which means there are only a few lineup reports left in the 2026 regular season. While it can feel as if the fate of your season has already been determined, be sure to finish strong over these final three weekly lineup periods. In particular, pay close attention to any categories that could meaningfully affect your place in the standings, and adjust your roster accordingly.
Arizona Diamondbacks
Ketel Marte returned this week, serving as the DH in both of his starts while sitting on Wednesday. Ildemaro Vargas’ playing time is in jeopardy if and when Marte moves back to second base. Lars Nootbaar is leading off against righties and sitting vs. lefties. Jordan Lawlar has started 11 of 16 since coming off the IL, all in center field.
Athletics
Henry Bolte has led off in every game since August 18. Lawrence Butler has started every game since July 29, taking advantage of all the season-ending injuries this lineup has endured. Zack Gelof is another everyday player hitting high in the order, splitting time between third base and left field.
Atlanta Braves
Austin Riley continues to start most every day but hasn’t hit higher than seventh since July 24. Drake Baldwin came off the IL on June 16 and has only sat once since then. He’s been mixing in plenty of DH starts lately, with Sean Murphy back healthy to share the load behind the plate.
Baltimore Orioles
Luis Robert Jr. has hit third and fourth in his two games since being claimed off waivers from the Mets. Samuel Basallo will of course have more fantasy value as a catcher in 2027, but he’s up to 12 games (four starts) at first base too. Blaze Alexander is off the IL and mixing in throughout the infield, as neither Christian Encarnacion-Strand nor Coby Mayo has become a true everyday player.
Boston Red Sox
Roman Anthony has hit leadoff in all five games since coming off the IL, serving as the DH for four of those starts. Mickey Gasper has started four straight at first base with Willson Contreras sidelined. Trevor Story has hit eighth in his four starts at shortstop since returning from injury. Nick Sogard is consolidating playing time at second base.
Chicago Cubs
Ian Happ has sat against five straight lefties, platooning with Tyrone Taylor in left field. Pedro Ramírez has been banged up this week, but he’s the one getting the most added playing time since Dansby Swanson hit the IL.
Chicago White Sox
Colson Montgomery has hit higher than sixth just once since August 13. Tristan Peters is an everyday player, while Brenton Doyle platoons with Sam Antonacci. Andrew Benintendi hits cleanup against RHP.
Cincinnati Reds
Héctor Rodríguez is the latest leadoff hitter against right-handers. Matt McLain has started every game since coming off the IL on July 30.
Cleveland Guardians
José Ramírez is back to playing every day after being eased in following his return from the hamate injury. As a result, Travis Bazzana, Angel Genao, and Brayan Rocchio have been sharing shortstop and second base. Chase DeLauter has hit second or third in every game he has started since May 3.
Colorado Rockies
Jake McCarthy has hit leadoff in every game since July 1. Cole Carrigg is up to 13 games (six starts) at shortstop. Connor Norby has hit second in three of their past four games, two of which were against lefties. Zac Veen‘s playing time is limited to games against right-handed pitching.
Detroit Tigers
Riley Greene has hit cleanup in each of his first two games off the IL. Dillon Dingler has been getting some extra days off throughout his second-half slump. Max Clark has started all but one game since debuting on July 31.
Houston Astros
Jose Altuve hasn’t played in the outfield this season, so expect him to lose that eligibility heading into next year. Cam Smith‘s playing time against right-handers is decreasing.
Kansas City Royals
The Carter Jensen leadoff experiment continues, and he’s been hot. Salvador Perez has mostly been a DH this year, but he’ll qualify at catcher and first base in all formats next season. Jac Caglianone will have 1B and OF eligibility, which will only boost interest in him following some dominant stretches this summer.
Los Angeles Angels
Mike Trout is on pace to finish with his most plate appearances since at least 2019. Wade Meckler is batting first or third against all righties. Vaughn Grissom hits third or fourth against both righties and lefties. Christian Moore has started at second base in every game since being recalled on August 22.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Will Smith returned from the IL this week and hit fifth in each of his starts. Tommy Edman is splitting time between center field and second base, and Alek Thomas has been optioned back to Triple-A. Kyle Tucker continues to hit in the bottom half of the order.
Miami Marlins
Heriberto Hernández has hit inside the top three lineup spots over the past 10 days. Griffin Conine is in a strict platoon but bats high in the order vs. RHP. Agustín Ramírez has been close to a full-time DH since returning from Triple-A.
Milwaukee Brewers
While Jake Bauers is a full-time player at either right field or first base, there has been plenty of mixing and matching lately. Luis Lara, Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, and Andrew Vaughn combine to fill out first base, right field, and center field, depending on where Bauers is playing. Cooper Pratt, Joey Ortiz, and David Hamilton split shortstop and third base between themselves.
Minnesota Twins
Walker Jenkins has started in center field and hit ninth in every game since debuting on August 28. Luke Keaschall has hit leadoff in every game since August 17. Royce Lewis is running out of time to add second base eligibility for next year. He remains at nine starts and hasn’t played there since August 10.
New York Mets
Juan Soto has yet to play the field since coming off the IL due to his calf injury. That has shifted A.J. Ewing to the lower third of the order. The Orioles claiming Luis Robert Jr. is unlikely to open up meaningful playing time for any fantasy-relevant player.
New York Yankees
Heliot Ramos’ playing time has cratered since Cody Bellinger came off the IL on August 23. Spencer Jones has started two of four against lefties since Bellinger came back and was added to the outfield mix. Luis García Jr. and Paul Goldschmidt continue to platoon at first base. José Caballero has been filling in at shortstop with George Lombard Jr. banged up this week.
Philadelphia Phillies
Kyle Schwarber is up to five starts at first base, which is meaningful for fantasy leagues with that low of an eligibility minimum.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Konnor Griffin is set to return from the IL on Friday. It’ll be interesting to see where he hits. Spencer Horwitz has been leading off against RHP, while Jared Triolo and Nick Gonzales have split the duty against southpaws. Esmerlyn Valdez has only started against three of the past five righties they’ve faced.
San Diego Padres
Just when it appeared as if Fernando Tatis Jr. was winding down his time at second base, he’s made consecutive starts at the position. He gained 2027 eligibility long ago, but it’s interesting to think about whether he’ll regain it for 2028 too. Twenty-year-old catcher Ethan Salas debuted on Wednesday, hitting sixth and starting behind the plate.
San Francisco Giants
Drew Gilbert has been leading off against RHP, while Jonah Cox does so versus LHP. Christian Koss has started every game at shortstop since Willy Adames hit the IL.
Seattle Mariners
Cal Raleigh has been hitting better lately and has moved up the order as a result, batting cleanup this week. Lazaro Montes debuted on Tuesday and, while it’s a small sample, appears to be platooning with Taylor Ward. Dominic Canzone stayed in the lineup against the one lefty faced this week.
St. Louis Cardinals
Joshua Báez has sat against three of the past five righties they’ve faced. Thomas Saggese is hot entering a weekend at Coors Field, filling in at shortstop with both Masyn Winn and JJ Wetherholt sidelined.
Tampa Bay Rays
Yandy Díaz has yet to play the field this season, so he’ll be UTIL-only heading into 2027. Victor Mesa Jr. returned from the IL this week. They continue to platoon at several positions outside of their core hitters.
Texas Rangers
Twelve of their past 19 games have been against left-handed starters, which has reduced Joc Pederson‘s playing time and increased Justin Foscue‘s. Ezequiel Duran has started every game since June 28. He’s played every position other than catcher this season.
Toronto Blue Jays
Brett Bateman has remained the primary leadoff hitter since mid-August. Kazuma Okamoto (28) has twice as many homers as the next highest total on the team. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has yet to go yard at home this season.
Washington Nationals
CJ Abrams has made his first two starts at second base. He’s unlikely to reach 20 games there before season’s end, but 10 is within reach for leagues with that eligibility cutoff. Abimelec Ortiz has cooled considerably, but he’s still getting plenty of starts in the two-hole against RHP. Andrés Chaparro has been mixing in starts at third base, occasionally spelling Brady House.
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