If Month 1 was about discovery — new breakouts, new disappointments — then Months 2 and 3 was about HumBabe GMs revealing who they really are for the 2026 season. The early-season adrenaline wore off, injuries piled up, and as we learn more and more as each season goes by… the waiver wire dried up. Now, here at the end of June, we can start to see something that resembles the truth within our League Standings.

This year, that truth is simple: the league has never been deeper, smarter, or more ruthlessly competitive. Sophomores are surging from what has turned out to be a stacked 2024 Rookie Class, and suddenly every matchup feels like a playoff series.

Let’s break down the stars of the middle third of our season.

Months 2 & 3 Top Performers

Below are the players that tilted matchups, carried rosters, and reshaped the 2026 standings with their individual performances.

• Nick Kurtz, 1B, PAB — The 2025 ROY runner-up ascended and officially entered into “anchor of your franchise for a decade” territory. His elite plate discipline and cartoonish power led to 320FPts at a 6.2FPt/G pace over this period.
• Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF, PER — PCA’s bat has caught up to his generational glove. A .400 OBP and a barrage of extra-base hits produced 293.5 FPts at a 6.11 per game average.
• Jacob Misiorowski, SP, SQZ —Are we ready to crown him SP1? Mister Gasoline tallied three double-digit K starts within his 268.67 FPts total.
• Pete Alonso, 1B, LSD—Camden Yards can’t hold the Polar Bear. He stayed healthy when others didn’t and added 265.5 FPts to the Lone Star total.
• Juan Soto, OF, SPLT — The Mets may stink, but Soto doesn’t. Averaging 5.51 FPts/G, he remains one of the safest floors in fantasy baseball nine years into the Splitters spending their first round Inaugural Draft Pick on him.
• Cristopher Sanchez, SP, PAB — This dude unlocked something. Sharpened command, a lethal changeup, and in the midst of delivering one of the most consistent stretches of any pitcher in the league (an elite stretch at that).
• CJ Abrams, SS, CRU — Superstar alert. He’s been an up-and-comer for years, I think he’s officially arrived. 256 FPts in this middle month stretch was seventh best across all of baseball.
• James Wood, OF, MASH — The other young Nationals slugger totaled 254.5 FPts at a 5.19 FPts/G clip. Wood’s power is real, his approach is maturing, and he’s becoming a foundational dynasty asset.

Middle Months Storylines

Surging Sophomores

Nick Kurtz, JJ Wetherholt, Chase Burns, Cam Smith, Carson Benge… remember when we thought the 2024 Draft wasn’t going to come anywhere close to being as good as the Paul Skenes 2023 Draft? I’d say this class has proved us wrong — especially when you call attention to the studs that haven’t blossomed just yet: Konnor Griffin emerging, Travis Bazzana, Charlie Condon, Braden Montgomery, Kaelen Culpepper, etc., etc., etc.

The Great Pitching Correction

After a chaotic April, elite arms have somewhat stabilized. Jacob Misiorowski and Cristopher Sanchez have become weekly matchup wreckers, while several mid-tier arms crashed back to earth after hot starts (Jose Soriano anyone?)

The Trade Market Woke Up

We saw a wave of blockbuster trades get executed. Mike Trout moved to the Crusaders, Robert Suarez to the Bag Club (for a plethora of future picks), Jose Ramirez, Geraldo Perdomo, Cal Raleigh, JJ Wetherholt, Drake Baldwin, and most recently, Jackson Jobe and Griffin Jax headlined deals.

PREVIEW: The 2026 HumBabe Rookie Draft

Seeing all these young studs break into major league stardom, how can you not get excited about the imminent 2026 HumBabe Rookie Draft? Personally, I’d say there’s a little more mystery over this class than in recent years past — perhaps clouded by the looming lockout and MLB proposed changes to their draft format. Nonetheless, despite being four-weeks away from finalizing a draft order, here’s a Mock Draft for yah:

Pick 1.01 Nashville Stars → Roch Cholowsky, SS, 21, UCLA

The Stars need a franchise cornerstone and Cholowsky is the safest superstar in the class (has been since this time last year). His tools and makeup make him look like the kind of player who could be big league ready in a hurry.

Pick 1.02 Eastside Bombers → Grady Emerson, SS, 18, Fort Worth Christian

Scouts have a difficult time finding any flaws in Emerson’s game. He has a strong arm, quick hands, sound fundamentals and a finely calibrated internal clock, so he’s a lock to stay at short.

Pick 1.03 Golden City Gatekeepers → Vahn Lackey, C, 20, Georgia Tech

A foundational catcher for a team with no positional stability. He ranked fifth in Division I in OPS (1.307) entering NCAA tournament play and shouldn’t last longer than the top three or four MLB picks come mid-July.

Pick 1.04 Super Smash ‘Stros → Jackson Flora, RHP, 21, UC Santa Barbara

The ‘Stros seek pitching, and Flora is the top arm that could ascend quickly. A solid strike-thrower who maintains his velocity and has a plus feel to spin.

Pick 1.05 Lone Star Drillers → Jacob Lombard, SS, 18, Gulliver Prep

A polished prep bat to anchor a multi-year rebuild. The younger son of former big leaguer George Lombard, is a 6-foot-3 premium athlete at a premium position with plenty of juice in his bat.

Pick 1.06 London Bag Club → Eric Booth, Jr., OF, 17, Oak Grove

London swings for upside — Booth is the youngest, twitchiest athlete in the class. He’s one of the fastest runners in this high school class and his bat speed can translate into 20–25 homers per year with the right swing development.

Pick 1.07 Say Hey Kids → Drew Burress, OF, 21, Georgia Tech

A safe, MLB-ready bat for a team stuck in the middle. Burress is a quality athlete with a high baseball IQ and a strong work ethic. The second Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket off this mock draft board set a school record with 10 outfield assists in 2024.

Pick 1.08 Florida Squeeze → Justin Lebron, SS, 21, Alabama

A steady, high-probability shortstop for an emerging playoff contender. Plus tools and plus makeup, Lebron has a chance of becoming the highest pick in Roll Tide history this July.

Pick 1.09 Galactic Crusaders → Chris Hacopian, 2B, 21, Texas A&M

Contact skills + developing pop = perfect MI fit. Hacopian has a 60-grade bat that should find a home in an MLB lineup even if it does end up in the outfield grass due to his average infield glove.

Pick 1.10 Pablo and the Secret Weapons → Derek Curiel, OF, 21, LSU

A polished, OBP-friendly outfielder for a team that’s made a living on collecting talented outfielders. Curiel has solid speed and excellent bat-to-ball skills.

Pick 1.11 LeBronto Blue James → Cameron Flukey, RHP, 21, Coastal Carolina

Unfortunately Mr. Lebron wasn’t available at their pick in this Mock (reference Pick 1.08), so the Blue James take a metrics darling with breakout potential in Flukey… can never have enough pitching.

Pick 1.12 Brooklyn Robins → Gio Rojas, LHP, 18, Stoneman Douglas

A long-term lefty project that can crank his fastball up to 98 mph with great ride. His second offering is a nasty sweeping slider, and his third is a changeup that he didn’t have to use much at Stoneman Douglas High School.

Pick 1.13 Coastal Splitters → Cole Carlon, LHP, 21, Arizona State

The Splitters show a soft-spot and reach for a polished lefty Sun Devil with a reliever floor. He could move quickly as a reliever, but an MLB team that takes him in the top round or two should be giving him every opportunity to develop his four-pitch mix and stick in a rotation.

Pick 1.14 Perth Platypi → Ryder Helfrick, C, 21, Arkansas

A strong defensive catcher with offensive upside — perfect depth pick. He’s got plus raw power thanks to his strength and bat speed. Even if he doesn’t hit for high average, he does everything else well enough to earn big-league-regular status.

Pick 1.15 Wally Mash → Liam Peterson, RHP, 21, Florida

A rising arm for a team already stacked everywhere else. There aren’t many college arms with better pure stuff in this class.

Pick 1.16 Jackal Attack → Hunter Dietz, LHP, 21, Arknasas

A durable innings-eater for a contender. Dietz presents an unusual look for hitters from his 6-foot-6 frame with a high three-quarters arm slot that delivers first-round stuff.

Reminder: Players selected in the Rookie Draft will be rostered in a temporary eleventh (11th) Minor League roster spot and can be kept going into 2027 — all players that go unselected are ineligible as keepers between 2026 and 2027.