Week 25 fantasy baseball pivots sharpen the edge: avoid knee-jerk drops and weigh schedules, park factors, and playing time. Alcantara’s two starts, including Coors Field, and Castellanos’s platoon-like role push risk; Cease and Abbott offer holding upside despite late-season noise.

Machado’s surge, Wood’s late-season reawakening, and Merrill’s injury-plagued year shape Week 25 expectations; Yelich’s back adds risk but the slate remains favorable. Reader input remains central for next week’s Cut List.

New York’s Mets face a decisive late-season sprint as a seven-game skid threatens their playoff hopes, even with Soto delivering MVP-like numbers. The AL Wild Card picture tightens with Seattle closing in on Houston, while the NL race features Mets, Giants, Reds and D-backs all within striking distance. Byes go to the Blue Jays and Tigers in the AL and Brewers and Phillies in the NL, but a final regular-season series tiebreaker will determine some crucial spots.

The stretch run promises volatility: a couple of wins can vault teams into clinching scenarios, while losses can flip a wildcard order overnight. Fantasy managers must monitor lineup shifts, bullpen usage, and park factors as teams jockey for a postseason berth in the two weeks ahead.