There's a reason why rankings aren't one-size-fits-all. Different scoring formats reward different statistical outputs in different measure, and if you toggle between the Head-to-Head (points) and Rotisserie (categories) tabs on our rankings page, you can figure out which players are helped or hindered by each.
Or I could just cut to the chase and point them out for you here.
That's the idea behind my All-H2H and All-Roto teams. At each position, you'll find the most representative player in that format. It doesn't mean he's the best player for the format, but it does mean he's best suited for the format.
First, though, let's make sure we have our terminology straight because it's a bit of a quagmire. When I refer to a Rotisserie league, I mean any that uses category-based 5x5 scoring. Some Head-to-Head leagues also do, particularly on sites like Yahoo, and so if you play in such a league, understand that the All-Roto team is the one that applies to you.
When I refer to a Head-to-Head league, on the other hand, I mean any that uses points-based Fantasy Football-style scoring, as is most popular here at CBS Sports. If you play in a points league that isn't technically Head-to-Head, understand that the All-H2H team is still the one that applies to you.
These teams would more accurately be described as the All-Points and All-5x5 teams, and you'll notice I make ample use of that language as well.
ALL-H2H TEAM
Based on standard CBS Sports scoring:
| Head-to-Head point values | ||||||||
| For hitters | | For pitchers | | |||||
Single | 1 | Walk | -1 | |||||
Double | 2 | Earned run | -1 | |||||
Triple | 3 | Hit | -1 | |||||
Walk | 1 | Hit batter | -1 | |||||
Caught stealing | -1 | Inning | 3 | |||||
Hit by pitch | 1 | Strikeout | 0.5 | |||||
Home run | 4 | Win | 7 | |||||
Strikeout | -0.5 | Loss | -5 | |||||
Run | 1 | Save | 7 | |||||
RBI | 1 | QS | 3 | |||||
Stolen base | 2 | | | |||||
This format is the more straightforward one. There's no need to balance categories. Virtually everything a player produces is of benefit to you, and the benefit isn't relative to what you already have. What makes it complicated is that you have to consider the full scope of a player's contributions rather than just the handful that matter to Rotisserie leagues. More overlooked stats like doubles, walks, and strikeouts can be real differentiators for hitters. Pitchers often stand out simply by accumulating innings. In fact, pure accumulation is a big part of the Head-to-Head points equation since percentage stats like batting average, ERA, and WHIP have no direct value.
Catcher
The gap between No. 1 (William Contreras) and No. 2 (Adley Rutschman) at catcher isn't so stark in Head-to-Head points leagues. Rutschman saw his plate discipline go sideways while playing banged up last year, but he's normally a 1-to-1 strikeout-to-walk guy, with the walks likely to rank among the league leaders. He's also a little light on over-the-fence pop, but his doubles get their due in this format.
Honorable mention: Gabriel Moreno, ARI
First base
The story for Rutschman is the same for Vinnie Pasquantino except that Pasquantino falls even shorter of the expected home run threshold at his position. In fact, given the way he's underachieved in batting average the past two seasons, he isn't a clear plus in any 5x5 category (maybe RBI), but by Head-to-Head points per game, his lack of strikeouts put him ahead of Pete Alonso last year.
Honorable mention: Josh Naylor, ARI
Second base
Walks are also the driving force of Jonathan India's Head-to-Head points value, but not quite to the point of making him a stud in the format. It's more that his C-minus production across the board, which makes him forgettable in Rotisserie leagues, adds up to more Fantasy points than you'd expect. Batting leadoff also helps to maximize his totals. While you might turn to an Andres Gimenez or Bryson Stott as a fallback second baseman in Rotisserie, India would be the choice in Head-to-Head.
Honorable mention: Marcus Semien, TEX
Third base
By now, you probably don't need me to tell you that Alex Bregman's plate discipline is what sets him apart in Head-to-Head points. It's a contribution of no direct value in Rotisserie, where his modest contributions in batting average and home runs hold him back. His walks dipped noticeably last year, but we'll give him a pass since he normally has more of them than strikeouts. He also stands to bang about a billion doubles off the Green Monster this year, his first with the Red Sox.
Honorable mention: Max Muncy, LAD
Shortstop
I could emphasize the walk rate for Corey Seager as well, but by now, you probably get the picture. Good plate discipline is all but essential for being a points-league standout. Seager's placement here is just as much about what holds him back in Rotisserie -- i.e., his complete lack of stolen bases. You won't miss them in Head-to-Head, where he's piling up points in so many other ways, but they make for a structural complication in Rotisserie at a position where most every other player contributes some amount of steals. Notably, the honorable mention here is perhaps the one other non-base-stealer of note.
Honorable mention: Carlos Correa, MIN
Outfield
The restoration of Juan Soto's batting average last year has narrowed the gap some, but we're still talking about the seventh player drafted on average in Rotisserie, where his lack of stolen bases drops him down a few spots, as compared to third or fourth drafted in Head-to-Head points, where his superlative plate discipline (generally more walks than strikeouts) is like magic. Walks are also the main differentiator for Brandon Nimmo and Ian Happ, whose potential shortcomings in batting average don't matter in this format. Happ also tends to be a doubles machine.
Honorable mention: Jurickson Profar, ATL
Starting pitcher
The common thread for these pitchers is volume. They'll consistently work deep into games and likely rank among the league leaders in innings when all is said and done. It may not always be pretty for them. They may not rack up a ton of strikeouts and may see their ERA or WHIP run a little hot, but those contributions are mere window dressing in a Head-to-Head points league, where simple accumulation matters more. The most striking example of this is Mitch Keller, who regularly delivers quality starts, often of seven innings or more, but also hangs enough crooked stat lines to set his ERA and WHIP askew. I'd be thrilled to have him round out my staff in a Head-to-Head points league, and I wouldn't go anywhere near him in a Rotisserie league.
Relief pitcher
The relief pitchers who stand out most in Head-to-Head points leagues are actually not relievers at all but starting pitchers with relief pitcher eligibility. Turns out that when innings are worth three points apiece, the simple accumulation of them by a halfway decent pitcher yields more than the top save-getters are capable of. Holmes is the stand-in for all of them and probably the most Head-to-Head-coded since he lacks the strikeout upside of a Jackson Jobe, Grant Holmes, Kris Bubic, and the WHIP upside of a Bowden Francis, and Nick Martinez.
Just to present an alternate example of a relief pitcher excelling in a points league, I offer up Robert Suarez. He has some vulnerability in the ratio stats that don't at all matter in this format, lacking the strikeout upside of most closers, but no real threats to his role, meaning his accumulation of saves should be relatively undisturbed.
ALL-ROTO TEAM
Based on standard 5x5 categories (BA, HR, RBI, R, SB for hitters and W, ERA, K, WHIP, SV for pitchers)
Rotisserie leagues aren't simply an exercise in collecting the best, most productive players. You have to weigh what each player contributes across several categories and then strike the right balance across your entire roster. It's a quirk that leads to artificial scarcities, elevating a stat like stolen bases beyond its real-life utility. Efficiency is of greater concern, particularly on the pitching side, where 40 percent of what's scored is ERA and WHIP -- two stats with no direct value in Head-to-Head points leagues. Volume can actually be a detriment, then, if it negatively impacts those ratios.
Catcher
Batting average is the most difficult Rotisserie category to fill after the early rounds, and Yainer Diaz is the rare catcher who excels at it. He's also one of the least disciplined hitters in the game, walking less than 4 percent of the time, which makes him far less special in Head-to-Head points.
Honorable mention: Salvador Perez, KC
First base
If plate discipline was most often the decider for the All-H2H team, then it stands to reason that a lack of plate discipline would be the same for the All-Roto team. But of course, these players need to be good for something to be worthy of our time in this format, and in Burger's case, it's home runs. He projects for gobs of them at a point in the draft when they're becoming more scarce.
Honorable mention: Ryan Mountcastle, BAL
Second base
Luis Garcia nearly went 20/20 last year, but his best contribution might be batting average (he hit .282 with a .278 xBA last year), an essential Rotisserie skill that's of no direct consequence in Head-to-Head points. The batting average is made possible by a low strikeout rate, which might think would help him stand out in points leagues, but unfortunately, he falls well short in the walks department. His likely platoon status is also basically a deal-breaker in Head-to-Head points.
Honorable mention: Jordan Westburg, BAL
Third base
When healthy, Austin Riley is a surefire stud in Rotisserie, contributing plus numbers in four of the five categories to make him firmly a second-round pick. In Head-to-Head points, he's still good, but his crooked strikeout-to-walk ratio makes him slightly less than studly. It's not at all uncommon for Alex Bregman to outperform him in that format, and even lesser contributors like Isaac Paredes and Alec Bohm will sometimes come close.
Honorable mention: Mark Vientos, NYM
Shortstop
Stolen bases can be helpful in Head-to-Head points leagues -- especially when, like in standard CBS Sports scoring, they're worth two points apiece -- but they're downright essential in Rotisserie, giving special distinction to the players who contribute them in the quantities C.J. Abrams does. Add 20-homer power, and there's early-round upside for Rotisserie leaguers to dream on here. Abrams' poor plate discipline will likely prevent him from reaching those heights in Head-to-Head points.
Honorable mention: Bo Bichette, TOR
Outfielder
In short, these guys are allergic to walks but offer the power/speed combination that Rotisserie players crave. Michael Harris is also pushed up Rotisserie boards for his batting average contributions, which are totally wasted in a points league. In fact, you may be surprised to learn that he's averaged fewer points per game than both Brandon Nimmo and Ian Happ each of the last two years. Julio Rodriguez, meanwhile, is a fringe first-rounder in Rotisserie leagues, but he's more like a fringe second-rounder in Head-to-Head points. As for the honorable mention, Pete Crow-Armstrong, he represents a trio of mid-round stolen-base targets (Joshua Lowe and Cedric Mullins being the others) with enough pop to make them interesting In Rotisserie, but with the sort of plate discipline and playing-time concerns that make them afterthoughts in Head-to-Head points.
Honorable mention: Pete Crow-Armstrong, CHC
Starting pitcher
The All-H2H pitching staff was full of innings-eaters with suspect ratios, so naturally, the All-Roto pitching staff is the other side of the coin. These pitchers will flat-out dominate, but perhaps not for long. By "not for long," you may wonder if I'm referring to an individual game or the entire season, and the answer to that is ... yes. Garrett Crochet is in only his second year as a starter and was handled so carefully in Year 1 that it's not clear if he's ready to take on an ace workload, even though he clearly has ace stuff. Jacob deGrom and Tyler Glasnow also have best-in-baseball-type stuff but haven't completed a full season in as long as anyone can remember. You'll notice three of these pitchers are Dodgers, and that's not a coincidence. They've accumulated so much pitching depth and have such an easy path to the playoffs that you can bet they'll be artificially limiting the workload of some of their more breakable starters.
Still, even if it's over only 130 innings rather than 180 innings, the ratios that these pitchers figure to provide will be impactful enough to justify the cost. Their early exits and limited availability will be a bitter pill to swallow in Head-to-Head points, though.
Relief pitcher
The truth is that every closer is more valuable in Rotisserie, where saves are their scoring category and likely to be divvied up completely. By contrast, some saves figure to go unclaimed in Head-to-Head points leagues, where each team starts only two relievers (many of which are starters, actually, due to multi-eligibility).
So why, then, are my two Rotisserie representatives not actually closers? Because setup men and even part-time closers are basically valueless in points leagues. They're sometimes the best you can do in Rotisserie, where you might use them to bolster your ERA and WHIP while hoping they come into saves eventually. A.J. Puk and Edwin Uceta are good examples in that they don't appear to be in line to close yet but are likely the best relievers on their respective teams. Other examples include the Royals' Lucas Erceg, the Dodgers' Kirby Yates, and the Cubs' Porter Hodge.
