Josh Lowe Fantasy Baseball 2025: Bounce-Back Year For Rays Outfielder?
It’s time for fantasy baseball draft prep in 2025! Everyone loves hunting for value, and there is so much to evaluate and consider this time of the year. Spring Training games are just about to kick off, and there are still plenty of buy-low opportunities.
Like past years, 2025 fantasy baseball outfield rankings are always important to pay close attention to due to the position having the most 5-tool-type players at its disposal. Let’s dive into Josh Lowe of the Rays, an outfielder who can provide scoring in multiple categories at a very generous cost.
Josh Lowe Stats (2024)
- .241 AVG, .302 OBP, .391 SLG, .693 OPS, 0.7 WAR
- 353 AB, 19 2B, 10 HR, 34 RBI, 37 R, 32 BB, 123 SO, 25 SB
Josh Lowe’s stats saw him have a brutal 2024 campaign, but he may have never had a chance from the start. Lowe didn’t see the Major League field until last May after battling multiple injuries. Lowe dealt with an oblique strain last spring but also had hamstring problems which sidelined him for an extended period of time.
In fact, Lowe had four separate injury-list stints last season. It was surely a campaign to forget. Lowe tallied just 387 plate appearances last season while hitting only 10 home runs, and his strikeout rate jumped back up to north of 30% – a 7% increase from the previous season.
The good news is that Lowe was still serviceable in most formats because he stole 25 bags, just seven shy from his 2023-24 total in 114 fewer plate appearances. Lowe has yet to play more than 135 games in his young career.
Josh Lowe Fantasy 2025
Also among the good news, there is plenty of room for optimism. First, Lowe is allegedly healthy, and that is huge. Plenty of players who get a late start to the year never really get on track. Lowe is just 27 years old, and I’d hate to label him as injury-prone prematurely.
Despite a high strikeout rate, Lowe also set a career-high 8.3% walk rate at the MLB level, so he was finding other ways to occasionally get on base. He also set career bests in exit velocity and hard-hit rate, which are two very appealing advanced metrics to predict outcomes.
Another plot twist was caused by Mother Nature, as Tampa Bay will now be playing its home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field, which is cookie cutter to Yankee Stadium. Tropicana Field owned the second-worst park factor rating for hitters last season (according to Baseball Savant) while Yankee Stadium ranked 13th overall – and 3rd for home runs.
The new short porch in right field at GMS Field could be very friendly for Josh Lowe in fantasy. Many are projecting Lowe to hit cleanup for Tampa Bay this season, which would be awesome for his 2025 fantasy production.
On-base machine Yandy Diaz is at the top of the order, and it’s probable that up-and-coming phenom Junior Caminero will be hitting just ahead of Lowe, which could mean plenty of chances to knock runners in. Lowe would generally be a platoon candidate, but there aren’t any trustworthy right-handed bats on the Rays’ bench when a southpaw starter is on the bump.
Jose Caballero is a utility man whose services will often be needed elsewhere, and Eloy Jimenez is a ticking time bomb to hit the shelf. In a perfect, healthy world, the lack of platoon options should solidify 500+ plate appearances for Lowe this season.
Fantasy Baseball Projections 2025: Josh Lowe
Most mainstream industry projections have Lowe hitting between 15-19 home runs, stealing no fewer than 24 bases, and scoring almost 70 runs. I think the runs and stolen base projections might be a bit conservative if Lowe is fully healthy for the Rays.
Our Fantasy Baseball Projections have a unique projection for Josh Lowe’s fantasy numbers, penciling him in for 14 home runs, 102 runs, 91 RBIs, and just 14 stolen bases. Although those numbers are a bit of a 180-turn from the rest of the industry, Lowe would certainly pay dividends in different ways. That’s because Josh Lowe’s fantasy cost is super cheap right now. According to Fantasy Pros, he’s the consensus No. 197 overall pick.
There is some extremely negative recency bias attached to Lowe’s name, and I’m buying now before he starts ripping the cover off the ball in the spring. He’s a fantastic fantasy baseball late-round target and bounce-back candidate.
Player News
Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.
José Soriano allowed three runs over five innings while not factoring in the decision Thursday against the Blue Jays.
Soriano left with a 4-3 lead, but it was erased quickly after his departure. The 26-year-old was not exactly dominant in his outing with eight hits allowed and four free passes, but he did strike out six to help balance things out a smidgen. Soriano takes an even ERA of 4.00 into a scheduled start against the Padres in San Diego on Tuesday. There should be better options for that one.